More Pictures

My sister, Mary, took these pictures of Max. My mom and sister surprised us and came out last Thursday. It was so much fun to have them here! Rob, Max, and I took them to the airport this afternoon. We will miss them!


We think Max is just the most beautiful baby.

Max Spencer Madsen

Max is here! I will post more about the labor and delivery later. Max was born today, June 24, at 10:27 a.m. He weighed 6 pounds, 15 ounces. He is 19.75 inches long. He is just a little angel!

Tonight

I went to the doctor today. The good news is I am healthy, as is the baby. However, I have not dilated at all. So, I will be checking into the hospital tonight to get things started. If all goes well, which I am assuming it will, tomorrow Rob and I will be parents! We are both so excited to start this new phase of our lives. We have done everything we can to prepare ourselves for his birth. Wish us luck!

Sprinkler!

When the sprinklers came on last night, we were talking with Devon (we had been babysitting his daughter), and Rob happened to notice that one of our sprinklers was more of a fountain! We laughed and laughed. Have you ever seen a sprinkler spray so high? Rob now has a project to work on today...

Lily

Isn't it beautiful?

Friends

Today our good friends, the Furse's, had a layover in Dallas. We were able to pick them up from the airport and spend the morning/afternoon together. It was so much fun talking with them and hanging out with them. They have another layover in a couple of weeks, so they will be able to see the baby after he is born. At most, I only have 10 days left! I feel I am ready to pop! I hope the baby will come this week, instead of next, so keep your fingers crossed for me!

Storms

We have had severe thunderstorms in the area- lots of wind and rain and a possibility of a tornado. Luckily our house and trees have held strong, but our next door neighbor was not so fortunate. As you can see, the tree has about touched down. Others in the neighborhood had fence damage. The worst we experienced was knocked over trash/recycle cans!

On another note, I went to the doctor today. I am 50% effaced, but I have not started dilating yet. The baby is still in the proper position, and I am hoping he will come sooner rather than later! I am very anxious to see him! My doctor noticed that I have been spending a bit of time outside (I am starting to get some color), and he reminded me to increase my fluid intake. I feel like I already drink a lot, as I am up and down to the restroom all throughout the night, but apparently I need to drink more during the daytime hours. Other than that, everything looks good for both the baby and me.

Baby Update

I went to the doctor today for my checkup, and things are looking really good! The baby has definitely dropped, but my cervix is still closed. I asked the doctor if he still wanted to induce me on the 24th, as Rob is not traveling any longer, and he said yes. He asked if I wanted to be induced any earlier. I expressed concern over the baby, and so he had me go and get a sonogram right then! The baby is looking healthy. His heart beat was 128 bpm. He weighs 6 pounds, 8 ounces. He is 18.5 inches long! The baby is still clearly a boy. He is in the 50th percentile. Here are some of the pictures from the sonogram:

The baby's foot- heel is on the left, toes are on the right:


Here the baby is sucking his thumb- his hand is on the left, you can see his nose and then his brain on the far right:


Here is his face- his eyes are dark, top of his head on the right side, and chin/mouth on the left (I believe his thumb was still in his mouth, which is why his nose/mouth are kinda squishy):

Here is a profile shot- he is still sucking his thumb, starting on the left you can see his fist, then his nose and on the right is his brain:

After the doctor looked at the sonogram results, we talked again about the induction. He told me that we would keep the induction date on the 24, but he honestly didn't think the baby would wait that long! He thinks I will be about a week early! I am thrilled to hear that. Overall I have felt really good. I have tried to stay active my entire pregnancy by working out. My biggest complaint is having to sleep on my side. I am NOT a side sleeper- I am a back sleeper! Rather than having lower back pain, I get in-between-the-shoulder blade pain! My hips also hurt from sleeping on them... but it is bearable. I am just so excited that the baby looks healthy, and that I have had good health. My mother has asked me to post a picture of myself, so when Robert gets home I will have him snap one of me and I will add it to this post. Just a couple more weeks to go!