pea in my pod: 40 weeks

Our daughter hasn't arrived yet but let me tell you that it physically feels like a slow and painful death. I have been having contractions lasting an hour (you know, the whole 5-1-1 rule) for about 2 weeks now but it's never progressed passed that. As a result, it's left me with an aching back and sleepless nights. And of course with all of that going on I've reacted in a really crabby way. I just feel moody and tired.

Last week when I had a check up, they told me I was 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced which means there's progress. That was pretty exciting to me and it gave me that boost of perseverance that I needed to get through all the physical torture. Well another week went by and today I had my last appointment. They checked me and I hadn't progressed at all. I was so discouraged and still am. I thought for sure I'd progress since then.

I decided to ask my doctor if I could be induced but she said it wasn't an option because I had a previous C-Section with Brayden and they worried of a ruptured uterus. Sounds scary and painful. What else could I do? I couldn't imagine going another week and waiting till the 25th to get a C-Section. I Then asked if there were a day earlier than the 25th that I can schedule a C-Section instead. The only day she had open for her to do it was this upcoming Tuesday, the 22nd. It also happens to be Nathan's birthday. Ugh!

Nathan and I talked about it because I wanted to know how he felt about sharing a Birthday with our daughter. I felt fine with it because to be honest, you never really celebrate one's birthday on the actual day. I'd most likely wait till the weekend to have a birthday party and have friends and family come over. Nathan said that he knows his birthday would be pushed aside from now on. I reassured him that I'd never not celebrate his birthday separately. Ultimately, he said he wanted me to be comfortable and he feels really bad that I've gone so long in the condition I've been in.

We're still hoping she'll come on her own. We only have this weekend. I'll be taking lots of walks and trying to get this baby wiggled out of me as much as I can. But then again, she just might be as stubborn as I am!

Brayden is doing really well. THANK GOD he can climb up the stairs by himself. He's fascinated with balls, cars anything with wheels and "poons" (spoons). He dances to the Peanut Butter Jely song from one of the applications on my iPhone. It's soooooo freaking cute. His memory is so good. The words that I taught him months ago he still remembers even when it's been a while that I've gone over them with him. He's really social and LOVES it when we have visitors stop by the house.

He's just such a great kid with a fun personality. Let's just hope he doesn't accidentally step on his sister's head or anything. At his age, he doesn't have a clue as to the new edition to the family we will aquire in just a few days. Here are some recent pictures:

Peek a Boo!