Today Was My Due Date

I can't believe it, today would have been my due date. Now, it is not like I thought I would have ever made to my due date, it is really funny to think about it. Especially since Elsie will be 4 weeks old tomorrow.

She will be 4 weeks old and I still have not written my birth story...oops. Here is the short story: went to the hospital 4 weeks early and had my baby. done lol

Elsie is doing great, and Cora is a great big sister. She just has to work on "do nice" since right now she thinks it means smack your sister in the face.

When I look at the two of them together, it really makes me think of my sisters. I hope the girls grow up like my sisters and I did. We are all pretty close, even now as adults. It makes me smile that I was able to give Cora a sister.

Some Pics from scan today

Had an appointment today, see below for details :) But, I thought it would be cool to share some of the pics from today. I took pics of the scans on my phone - so ther is a glare - but you get the idea :)

Look at those CHEEKS!

OB Appointment Update

I had an appointment today, was totally lifted from bedrest today - yipee!!!!

Still having contractions, but nothing big deal (aka not in labor)

But, I was checked and I am 4 CM!!!!! Doc said I can be 4cm for weeks, but I think NOT.

Cora came at 37 weeks, so who knows at this point.

So, even though I have been lifted from bedrest - and given NO restrictions, the doc said "keep in mind you are 4 cm" lol and does not want me going more than 20 minutes away from my house, and would prefer if I did not leave my house other than a quick trip to the (very) local store.

When I water broke with Cora, I was 4 cm when I got to the hospital, so that kinda makes me nervous.

Appointment Update - transverse

I have been on bedrest for 3 weeks now due to pre-term labor. Was admited to the hospital at 32W. Was in the hospital for a few days, only to go back a few days later. Was sent home on strict bedrest and meds to stop contactions.

Have been going to the docs 2x a weeks since then. While I hate it, it is the only time I was allowed to leave the house.

Had an appointment today. Still on bedrest, but only for a little while longer.

Baby was breech for a while, moved head down at the last scan, and that little bugger flipped again. Only now the baby is transverse. Transverse baby totally equals c-section. But, maybe the baby will still flip again (and again).

Still having tons of contractions, have them all day every day. But, they are not regular, or consistently spaced apart.

But the GOOOOOOOD news is that my bedrest will be (mostly) lifted at 36 weeks, which is this coming Wednesday. He still wants me to "take it easy" but, I can sit up instead of laying down ALL THE TIME, could run to do quick errands, walk around the house a bit, etc, etc. He actually said (joking) "you can go out dancing for all I care" meaning that at 36 weeks it was totally fine for me to deliver.

I had Cora at 37W3D, so it is not like that is too far away either. I can't believe that I will have another baby in the house - very soon. Guess we should get working on that name list LOL.

So, there is my update :)

I know I should not google, but here is some info I found on Transverse Position (AKA fun times):

Transverse Lie
If the fetus remains in a transverse lie, it cannot deliver deliver vaginally as the diameter of the fetal presenting part (the whole body, in this case) cannot descend through the birth canal.

If labor is allowed to continue for enough time with the fetus in transverse lie, the uterus will rupture. Even before the uterus ruptures, there is an increased risk in this presentation for prolapsed umbilical cord. For these reasons, women found to have a transverse lie in labor will usually have a cesarean section.

Whenever a fetal transverse lie is encountered near term or in labor, evaluate the patient carefully with ultrasound to determine if there are any predisposing factors, such as a placenta previa or pelvic kidney that could modify your management of the patient. So long as a placenta previa is not present, many obstetricians will check the patient's cervix at frequent intervals to detect early cervical dilatation and the consequential increased risk of cord prolapse. Sometimes, these patients are delivered early by scheduled cesarean section to avoid that risk.

35W scan ,,, and I am an Aunt again!

I am an AUNT again!
Out of 5 siblings, 3 of us were pregnant, and due within 6 weeks of each other. Well, my one sister had her baby ON her due date, how cool is that. Now, I don't want to be anywhere near my due date when I have my baby, but cool for her.

She had a little girl, named her Anna. I hate that I can not meet her for a while. But, it is not like my sister does not understand. She is cute, from what I have seen in pics. I think it is so cool that the cousins will be so close in age.

35 Week Appointment
It is kinda funny that I am calling it my 35 week appointment. Because ever since I was put on bedrest, nothing is on a scheduled weekly appointment. Sometimes I go in once a week, sometimes twice. And, it hardly matches up with my weeks change. I will be 35 weeks tomorrow, so close enough.

I have been having contractions now for a while, but not enough to take the meds (more than 5 an hour), so each appointment I am hooked up to the monitors.

Today I had a scan, for a few reasons - check to see if the baby is still breech, check the weight, check the fluid, etc.

