Griffin's First Week in the World

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

This was quite the day for our new little family.  I felt like I was in the most surreal dream.  Griffin entered the world a pretty happy baby.  After his intial "hello" he slept for just about the entire day.  I'm assuming that it will be the only birthday that he sleeps through.


Griffin had lots and lots of visitors, and slept through being passed around.  We even had to take off his clothes and turn on all the lights to get him to eat.  Dave did a pretty good job of "waking the baby." 

We spent almost the entire day just staring at him, trying to soak in the reality of our new journey.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Griffin surprised us by wanting to party all the previous night, so we were pretty tired on day two.  We didn't take advantage of the nursery like we were told; just assumed that we'd need the practice of waking up to a new alarm clock. 

We spent the day getting to know our new son.  We found out that he particularly likes to have his clothes ON and not off, and really likes to be swaddled up real tight.  Dave got pretty good swaddling, which ended up being rather beneficial. 

Griffin recieved his first shot and was quite the little trooper.  After just a couple of seconds of crying, he was back to his old, err...I mean new, self.  It was becoming more and more evident that we had a pretty good kid on our hands.

Friday, October 30, 2009

 Griffin had his hearing test extremely early that morning.  He passed with flying colors.  Then Dr. Brody came  to let us know that I was healing up great, and that we'd be ready to left by lunch time.  We were all really ready to go, as I believe the four walls surrounding us were starting to close in on us.  The pediatrician also came to let us know that Griffin was healthy enough to leave.  In just a few hours we were packing up the car and introducing Griffin to the big wide world outside of the hospital. 

Griffin's first stop was to meet my Nana, his Great Nana.  I promised her that she'd meet him as soon as we possibly could.  My Nana means the world to me, and introducing her to my new world was more precious than I ever could have imagined.

After this we took him home.  What we didn't realize was how we'd be going to a new home too.  The house that we lived in transformed the second that we walked in.  It's hard to describe the feeling that I felt, but it was the most emotional that I had felt through this entire process.  I think it had finally hit me that Griffin was mine.  He wasn't a baby at a hospital, he wasn't a growing fetus in my belly, he was our son.  The house that Dave and I lived in turned into the home for our little family.  And it was time for me to learn to be his mom. 

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Griffin's first Halloween.  It wasn't too eventful.  He wore his skeleton costume and got played with by Jack and Lucy.  He doesn't realize how much fun Halloween is going to be next year.  Pops and Nana came over to help us hand out candy to the, oh, six trick-or-treaters.  

*Note: I did not paint Griffin for Halloween; I merely photo-edited his costume to be more elaborate.

Sunday. November 1, 2009

This was more of an eventful day.  Griffin had his first bath and first walk.  I wouldn't say that he necessarily enjoyed his first bath, but he really seemed to like the walk around the neighborhood.   During the walk we stopped by our neighbors Adam and Mandie's house to meet their little Emilie.  I have a feeling that he and Emilie will be playing before I know it.  I should probably add here that not only was this Griffin's first bath, but also Dave and my first time giving a baby a bath.  I think we did alright. 

Monday, November 2, 2009

Griffin had his first doctor's appointment where he met his pediatrician, who told us that Griffin was perfect.  This was obviously what we were hoping to hear.  Griffin weighed 7 lbs even at this appointment, up from 6 lb 6 oz at discharge from the hospital.  On the way to the doctor we learned that Griffin loves to be in his carseat/carrier and falls fast asleep in the car (just like his mom). 

The doctor told us to get lots of tummy time in; so that's exactly what we did when we got home.  Griffin's new best friend, Jack tried to help, but it didn't seem to ease his agony any.  After all the hard work Griffin decided to take a nap with Jack.  Turns out that Jack makes a great pillow.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

We decided to relax after an eventful few days.  Although Griffin did help Dave clean the kitchen.

In just a week's time we watched Griffin go through so many changes.  We watched his eyes change color everyday.  We saw his beautiful eyes open for longer periods of time.  We heard a million different noises, which I'm pretty sure are reminiscent of a baby terodactyl.  We're pretty sure that he likes us already.  And I can guarantee you that we love our little Griffin more and more and more every single day.

G-Day [10.28.09]

It's about time that I got around to writing this before it escapes my memory.  I have obviously been a bad blogger as I have been adjusting to my new-found mommyhood.

