Thursday, May 26, 2011

Postpartum Weeks 1 & 2

Whew, I'm just now getting used to my new schedule as a mom.  I thought the transition would be much easier, but I was wrong.  The past 2 weeks have flown by.  I can't believe Logan is already 2 weeks old!!!  There are a lot of things I want to write about, so hopefully I can remember all of them while being concise at the same time :P.

The word for the past couple of weeks is Hormones.  While I was pregnant, I was pretty much normal the entire time.  I got tired and nauseous and whatnot, but Jason had it easy.  I was rarely moody and I felt like myself the whole 9 months.  That changed drastically after Logan was born.  It first hit me the night we came home from the hospital when breastfeeding wasn't working very well.  I broke down and had a good cry because I was so frustrated.  I was ok after that until Wednesday when my parents went home.  We got up early to drive them to the airport, but we didn't leave as early as I had hoped we would.  I was stressed out the whole drive to the airport because I was worried they wouldn't get there on time.  We only got stuck in traffic once and the rest of the trip was "smooth sailing".  I walked them into the airport and had to say goodbye and that was SO difficult.  They had been so helpful during their stay and besides that, I really enjoyed their company and loved having them around.  It was just hard to see them go.  Once we left the airport, I got a text from my mom saying something was wrong with their plane.  It took 2 hours for it to be fixed and their layover in Salt Lake City was only an hour, which meant they would miss their connecting flight.  Once in SLC, they had to wait about 9 hours before they were able to get on another flight to Boise... and from there, they had a 3 hour trip home.  I felt really bad for them and was stressed about it all day.

On top of my parents leaving, Jason decided to go in to work for half of Wednesday, so it was my first time being home alone with Logan.  Everything combined with my hormones made me feel like I had multiple personalities.  I cried about EVERYTHING.  I've never cried so much in my life.  It was pretty horrible.  Since then, I've felt normal but I'm sure I'm not completely out of the woods yet :).

Adjusting to having a baby in the house has been a lot different than I expected.  He sleeps pretty good, but only for about 3 hours at a time.  He's been going to sleep around 1am and then gets up every few hours for feedings.  Last night he went to bed at 11 and I was shocked.  I wasn't tired yet, though, so I couldn't get to sleep, gah.  It's amazing how quickly your world gets flipped and you're following someone else's schedule.  Logan and I are both making adjustments so I'm hoping by the time I go back to work at 6 weeks, we'll both have things figured out... at least a little more than we do right now :).

If you read my Post Delivery entry, you'll know we had a rough start to breastfeeding.  He now latches on and eats like a champ :).  We did buy some ready-to-eat formula bottles just in case, but he's breastfeeding 90% of the time.  My milk took about 4 days to come in and when it did... holy milk, Batman!  Jason has made jokes about my new "enhancements" and I feel like they're a bit out of control :).  I'll have to be extra conscious about what I wear when I go back to church and work, ha :).

My body is slowly morphing back to "normal".  It's strange not having a huge belly anymore, but what's left is excess skin and water retention.  My uterus is going back to its normal size and I still get contractions almost every time I breastfeed.  My incision is healing nicely and it's much easier to get up and around now.  I can walk without cringing in pain.  I ran out of painkillers about 4 days ago and it was rough for the first day or two off of them, but now I'm doing alright.  I still can't sit straight up (from lying down) in bed yet, but my abs are getting stronger so I just have to be patient :).  Here's a pic of me at 2 weeks postpartum... I'm posting it against my better judgment so please be kind ;).



Even though my hormones have been a little wild and I've been pretty stressed out lately, I'm trying to celebrate the small victories.  Here are some of the things that fall into that category:
  • I'm able to take a shower nearly every day... it's on Logan's nap schedule, but I usually have at least 30 minutes :)
  • Most of the swelling in my body is gone - I can now see my ankles and feet and my calves also have some shape to them.  I haven't seen these things in months!
  • I can wear my wedding band again :)
  • I'm eating 3 meals a day and hopefully I won't start forgetting again
Logan is doing really well.  We had his first doctor appointment last week and he had already gained 5oz.  He loves to eat! ;)  The doctor said that she never would've known he has a heart defect if it wasn't in his records.  His heartbeat was good and everything else looked normal.  We have to go back next week and I'm excited to see how much weight he has put on.  He's still a tiny little guy.

