Lydi visit and view underneath

I took this photo from underneath my belly. I thought it really was cool!

All is well. Visit was

wonderful as usual. I'm measuring 39cm. Baby is in good position. Bp 105/83 ( I was talking she said that's why the 83) She said I "looked ripe" after looking at me and my belly. (no internal of course). I told her I'd had the impatient grouchies and some nausea. She said that's usually because I am thinning and effacing with my cervix stretching and flattening. She said the new moon is July 3rd. Who knows? Maybe sooner? Oh, I just checked and the new moon is actually July 2nd at 7:18 PM. So things could start on Trisha's birthday and carry over to the 3rd. Hmmm, I wonder what's coming! This is so exciting!

Pineapple?

Boy, I look tired in this photo! But I'm really just hot! My friend Petra brought me over a pineapple a few days ago. Today it was ripe and ready, so was hoping it would help me to be the same! (supposedly the bromelain in pineapple, kiwi and mango helps to soften the cervix) So I ate the whole thing. It was delicious! It's 11:07 pm and so far, nothing. Baby must not be ripe and ready yet!!

Funny view

My feet look tiny!

Cranio-Sacral Work today

I set an appointment for today for Baby Jade. Kellie Sanders is a cranio-sacral therapist that my friend Miranda recommended to me probably a year and a half ago. Anyway, I want the baby to receive cranio work withing 3 days of birth. I thought with Gino's certainty that his pick would be right (June 25th) and I'd have the baby by now. But, not. So I told Kellie I'd take the appointment for me to get things rolling or to just support where I am. She was great. A lot like Rose Sincevich. I am looking forward to eating some lunch and going to meditate and get a nap. Perhaps this weekend! I set another appointment for Tues. Hopefully it will be for the baby!

Not mine, but how inspiring!!

This may be the most beautiful belly cast ever....

Baby Jade's belly cast

Last night Patricia and Danny and I did the belly cast. It was fun! It turned out good. I was worried because there was only 2 packs of the plaster paper at the craft store. We are going to wait until the baby comes before decorating it. There are so many good ideas out there!

39 weeks belly and update

We are all super, super excited. Danny actually is so excited he can't focus! He's really feeling it more with this one. I think this little soul has a way of tapping in to our emotions! There is just something about this child. Maybe a "Crystal". Which means...

Crystal kids tend to:
-be loving and forgiving very nurturing, especially towards younger kids and animals

-love cuddling, kissing, hugging and any kind of touch or holding

-be very affectionate with other kids and parents as well

-not like clothing, they seem to prefer nakedness, and if they have to wear clothing, it had best be soft and natural cotton or silks in happy colors

-communicate telepathically

-have delayed speech development because of their telepathic abilities they don't "need" to talk

-be very empathic, they will often ask others how they feel, noticing when loved ones are sick, or sad etc...

-have a strong desire to help others, especially other children in need

-be very patient and laid back

-have eyes that are soft, large and soul searching. They remind me of the "precious moments" kids!

-be "picky" when it comes to their food, really they are just trying to discern which foods vibrate with them well

-have a strong fantasy and creative play

-be able to see other worlds and dimensions

-not raise their voices unless they have had more than enough of a situation, other than that they rarely will yell at another person

-like to play with stones and crystals love the water

-at an early age talk about world issues like peace, the environment, humanity, world hunger etc.... and want to help

-have healing abilities that are already open

-be very much fearless, known for flinging themselves off of things like picnic tables and jungle gyms, or fearlessly running along narrow ledges

I can't believe I'll be holding him or her so soon!

I have had some stronger rushes. I'm trying not to "get in the way" with my adrenaline. I'm just so excited. I do feel rather mellow most of the day, though. I have had nausea again today. We haven't done the belly cast yet. Perhaps today.

Pregnant Bikini Mamas

Here's my beautiful sister, Lynn, posing at I think 39 weeks at Papa's pool.
Here's me posing at 39 weeks. I have a picture of my sister Tina somewhere. I'll have to look for it. Silly!

Belly Art

Trish wanted to do a "spirit baby" design. It's lovely!

Roman did an Indian Jones scene. Cool!

Gino insists that there are twins so he drew twins in my belly.

Gabriel made a "connect the dot swirly spectacular"!