As I was getting ready for bed the night before G-Day I knew that I wouldn't be able to sleep as much as it would benefit me to do so.  I kept finding one thing after another to do.  Honestly I don't remember much from the night before, but I do remember that our house had quite a calmness to it.

After our four hours of sleep I woke up to shower and get ready to go meet our Griffin.  Sadly I had wanted to actually "get ready," as in fix my hair and apply a little bit of makeup, which would later make me laugh at myself.  Dave made sure that everything was in the car and soon we were on our way to the hospital.

We arrived at the hospital at 5 AM, where everything went incredibly smooth which kept the nervousness away.  I tried to keep all expectations out of my head to be able to absorb everything I possibly could.  The c-section was scheduled for 7 AM, so I hung out on a comfy hospital bed hooked up to the monitors that I got to know during my false alarm visit.  I had a few contractions while lying there and Griffin was wiggling around, I think telling me that he was ready.  Dave's parents and my family came early to visit us while we waited, so the time was passed easily.  I believe that this may have helped keep my mind off the potential un-nerving events ahead of us. 

Seven o'clock rolled around rather quickly, so Dave slipped into his bee suit, as he called it, and we headed to the O.R.  There was a shift change at 7 AM so I got a new nurse right before going back who I really really enjoyed.  She was a younger girl and the first thing that she asked me was if I was ready.  I responded saying something like, "Yea, you?  What are we waiting on?" rather nonchalantly.   She made sure to mock my calm state of mind.   I appreciated that she was able to poke fun at me immediately before I was about to experience the most life changing event of my life.

Dave had to hang out outside of the O.R. while I was receiving the spinal.  I didn't realize this till the day before, but when having a c-section you are given a spinal instead of an epidural.  Basically the difference is that a spinal is a smaller needle that is inserted into the spine one time with enough meds to get the job done; and an epidural inserts a catheter into your spine and continues to dispense the meds as you need them.  I was told by the anathesiologist that there was actually a lower risk of complications with a spinal and I should only feel a minimal amount of pain as the little needle was inserted.  I was so ready to meet my son that I really didn't care what they were going to be doing to me, as long as he wasn't negatively affected.  I sat on the bed of the O.R. with my spine curled out toward the CNA and my head laying in the chest of my new nurse friend ready to get this part over with.  However this took about 20 minutes, instead of the five-ish that it should have.  I started to feel my nerves creep in and make my knees knock, and for a split second I really thought that it just wasn't going to work.  The CNA tried three times to find the "sweet spot" in my spine, while navigating the needle around inside of me.  This was insanely uncomfortable, to say the least.  This is where I laughed at myself for fixing myself up.  I had a hair net around my shiny straight locks of hair, and during this intense 20 minutes I happened to sweat like CRAZY.  My hair turned fizzy and the little bit of makeup was wiped away as I tried to clean off my face.  I learned my lesson.

Things were a piece of cake after the drugs finally found where they needed to go in me; and my nerves went back to normal as Dave entered the room.  (I believe his did too)  Dave and I have a trust for Dr. B and knew that he'd do the best job possible with me, so we knew there was nothing to worry about him cutting on me.  In just a matter of a few minutes we were hearing the first cries of our Griffin.  At 7:43 I was hearing the most beautiful baby cry ever.  A cry that glued a giant smile on my face, a cry that filled my eyes with tears and, a cry that filled my heart with pride and joy.

As Griffin exited my body the drape in front of my face was dropped and I got to see what would change my life forever.  I literally couldn't wait to hold my screaming baby in my arms.  Once Griffin was completely out Dave was able to leave my side to watch all the fun stuff.  He watched the nurses clean him off, take his footprints, take his vitals, swaddle him up, etc.  Then he brought him over to meet me.  I couldn't believe that this was our child and I couldn't believe how incredibly beautiful this little boy was.  The nurses told me that he was 7 lb 4 oz.  Woah!  That was bigger than we were expecting, but boy was this baby long.  He certainly didn't get his length from his Mom.

I was back in the recovery room in no time, sitting beside myself in the bed.  I just couldn't wrap my head around everything that had taken place in just a matter of 30 or so minutes.  There was a little time that passed before I got to see and hold my Griffin while he was in the nursery, but that time was occupied by visiting with our family that came to see him.  Ahh!  Then my sweet nurse friend brought my baby to me and laid him in my arms.  He was the most peaceful little baby that I'd ever laid eyes on, and he was mine :)  Dave and I enjoyed sharing the awesomeness of our son with our visiting family, while Griffin just slept through the all the commotion.