We took him to the cardiologist last week as well and he had to get another ultrasound.  The hole in his heart is still there, but it's smaller and we're praying that it will close on its own.  We have to go back for another ultrasound next week and we're praying that there will be a difference.  They are keeping a close watch on his heart, which gives me a little peace of mind, but I still check him multiple times when he's sleeping to make sure he's breathing alright.  I guess the worrying comes with the territory of being a mom :).

Logan seems to be getting more alert each day.  His eyesight seems to be improving too.  Sometimes when he's lying in his Pack 'n Play, he will just stare at the stuffed elephant.  He'll also stare blankly at nothing, but that's beside the point ;).  Since he was born, he has tried to get his thumb in his mouth and it's a challenge for him.  He usually ends up with knuckles or his arm in his mouth because the thumb always gets away.  We try to help him sometimes but He doesn't quite understand what we're doing so he gets upset :).  It's still cute to watch him, though.

Anyway, I think that's about all I have for now.  Here are the development details from my email newsletters :).

**A whole week has passed, but doesn't it seem more like a lifetime? As you're adjusting to feedings and getting by on less sleep, your baby is also adjusting to his new world. He sleeps in short naps, wakes to feed, and spends some time quietly alert before drifting off to sleep again. Babies' eyes focus best on objects between 8 and 15 inches away – not coincidentally, the distance to your face when held in your arms. 

Your womb was a warm and cozy environment, and it takes time for your baby to adjust to the various sights, sounds, and sensations of life outside your body. You may not be able to detect much of a personality just yet as your baby spends his time moving in and out of several different states of sleepiness, quiet alertness, and active alertness.

The only way your baby knows to communicate is by crying, but you can communicate with him through your voice and your touch. (He can now recognize your voice and pick it out among others.)

Your baby probably loves to be held, caressed, kissed, stroked, massaged, and carried. He may even make an "ah" sound when he hears your voice or sees your face, and he'll be eager to find you in a crowd. **

Sorry this is so long, but I'm trying to catch up.  I'll try to get back to posting weekly, but I can't make any promises :)... my schedule is kind-of determined by Logan right now ;).  Here's the little bug sleeping... *melt* :)

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Post Delivery

Note:  This post is mainly for my benefit, so that I can remember what happened in the hospital.  Feel free to read if you'd like, but it may be a little boring and long :).

As soon as a regular room opened up they moved me and I was much more comfortable.  I was hooked up to a pump with a "walking epidural" for the pain, but it honestly didn't do much at all.  I was still hurting a lot.  They said I had to stay in bed for 12 hours and then they would get me up so that I could move around a little.  This meant that I couldn't see Logan for 12 hours, which made me pretty upset :(.  Also, the doctor in the NICU wanted to keep Logan there for 24 hours for observation, so he couldn't come to me.  I wanted to try breastfeeding him within the first hour of his birth, but that obviously wasn't going to happen.  Jason kept going down to NICU and taking videos and pictures of Logan for me.  He made sure I knew exactly what was going on the entire time.  One of the nurses brought a breast pump to my room so that I could start saving up milk for Logan.  The first few times I pumped, I got pretty much nothing out besides a couple drops of colostrum which was very discouraging.  Then I heard that Logan was being fed formula in NICU and that made me even more upset.  We didn't plan on buying/feeding formula, so I was really worried that breastfeeding wouldn't work after he got used to formula.


While Logan was in the NICU, they performed many tests on him including a few echo ultrasounds on his heart.  All of the reports that Jason brought back to me were positive, which really helped me to feel better.  All of the doctors had great things to say about how he was doing.  At first they couldn't even find the hole (VSD) in his heart, so we were hoping that it was closed, but they later found it.  Right now that is one of our main prayers, that it will close on its own.

I was finally allowed to get out of bed at 1am on Friday morning.  The nurse came to my room and helped me get from my bed into a wheelchair and Jason brought me down to the NICU to see Logan.  He was asleep the whole time I held him, but it was so amazing to have him in my arms.  I finally felt like a real mom :).  I don't know how long we stayed there because I was so caught up in looking at my son... his little button nose, his fingers, etc.  He was perfect :).  We finally put him back to bed and went upstairs with plans to come back and feed him in the morning.  When we came back to see him, we both held him for a while and Jason asked the nurse if I could try breastfeeding.  She said she had to check his records and see if I was approved to breastfeed... [insert long very annoyed pause].  I was pretty angry at how they treated his feedings.  Of course I'm glad he was fed, but I was upset that I had to get permission to breastfeed my own baby.