The photos aren't in order, but we all had a great time with the belly art. We still need to do the belly cast. The art took a long time.... as art should! Everyone was very proud!!

Family Blessing for Baby

Today we are going to make a belly cast, color my belly and have a nice family blessing for the baby. It should be fun! I'm not sure what the children will come up with, but they will each get a chance to color my belly. I'll just wipe it off in between. I'll be sure to take photos. The belly cast will be done, but probably decorated after we welcome the baby. There are so many neat ideas out there (like the ones above).

I've been having some nausea the last few days. I am welcoming it! I suppose it has something to do with the increase in birthing hormones. Nausea and diarrhea.

I got my cauliflower flower essence yesterday- yippee!
http://www.perelandra-ltd.com/CAULIFLOWER_Garden_Essence_P138C28.cfm

I am going to buy a bath ball filter, for sure. I'm also in desperate need to straighten the house. I just need to! I set up an appointment with a cranial sacral therapist to some to our house for the baby next Friday. If I don't have the baby by then I'll take the appointment at her office. If the baby is born on Gino's pick the appointment will be just right. We'll see. There are so many benefits to cranial sacral. I'm glad Miranda D. gave me Kelly's card over a year ago. Vicki S. the cranial sacral therapist we usually see has been ill.

I am so excited. Time has been fast, but slow at the same time. I've wanted to hold this little soul before I even was pregnant! I get all teary thinking that the time is so close.

Wonderful visit to Mt. Charleston

I felt wonderful going to Mt. Charleston yesterday. Just being around wonderful people and a gorgeous landscape was so uplifting. Ah, the power of these big trees just was exactly what I craved. I had some welcome nausea and at least 10 surges coming down the Mt. back in to town. I am getting close! I took a practice run in the tub when I got home. I don't have a bath ball filter yet for the tub so I tried to create my own. I took a muslin bag, filled it with about 1/2 c sea salt, handful of crystals- mostly quartz- and some clary sage essential oil. The water felt good and I think I found a position I liked. After a while, I could start to smell the chlorine. Rats. The water still felt good- until I tried to get out. Boy, the weight hit me hard. I got back in and gradually let out the water and that worked better. I listened to some beautiful native flute music. I told myself I'd stay in for the whole cd and I did. I told the kids my plan. Gino and Gabriel kept popping in and wanting to get in with me. I convinced them otherwise. When it was time to get out there was quite a disaster in the kitchen- cinnamon sugar, honey, crumbs, and the dog kept barking and barking. I had a talk with the kids about me not wanting these sort of worries during the birthing time. They understood and Trish took charge of making sure the dog won't bark. The boys understood about the crumbs and drips and the ant invasion. I think it was good I did a practice run. I learned alot!

38 weeks- belly shots

A beautiful sight!! What a gorgeous belly!

I'm feeling good but get tired easy. I scrubbed the kitchen floor on hands and knees today (mop is broken) because we woke up to an ant invasion. It seems to be handled with peppermint, vinegar spray, vacuuming and borax ant traps. So far so good. I'm pooped though.

Lydi Visit

I am measuring right on at 38 weeks. I asked Lydi to point out the baby parts and she helped me with that. The baby is head down, facing my right side. The back curls up with the butt in the middle and the legs to the right. The "weird" think I feel once in a while in the middle is more then likely a little hand or a knee. All is well- urine check- no problems there, and my finger prick again shows my clotting and iron are great. Lydi told me she had plans to leave for Sedona June 23-26th. She wants acupuncture there for her tinnitus and knows of a well recommended acupuncturist. By the end of her visit, she told me she wanted to post pone her trip until the end of July because she didn't want to miss my birth. Who knows, maybe I'll birth this weekend and she can still go. The full moon- solstice moon- is on Wed. I plan to go to Mt. Charleston to beat the heat and have the kids play with the lifelearners before I'm done for the summer. It's just too hot for me to be outside now or with a little one after the birth. It should be 75-80 rather then 105-110 at Mt. Charleston. Boy, summer comes in with a lot of heat!! So, I feel good. I feel so connected with Lydi. She is such an amazing person. I am looking forward to my birth with total confidence and excitement.

Sacred Birthing Book

I wanted to make sure I put a link for this amazing book. It is the best pregnancy (and pre-pregnancy) book I've ever read. It will take you on such a spiritual journey!

http://www.trafford.com/03-1040

Walking at the mall, update

Holy moly- I was shocked to see how low I got after walking at the mall for about an hour. I don't know if this photo shows it so well, but it was strange looking. Eventually my belly raised up.

This morning I woke up and did my usual. I listen to the sounds of my belly. I put the fetoscope on the right side to listen to the placenta. I put it a little low and heard....a heartbeat! I've never heard a heartbeat on that side before. The baby never seems to go over that side. It's also the side my midwife friend Faith said "she didn't know what that is" about. Anyway, I was shocked that I heard that. I quickly listened to the left side and heard the heartbeat there too. The heartbeat on the right was at 122 bpm. On the left 172 bpm. Now I know the heartbeat changes quickly as soon as the baby moves it goes up. But this was unusual. I felt around and it felt like a baby part on the right. I know the baby is getting bigger so perhaps it was just stretching out. Or it could be that the heartbeat can echo more now. You know, like how you can hear your own heartbeat all over your front and back. So, I felt giddy and told Danny who also became giddy and we both just smiled all over ourselves. It's fun having a mystery. Even if it is just a mischievous little one "messing with us" it's fun. Another silly thing that happened was last night I wanted to eat a peach. Danny had brought some peaches home from his boss's wife tree. I didn't want one of those, however, I wanted the ones from the store. So I picked one out of the bag. I took the sticker off and noticed it said, "TWIN GIRLS FARM"! I'm just loving all this! We don't really care one way or another if there are or aren't twins, but what a fun game we've had these last weeks.

Sclerology/ Iridology

According to this midwife, I'm having a girl....

Reading Mother's Eyes to Determine Baby's Sex, There are two very reliable ways that I use other than my feeling about what the sex of the baby is and that is reading the eyes. It is called sclerology ( the whites of the eyes) If you are looking at the eyes look at them as if you are looking at a clock face. In the right eye between about 7-8 o'clock if there is a vein then it is a boy. If in the left eye between 4-5 o'clock it is a girl. This is the uterus part of the eye. Then together with that I watch which side the baby lies on the most and stays on at the end if the left girl and if right boy. I'm only about 85% correct when reading boy eyes and 95% for girls. I've used this for many years and it is pretty reliable. It makes it harder if the moms eyes are real blood shot or veiny. Just something to test out.

I'll take a photo of my eyes...unless it looks too gross.

Birth Room and 37 Weeks

Trisha has helped me create a beautiful birthing space in the master bath. She added her artwork, lots of gems, sage- just lovely. I have my birth kit together and have that in there, too. We seem to be all set! I've had lots of "practicing" going on. That lasted a month or so with Gabriel. I don't mind. It just reminds me of how close I am to holding this baby in my arms!

Here's 37 weeks. Darn photos are blurry again. But I think I've dropped! I've also gained a "waddle" so my pelvis has gotten soft. Good sign of amazing things to come!

Pressure last night

I had lots of "practice" going on last night and into the night. I felt more pressure and nausea as I was trying to sleep. Of course, I get excited and try to pay attention, but I finally slept. I think it's too early for anything real to happen yet. I also look like I'm very low. I don't feel the "grapefruit between my legs yet" so I'm sure the baby hasn't engaged. I had a month of this same thing going on before Gabriel entered our world. I still have some nausea this AM. I read that being dehydrated can lead to early birthing. I'm making sure to drink plenty of water. It's really still too early. I've also been drinking my tea and some magnesium to help. Everyone around here is super, super excited. The last month is the one full of the most anticipation! My birthing kit comes on Wed. so I'll have all the little necessities for a home birth like the peri-bottle, blood typing kit, umbilical cord clips, peri-massage oil, etc etc. I'm still working on making my underpads. I just can't stand those disposable ones. They slip and slide and are such a waste. I don't make that much of a mess during my birthing, so I want real cloth under me! Trish agreed to throw the whole lot in the washer for me after the birth. I'm actually going to tie dye some flat diapers to put under me and the baby, too. They are so white the blood, fluids, etc, might look scary to the kids. So we have a project for the day! I'm going to use kool-aid for the dye. Danny said he would pick some up as he is out and about today. I wonder what "flavors" he will pick. He used to like that stuff! I'm getting there!

