Happy Halloween!

We just want to wish everyone a happy and safe Halloween! We love you all!!!

XOXO,

The Sheppard Bunch

FEAR!

I am starting to panic about labor and delivery. It seems silly since we were supposed to loose this baby and God did a miracle to save him so I shouldn't be worried at all and just know that God is going to take care of it.... But I am still worried.

My biggest fear is needing a C-Section. I know lots of women who have had C-Sections and I know they can be medically necessary, but just the thought of being cut open with a curtain in front of me and a shower cap thingy on my head totally freaks me out. Plus there is all the pain of recovery and it creates risks for future pregnancies/deliveries.  And you don't get to hold your baby right away.  You do all the work of carrying this heavy baby around for 9 1/2 months and your husband gets to hold it before you....so not right!

With the fear of C-Sections comes a fear of the baby being breech or transverse, having his heart rate drop, having stalled labor, having placenta previa, basically anything that would cause my OB to say I need a C-Section.

And then there is always the fear of the baby not being born healthy.  Logan had to be on oxygen his first day of life and that crushed me.  Thank the Lord it was nothing more serious, but that experience has made delivering an "unhealthy" baby all too real for me.  What if Levi comes out and can't breath? What if he comes out and there is something seriously wrong? And the worst...what if he comes out still born?

I keep telling myself have more faith! Trust in the Lord Vanessa! It is in His hands! But then I go to sleep and all I have are nightmares about all of this stuff.  I wake up down and defeated and have to try to pick myself back up again before I go to bed the next night. 

So I am asking for prayer.  Please pray that Levi is 100% healthy! Pray that my labor and delivery go smoothly with no need of medical interventions and no complications.  Pray for me to have dreamless sleep the next few weeks!

I Am 9 Months Pregnant!!!

Can we say yippee??? I am in my 9th month of pregnancy! Levi could be here in as early as 2 weeks or as late as 6 weeks.  He'll probably come in about 4 weeks since that is about the time Logan and Aila came.  I just home he doesn't come ON Thanksgiving.  LOL

At our last ultrasound Levi was measuring 5 lbs and he is expected to gain 1/2 a pound a week, so if he was born in 2 weeks he would be approx 6 lbs, in 4 weeks he would be approx 7 lbs and in 6 weeks he would be approx 8 lbs.  Logan and Aila were both 6 lbs 13 oz so we will see how big this guy is!

We also found out at the ultrasound that there is absolutely no sign of any hemmorage at all! I am completely off any bedrest and have started working out again! Nothing major, just some prenatal yoga.  I need to be physically fit for my gruelingly long labors! Maybe 3rd time will be a charm and I will be able to go faster?

My prepregnancy weight was 117 lbs and I now weigh 133 so that means I have gained 16 lbs so far.  With Logan I gained 22 lbs by the time he was born and Aila was 24 lbs.  My OB wants me gaining more weight but I really am just not hungry! My appetite is non existant which is really strange.  I am basically forcing myself to eat. 

So far I have not started dialating or effacing which is good since they were worried about me having Levi early, but the Braxton Hicks have officially kicked in and I find myself having to take little breaks throughout the day.  The OB will be checking me for progress every week so hopefully we will know when the time is close.

We toured the hospital this weekend and it was nice.  The labor and delivery rooms look a lot like the ones we had in AZ but the post partum rooms are all different sizes.  Some are nice like the ones we had in AZ and some are pretty small.  They said it just depends on what is available.  The other strange thing about this hospital is that I need a written order from my ob for everything.  If I want to labor in the shower, if I want to walk the halls, if I want intermitant rather than constant fetal monitoring.  It seems strange to me that a woman can't labor how she sees fit and do what is natural.  Doug and I are just going to ask our ob for orders for everything just so we will have it available. 

The last thing about the hospital that I really didn't like is that after the baby is born they give you about an hour with it and then they take it away for 3 hours to be bathed and do blood tests and monitor it.  And they don't even let you go in the room where they do all this stuff! In AZ they do all of this in your room with you present.  Logan couldn't stay in our room because he needed oxygen but Doug and I were both allowed to go with him since he couldn't stay with us.  Aila stayed with us the entire time and it was wonderful.  They said we can request a "no separation from baby" from the hospital so we are going to try that and hopefully they will comply with our wishes.

Painting our Pumpkins

Trader's Village Fall Carnival

We went to a Fall Carnival at a place called Trader's Village today.  It is a giant flee market in Houston.  The kids got to trick or treat at the different vendor booths.  They also got free balloon animals and some free game prizes.  Then they got to go on lots of rides.  Logan loved all of them but Aila would only go on the carousel.  So I rode the carousel over and over and over again while Doug took Logan on the different rides.  They got lots of compliments on their costumes and they had a great time.

Logan's clown costume:

My little ladybug: 

Logan picking his prize at one of the games:

 Aila going to pick her prize:

 The kids showing off their prizes:

 Playing with their balloon animals.  Aila got a puppy and Logan got a sword:

Enjoying some of the candy from trick or treating:

Time for the rides!

Check out my prego belly at 35 weeks! I'll be 9 months on Tuesday : )

 This is the best!



I Love Fridays

Every Friday now I go to the OB.  That part isn't fun but after that Doug takes me and kids to the Galleria Mall which is beautiful! It even has a nice rubberized playground like we have in AZ.  It reminds me of home so much and I could stay there all day.  Doug leaves us there while he has a bible study at a property close by and then he meets up with us afterwards.  This week we went to the zoo after the mall and then at my favorite Frank's Pizza afterward.

Doug let the kids ride the mall train.  Aila started out crying but then she liked it : )

Time for a few pics at the zoo: 



Papa's Birthday Dinner

We all met up with Mimi and Papa at Papasito's for Papa's birthday dinner.  The kids loved seeing everyone! Check out all of our fun:

Never easy to get all the kids looking and or sitting at once!

Logan was all over Payton.  He can't wait to have a baby brother!

Sibling love:

They all loved climbing on Payton's highchair:

Papa's birthday treat: 

 And a birthday smooch from Mimi : )

The Mariachi Band played lots for our table.  

Aila was a little scared of the band:

 Logan was completely mesmorized:

Papa shared his dessert : )

Logan's face after cake: 

All of us : )

Video of the music: