I got a cute video of Adan and Maya the other day, so I thought I would share.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
A long overdue post!
As I'm sure you can imagine, things have been pretty busy in our household these days. I've been meaning to update the blog with pictures from her one month birthday and baptism. Well, we've now passed 6 weeks and I'm finally getting around to it!!
Maya is sleeping pretty well these days (furiously knocking on wood as I type that sentence). She's a little fussy in the evenings, but it is much better than it was a few weeks ago. She typically nurses quite a bit during the evening (cluster feeding), but then she'll usually sleep for 4-5 hours for the first stretch of the night. That stretch begins anywhere from 10:30 to 12:30, apparently depending on just how tired she would like to see mommy or daddy. :-) After that first stretch she'll generally sleep for 2-3 hours between feedings. Overall, not too bad for her age.
She's also starting to smile in response to smiles we give her. There is nothing better! She is a pretty happy and contented baby, with the exception of that evening fussiness. She has had some reflux so she is on Prevacid. Also, I have discovered that if I eat tomatoey (don't know if that is a word) things, she has a much rougher time than if I avoid it. So, no spaghetti or lasagna for me these days. Pretty much anything acidic that I eat tends to be hard on her (meaning projectile vomiting instead of just spitting up).
Here are some pictures. The first one is when she was one month and a couple days of age. She and Adan were showing off their big brother / little sister shirts.
Next is a couple pictures from her baptism last weekend.
And these are from tummy time today.
Maya is sleeping pretty well these days (furiously knocking on wood as I type that sentence). She's a little fussy in the evenings, but it is much better than it was a few weeks ago. She typically nurses quite a bit during the evening (cluster feeding), but then she'll usually sleep for 4-5 hours for the first stretch of the night. That stretch begins anywhere from 10:30 to 12:30, apparently depending on just how tired she would like to see mommy or daddy. :-) After that first stretch she'll generally sleep for 2-3 hours between feedings. Overall, not too bad for her age.
She's also starting to smile in response to smiles we give her. There is nothing better! She is a pretty happy and contented baby, with the exception of that evening fussiness. She has had some reflux so she is on Prevacid. Also, I have discovered that if I eat tomatoey (don't know if that is a word) things, she has a much rougher time than if I avoid it. So, no spaghetti or lasagna for me these days. Pretty much anything acidic that I eat tends to be hard on her (meaning projectile vomiting instead of just spitting up).
Here are some pictures. The first one is when she was one month and a couple days of age. She and Adan were showing off their big brother / little sister shirts.
Next is a couple pictures from her baptism last weekend.
And these are from tummy time today.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Finally, the promised pictures!
Sorry, I've just not been good on getting any posts done lately. I do have some pictures uploaded finally, so here you go!
The first picture of Maya with Mommy and Daddy
Adan meeting Maya a few hours after her birth
Waiting for the paperwork to go home
Hooked up to the darn bili blanket
Maya in her carseat
Adan holding Maya
Daddy holding Maya
A closeup at 5 days of age
I know they say its gas, but this was a real enough looking smile for me!
Such a big yawn
Mommy and Maya
We are doing well. Maya's bilirubin dropped significantly on Saturday, so we were able to take her off the bili blanket. My hemoglobin finally started heading in the right direction, too. It will take a while to get back to normal, but hopefully my energy level will start building as we get there. Maya seems to be sleeping well between feedings at night, which has been nice. The first couple nights at home, she was wide awake from about 2am - 6am, feeding about once an hour during that time. Now she goes 2-3 hours between nighttime feedings and pretty much goes back to sleep as soon as she's done. That little amount of extra sleep is very helpful.
The first picture of Maya with Mommy and Daddy
Adan meeting Maya a few hours after her birth
Waiting for the paperwork to go home
Hooked up to the darn bili blanket
Maya in her carseat
Adan holding Maya
Daddy holding Maya
A closeup at 5 days of age
I know they say its gas, but this was a real enough looking smile for me!
Such a big yawn
Mommy and Maya
We are doing well. Maya's bilirubin dropped significantly on Saturday, so we were able to take her off the bili blanket. My hemoglobin finally started heading in the right direction, too. It will take a while to get back to normal, but hopefully my energy level will start building as we get there. Maya seems to be sleeping well between feedings at night, which has been nice. The first couple nights at home, she was wide awake from about 2am - 6am, feeding about once an hour during that time. Now she goes 2-3 hours between nighttime feedings and pretty much goes back to sleep as soon as she's done. That little amount of extra sleep is very helpful.
Friday, July 17, 2009
We're home!
Despite the fact that my hemoglobin again dropped, my doctor allowed me to come home today. It wasn't a huge drop (Wed - 7.3, Thurs - 6.5, Fri - 6.2) and I was able to be up and about for a while without lightheadedness, so home we came. Also, Maya's bilirubin level rose a little (11.6 Thurs to 14.2 Fri), so we came home with the bili blanket.
I am now on iron and am not to do anything other than sit around, eat, feed Maya and sleep. Not easy with a three year old, but Daron is doing great and we have more help from family and friends.
We take Maya to the hospital tomorrow to have a new level drawn, and I will have another blood draw on Monday with an appt later in the day. Hopefully, we'll both see improvement!
I have pictures, but haven't gotten them all uploaded yet. I hope to get that done tomorrow and then I'll post again.
I am now on iron and am not to do anything other than sit around, eat, feed Maya and sleep. Not easy with a three year old, but Daron is doing great and we have more help from family and friends.
We take Maya to the hospital tomorrow to have a new level drawn, and I will have another blood draw on Monday with an appt later in the day. Hopefully, we'll both see improvement!
I have pictures, but haven't gotten them all uploaded yet. I hope to get that done tomorrow and then I'll post again.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Another night in the hospital
I have to make this quick as it is almost time to feed Maya again. I've had low hemoglobin as a result of the excess bleeding after delivery. Today it went down further, so we didn't end up going home as expected. They'll test again tomorrow morning and we'll likely go home tomorrow. I will be taking iron, but they haven't ruled out a transfusion yet either. Depends on what the level does tomorrow.
Maya also is now a bit jaundice, so she is a little glowworm in a bili blanket. Hopefully it will resolve quickly.
Thanks to everyone for the continued well wishes and prayers. We really appreciate them!
Maya also is now a bit jaundice, so she is a little glowworm in a bili blanket. Hopefully it will resolve quickly.
Thanks to everyone for the continued well wishes and prayers. We really appreciate them!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Introducing Maya Elise!
Sorry it has taken me so long to post, but it was a rough day and night yesterday. So, first, I'll post her picture and then below, I'll tell about her birth story.
So, around midnight on early Tuesday morning I woke up feeling stronger contractions than I had previously. Finally around 1am I thought I should start timing them. They were about 5 minutes apart. My doctor had told me to go in when they were 5 minutes apart for an hour. Well, I decided to wait a little while longer because of the night before and how they had petered out. Another half hour went by and they were getting closer to 4 minutes apart, so I went ahead and woke up Daron. He was also skeptical, so he just helped me time them and went ahead and put some last minute items in the hospital bag. Finally a little after 3 I tole him that we needed to call someone to come stay with Adan. At this point, the contractions were about 3 minutes apart and quite strong. So, help arrived and we left.
At the hospital we found out I was dilated to 4cm, so we were officially checked in. Everything was progressing along great until I hit 6cm and then the contractions petered out. We continued to walk, sit on a birthing ball, take a whirlpool, etc, and the contractions would increase for a while, but then they would slow down again. And, I was not dilating any further. So finally the doctor made the call to start pitocin. Oh my goodness, that is some horrible stuff. The contractions were on top of each other with very little to no break between. I had been trying to avoid pain meds (I did try phentynol first and it made me throw up), but the pitocin was tough to deal with that I decided to go ahead and get an epidural. That was a nice break from the pain, but it was a very unnerving feeling to not be able to feel a thing from just below the ribcage down. I was absolutely numb. When they would move my legs it was like they belonged to someone else.
Finally at 4:50pm, Maya made her arrival at 8lbs 4oz and 21 3/4 inches. As you can see from the picture she has a ton of dark hair. Daron has dark hair but not quite that dark. I think she takes after her aunts Rhonda and Rolayne (Daron's sisters) in the hair department! She also already has very dark eyes.
Afterward, I had some trouble with excess bleeding. A shot of methergen (sp?) helped, but my hemoglobin has been pretty low and I'm having trouble with dizziness when I try to stand up. I just finally got off an IV of fluids and I will have a catheter in the rest of the day, but I'm feeling better. I still am having some lightheadedness when standing, so they'll be continuing to check my hemoglobin. The plan is to go home tomorrow afternoon unless the hemoglobin and lightheadedness improve.
Adan came to the hospital to meet Maya last night, and a prouder big brother there could not be. He kept telling me, "the baby is big enough to come out!" Yep, she sure was!
