Finally home!

Welcome home party! (Harrisons and Grandparents)

Beautiful roses from sweet husband

Relaxing with Grandpa Ritter

Exciting first bath

Molly in a pretty pink dress

Visitors

GRANDMA AND GRANDPA RITTER
PROUD DADDY
COACH BURNS
JULIE AND BRIAN
GRANDPA KELLY

Precious Pics

Change of plans

Thank you all so much for praying! I've gotten several e-mails from friends today. I decided yesterday to cancel my induction. I was dreading it and had no peace about it. I was praying for God's wisdom yesterday and felt like I should cancel it. I believe that inductions are very important if something is wrong, but there is nothing wrong with my baby or my body. She's just slow in coming!

Generations of women in my family have given birth to babies of all sizes (my dad was 10lb 2 oz, I was 9 lb, and my great grandmother gave birth to 18 lb of triplets!). They all survived without medical interventions! I am trusting God to bring the baby at the right time. He brought about the pregnancy in His time. He also provided a job for Ryan and a buyer for our house this summer. Who I am to second guess His timing for the baby's birth?

Thanks for the prayers! It is really difficult to make a decision like this, and I hope that she comes soon so that I don't have to consider being induced because she's REALLY late!

Great day for MSU fans

Mom and Dad came over today to watch MSU beat UAB. Then, U of M was defeated by Appalachain State. I'm not sure which is sweeter: seeing our team win or our rival deflated.

God blessed me through Ryan this morning. This past week I have been writing down scriptures to use as motivation and perspective during labor. I had been thinking about and searching for a particular verse all week but was unable to find it. This morning, I asked Ryan what he had read in the Bible. He said that he had a couple verses for me. The first one he read was the one for which I had been looking! How sweet that God would unite Ryan and me in this way. Here's the verse: Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:3

I have an appointment at the hospital Tuesday morning to have my water broken. That should start my labor, but if it doesn't I'll have to receive pitocin. I definitely hope to go into labor naturally before then. The doctor doesn't want me to go too late without having the baby though. I'm having a really hard time with the idea of being induced. I understand that I am very blessed to have no other complications. Many women have to face scheduled C-sections. However, if I do have to receive the pitocin, the contractions will likely be much more intense than those that would occur naturally. Pitocin can also cause the baby's heartrate to drop and increases the likelihood of a C-section. If I receive pitocin, I cannot walk about during labor but must be continously monitored and will be tethered to the machine. So, I am facing a lot of fears right now. However, I need to remember the verse God gave us and recognize that my troubles are so small compared to His suffering for us. Please pray that I go into labor naturally!

Nothing New

Just checking in to say that everything is the same here. I'm heading to Walmart soon because I think it would be really funny for my water to break at the Azle Super Walmart. I wouldn't want it to happen at a nice place, but I think that the Azle Walmart would be quite fitting. My mom is encouraging me to spend A LOT of time walking around Walmart! If it really happened, I'd probably be really embarassed, but it would be quite a story to tell.

In His Time

These are some pix of the beautiful evening sky behind the house where we're staying.

God is sovereign to appoint the time of birth. We have tried pretty much EVERYTHING to start my labor, even castor oil. It was very effective as a laxative, but not as a labor inducer! The baby is just not ready to be born yet. I am 41 weeks pregnant today. The doctor determines a due date which is at 40 weeks. However, babies are considered full term anywhere from 38 to 42 weeks. It is thought that the baby releases a protein to start labor when her lungs are fully developed. Some just aren't ready to be born until 42 weeks. Both of my mom's babies were born at 42 weeks or later. Julia, my doula, reminded me that we shouldn't have a due date, but a "due month". My due month would be August 8-September 5.

I'm just praying that I don't have to be induced. It is not good to go past 42 weeks. I have an induction scheduled for next Tuesday. I'll go in Monday night to get started on cervadil to soften the cervix. Then, Tuesday morning they'll break my water. As a last resort, the doctor will put me on pitocin. But, I'm praying for the baby to come before this weekend! It would be nice to have a long weekend with Ryan.

I have been feeling really good. It doesn't seem real that I'm going to have a baby. I'm starting to think that pregnancy will just be my permanant condition! I haven't gotten any bigger in a few weeks, and I'm pretty much able to do everything I want. This morning I jogged a mile, worked in the yard doing a little mowing and weed wacking, and then went for a swim. I've been leisurely using the computer on my parents' back patio for about an hour now. I better savor my life of leisure while I'm still able!

Still Pregnant

No baby yet... I'm not getting too impatient. I just don't want to be induced! Maybe with the full moon tonight... I'm not feeling the best this afternoon. Either I overdid it this morning mowing the lawn or maybe labor is imminent.

We'll keep everyone updated. I have an appointment with my doctor tomorrow. We'll see what she says!

Volleyball

Happy Birthday Big T! My brother Tim would LOVE to share his birthday today with his new niece. Maybe she'll oblige him! We went to lunch with my parents at North Main BBQ when he was here last weekend. They serve all-you-can-eat BBQ. We'd be happy to take any visitors there! It is right by the DFW airport.
Who's hiding the volleyball? This is Ryan and me after his volleyball match last night.