Griffin was taken back to the nursery again and I was rolled to our "Mother Baby" room, where I would spend the next 2 nights.  In this room we were allowed to have as many guests as we wanted so I wasn't worrying about breaking any rules with our vast entourage.  The staff had been very accommodating to not point out our rule breaking in the previous rooms.  I believe that we took a short nap when we got to Mother/Baby while Griffin was being poked in the nursery.  Then just a little later our little son was brought back to get acquainted with his Daddy and I, and we all cherished ever single second of the beginnings of our new journey together.

38 weeks

Ahh...

On Tuesday I went in for my scheduled appointment with Dr. B to make sure that I was making the right decision to go ahead with my scheduled c-section.  He told me as my OB he felt that it was right for me; and that's all he really needed to say.  So I left the appointment knowing that I'd be meeting my little Bean Sprout in just a matter of hours.

Dave and I managed to remain absolutely calm that afternoon and evening.  I had several things to run around and get done Tuesday afternoon, so I came home to make sure that everything was packed and together. It rained the entire day, which was quite annoying, but sun was in the forecast for Wednesday.

The feeling of knowing the time that I'd be meeting my son was real surreal.  At first I sort of felt a bit of guilt that I was scheduling something that was suppose to happen naturally, but after talking with Dr. B and several people who had experienced c-sections I knew that Griffin and I would be fine.


The belly growing is done now (at least I hope so!).  So, here's the progression of Griffin growing from the inside.

37 Weeks

Whew...what a week!  So much has happened in the last week; and in the last 24 hours I feel like my head has been stuck in the spin cycle.  My mind is racing like crazy, but I am going to attempt to make a little sense with what I have to say.  Now I just need to figure out where to start.

In the last week I've experienced lots and lots of changes, some of which I could have lived without.  This swelling crap is for the birds.  I feel water logged--everything is so so so heavy.  I've adjusted my chacos to fit my growing ogre feet, but my feet continue to grow.  My ankles and knees feel like they could burst at any minute.  At certain times in the day it's a task just to use my hands.  One body part I didn't mind swelling was my lips.  A friend of mine asked if I had been using lip plumper, and I was super happy to tell him that they were completely natural.  I've even thought about sporting some lip stick, which I never do.  However it's harder to notice my poufy lips now because my nose has swelled too.  I've heard stories of pregnancy nose, and I've hoped that I wouldn't fall victim to it.  If you haven't ever payed much attention to my normal nose, I'll describe it for you.  It's wide and round.  Now, it's even wider and rounder.  Hopefully this won't stick around for every long.

This past Friday I was experiencing some mystery symptoms that landed me at the doctor.  I was having some cramps and contractions and intense back pain that I hadn't yet experienced.  Instead of seeing Dr. B, I saw someone else in the office.  She told me that I had dialated 1 1/2 cm.  Woohoo!  These feelings were actually something going on inside me.  She also explained that this didn't necessarily tell me when Griffin was coming, but did say that I was favorable to induce.  This got me a little giddy, to say the least.  BUT at yesterday's appointment Dr. B said that as of right then, he would not say that I was inducible.  Wah wah waaaahh....  But this didn't mean that I wouldn't be there at my following appointment.  Then he talked to me about C-sections.  Originally I had said that I did NOT want a C-section, but I realized that I had very little knowledge of the pros and cons.  After talking with a couple of people who experienced them, I realized that it wasn't what I was thinking.  I also realized that there was a chance of me needing a C-section existed regardless of if I was scheduled or not.  I thought and thought and thought and then called the doctor.  G-Day is now October the 28th!  I do have an appointment with Dr. B the Tuesday before where we will decided our final game plan.  Just at this point, all I can think about is meeting my Griffin.

False Alarm

Sometimes the unexpected is hard to decipher.  Yesterday was a very long day at work.  My feet and legs had swollen to where I couldn't move them, my back felt like it could break in a million pieces, and I was just plain drained.  After work we went over to Dave's parents for dinner, and just about the entire time that we were there I felt like I was having contractions.  They didn't seem like they were going away any time soon, so Dave starting writing them down.  This is where my confusion set in.  I've been told that "I'll just know" when real contractions are happening; however, I've known before that something was not happening, but here I couldn't say for sure either way.  This felt like something I had never experienced, and I just assumed that it was my bean sprout trying to come out.   After three hours of having them, most of which 5 to 7 to 10 minutes in between, we thought we'd better call Dr. B.  He told us to go ahead and make a trip to labor and delivery. 