Once we got back to my room, I asked to be weaned off of the epidural pump.  They removed the pump as well as the catheter, so I was only still attached to the IV.  They started giving me Percocet for the pain and it was amazing... much better than the walking epidural.  I was able to take a shower, which helped me to feel a little better and soon we got word from the NICU that as long as the cardiologist felt Logan was doing well enough, he would be released and could stay with us in our room that afternoon.  I was overjoyed at this news.  It took a few hours, because once he was released from the NICU he had to be checked out by the nurses in the regular nursery, but he was finally brought to our room, which made me so happy. 


I tried breastfeeding Logan but it didn't work very well at all.  Logan was confused and he got frustrated very easily.  Then I got frustrated and ended up giving him a bottle of formula.  The nurses kept encouraging me to try nursing him first each time he was hungry and then give him a bottle if it didn't work.  I also had a lactation consultant come to our room a couple of times to help.  I was determined to make breastfeeding work so I was hoping it would just take time and practice for both of us.


That night (Friday) Logan stayed in our room.  He only woke up twice (every 3 hours) which was fine because the nurse was in and out of the room all night so I didn't get much sleep anyway.  Sometime during the night, the IV in my hand came out of the vein so that the IV solution was dripping into my hand.  I woke up and my hand was huge... like if you blow up a latex glove, that's how big my hand was.  The swelling had also gone into my arm.  I told one nurse and she just told me to elevate it and she put a towel underneath my hand (I don't know what she was thinking).  I showed the next nurse that came in and she immediately took the IV out and called for a guy to come and re-insert it into my other hand.  My right hand took forever to drain... I think about 3 days or more of nearly constant leaking. 


On Saturday morning, a few more cardiologists came to check on Logan.  They did another ultrasound and once again came back with a good report.  They told us that Logan was free to leave the hospital.  I thought it was such a blessing that he was free to go and that they were just waiting on me (instead of the other way around).  I was eager to leave, so we made plans to leave the hospital that afternoon.  We just had to wait for Logan to get circumcised and another lactation consultant wanted to work with us one more time.  His circumcision was finished around lunchtime so the LC came by our room at about 2:15.  She was very helpful and was able to get him to latch on perfectly.  I was so grateful for her help because I was on the verge of tears during most of my previous feeding attempts.  Her help gave me a lot of confidence.


As soon as Logan was finished eating, we packed everything up and Jason got the nurse so that we could be discharged.  She came in and made sure we took everything out of the room, including diapers, formula, Medela pump accessories, blankets, socks, etc.  They loaded us up :).  At about 3:00, we were ready to go.  The nurse took me outside in a wheelchair and Jason followed with a cart full of all our stuff.  Logan fell asleep in his car seat and it was a pretty good trip home :).


That night, I had my first hormonal moment.  Logan was hungry and so I tried feeding him, but he got super frustrated and started screaming.  I got frustrated and started crying.  I think I was a little sleep deprived but I still felt a bit like a failure.  Thankfully, when he woke up in the middle of the night that night, he latched on immediately and nursed perfectly :).  I think that was the turning point in breastfeeding and he hasn't had any problems with it since!


When we were sent home, I was told to rest for 2 weeks.  No driving, no walking up and down the stairs, no baths, and no picking up anything bigger than Logan (6.5lbs).  A nurse from Kaiser came to our house on Sunday to remove my staples.  We didn't expect her to come so early on Sunday so we were a bit shocked, especially because we had planned on doing Logan's dedication at church that morning around 11:20.  She got to the house at 10, inspected my incision, took the staples out, and then checked Logan.  She said that we were both doing great except that Logan was a bit jaundiced.  He had a bilirubin level of 6.1 when we left the hospital and she measured him at 10.7.  She told us to put him in indirect sunlight and to feed him more than we already were because the more he pooped and peed, the faster it would get out of his system.


