Come see us at Our New Chapter blog!
A couple of funnies from our 76-day stay:
- early on, the different nurses and friends would tell us that all different kinds of things can cause pre-term labor. So, after a while, it just became a joke between Eric and me...scratching your nose can cause pre-term labor...sneezing can cause pre-term labor...painting your toenails can cause pre-term labor...
- One of the doctors pointed out that I messed up every deadline they gave me
- We quizzed the nurses about being induced for the whole week prior to the scheduled induction date. We also asked the doctors tons of questions about it. As the doctors are passing the baton, they talk and update each other on all the patients, So Dr. Privette (who delivered Tyler) updated Dr. Bass (who was coming on that day). We were all gathered in the room waiting to go see Tyler, and Dr. Bass comes in and says "I'm here to talk to y'all about induction..."
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Tyler's arrival - from Dad's perspective
Dads are the most unappreciated part of the process. I thought it would be a good idea to document Eric's part of the experience so that it's captured for down the road...so I'm typing but this is Dad's side of the story:
- I'd been worried all along that Mary under-reported pain and downplayed things. However, when she woke me up at 4:50 last Sunday morning, we were both kinda surprised that this was really happening.
- We'd lived in the hospital long enough that I knew how to hook up all the machines and tried to help as much as I could to get things moving along.
- I called my parents around 5:30 am, once we confirmed that this was "it". Mom answered the phone and although they were not awake, they got up and headed to the hospital quickly. Mom packed a bag of stuff to occupy her during the wait (anticipating a long one), but it turns out none of that was needed. Once we got back to the room around 7:15 am I called them to let them know he was here and they were almost at the hospital.
- Her timeframes are all off. I was acutely aware of timeframes of when each contraction started and when the doc/nurse did things.
- I asked for scrubs when she was at 7 cm (back in the room); the nurse brought them in and also said they were going to check her again so I held up on changing until after that. Turns out she was 9 cm already, so I figured I'd better change qu ickly! By the time I was done the L&D nurse and the doctor had the bed moving and ready to head to the OR for delivery. I had to follow the bed down the hall (Mary couldn't see me) because it was all crowded. (ALSO: one size fits all? My ass! I felt like a fat guy in a little coat).
- I did not realize I'd be holding a leg during delivery, but was tasked with that to help. This gave me a view on the entire process while keeping my hand there for Mary to squeeze.
- Initially when I saw the crown of his head coming out, I thought that was his whole head and remember thinking "wow, he IS small" (and why is this so hard? that looks small?) . Then the rest of the head came out and I got a better idea of his size!
- I'd hoped to cut the cord but the doc did so quickly and he got rushed out of the room for the pediatric team to check him out. Mary and I only got a short glimpse of him and heard a small whimper as he was wisked out of the room.
- Later I was asked if I wanted to see him as Mary was getting attended to. I went across the hall, feeling guilty that I got to see him first. I made sure that was ok with Mary (Mary here: YES, I wanted someone to check on our baby!!) and then to the room where they had him. He was surrounded by all sorts of people in OR garb. We have video of this. I came in and they said, "here's your boy!". Captured a few moments of this, made sure he was breathing and such, then went back to check on Mary (and make sure I wasn't getting in the way in there).
- Once we got back to the room, I showed Mary the video of his first moments. They'd told me we could call down to the NICU to hear more details on Tyler within about an hour of delivery. When I called the first time, they weren't ready because he was hard to get the IVs in him. They asked for 30 more minutes twice, and by the last time both Mary and I were getting very antsy and frustrated. Then, the doctor showed up in our room and let us know his weight, and that he was in good condition. This was a huge relief and we were able to see him shortly after that.
- the end result is (even with the bedrest): no matter how much I worried and tried to plan for every scenario, you do what you have to do, you have to go with what happens and handle it accordingly. This is what it means to "man up". And, if we'd been home it would have been a mad race to make it to the hospital in time. Once again, I was right.
- I'd been worried all along that Mary under-reported pain and downplayed things. However, when she woke me up at 4:50 last Sunday morning, we were both kinda surprised that this was really happening.
