42 weeks & 1 week

Here I am at 42 weeks pregnant on the left. And me and 1 week old Blaise on the right.
*please note that I have not yet learned to maintain proper posture since having the baby. Hello arched back and slumped shoulders! It's a weird feeling not to have that little guy inside me anymore!*

We are slowly adjusting but I think the slow-paced lifestyle that we live here in Uganda has been a very positive thing. That and Jamie is on paternity leave for a month {so thankful!}.
My parents arrive in less than 2 weeks and they'll be staying for a month {again - SO thankful!}.
This is likely my last post on this blog and you can find any other baby-related posts on my main blog, Strickly Speaking.
Thanks for following along with me on this journey of being pregnant here in Uganda! Blaise's birth story will be posted on my main blog {tomorrow!} so make sure to check that out.

hello world!

he's here! he's finally here!

we're so in love and thrilled to welcome blaise jonathan to our family!

he arrived september 17th {last night} at 11pm weighing 9lbs 4oz with a full head of hair!
i'm absolutely smitten.

more to come when more sleep has been had and we're settled in...

forty two

Dear B,

I guess I've made a pretty comfy space for you, eh? At least, I hope you're comfortable. One of us should be.
We are really, really excited to meet you, but at this point it's hard to believe that you're actually going to join us and make us a family of 5!
We aren't a perfect family. We yell. And fight. And sometimes we're loud and rude. But your oldest brother, Noah? He's incredibly helpful. He'll teach you how to build amazing things out of Lego and give you lots of really big pushes on the swing when you're big enough. He's also really ticklish so I'm just giving you a heads up when the wrestling matches begin with him.
And your other big brother Jude? He's funny. And silly. And he's the one who's been telling you lots of stories while you've been cooking inside of me.
Both of your brothers are great cuddlers and will give you lots of hugs and kisses and are so incredibly excited to meet you and show you all of the new toys you have!
Your Daddy is the best man I have ever known. He loves Jesus. And sports. And he'll teach you all the Manchester United anthems as well as every and any sports statistic you're interested in hearing about. I can't think of a better role model for you to aspire to be like.
And me? Well, I'm your Mama. I've been wishing and hoping and praying for you for a long time. Even before I knew you were inside of me. I have a feeling you are to be the last child I'll have grown inside my belly and so while this waiting and waiting and waiting for you has at times been really frustrating, I've also tried to savour every kick and punch and flip-flop that you've made inside of me. Because you have been moving a lot and I know I'll miss these feelings that only I get to experience with you once you make your appearance in this big, wide world.
I will cuddle and kiss you and breathe you in and sing you sweet songs. I will rock you and nurse you in the middle of the night. I will pray sweet blessings over you as well as warrior prayers.

However and whenever you come, I'm trusting God to protect you and bring you to us in the exact time and way He has planned.
Above all, I want you to know that you are loved. Not just by us, but by Jesus. I will do everything I can to share with you how much He loves you and what a joy it is to know Him and live your life following after Him.
I love you, baby B.
Please come soon!

with a heart that continues to grow with love for you,
Mama

the gong show

oh Uganda.

so I woke up this morning, armed with my plan to call the clinic that has done my ultrasounds before. unfortunately, Alice (the technician) wasn't in until 5pm today so I couldn't go into the clinic in time to get to my 11:30am appointment.
we decided to go to the hospital and pulled in at around 10am. I had called shortly before we left and was assured that I just needed to bring in my requisition and could get an ultrasound shortly thereafter.
when we got there, there was another (very) pregnant woman talking to a nurse and I could hear her saying something about something not being available.
I talked to the receptionist and she motioned that I also talk to this nurse. the nurse then told me that they had taken the ultrasound machine up to the NICU for an emergency and it was unavailable. but she assured me that I would be able to make my 11:30am appointment in time.
so we sat. about 5 minutes later we did see the ultrasound machine being wheeled back into the room.
I was pregnant lady #3 waiting.
eventually it was my turn and the technician was very nice and friendly and we joked about the size and lateness of this baby. he told me the baby's estimated weight was 8.5lbs but I think we all know he'll be bigger. but baby B looked good, the fluid levels looked good and he's head down and ready.
hooray!
this was great news and lovely to see my little man (all squished up in there!).
then we went over to the other part of the hospital to sign in to see the doctor (right at 11:30!) and after I had already paid and gone through triage (with HIGH blood pressure. sigh. the nurse didn't mention anything to me, though.) a nurse then decided to tell me that the doctor had been called into an emergency and was in "theater" (aka, surgery) and that he wouldn't be out until maybe around 1pm.
again, I was third on the list to see him. so Jamie and I decided to go out for lunch and come back around 1. it was a nice lunch out together and we got back to the hospital around 1:15pm.
at this point we're informed that the doctor has been called into another surgery and won't be out for maybe another 1.5 to 2 hours.
I opt to reschedule for tomorrow morning.
goodness.
so we know baby B is doing well.
which made all the driving around and everything else completely worth it.

and then...? well, Jamie and I decided to give it another shot (you know what I mean) so we put on a movie for the kids and gave them snacks and since about 5ish I've been having some mild contractions.
which is good.
but I'm not assuming anything is going to happen. but it's (again) encouraging to me to know that my body is doing something to get this kid out!

so that's the update. my appointment with the doctor is 7:30am tomorrow morning - or sooner if things actually start happening!