So, around midnight on early Tuesday morning I woke up feeling stronger contractions than I had previously. Finally around 1am I thought I should start timing them. They were about 5 minutes apart. My doctor had told me to go in when they were 5 minutes apart for an hour. Well, I decided to wait a little while longer because of the night before and how they had petered out. Another half hour went by and they were getting closer to 4 minutes apart, so I went ahead and woke up Daron. He was also skeptical, so he just helped me time them and went ahead and put some last minute items in the hospital bag. Finally a little after 3 I tole him that we needed to call someone to come stay with Adan. At this point, the contractions were about 3 minutes apart and quite strong. So, help arrived and we left.
At the hospital we found out I was dilated to 4cm, so we were officially checked in. Everything was progressing along great until I hit 6cm and then the contractions petered out. We continued to walk, sit on a birthing ball, take a whirlpool, etc, and the contractions would increase for a while, but then they would slow down again. And, I was not dilating any further. So finally the doctor made the call to start pitocin. Oh my goodness, that is some horrible stuff. The contractions were on top of each other with very little to no break between. I had been trying to avoid pain meds (I did try phentynol first and it made me throw up), but the pitocin was tough to deal with that I decided to go ahead and get an epidural. That was a nice break from the pain, but it was a very unnerving feeling to not be able to feel a thing from just below the ribcage down. I was absolutely numb. When they would move my legs it was like they belonged to someone else.
Finally at 4:50pm, Maya made her arrival at 8lbs 4oz and 21 3/4 inches. As you can see from the picture she has a ton of dark hair. Daron has dark hair but not quite that dark. I think she takes after her aunts Rhonda and Rolayne (Daron's sisters) in the hair department! She also already has very dark eyes.
Afterward, I had some trouble with excess bleeding. A shot of methergen (sp?) helped, but my hemoglobin has been pretty low and I'm having trouble with dizziness when I try to stand up. I just finally got off an IV of fluids and I will have a catheter in the rest of the day, but I'm feeling better. I still am having some lightheadedness when standing, so they'll be continuing to check my hemoglobin. The plan is to go home tomorrow afternoon unless the hemoglobin and lightheadedness improve.
Adan came to the hospital to meet Maya last night, and a prouder big brother there could not be. He kept telling me, "the baby is big enough to come out!" Yep, she sure was!
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
A quick update...
I woke up a little after midnight with some contractions. They became quite frequent and intense, so we headed to the hospital around 4am. When we arrived I was dilated to 4cm and 80% effaced. The doctor just broke my water a short time ago, but we still likely have a few hours left. One of us will post an update later on!
Monday, July 13, 2009
Ugh
I have just generally felt crappy today. I've had the contractions all day long, although not nearly as consistently this morning. Plus my back has been aching and I've been very crampy. I was actually optimistic that the doctor would find that I am progressing nicely. Well, kinda. I am still dilated to only 1cm. The same place I've been for four weeks now. I am much more effaced than I was though - she said probably about 50%. She said there hadn't been much thinning the last couple times she had checked, so I guess that's something to be happy about.
Anyway, she thinks we ought to give it another week before inducing. So, I am scheduled to be induced next Monday morning unless this little girl makes her arrival before then. I was kind of hoping for this week, but she felt it was best to wait. She's hoping that I'll be far enough at that point that all they would have to do is break my water. And, logically, I know that is the best decision. I would rather not take any labor inducing drugs, but I'm feeling so darned miserable today that I think I would have been willing to head to the hospital right then if she had offered.
Anyway, she thinks we ought to give it another week before inducing. So, I am scheduled to be induced next Monday morning unless this little girl makes her arrival before then. I was kind of hoping for this week, but she felt it was best to wait. She's hoping that I'll be far enough at that point that all they would have to do is break my water. And, logically, I know that is the best decision. I would rather not take any labor inducing drugs, but I'm feeling so darned miserable today that I think I would have been willing to head to the hospital right then if she had offered.
These contractions really mess with your head!
So, I've been up since sometime around 3am this morning when I started feeling contractions. These are definitely different than what I've had previously, since I feel them all through my back and they are somewhat painful (not terrible yet, though). They got to the point of every 6 minutes and I thought, wow, we might be having a baby today (my doctor wants us to go in when they are every 5 minutes for at least an hour). But then they started spreading back out frequency wise around 7:00 or so this morning. They are still happening, but they're more like 7-10 minutes apart. I told Daron to keep his phone with him at all times just in case, but I think this would be what they call 'false labor', or what I call, 'really not very funny'.
Anyway, I'm not throwing in the towel yet, but I'm guessing today is not the day.
Anyway, I'm not throwing in the towel yet, but I'm guessing today is not the day.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Still pregnant
Only 2 days left until my due date - yes, I'm still here and still pregnant. Every once in a while I get my hopes up that something may be starting with some fairly frequent and uncomfortable contractions, but so far they never turn into the real thing. In the meantime, this little girl is just as active as ever, which is good, but can be quite uncomfortable. We have talks about how if she needs to stretch out so much, she should just think about making her arrival. So far, she's not taking my advice!
Daron, Adan and I try to go on walks when possible, but it seems like during the last week, either a thunderstorm is coming through or its really hot outside. Tonight seems like a nice night to take a walk though, so I think we'll get out there.
Yesterday my mom and I went to a Tastefully Simple party and then a big arts festival that was going about an hour north of here. I wanted to stay active for both the purposes of keeping my mind off the impending birth and in the hopes of getting something going. No luck on getting anything going, but we did have a good time.
In the meantime, Adan's fascination with when the baby is coming has now become pretty much obsession. He asks about when she's coming, talks to my stomach, hugs and kisses my stomach, and wants to read his books about waiting for baby and becoming a big brother pretty much ALL DAY LONG. We took him to the latest Ice Age animated movie today. In the movie, a baby woolly mammoth is born. When he saw the baby, he leaned his head on my shoulder, put his hand on my tummy, and said 'Baby' in such a sweet little voice. It was very cute.
I'll try to keep posting regularly here now that we're getting down to the wire. Hopefully we'll have some good news very soon!
Daron, Adan and I try to go on walks when possible, but it seems like during the last week, either a thunderstorm is coming through or its really hot outside. Tonight seems like a nice night to take a walk though, so I think we'll get out there.
Yesterday my mom and I went to a Tastefully Simple party and then a big arts festival that was going about an hour north of here. I wanted to stay active for both the purposes of keeping my mind off the impending birth and in the hopes of getting something going. No luck on getting anything going, but we did have a good time.
In the meantime, Adan's fascination with when the baby is coming has now become pretty much obsession. He asks about when she's coming, talks to my stomach, hugs and kisses my stomach, and wants to read his books about waiting for baby and becoming a big brother pretty much ALL DAY LONG. We took him to the latest Ice Age animated movie today. In the movie, a baby woolly mammoth is born. When he saw the baby, he leaned his head on my shoulder, put his hand on my tummy, and said 'Baby' in such a sweet little voice. It was very cute.
I'll try to keep posting regularly here now that we're getting down to the wire. Hopefully we'll have some good news very soon!
Monday, July 6, 2009
Not so fast...
So, we had a doctor's appointment today. The plan was that she was going to check my progress and then we would schedule an induction for later in the week. Daron and I did a lot of thinking and talking about it over the last week, and we weren't sure induction was the right thing at this point. So, we decided to go to the appointment today and find out why she felt it was a good idea to induce this week, just a few days before my due date. Well, it turns out, I'm still only 1cm dilated and so she doesn't think its quite the right time to induce either. So, the decision was made easy - there really wasn't a decision. We'll go back next Monday and see if there has been any progress and then come up with a plan for when we think it will be time to induce if this little girl hasn't yet made her arrival.
I'm still hoping she decides to make her debut on her own. The idea of being tied to an IV during labor isn't all that appealing and I have heard that an induced labor can be harder than non-induced. I think it really depends on how close your body really was at the time of induction.
So, in the meantime, I've been walking in the evenings, when it hasn't been too terribly hot. I'm just hoping that activity will help get things going. I still have a lot of contractions and some of them are a bit painful, but so far nothing continues. Hey, tomorrow is the full moon! Maybe the moon's gravitational pull will lure her out of her lair. Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?! They do say there are a lot of babies born on the full moon.
I can't believe I'm down to single digits (well, at least single digits to my due date)!
I'm still hoping she decides to make her debut on her own. The idea of being tied to an IV during labor isn't all that appealing and I have heard that an induced labor can be harder than non-induced. I think it really depends on how close your body really was at the time of induction.
So, in the meantime, I've been walking in the evenings, when it hasn't been too terribly hot. I'm just hoping that activity will help get things going. I still have a lot of contractions and some of them are a bit painful, but so far nothing continues. Hey, tomorrow is the full moon! Maybe the moon's gravitational pull will lure her out of her lair. Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?! They do say there are a lot of babies born on the full moon.
