August-how you doing? Pre-labor?

[lou]

Hello!!! nice to know I'm not the only one in misery right now!!!! I'm due august 26but at my last ultrasound he measured big (4lbs 5 ounces at 31 weeks) and she gave me a due date of Aug. 18th. yeah getting closer!!! though with my luck he'll be late and won't come till some time in sep. so AJ you and I could go on the same day, I didn't see though, boy or girl? and names? Myboysmom I can't remember if I read that you decided a name? must be an attack of the Prego brain!!! I forget everything nowadays. BTW thanks for thinking of me Myboysmom! moving sucks, though to be honest my fiance has done most everything. I mostly sit and point, he he he!!!!we still have to sell the house we're in now before we can officially move but we have started packing and moving things to the other house already that we don't use often, like pictures, nicnacs, etc. also the country house was damaged in a storm and is now missing 1/2 the shingles and as a result we got water damage, in the baby's room none the less. so we have to replace the shingles and the ceiling in the baby's room too. Arg! and the snapping turtles, they're everywhere out there and they get that size and bigger as the one you found AJ. there's a creek that runs right behind the house and leads to a pond. the pond is full of them and we see them in the driveway out there all the time. they leave the pond and go through the side and front yard, across the street to lay eggs in the feilds. after the farmers plow, the dirt is soft and easy to move. so basically we have a snapping turtle migration path through our yard out there. I worry about this alot as I've two stepsons 7 and 9 that love to play with snakes etc. I'm worried that despite our warnings and prohibiting them from the pond one will attempt to capture one of these and lose a finger. ah, the joys of having boys! with daughters you'd never have to worry about those things.
I'm 33 1/2 weeks now though according to the last Ultrasound I'm 34 1/2 weeks. I have all the same complaints as the two of you, god aren't the hips the worst!! sometimes I feel like my hip will pop and my legs will just give out right underneeth of me. and the lower back pain, my god it hurts. sometimes it almost feels like this pulsing throbing muscle ache. As far as contractions go before this week I didn't really feel anything, my stomache would just get really tight. but the last couple days every once and in a while I get this sort of cramping sensation that's sort of painful. unlike the two of you this is my first so I haven't a clue what to expect, so I'm going to assume these are contractions? my back is also killing me towards the middle under my shoulder blades. I'm assuming this is a result of the significant weight in my front that my posture compensates for. how about those feet?!!! mine are slightly swollen and ache all the time and my knees too. I hate having to walk anywhere. I considered going to work at night just so I could park right by the door and not have to walk all that way, especially in the heat though it has been a mild summer so far (I work in a state building and am allowed to pretty much make my own hours, but I'm not a state employee, federal contractor, though that's not much better!!!) what I can't believe though is that you two did this more than once! are you crazy?!!!!! I'm sure it's worth every ache and pain though, at least it better be!!! and aj, china? I think I would have flipped!
I'm starting to realize now that I should get a move on my preparations, like packing the hospital bag, washing the baby clothes, disinfecting all the used items I recieved, etc.. are you guys ready yet or am I the only slacker?

[alwaysAJ]

Well, it was either I cook or we go out to eat and I pay the consequences later with acid reflux! I'm having contractions again, every few minutes, and they don't hurt--but it feels like they're pushing him further down in my crotch. That part hurts, as far as the pressure on my pelvic bone. Then I have this need to go to the bathroom, but I can't (#2). As I'm sitting here with my feet propped up, it feels like my left leg went numb because he turned his head (I think?). I dunno, this is getting annoying! And, yet again, my kids are fighting. My oldest is usually my sweetie, with my second being my "Devil Spawn". I call it Second Born Syndrome (I was #2, and I was a hellion, so I know I deserve it). Then my third is hitting the terrible twos, but she won't talk, so she just whines that "eh, eh, eh" all the time or screams at me or her siblings. I actually hid in the bathroom this afternoon to get a few peaceful moments on the phone. Otherwise, their noise echos through the house thanks to the wonderful hardwood floors (look great, but a pain on the eardrums and I hate cleaning them all the time!).
It sounds like your son is hitting the Terrible Five's. I don't know why people refer to only the terrible two's, because kids hit it every year--right when they realize they have a new "independant thinking" skill they need to take out on their parents. Also, if he's chewing on his animal, check his back molars. He may be teething. If so, give him some children's tylenol (esp at night) or even children's motrin (an anti-inflammatory). I think both my kids got molars around that age. The Captain Destructo behavior does sound a bit strange if he isn't normally like that. Seeing as how he isn't an only child, that bodes well, but he may still have a fear of slipping out of your favor now that you're having another child. I guess the only thing that might help is to sit him down and talk to him about his fears. He may be evasive at first, but just talk to him (such as telling him stories about you and siblings--if you have any--growing up together). He might open up then.
Oh crap, the baby just did something. It feels like the center of my pelvic bone is breaking in half, and the pressure isn't letting up. I'm almost afraid to stand up now. Wish me luck (on that). And good luck, yourself (with the kids).
Don't worry about rambling, I'm long winded myself (so much to say, so few to hear).