- We'd lived in the hospital long enough that I knew how to hook up all the machines and tried to help as much as I could to get things moving along.
- I called my parents around 5:30 am, once we confirmed that this was "it". Mom answered the phone and although they were not awake, they got up and headed to the hospital quickly. Mom packed a bag of stuff to occupy her during the wait (anticipating a long one), but it turns out none of that was needed. Once we got back to the room around 7:15 am I called them to let them know he was here and they were almost at the hospital.
- Her timeframes are all off. I was acutely aware of timeframes of when each contraction started and when the doc/nurse did things.
- I asked for scrubs when she was at 7 cm (back in the room); the nurse brought them in and also said they were going to check her again so I held up on changing until after that. Turns out she was 9 cm already, so I figured I'd better change qu ickly! By the time I was done the L&D nurse and the doctor had the bed moving and ready to head to the OR for delivery. I had to follow the bed down the hall (Mary couldn't see me) because it was all crowded. (ALSO: one size fits all? My ass! I felt like a fat guy in a little coat).
- I did not realize I'd be holding a leg during delivery, but was tasked with that to help. This gave me a view on the entire process while keeping my hand there for Mary to squeeze.
- Initially when I saw the crown of his head coming out, I thought that was his whole head and remember thinking "wow, he IS small" (and why is this so hard? that looks small?) . Then the rest of the head came out and I got a better idea of his size!
- I'd hoped to cut the cord but the doc did so quickly and he got rushed out of the room for the pediatric team to check him out. Mary and I only got a short glimpse of him and heard a small whimper as he was wisked out of the room.
- Later I was asked if I wanted to see him as Mary was getting attended to. I went across the hall, feeling guilty that I got to see him first. I made sure that was ok with Mary (Mary here: YES, I wanted someone to check on our baby!!) and then to the room where they had him. He was surrounded by all sorts of people in OR garb. We have video of this. I came in and they said, "here's your boy!". Captured a few moments of this, made sure he was breathing and such, then went back to check on Mary (and make sure I wasn't getting in the way in there).
- Once we got back to the room, I showed Mary the video of his first moments. They'd told me we could call down to the NICU to hear more details on Tyler within about an hour of delivery. When I called the first time, they weren't ready because he was hard to get the IVs in him. They asked for 30 more minutes twice, and by the last time both Mary and I were getting very antsy and frustrated. Then, the doctor showed up in our room and let us know his weight, and that he was in good condition. This was a huge relief and we were able to see him shortly after that.
- the end result is (even with the bedrest): no matter how much I worried and tried to plan for every scenario, you do what you have to do, you have to go with what happens and handle it accordingly. This is what it means to "man up". And, if we'd been home it would have been a mad race to make it to the hospital in time. Once again, I was right.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Baby Tyler is here!
As you know the induction was planned for tomorrow but apparently Tyler likes purple (amythest is his birthstone)....which is kinda funny because that is one of Eric's favorite colors and the color in our wedding. Here's the story :)
I woke up this morning around 4:30 feeling cramping, but it was weird in that it was low, like hips and below? I felt about 3 of those a few minutes apart and decided to wake Eric up (around 4:50) and then called the nurse. She came in and got an L&D nurse to come in...the doc came in a at 5:07 and checked my cervix - still 4 cm. Then the L&D nurse came in and checked me a few minutes later and I was 7 cm! then 5 more minutes...and I'm at 9.5 and we got wheeled to the OR. I delivered in the OR because he was a preemie and the Pedicatric team would be on stanby there. Felt like we were in there for a while, and they told me when to push (which is hard work, btw) and next thing you know there he is at 6:40 am.
You may have noticed in there that I didn't mention an epidural....he came too fast to do that! I had some sort of "take the edge off" meds in my IV but I don't think it did a lot. They had to take my blood and do testing before administering the epidural, (even though Eric said from minute one that I wanted one), and by the time he was here it was too late. Good thing he was small!!
