Hi, guys! Just got home; I went to the Dr. as soon as I left work, and they squeezed me in right away. Turns out I was having some contractions; my doc said that they were a little bit more like "real" contractions than BH, but they let up, so I obviously was not in "real" preterm labor. I have been having some BH contractions since then, but I think I am starting to be able to tell the difference. He said that, since they stopped, we can wait to see what happens before going any further. However, if they start up again, I need to go straight to labor and Delivery, where they already have orders to do a protein swab to see if I am going to go into labor in the next two weeks, and also do an ultrasound of my cervix, to see more accurately if I am dialating. He also advised that I try to limit my exertion and rest if possible. Oh, and he also told me that because I am carrying SO low, I will probably have more lower back pain with BH and also with ligaments since some of them hook into your lower back, so I cannot rely on back pain to be an indication of "real" contractions. So, in other words, I really don't know much of what is going on, but I do feel better. I have to admit, I am pretty freaked out. I am just about 26 weeks, which seems SO early to be having this happen. And with my family history, it just makes me nervous. But the doctor didn't seem too concerned, and told me not to worry yet. It's the "yet" that makes me nervous, though!

They also told me that now my blood pressure is a little low (last time it was a little high?), and I am still measuring a bit larger than my EDD. The nurse helped me feel Ely's feet! When she pushed on my belly, she said "oh, wow, you can feel your little one really well." And when I said "yeah, he moves a lot and he always pushes his butt up against my left side," she told me that she could also feel his feet, and helped me push into them! Sure enough, I could tell they were little feet! I would never have realized that without someone showing me.

Thanks for all the good vibes, girls. I will keep you posted as things progress. Hopefully the contractions do not come back, and my body realized it was too soon and fixed this on its own.

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Krissy

krissy-good I'm glad you are not in labor yet, I hope you are able to relax and take it easy some. It sounds like the dr. took care of any premeasures for the L&D dept. if needed. Take care!

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Krissy - I'm glad you're OK & really glad you went in to get checked out. Rest up & let DH spoil you!

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Krissy-Glad everything is ok and your doctor is getting things in order just in case. Its nice to see and know he's being proactive for you and the baby. Take it easy this weekend.

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Krissy-glad you get it checked out and that everything is ok. I know it is hard, but I would definitely take it easy and keep your feet up as much as you can. I regret that I didn't slow down in the last trimester, because I felt fine, and Avery born a month early.

Heidi-do you have any potential names for your baby girl?

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Krissy- Wow, what a scare you had! Glad to hear that you're still hanging in there.

I went to the doctor on Monday for my bi-monthly appt. and have gained 3 pounds since my last appt. Finally the weight is starting to come on! That means I've now gained a total of 15 pounds so far. Not bad...

I have been off the computer for the last two days, as my mom and niece came over to help me get the house back in order and ended up staying the night Wed. night. DH is in Chicago and is actually flying home right now, so I appreciated the company. We got the guest room ready, except for the blinds and curtains; the nursery ready, except for the changing table's hutch; the master bedroom ready, except for a fern plant that I have to pick up today; the dining room completely ready. Lots of work for only two days time!

Hello to everyone else and have a wonderful FRIDAY!!! WOOHOO!!

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Bina-We have started a very short list so far. I have Kali, Abigail and Delaney that we have at least both agreed and like. I would really like to use a family name for a middle but not sure which one yet. Its weird because I had a boy's name all picked out and ready to go. Now I'm stumped for girls!

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Heidi--I think it always works that way, we had a girls name picked out and really struggled with boys. I am glad we finally found one that we agreed on. We read the 10,000 baby name book (cover to cover), and Ely was the only boys name we agreed on! I like what you have so far; Kali is really cute.

Jo--You need to post some nursery pic's! Sounds like everything is coming together. 15 lbs total!! Wow, I passed you by the time I was 20 weeks! How nice; you shouldn't have too much trouble losing it after the baby is born!

Well, I am still a bit freaked out by yesterday, but I guess there is not much I can do. At least he keeps moving a lot, which really puts my mind at ease. Tomorrow is DH's birthday, and I bought him a cell phone since I had so much trouble getting ahold of him yesterday. It's hard for him to carry one with his job, but he is just going to have to figure it out.

Bina--My mom said the same thing; Slow Down! It is really hard, I have a stressful job and I am working towards tenure, and taking some time off is impossible if I want to be able to have any maternity leave paid. I didn't know Avery came early; were there any complications?

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Krissy

Heidi- Ignore any opinions that I am about to say about the names, I know how hard it is to come up with one you both agree on and I am surprised how many people will still critique your name choice when you tell them the name, BUT I LOVE the name Delaney!! That is so unique and cute! And I've always been a fan of the name Abigail. That was on our girl list, as well.

I had an Abby in my class this year and she has emailed me a few times this summer to check on me. Her mom is pg with their third child, this one is a boy named Cole. She is a few weeks ahead of me, so Abby has always been good at knowing what I'm going through. Plus, she is a wonderful poet and was happy that I encouraged her to keep writing. In her annual/yearbook I wrote her a little poem wrapping up the year with her in my class. She just sent me a photo of her horse, Lily. She even braided her mane. So cute!!

Krissy- As soon as the hutch goes up and the diapers get stashed in the closet, I'll post my nursery pics. It's my favorite room in the house!

