The big day!!!

Me still thinking "I'll be tired at work tomorrow!"

"Wow, they really are contractions!"

Mom, Chad, and I hanging out waiting for the doctor to decide if he is keeping me or not.


My awesome nurse helping me get through my contractions.

Thursday was for sure a day to remember!! Recap of the day so it won’t take forever…
5:30am-up for work
6:00am-not walking to easily
7:00am-3:00pm-taught an entire day of school in a good bit of pain
3:05pm-telling people “I think these are contractions”
3:06pm-everyone telling me “oh no…you will know if they are contractions”
4:00pm-calling mom to ask if she thinks I should call the doctor and stay home from work tomorrow
4:05pm-nurse at doctor’s office says since Dr. Chris is on call she will talk to him and call me back
5:15pm-doctor calls and tells me to come on up to labor and delivery just so he can “check me out” and make sure things are okay
6:00pm-told Chad to stay at practice because I’d be back home late, go in the car with mom still saying “I think these are contractions”
6:30pm-arriving at labor and delivery, getting hooked up to the machine thinking I'll be tired tomorrow at work
6:31pm-after looking at monitor I said…”Wow, they were contractions!”
7:00pm-doctor says he is afraid to send me home because I’ll be right back up there. Calling Chad to say “just get our bags and come on up…but don’t worry about bringing them in.” STILL thinking I'll be at work tomorrow
8:00pm-9:45pm-walking up and down the hall with contractions 3 minutes apart and hooking up to monitor telling Chad "I'm going to work tomorrow if this baby isn't here."
10:00pm-dilated another centimeter-beginning to think I might not be at work!
10:30pm-Dr. Chris says “I’m going to break your water…you will have a baby tonight”
10:31pm-FREAK OUT….”Chad, go get our bags.”
10:45pm-Dr. Chris breaks my water because the baby is already on his way out
10:46pm-contractions immediately 1 minute apart
10:50pm-nurse running down the hall to tell them to come do my epidural NOW!!!
11:00pm-4cm dilated, fall asleep because drugs are GREAT
2:15am-waking up saying “Mom go get the nurse, I’m feeling like I need to push”
2:20am-9cm dilated
2:25am-10cm dilated...pushing begins (pushed through 6 or 7 contractions in one hour)
3:25am-BRAYDEN IS HERE! Chad cuts the cord, lots of tears, lots of pictures, overwhelming feelings!

Whew! What a day! I must say…labor and delivery were not anything like I expected (and I mean that in the best way possible). Things could not have gone any smoother…What an answer to prayer! If I was to type out everything about the day it would take forever, so hope you enjoy the recap!

Meet Brayden

BRAYDEN CADE BRIDGES

7 lbs, 2 oz, 20.5 inches

As you can only image, the last 2 days have been crazy! I promise to get pictures and stories up as soon as we get settled in at home! He is a perfect baby and Chad and I are completely beside ourselves with joy! What a blessing he is. More post coming soon...

Full Term!

Not too much longer...

Surprise!!!

What a great day it has been! I have had contractions most of the day which means the baby is definitely on his way! And if that isn't exciting enough...my parents and kids at work threw me a surprise baby shower!!! I cannot believe one of my precious ones did not spill the beans, but I'm glad they didn't. It was wonderful! My parents had precious cakes with blue booties on them, blue M&M's, and other snacks for the kids and I. They also blessed me with a MORE than generous gift card that I know we will use when our baby boy gets here. My favorite part was the game they had my kids play!!! Each child not only guessed the weight of baby Bridges (which ranged from 2 pounds to 12 pounds!!), but they were given a bundle of yarn to cut. The amount of yarn they cut was a guess at how big my belly was! It was so precious! Surprisingly we had a 3 way tie, and fun was had by ALL, especially me.

Everyone keeps telling me once the baby gets here I won't worry about anything else...but my classroom of kids will no doubt be on my mind. God has blessed me with such an amazing group this year that I wish I could keep! They have been so wonderful through this experience, and so interested! My parents are supportive and understanding which is great, and I will miss them all since I won't return this school year. Hopefully the baby will be nice and healthy so we can go visit more than once!

Now we are just waiting to see...is today the day????

There's No Way....

The doctor's famous first words after my exam today:
"There is NO way you will make it through the weekend without having this baby!"

As of today I am 2 more centimeters dilated, 85% effaced and as Dr. Chris put it "he is falling out!" He told me if I was one more week along we would be walking over to the hospital to be having this baby. How exciting AND scary!!! I wasn't mentally prepared to think he could be here any second. So...since he cannot induce at 37 weeks, I am home, wondering "is it going to be tonight"? Dr. Chris says if I make it to my appointment next Monday, and show progression, we WILL be having a baby next week! AHHHHHH!

Happy Easter!