41 weeks

one gorgeous week overdue.
I admit. I went through many phases this week. acceptance. grouchiness. anger. frustration. desperation.
I've walked up and down our gigantic hill in our compound a bunch of times. I ate bowls of pineapple. I've paced and swayed and had lovely hot showers and crawled around on my hands and knees. I've done the "needful" with jamie.

if you don't like words like "mucus" and "blood" stop reading now. you've been warned.

I was getting a bit discouraged because unlike my other two pregnancies, I hadn't lost my mucus plug yet or lost much mucus at all. with noah I lost my mucus plug 4 days before he was born. with jude I think it was 2 days. to me, it's been somewhat of a "sign" that things are happening. so to not see it is discouraging.
this morning I've lost a bit of mucus which is a good thing. hopefully things will pick up.

right now there's a student meeting/retreat going on in our living room today; I can hear the clapping and singing and laughter and it makes me smile. baby B may not show up today, but if he does, he'll have a warm reception, that's for sure.

my latest plan that will likely not come to fruition;
if I am still pregnant on Monday, I will go to the hospital a couple hours early, get my ultrasound scan done and then meet with my doctor for my appointment with him at 11:30. as long as all is well with me and baby B I am going to push for the doctor to give me a stretch and sweep, since I've completed my full dosage of antibiotics {as he was concerned that I was GBS+ and didn't want to possibly push any bacteria further up and infect baby B}. I'm also going to push that I am not induced by any drugs until at least 42 weeks, as long as baby is okay. and depending on which dates he is going by, this could be either next Saturday (the 15th) or as late as the following Wednesday (the 19th!) depending on which dates my doctor is going by.

But let's all hope and pray that I announce the arrival of baby B before Monday at 11:30!

pretty feet

Last night I ate a huge bowl of pineapple after reading online that it contains some sort of something that can induce labour {I'm full of useful information, eh?}. A long shot, but worth a try seeing as we had an ice cream tub full of cut, fresh, delicious, Ugandan pineapple. I had another bowl this morning, too.
It's taking me longer to fall asleep these nights. I toss and turn and get up and pee and go back to bed and toss and turn some more before I have to go pee again and then finally fall asleep at some point.
And baby B is still moving a fair bit, but after googling it, babies don't necessarily stop or slow down in movements, but rather the type of movement can change. From kicking and punching to more shifting and "scuffling" is what one website called it. Well, I have both. The punching and the shifting. So there's that.
And almost always while I'm trying to fall asleep.
Today we went out for lunch and then me and Lisa got pedicures.
*insert sigh of relief*
My tootsies were in dire need of a pedi and they look fabulous now. Also I heard foot massage {although the place we went could use a little lesson in giving  l o n g e r  foot massages} can be good for inducing labour?
I also took my last antibiotic pill this morning so yep. Any time now, baby.
Perhaps I'll even have a shower tonight and then blow dry my hair in the hopes that he'll come tonight/tomorrow and I'll be all perty and fresh.
Also? There's a baby pool set up on the side bar. Feel free to enter a guess if you haven't already!
Lots of people guessed September 3rd which would be LOVELY.
My mango {all four of them!} is all cut up and in the freezer {it's become a favourite ice-cream alternative for me - plus it helps with, er, digestive issues I've been experiencing lately}.
Maybe I should start crocheting a baby blanket or something.
Hmmm, that's not a bad idea!
So that's my rambling for today. No baby. Just pretty feet.

forty weeks

Here we are. Forty weeks. I decided to see if this shirt would fit me. Hooray for another shirt to add to my repertoire. And not a moment too late.

The last few days have been better in terms of how I've been feeling physically. Which is good. But no signs that baby B is coming any time soon, unfortunately. {specifically I'm talking the loss of a mucus plug, but that's only because I lost it both times before I went into labour with Noah and Jude, but I guess every labour is different.}
I had a bit of cramping/contractions off and on this past week, but nothing regular or frequent.

I really just want to have this baby by the end of next week so that I don't have to get my blood pressure taken {doctor's orders/recommendations}. I know it will be high. I can feel my heart racing right now and I'm sitting down. I haven't had any caffeine and I've been making sure I'm resting throughout the day, but I know it'll only be resolved once this baby is born. So come on, baby! Come already!

In the meantime, we're all stuck in this holding pattern of w a i t i n g for something - anything - to happen. I tossed and turned last night and dreamed that I gave birth to baby B at home and it was wonderful and lovely and he was just chilling on the bed after the birth and Noah wanted to hold him and it was perfect.

Then in the morning Jamie got up with the boys and I fell back to sleep until 9:15.

So here's to hoping this is my last weekly bump pic and the next picture I post is of baby B in my arms.

ps. baby B is now apparently the size of a jackfruit. which I find completely ironic as jackfruit is aplenty here in Uganda. If you've never tried it, I liken it to tasting similar to an apple, yet having a consistency of...lychee or something weird. I'm not particularly a fan, but I agree. baby B is definitely the size of a jackfruit right now. Those things are massive!