The Growing Caldwell Family

I took a lot of care to prepare for Charlie’s birth.  I did some mental preparation by participating in Fear 2 Freedom and also taking the Birthing from Within class to help me be ready for this birth.  Physically I prepared by having chiropractic care throughout the pregnancy, resting more, and drinking a combination of herbal teas to strengthen me for birth.  I also knew more about what to do or not do for optimal fetal positioning.  I feel it all paid off and I am so glad I did it.  The journey didn’t unfold quite like any birth I have ever heard of, but it was exactly the birth that I wanted.   When I went for my appointment at 40 weeks and 6 days, I was anxious about starting labor.  I was anxious for Chubby’s well being and also for the possible interventions that would follow if labor didn’t start soon.  I saw Anjli that day and was prepared to ask her to strip my membranes to help start labor.  Anjli agreed to check ...

Charles Matthew Caldwell born in the water at 11:37 PM August 23 weighing 8 pounds 13 ounces and 21 inches long. Born on his Ma Maw's birthday. It was a long journey, but so worth it. We are exhausted and overjoyed. This little boy is such a precious gift.

Today at 40 weeks and 6 days I went back for another non stress test and to see the midwife.  Charlie did well on the non stress test showing no decelerations and a reactive heartbeat. I saw my favorite midwife, Anjli, today.  I went in with a lot of anxiety and she has a way of making it seem better.  My two big concerns were the placenta "giving out" and how that actually works and Charlie's size and what that might mean for delivery.   As for the placenta, it doesn't just stop one day.  It's a more gradual process, which is how they can monitor every few days and have me monitoring his movements at home and determine if he is doing well.  I guess the placenta starts to calcify over time and gradually stops providing nourishment to the baby.  If the baby is not getting enough nourishment, vital function for heart and brain are prioritized making things like fluid output from the kidneys slow down.  That's why the fluid level is also monitored t...

Here we are 4 days past the estimated due date.  It's hard not to feel a little anxious that he may never get here.  I'm really not physically uncomfortable, but I am growing anxious to get things underway and see him. Thursday, I went for acupuncture.  The acupuncture isn't painful and they use points in the hands, ankles, and lower back to try to stimulate the body to move everything downward.   That helped get things moving when we were waiting for Sarah Graves, so I had high expectations that the next day I would be in labor; no such luck.  I went into work as usual, but it is starting to wind down for me and it's hard to keep my mind off waiting for labor to start. I had one more idea that a pregnancy massage might help me relax and let my body get things going.  I called and they had an opening during lunch.  I enjoyed the relaxing experience and wish massage were something I could do all the time, but still nothing seems to be moving. We...

Today I went for some tests to make sure that Chubby is doing well and okay being past his date. Part of that included an ultrasound and a peak at his profile! They checked the fluid levels and there is plenty! You need a measure of 5 cm and I had 24 cm! The placenta looks good and Chubby had a reactive heart rate. His weight is estimated to be around 9 pounds, so he should live up to his nickname! They checked my blood pressure and it remains low, which might explain my persistent headache. I will need to go back on Monday to be sure his heart rate is reactive. We can only hope he is here before then! I am headed to acupuncture this evening and that helped get it going for SG, so we will see!

Yesterday was my 39 week check-up. Chubby and I are both doing fine. He is head down with his head getting low. He is on his side, but he can still rotate during labor. Having his back against my belly would be the easiest for labor, but this can work. I was a little disappointed to learn that because I am now 35 they want to do more testing at 40 weeks before letting me go past my due date. It is one of those statistical things that after 35 the lifespan of the placenta gets shorter. They aren't exactly sure at what age, so they picked 35 to be on the safe side. In order to reduce risk, they recommend ultrasound and being on the monitor to ensure baby is doing well. It isn't that I don't want to know Chubby is doing well, my concern is that this could be the start of interventions that take me away from the birth I want. Ultrasounds are notoriously wrong at identifying a baby's weight and I am concerned it may suggest Chubby is big and they will want to ind...

Chubby and I had a check-up this morning.  It appears that all is well.  My blood pressure is low and Chubby's heartbeat is strong.  I measured at 38 cm again this week, so he may have had a bit of a growth spurt last week.  She checked his position and he is head down, but he felt a bit like he was posterior or face up.  It's not really a problem for him to be posterior, but if he stays that way, labor will probably be a little harder with more back labor.  I have been doing some of the exercises on spinning babies  and have been really mindful of my posture throught this pregnancy, but he seems to have a mind of his own.  He is stilll pretty high, but that isn't a concern since he may not drop until labor.  I was a little concerned because I have noticed some swelling in my feet that I haven't had before.  She took a look and felt it wasn't a concern, especially since it goes down over night.  I am supposed to drink lots of wate...