[alwaysAJ]

Hey Lou! I think I read in another thread about your moving preperations (my spelling sucks, sorry--I type too fast to care). Sounds a lot like what I did recently (point and grunt). I did do a lot of packing and moving of the small stuff, but that was about it. We "migrated" to the new house over a period of the last 3 months. Our other house sat vacant as of April 2nd (except for misc things stuffed in closets... all the furniture and major items were moved that day). Everything else, such as the basement things, got moved as we needed them. Then we had the contractors come in and finish the basement drywall (there was one wall my husband didn't finish because he intended to run plumbing for the wet bar), then we had the house cleaned, and the carpets cleaned, and then the AC broke (total, $2800), and the pool cover needed fixed (total $1000 for the pool cover to be sewn back onto its tracks, about $400 in chemicals to get the pool back in crystal clear condition after it sat with no cover and not running for three weeks, $200 to "open the pool".... sheesh). And the heater for the pool isn't working now, and the electric gate to the back is not opening (it was working when we moved, because my husband moved one of his Harleys to the new house and had to use it). God! Its just one thing after another with that house. Don't get me started on THIS one. They're both newer homes, but he was the first and only owner of that home (had everything made to his specific wants/needs--I just got all the perks because I moved in after everything had been completed). This home was owned by a couple, um... weirdos? Whatever we saved on the purchase (okay, we did get it for a steal, about $60,000 less than it is worth thanks to the cruddy housing market) we resank back into prepping it to our needs. And we still have another 2 motorcycles and a classic car to move (my husband's toys from BEFORE me and my kids. He doesn't get those anymore), and nowhere to put them. Anyway, getting the house on the market last weekend and getting 2 interested parties at the first open house? Priceless. Let's just see if they go anywhere.
Okay, 'nough about the darned house (its a sore spot with me sometimes). We're having a boy this time, named Jacob Alexander. This will be added to our almost 2 year old daughter Kodi, and then my 6 year old son Devin and 7 year old (almost 8! if you ask her) daughter Chloe from my previous marriage. My older 2 are only with me about half the time, the rest they spend with their father--so I get my breaks in between (although I lose their help, so it evens itself out). Kodi is with me full time, as I'm a stay at home mother.
You want to know something that I know will make you laugh? Earlier this evening, I was sitting in the half bathroom when Kodi knocked to come in (I get NO privacy). I let her in, and thought "hey, wouldn't it be a good idea to show her how to turn the bottom of her potty seat over to use as a step stool so she can use the sink?" Uh, why I thought at the time she needed to use the sink is beyond me. As I turned it over and she realized what it was, I immediately had this bad sense of foreboding, like maybe that was a mistake. Well, ladies, it was a mistake. While writing this long-winded tribute to nothing, I had to go to the bathroom (again). I go in there, and soon after she knocks on the door and wiggles the handle (hey, at least she knocks, right?). I unlocked the door and told her she could come in, but she wandered away (which is very strange, she likes to give me my toilet paper so much...). I should have known right then that something was up. So I finish in the bathroom and head into the kitchen to do something (can't recall what it was), and up comes Kodi.............holding the vast tub of petroleum jelly out to me as some sort of offering. There is PJ all over her from her hands up to her elbows, all over her stomach, on her chin, on her legs. And she has somehow put her swim shoes on. She is otherwise naked (except for her diaper) thanks to the spaghetti dinner. She was so adorable, but my eyes still popped out of my head as I'm thinking "Dear Lord! Don't touch anything, anything!" and I'm freaking out about where else the PJ is in the house (uh, my husband's italian leather couch, or maybe one of the suede lazyboys we just bought?). You can see where my train of thought is going. I walk her into my bathroom and ask her to stand still while I start the hot water (it is the furthest from the heater, so it takes forever to arrive) before running a bath. Then I try to somehow wipe the PJ that is now covering me off. Yeah, that wasn't easy. Then I turn on her and use the towel to wipe off all the excess and toss her in the tub with me standing in the water. In the meantime, she actually didn't touch anything! I was so proud of her (even if we were in this mess because of her). Thank God for my 7 year old, because she came in upon hearing all the commotion and hopped in the tub too (I had already cleaned Kodi off at this point). That bought me enough time to go and wipe off the bathroom door handle and figure out where else was covered in PJ. Apparently, she took the old nursing stool and used it as a step-stool to get into the top drawer of her changing table. Aren't I the smart one? At least there was only PJ on her, me, the door handle, the tub of PJ (and the sink that I set it in) and the outside of that drawer.
The moral to the story? Let your kids figure things out on their own!