I can't believe I'm down to single digits (well, at least single digits to my due date)!
Monday, June 29, 2009
The end is in sight
I had my weekly appointment today and all went well. The big surprise was that my doctor would like to induce next week. I guess I was too surprised to really ask a lot of questions, but she said she thinks it will be time then. I'll have my regular appointment on Monday afternoon and then we'll schedule, so she told me to be thinking which date. I think Daron and I are leaning toward Thursday or Friday (the 9th or 10th). That way it will be right before the weekend making it easier for my parents to come up and meet their new granddaughter (my mom still hasn't retired). Daron's mom is here in town, so she'll be nice and close when the baby arrives. Plus it'll give me the most time to get things handed off to my backup at work.
Other updates - I had the Group B Strep test last week and it was negative, so that is good. I'm happy to not have to take IV antibiotics during delivery. My blood pressure and the baby's heartbeat were both very much the same as usual. I did officially hit the 40 lbs gained mark, but I guess I'll be on the downhill side of the weight deal next week! Last week I was 1cm dilated and starting to efface, but she didn't check that this week. She will next Monday, though.
The contractions have continued to pick up in frequency and some are a little painful at times, so I'm actually kind of hoping we'll beat the doctor to the punch!
Finally, I've become quite the attraction in Adan's classroom. When I walk in I am often mobbed by kids wondering why my stomach is so big and wanting to touch it. Last week, I literally had four kids with their hands on my stomach all asking me questions at the same time, plus several more standing around them. Adan thought maybe he should show off my stomach, so he kept trying to lift my shirt for all to see. So, here I am trying to answer kids questions, hold my shirt down and figure out a way out of there all at the same time. The teacher did finally come to my rescue and redirect kids away from me. I swear, I barely made it out of there alive!
Other updates - I had the Group B Strep test last week and it was negative, so that is good. I'm happy to not have to take IV antibiotics during delivery. My blood pressure and the baby's heartbeat were both very much the same as usual. I did officially hit the 40 lbs gained mark, but I guess I'll be on the downhill side of the weight deal next week! Last week I was 1cm dilated and starting to efface, but she didn't check that this week. She will next Monday, though.
The contractions have continued to pick up in frequency and some are a little painful at times, so I'm actually kind of hoping we'll beat the doctor to the punch!
Finally, I've become quite the attraction in Adan's classroom. When I walk in I am often mobbed by kids wondering why my stomach is so big and wanting to touch it. Last week, I literally had four kids with their hands on my stomach all asking me questions at the same time, plus several more standing around them. Adan thought maybe he should show off my stomach, so he kept trying to lift my shirt for all to see. So, here I am trying to answer kids questions, hold my shirt down and figure out a way out of there all at the same time. The teacher did finally come to my rescue and redirect kids away from me. I swear, I barely made it out of there alive!
Sunday, June 21, 2009
36 weeks!
Can you believe it?! I can't believe it is now under a month until our due date. I don't know if I've said this before on this blog, but time has really felt like it has moved by slowly for me. Everyone else comments on how fast it feels like it has gone by! I guess I always feel like other people's pregnancies go by fast, too.
I'm now on weekly appointments, so I will be having another one tomorrow afternoon. My doctor is going to check and see if there has been any dilation as a result of all the contractions I've had. In addition, I will have the Group B Strep test done. Apparently if I test positive for Group B Strep, I will be put on IV antibiotics during the birth to prevent it from getting passed to her. In adults I guess it doesn't cause much harm, but it can cause babies to get quite sick. Other than those things, it should be a fairly routine appointment.
I don't have much new since I've already posted a couple times recently, so I will leave you with new pictures. A couple are my normal belly shots taken by Daron, and the other is a picture my sister-in-law took of me last week. I also included the picture from 32 weeks for comparison. It feels to me like I've grown a bit since then.
I'm now on weekly appointments, so I will be having another one tomorrow afternoon. My doctor is going to check and see if there has been any dilation as a result of all the contractions I've had. In addition, I will have the Group B Strep test done. Apparently if I test positive for Group B Strep, I will be put on IV antibiotics during the birth to prevent it from getting passed to her. In adults I guess it doesn't cause much harm, but it can cause babies to get quite sick. Other than those things, it should be a fairly routine appointment.
I don't have much new since I've already posted a couple times recently, so I will leave you with new pictures. A couple are my normal belly shots taken by Daron, and the other is a picture my sister-in-law took of me last week. I also included the picture from 32 weeks for comparison. It feels to me like I've grown a bit since then.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Adan's Big Brother/Big Sister class
A couple weeks ago, Adan, Daron and I went to a Big Brother/Big Sister class offered by the hospital. We were told to bring a picture of Adan as a baby, a doll and a blanket, and then they provided a little play bottle, a couple tiny little newborn diapers, and then just a fun little activity book. The class for kids ages 3-10 who are expecting a new brother or sister.
So, class started off with each child showing their baby picture. Then the instructors would ask them some questions such as whether they were having a brother, a sister, or if it was a surprise. Adan went first, and while he was pretty quiet, he did answer all her questions with some help from us. Then after the introductions were all done, they showed a video that he seemed to really watch intently. It was aimed at small kids and talked about why babies cry, what they eat, etc.
After the video they got into the hands on part. They showed the kids how to diaper a baby and then let them try it out with the diapers they provided and the doll we brought. Adan actually did pretty well, and he felt so proud of himself. Next they showed them how they can safely hold a baby and how to hold the bottle. They showed them how to swaddle the baby, and then talked about how babies can't eat the same foods they eat and why they shouldn't ever give the baby any of their own food. Lastly, they talked about toys and how to know if it was safe for the baby to play with. It was so cute to see him take it all so seriously. She would ask something like, "Can the baby eat pizza?", and he would shake his head and say "no" very earnestly. Since class, he really likes to talk about the things we learn. He tells me that they baby won't be able to talk, but that she'll cry. And he likes to tell me that she'll only be able to drink "baby milk" and not "kid's milk", which are how he refers to breastmilk and his regular milk. I think it will be great for him to feel involved in this whole process.
After all the classroom stuff was done, they took us up to tour the family suites where we'll stay in the hospital after the baby is delivered. The kids were allowed to each take a turn pushing the buttons on the hospital bed. Here we are in a room full of people, and Adan thought it would really be a good idea if I hopped into the bed when he took his turn. I did manage to talk him out of that one! However, I have a feeling that I will be taking some up and down rides in the bed when we're staying there for real. Overall, it was a really fun time for us, and I just can't wait until Adan gets to finally meet his new little sister.
So, class started off with each child showing their baby picture. Then the instructors would ask them some questions such as whether they were having a brother, a sister, or if it was a surprise. Adan went first, and while he was pretty quiet, he did answer all her questions with some help from us. Then after the introductions were all done, they showed a video that he seemed to really watch intently. It was aimed at small kids and talked about why babies cry, what they eat, etc.
After the video they got into the hands on part. They showed the kids how to diaper a baby and then let them try it out with the diapers they provided and the doll we brought. Adan actually did pretty well, and he felt so proud of himself. Next they showed them how they can safely hold a baby and how to hold the bottle. They showed them how to swaddle the baby, and then talked about how babies can't eat the same foods they eat and why they shouldn't ever give the baby any of their own food. Lastly, they talked about toys and how to know if it was safe for the baby to play with. It was so cute to see him take it all so seriously. She would ask something like, "Can the baby eat pizza?", and he would shake his head and say "no" very earnestly. Since class, he really likes to talk about the things we learn. He tells me that they baby won't be able to talk, but that she'll cry. And he likes to tell me that she'll only be able to drink "baby milk" and not "kid's milk", which are how he refers to breastmilk and his regular milk. I think it will be great for him to feel involved in this whole process.
After all the classroom stuff was done, they took us up to tour the family suites where we'll stay in the hospital after the baby is delivered. The kids were allowed to each take a turn pushing the buttons on the hospital bed. Here we are in a room full of people, and Adan thought it would really be a good idea if I hopped into the bed when he took his turn. I did manage to talk him out of that one! However, I have a feeling that I will be taking some up and down rides in the bed when we're staying there for real. Overall, it was a really fun time for us, and I just can't wait until Adan gets to finally meet his new little sister.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Oh, the Braxton Hicks...
They say that Braxton Hicks are your uterus' way of practicing for labor. Well, if that is the case, then my uterus should be set! As I mentioned in my last post, I had been having intermittent contractions, but nothing too regular or frequent. And then a week ago last Thursday, they started getting closer and closer together. I was drinking water like it was going out of style and laying down, but they just kept coming. When they got to more than 6 in an hour, I called the oncall doctor and she said to head in to the hospital. I was 34 weeks at the time, so they want to keep you from going into labor at that point still. It was 11pm, which is not very convenient when you have a 3 year old sleeping soundly in the other room. We called my sister-in-law who is a nurse at the same hospital and she was going to be getting off in a half hour. By this time, the contractions were about 5 minutes apart, so we elected to try to get a sleeping Adan into the car and meet her there. She then would switch vehicles with us and bring him back home. That whole staying asleep thing, though? Yeah, didn't happen. I felt bad when I heard he stayed up until 1:30am - yikes!
