36-Week Bumpdate (Drama Included)

Yesterday morning started off like any other Thursday morning - I woke up, got ready for work, and then got Owen ready and dropped him off at my parents' house. I even stopped by Starbucks to get coffee because I knew we had a busy schedule. Within 10 minutes of clocking in at work, I started having painful contractions. I kind of ignored them because I had similar contractions a few days ago, and they went away after a couple of hours. And no, these weren't the regular Braxton Hicks contractions that I've been feeling for the last month or so - these were painful to the point that I couldn't move or talk.

Still, my stubborn ass (pardon my French) was determined to push through and continue working. After two hours of consistent contractions, I finally had one that was a 7/10 on the pain scale; I couldn't even breathe. At that moment, I snuck into one of the patient rooms and called Ralph to come and get me. At the same time, I called the hospital to let them know what was going on - the triage nurse on the line instructed me to drink a bunch of water and check in at the hospital.

(Honestly, if it wasn't at the urging of my fellow nurses, doctors, and managers, I probably would've stayed just a liiittle bit longer...but that painful contraction worried me, and I wanted to make sure the baby was okay.)

Within an hour, I was hooked up to a fetal monitor, and a nurse was checking the frequency of my contractions. At first, they were every 5 to 6 minutes, and I rated them being low in pain (they were so much worse when I was standing up and walking around). The on-call doctor came in a little later and examined me and said I was only about 1 cm dilated. 

He fell asleep to the cool room and soothing sounds of the baby's heartbeat LOL!

I was monitored for an additional hour then had a repeat exam - my contractions weren't getting worse/more frequent, and I wasn't dilating any further. So, just as I had suspected and hoped, the doctor said the baby isn't coming just yet, and Ralph and I were sent home.

Currently, I'm still having contractions (about 4 an hour), but I was told that this is my new "baseline". If it starts to get worse, then I need to drink a bunch of cold water, lie on my left side, and wait...and if the symptoms don't go away, then I give the hospital a call.

Needless to say, this was a huge wake-up call for me and Ralph. I went to the hospital without a hospital bag. Our infant carseat is not yet installed. The baby's clothes still need to be washed. I need a pedicure (lol, I'm kidding...sort of). I could go on and on. This baby is coming in 20 days IF I can make it to my c-section date. At this point, I'm really just hoping to make it to 37 weeks.

Hang in there, Rerun. Just wait 6 more days...pretty please!

Here's my 36-week bumpdate:

Dress is from PinkBlush - exact dress can be found here!

How far along?: 36 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: +16 lbs

Sleep: Waking up more frequently to use the restroom.
Best moment this week: Having breakfast at Off Street Cafe where my buddy Jacqueline works...best cinnamon roll I ever had.
Movement: All the time. In fact, I had my 35-week check-up this past Monday, and the doctor said the baby flipped and is breech again...which explains why I'm constantly feeling the baby kick my bladder, haha.
Symptoms: Back pain, BHC, fatigue, frequent urination (day and night)...the usual.
Symptoms I DON'T have: GERD, swollen feet/legs.
Food cravings: Cinnamon anything. Also, I really wanted chocolate cake while I was at the hospital. 

Food aversions: Nothing at the moment.

Gender: Boy!

Labor Signs: Read story above.
Belly Button in or out?: Out.
What I miss: Sushi.
What I am looking forward to: My "Sprinkle" tomorrow that Ralph's aunts and cousins were veeerrry determined to throw. :) 

**Disclaimer: The clothing showcased above was gifted to me by PinkBlush in exchange for a review/social media post.**

36 Weeks / PUPPP

I don't have a chalkboard drawing for this week's update because...let's be honest...I'm getting tired. Hahaha! It probably has a lot to do with my itchy belly. As mentioned in my previous post, I've developed this HORRIBLE rash on my stomach, and the itching has been so intense that I've been unable to sleep well at night (not that I've been sleeping well anyway). And no, I do not have cholestasis - thank God! What I DO have is called pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy (PUPPP) - that's just a bunch of fancy medical terms that translate to: super duper itchy tummy skin for future mommies. 

I guess you can consider this my 36-week belly bump photo. You can see the stretch marks, but they don't look so irritated in this picture...but they are DEFINITELY irritated right now!!!

Some women have come up to me and said, "Oh, that's just your skin stretching. It's normal." Ha. Ha. Ha. NO. My stomach looks and feels as if I have hives all over it, more specifically, on my stretch marks - they are red, raised, and have teeny bumps. It's absolutely awful, and there is nothing to relieve the itching. And people have this misconception that my skin is "just dry" and that I "simply need to apply moisturizer", but that's not the case. During this entire pregnancy, I have been applying cocoa butter balm and vitamin E oil to my stomach several times a day (to prevent stretch marks), and this condition appeared out of nowhere within the past couple of weeks...so this is definitely not due to dry skin.

So...nothing has worked to relieve the ITCHING (Aveeno Eczema Therapy Cream, oatmeal bath, cocoa butter, lotion, vaseline, any type of oil, hydrocortisone cream, Benadryl, Atarax, etc.)...if there is anyone out there that has some magical topical ointment/cream to get rid of the itching, PLEASE LET ME KNOW! And yes, I've tried ice packs...but that only provides temporary relief...and I can't sleep with an icepack attached to my stomach all night.

*Sigh* But it will be all worth it. In less than 4 weeks (oh PLEASE, dear God, let this baby arrive on or before his due date), this baby will be here, and all of this discomfort will all be worth it. Here's the weekly survey:

How far along?: 36 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +21 lbs
Sleep: What. Is. Sleep?
Best moment this week: Finding a stroller/car seat combo at my door step today - special delivery from my Auntie Gaye. Thank you! We love it!
Movement: Always! He gets hiccups a lot too.
Symptoms: Itchy tummy and an achy back...my back hasn't been a problem ever since I stopped working on the floor, but for the past couple of days, I've noticed this dull pain in my lower back. Also, pubic pain...guess my body is getting ready to push this baby out.
Symptoms I DON'T have: Nausea, sciatica, weird cravings (I just noticed that I haven't had a single weird craving this pregnancy).
Food cravings: This week, I've been eating a lot of salad (specifically Southwest-style salads), Chobani yogurt (Double Chocolate Chunk), cereal, chocolate milk, and *gasp* CHICKEN SANDWICHES!

Food aversions: Guacamole.
Gender: Boy!
Labor Signs: So I was reading up on what labor signs to look out for, and I'm pretty much experiencing all of the pre-labor ones. Scary!
Belly Button in or out?: It's really just flat, and I don't think it's going to poke out.
What I miss: Sleep. Just sleep.
What I am looking forward to: MATERNITY LEAVE...whenever THAT is.
Weekly Wisdom: If you have Kaiser, call member services because you may be eligible for a free breast pump once the baby is due!
Milestones: Hit the 8-month mark - 1 more month to go!