[myboysmom]

You are so right about the 2nd child syndrome!! Please tell that with the 3rd it gets better? I won't hold my breath. You should have taken a picture of your shiny toddler! LOL I can laugh at all your stories, even though I have the same things going on at my house and they are not the least bit funny.

As far as the baby's name, we've got William, Dane, and this one will be Nicholas. I like Jacob Alexander, AJ. lou, have you picked out anything for your boy?

AJ, since you wrote another post, I'm going to assume the pelvis is still functioning? LOL Everything thing you've said about the contractions and the bathroom breaks and the numbness could have been taken from my mouth. Maybe we're closer together than first thought? This morning at about 6 am I woke screaming from the most painful charlie horse in the back of my calf I can remember from either of the first two pregnancies. Thank God my hubby was in bed, b/c I wouldn't have been able to bend or reach around to massage it very quickly! Then about 2 1/2 hours after that, my favorite, the ab muscle cramps started again. I had this at the very end of my 2nd preg. and didn't know what it was for sure. It was so painful, I ended up going to the er to make sure it wasn't appendicitis or anything. So I'm not worried about them this time, they just hurt like hell for no apparent reason! I had 2 more pretty good contractions this morning, too. The BH just feel like my stomach tightening, and it kind of takes my breath away. But the real thing starts way down lower and basically feels like a band of pain squeezing around my abs, hips, and back, which all already ache mildly most of the time. Since my last post, I have decided that I am more ready than not!

Lou, My first 2 preg.s weren't bad at all compared to this 3rd one. My body must be more out of shape or on strike or something. LOL I have had to spend more time sitting than standing and more time driving than walking. It's so frustrating, not just b/c of gas prices, but I feel like I"m letting my kids down since it's summer and mommy's not much fun. But, like my mom said, they'll get over it if they're not already and won't remember much of it. I'm hoping I can get around and take them to the beach in the morning. They can dig in the sand and splash around, and I can catch some sun and relaxation. (God Willing!)

We've been working pretty constantly on our farmhouse that we are renovating, at least I was until the last couple of days. My mom has been helping me paint the rooms. We've got 6 done and only. . . . 10 more rooms to go? I think that's right. Plus we still have to sand the floors (All Hardwood) and stain the windows. My dh has been working on the bathroom installations and it's actually going pretty good. Right now we are in this 2 bedroom and it's just not big enough anymore. By fall or early winter, we should be moved though! Then we, too, have to try to sell our house in town. Hopefully it will rather quickly! IDK, there are several houses for sale in town right now.

[myboysmom]

I was also going to add last night, but was tired and forgot, my kids are really good at stressing me out, but also at making me smile!! Yesterday and today my 2 1/2 yo has been full of "I love you Mommy" and patting my arm and snuggling with me. Definitely makes me remember why I wanted a third!

Of course, it rained all morning today, so the beach idea was out. The boys were disappointed, but I told them tomorrow, hopefully!

Lou, weren't you the one having trouble with your fiancee's ex and the boys' schedules? How's that going?

[alwaysAJ]

Wow, it feels like it's been forever since I posted last :P. Sorry, my internet has been spotty because they were upgrading the local service area (or so they say...).
How is everyone doing, survive the weekend okay? I have been cleaning all day, which is wierd. I can't be nesting (WAY too early for that, yet). I put the car seats in yesterday (all 4 of them woohoo!). Then I took them out and rearranged them and put them back in again. And then again, and then again. You know, trying to find the best fit without loosing all my cargo space. Sigh. Turned out nicely, though! I still have the ability to put 2 additional people in besides myself and my 4 kids. And I also managed to pull all the seats apart and clean all the pieces (Kodi's was smelling kinda funky, like spoiled milk). I am so glad we bought another car seat for the baby instead of reusing Kodi's old infant car seat. They seem to have upgraded their designs a little bit--like hers only had foam padding between the baby's head and the plastic. Now they have foam AND styrofoam padding. "Energy absorbing" I think they called it. It just seems to feel more comfortable. And the fabric seems to be different, like it will wipe clean better. Once I got everything in place, I realized how much happier I was buying the new one vs buying a new cover for the old one (hers is all pink... kind of demasculating for a baby boy, you think? My husband did.) And there was only a $7 or $9 price difference between the two (the cover was around $65 or something plus tax and shipping, and the new car seat was $79 with free shipping).
How are you guys and the whole swelling thing? I went to the doc on Wed and no swelling. I start swelling on Thursday, and it gets worse every day. I happened to wear shorts today, and I looked down at my legs and realized how fat my legs look. My blood pressure is still low, and everything else checks out fine (so no medical concerns).
Well, my house is clean, I've eaten dinner (thanks to my husband, who grilled an awesome meal at a reasonable time), and now I'm ready to just sit back and relax. And prowl the forums