We've been over to see him twice now and he's bigger than I thought he would be.I can't wait to see him w/out the tubes and stuff. The Neonatologist estimates he'll be there 2 to 3 weeks. The 2nd time we went over we got to hold him which
was way awesome. :)
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
a typical day...
Thought it might be nice to document what a typical day has been like here at the hospital on bedrest.....
between 6 am and 7:30 am most days, one of the docs would come in on their rounds to check on me. One of the docs is in by 6 at the latest, she's an early bird...one of them comes in later and later. The rest are usually right around 7 am. This is on their final rounds as they are leaving from a 24-hour shift.
sometime between 7:30 and 8:15 am a nurse or nurse tech comes in to check my vitals - temp and BP at a minimum, some nurses do a HB check on baby too, some wait til monitoring. They also check my lungs, bowels, heart, legs.
Breakfast usually gets here around 8:30 or so. My usual breakfast is 2 slices of wheat toast, and cheerios. Sometimes I add yogurt, sometimes I add fruit.
Once that is over I get my morning meds - prenatal vitamin, colace, and Miralax.
Around 9:30 am they put me on the monitor for a NST - non-stress test - which is 30 minutes of monitoring baby Tyler's heartbeat (typically between 125 and 150 and showing good accelerations which is good) and my uterine activity (typically pretty flat unless I sneeze, cough, etc....although there was a period whee I had BH contractions).
And from there nothing going on until lunchtime. I usually use this time to get caught up on the internet, podcasts, or read. Mostly internet, lol.
Lunch is usually served between 12:30 and 1pm.
1pm is All My Children time!
Between 2pm and 4pm, nothing exciting. I usually nap or surf the net or take a shower (once I got shower priveleges) or read. Again, mostly internet, or a nap.
Between 3pm and 4pm, a nurse or nurse tech comes in for my vitals (and baby HB check).
4pm is Oprah time! 5 is local news, 5:30 to 6:30 is Friends reruns, and then 6:30pm is the National News (with Diane Sawyer). If Eric is working he usually gets here for dinner around this time. I usually get my hospital dinner around 6pm, but if it's icky, he brings me dinner (usually McDonalds).
We usually watch Jeopardy and part of Wheel of Fortune before he heads home to unwind and get to bed for his 6am wake up to get to work at 7. I watch prime time TV, get my PM meds (just Colace) and then think about bedtime.
I get my last check of vitals between 10:30 and 11:30. This typically depends if I have a nurse who is working 7pm to 7am, or if she is working 11pm to 7am. It also dictates if I go to sleep at 10:30, or later. I had one nurse that would do my late vitals REALLY late (like after midnight!), so I would get to sleep really late too. But generally I'm asleep by 11:30 at the latest.
When I was on Nifedipene (medication to prevent contractions), I initially took that 4x per day so I was woken up in the middle of the night to take my meds. Then I went to 3x per day and could get a bigger chunk of sleep, then at around 32 weeks i stopped taking that.
Eric typically gets here Weds night and stays thru Saturday afternoon. He puts up with my soap and Oprah time, and during some of the other time we watched Cold Case, or Overhaulin' (his choice, of course), or the Olympics.
Weekends are only different in the TV watching - the rest of the schedule is about the same. There is just nothing on TV so I get bored. A lot more time spent on the internet, reading, or catching up on podcasts.
between 6 am and 7:30 am most days, one of the docs would come in on their rounds to check on me. One of the docs is in by 6 at the latest, she's an early bird...one of them comes in later and later. The rest are usually right around 7 am. This is on their final rounds as they are leaving from a 24-hour shift.
sometime between 7:30 and 8:15 am a nurse or nurse tech comes in to check my vitals - temp and BP at a minimum, some nurses do a HB check on baby too, some wait til monitoring. They also check my lungs, bowels, heart, legs.
Breakfast usually gets here around 8:30 or so. My usual breakfast is 2 slices of wheat toast, and cheerios. Sometimes I add yogurt, sometimes I add fruit.