Well, the baby finally flipped and is now head down - was breech since about 17 weeks. This I am so happy for. Will still get another scan before delivery to make sure the baby is STILL head down.

And, we have another BIG baby. At 35 weeks (well tomorrow) the baby weighs 6 pounds 12 oz. Holy Moly that is one big baby. Cora was born at 37 weeks and was 7 pounds, that is another 2 weeks from now.

Everything else on the scan looked good.

After the scan I had appoinment at the office. Was hooked up to the monitors. Having lots of contractions, but even though they show up on the monitor, they are pretty irregular. Had some really painful contractions last night too. Doctor is calling it "irritable uterus"

The doctor did an internal, and guess what - - - already 2 cm dilated. I was nothing last week. Guess those painful contractions did something last night.

The doc said that at this point, if the contractions keep going, or get painful again, give them a call. They basically said that they will not stop contractions at this point. I have been really crampy since coming home, but I don't really think it means anything.

I have to look back at last year to see when I was 2 cm with Cora, even though I know that I could be 2 cm for weeks.

So, for your viewing pleasure - Baby N (yup, that is the name - we really don't have much of a list either) The pics are not that great, especially since the face takes up the whole frame LOL. But, you get the idea

Baby Pool

I did a baby pool with Cora, so I thought it would be fun to do it with this baby. Some things I think are fair to let people know....

1 - I was 2 weeks early with Colin
2 - I was 3 weeks early with Cora
3 - I have had issues with pre-term labor

Take a guess - there is no prize, just the satisfaction that you are the winner :)

Back in the hospital, but this time only a few hours

I was in the hospital from Thurs - Sat for pre-term labor. Was sent home on strict bedrest.

I had way over 20 contractions in a 3 hour period yesterday and had to take the procardia 3x yesterday. Fine. No biggie.

Had to have followup today at the docs today. I will be going 2x a week untl I deliver.

Well, the baby's heartrate was hovering around 218 for a good 10 minutes. I was sent right to the hospital (across the hall basically). She thought it was possible that I was just dehydrated.

So, after 2 bags of fluids and a couple of hours, the heartrate got much better and I was sent home.

Had a couple contractions while on the monitor, but since I have the meds at home, the doc was not too concerned.

The last couple of weeks are gonna be a roller coaster ride

Update

We came home from the hospital on Sat, but I am on full strict bedrest. I thought based on what the first doc told me, that it was going to be modified bedrest. But, nope - full laying down bedrest. My doc does not even want me to be sitting.

I am allowed to basically lay around all day, get up to go the the bathroom, shower only every other day, get up for a quick snack (on the way back from the bathroom only though).

Thank goodness for great family. My sisters have been helping out, and my mom is coming as well. I am so happy I have great friends - they are coming to help out too.

Times like this makes me realize how much stuff I actually do. And, with my personality it is hard to ask other people to do those things for me. But, I will just have to do what I have to do. We can't have this baby come now, way too early!

On a side note: the baby is still breech and is really big. Baby weighs in at 5.5 pounds - wow at 32 weeks!

In the hospital

Yesterday, I had my normal OB appointment. Since I was having contractions, they hooked me up to the monitor. In 10-15 minutes, I had 2 contractions. So, He gave me the the fFN test - I guess because I have been having regular contractions for a while now. Nothing real "regular" on a timing basis - but several an hour...all day. Seriously, had BH with Cora too.

So, I got a call at 7 that the the test was positive. For those that don't know, the ffFN test determines if you have a chance of going into pre-term labor.

According to the doc, if you test negative, you have a 95% chance of NOT going into labor in the next 2 weeks. If you test positive, you have a higher chance of POSSIBLY going into labor early. Basically, a positive test does not tell you a whole lot.

So, I tested positive and he did not want me to wait until the AM, I guess the positive test, and the contractions were enough to get him concerned. I was admitted around 9:30 last night.

The doc ordered meds to slow contractions but only if I had more than 6 in an hour. Well, in the first 20-25 minutes on the monitor, I had 7-8 contractions. They have not been painful, but I could feel them coming, etc.

They gave me Procardia (sp?) which did slow the contractions for a while. I was also given the shot of betamethozone (sp?) to help mature the lung just in case. I will have another shot of the betameth this evening.

But, within 5 hours I was woken up by stonger contractions. I was off the monitor for a while since I was not contracting. So, I was put back on and was having LOTS of contractions and they were VERY close together.

So, I was given more procardia. The contractions actually got stronger, and closer together. So, about 1.5 hours later - I was given another dose. That really helped since I have had no contractions in a couple of hours.

I have had no cervical changes at all, thank goodness!

So, I will be here at least another night, so that they can give the second shot of betameth. Of course with monitoring along the way.