[myboysmom]

Yea, we made it to the beach! We went Sunday morning for an hour and the boys had a blast. And a bonus: My grandma fixed a noon dinner for everyone! Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, homemade gravy, greenbeans from the garden, homemade rolls. . . . And she is the BEST cook ever! (Sorry Mom!) For desert we had choc. cake and homemade ice cream. Mmmm. . . I felt even fatter, if that's possible!
I have over done it a bit today, though. It started last night. We got a new bagless vacuum b/c our other took a dump and me thinking about company in the next couple of weeks, well, it was driving me nuts to say the least! So I spent probably 45 min. playing with my new "toy" last night. Then this morning I spent more time on laundry and cleaning out under the kitchen sink (B/C it HAS to be done, right?) and was sore by the time I was through. So, I took it easy the rest of the afternoon. I took the boys to the pool tonite, but again, didn't get in with them. Bad Mommy! I am definitely to the point where I can't wait to feel "normal" again!

AJ, that sucks about the swelling!! Knock on wood, I've never had a problem with that. At least your bp is still low, that's awesome! You're really making me think about the carseat thing now, too. I still have my first son's seat from 5 years ago, and it has not expired yet. I had my Parents as Teachers home visitor check it out (she is certified for that sort of thing) and she said it was fine. But I have yet to try all three seats out. We have a 2002 Tahoe, so I know they will fit, but the order of the seats still has to be figured out. I think my 5 yo will have to sit in between the baby and the toddler. . . . b/c he can buckle himself in. . . But now that I think about it, the middle seat does not have a shoulder strap. I may have to put the 3rd row seats back in and have him sit back there, if he will. Who knew having 3 or more would be such a hassle? lol I'm sure my mom didn't worry too much about the 3 of us (me & my 2 younger bros) fitting in the car. Of course, I also remember times that all 5 of us would head into town in my dad's regular cab pickup with baby bro on Mom's lap. Not kosher now!
Well, I guess, my hips are starting to hurt again, so I'll close out for now. Hope all August mommies are doing well! BTW, don't you think it's strange that the three of us are all having boys in August? I wonder what the other moms are having.

[myboysmom]

Well, I'm up to a dr. appt. every week! I'm 36 1/2 weeks and about a "fingertip dialated" is what she told me today. I have been extra achy the past two days around the hips and abdomen. And this morning I have noticed that I have definitely "dropped". I think it's wishful thinking, but I really think it will be a week or less. (Now that the words are out of my mouth, I'll go past my due date. ) How are your guys' dr. appt's going?

[alwaysAJ]

My doctor appt went well, they did an ultrasound and determined he is 6 pounds 12 oz, and they moved my due date up to August 11th (because he will be too big to go full term, like over 10 pounds). At my next doc appt, they will schedule my induction (for around the 11th). This is a relief, because I never quite know when I'm in labor, since I can drop, dilate, and do all the contraction thing for weeks before they let me have the baby (because my water never breaks on it's own). I can't count how many times I went to the hospital, only to do the "walk of shame" back to the car. It is also a relief, because it gives me a specific date, and I can plan it around my older 2 kids' visitation schedule with their dad--so, hopefully, they will be with him when I give birth (rather than me have to send them off to a relative's home and loose my time with them). I'm darn near nuerotic about trying to plan my calander out (otherwise, my attention span wanders and nothing ever gets done). It is also a relief, because if they induce me around the 11th, he should only be around 9 pounds.

Anyway, I'm putting my money in the pot that you'll give birth in 9 days!!! I know, that isn't a week, but that is just the "feeling" I get . Keep me posted!!!!

PS--I've also dropped and dilated some, effaced some, and the swelling is from him dropping (as well as my need to pee every 15 minutes). The nesting thing came and went, and I think I had my *itchiest day yesterday. Hopefully. I don't think anyone can take that from me much longer, or if it gets worse!

[brittneeskidmore]

So I was intrigued after realizing that you were both so close and went to look for a forum where you both (AJ and myboysmom) said when you were due and happened to stumble on this one. I can't believe you're so close (I'm very sure you can believe it, though!).

I read this entire thing and have to say that I can't wait. I'm only 15 weeks (due beginning of January) but it's my first and, even though I know I'm going to go through a lot of pain, I just feel like it's such an exciting time and I can't wait to feel those things you all are feeling. I'm positive that when it actually does happen I'm going to complain like crazy, but I am so glad to have had the opportunity to read your all's thoughts about being "almost there".

Good luck to you both! I sure to heck hope my kid isn't 9 pounds! I know you've had them bigger than that, and I commend you!
When did you all find out if it was a boy or girl? I was looking on that week by week guide, and it doesn't really say when the sex is determinable, and my doctor hasn't said either.