Ok, weird things going on...

So this evening I'm laying with the boys so they will fall asleep. I'm on my left side and start feeling around on my beautiful belly. I feel low on my left side and feel the baby- back, knees, legs and just feeling as much as I could. Then I felt over on the right side. I actually thought I felt a separate body part! Holy cow! I tried tracing around it and it felt like a back. Whoa. Faith, my friend who is a midwife, felt my belly a few weeks back and said I had just one, but that she didn't know what that was- the same spot I felt on the right. Hmmm. I've really felt that I was over the twin feeling and convinced myself that it was not likely. But after feeling that I'm back to wondering. I thought I heard a different light heartbeat on that right side yesterday, but I shrugged it off as an echo from the left side. (The baby is always laying curled across my belly with feet on the right.) So, what's going on here? Do I have a huge fibroid, maybe? I had a friend who had a big fibroid that was nearly as big as her baby boy. Why is this continuing to be an issue? I might have to find an acupuncturist to check my pulses after all. (supposedly one can traditionally feel twins that way) I'm still gaining plenty of weight and I'm still growing. I'm hungry as can be. I'm really hitting the protein just in case. Geez, this is such a neat mystery! I still hear two placenta sounds. I really don't think it's "maternal blood flow". It sounds like placenta. Gail, my midwife with Roman and Gino had me hear that sound with the fetoscope and explain it. SO that's the scoop. One thing for certain, birth will put the mystery to rest. Not too much longer!!

Listening to belly

This morning I had Danny listen to my belly. He heard the two "placenta" sounds and listened all around for another heartbeat. He couldn't hear one and he has amazing hearing. I think the feeling all around my belly and listening helped him to understand why I see twins as "not likely". I just don't think there is much room in there for two and I'd certainly feel another part that was connected as the others are. It's really been his belief of twins that has had me thinking more about it.

As he was getting ready for work, I was laying in bed when he came out. He saw me just smiling and holding my belly. He commented on how happy I am and that that happiness carries over to him. I really like seeing him happy, too. He said he likes having me filled with joy so much we'll probably "end up with 13 kids!". I don't know about that! I'm really feeling this is the last one. Of course, he looks so good, who knows?!

36 Weeks

Another belly shot. I am feeling good. I still have too many times I wake up early too excited and can't get back to sleep. The baby seems low. I think this photo shows that I am lower since last week. I listen and the heartbeat sounds so wonderful. Usually around 140 bpm. I just love hearing the rhythm and imagining the baby in my arms. It's funny how the baby can't be any closer to me now, but I just want to feel the baby in my arms! I'm still walking up to the Rec Center. It's getting hotter. In the 90s. But I think I'm still ok as long as I wear my hat and drink lots of water.

Lydi's thoughts... not twins

Lydi came today. A great visit. I've grown 4 1/2 cm since last time. She was shocked and actually measured twice. Blood clotting great in finger prick- no signs of anemia. (lots of greens!) She doesn't think I have twins. She said if I did they'd have to be tiny and one behind the other. She said the baby was head down ready to be engaged. She said that the sounds I heard- I thought were "placenta"- was probably my blood flow. Hmmm, I was asking and asking but she said the sound would be different. I'm not sure. She is used to using a doppler and couldn't hear what I have been hearing with her pinard horn. Hmmmm, I've listened to the baby's placenta sounds before and I was almost certain that's what I heard. Maybe not. She heard the heartbeat and said this time it was slower- maybe a boy. Or maybe the baby was sleeping. She thinks I'll go by the end of June. She mentioned the full moon is on June 18th. We had a great conversation about the spiritual aspects of birth. She really opened up about how she feels the connection to spirit at each birth. It was amazing to hear. We both kept getting chills!

Kimberly has a girl! Lorraine has a boy!

My dear friend Kimberly had a baby girl- Raina Michelle on May 29th. What a wonderful birthing story! This is her 5th. 3 girls, 2 boys. She moved to Iowa and I miss her and her wonderful family.


Lorraine also had her baby- a boy! Jacob Richard.

Babies are so wonderful!