Since I was dilated and effaced so much, the doctor told me not to go out of town for Easter. We were a little disappointed at first, but what a great day it turned out to be! Since it was the families first Easter without our precious Papa Rod, we went to church with my grandmother at their church. It was really nice. Then Chad and I went to Olive Garden for lunch just the two of us! After that we came home and took a nice 3 hour nap!!! Since I haven't been sleeping that great, I guess he hasn't either! Then we sat outside and enjoyed the weather and just being together. What a great day the Lord gave us! One of our last "alone" and we were able just to enjoy each other. I'm so thankful for that!

Moment to Brag...

I must brag...
I believe I have the most wonderful, patient man in the whole world! Every morning for the past 3 days (on Spring Break!!), he has gotten up at 7:30 to take our cars to be serviced. He took my car for an oil change once, his car the next, and now taking mine back to get the tires rotated. I really wanted to have as much done before baby got here, and Chad has really stepped up. As if getting up at 7:30 on Spring Break isn't bad enough, he worked on both of our lawn mowers (which were not working), he helped me clean the house, went with me as I drug him all around Columbia for a camcorder, AND finished the nursery. And if that isn't good enough, he grilled me enough burgers to last me the week!! (Fresh red meat is one of the few things I can eat for my iron!) What a sweet man I have!! Never a complaint! I am so blessed to have him!

Because of Chad I now have a clean house, a freshly mowed front yard, a complete nursery ready for our baby boy, a nice and tuned up car, and a new camcorder!! Now I'm ready...

Spring Break Chores!

Chad and I have a list a mile long of chores to get done over Spring Break. Some of our list includes:

oil change for my car

oil change for Chad's car

rotate my tires

hair cut for us both

mow the yard

clean the house

get Cali's nail's clipped and wash her

Today we began to mark somethings off of our to do list! Bright and early at 8:00 this morning we met with the pediatrician. He was such a nice man and eased my mind about what is to come. He assured me there will ALWAYS be someone to call to ask my questions (which is a relief! I have many!) and made us feel good about some of our decision making as parents already. I am confident we choose the right doctor for our boy.

Then Chad and I took advantage of being up early together and went and ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel. We haven't eaten breakfast out in a long time! It was nice. I may have overdone my sugar count by having the most amazing pancakes and syrup, but I've been doing good so I treated myself!

After breakfast I had a doctors appointment. After my blood count and urine count he came in to ask me what I had eaten this morning because my sugar count was up...hehe! I assured him I don't eat like that daily and he laughed and said it was okay to treat myself every now and then, but not to overdo it! I left the doctor very excited because as of now I am 2 cm dilated, 80% effaced, and at a +1 position! Our baby is face down the way he should be! He is on his way to being here! Dr. Chris told me to take it easy this week if I want to go back to work for 2 more weeks, so that is the plan. On a sour note, he did say I couldn't go out of town for Easter, but Chad and I will enjoy that time together I know!

So we go to the doctor every Monday to be checked, and hopefully he can hang on 2 more weeks! The nursery is done and the doctors seem confident, so we are getting very excited!!!

Chad at the pediatrician's office. We love the bible verse!

Welcome to our nursery!!!

Chad's Baby Shower

Today was Chad's baby shower! His school threw it for him and it was wonderful! We have been blessed with such wonderful people in our lives. Our baby boy is entering a very loving environment!

Chad was scared to death his friends were going to embarrass him, but he was pleasantly surprised to find they didn't do TOO much! They dressed him up to start off with all the things he will need to be prepared for our baby like an apron, shower cap, rubber gloves, and hand sanitizer! It was too funny. We enjoyed dinner together and Chad opened gifts. I know he had a good time! I'm so glad he has such a great group of friends! He is such a sweet man and will be an amazing father!

9 Month Jitters

As I've entered my 9th month of pregnancy, all my anxieties and fears have started to settle in.

Will I have a hard labor?
Will I have the strength to go on the next 3 weeks?
Will I be a good mom?
Will Chad and I remember that WE started this family and the baby is an ADDITION to that?
Will I have everything I need?
Will Cali still feel loved like she does now?
Will we ever get to sleep again!!??

So many questions. I'm just trying hard to remember that I cannot be totally planned for this time in my life (which is very difficult for me). I pray that God gives the the knowledge and strength to know what to do and to give my family all that they need. I have heard these questions I'm having are "normal" for women 9 months pregnant, but I feel alone in them sometimes! Even though I am getting scared and starting to question myself, I am filled with excitement as well!

What will he look like?
Will he have blue eyes...I hope I hope! (only thing I'd love to pass on to my son!)
Will he be a good sleeping/eating baby?
Wonder what God has in store for his life?
When can we take him out and show him off!?!

So I have wonderful thoughts as well as scary ones! It's not long now before our little one gets here, so please keep us in your thoughts as we anxiously wait for him to get here!

On the way...

We ordered our baby book this week and being the impulsive mommy to be...I had it rushed with a 3 day shipping! It should be here just in time for Spring Break! Then Chad and I will have some time to sit down and fill out what we can before he gets here! Yeah!!!