Once that is over I get my morning meds - prenatal vitamin, colace, and Miralax.
Around 9:30 am they put me on the monitor for a NST - non-stress test - which is 30 minutes of monitoring baby Tyler's heartbeat (typically between 125 and 150 and showing good accelerations which is good) and my uterine activity (typically pretty flat unless I sneeze, cough, etc....although there was a period whee I had BH contractions).
And from there nothing going on until lunchtime. I usually use this time to get caught up on the internet, podcasts, or read. Mostly internet, lol.
Lunch is usually served between 12:30 and 1pm.
1pm is All My Children time!
Between 2pm and 4pm, nothing exciting. I usually nap or surf the net or take a shower (once I got shower priveleges) or read. Again, mostly internet, or a nap.
Between 3pm and 4pm, a nurse or nurse tech comes in for my vitals (and baby HB check).
4pm is Oprah time! 5 is local news, 5:30 to 6:30 is Friends reruns, and then 6:30pm is the National News (with Diane Sawyer). If Eric is working he usually gets here for dinner around this time. I usually get my hospital dinner around 6pm, but if it's icky, he brings me dinner (usually McDonalds).
We usually watch Jeopardy and part of Wheel of Fortune before he heads home to unwind and get to bed for his 6am wake up to get to work at 7. I watch prime time TV, get my PM meds (just Colace) and then think about bedtime.
I get my last check of vitals between 10:30 and 11:30. This typically depends if I have a nurse who is working 7pm to 7am, or if she is working 11pm to 7am. It also dictates if I go to sleep at 10:30, or later. I had one nurse that would do my late vitals REALLY late (like after midnight!), so I would get to sleep really late too. But generally I'm asleep by 11:30 at the latest.
When I was on Nifedipene (medication to prevent contractions), I initially took that 4x per day so I was woken up in the middle of the night to take my meds. Then I went to 3x per day and could get a bigger chunk of sleep, then at around 32 weeks i stopped taking that.
Eric typically gets here Weds night and stays thru Saturday afternoon. He puts up with my soap and Oprah time, and during some of the other time we watched Cold Case, or Overhaulin' (his choice, of course), or the Olympics.
Weekends are only different in the TV watching - the rest of the schedule is about the same. There is just nothing on TV so I get bored. A lot more time spent on the internet, reading, or catching up on podcasts.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
33 Weeks!!
2/20/2010 - 33 weeks!
Today is my 39th birthday and it also marks 33 weeks of pregnancy! We are a week away from the target of 34 weeks and there are 8 days between now and when we'll induce! So excited!!
So, for the birthday, Eric gave my my cards and presents this morning - 2 Pandora Charms and 2 spacers for my bracelet. His parents and B/SIL's family also got me charms, so my bracelet is really filling up - hooray! Eric's aunt and cousin drove in from Richmond today and brought some generous gifts for baby Tyler, plus his mom and dad got us a changing pad. I took my wheelchair ride down to the gift shop area where they have some chairs and got to have birthday cake with everyone - MIL, FIL, BIL, SIL, their kids, aunt and cousin. It was fun!
Also, the nutrition lady (Kisha) that brings my meals to me brought a cake with my lunch today. Two minutes later, all the nurses piled in my room and sang "Happy Birthday" to me. Sweetest thing ever!
We had an ultrasound on Thursday and found out Tyler's gonna be a little baby. The estimate is now about 3 lb 4 oz which means he's in the 12th percentile. We were concerned that this indicated a problem, but Dr. Wells assures us that given all of the other biophysical indicators he reviewed from the ultrasound (lung function, blood flow thru the cord, etc) are normal, he is probably just a small baby.
I'm down to having my blood sugar checked once a day, which will be nice.
Today is my 39th birthday and it also marks 33 weeks of pregnancy! We are a week away from the target of 34 weeks and there are 8 days between now and when we'll induce! So excited!!
