Induction!

   So I went to the doctor this morning for my weekly check-up on Noah, and my doc told me I am already 4 cm dilated! I've been having some painful contractions, so I'm glad to know they've been helping me progress. The doctor wants to make sure that I don't go into labor on the weekend or late at night because Noah is going to have to be evaluated by the cardiologist since they couldn't get a clear look at his aortic arch. They just want to make sure that all the doctors that he might need to be seen by are available. He also stripped my membranes, so I'm really hoping I'm progressed even more when we get to the hospital. We're supposed to check in at 9 tonight. Everyone is starting to make their guess on when Noah is going to be born. I'm hoping it'll be around 3-4 in the morning. I really don't want to be in labor long. I was really wanting to not get an epidural, but I'm not sure I can do it since they'll be giving me Pitocin. The contractions that Pitocin brings on are horrible! I'm still leaving the option open for an epidural, but I'm going to try to hold out as long as possible.
   I'm pretty nervous about Noah coming. We've had so many unclear answers about his health and I'm just ready to know that everything is ok. We know that he has the clubfeet, that part was pretty clear. We still aren't sure about his heart. They told us that everything look good with his spine, but the MRI might have found something wrong with his brain. They didn't give us much detail, just that it's probably nothing to worry about. I hate the vague answers and am praying sooo hard that the only thing wrong is the clubfeet. I'm also nervous about how Elijah is going to react. He's very attached to me. He even gets jealous if I'm paying Josh attention and not him. I'm sure he'll adjust eventually. I just know it's going to be hard for all of us at first.
   Elijah is already of to his MawMaw and PawPaw's. Josh's grandparents and cousins are down for a few weeks, so I know Elijah will have plenty of people to keep him busy. I do miss him! I almost started crying when he left. It's going to be hard being away from him. Since he is gone, that gives me time to make sure we have everything for the hospital and probably take a nap. It feels like a lot at once, but I know everything will fall into place :)

36 weeks and settling down in Belle Chasse

     We've been back "home" for almost a week. The adjustment hasn't been too bad. Elijah has been sleeping through the night (he had a hard time sleeping when we first got down here). Josh was NOT happy when we first got down here, but now he said he feels more adjusted and like this is home now. I'm still adjusting, but I know this will feel like home soon enough. It is definitely different living in a neighborhood rather than in a house in the middle of nowhere. I was going to start supper tonight and when I went to turn the gas on, I realized that the gas was out. There was a gas leak in the neighborhood so they had to shut everyone's gas off. So I made a trip to Popeye's for some supper. I tried not to get annoyed at the situation, but they have leaks all the time and are constantly cutting the gas off, so it does get a lil annoying. We don't have a microwave (we'd rather not use one) so if the gas is out, then we don't really have a way to cook or heat up any food. It's going to be an interesting 3 years adjusting to city life, but we're trying to make the best of it.
   I am now 36 weeks and cannot wait for this pregnancy to be over with and to finally meet my sweet lil Noah. I had my 36 week check up yesterday. They did another ultrasound and he is already weighing in at 6 lbs 5 oz! Hopefully he won't plump up too much more or we're gonna have a pretty big baby, haha. Because he has the bilateral clubfeet, they like to be extra cautious when checking everything on the ultrasound. We've already done a fetal echo cardiogram to check his heart, but my new doc said something looks a little off and wants us to have another one done. She also couldn't get a good look at the bottom of his spine, so she's also sending us too get a fetal MRI done. Dr. Longo, my new doc, said she feels everything will come back normal, but she doesn't want any surprises at delivery. I'm glad she's being so thorough, but it is scary. I thought it was scary when I was pregnant with Elijah and had to have all the Non-Stress tests and was on the Lovenox, but now having to have an ultrasound every month and fetal echos and fetal mri's makes things with Elijah seem like a piece of cake. I'm just praying that everything comes back normal and we won't have to deal with anything more than his feet. Monday, we have a consultation to meet with the Pediatric Orthopedic doctor. From what I read, this doctor specializes in the best method out there for clubfeet. It's going to be a whole different world having to deal with the casts and braces. Despite all the craziness, I am VERY excited to meet this sweet lil guy. Hopefully we won't have to wait 3 more weeks to meet him. I really don't want to have to be induced again, so we started walking tonight and I hope that will get things going soon :). Please keep us in your prayers. I will post again after we get the results from all the tests on Friday.