The nurse finished at 11 and we made a mad dash to church.  We showed up just as praise & worship was ending and were immediately called up to the stage.  Baby Logan was dedicated to the Lord and then we came home because I was exhausted (only 3 days after my c-section!) and we didn't want Logan to get mobbed by a bunch of people.  I'm so glad that my parents were able to be there because it made the dedication even more special.  A large part of Jason's family was also there, so we had a nice little crowd :).  I was super emotional during the dedication and was about to cry the entire time, so I'm glad that the only question Pastor Tim asked me was the time of birth, ha :).


That pretty much wraps up the days immediately following Logan's birth.  Not everything went as planned but Logan is safe and healthy and we're both doing well :).

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Labor & Delivery

Here it is... the long awaited story of my labor and Logan's delivery :).  It was quite eventful and definitely didn't go as I had planned, but he arrived safe and healthy, which is what matters more than anything else.

It all started when I went to my scheduled doctor appointment on Wednesday, May 11th at 11:30am.  They took my vital signs and I had to leave a urine sample, as usual.  Then, since I was past my due date, they said I had to be hooked up to their monitors so they could watch my contractions and Logan's heartbeat.  They said I would be monitored for 20 minutes and then the doctor would examine me and then I would be done.  They hooked me up and I sat calmly listening to Logan's heartbeat.  A nurse came in and told me to lie on my side and that's when things changed.  Logan's heartbeat dropped from the 130's down into the 70's and 80's.  The nurse ran back into the room and had me turn from side to side to get it to go back up.  It happened again, so she pulled the cord for the doctor to come in while inserting an IV into my hand and putting an oxygen mask on me.  The doctors ran in and asked "what's your husband's phone number?  You're going to the hospital NOW".  They called Jason and told him to meet me there, but didn't really tell him what was going on.  I told him to call his mom and have her pick up my parents.

They loaded me into an ambulance (craziness) and we headed down to Northside Hospital in Atlanta.  On the way, I called Jason and my parents to offer a small explanation of what was going on.  Apparently the umbilical cord was wrapped around Logan somewhere and was getting pinched when I moved into certain positions.  It also got pinched during some contractions.  The doctor said that once I got to the hospital, they would monitor me again and if Logan's heart was ok they would plan on an induction Thursday morning.  If not, I would have an immediate C-Section.  I joked with the EMT that I had been concerned about getting stuck in traffic when I went into labor, but now I didn't have to worry about that at all :).  We arrived at the hospital and after monitoring Logan for about an hour, they decided he sounded great and that they would go forward with the induction the next morning.

The doctor examined my cervix and said that it was soft, but closed.  Apparently I was no longer 1cm dilated like they had told me a couple weeks before.  They decided to insert something called Cervadil that evening, which would help to soften my cervix and would also help with my contractions.  At this point, I was having contractions every 5-6 minutes, but they weren't too painful yet.  They soon started to get more intense, though, and closer together.  By about midnight, my contractions were 3-4 minutes apart and hurt like h-e-double hockeysticks.  The nurses were great about following my birth plan and did everything they could to accommodate me.  However, during contractions, Logan's cord kept getting pinched and the staff became very concerned about his heart.  They decided to remove the Cervadil and give me some muscle relaxers to slow down the contractions, relax my uterus, and "relieve some of the pain" (HA!).  It worked to space them out a tiny bit, but did nothing for the pain.  It just made me groggy so that when I was about to fall asleep, I would have another contraction and would wake up in pain.  This went on throughout the night so I barely got any sleep.

Thursday morning, my doctor came in and said he had reviewed Logan's heart readings from the last 12+ hours and he was very concerned.  His heart rate continued to drop during contractions, so he didn't think Logan would do well with a vaginal delivery.  He said that depending on where the cord was pinched, when he came through the birth canal, it could be extremely dangerous because his heart rate would drop dramatically and the oxygen would also be cut off, which would most likely result in an emergency c-section and they would only have about 10 minutes to get Logan out safely.  He said that they could proceed with induction but he really felt that a c-section would be the safest route for his delivery.  Jason and I agreed and were told that they would start with my epidural within a couple of hours.

I took a shower and we contacted our families so that they would be there.  Around 12:00 the anesthesia team came to my room and gave me the epidural... which, for the record, I am NOT a fan of.  The shot they put into my spine hurt like crazy and they inserted it during a contraction, which didn't help.  Once they got the epidural in, my body started shaking uncontrollably and I immediately felt nauseous.  I hadn't eaten anything since midnight and stopped drinking anything around 10am, but my stomach was churning.  Also, they inserted the catheter before I was completely numb and that was quite painful :P.  Once I was completely numb from the ribs down (they kept poking me to make sure), they wheeled me into the OR.  I kept telling a nurse that I was nauseous and they had to give me a couple doses of something to help.  I think I was pretty nervous, which added to the nausea.