So, for the birthday, Eric gave my my cards and presents this morning - 2 Pandora Charms and 2 spacers for my bracelet. His parents and B/SIL's family also got me charms, so my bracelet is really filling up - hooray! Eric's aunt and cousin drove in from Richmond today and brought some generous gifts for baby Tyler, plus his mom and dad got us a changing pad. I took my wheelchair ride down to the gift shop area where they have some chairs and got to have birthday cake with everyone - MIL, FIL, BIL, SIL, their kids, aunt and cousin. It was fun!
Also, the nutrition lady (Kisha) that brings my meals to me brought a cake with my lunch today. Two minutes later, all the nurses piled in my room and sang "Happy Birthday" to me. Sweetest thing ever!
We had an ultrasound on Thursday and found out Tyler's gonna be a little baby. The estimate is now about 3 lb 4 oz which means he's in the 12th percentile. We were concerned that this indicated a problem, but Dr. Wells assures us that given all of the other biophysical indicators he reviewed from the ultrasound (lung function, blood flow thru the cord, etc) are normal, he is probably just a small baby.
I'm down to having my blood sugar checked once a day, which will be nice.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Pregnancy Hormones!
2/16/2010 - 32 weeks 3 days
We're on the downhill slope now. Thirteen days from today, or sooner, Tyler will be here. I'm going home in fifteen or sixteen days. I am so excited. Eric's laughing at me as I become teary thinking about going home, and leaving all that the nurses and staff have done for us. But it's true, what an amazing stay it's been.
I started a list of things to do when I get home. Everything from picking up stuff at BRU and Target (a few baby things we still need), to taxes, to a manicure/pedicure.
I have been STARVING the last few days. As in, eat-every-little-thing-off-my-plate (and then some) hungry. Today's dinner didn't appeal to me so I asked Eric to bring dinner. On his way here, I called him and said, "just to let you know, I'm starving", and he said "I am driving 75, not gonna go any faster". And I said, "I'm not talking about speed, just the amount of food you get me!". He got me 2 cheeseburgers from McDonald's plus some fries and I never eat that much, but I ate BOTH cheeseburgers and about 2/3 of the fries!
We'll have an ultrasound on Thursday to see how big Tyler is now. And then guest-a-palooza starts - whoo hoo! Thursday Eric's mom is coming up, Friday my boss Jim and his wife, Saturday Eric's parents, grandparents, aunt and cousin (and maybe brother and SIL?), Sunday my friend Perry is coming (with a homemade meal for lunch), and then that afternoon or evening Amanda is coming by. Whoo hoo!
We're on the downhill slope now. Thirteen days from today, or sooner, Tyler will be here. I'm going home in fifteen or sixteen days. I am so excited. Eric's laughing at me as I become teary thinking about going home, and leaving all that the nurses and staff have done for us. But it's true, what an amazing stay it's been.
I started a list of things to do when I get home. Everything from picking up stuff at BRU and Target (a few baby things we still need), to taxes, to a manicure/pedicure.
I have been STARVING the last few days. As in, eat-every-little-thing-off-my-plate (and then some) hungry. Today's dinner didn't appeal to me so I asked Eric to bring dinner. On his way here, I called him and said, "just to let you know, I'm starving", and he said "I am driving 75, not gonna go any faster". And I said, "I'm not talking about speed, just the amount of food you get me!". He got me 2 cheeseburgers from McDonald's plus some fries and I never eat that much, but I ate BOTH cheeseburgers and about 2/3 of the fries!
We'll have an ultrasound on Thursday to see how big Tyler is now. And then guest-a-palooza starts - whoo hoo! Thursday Eric's mom is coming up, Friday my boss Jim and his wife, Saturday Eric's parents, grandparents, aunt and cousin (and maybe brother and SIL?), Sunday my friend Perry is coming (with a homemade meal for lunch), and then that afternoon or evening Amanda is coming by. Whoo hoo!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
32 weeks!
Hooray! Today marks 32 weeks of pregnancy. This is a huge milestone in baby development and I am so excited that we've made it this far.
Dr. Wells (perinatologist) came by yesterday to check in and was very pleased with the progress we've made.