More than likely, I will be sent home with the procardia (pill) to keep the contractions under control.

But, one this is for sure - I WILL be on bedrest. I thought just modified bedrest, but it really does not look that way. I am trying not to think about it. It is gonna be hard with 2 little ones at home. But, we will do whatever we can to keep this baby in as long as possible. Bedrest at home is better than bedrest at the hospital.

My husband brought my laptop to me today, YAY for free wi-fi. So, I will try to update.

28W Scan

Had a scan today to check on the progress of the fluid in the kidneys. The fluid is GONE! Yipee, one less thing that I have to worry about.

The baby is also measuring big (just like Cora did); and at 28 weeks, the baby weighs 3 pounds already! Wowza

The tech also said that the baby has very long legs.

I still can't get over how much detail is in these scans. It is amazing how far technology has come.

I will have to check last years posts to see if I have scan from Cora to compare these to :)

Hello, 3rd trimester

I am 27 Weeks today, and depending on how you measure the trimesters, I either started the 3rd trimester a few days ago, today, or will in a few days LOL

I used this site to figure out the days.

Honestly, I think 27 W is the easiest way to figure it out. I know a few days does not make a difference in the grand skeme of things, but a cool milestone non the less.

I am really showing now, no doubting my pregnancy that is for sure. Every day I get more and more uncomfortable. The baby is resting high up in my abdomen, which means sitting up straight makes me not breathe too well. Plus this means more acid reflux, harder time sleeping, harder to hold Cora, etc, etc.

It is crazy, because when you think of it - I had Cora at 37 weeks, which means I could possibly only have about 10 weeks left!!! Wow, that seems so close.

My sister thinks I will deliver in Sept, I have Oct 4th in my head. I was only one day off with my guess for Cora. We will see.

We - um, I mean me, are still working on names. Frank hates each and every name I had on an every expanding list. And, not just "eh, I don't know" but, "NO WAY!" I have added a few more to the list, but he thinks it is too early to talk about names. What????

We picked Cora's name 3 days before she was born. We will probably do the same this time around. But, I would at least like to narrow down a list. Picking names is hard enough. It really does take some time to fall in love with a name that is "on the list".

And, what makes it worse, is that the list is only girls names - since Frank would like a boy named after him, and he is a a jr. I am not fond of this idea - but I guess it is what it is.

25 Weeks - Scan Pics

I will be 25 weeks tomorrow. When I went to the docs last week, I was measuring ahead using the tape. I really thought this was strange, since I had just popped and really did not think I was that big.

And, even though a few weeks ago I could feel the baby, I really can't feel the baby anymore. The heartbeat was fine on the doppler. But, between the two things, they wanted me to go for a scan.

Heck, I am not going to turn down a "freebie" scan. They scan was today. The last scan I had, I was pretty upset about the lack of pictures. Yes, I KNOW - an u/s is not only for cool pics for the mom. But, I got a pic of a foot, and the skull. The skull, not even the face or a profile pic.

So, today, I was a little more proactive. I saw a cute pic on the screen, and said - "Oh, that is a cute one, can I get a pic of that?" I got a few. But, the weird thing is that I asked about a 3d pic, and then got all 3d pics. Well - she did these last. She did not give me any regular pics. Was she not going to give me ANY? I know lots of people like the 3d the best, but sometimes they look like aliens or just plain weird. Regular scans are cool too.

Yes, I am glad I got some pics. But, I really think I would not have gotten any unless I said something. It is possible that I did not get any regular pics because she really did not concentrate on the face or anything "cool"

So, here are the pics - and yup, kinda looks like an alien. I can already see a resemblance to Cora and Frank. I have no idea why the one pic is a half pic, that is how it printed

The swelling is oh so pretty

So, yesterday I posted that my hands and fingers were very swollen. Well, i am glad that I took my rings off.

My finger are so swollen that they are actually tingling. And, you can still see the indent where my rings were.

I am drinking so much water, thinking that that might help the issue. I guess it will be the #1 thing I bring up to the OB on Thursday.

I really hope my feet are not next :(

And....the rings are off

The past few days (Ok, maybe a week or two) my rings have been getting tight. My fingers have been getting swollen, and by the end of the day, they look like little sausages.

I kept my rings on my entire pregnancy with Cora. And, I am kinda annoyed that I can't with this one.

But, it got to the point where I thought it was possible that I would soon have a problem getting them off. I figured - take them off now, to avoid getting them cut off.

I am wearing them around my neck, on a chain that I wear all the time.

I wear my rings 24/7 - so it makes me sad not to have them on :(

On other notes: I have totally popped. I went from not showing really, wearing regular clothes to pop pop pop, I totally look pregnant. Of course I am wearing maternity clothes now, so that might be why it is a little more obvious - but I think it is beyond that.