Anyway, we got checked into what they call the labor and delivery triage unit and they hooked me up to both a contraction monitor and a doppler device to track the baby's heartbeat. The contraction monitor started recording contractions every 2-3 minutes, so they had really increased in frequency by that time. The baby's heartbeat was perfect, so no problem there.
Luckily, I was not dilated or effaced at all. After the contractions continued to maintain themselves at every 2-3 minutes, though, the doctor decided to give me a shot of terbutaline. This drug is used both to try to stop labor and apparently for asthma attacks. One of the not so fun side effects is that it makes you jittery. They gave me the shot and within 10 minutes I was feeling the jitters, and it wasn't too much longer after that that the baby started moving around like crazy and heartrate was all over the map (sometimes up to near 180 bpm). They told me the heartrate wasn't anything to be concerned about and that it will spike up like that when they are moving around, but it bothered me that it affected her so much. They told me they would monitor us for two more hours and then, providing the contractions had stopped, I could go home. Fortunately they did stop, but because of those darn jitters, I was not able to fall asleep there either. We arrived back home somewhere around 2:30 or 3am, and thankfully I was able to fall asleep then.
Since then, the contractions seem to follow a pretty regular pattern for me. In the morning, I have very few, if any. Toward afternoon I'll start having intermittent ones and by evening, I have at least 3-4 an hour. A couple of times it's gotten to that 6 in an hour point, but since they don't stay at that rate, I've been able to avoid another hospital visit.
Tomorrow is my next appointment, so I'll catch my regular doctor up to speed on how they've been since the hospital visit, of which she is aware. Her nurse called me the next day and just told me to continue to increase the fluids and take it easy for now, which is what I was already doing on my own.
I've done a bit of googling to see if this means I'll likely deliver ahead of my delivery date, but it seems like that is not necessarily the case. Some people have them quite frequently for several weeks before delivery, so who knows, I could still be pregnant on July 24th when the doctor said she'll go ahead and induce!
The night we went to the hospital, Adan of course what we were doing riding in the car in the middle of the night. I told him mommy's stomach was hurting so we were just going to have the doctor check it out, but that everything was okay. He accepted that and didn't seem concerned. The next night, the baby kicked in such a way that really hurt and took me by surprise, so I kind of grunted. Adan comes over and says, 'Mommy, what's wrong?' So I told him that the baby had kicked and it hurt. He said very seriously, 'We better call the doctor'. I explained to him that we didn't need to call the doctor for that, but I just think it's so darn sweet how he wants to take care of me. He's going to be such a good big brother! I'll post in a couple of days about the Big Brother/Big Sister class we took with him last weekend. It was so much fun!
Anyway, we got checked into what they call the labor and delivery triage unit and they hooked me up to both a contraction monitor and a doppler device to track the baby's heartbeat. The contraction monitor started recording contractions every 2-3 minutes, so they had really increased in frequency by that time. The baby's heartbeat was perfect, so no problem there.
Luckily, I was not dilated or effaced at all. After the contractions continued to maintain themselves at every 2-3 minutes, though, the doctor decided to give me a shot of terbutaline. This drug is used both to try to stop labor and apparently for asthma attacks. One of the not so fun side effects is that it makes you jittery. They gave me the shot and within 10 minutes I was feeling the jitters, and it wasn't too much longer after that that the baby started moving around like crazy and heartrate was all over the map (sometimes up to near 180 bpm). They told me the heartrate wasn't anything to be concerned about and that it will spike up like that when they are moving around, but it bothered me that it affected her so much. They told me they would monitor us for two more hours and then, providing the contractions had stopped, I could go home. Fortunately they did stop, but because of those darn jitters, I was not able to fall asleep there either. We arrived back home somewhere around 2:30 or 3am, and thankfully I was able to fall asleep then.
Since then, the contractions seem to follow a pretty regular pattern for me. In the morning, I have very few, if any. Toward afternoon I'll start having intermittent ones and by evening, I have at least 3-4 an hour. A couple of times it's gotten to that 6 in an hour point, but since they don't stay at that rate, I've been able to avoid another hospital visit.
Tomorrow is my next appointment, so I'll catch my regular doctor up to speed on how they've been since the hospital visit, of which she is aware. Her nurse called me the next day and just told me to continue to increase the fluids and take it easy for now, which is what I was already doing on my own.
I've done a bit of googling to see if this means I'll likely deliver ahead of my delivery date, but it seems like that is not necessarily the case. Some people have them quite frequently for several weeks before delivery, so who knows, I could still be pregnant on July 24th when the doctor said she'll go ahead and induce!
The night we went to the hospital, Adan of course what we were doing riding in the car in the middle of the night. I told him mommy's stomach was hurting so we were just going to have the doctor check it out, but that everything was okay. He accepted that and didn't seem concerned. The next night, the baby kicked in such a way that really hurt and took me by surprise, so I kind of grunted. Adan comes over and says, 'Mommy, what's wrong?' So I told him that the baby had kicked and it hurt. He said very seriously, 'We better call the doctor'. I explained to him that we didn't need to call the doctor for that, but I just think it's so darn sweet how he wants to take care of me. He's going to be such a good big brother! I'll post in a couple of days about the Big Brother/Big Sister class we took with him last weekend. It was so much fun!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
My sweet little boy
I've continued to have contractions here and there, and if I am not careful to drink what seems like gallons of water, I will get several within a short period. Last night I was sitting on the bed in my room folding clothes. I had two contractions in about 5 minutes and realized I hadn't drank any water since supper (which was maybe a couple hours earlier). Daron was downstairs in the kitchen, so I yelled down and told him I'd had some contractions and asked if he would please bring me some water. Before he had gotten up there with the water, Adan walked in with his Diego cup. When he had heard me ask for the water, he went to his bathroom (the main one, we just call it his), got his cup, and put some water in it. He said, "Here mommy, have some of my water". Aw, what a sweetie pie. Of course, there was maybe a sip and a half in the cup, but it was the thought that counted. That was actually a good thing anyway, since the water is soft and we generally only use the cup for rinsing after brushing his teeth. I made sure I drank that water though and told him how nice that was of him. He was very proud.
Speaking of Adan, he had his first vacation bible school program tonight. To see some videos from it, check out my other blog - http://jilla34.blogspot.com/. It was soooo cute.
Speaking of Adan, he had his first vacation bible school program tonight. To see some videos from it, check out my other blog - http://jilla34.blogspot.com/. It was soooo cute.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Getting closer
I'm nearly 34 weeks along - its hard to believe only 6 more weeks to my due date! I asked my doctor today how far we would go past my due date and she said she would probably want to induce at 41 weeks. Of course, she also considers my due date 7/17, so that means 7/24. Hopefully it will be before then.
So, why, you may ask, does the doctor have a different due date than I use? Well, if you've read my blog from the first post, you'll recall that I had some very early ultrasounds. Every single one of them measured 3 days ahead (well, one measured 4 days ahead), so after they all were consistently ahead, I decided my due date was July 14th. I didn't really know if my dates were right anyway. However, the measurements weren't enough different for her to change the dates in her paperwork. Thus, I am officially due on 7/17.
My appointment today was very standard again. My blood pressure was 102/68, so still hanging out very low. My weight had gone up by a few pounds (sorry, not going to give that number!), but nothing to be concerned with. I'm now getting close to hitting the 40 lbs gained point, though. They like you to stay in the 25-35 pounds over pre-pregnancy weight range, but she doesn't seem concerned, so I'm not going to be either.
Adan has been getting anxious for this whole event to happen. He continues to ask multiple times every day if the baby can come out yet, but now he occasionally adds a plaintive 'Pleeeaase?' to the end of the question. I have a feeling I'm going to be asking this same question in a few weeks! Oh, and another Adanism. A few weeks ago he told me he was going to tell the baby funny jokes. The next day he ran up to my stomach and said, "Hello, baby! Funny jokes!!". I guess he was being literal about what he was going to tell her!
Next appointment is June 15th, which also happens to be my birthday. I told the receptionist I will be expecting a cake. :-) I'm sure she noted the schedule.
So, why, you may ask, does the doctor have a different due date than I use? Well, if you've read my blog from the first post, you'll recall that I had some very early ultrasounds. Every single one of them measured 3 days ahead (well, one measured 4 days ahead), so after they all were consistently ahead, I decided my due date was July 14th. I didn't really know if my dates were right anyway. However, the measurements weren't enough different for her to change the dates in her paperwork. Thus, I am officially due on 7/17.