Jason came into the OR and they started surgery right away.  I think they began around 12:40 and it went really fast.  The whole time, I was praying that Logan would be healthy and that his heart would be strong.  I also prayed that he would breathe well.  My thoughts were a constant stream of prayer.  I didn't care what was happening to me, as long as Logan was fine.  I felt a lot of pressure and pushing and as soon as they started to take Logan out, they told Jason and he stood up and looked over the sheet (?!?!?!?!) which shocked me :).  He even took pictures!  Once they had his head out, the doctor made them stop and said "the umbilical is around his neck..... twice!" as he unwound it... then he pulled him out more and the umbilical cord was also wrapped around his shoulders.  The doctor said it looked like he had spun himself around in my womb.  As soon as Logan was out, the doctor shouted "12:49!" and then I heard the most beautiful sound I can remember hearing in my whole life... Logan's crying :).  As soon as I heard his cry, I started bawling my eyes out and all I could think or say was "thank you, Lord!" 

They immediately took him to a station where they took his vital signs and cleaned him up.  They said his APGAR scores were great (I didn't get the specific numbers).  Then they swaddled him and put him on my chest (see my Logan's First Pictures album on facebook) so that I could see him.  Finally seeing him was surreal... my heart was overflowing with love :).  After about only a minute or two, they took him up to the NICU to be checked and Jason went with him.  The doctors started to sew me up and I asked if they could get rid of my stretch marks while they were at it... they laughed and said "if we knew how to do that, we'd be rich!"  The doctor said he gave me a nice "bikini" incision to which I replied "it's been a looooong time since I last wore a bikini, but thanks" :).

The entire surgery took maybe 30 minutes from start to finish and I was wheeled into Recovery.  They had me wiggle my toes and lift my knees a few times to prove that the epidural was wearing off.  A nurse came in and said "don't move too much... the placenta is in between your feet", ha!  It was in a tub but I still thought it was odd/funny.  After maybe 15 minutes or so, Jason came in with some pictures and videos of Logan.  I am so thankful to have such an awesome husband.  He was going back and forth to check on me and Logan the entire time and he made sure I saw plenty of Logan and knew exactly what was going on while I was unable to see him.


Continued soon in my "Post Delivery" post... :)

Sunday, May 8, 2011

40 Weeks

My belly button has been signaling that Logan is "done" for over a month now, but now the timer is finally showing the same thing.  I've reached 40 weeks and am ready to have this baby :).  I think something psychological  clicked on Friday (my due date) and I immediately became very emotional and frustrated.  I want him to be here sooooo much.  I'm so excited to meet him and be his mommy :).  I know the due date isn't an exact science, but I was really hoping he would be here by now.  It doesn't help that I'm still working full-time and I really want to stop working for a while and be with my baby.  I think all things combined are making me grumpy :).

Anyway, this week was pretty good.  I had my final ultrasound on Tuesday and everything looked the same.  His "breathing" is still good and he's still healthy.  His estimated weight is 6lbs 11oz (plus or minus a pound) and the only thing of note that the doctor said is that his belly is a little small.  He said it isn't anything to be concerned about... he'll probably just be long and skinny when he's born.  Definitely the opposite of Jason's 10lbs 12oz! :)  I had a regular checkup the same day of my ultrasound and the doctor said I haven't progressed any further.  He said that that's common, though, and most of the time women don't progress until they're in active labor.  He did say that my cervix is nice and soft, though... yay... and you're welcome ;).  I know you wanted to hear that :).

My parents flew in from Oregon on Thursday and have been helping clean the house and get things ready for Logan's arrival.  Everything is pretty much done, so we're just playing the waiting game.  We walked around quite a bit yesterday and I got a few pains.  We're going to leave in a few minutes to do some more walking, so hopefully that'll do the trick :).

