This time next Wednesday

We will be holding a sweet princess in our arms.  Not just any princess, our third princess.  A teeny tiny baby with 10 little fingers and 10 chubby toes.  She'll look up at us, snuggle into us and will know that we are her parents.

I had my 38 week appointment today.  My last OB appointment.  It was the last time I have to step on the scale and wonder where it will stop.  I gained an even 42 lbs overall this time around.  My blood pressure was good (which is amazing considering that I had both Kaitlyn and Samantha with me and they were setting bad examples for each other left and right and had me doing my best to keep my patience), my urine dip was clean, and my cervix is still in the back.  Because it was in the back, we didn't check for dilation.  Why risk irritating it and getting labor started when we don't need to.

We discussed the surgery.  I was hoping that I could be discharged a little under 72 hours instead of anything more.  Looks like that probably will not happen.  I feel very fortunate to have such a great relationship with my doctor.  I also feel very confident in knowing that he will take my care seriously.  And I am beyond glad that we can have honest discussions about my care.

Because of my increase in blood clots this time around, I ended up staying on baby aspirin longer than I did with Samantha.  I stopped it with her at 36 weeks and had my cesarean at 39w3d.  This time around, I stopped it yesterday, at exactly 38 weeks with surgery scheduled at 39w1d.  It is also looking increasingly likely that I will be on heparin after surgery to control any clotting as well as compression stockings.  And while surgery is on Wednesday, I'll likely stay until Sunday.  Boo.  Boo to that indeed.

To be honest, I'm not nervous at all about surgery, not nervous about how time will pass (I know it will be far too quickly), or recovery.  I'm nervous about having a newborn in the house.  For obvious reasons.  I have a great doctor, great support and despite losing a son whom we love so much, I know that we are incredibly blessed.

Soon, we'll be sharing Charlotte's first portrait.  I cannot wait to see what and who she looks like.