My appointment today was very standard again. My blood pressure was 102/68, so still hanging out very low. My weight had gone up by a few pounds (sorry, not going to give that number!), but nothing to be concerned with. I'm now getting close to hitting the 40 lbs gained point, though. They like you to stay in the 25-35 pounds over pre-pregnancy weight range, but she doesn't seem concerned, so I'm not going to be either.
Adan has been getting anxious for this whole event to happen. He continues to ask multiple times every day if the baby can come out yet, but now he occasionally adds a plaintive 'Pleeeaase?' to the end of the question. I have a feeling I'm going to be asking this same question in a few weeks! Oh, and another Adanism. A few weeks ago he told me he was going to tell the baby funny jokes. The next day he ran up to my stomach and said, "Hello, baby! Funny jokes!!". I guess he was being literal about what he was going to tell her!
Next appointment is June 15th, which also happens to be my birthday. I told the receptionist I will be expecting a cake. :-) I'm sure she noted the schedule.
Monday, May 25, 2009
32 weeks and lessons learned
So when you're pregnant, they pretty much want you to drink your weight in water every day. Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration, but it is a lot. I thought I had drank a good amount of water today, although I knew it wasn't as much as I usually drink and it is getting warmer here these days. Late this afternoon, I started getting sharp pains across my lower abdomen whenever I stood up, my lower back was hurting, and then I had 4 contractions within about 20 minutes and I was just feeling crappy in general. I knew we had talked about this stuff in our childbirth class, so I looked up pre-term labor in our book. Sure enough, these were some of the signs of it. It said to drink 4 glasses (or 32oz) of water and lay down on your left side for an hour, so I did just that and now I'm pretty much feeling back to whatever normal is these days. :-) I guess that water thing is a pretty good idea after all.
Other than that, there hasn't been anything too exciting to report since my 28 week post, so I guess I've been slacking on the blog writing. My blood pressure has crept up a tiny bit, but its still in the low normal range, so nothing to be concerned about. I'm noticing my ankles swelling a little more than they had been, but again, its not anything terrible. I measured right on at my last appt and the baby's heartbeat stayed right about where it normally is.
We finished our childbirth classes last week. The second to last night, we had a tour of the hospital, so it was nice to see where all the action will be happening. Unfortunately, all 16 of the actual labor and delivery rooms were in use, so we didn't get to see an actual room, but she showed us some pictures. All in all, the facilities are very new and it should be a nice place to have the baby. There is wireless internet, so we should be able to post about the birth while we're still at the hospital. I may take a few hours to meet the baby and get a little rest, though!
Since I don't have any other new information, I'll go ahead and post my 32 week picture.
Other than that, there hasn't been anything too exciting to report since my 28 week post, so I guess I've been slacking on the blog writing. My blood pressure has crept up a tiny bit, but its still in the low normal range, so nothing to be concerned about. I'm noticing my ankles swelling a little more than they had been, but again, its not anything terrible. I measured right on at my last appt and the baby's heartbeat stayed right about where it normally is.
We finished our childbirth classes last week. The second to last night, we had a tour of the hospital, so it was nice to see where all the action will be happening. Unfortunately, all 16 of the actual labor and delivery rooms were in use, so we didn't get to see an actual room, but she showed us some pictures. All in all, the facilities are very new and it should be a nice place to have the baby. There is wireless internet, so we should be able to post about the birth while we're still at the hospital. I may take a few hours to meet the baby and get a little rest, though!
Since I don't have any other new information, I'll go ahead and post my 32 week picture.
Friday, April 24, 2009
28 week pictures
This little girl is very active! She seems to have found my bladder lately, and sometimes gives it a good poke - ow! Most of the time, though, I just feel her moving and kicking around. I can't really figure out what position she is in, because it seems like I feel her movements in all different parts of my stomach. I think it's still pretty common for babies to be switching positions at this point.
Daron and I finally got around to registering (at Target). Some work friends are throwing me a shower next weekend, so we needed to get it done. It's hard to know what we need! We didn't get that newborn experience with Adan. We've been trying to figure out what car seat to get as well. We think we know what we want, we're just having trouble finding a pattern we like in the stores. At least we have a little more time before we need it! Adan wanted to know why we were looking at car seats. I told him it was so his baby sister could sit next to him in the back seat. He said "No, mommy. She's too little". Well, yes she is right now, isn't she? I wonder what he's going to think when she finally arrives?
We've been trying to decide on a name or at least narrow it down to a few. I think we've made some progress and have a list of 4 or 5 that we both like. We'll likely take a 2-3 possibilities with us and then decide which one seems to fit her when we finally meet her in person. We're going to keep our choices secret, though, so you'll just have to wait to find out when we announce her birth!
In other exciting news, we found out this week that my brother and his wife are also having a girl! They are due approximately 2 months after me, so our little girls will be very close in age. We don't live all that close to each other, but hopefully they'll still manage to be little friends.
Well, I will close with my 28 week pictures. Still growing!
Here's the belly shot...
And the side profile...
And for comparison, here is my last picture...
Daron and I finally got around to registering (at Target). Some work friends are throwing me a shower next weekend, so we needed to get it done. It's hard to know what we need! We didn't get that newborn experience with Adan. We've been trying to figure out what car seat to get as well. We think we know what we want, we're just having trouble finding a pattern we like in the stores. At least we have a little more time before we need it! Adan wanted to know why we were looking at car seats. I told him it was so his baby sister could sit next to him in the back seat. He said "No, mommy. She's too little". Well, yes she is right now, isn't she? I wonder what he's going to think when she finally arrives?
We've been trying to decide on a name or at least narrow it down to a few. I think we've made some progress and have a list of 4 or 5 that we both like. We'll likely take a 2-3 possibilities with us and then decide which one seems to fit her when we finally meet her in person. We're going to keep our choices secret, though, so you'll just have to wait to find out when we announce her birth!
In other exciting news, we found out this week that my brother and his wife are also having a girl! They are due approximately 2 months after me, so our little girls will be very close in age. We don't live all that close to each other, but hopefully they'll still manage to be little friends.
Well, I will close with my 28 week pictures. Still growing!
Here's the belly shot...
And the side profile...
And for comparison, here is my last picture...
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
GD test and Childbirth classes
So, I went in for my appointment last week and the nurse offered to just let me do the gestational diabetes test right then. I knew I didn't have any meetings I was going to be late for at work, so I went ahead and did it. And...I passed! Otherwise, the biggest news is that after my next appointment, it will be time to move to appointments every two weeks. Guess that means we're getting closer to the big day! My blood pressure was still normal (100/56) and I had only gained a couple pounds (yay!). The baby's heartrate was right where it normally is at around 150bpm. I'm actually going only 3 weeks before my next appointment because somewhere along the way we got off and she wants me on even weeks when we start the appointments every two weeks. I'll be 28 weeks at my next one - actually closer to 29 but she still counts my due date as July 17th since my measurements were never more than 4 days off the dates I originally gave her. She only changes it if its more than a week off.
Last night, Daron and I started our childbirth classes. We mainly talked about signs of pre-term labor, for what things you should contact your doctor, and how to deal with some of the discomforts and side effects of pregnancy (such as back aches, nauseau, fatigue, etc). At the end of class, we got the mats out and she taught us moms and our partners some relaxation techniques. We'll practice those types of things at the end of class every week except the last week. That week is more dedicated to baby care and a tour of the birth facilities at the hospital. All in all, I enjoyed class. Its a nice way for Daron and I to prepare for this together.
Adan's stayed home with one of his older cousins last night, and I have to say, I'm not sure he hardly noticed we were leaving. We did get a 'bye', but he was very excited to watch the movie Cars with Isaak, so I'm pretty sure he was ready for us to let him get to his movie. :-)
Last night, Daron and I started our childbirth classes. We mainly talked about signs of pre-term labor, for what things you should contact your doctor, and how to deal with some of the discomforts and side effects of pregnancy (such as back aches, nauseau, fatigue, etc). At the end of class, we got the mats out and she taught us moms and our partners some relaxation techniques. We'll practice those types of things at the end of class every week except the last week. That week is more dedicated to baby care and a tour of the birth facilities at the hospital. All in all, I enjoyed class. Its a nice way for Daron and I to prepare for this together.
Adan's stayed home with one of his older cousins last night, and I have to say, I'm not sure he hardly noticed we were leaving. We did get a 'bye', but he was very excited to watch the movie Cars with Isaak, so I'm pretty sure he was ready for us to let him get to his movie. :-)
Monday, April 6, 2009
99 days left!
I have finally broken into only double digits left today! The day I first started this blog and added the ticker, I believe it said 252 days left. In some ways it feels like the time has gone by at a snail's pace and in other ways it feels like it has flown by. I still have trouble believing this is all real sometimes, too.