That's about it for now.  I'm praying that labor will start today so that I don't have to go to work tomorrow.  I'm tired of people popping into my office asking, "still pregnant?" :P  Anyway, here is the last (hopefully) pregnancy update:
  • It's hard to say for sure how big your baby will be, but the average newborn weighs about 7 1/2 pounds (a small pumpkin) and is about 20 inches long. 
  • His skull bones are not yet fused, which allows them to overlap a bit if it's a snug fit through the birth canal during labor. This so-called "molding" is the reason your baby's noggin may look a little conehead-ish after birth. Rest assured — it's normal and temporary.
I guess that doesn't say much, but that'll work for now :).  Please be praying that Logan makes his exit soon... we're ready and waiting for him! :)

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Nursery Photos

The nursery is done!  Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure :).








39 Weeks

Less than a week to go until my due date :).  Everyone seems to be really excited and we are too!  The car seat is in my car, the nursery is done, the bags are packed and we're just waiting for Logan to give us the "go ahead" :).

I had a checkup on Tuesday and it went pretty well.  My blood pressure was a bit high again so the doctor told me to take it easy and keep an eye on it.  I've been trying to rest and put my feet up when I can, especially since my feet and ankles have been really swollen.  Also, my right index finger swells up a little bit every once in a while so I'm hoping that's not anything to be concerned about.  I'll ask the doctor when I go back in on Wednesday.  Anyway, she checked my cervix and said I'm 1cm dilated and 50% effaced.  She said that Logan is at -2 station, which means he was still a little high in my pelvis.  It feels like he has dropped a little bit each day, though, so I'm hoping I'll have a different number this week (if I haven't already gone into labor beforehand).  I'm just excited that there has been some progress.  I definitely feel more pressure in my pelvis, so I know something's going on in there :).

Also this week, I lost my mucus plug (eew), but that's not something I wanted to publicly announce on facebook.  Even though it's a normal part of pregnancy, it's not something that you hear about until you're pregnant.  I guess it's just another one of those pleasant things that pregnant women don't talk about... just like the gas, bloating, round ligament pain, all-day sickness, headaches, dry sinuses, changed eyesight, forgetfulness, bloody show, etc.  Sounds fun, right? ;)  It's funny how guys react to different pregnancy-related things.  As soon as a woman becomes pregnant, she starts reading about everything that will happen to her body and the baby as it grows so that she has a pretty good understanding of things including the mucus plug.  However, men pretty much stay oblivious to these things and might pay attention maybe 30% of the time that we complain.  I think it helps that we have menstrual cycles every month of our life starting somewhere in our teens, so we're used to "gross" things happening with our body.  Anyway, I yelled downstairs to tell Jason about the plug on Wednesday morning.  I said "something gross happened" and he said "I don't want to know" and I said "I lost something" and he said "that's gross but good for you", ha.  And that was that.

Anyway, on to less awkward topics.  Some of my new coworkers threw a surprise baby shower for me on Thursday.  It was definitely a surprise!  I had no idea what was going on so when they all yelled "surprise" I felt pretty stupid, ha :).  It was so thoughtful of them.  They ordered food from Chili's along with a Publix cake and ice cream.  They also all chipped in and bought about $200 worth of presents from our registry.  I was very grateful and touched that they did all that after knowing me for just a mere 4 weeks :).

I've been getting small contractions, but they're very irregular and not very intense.  My parents think Logan's going to be a Mother's Day baby, so I guess we'll see :).

I think that's all I have for this week, so here are details from a different weekly newsletter (planningfamily has had the same info for the past couple weeks):
  • Your baby's waiting to greet the world! He continues to build a layer of fat to help control his body temperature after birth, but it's likely he already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds, a mini watermelon. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of his skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath.
  • Are you counting down the days? Ready or not, at 39 weeks pregnant, there's a baby coming to a birth canal near you.  And these last few days (or last couple of weeks, if your baby's tardy) may speed by or drag out.  You're probably feeling increasingly uncomfortable by now, as you drag around your ever-heavier uterus and its contents, achier and achier in the pelvis as your baby bears down.  Braxton Hicks contractions are likely increasing in strength and frequency, and that's a good thing, since it means your body's gearing up for the big event.  
Sounds fun, huh? :)  My next appointment is on Wednesday and I also have an ultrasound immediately following.  My parents fly in on Thursday and my official due date is Friday :).  It's going to be a pretty eventful week... and hopefully Logan will come soon after my parents get here.