He's Here!

James Joseph Lilley III arrived yesterday at 2:43pm. He's a tiny little peanut weighing in at 5 lbs. 15 oz and measuring 18 3/4 inches. It took him awhile to make his way into the world, but we're so excited that James is finally here! Pictures and updates to come.

Fail

Leave it to me to fail my labor induction. That's not exactly what the doctor called it. He said the induction was "unsuccessful", but it sure feels like a big fat F. Who even knew that an induction could be unsuccessful? I was induced yesterday morning and given the maximum dose of Pitocin for 8 hours, but I failed to dilate. So we get to start all over with the process again this morning. The baby looks great, and I'm being monitored very (too) closely. They will only let me get out of bed for about an hour a day. Thank you for all your calls, emails and texts. We'll keep you posted, and hopefully we'll have some news to share at some point today. Stay tuned.

We're Having a Baby!

In an unexpected change of events, Jim and I are in the hospital and getting ready to welcome our son into the world! Coming to the hospital was the last thing I expected to be doing yesterday. I was actually working from home, enjoying a beautiful sunny afternoon with Max on the back porch. Out of nowhere I received a phone call from my doctor's office telling me to go to labor and delivery and be prepared to have a baby! What?! Not the call I was expecting at all. I had some lab work done last Friday because they found protein in my urine, and they were concerned about pre-eclampsia. I had more tests over the weekend and went back to the doctor on Monday. They did more lab work, but said it probably wasn't pre-eclampsia but wanted to be sure. My blood pressure has been low during my whole pregnancy, so no one seemed too concerned. Well apparently they didn't like what they saw in the lab work so they decided to induce me. I guess pre-eclampsia can hit very suddenly out of no where and get very serious very quickly. The only cure is delivery, so better safe than sorry. So here we are! My blood pressure has been way up since we got here, but the baby is doing great. They've started me on Pitocin, so now all we do is wait. The worst part is I'm stuck in bed. Not good for my fidgety, can't sit still personality. Let's hope this goes by quickly, and we have a baby very soon.

The Home Stretch

Well we're in the home stretch now. Only 10 days to go until my due date. Everything seems to be in order, and both the baby and I are doing well. The nesting continues, but I'm quickly running out of projects and room in my freezer and on my shelves. My doctor says the baby is definitely head down and thinks he weighs around 7 to 7 1/2 pounds, which all sounds good to me. Sleep is definitely getting harder to come by. I'm exhausted all the time, but it's hard to get comfortable. Plus I wake up every few hours to go to the bathroom, but I'm not complaining. I'm sure this sleep is going to seem amazing in a few weeks! Here's a 38 week belly picture for your viewing pleasure.

Last Day!

Friday was my last day in the office, and while I'm definitely excited, it's a little bittersweet. Yes you heard me right. I'm a little sad about not going to work. Who would have ever thought that I'd ever be saying that. I am going back (at least that's the plan), but 26 weeks is a long time to be gone. It took me long enough, but I finally found a job I actually like. After being a glorified secretary for 3 years, it's nice to feel like a real lawyer where people actually listen to you and want your advice. Sometimes I find it a bit scary that they take my advice, but that's a whole other story. It came down to the wire, but we closed a deal on Friday that we had been working on for over a year. I think I worked harder in my last week than I had during my last 2 years. In any event it felt great to get that done, and my boss was definitely thrilled not to have to deal with it while I'm out.

On Thursday my entire floor surprised me with a baby shower. Of course to get me there my boss again invited me to a meeting, which I declined and asked to reschedule (and they did), but at least this time they learned their lesson and didn't even attempt to schedule the meeting before noon! I was shocked by their generosity. We got clothes, stuffed animals, rattles, an adorable cake made out of diapers, giftcards which I can use to buy our jogging stroller, and best of all, a day at the spa for me after the baby is born! It was really too much and very unexpected. I guess they really do like me!

So it looks all we do now is wait. I think most of our to do list is complete, so I'm supposed to spend this weekend relaxing. We'll have to see if that's actually possible!

Full Term

We've made it to 37 weeks, and the baby is now considered full term. I guess that means he could come at any time, although I haven't made much progress as of my appointment on Friday afternoon. According to my doctor's estimate, I probably have some time, but you never know. At Friday's appointment the swelling in my feet and legs was pretty bad and my blood pressure was elevated, so I had to go back on Monday morning to get checked. Luckily my blood pressure went back down and the swelling seemed to decrease slightly over the weekend. I now get to wear these very stylish knee high compression stockings to try to improve my circulation. It actually takes both Jim and me to put them on!

My newest obsession seems to be stock piling all kinds of items in our cupboards and shelves. I'm not sure if this is a form of nesting or just my OCD at it's best. Jim says if a hurricane strikes we are sure to be prepared. For example last week I went out and bought 15 pounds of sugar and 15 pounds of flour. Why you may ask? Because I don't want us to run out. It's not like we use an extraordinary amount of sugar and flour, and babies definitely don't need sugar or flour. It's just that I have this feeling that I am never going to be able to go to the grocery store after the baby arrives, and you just never know when you may need sugar or flour. Some other interesting items I have stocked up on include: extra sharp cheddar, vanilla extract, black peppercorns, cream cheese, heavy duty aluminum foil, butter, and coffee. Since my freezer is already filled with casseroles, I'll just have to start baking to use up all this other stuff.

October Already?!

We have officially made it to October, so now we can finally say that we are having a baby this month! I can't believe October is here already. I don't know where the last nine months have gone. Fall has officially made it's debut in the Carolinas, and here in Charlotte we are experiencing that absolutely perfect fall weather that makes one remember why we all live here. The air is crisp, the sun is shining, and the sky is a perfect shade of Carolina Blue. All of our neighbors are getting ready for Halloween. Every where I look there are mums, pumpkins, spider webs, and other ghoulish decorations, all reminding me that our little guy is going to be here before we know it. And yes I've got a Halloween outfit (or two) ready for him, assuming that he doesn't wait more than a week after his due date to make his debut into the world.

Generally I've been feeling pretty good lately, other than the swelling in my feet and legs. I've tried to take a picture to illustrate just how swollen I am, but I just don't think these pictures do it any justice. I haven't been able to wear anything but flip flops in weeks and even my sneakers are too tight these days. At least we get to post a picture of Max who in typical Max fashion has to put himself right in the middle of things.