I set out to make sure that our freezer was stocked with frozen meals for when Chubby arrives. I have slowly been building up a stock pile and am finally finished. Here is what I made: Chicken and Rice casserole ( Talk About Good ) Chicken Tortellini casserole ( Warm Welcomes ) Pork Chop and Rice casserole (similar to a recipe in Talk About Good, but Aaron found it online) Baked Ziti Sour Cream Noodle Bake (The Pioneer Woman) Beef Enchiladas King Ranch Chicken Chicken and Noodle casserole (someone at our church made this when SG was born and it was perfect comfort food) Strata (recipe from years ago from the Fredrick House Bed and Breakfast) Stromboli (recipe from a neighbor of ours in Texas) Emeril's mac'n cheese Then, Jeanne' thoughtfully made us several meals - chicken enchiladas, hash brown casserole, and a chicken and ranch pasta dish. Because some casseroles make a lot, I divided some to give us more variety and not have to eat the same thing for days! Hopeful...

Now that I am in the last few weeks of pregnancy, I have appointments every week.  Yesterday we had a great check-up.  My blood pressure is still good.  Chubby measures at 38 cm, which is still within the acceptable range for 36 weeks.  His heart rate was right at 140 and he is positioned head down. I found out that my iron levels are in the appropriate range, so I will continue taking the iron supplement once a day.  The results of my beta strep test came back negative, which is great because I won't need IV antibiotics when I get to the hospital!  Needing the antibiotics isn't the end of the world, but you have to get to the hospital earlier and it means you have the IV from the start. All in all, things are looking good right now!  Just another few weeks to go!

Chubby and I had a check-up yesterday and all seems to be going well.  My blood pressure remains good and Chubby is doing well.  His heartbeat was nice and strong.  He is still high, but she checked his position and he is head down.  She showed me where to put my hands so that I could feel his head, which was pretty neat.  I asked if it felt like there was plenty of fluid and she said it's hard to tell, but nothing felt like there was a low level of fluid.  I'll take that.  I was worried about his position because Sunday night he was thrashing around and Monday morning I could feel him hiccuping up high on my right side.  I could also feel some strong kicks down low, so I got worried that he was likely breech.  Monday night I spent a lot of time on my hands and knees trying hard to get him to turn and with a few thrashing moves he must have.  I was pretty sure he was back head down yesterday when I felt his hiccups down low and more mov...

This is going to sound crazy and you will know that we are on the crunchy bandwagon for sure, but I think it makes a lot of sense - we are going to have the placenta encapsulated.  No, not encapsulated as a keepsake for Chubby to dig up on his 18th birthday, encapsulated as pills that I will take after the birth. I first read about placenta encapsulation before I was pregnant and thought it sounded a little gross.  The placenta is the tissue that develops inside the uterus to connect the umbilical cord to the baby.  It is rich in hormones, nutrients, and other minerals like iron.  Most mammals, even those very high on the food chain, eat their placenta and in some areas of the world women eat theirs after giving birth.  The idea of that is more than I can handle.  However, there is a process of cooking, drying, grinding, and placing the ground placenta in capsules that I could wrap my head around.  I take so many other supplements right now that one ...

Chubby and I had a check-up and we both seem to be doing well.  My blood pressure remains low and my measurements are on track.  Chubby's heart rate was between 145 and 150.  While trying to determine his position, the midwife got him all stirred up and he gave her a few swift moves!  His head is turned downward, but his body is going more diagonal than it is vertical.  His head is not engaged yet, which is okay for 32 weeks. My midwife wants me to make an effort to eat fewer carbs and sweets since my first glucose test was high.  I guess even though the long test came back normal, because the short test was high it indicates that I should be monitoring the sugar in my diet. We also discussed having me drink a combination of teas that are known to help strengthen the body going into labor, help the uterus contract during labor, and help with bleeding after birth.  Because I lost so much blood after Sarah Graves' birth we want to make efforts to reduc...

For those who are curious whether SG and Chubby may look alike, here is Chubby's ultrasound picture and SG's together.  I don't think they look that much alike, but we will see sometime in the next 10 weeks!

After a very long week and a stressful one at that, I was grateful to have a lovely Saturday.   The day was off to a good start when Lovie came to join us for breakfast and Music Together.  The bobcat from the previous evening had been replaced by my usual, bubbly, little girl, making the day wonderful! After music, we met up with Aunt Nay and had lunch.  Sarah Graves was delighted that she could have a strawberry milkshake (she called it ice cream) and french fries for lunch!    After lunch we all headed to get a glimpse of Chubby.  Chubby was not in the mood to show off for us.  He was more than willing to show us his bum and his boy parts, but his face was a different story!  For everyone who looks at me and proclaims that I am having a girl, we have not had 4 ultrasounds all claiming this is a boy.  I will be floored if they announce at the birth that it's a girl! Here is a shot of his foot; showing off all of his toes....

I haven't written as much about the preparations for this birth, probably because I know a lot more and I feel a little more at ease.  We have been doing some thinking about the care that we want for Chubby immediately following his birth.  There are several baby care activities that are standard procedure, but at the suggestion of Pam, our doula, we have been researching them and giving them some thought.  First, the erythromiocin eye drops - these are customary for all babies born in the U.S. because they protect against blindness due to bacterial STDs like chlamydia and gonorrhea that the mother may be carrying.  The eye drops make their eyes goopy, blur their vision for a while interfering with their bonding process, and sting a bit.  Because I tested negative (routine procedure at your first prenatal visit) for these STDs, I see no reason to put Chubby through that.  Second, baby's first bath - typically, a nurse bathes the baby soon after birth be...