I don't have a lot of new information to report. I have my next regular OB check up tomorrow. I don't expect anything more than the usual weigh in (blech!), blood pressure check, and doppler check of the heart beat. And as I think I've posted before, we'll be scheduling the gestational diabetes test. We don't use our home doppler nearly as often now that I can feel her move, but we did listen in to her last night for a couple minutes. Timed right out in its normal range of 150-155bpm.
We tried to get a video of Adan talking to the baby yesterday. We got it, but its not nearly as fun as when he decides to talk to her on his own with no prompting. However, since that will not likely be easy to capture on video, I'll post the one we did get.
I don't have a lot of new information to report. I have my next regular OB check up tomorrow. I don't expect anything more than the usual weigh in (blech!), blood pressure check, and doppler check of the heart beat. And as I think I've posted before, we'll be scheduling the gestational diabetes test. We don't use our home doppler nearly as often now that I can feel her move, but we did listen in to her last night for a couple minutes. Timed right out in its normal range of 150-155bpm.
We tried to get a video of Adan talking to the baby yesterday. We got it, but its not nearly as fun as when he decides to talk to her on his own with no prompting. However, since that will not likely be easy to capture on video, I'll post the one we did get.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Check out this growing belly
Sorry it has been a little bit since my last post. The main new thing is that this little girl is becoming quite active! I love feeling her kick, although she is starting to find some painful spots every once in a while. I'll take it, though!
My next appointment is on Tuesday morning. As I think I said in an earlier post, we'll be scheduling the gestational diabetes test at that point. Hopefully that will be no big deal. I've heard the drink is terribly yummy...
In other news, Daron and I will be starting our childbirth classes on April 13th. I'm so excited! I can't believe we're getting close to thinking about the homestretch. I'll actually be starting my 3rd trimester in 3 weeks!
So, I'm a bit late and this is really 25 week picture instead of a 24 week picture, but better late than never, right? I also reposted my 20 and 16 week pictures for comparison purposes. I guess the most change seems to have happened between 16 and 20 weeks, although apparently I decided to face different directions!
My next appointment is on Tuesday morning. As I think I said in an earlier post, we'll be scheduling the gestational diabetes test at that point. Hopefully that will be no big deal. I've heard the drink is terribly yummy...
In other news, Daron and I will be starting our childbirth classes on April 13th. I'm so excited! I can't believe we're getting close to thinking about the homestretch. I'll actually be starting my 3rd trimester in 3 weeks!
So, I'm a bit late and this is really 25 week picture instead of a 24 week picture, but better late than never, right? I also reposted my 20 and 16 week pictures for comparison purposes. I guess the most change seems to have happened between 16 and 20 weeks, although apparently I decided to face different directions!
Friday, March 13, 2009
Daron finally got to feel her move!
I have been feeling our little girl moving for a few weeks now. In the last couple weeks I had started being able to feel her from the outside, too, but every time Daron would put his hand on my stomach, she would stop. Last night however, she finally showed off for her daddy and gave him a good thunk! She's definitely getting stronger because the thunks are getting bigger. They don't hurt or anything at this point, but sometimes they sure take me by surprise!
I really need to try to catch Adan talking to the baby on video one of these days. He likes to pat my stomach and say 'Baby, come out!' just about every day. I keep explaining that she isn't ready to come out yet, so in the last couple days he has been asking 'Baby ready to come out?' instead of commanding her to come out. Considering its nearly impossible to explain the concept of 4 more months to a 3 year old, I have a feeling I'm going to be hearing this question a lot. :-) Anyway, sometimes he tells the baby his version of a knock, knock joke (which is just 'knock, knock, who's there!) or he pats my tummy and tells the baby he loves her. Its so sweet.
I had my latest appointment this week and everything checked out fine. I did gain another 8 pounds - yikes - but my blood pressure and the baby's heart rate are hanging right where they usually do. I have my next check up on April 7th, at which point we will also schedule the gestational diabetes test.
Oh, one more thing I almost forgot. My doctor had received the ultrasound report from the perinatologist and there was really nothing to report, which in this case is good news! No new scans were requested and everything checked out just fine.
Nothing else new here. If I happen to get that video of Adan one of these days, I'll be sure to post it!
I really need to try to catch Adan talking to the baby on video one of these days. He likes to pat my stomach and say 'Baby, come out!' just about every day. I keep explaining that she isn't ready to come out yet, so in the last couple days he has been asking 'Baby ready to come out?' instead of commanding her to come out. Considering its nearly impossible to explain the concept of 4 more months to a 3 year old, I have a feeling I'm going to be hearing this question a lot. :-) Anyway, sometimes he tells the baby his version of a knock, knock joke (which is just 'knock, knock, who's there!) or he pats my tummy and tells the baby he loves her. Its so sweet.
I had my latest appointment this week and everything checked out fine. I did gain another 8 pounds - yikes - but my blood pressure and the baby's heart rate are hanging right where they usually do. I have my next check up on April 7th, at which point we will also schedule the gestational diabetes test.
Oh, one more thing I almost forgot. My doctor had received the ultrasound report from the perinatologist and there was really nothing to report, which in this case is good news! No new scans were requested and everything checked out just fine.
Nothing else new here. If I happen to get that video of Adan one of these days, I'll be sure to post it!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
20 week ultrasound!
We had our twenty week ultrasound today. I was so nervous! But it turns out my nerves were for nothing. The baby measured right on target and weighs approximately 13 oz, so nearly a pound! The ultrasound tech checked all the organs and said everything looked good to her. All the pictures will go to a perinatologist my ob contracts with for review. If there is anything they want another picture of we'll get called for another ultrasound. And if for some reason they saw some reason for worry, they would let us know that as well. Otherwise, I guess this is the last time we'll see the baby until she's born. And yes, I said SHE!!! She's a perfect, beautiful little girl!
So, we picked up Adan from daycare today, excited to tell him the news. I told him he was going to have a baby sister, and then I said 'Are you excited to have a baby sister?'. He said 'Yeah! Can I watch a movie?'. Apparently the excitement was short-lived!
Here are the pictures.
First up, here she is sucking her thumb. For those of you who know Adan, you know we already have one thumb sucker in the family! He thought that was pretty cool when I said she was sucking her thumb.
Next, we have a shot of her legs. They sure look long and thin right now. Of course, she has no fat on her yet.
This one is a little hard to make out, but if you look at the bottom left hand side of the shot, you can see a little hand waving at you.
The last one is a look up at the bottom of her feet. Aw, doesn't she have cute feet? They measured 3.7cm - so tiny yet.
So, we picked up Adan from daycare today, excited to tell him the news. I told him he was going to have a baby sister, and then I said 'Are you excited to have a baby sister?'. He said 'Yeah! Can I watch a movie?'. Apparently the excitement was short-lived!
Here are the pictures.
First up, here she is sucking her thumb. For those of you who know Adan, you know we already have one thumb sucker in the family! He thought that was pretty cool when I said she was sucking her thumb.
Next, we have a shot of her legs. They sure look long and thin right now. Of course, she has no fat on her yet.
This one is a little hard to make out, but if you look at the bottom left hand side of the shot, you can see a little hand waving at you.
The last one is a look up at the bottom of her feet. Aw, doesn't she have cute feet? They measured 3.7cm - so tiny yet.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Half way there!
This week we passed the 20 week mark, so we are officially half way through this pregnancy! It feels like there is such a long way to go still, but I think it will go by quickly (well, I hope so anyway!).
In other news, I'm really starting to feel the baby move quite a bit lately. Every once in a while I can even feel some light thumps that I think must be kicks. I have pressed down where I felt them and even felt a bit from the outside. Unfortunately, the kicking always stops before I can get Daron to feel them. One of these days, though!
Three more days until the big ultrasound! I feel like a kid waiting to see what Santa brings on Christmas morning! I will plan to post the news sometime in the evening after getting home from work.
Since I don't have much else new to post, I'll leave you with a picture of me at 20 weeks. You'll see there's just a bit of a belly these days!
In other news, I'm really starting to feel the baby move quite a bit lately. Every once in a while I can even feel some light thumps that I think must be kicks. I have pressed down where I felt them and even felt a bit from the outside. Unfortunately, the kicking always stops before I can get Daron to feel them. One of these days, though!
Three more days until the big ultrasound! I feel like a kid waiting to see what Santa brings on Christmas morning! I will plan to post the news sometime in the evening after getting home from work.
Since I don't have much else new to post, I'll leave you with a picture of me at 20 weeks. You'll see there's just a bit of a belly these days!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Off bedrest! and Quad Screen Correction
Daron accompanied me to my appointment this morning. Unfortunately, the pressure is not letting up, but since there is no sign of pre-term labor the doctor released me from bedrest. She thinks it's likely that some of the scarring and adhesions from the endometriosis is pulling as things grow creating the pressure sensation. A gal I know at work who recently had a baby after struggling with endometriosis related infertility said she had a lot of pressure from about the same point as I am to the end of her pregnancy. So, it seems that is probably a very plausible explanation.