I suppose I'll call this our trial round.  I was hooked up to all the monitors and everything was checked out by a very nice nurse.  Said nurse told me that I wasn't anymore dialated, but I was 56% effaced.  This was good news to me since I wasn't really effaced when Dr. B checked last.  This didn't mean that Griffin was on his way out last night, however.  But it did mean that we were given the opportunity to hang out in there for an hour, watching Griffin's movements via lines on a computer screen while eating ice chips.  I guess we've had worse Friday nights.   We did use this opportunity to ask the very nice nurse lots and lots of questions, questions that we really hadn't had til now.  The nurse assured me that I wasn't crazy for thinking that I was going into labor, and explained that I could have contractions all day long and still have no cervical change, which is really what labor is.  There is only one way to detect cervical change, and it takes a professional.  So I slipped my fuzzy blue slippers back on, took the Ambien they gave me to finally get some sleep after a week of none, and slept like a rock till 10:30 this morning.  Now all I need to do is get to Wednesday; that shouldn't be too hard, right?

36 Weeks

I. am. so. sleepy.

My head wants to get up and clean the house for this weekend, yet my body won't allow me to move for more than a few seconds at a time. 

Yesterday Dave took a day off to help me around the house.  We finished up the nursery (YAY!) and painted our bedroom.  We had been wanting to give our bedroom a little attention for a while, but somehow, it would always get pushed to the back burner.  Now, it's finally more like we have wanted it.  I really do not want to paint anything else for a very very very long time. 

Oh, but the nursery.  I really feel like a momma bird when I go in there.  It's the only room in our house that can literally change my mood.  I am planning on doing a separate post about the nursery, so I'll hold off saying too much about it.  

I had wanted to have the nursery finished by August, and I have been driven a little crazy that October had come around before we realized it and the nursery still needed this or that.  But now I smile when I walk in there and I am reminded how awesome Dave really is.

36 weeks brought me a present.  One day I had swollen feet, ankles, and hands; and since that day the swelling lets up a little but hasn't gone away.  Ugh.  Dr. B says that the swelling will linger until about ten days after G-day.  Oh boy!  Thankfully the swelling is not related to my blood pressure, instead just plain ol' fluid retention.  My hands feel tight and my feet feel sore and hot.  Just one more reason that I hope that G-day comes sooner than later.  However, I should point out that I am incredibly grateful that I am just getting this now and not any sooner. 

At my appointment yesterday I asked Dr. B if I'd need to take my rings off.  I was crossing my fat little fingers that he'd say "no."  But he didn't.  He told me that we'd need to get them off so we wouldn't have to cut them off later.  Let's just say that I had been planning on taking them off for a little while now, wanting to leave them on as long as possible, but then I woke up with swollen hands that, as I explained above, has not gone away.  Yesterday I tried all day long to get them off, without any luck and just more swelling as a result.  Then later in the evening, with the help of Dave and a glob of conditioner, it came off.  Even though it never seemed like it was coming, and I thought for a moment that my finger from the knuckle up was going to fly off, they came off.  Whew!

I could write on, but my eyes keep trying to close and we have a breastfeeding class later on tonight.  Hopefully I can stay awake for it. 

Packing It Up

The other day Dave asked me what we would need if Griffin were to come sooner than later.  This is something that has been on my mind for the last couple of weeks.  I had been trying to come up with a list in my head, yet I was unsure of exactly what we needed to bring with us to the hospital.  I did a bit of research and came up with a list for things to go in the "baby bag."  Dave was gung ho to go out and get the things that we lacked, so we did--immediately.

It seemed as though a switch flipped inside of him.  Just a few weeks ago he didn't want to buy much till after the showers, and now he just wants this bag packed.  I asked him what it was that flipped his switch, he said, "your belly."  I needed him to elaborate more, and he came back with, "It looks more and more like a time bomb everyday.   I think I can hear it...tick tick tick tick.  But the timer's missing and I don't know if it's going off in four seconds or four weeks."  He's such the poet, isn't he?  He did have a valid point though.  There really is no telling now when Griffin will decide to come.  Dr. B said that most of the time there are absolutely no signs of early labor, he will just come when he's ready.  Dave also pointed out to me that we were both early babies, so he wasn't comfortable with waiting around till 39 weeks and 6 days to start getting ready.