Due Date

Just checking in to say that I'm still pregnant. My parents and I are going to Ryan's volleyball match tonight. Tomorrow I have a doctor's appointment. Hopefully I won't be able to make it to the appointment!!!!

Trip to the ER

Sunday night we took a little trip to the ER. Not for me, though. Ryan was having really bad neck pain. They diagnosed a muscle spasm that was pinching a nerve. They gave him some really good pain relievers and muscle relaxers. The problem could bother him for a few weeks. I asked if he'd be any help in labor, and the nurse told me that I better call a friend! My mom and doula will be there to help out with massage and pressure point duty. While we were waiting for Ryan to be treated, he used lamaze breathing and relaxation techniques to deal with the pain! The hardest part of the whole ordeal was getting checked in...

We signed in and gave Ryan's name and "chief complaint". (I overhead a subsequent patient sign in and ask what they wanted for "chief compliant"!) About 10 minutes later the woman working at the front desk called out, "RON!" No one in the packed waiting room budged. Several minutes passed, and she called out again, "RON!" Again, no response. Ryan and I looked at each other and shrugged. I approached the receptionist and noticed that Ryan's paperwork was right in front of her.

"Oh, I thought you had said 'Ron', " I told her.

She looked at me quizzically. "How do you say his name?"

"Ry-an," I enunciated.

Puzzled, she just looked at me. She could not hear the difference. So, we've learned that in the midwest, Ryan's name has two vowel sounds, hence two syllables. However, in Texas it has just one. Funny.

On the baby front, the due date is tomorrow. I feel great but hope that the baby comes soon so Ryan's first week of school isn't so hectic next week! I'm praying a lot for him! He has so much on his plate. Please pray for him to trust God and not be overwhelmed. I'm praying that he'll have a lot of time to enjoy his new role as a dad!

101 degrees

Here's a pic of me about two weeks ago. I haven't gained any weight in the past four weeks, but I have gained about 30 pounds overall. I tried putting on some of my pre-preggo pants, and they won't fit over my thighs! I'm going to get a couple things a little bigger than my normal size to wear for a few weeks!
This is the dresser that my parents helped me refinish. We're using it for baby stuff as well as a changing table. We're well-stocked with diapers. We'll need them!!!!

It is 101 degrees today. The Texas summer arrived a week or two ago. The sky is huge here. The landscape is beautiful! Sometimes I drive over the top of a hill and come face to face with miles of tree topped hills. I know you all want to see it, too. Come visit us!

I had my 39 week appointment this morning. There have been no changes in two weeks- still only 1 cm dialated. I guess I am a typical first time mom. We're anticipating that she'll be a little late!

I'm going to the first match today for Ryan's volleyball team. To put it gently, this is a rebuilding year (or maybe a building from scratch year). His goal is for the team to score some points! His team nickname is Scorpions, and their colors are black and silver.

In order to put my focus on the Lord and to be a better wife, I'm reading Ephesians 5 outloud every day. It is full of some really great truths. It starts out, "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." What a great reminder of God's love and our appropriate response!

Details

Ryan is finding out a lot more about his job. He'll be teaching 9th grade US history, and he's the head 9th grade volleyball coach. His volleyball team only has 7 girls right now, so he'll need to do some recruiting. The soccer season is in the winter here. He'll be the assistant JV coach. His salary is great, due especially to the coaching supplement. Sports are high priority in TX! However, the school district only pays for Ryan's insurance, not for family members. So, it will be very expensive ($430 a month), and the copays and deductibles are high. This is the way it is here. My dad had heard the same thing about a different district. However, I think that the insurance is paid pre-tax, so that is a good thing. It might actually be better to have a high salary and be responsible for insurance than have a lower salary with insurance fully subsidized. All my accountant friends out there help me out; do health insurance premiums count as medical expenses when itemizing your deductions?

No sign of baby coming! I've been feeling really good. My theory is to fill my life with lots of plans and appointments, and then maybe she'll come! If I sit around waiting, I'm sure she'll be late! So, I'm working tomorrow at Edward Jones. Maybe she'll decide to complicate things.

SPIKE!

Ryan got a job today! He'll be a high school US History teacher and girls' volleyball and soccer coach! He'll be working in a school in the Fort Worth school district that is very near a fun part of town with a great mall. I have told Ryan for a few weeks now that I would like to live in that area. There are a lot of great churches and parks near there. Ryan will be having volleyball practice from 8-10am and noon-2pm until school starts. It will be good for him to be around the building for a few weeks before school starts on 8/27. We knew God would be faithful to provide and are thankful for His provision for us!

On the baby front... I have had zero contractions- not even false ones. I am slightly dialated: 1 cm and 50% effaced. I still feel pretty good, but I sense the baby getting a lot bigger. Her butt has been hanging out below my right ribs for a few weeks now.

I really like my doctor, and if she's not available when I go into labor, a nurse midwife will deliver the baby. I met one of the midwives in the practice yesterday, and she's great! The midwives like to be present for more of the labor than doctors do typically.

Pix

We don't have internet at the place where we're staying. And, I haven't been organized enough to upload any pregnancy pictures onto the computer before I come to the coffee shop to use the internet. However, I had some taken at Babies R Us. You can see them online at http://www.kiddiekandids.com/MyStudio. Just enter the sitting number 512042834 and sitting code WDD82F98.