In addition to that, my hips and lower back are really starting to hurt quite badly. I scheduled a chiropractor appt for tomorrow. I saw her two weeks ago and at that time she told me my hips were very out. We scheduled my next appointment for a month out, but she told me to come back earlier if I needed to. In the meantime, my ob suggested I try sleeping in a recliner, so I can be on my back at an incline rather than laying on my hips since you have to lay on your side when flat in a bed while pregnant. We had been planning to buy a new recliner anyway, so we went ahead and bought one tonight. Luckily, we were able to get a good deal on a floor model and brought it home with us. I'll let you know how it goes.
In some exciting news, it turns out the Down's Syndrome number the nurse gave me was the baseline risk for my exact age and ethnicity (1:161). My actual risk of Down's is ~1:4000! The risk for trisomy 18 was ~1:5000, and like I said in my last post the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida was 1:3182 (that's the only actual number I got). If there was a number for trisomy 13, she didn't give it to me, but I'm sure if there was anything to be worried about, she would have told me. She started off by saying everything they measured came back as one in thousands. So, obviously, this doesn't guarantee the baby will be free of these genetic disorders, but at least it appears to be a very low risk. In fact, she told me I had the risk level of an 18 year old!
Now, if only I had the hips of an 18 year old...
In addition to that, my hips and lower back are really starting to hurt quite badly. I scheduled a chiropractor appt for tomorrow. I saw her two weeks ago and at that time she told me my hips were very out. We scheduled my next appointment for a month out, but she told me to come back earlier if I needed to. In the meantime, my ob suggested I try sleeping in a recliner, so I can be on my back at an incline rather than laying on my hips since you have to lay on your side when flat in a bed while pregnant. We had been planning to buy a new recliner anyway, so we went ahead and bought one tonight. Luckily, we were able to get a good deal on a floor model and brought it home with us. I'll let you know how it goes.
In some exciting news, it turns out the Down's Syndrome number the nurse gave me was the baseline risk for my exact age and ethnicity (1:161). My actual risk of Down's is ~1:4000! The risk for trisomy 18 was ~1:5000, and like I said in my last post the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida was 1:3182 (that's the only actual number I got). If there was a number for trisomy 13, she didn't give it to me, but I'm sure if there was anything to be worried about, she would have told me. She started off by saying everything they measured came back as one in thousands. So, obviously, this doesn't guarantee the baby will be free of these genetic disorders, but at least it appears to be a very low risk. In fact, she told me I had the risk level of an 18 year old!
Now, if only I had the hips of an 18 year old...
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Quad Screen Results
Well, much to my surprise, my doctor's nurse called me on Thursday with the results of the quad screen tests already. She told me I screened negative which is good, but she also said the doctor will talk about them more with me at my appointment on Tuesday. The neural tube defect risk came back at 1:3182 (or something close to that), and the downs syndrome risk came back at 1:161. The DS number is probably what she wants to talk with me about. She had told me awhile back that if my risk came back at higher than 1:200 (which is the baseline risk given for my age), then we would do the more detailed ultrasound. However, when the nurse called me, she called it screen negative and said we'll just plan to do the normal ultrasound. My guess is that I could probably talk my doctor into the more detailed variety, but considering the risk is still less than 1%, I'm not too concerned. Daron is going to go with me to the appointment, so we'll see what she has to say and then see where we go from there. I imagine, though, that we'll be doing the regularly scheduled ultrasound on March 3rd. Have I mentioned yet that I CAN'T wait!!! :-) I miss those little peeks we got every two weeks early on. Plus, I am just so curious to know the gender! Okay, I admit, I was the kind of kid that wanted to carefully open my presents that were sitting under the tree and get a sneak peek.
So, all in all, I think it was very good news! The nurse didn't tell me the results for trisomies 13 and 18, but I believe those results should be in the report as well, so I'll ask about them on Tuesday as well. I'm guessing they must also be low risk if they didn't mention them.
As for the bedrest, its going alright. Pretty boring, and sometimes the more I lay around, the more uncomfortable I get. I really wish whatever this is would go away, but I guess as long as it is not meaning something is wrong with the pregnancy, I can live with it.
So, all in all, I think it was very good news! The nurse didn't tell me the results for trisomies 13 and 18, but I believe those results should be in the report as well, so I'll ask about them on Tuesday as well. I'm guessing they must also be low risk if they didn't mention them.
As for the bedrest, its going alright. Pretty boring, and sometimes the more I lay around, the more uncomfortable I get. I really wish whatever this is would go away, but I guess as long as it is not meaning something is wrong with the pregnancy, I can live with it.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Lots to post about
So, the good news first - at my appt yesterday, the baby's heartbeat was still nice and strong and healthy sounding. I gained a little more weight than I would have hoped, but the doctor wasn't concerned about it. My blood pressure is still good and my tummy seems to be growing at a normal rate.
They went ahead and drew blood for the quad screen. I won't find out the results until early next week, so everyone please pray that it doesn't show an increased risk of any chromosonal issues. If it does, it is by no means diagnostic, but we'll do a more detailed ultrasound and check for other soft markers of problems. If not, we'll just do the normal ultrasound at 20 weeks. It has been scheduled for March 3rd! And if I haven't said it before, yes!, we will be finding out the gender. I will be sure to post when we know!
So, the not so fun news is that I've had some strange pressure in my lower abdomen. I had it over the weekend, so I called the oncall doctor but she wasn't too concerned unless it was accompanied by bleeding (which it was not). She did suggest the possibility of an UTI, so I did run to a nearby acute care and get checked. The dip stick test was negative, but they did also run a culture. Yesterday I found out it was positive for a small amount of an unidentified bacteria. They said it was most likely that something got in there when I was giving the sample. I was feeling better, so I wasn't too concerned. I told the doctor about it and she agreed that it was probably okay, but she told me to call if it happened again.
Well, this morning I woke up around 2:30am with some pain in my right side, but I also was feeling some tightening or something like that in my abdomen. By this morning, it was definitely that same pressure feeling, so I called the doctor. She decided to go ahead and prescribe an antibiotic for the unidentified bacteria just in case, plus she sent me to the hospital to be checked out. They monitored me for contractions and checked to make sure I wasn't showing any signs of dilation. Thankfully, both tests were just fine and I'm not showing any signs of pre-term labor. The doctor still felt a little concerned about it, so she decided to err on the side of caution and put me on bedrest until next Tuesday. At that point, I'll have another appt and she'll decide if I can go back to normal routine or if I need to stay on bedrest. I am allowed to work from home this week as long as I keep my feet up and don't get too stressed, but lets hope this bedrest doesn't go any longer than this week. I have a long way to go until my due date! I will do whatever it takes to have a healthy pregnancy, but I really would love to avoid long-term bedrest.
So, that is all the news here. I was planning on posting a little more information about the quad screen, but I think this post is long enough. I will post about it later this week or when I get the results back.
They went ahead and drew blood for the quad screen. I won't find out the results until early next week, so everyone please pray that it doesn't show an increased risk of any chromosonal issues. If it does, it is by no means diagnostic, but we'll do a more detailed ultrasound and check for other soft markers of problems. If not, we'll just do the normal ultrasound at 20 weeks. It has been scheduled for March 3rd! And if I haven't said it before, yes!, we will be finding out the gender. I will be sure to post when we know!
So, the not so fun news is that I've had some strange pressure in my lower abdomen. I had it over the weekend, so I called the oncall doctor but she wasn't too concerned unless it was accompanied by bleeding (which it was not). She did suggest the possibility of an UTI, so I did run to a nearby acute care and get checked. The dip stick test was negative, but they did also run a culture. Yesterday I found out it was positive for a small amount of an unidentified bacteria. They said it was most likely that something got in there when I was giving the sample. I was feeling better, so I wasn't too concerned. I told the doctor about it and she agreed that it was probably okay, but she told me to call if it happened again.
Well, this morning I woke up around 2:30am with some pain in my right side, but I also was feeling some tightening or something like that in my abdomen. By this morning, it was definitely that same pressure feeling, so I called the doctor. She decided to go ahead and prescribe an antibiotic for the unidentified bacteria just in case, plus she sent me to the hospital to be checked out. They monitored me for contractions and checked to make sure I wasn't showing any signs of dilation. Thankfully, both tests were just fine and I'm not showing any signs of pre-term labor. The doctor still felt a little concerned about it, so she decided to err on the side of caution and put me on bedrest until next Tuesday. At that point, I'll have another appt and she'll decide if I can go back to normal routine or if I need to stay on bedrest. I am allowed to work from home this week as long as I keep my feet up and don't get too stressed, but lets hope this bedrest doesn't go any longer than this week. I have a long way to go until my due date! I will do whatever it takes to have a healthy pregnancy, but I really would love to avoid long-term bedrest.