So now I am going to go get all the stuff out of the dryer, pack it in the bag, and put it in my car, where it will live until G-Day.

35 Weeks

There is something that I am able to do this week that I was unable to do last week. I can now use one hand to count the number of weeks left till the big G-Day (that's what I'm calling it now). One hand, five weeks. Five is such a little bitty number, tiny, compared to forty.

I've had several people ask if I'm getting nervous or scared yet. And honestly, I'm not. What's the point? I am insanely anxious and curious, but in the best way possible. If you were to ask me nine months ago if I would be scared or nervous if I knew that I'd be having a baby in forty weeks, I would have shook my head and thought, "scared wouldn't even begin to describe how I'd feel." But now with the help of the natural hormones that are released to morph you into a mother, I am comfortable that Dave and I are going to be parents in just a few short weeks. I am excited at the potential of all the more fun that we'll be able to have with our Bean Sprout. It will be a different kind of fun than we're used to, but a fun that I am anxious to begin having. However I do not believe that labor will be fun, but I hear that the feeling that comes after all the pain makes everything more than worth it; so bring it on!

 I am excited about this weekend, which is going to be jam packed with tons of excitement. Saturday we have our eight hour birthing class that we are BOTH unbelievably excited about. I hear that we'll be watching some pretty entertaining videos and we have to both bring our pillows, so maybe we'll practice napping. (Please don't bust my bubble.) After the much anticipated class we are going to celebrate our cutest little neighbor's first birthday. And then Sunday we have more celebrating to do a bit north of home at Dave's Aunt Debbie's. Good thing that Monday happens to be Columbus Day, so I'll have the day to recoup instead of having to work. I know I'll need it. And then, before we know it, we'll be nine months along.

Our Lucy is a very cuddly dog.  Sometimes it a little annoying, but most of the time it's really cute.  The majority of the time she prefers Dave to cuddle with, but lately she's choosing me instead.  I really think she knows that something is going on with me.  She gets comfortable anywhere she can on you, and last night she was laying in between my legs with her head resting on my belly.  She made it seem awful comfortable, and Dave happened to take some pictures of this.  I like to think that she is bonding with Griffin.

Getting so close, I can feel it…Really.

I realize that my blogging momentum last slowed down in the past few weeks. Right along with that, so has any of my creative energy, or more like my motivational energy of all sorts. As exhausting as it was to want to "create" every hour of every day (minus a few for sleeping), it sure was a lot of fun. Hopefully it will come back soon along with the desire to clean. Oh please let it be!

Speaking of cleaning, Dave and I worked on cleaning the house a bit Sunday afternoon. We decided to go ahead and move the bassinet into our bedroom to make sure that it fit in its prospective home. And it fits rather nicely. Our plan is to have Griffin in our room, not our bed, when he is little bitty and then move him to his crib soon after. I'm not sure if I have mentioned that we have a full size bed that accommodates two adults (one of which, pregnant) and two rather spoiled dogs. Please don't tell me to make the dogs sleep on the floor to make room for the baby; it just won't work and I know it. Not because our dogs are too spoiled, but because there is NO room at the top of the bed…it surely is not a safe place for a small child. I am pretty sure that putting a baby at our feet, where the dogs currently sleep, isn't acceptable either. Hopefully baby Griffin will appreciate sleeping by his lonesome in the beautiful bassinet that his great granddad made years and years ago. Although if he needs company, we do have two willing dogs that can cuddle with the best….just saying….

Sunday was quite eventful for us. In addition to cleaning, we joined a church, and celebrated my baby brother's 16^th birthday. I am so proud of Jacob for making it to 16^th without doing anything too seriously stupid (just kidding…). Since Jacob is 8 years younger than I, I have been able to watch him grow up. I have been able to prove the age old theory that boys mature slowly ;) But it's happening; my little brother is finally growing up. He's not just a whiney little kid anymore; he's turning into a really good guy. I no longer feel like flicking him in the ears anymore and I can talk to him like an adult. Aww…. Once again, Happy Birthday Jacob!

