January 30, 2007

Baby Update

Wow. Amazingly, I am exactly 6 weeks away from my due date today. Someone remarked to me that time flies when it's someone else's pregnancy, but I'm thinking the same thing! WHERE have the past few months gone?! I know we've lived through them, but all of a sudden, here we are, expecting our fourth child in a month and a half, and I'm still trying to figure out if we have any baby girl clothes or not! (I did spend about an hour sorting through things in my closet earlier today, and I managed to locate the Boppy and the Baby Bjorn carrier, so that's something, at least!)

The answer to the Big Question is yes, we do have a name picked out, one that we both prayed over and agree fits perfectly. The answer to the next Big Question is no, we won't tell you what the name is. :-) We do let people know that we're having a girl, so we have to keep something a surprise, right?! But to soothe the pain and rejection of not being able to know the name ahead of time, I'll post some of my pregnancy and baby trivia for you to enjoy instead.

* All of our children have 2 syllables in both the first and middle names: Charis Noelle, Tobin Michael, and Arden Daniel. The exception is the baby I miscarried last year--I named her Aliana Elizabeth, and you can read about that by clicking here and scrolling down to the entry with her name.

* All middle names contain "El," the Hebrew word for God.

* All names are carefully chosen based on their meaning.

* So far, in these 34 weeks of pregnancy, I have gained 23 pounds. I'm on track to having the least amount of weight gain yet--wahoo!

* Our little girl is extremely active in the early mornings when I have my hot tea as well as in the evenings from about 8-11 p.m. She is currently doing some type of gymnastics and reminding me that my bladder is at her mercy.

* During all of my pregnancies, in the last couple of months, I get a numb spot on my right side towards the top of my belly. Sometimes it gets that tingly, pins-and-needles feeling, and other times it's just numb. It's annoying at night because I can't sleep on my right side without being awakened by the tingles.

* I'm not sure which I miss the most--my skinny ankles or my brain. I know my ankles will return to normal after the birth, but I'm never quite sure about my brain...

* Average number of trips to the bathroom each night: 2

* Average number of trips to the bathroom each day: No idea. Too many to count.

* Average weight gain of my other 3 pregancies: 37.5 pounds.

* All our babies have come within 2 days of their due dates: Charis was 2 days early, Tobin was 2 days late, and I went into labor with Arden the night he was due and had him the next morning.

OK! It's Baby Pool time! If you'd like to participate, email me with your guesses on the following. We'll see who's the closest in each category! Prizes may or may not be given out...who knows?!

* Date and time of birth (My due date is March 12.)
* Birth weight
* Length
* Duration of labor

If you'd like to compare with our other children, here are the stats:
CHARIS: Due October 20, born October 18, 2000, 7:41 p.m. 6 lbs, 13 oz, 20 1/4" long, 17 hours of labor.

TOBIN: Due April 11, born April 13, 2002, 2:08 a.m. 7 lbs, 10.9 oz, 19.9" long, 6 hours of labor.

ARDEN: Due October 17, born October 18, 2003, 9:24 a.m., 7 lbs, 9.9 oz, 18.7" long, 11 hours of labor.

6 comments:

Bob and Claire said...

Oooh, a guessing game! I'll play!

Birth date: March 13, 10:35 AM

Weight: 7 pounds, 7 ounces

Length: 19 3/4 inches

Labor duration: 5 hours

I have to say I completely agree with you about this pregnancy flying past--both yours and mine! Actually, I can keep up with yours really well since I was due March 28 last year with Anna! Wow--only 23 pounds! That's great! I've gained 22 pounds so far, and I'm only 26 weeks! I have always gained 35 pounds, so I am expecting this one to be the same, and I'm pretty much on track. I have exercised the most consistently this time around, though, so I think I've felt pretty good. My back has started bothering my a bit lately though--I guess there's not much to do about that, LOL! I can't wait to hear this little one's name! : )

Anonymous said...

I'll play!
Birth date: March 10, 8:12pm

Weight: 8 lbs 2 oz

Lengh: 18 3/4 inches long

Labor duration: 14 hours from the time contractions start. (Are you counting from the time the contractions start or when hard labor starts?)

Beverly said...

I count from when the contractions start! I like your guess of the birth date the best so far, though I'm hoping she'll be less than 8 pounds! :-) Megan has me delivering on the 14th, 2 days past the due date...sooner rather than later is my preference, but of course babies don't ask us when we want them to come!

Anonymous said...

My contractions started and stopped for a week before Evan showed up. And I walked around dilated to 4 cm for three weeks! But when real, active labor started, it was all over in four hours. I still prefer to think that I had a four-hour labor, not a six-day one. :)

Anonymous said...

* Date and time of birth:
March 15, 12:42 pm.
* Birth weight: 7 lbs, 10 oz.
* Length: 19.5 inches
* Duration of labor: 7 hours

Beverly said...

I'm copying Megan's guesses here so I can look at them all in one place:

* Date and time of birth: March 14 (my dad's b-day) at 8:45 p.m.
* Birth weight: 8 lb. 2 oz.
* Length: 20"
* Duration of labor: 5 hours

It'll be a girl and the middle name will be Rachel.