So, that is all the news here. I was planning on posting a little more information about the quad screen, but I think this post is long enough. I will post about it later this week or when I get the results back.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
16 week picture
We took our 16 week picture tonight. Its definitely becoming more apparent to others that I am pregnant now, but looking at this picture and my 12 week picture, I'm not seeing a lot of difference. I feel much bigger though. I'm thinking I must have been having a bloat night when I took the 12 week one.
Its still a week and a half until our next appointment. I will be having the quad screen at that point, which will determine how detailed an ultrasound we'll have. At that point, we'll go ahead and schedule the big day when we get to find out the gender!
My most recent weekly newsletter said I may start feeling the baby soon. I've had the occasional unidentified feeling that I hope is the baby, but there hasn't been that moment where I thought 'that was definitely the baby' yet. I can't wait, though! Adan is looking forward to feeling the baby kick, so I'm even more excited to get to the point where we can feel him/her from the outside. I'm sure that's still several weeks away though.
Nothing else new here, so I'll leave you with the latest pic!
Its still a week and a half until our next appointment. I will be having the quad screen at that point, which will determine how detailed an ultrasound we'll have. At that point, we'll go ahead and schedule the big day when we get to find out the gender!
My most recent weekly newsletter said I may start feeling the baby soon. I've had the occasional unidentified feeling that I hope is the baby, but there hasn't been that moment where I thought 'that was definitely the baby' yet. I can't wait, though! Adan is looking forward to feeling the baby kick, so I'm even more excited to get to the point where we can feel him/her from the outside. I'm sure that's still several weeks away though.
Nothing else new here, so I'll leave you with the latest pic!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
I love having the doppler!
So, my next appointment is still over 2 weeks away. Since we found out we were pregnant, we haven't gone more than 2 weeks without an appointment. I know it is normal to only go once a month at this stage of pregnancy, but I'm a nervous person as it is. You add in my history and a month feels like an eternity!
So, I believe I mentioned in an earlier post we rented a doppler so we can listen to the heartbeat every now and then. We've gotten very good at finding it quickly, which is always a nice feeling. We find it and listen for a couple minutes, to get our fix, and then we wait another few days before listening in again.
Our 3 year old, Adan, likes to come listen to the heartbeat as well. I'm not sure he really gets what he's hearing. He at times seems much more fascinated with the ultrasound gel on my tummy than what he's hearing. The first time he asked if it was blood (its white, so I'm not sure where he got that idea). Again tonight he was asking about that gel. The last time we listened, Daron decided to point out to Adan where in my tummy we think the baby is based on where we found the heartbeat. Adan put his hand on my tummy, looked at Daron and said 'Open it up'. So, we explained that the baby had to stay there until it was big enough to come out. At that point, he cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled at my stomach, 'Hello in there!'. It was very cute. I look forward to when he can actually feel the baby kicking. I think he'll get a real 'kick' out of that.
Oh, and I'm starting to get more of a tummy these days. I still don't think its probably noticeable if someone didn't know I was pregnant, but a few people who do know have told me recently they are starting to see it. I went shopping with a couple friends this weekend, and they had a heyday bringing me clothes to try on. I don't think I left the fitting room until I came out to pay, and I'm pretty sure I must have tried on just about everything in the store! I bought a few pairs of pants, which are already needed, and summer tops, which will likely be needed around the time its getting hot out.
So, I believe I mentioned in an earlier post we rented a doppler so we can listen to the heartbeat every now and then. We've gotten very good at finding it quickly, which is always a nice feeling. We find it and listen for a couple minutes, to get our fix, and then we wait another few days before listening in again.
Our 3 year old, Adan, likes to come listen to the heartbeat as well. I'm not sure he really gets what he's hearing. He at times seems much more fascinated with the ultrasound gel on my tummy than what he's hearing. The first time he asked if it was blood (its white, so I'm not sure where he got that idea). Again tonight he was asking about that gel. The last time we listened, Daron decided to point out to Adan where in my tummy we think the baby is based on where we found the heartbeat. Adan put his hand on my tummy, looked at Daron and said 'Open it up'. So, we explained that the baby had to stay there until it was big enough to come out. At that point, he cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled at my stomach, 'Hello in there!'. It was very cute. I look forward to when he can actually feel the baby kicking. I think he'll get a real 'kick' out of that.
Oh, and I'm starting to get more of a tummy these days. I still don't think its probably noticeable if someone didn't know I was pregnant, but a few people who do know have told me recently they are starting to see it. I went shopping with a couple friends this weekend, and they had a heyday bringing me clothes to try on. I don't think I left the fitting room until I came out to pay, and I'm pretty sure I must have tried on just about everything in the store! I bought a few pairs of pants, which are already needed, and summer tops, which will likely be needed around the time its getting hot out.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Almost 14 weeks and a late picture
I took a picture at 12 weeks (well, near 12 weeks anyway), but it took me until now to finally upload it off the computer. So, you'll see that picture at the end of the post.
I had a regular checkup appointment today. All continues to go well. The doctor commented on the fact that I am getting a tummy - I think my 16 week picture is going to be quite a bit different from my 12 week! My weight was good, the baby's heartbeat was around 155bpm, so that was perfect, and my blood pressure remained consistently low. It has been 100/60 or 100/64 every single time I've been there.
I'll have my next visit on Feb. 10th at which point they'll also draw blood for the quad screen. I'll post more about that test when I have it done, but it is essentially a test to assess my risk level for down's syndrome and a couple other chromosonal abnormalities. It is just a screening, but it can help determine if any further tests should be done. The only further test I would consent to is a detailed ultrasound, but it would be nice to know if our risk level is low just to have that worry behind us. And if it turns out there is a significant risk of anything, well then we can prepare for that possibility.
I don't have much else for news, so here's the belly pic (oh, by the way, I decided my full length profile shot was not the best way to show the growth of my tummy, so from now on we'll just do belly pics!
I had a regular checkup appointment today. All continues to go well. The doctor commented on the fact that I am getting a tummy - I think my 16 week picture is going to be quite a bit different from my 12 week! My weight was good, the baby's heartbeat was around 155bpm, so that was perfect, and my blood pressure remained consistently low. It has been 100/60 or 100/64 every single time I've been there.
I'll have my next visit on Feb. 10th at which point they'll also draw blood for the quad screen. I'll post more about that test when I have it done, but it is essentially a test to assess my risk level for down's syndrome and a couple other chromosonal abnormalities. It is just a screening, but it can help determine if any further tests should be done. The only further test I would consent to is a detailed ultrasound, but it would be nice to know if our risk level is low just to have that worry behind us. And if it turns out there is a significant risk of anything, well then we can prepare for that possibility.
I don't have much else for news, so here's the belly pic (oh, by the way, I decided my full length profile shot was not the best way to show the growth of my tummy, so from now on we'll just do belly pics!
Monday, January 5, 2009
2nd trimester and some fun stuff!
So today was the last day of my first trimester. Yay! To top it off, the doppler we decided to rent arrived in the mail today and we were able to find the h/b nearly right away! We got the cheaper kind that doesn't give you a readout, but we could count for a few seconds and calculate what it was approximately per minute and think it was around 150bpm. Normal is 120-160, so that was just perfect!
Just for fun, I surfed around for some gender prediction tools this weekend. According to the Chinese Lunar calendar, we will be having a boy. Then I found a site for Madame Zaritzka, which is a totally random prediction tool, but still fun. Here is what she had to say...
So, I don't know, its looking like there is some pretty strong evidence this is going to be a boy. :-) A lot of the other sites I found required me to be a little further along (questions like is the baby sitting high/low, etc), so I guess I'll have to wait to find out what they have to say. Daron and I do plan to find out the gender at our 20 week ultrasound, so I guess we'll then know how accurate these are!
Just for fun, I surfed around for some gender prediction tools this weekend. According to the Chinese Lunar calendar, we will be having a boy. Then I found a site for Madame Zaritzka, which is a totally random prediction tool, but still fun. Here is what she had to say...
The day you deliver, outside will be sunny. Your baby will arrive at night.
After a labor lasting approximately 21 hours, your child, a boy, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 8 pounds, 10 ounces, and will be 21 inches long. This child will have hazel eyes and some very fine hair.
But there is more. I get the impression that you have some questions -- unresolved concerns you have been too shy to address with your caregiver. This is quite typical. You might appreciate some of the advice to some of these seemingly embarassing pregnancy questions.
So, I don't know, its looking like there is some pretty strong evidence this is going to be a boy. :-) A lot of the other sites I found required me to be a little further along (questions like is the baby sitting high/low, etc), so I guess I'll have to wait to find out what they have to say. Daron and I do plan to find out the gender at our 20 week ultrasound, so I guess we'll then know how accurate these are!
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