And speaking of Sunday, there was a little bitty thought in the back of my mind that I may have been possibly going into labor. While eating Jacob's birthday dinner my body temperature rose to what felt like 1004, although I just felt really hot and not dizzy (like usual). I figured that it was just too hot in the house for my blood, and tried to not think anything of it. Then those lovely Braxton Hicks contractions started. I don't know if I had ever described for those of you who haven't got to experience them. Basically, for me, my belly feels like it turns into a rock for several minutes. Typically this isn't painful, but it can make movement difficult and such. Sometimes instead of taking over my whole belly, it will hit in certain spots. At this particular time, the BH didn't stop (for the entire night) and began to increase in intensity. These were causing me to feel pretty darn uncomfortable, but I didn't want to make a mountain out of a mole hill, and told myself that this was normal. We were playing Volopoly and I was really trying to not let my discomfort get to me, but it was getting obvious that something was wrong. After Dad checked my blood pressure, which was normal, Dave and I went home to watch a movie on the couch. I am pretty sure that Dave wanted to call the doctor, but I wasn't having it. I was so afraid of going into the hospital on a Sunday night for nothing. I think I had said that the next time that I am laying in a hospital bed, I better be about to meet my Bean Sprout. (Note: I am not too stubborn to call my doctor when something is wrong, I just didn't have that feeling.)

At home the intensity of the BH let up a little, but they became more spread out, something Dr. B described as more like real contractions. Dave decided to time the length of occurrences and the time in between. For a split second I thought that there may have been a possibly Griffin was trying to get out, but I wasn't ever convinced. (Hence why no one was called about this.) The irony of moving the bassinet into our bedroom just a few hours earlier made me a little nauseous. However, I prayed that Griffin could just hang on a little longer so I could make it to the baby shower that my coworkers were having for me Monday evening.

Even though the BH continued through the night and I didn't sleep but a few hours, I never really felt like we were in a state of emergency. And by no surprise we were still baby-less Monday morning. Thankfully I was able to make it to my first baby shower and it was a blast. The ladies that I work with are so gracious and generous. We ended up with lots of super cute things and useful things, some of which I never knew you could buy. They had me play a cute little game of matching their baby pictures up with them…great shower game! It turned out that everyone there was a mom, so they all shared birthing stories with me to get me ready scare me to death. I didn't realize that labor could last 48 hours!!! What have I got myself into!?

34 Weeks

Something rather exciting happened this week that both Dave and myself were able to experience.  We felt Griffin hiccuping!  I had heard stories of people feeling this and had wondered how one could tell that's what the baby was, in fact, doing.  Now I get it.

Tuesday I hadn't been feeling well and I was laying on the couch praying that the fierce pain in my back would go away.  And all of a sudden I felt a little kick against my hand that was on my tummy.  I continued to feel it every couple of seconds, almost like there was a pattern to it.  I told Dave that Griffin had the hiccups and if he didn't believe me that he could come check it out for himself.  I lit up as I pictured little Griffin in there bobbing around with each little hiccup.  Oh, I can't wait for little newborn hiccups. Dave decided that Griffin needed a cure for his ailment, so he proceeded to scare him by yelling at my tummy.  Needless to say, it did not work.

At the baby visit with Dr. B this week I was told to focus on my due date.  Since the appointment was on my birthday I meant to ask him if I could have Griffin then for the special occassion, but like a pregnant woman, I forgot.  Everything is still going great: blood pressure is low and sugar is right where it needs to be.  I am beginning to think that I really don't have gestational diabetes as a result of how simple this stuff is to control.  I really didn't have to make any drastic changes to my diet.  I think I just rearranged what I was eating and, more importantly, when I was eating certain things.  However I must say that I have the highest gratitude that the diabetes hasn't even been the slightest problem whatsoever.

Dr. B explained the signs of labor to Dave and me, and let us know when to call.  These Braxton Hicks contractions have been making me wonder how I will know the difference of the real ones.  I get BH all the time and they're pretty intense at times.  Dr. B told me that I would just know and then told me how real contractions typically move around and down the tummy, and tend to be painful.  I'm glad he described them a bit, since I thought I knew I was having a contraction the other day.  I have new and different feelings every single day, no--make that every single hour...a little guidance won't hurt at all.  We still have those child birthing classes coming up, where we plan on gaining an over-abundance of knowledge.  Pretty soon we may have an idea of what we've got ourselves into....hahaha, who am I kidding?