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At 9:41 PM, July 28, 2006, Karis Bell Pavel came into the world. She was 7 lbs. and 11 oz., and 21 inches long! It was a long labor and delivery, and we will both have much more to say later, but I wanted to share the good news with the world. Thank you God for this wonderful gift!
Wow, two posts from me in a week's time: that's a record. I think it's because I am at the point of looking for ANYTHING that will, even if for only a brief time, take my mind off how ridiculously uncomfortable I am.
We went for our weekly checkup today and got a less than desirable report. He said I am about 1 to 2 centimeters dilated and about fifty percent effaced. I thought for sure that all the pushing, kicking, stretching, and turning that Karis has been doing would have produced a little more progress than that! I guess the doctor did too because when he walked in the exam room, he seemed a bit surprised to see me sitting there still pregnant. I think throughout the exam he must have said at least three times, "yeah, she is really low." And when he felt my abdomen he asked, "is it that tight ALL the time?" Yup. Sure is.
But what seemed to surprise him the most is that I haven't felt even the first contraction. To which he replied, "Well, at some point you have to have contractions if you're going to have a baby." Yeah, that was our understanding, too. He really seems to think that it won't be more than a week, though. Thank Goodness! Oh, yeah, and the last lovely piece of news we got: he no longer predicts that she'll be somewhere between 7.5 to 8lbs, but more in the range of 8 to 10 lbs! Oh boy.
I just thought of one more reason why I am very ready to have this baby. I am very tired of going out in public and listening to people talk about how large I am, when they think I can't hear them. And they are usually less than discreet about their gawking when I walk by. People, give me a break! I am practically carrying around the equivalent of a 10 lb bowling ball in my stomach! Of course the really irritating ones are younger girls who have never been pregnant, so I just have to take it with a grain of salt and secretly wish triplets upon them.
The latest incident occured today after our doctor's appointment. We went to eat dinner at Panera and the espresso/pastry girl behind the counter could not stop staring at me as I walked past her to the sandwich counter. Then as we were getting our drinks (not very close by, either) Josh heard her making comments to the effect of, "can you imagine having your stomach stretched out that far in front of you..." and so on and so on. Then as we sat and ate, I heard her continue the conversation with her friends behind the counter addressing issues such as saggyness and other disproportionate body parts. I was finally able to catch her eye and shoot her a look that I think got the point across that I could hear her. I didn't hear any more after that.
So, for the very limited amout of time I have left in this pregnancy, I am looking for that perfect, witty quip to use next time I catch someone trying to estimate my girth in feet. "What, never seen a pregnant person before?" just doesn't quite convey the right sentiment. Suggestions are welcome...
So I am pretty much ready to blow. I don't know how I can fit another ounce in here! And I have finally hit that stage where I am pretty uncomfortable. Every little move that Karis makes hits something sensitive that hurts. But what I really wasn't expecting was the email I just got from one of the couples in our birth class. Their due date was exactly a week later than us, and the husband just sent me an email saying their baby was born two days ago! Wow, that really drives it home just how close we are. But that's what's not fair in all this: no warning for when she's coming, and absoluely no seniority! I've been pregnant longer! Not to mention that she didn't look a day over 6 months! But seriously, I am so happy and excited for them and it all just increases my anticipation for our little girl. Soon, oh please, soon....
My Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy book warned me that this would happen, but it still surprises me how vivid my dreams are becoming lately. Over about the past week or so, I've been having dreams about Karis that I wake up thinking are real. I can only remember two of them right now.
The first one I had was that she was born and she was a he! The doctor had gotten it wrong (despite our multiple requests that he "check thoroughly") and now we had a room full of pink baby girl stuff. I remember waking up in a panic because I knew there was no way I had saved all the gift receipts from Target to exchange everything.
The second traumatic dream is what I think really catapulted me into my current state of labor-readiness. I dreamed that I went into labor as expected, but when I got to the hospital I just fell asleep. When I woke up and looked in the mirror, I was no longer pregnant and I couldn't find Josh or the baby! It turned out that some mean doctor at the hospital had knocked me out and given me a C-section and totally deprived me of the experience of actually going through labor. I ran through the hospital looking for Karis and finally found her in some far away nursery on some other floor. I scooped her up and just sobbed. When I woke up from this dream, I started grabbing for my stomach to make sure that I still had her in there! Poor Josh...I already talk so much in my sleep, it's a wonder he's getting to sleep at all at night.
So I'm actually embarrassed at how long its been since I've posted..again, just not my thing. But there's a lot on my mind lately so let's give it a whirl. As of yesterday, we are officially in our ninth month! Can you believe it? But then when I think back about telling everyone about the pregnancy at Christmas, it seems like I've been pregnant forever!
Up until now, my fear of the actual labor has far outweighed my desire to just get her out. But now, I think I've come to terms with the inevitable, and I just want to meet her so bad that I can't stand it. It's not so much that I want her out (but don't get me wrong, I am definitely uncomfortable) but that I want to be able to see her and interact with her more. I want to see what Josh looks like holding his daughter, and I want to start learning the things she likes and doesn't like. How much hair will she have? Who will she look more like? Will she be left handed or right handed (she has a parent of each, you know;)? I never dreamed that I would get to a point where I would acually feel ready...but I think I am. And I can't wait for everyone to come rushing from Georgia and West Virginia to meet her.
There's really nothing more we can do except wait. Oh, I hope she doesn't hold out until August!