One of the neonatologists came by today to talk with us about what the picture looks like when contemplating delivery between 32 and 34 weeks. It looks so much better than 23w5d, and even a lot better than 28 weeks. She gave us some good info not only on development as a newborn/preemie, but as he gets older what kind of signs we might see that reflect back to being a preemie. For example, preemies have strong extensor muscle strength (extending their arms and legs) but not so much the curling up muscles. So for crawling, this could be problematic unles we do things to counteract it. Interesting, because I was born at 32 weeks (38 years ago) and mom says I never crawled, I just rolled over. Makes perfect sense, huh?
Also got an informal recommendation for a pediatrician - actually cemented one of the ones I was looking at already. YAY!
Also found out they don't induce on weekends, so Tyler's birthday, unless he comes on his own before then, will be March 1, 2010.
Dr. Wells (perinatologist) came by yesterday to check in and was very pleased with the progress we've made.
One of the neonatologists came by today to talk with us about what the picture looks like when contemplating delivery between 32 and 34 weeks. It looks so much better than 23w5d, and even a lot better than 28 weeks. She gave us some good info not only on development as a newborn/preemie, but as he gets older what kind of signs we might see that reflect back to being a preemie. For example, preemies have strong extensor muscle strength (extending their arms and legs) but not so much the curling up muscles. So for crawling, this could be problematic unles we do things to counteract it. Interesting, because I was born at 32 weeks (38 years ago) and mom says I never crawled, I just rolled over. Makes perfect sense, huh?
Also got an informal recommendation for a pediatrician - actually cemented one of the ones I was looking at already. YAY!
Also found out they don't induce on weekends, so Tyler's birthday, unless he comes on his own before then, will be March 1, 2010.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
....and an update!
Dr Wheeler came by and after consulting with Dr Wells, here's the plan:
- antibiotics to prevent any infection - 2 days of IV, then 5 days of oral
- another dose of steroid shots to help lung development - one shot today, one shot tomorrow
- continue current levels of activity, growth ultrasounds (every 3 weeks), regular ultrasounds (weekly for fluid levels)
- continue to check my temps every 4 hours
- they will induce me at 34 weeks (2/27) if I don't go into labor by then
which means this is all happening relatively soon! We'll likely have some time in the NICU, so any prayers, positive thoughts, etc, that you'd like to send will be much appreciated!
- antibiotics to prevent any infection - 2 days of IV, then 5 days of oral
- another dose of steroid shots to help lung development - one shot today, one shot tomorrow
- continue current levels of activity, growth ultrasounds (every 3 weeks), regular ultrasounds (weekly for fluid levels)
- continue to check my temps every 4 hours
- they will induce me at 34 weeks (2/27) if I don't go into labor by then
which means this is all happening relatively soon! We'll likely have some time in the NICU, so any prayers, positive thoughts, etc, that you'd like to send will be much appreciated!
a development
There are several different terms you can use for it, so pick your phrase of choise, but - my water broke, my membrane ruptured, I am leaking, etc.
You may recall that just about 4 weeks ago I was dialated 3 to 4 cm and had hourglassing membranes. Well as of today I am 31 weeks 4 days and had started to leak a teeny bit yesterday. The nurse and doc thought it was just random pregnancy stuff.. It picked up overnight and they confirmed it was amniotic fluid, which means my membrane ruptured.
Eric was at home since he had to work today, and I kept him updated on everything through the night. He ended up leaving work and surprised me by showing up at 8:30 am today.
The thing is, unless I go into active labor or develop an infection, this will not change my current treatment except they are monitoring my temperature every 4 hours instead of 8 (first sign of infection). I will get ultrasounds to monitor the amt of fluid more regularly (weekly), too.
The doctor did an ultrasound this AM and my fluid level is down slightly, so I'm drinking more water. He said that 75% of women who have their water break deliver w/in 48 hours, but that's if you are out and about in your normal life. Being on bedrest, I could stay like this for weeks. They will likely induce me at 36 if we make it that far.