More baby fun!

Today was an exciting day! Another shower for baby Bridges :) With each gift we receive, Chad and I are amazed at home blessed we are. Our baby boy is going to have everything he needs and then some... 3 ladies that I grew up with threw my shower this weekend and they went above and beyond. The food was delicious, the gifts were such blessings, and getting together with friends to help calm my nerves about what's to come was nice! Overall, a great great day!

We are in our 9th month now and visiting the doctor each Monday. Hopefully our baby boy will stay in my belly until full term, so the doctor will be monitoring him closely! They say he is average weight and measuring right where he should be! I'm feeling the anxiety as we get closer to the real deal. Chad continues to be supportive as the tears and questions are more frequent. He is going to be such a great dad!

Sick again...

My first graders have managed to pass along every illness imaginable this year, and I've been lucky to dodge most of them. But yesterday it caught up with me and fever hit me about 3:00. We had a field trip to the zoo yesterday (which at 9 months pregnant just about killed me) and you could see the pollen everywhere. I'm almost convinced its just a sinus infection, but I'm afraid to rule anything else out. I have 3 children with pneumonia, 2 with flu, and 2 with sinus infections!

I am SO close to having our baby boy that I don't want to take anything that will hurt him in any way. So starting an antibiotic last night was difficult for me, but I knew I needed to get better so I could take care of him. Even not feeling well, I'm so blessed by everyone around me. My wonderful husband came home from his soccer game (this is major people) to take care of me when he found out I had fever. My principal excused me from my after school obligations with no penalty so I could pick up my meds and get in the bed. My children at school have reminded each other all morning long that "Mrs. Bridges doesn't feel good so we need to listen." They are so precious! My parents of my children send me notes daily to let me know they are thinking of me and wishing me the best!

Only 1 more week until Spring Break, so I'm hoping this antibiotic gets anything I was exposed to and that will be the end of it. Then I will have some time away from school and any germs hiding in my classroom! My baby boy keeps moving to remind me he is okay and I'm so thankful for that. I'm hoping the rain we are going to get the next couple of days will wash out some of the pollen which has collected on EVERYTHING! Until then, I'm locking myself in my bedroom :)

New AC and Great Dr. Apt!

Yesterday was another Dr. Apt down! Our baby boy is measuring right on target and I am not dilated like he thought I was! He has moved into the birth canal, head down, which causes some discomfort on my bladder...but he is still in there! The doctor seems to think I CAN make it to the end of April now which is a relief to me for work reasons! My iron was FINALLY up to a number he liked, which is great because I refuse to take anymore! My body can only handle 3 doses a day!

This week has started to heat up, so its a good thing we got a new AC yesterday! I put it on 63 for a while just because I could!!! So things are moving along and we still have a healthy baby boy that we are anxious to meet!

34 Weeks

We are moving into week 35 and I am getting more and more anxious about our little ones arrival! The nursery is set and we have 2 more showers to go. Can't wait!

My doctor's appointments are now every Monday since he has already begun to drop. I'm not dilated at all (yet), but he has dropped enough for the doctor to say he is probably coming a little early. I'm hoping to make it at least 2 more weeks because then we have Spring Break and I can get some rest and stay off my feet. I still struggle shaving my legs, sleeping, and now finding a comfortable sitting position! However, I love feeling him move around each day and walking into his nursery and playing with his things! Yes I'm a dork, I go in there at least once a day to play with something!

We are supposed to be getting our new AC tomorrow, so after three weeks with no air I will finally have some relief! That's good since we have entered 9 months. I cannot believe how fast the months have past, and in no time at all he will be here in our arms. Amazing...

AHH!

Well...week 2 (almost 3) and STILL no air conditioning. While others are wishing the rain away, I'm hoping it hangs around until we get this thing straightened out!!! It's supposed to be 75 tomorrow...yikes! That means it will register AT LEAST 80 in my house!

Calling all Mommies!!!

Okay moms...In the next 2 or 3 weeks I'm going to get my hospital bag ready! Can you believe it?!? As I begin to gather what I need, I'd love to know of something you wish you would have had during your delivery and hospital stay! Please "comment" and let me know if you can think of something other than the obvious things like clothes, bathroom/shower supplies, and nightgowns!

Just some more shower pics!

So many blessings...

Chapin Elementary Baby Shower

My travel set!!!!!

Mom and I

Our precious centerpiece!

Precious cake!

Yesterday was the baby shower thrown by my first grade team at school. They went above and beyond any expectation I had for a school shower! It was wonderful. Each gift I opened made me more and more thankful for the people I've been blessed with in my life. Between the two showers I have had, our baby boy has been set up to enter this world. I feel so relieved about making sure he has what he needs. Chad and I had a blast setting up our bouncer, swing, stroller, baby carrier, and mobile (just some of the great things we were blessed with!). It's just nothing but pure excitement about his arrival now!