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Heidi - I love the names you've picked out. Have you thought of using the boys name for her? Sometimes it is so cute!

Jo - You're going to have to post pics of the whole house! You've done so much work, you should show it off!

Krissy - Great idea to get DH a cell. I don't know what I'd do if DH didn't have one. I don't like the idea of not being able to get ahold of him.

I can't believe I didn't bring this up earlier this week, but did anyone watch the Bachelorette? I was kinda of surprised she picked Jesse, b/c I liked Jason so much, but once I saw them together, I realized they are perfect for each other. I hope this one lasts!

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Jen- I should be working on cleaning up all the clutter, but my fingers are a little swollen right now so I am taking a break. As soon as the house is photo ready, I'll start posting pictures.

I watched the Bachelorette special where Jason confronts her and so on, but I never watched the actual show. Weird, I know...DH was like, do you know who any of these people are? Well, no, but I wanted to see what everyone would be talking about. heehee!

The only shows I watch religiously are "the Mole" and now "the Baby Borrowers".

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Jen-We did toss around the boys name I liked, Cooper, and even possibly using that as a middle name. But then if we do decide to have another I'd hate to use it and then have a boy.

Jo-I also am leaning towards Delaney. I like that it's different but not to the point she would get made fun of. I have decided (don't know if DH will follow it) that we aren't going to share the name with our fmaily or friends. One we want something to be a surprise and we also didn't want our families to get to involved in the process. Mine has taken it really well which surprised me. They toss names out there which is fine but didn't want the pressure of what to use.

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I got SO into Hells Kitchen this year! What a funny show! He just screams at the people the whole time; it really makes me think that my job isnt so stressful!

Jo is right; people are SO wierd about names! We chose Elyas because we both liked Ely, but are not quite religious enough for Elijah. It is a Greek name, and all of the Greek people I have told love it, but a lot of people at work have told me it sounds like a "girl name" (which I don't care), or criticized spelling it with a "y". My grandma keeps calling the baby Robby? She had 5 kids of her own, if she liked the name Robby so much why didn't she use it? I have been really surprised how judgemental people have been. We love the name, though, so it doesnt really matter. And at this point, he really IS Ely; we call him that all the time and it has become how I think of him.

Heidi--Since we don't get to use them this time, here was our girl list: Magdalena (Lena for short; it's a family name), Lucy, and India, but only since I was supposed to be in India! I also loved the names Georgia, Bailey, and Saylor for a girl, but DH veto'd them. My sister's niece's name is Lainey, it is so cute! A lot like Delaney. And I had a Laina in my class last semester; she was Italian and Beautiful! We wanted to keep it a surprise at first, too, but my mom and sister are SO involved in my life (they call 50 times a daYy), it was driving them crazy, and so once I told them we went ahead and told everyone. Good luck keeping it a surprise!

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Krissy

Heidi- I understand about keeping it under wraps. DH and I kept Dominic a secret for a while until we both agreed that would be the name, which was just recently. DH has been doing undercover investigation of the name, asking co-workers what they visualize when they hear the name and even had a work colleague in Chicago named Dominic tell him his thoughts on the name having grown up with it. We got good reports so then it was just the spelling issue. In Italian it is spelled, Domenic. We're still not sure which version we will use. I'm on the fence.

The only family member I didn't want to know early was my MIL. I love her to death, but she is soooo critical! If she didn't come up with it, it's not good enough. She was stuck on Carson, which I like, but that just isn't the name. She still brings up that name occasionally, but I think my FIL talked to her about our view on the name and she has certainly mellowed out a bit. She even called me one day before we actually officially told her, and she said, "I just wanted to let you know that I DO like the name Dominic. Just in case you were worried about what I might say." She's silly.

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Heidi-I too love the name Delaney (not that my opinion matters, lol). The others are great names too so you can't go wrong. If you care about a name being too popular, Abigail is in the top 10. Which is strange because it is more of a classic name than a trendy name.

Krissy-I don't want to scare you, and Avery was only a few days away from being considered full term so there really shouldn't have been any complications. But she did have a few episodes of apnea on the day she was born. (she was taken to the NICU after the first one so I didn't witness the others). She was able to get breathing on her own by being tapped on the back, etc. We were relieved that she didn't have any episodes beyond that first day, and all the tests showed that she was healthy, so the only explanation was prematurity.

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Krissy-My grandma threw out the name Magdelina and call her Maggie for short. I actually like it but DH said no. I do like the name Bailey too. I just know we are going to ahve a hard time agreeing on a name.

Bina-It is surprising that Abigail is so popular. I also see it to more as a classic name. But I would like something a bit different yet not outrageous. The good thing is that is one of the few names that has been popular with our friends and family. It's hard being one of the last to have a baby and all the names get snatched up!

Jo-I may not mind sharing once we make it official and no going back. I like how you did that and then there's really no input as you and DH have decided. By the way I love the name Dominic. I don't think you can go wrong with that name.

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Heidi-I knew a Magdalena who went by Maggie in high school. Such a pretty name! If you do a search for "social security names" or something there is a website with a list of the names from the Social security database where you can see the popularity of names over the last 10 years or so and even break it down by state so you can see if names you like are going up or down in popularity.

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