In other news, I am sitting up more to eat per the doctor's direction on Sunday. It is nice to see my food when I'm eating and I make less of a mess too. :)
You may recall that just about 4 weeks ago I was dialated 3 to 4 cm and had hourglassing membranes. Well as of today I am 31 weeks 4 days and had started to leak a teeny bit yesterday. The nurse and doc thought it was just random pregnancy stuff.. It picked up overnight and they confirmed it was amniotic fluid, which means my membrane ruptured.
Eric was at home since he had to work today, and I kept him updated on everything through the night. He ended up leaving work and surprised me by showing up at 8:30 am today.
The thing is, unless I go into active labor or develop an infection, this will not change my current treatment except they are monitoring my temperature every 4 hours instead of 8 (first sign of infection). I will get ultrasounds to monitor the amt of fluid more regularly (weekly), too.
The doctor did an ultrasound this AM and my fluid level is down slightly, so I'm drinking more water. He said that 75% of women who have their water break deliver w/in 48 hours, but that's if you are out and about in your normal life. Being on bedrest, I could stay like this for weeks. They will likely induce me at 36 if we make it that far.
In other news, I am sitting up more to eat per the doctor's direction on Sunday. It is nice to see my food when I'm eating and I make less of a mess too. :)
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Baby Shower!
2/6/10 - 31 weeks
Amy, Kay, Amanda and Jill planned my baby shower at Amy's house that was held yesterday. Since I am still here at WakeMed, Eric attended in my place, and I was able to attend via video conference. It was really unique and although I wish I could have been there, this was the next best thing.
My friend Stephanie came in from Charlotte for the shower too, and she stopped by here for a little while to visit. I hadn't seen her since we went to the crop up in Dulles back in November, so it was great to see her and visit for a bit. She also took lots of photos with my camera which is much appreciated.
Unfortunately Mother Nature didn't cooperate with us and the Richmond, VA folks could not make it down to Raleigh due to the snow. Hopefully they can come down in a couple of weeks and celebrate with us.
Eric called me (via Yahoo Messenger's Video Call feature) a little before the party started so I could see people arriving. It was really fun to see and hear what was going on. And seeing everyone was priceless. I wish I had a better microphone (or knew where it was on this computer) so they could have heard me better, though. My wonderful hubby did a great job of being the honoree, too. Our friends and family were very generous with their gifts for baby Tyler and we are so appreciative. Jill organized a couple of fun baby shower games so we played a game, then they opened presents (while I watched), then another game. Then cake.
And OMG the cake. It was amazing. Amy made this. Yeah, you read that right, she made it. It's adorable!! Mark and Kay came by later that evening with balloons and cake for me and I had to control myself not to eat the whole yummy piece of cake. (still watching my sugars). Holy moly that was good. It was light and almond-y and white and oh-so-good!
Here are a few pictures, courtesy of Jill:
what I looked like to them:
party favors courtesy of Amanda's craftiness:
group photo:
picture from Baby Shower @ Wake Med
1/27/10 - 27 weeks, 4 days.
thanks to all (even those who couldn't be there!) - such a fun evening!
Friday, February 5, 2010
furniture!
Eric and his dad are going to pick up the dresser tomorrow! The Glider came in this week too, so we have all the big stuff in - hooray!
And tomorrow's the big shower! Looks like the folks from Richmond are getting snowed in (boooo!) but hopefully the weather will hold so that NC participants can attend. My SIL made an adorable cake - so cute!! Amanda made cute favors, and I hear the food and games wil lbe great too. Should be a fun event!
Not much is up here - which is good, right? I had a few days where I had what I'm guessing are Braxton-Hicks contractions, probably 4 to 6 per day, mostly in the evenings, but I haven't had any of those for a few days now.
Continued with the wheelchair rides, which has been fun. Today when we headed out we met one of the other ante-partum couples - they were going on their ride too. She has been here 5 weeks now, and they are inducing her this coming Friday.
And after 51 days here, we are still meeting new nurses. I thought by now I'd have met all of them ,but every couple of days we get a new face. They are all really good though, which is what matters, right?