This will be about a month before I popped with Cora. Which I guess should be expected since I just was pregnant with Cora.

Maybe I will even take a picture lol

I go to the doc on Thursday, just a routine visit, no scan or anything. Couple more weeks and I will be in the 3rd trimester - wow.

Finallly in Maternit.y Clothes

I am 23 weeks today :) and I finally whipped out my maternity clothes from last year. I can still wear my regular clothes, including my jeans. But, I do have a tiny baby bump. Most would never even know that I am pregnant unless I tell them - that is how much I am not really showing. Like I said, I do have a bump - but to most it probably just looks like a fat roll lol.

I pulled out the maternity since 1) my jeans started to get slightly tight and 2) all of my summer clothes from last year are maternity clothes.

So, not only have I been wearing my regular clothes, but I have been sweating in long pants lol.

I don't know if it is the cut of the pants and shirts, or what - but I feel like I look a lot more pregnant in the maternity clothes. i could be just that I feel like I can embrace the belly, even though most of it is NOT baby LOL

Maybe I will even treat myself and get a few new pieces (shhh don't tell the hubby)

22 weeks and 9 Months update

I could have made two separate posts, but not really enough for each one, so I thought I would just combine them.

I am 22 weeks pregnant - wow, that was fast. I can totally feel the baby move now. It went from totally nothing to totally obvious. I still think it is really cool that you can feel a baby moving inside of you.

I keep having dreams (and thoughts) that the baby is a boy. Guess we will have to wait a few months to find out.

Cora is 9 months old now. And, she is officially crawling. On the day she turned nine months, she kinda went forward about an inch or two - basically enough for me to say that she is getting it.

Well, in the last few days she has really mastered the going forward. She is still pretty slow at it, but she gets where she want to go. Look out world, here comes Cora :)

20 Week u/s update

Had the 20 week u/s last week. Everything looked OK, except one minor thing. The baby has bilateral pyelectasis. Basically, both kidneys are full of fluid (dialated).

The doc said it is very common, 1-2 in 100 pregnancies, and usually goes away on its own. I have to have another scan at 28 weeks to check the progress.

She told me what could cause it, what could happen if it did not go away on it's own.

Of course I googled it, got lots of info. Some scary, some not so much. I am not gonna stress it.

20 Weeks Pregnant

Wow - 20 weeks pregnant as of today. Considering the fact that both of my deliveries came early, I am MORE than 1/2 way through my pregnancy.

We have our "big" u/s tomorrow. And, no - we are not finding out if it is a boy or girl. I am excited to see the baby again, and I am hoping that everything is well with the baby.

At my big scan last time is where we found out about the umbilical cord problems. Issues that turned out to be a non-issue, but still needed extra monitoring.

I am still in my regular clothes, nothing maternity. I am only showing if I wear something really tight (which I never really do). If I pull my clothes tight, you can see a bump. I did not start showing until around 27 (ish) weeks with Cora, but I can already tell that I will show much sooner this time around.

At my appointment tomorrow, I will be asking for a Rx for my heartburn/acid reflux. I have always had bad acid reflux - but is get REALLY bad during pregnancy. Last time I lived on tums, this time I tried out the pepcid complete - which is supposed to last 12 hours. Well, I barely make it 2 hours before I have to supplement with tums. I am hoping a Rx will help.

Good news! I have been doing really well with the throwing up. I hope I do not jinx myself, but it has been weeks since I got sick. I threw up my whole pregnancy with Cora, and was getting sick this time around too. But, seems as though that only lasted a few weeks. Yay me.

I will update again tomorrow, hopefully with some cool 3D pics :)

NT Scan went well

Had my NT Scan today. The measurements were so small that the tech could hardly measure them. The smaller the measurement, the better. So, my measurement of 0.8 was GREAT!!!!

It is so cool to see the baby move on the scan, even though I can not feel it.

The size of the baby was perfect to my last period - so my due date is spot on (Oct 20). Cora was born at 37w3d, so I am trying to pick a guess date for this one. Last time, I was only a day off. I just need my whole family to plan a vacation, that seemed to work last time :)

My thyroid was "abnormal" and I have to have it repeated in a few weeks. Since they are not doing anything about it now, I guess it is not something to really worry about.

I go back in about a month, have to do an early glucose test, have another scan (checing cervical length), followup bloodwork, etc.

So, that is that :)

NT Scan Tomorrow

I have my NT Scan tomorrow. And, I would be lying if I said I was not nervous. Nothing has indicated that there will be a problem. But, I can't help being worried.

This is the point of no return in regards to telling people. We plan on telling most people on Easter, if we get good results from the scan - even though we know that the scan is only 1/2 of the results.

So, that is that. Will update more tomorrow.