3 Days

So many questions, so few answers! LOL! We are so lucky to have so many friends and family members interested in all things Coco. We are in the home stretch and know that we'll be holding our little girl VERY SOON!

Yesterday (Sunday, January 31st), we spent the day with Kira and our friends Robin & Alexis. We had lunch at Caioti in Studio City, home of the famous "labor inducing salad" but so far, no such luck for us from the renowned salad! After that we took Kira to have a 90-minute reflexology & "faceology" session. All Kira seems to have gotten from that is a sore head from the practitioner banging stones on top of her head and sore ears from her talking to Kira so much during the session! LOL!

Kira did lose her mucous plug yesterday and had the "bloody show" so it can't be long now. Losing the mucous plug isn't the best indicator that labor is imminent, however, the bloody show usually means labor is just around the corner (usually about 48-hours) because it indicates that the cervix is beginning to efface (thin out). We will certainly see!

If Coco isn't born by Wednesday night, Kira will be induced on Thursday morning. Stay tuned!

Keep us all in your thoughts and prayers!

11 Days

OK, 11 days to go until our induction is scheduled on Feb. 4th. We are all hoping that little Coco makes her entry into the world before that date but you never know. If we've learned anything about pregnancy over the last 2 years, it's that we can't predict when anything is going to happen! LOL!

We had an appt. last Friday (Kira was 37 weeks 4 days) and she is staring to dilate (1 cm) but she is not effaced (meaning the cervix has not thinned out yet) and Coco is at -3 station (that means the baby still has quite a way to go down the birth canal!). That said, these things can change in an instant. It's really quite amazing and a lot of the triggers for labor are unknown so we wait!

Kira is definitely ready for the birth but not thrilled about an induction so we will most likely try some "natural" induction techniques at the end of next week (if she hasn't gone into labor). We have heard about a restaurant in Studio City that makes a salad that women all over Southern California travel to to eat because the salad dressing is believed to induce labor. Don't laugh! Hundreds of women swear by it and they are so protective of the recipe for the salad dressing that all employees have to sign a confidentiality agreement in order to work there. So, we're gonna go have a salad! Check out the link below for more info. about the salad. Also, foot reflexology is believed to trigger labor so next weekend we are going to take Kira for a reflexology session. Hey, it's worth a shot right! LOL!

In the end, we know that Coco will come when she is supposed to come. We are all having a little fun trying to figure out when that will be but will continue to wait patiently until the big day.

http://www.maternitysalad.com/

Are We Ready?

It's so hard to believe that we are literally days away from being Dads. After wanting something for so long, it is incredible to think that in short order we will be responsible for a beautiful and dear life.

As we wait for our daughter to be born, lots of thoughts have been floating through my mind. I've been thinking a lot about our parents and what they must have been feeling as they waited for us (me and Chris) to be born. They most likely experienced many of the same feelings of excitement, anxiety, nervousness, anticipation and fear that we are experiencing right now. I'm almost 40 and Chris is almost 41, yet our parents were going through this experience at 27 (my Mom) and 23 (my Dad) and Chris' parents had Chris in their early 20s too. I can't imagine becoming a parent at that age. They were all clearly more mature and responsible in their 20s than we were (LOL!).

I ask myself all the time if we are ready for Coco. Do we know what we're doing? Can we handle a baby? I don't have an answer! I'm not sure that you can ever be completely prepared for a life-changing event of this magnitude. What I do know is that we are filled with love for our daughter and I know that that love will allow us to be the best parents we can be for Coco.

Just a few days to go!

The Countdown Begins

So, we made it to LA and are getting settled in our home away from home. Truthfully, it's not so bad being away from NY at this time of year!

We are a little over 36 weeks now and things are moving right along. Kira came up to LA to spend the day with us on Saturday. We spent the afternoon sitting around chatting, feeling Coco move around (now that was AWESOME!!!), went out to eat and Kira and I (Victor) had an afternoon of beauty at the spa. (Chris opted for chatting on the phone and buying lots of moisturizers and hair products at CVS...). We had a wonderful time and it's really special to be able to share this time with Kira.

Kira started to feel "false labor" pains and Braxton-Hicks contractions on Friday night and they have continued. So, it looks like Kira's body is getting ready for the big day! Now the question is, when will that day be?!?! It will be a surprise to us all but no matter when it is we'll be prepared. If Coco hasn't come on her own by February 4th, Kira will be induced that morning.

In the meantime, we are trying to relax as much as possible while we wait to meet our daughter!

Stay tuned!

Coco at 32 weeks

Week 33 on Monday

It's hard to believe but Coco is due in 51 days! In some ways it seems like it has taken forever to get to this point and in other ways it seems like it was only yesterday when Chris and I started planning our family. We are thrilled to be where we are and are looking forward to meeting our daughter soon!

Kira and Coco are both doing great. Kira had her 32-week check-up yesterday (Friday, December 18th) and both she and Coco are excellent. At the last appt. (at 30-weeks), Coco was still in a breech position (meaning head up, not down as is preferred for birth). That is not that unusual but we were all praying that she would turn soon because if she stayed in a breech position we would most likely have to have a c-section delivery. (Usually babies turn into the heads down position sometime around 30 weeks.) We were thrilled to find out yesterday that Coco has turned and is now in the head down position! Yippee! Also, at the last appt. Coco was a bit camera shy so we didn't get a lot of good shots but yesterday she was camera ready and we got some incredible pictures of her adorable face. I know, we're probably biased but she is gorgeous! Take a look for yourself!

This week we will celebrate Christmas with our family and on Sunday (12/27), Jen (Chris' cousin) is hosting a (2nd) baby shower for us. This will be a very special week for us and we can't wait to share it with our family and friends.

Our next apt. is on December 31st and then we head out to LA on January 4th. Time is flying by but we are ready and super-excited!

Stay tuned and keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Week 31

It has been a few weeks since we posted last. The time is flying by and we can't believe that our little girl will be here in about 61 days (or less!).

We have been busy getting the nursery ready and gathering all the stuff we need. It's amazing just how much stuff one little human being needs! That said, it's been really fun getting ready for Coco and it has been a real learning experience for us.

Kira is doing well...she has had a bad cold and an ear infection since last Saturday but other than that she's good. Coco is busy moving around though just about now, the space inside is probably staring to get a little cramped for her so she'll probably be sleeping more and moving less over the next few weeks. Apparently, she is about 3 1/2 lbs now and about 18 - 19 inches long....amazing! Over the next few weeks she won't get much longer BUT her weight will most likely double! Yikes, hang in there Kira!

We are doing good too. We are very excited and ready to meet our little girl. I (Victor) have been having a lot of trouble sleeping because I'm nervous/anxious and Chris (of course) is cool as a cucumber. I'm not nervous/anxious in a bad way. I'm just excited and curious and wake up thinking about things like: what will life with Coco will be like; what she will look like; wondering whether she'll like us (LOL!); will she be a good sleeper; will she and NeNe get along; etc.! I know I'll have the answer to all these questions soon and am just allowing myself to enjoy the excitement and nervousness. It's natural and although my hubby is very calm (on the outside), I know he's a little nervous too!!!

We also found a house to rent while we're in LA. It took a while but we did find a great place in West Hollywood and will be heading out to LA on January 4th to start the final wait for the big day. We plan to spend time with Kira and help her as much as possible over the last few weeks.

That's all for now. We will be updating you all every week through the big day so stay tuned and continue to keep us all in your thoughts and prayers.