Chance Robertson Demmans

Our little boy arrived by C-section at 1:04 October 31st!

Halloween Party

The pedicure yesterday was definitely different than any other pedicures I've had EVER! It wasn't as relaxing as I thought it was going to be, it was more like a dentists appointment! My feet feel healthy! When the reflexology part came I thought I was going to jump out of my chair. The lady's name was Honna and she learned reflexology in Germany. I believe it! She used her thumbs to FIRMLY press into my legs just above my ankle bone and then slid up my calf about 4". It hurt like CRAZY especially when she did it after first rubbing an exfoliating scub on which felt like sandpaper! The entire time she was either pinching between my thumb and forefinger or encouraging me to do so and saying "Breathe, breathe! Don't hold your breath! Breathe from your belly! Focus!". Whenever she did this (she did it about 5 times for about a minute each time during the course of the pedicure), the baby would kick violently. I got several Braxton Hicks contractions right there in the chair, and a few more while out later that evening, but nothing serious...yet. I'm still hoping that it will kick in tomorrow too. Then Honna informed me that from the colour of the bottoms of my feet she can tell that my liver is stressed (probably from being squished by the baby) and that I'm "toxic" currently & she would recommend a "detoxifying diet" after I'm done breastfeeding. This seems unfair - no booze in 9 months and my liver is toxic??

Lynne watched as I gripped the arm rests of the chair and muttered expletives as Honna did her magic. Lynne says when she goes in for massages with Honna that she streams tears most of the time!

Cam picked me up at Lynne's house after the pedicure was done. We went to a potluck party but left fairly early because I felt wiped out. Got home & had a bath & went to bed. Have to remember to change our clocks because it's daylight savings time. We are supposed to go to the hospital at 8:00 PM to have the first part of the induction done - they will either keep me for 2 hours and send me home or things will get going then and I'll stay at the hospital, so will need to pack up the car again too.

3rd Ultrasound

Ultrasound yesterday was great and got some fantastic photos of our (not so) little baby. The weight estimate came in and the only thing I can say is that Cam and I are now referring to the baby as "The Great Pumpkin". Baby has plenty of amniotic fluid, there's good blood exchange between the baby and I, no meconium floating in the pool and Baby is moving well, so there was no recommendation for immediate induction. I have to wait until Sunday night/Monday morning.

My good friend Lynne has gone and booked an appointment for me to get a pedicure on Saturday afternoon, what a fantastic idea! I am really excited to go, as it's been a good 6 weeks since I've comfortably been able to touch my own feet (i.e. tying shoes, clipping toenails, nail polish, etc. all have been a chore and have given up where not necessary - slip on shoes, I make Cam clip my nails and no nail polish). The lady who is going to do the pedicures is also a reflexologist and was bragging to Lynne last week that she could put me into labour in 15 minutes using some secret accupressure points. So, I'm gonna ask her to push my pressure points! Who knows, maybe it will work, and I'm going to be induced on Sunday night anyways!

If it doesn't work we're going to go to stop by a few Halloween parties on Saturday night. Tomorrow I'll go shopping and look for an orange T-shirt that I can sew some felt triangles to to make a proper Jack'o'lantern out of my belly (Cam's idea). One is a pumkin carving party but I think we'll wait to the last minute to do ours. The other is is an hors'dourve potluck party, so will try the gourmet frozen food place next to my doctor's office - if the reflexology works & I go into labour, we can just save the frozen puff pastries for when we have visitors, and I'll wear the shirt to the hospital. If it doesn't work, Cam can just pop the snacks in the oven while I'm getting my tootsies rubbed.

I have a 9:00 AM appointment with my doctor - so I will check the reflexology out with her (ankles have been a bit swollen, nothing out of control, but definitely puffy), as well as the toe nail polish thing (in our hospital classes they mentioned not to wear FINGER nail polish, but nothing about TOE nail polish).My cold is getting better, just a runny nose now and if it would stop dripping I could stop sanding my nose off my face with kleenex! That sounds like Heaven!

LATER...Doctor's appointment was good, I have gained some weight again, but doctor thinks it is mostly fluid as she can see some swelling in my legs and hands. Also the baby is still growing at a rate of approximately 0.1 lbs per day. The doctor is actually glad that I caught a cold - she said that it will boost my immune system so that it is raging by the time that the baby is born, and my symptoms are well on the way to being cleared up. She's all for trying the reflexology and has no problems if I get my toenails painted (fingernails need to stay au natural so that pulse monitor can be attached if need be). Also she confirmed her schedule - she will be on call at the hospital on Sunday night and all day Monday, so that she will likely be there if the baby is born as a result of induction.

The baby pool is getting bigger! Right now the range in weight is 5.5 lbs (Aunt Louise) to 10 lbs (Nana) - thank goodness no one thinks it's going to be bigger than that! Length ranges from 18" (Auntie Marie & Uncle Brad) to 23" (Granny Anne and Grandpa Gordon). Birthdates are now stretching into November (Auntie Jackie and Aunt Louise). And it's about a 50-50 split over whether the baby will be a boy or a girl.

3rd Ultrasound

Well, here we are, a week overdue and no baby in sight. I can't deny that I'm starting to get frustrated and especially with this cold I am feeling partincularly sorry for myself. Every bump and jostle the baby gives my sore tummy makes me want to groan and I think I am annoying Cameron. I'm certainly annoying myself.

Today I have the ultrasound to see if the baby is OK or not. I will be picking Cam up at a train station near the clinic and then we will go there together. This is the same clinic that I visited June 27 and I better not get the same technician who scanned me last time, he was a big jerk and claimed that all the discomfort I was getting from lying on my back was all in my head! He never even introduced himself to me, he just grunted "get on the bed and lift your shirt". Eventually he got up and left, maybe it was his lunch break or something, he never said goodbye and then another technician came in and was super nice - her name was Jen. She said it was OK to do the rest of the ultrasound while lying on my side, which eased up the dizzy-sick-hot feeling I'd been bearing through for the last hour!

This clinic has doctors who immediately review your results with you, which is a lot nicer than waiting for next week's doctor's appointment to hear the findings. In this case, there won't be another doctor's appointment after Friday anyways. Well, at least not while pregnant!

The good news from the clinic yesterday is that I don't have to drink a bunch of water first this time. So even if I do get the mean technician he won't be able to punch me in a full bladder again. Haha!

The baby guesses are coming in and it's a lot of fun to see! So far the range includes Oct. 26 (the Pawseys) to Oct. 30 (Gramma Jo), there's about an even split between boys and girls, and a range in expected weight from 6.6 lbs (thanks, Kristi!) to 10 whopping pounds (Nana, I hope the baby isn't THAT big!).

The baby is coming when the baby is coming!

Anyone got any ideas when this kid is showing up & what they will look like? Leave a message in the guest book & I will keep track of the guesses & put them into our baby's album. My guess is that it is a baby boy, 22" 8.5 lbs. and will be born on the 29th of October, probably just before midnight.

I have come down with a sore throat! I think that is Murphy's Law! I remember reading somewhere that if you have a cold you have to have antibiotics administered during labour, or something like that. So I am trying to get better before the baby comes! At 4 AM woke up with a burning throat and so got up and made honey and lemon tea, bundled up tight on the couch with Scarlet and bawled my eyes out watching Life Network - the baby/delivery shows always make me cry.

Cam nearly slept in this morning, so I guess it was a good thing that I got up when I did. I gave him a poke at 20 to 7 and asked if he was getting up soon. He was out of the house 15 minutes later.

Last night Cam wanted to know what the odds were of me having the baby by Wednesday (tomorrow) were. I felt like spitting out a number like 13.598%! Over the past few weeks I have come to the conclusion that any inkling I may have when the baby will come is WRONG. The baby is coming when the baby is coming. Period! At least I have 100% certainty that the baby will be born before November 1!

Ticklish baby?

I had a dream that I gave birth to a baby boy...and 5 jumbo shrimp. I don't know what that means - I really don't know.

Dinner last night (the food) was great but it was very noisy! At the risk of sounding "old", all I can say is that I remember when Earl's was a nice place to go, for a mature dinner out. Now it is swamped with teenagers and families letting their kids run amok. We had a large group, 8 people, so we had to sit at a long narrow table, and because of the din it was impossible to hear the conversation at the opposite end of the table! After dinner we paid our bills and then went to a coffee shop for coffee afterwards - somewhere less noisy!

The rest of the group went out for a movie, but Cam and I just went home - it was 10 PM by then and I knew I would just fall asleep in the movie theatre!

Braxton Hicks contractions really start to pick up at night time and so does the baby's activity. Usually in the morning I wake up and the baby is stretching out so I have a bony little foot pressing against my belly button. I just poke at it until the baby pulls his foot back in - maybe this baby is ticklish??

Broken internet

Computer issues! Do not load Internet Explorer 7! Our internet access is screwed! After spending nearly an hour on the phone with the Tech Support group at our internet company, there was no progress. I was frustrated so I went to take a shower, 5 minutes later Cam had fixed the problem. Maybe they only hire special idiots at the internet company.

Cam and I going to Farmers' Market this AM, then out for dinner. Keeping busy!