And tomorrow's the big shower! Looks like the folks from Richmond are getting snowed in (boooo!) but hopefully the weather will hold so that NC participants can attend. My SIL made an adorable cake - so cute!! Amanda made cute favors, and I hear the food and games wil lbe great too. Should be a fun event!
Not much is up here - which is good, right? I had a few days where I had what I'm guessing are Braxton-Hicks contractions, probably 4 to 6 per day, mostly in the evenings, but I haven't had any of those for a few days now.
Continued with the wheelchair rides, which has been fun. Today when we headed out we met one of the other ante-partum couples - they were going on their ride too. She has been here 5 weeks now, and they are inducing her this coming Friday.
And after 51 days here, we are still meeting new nurses. I thought by now I'd have met all of them ,but every couple of days we get a new face. They are all really good though, which is what matters, right?
Monday, February 1, 2010
30 Weeks and Counting
Here's what's been going on since I last posted:
The Baby Shower: as predicted, was a ton of fun. The girlsshowed up, decorated my room, had a cake, and one of them even took pictures for me! Everyone was so generous, I now feel somewhat prepared to take a baby home! I'm working on thank you notes, now, it's difficult (and d slow) to write while horizontal so they'll be kinda messy but they're going out soon. My room is still decorated because I like having the decor up, and it's taken Eric a few trips to get all the goodies home. Also, everyone wrote little messages to Tyler that I can scrapbook for him - such a neat idea!
Wheelchair Rides: starting last Saturday (30 weeks) I get to go on wheelchair rides every other day. Whoo hoo - finally seeing what's outside that giant door! It was so fun to see where all the other rooms are and where the nurses hang out andstuff. I also got a tour of the NICU, and feel a lot more comfortable with the prospect of Tyler spending some time there if needed.
Ultrasound!!: We had another ultrasound on Thursday. Tyler is 2 lbs 10 oz (2.65 lbs), or about 1204 grams. Dr. Wells came by the next day and I asked how accruate those estimates are and he said for this size it's about +- 5%. So, oeverall a little on the small side but completely normal. The tech even said "congratulations on having a perfectly normal baby". Music to my ears. However, he was facing my back so no good pictures, darn it.
Snow: it snowed on Friday night/Saturday which limited visitors due to the road conditions.s Last I heard we got 5 inches! It didn't really bother me since I'm inside, but sounds like it was pretty precarious out there. Eric was going to stay here Saturday night and work from here Sunday, rather than going home Saturday afternoon, but he braved the roads and drove slowly. He made it home and to work with no issues and even came out here to see me last night.
Tilted: I now have to lay on my side or tilted (with a pillow under my back/butt) so as not to put pressure on that artery that goes up my back, that flows to the placenta.
Everything else has been about the same. Nurses are still wonderful, baby is doing well, and we're hanging in here! This coming weekend is the big baby shower at Amy's house. Unless the weather gets bad, some family from Richmond are coming down too, so it should be a fun time. Eric got my Yahoo Messenger working so we can use that to video me in so I can watch the festivities!
The Baby Shower: as predicted, was a ton of fun. The girlsshowed up, decorated my room, had a cake, and one of them even took pictures for me! Everyone was so generous, I now feel somewhat prepared to take a baby home! I'm working on thank you notes, now, it's difficult (and d slow) to write while horizontal so they'll be kinda messy but they're going out soon. My room is still decorated because I like having the decor up, and it's taken Eric a few trips to get all the goodies home. Also, everyone wrote little messages to Tyler that I can scrapbook for him - such a neat idea!
Wheelchair Rides: starting last Saturday (30 weeks) I get to go on wheelchair rides every other day. Whoo hoo - finally seeing what's outside that giant door! It was so fun to see where all the other rooms are and where the nurses hang out andstuff. I also got a tour of the NICU, and feel a lot more comfortable with the prospect of Tyler spending some time there if needed.
Ultrasound!!: We had another ultrasound on Thursday. Tyler is 2 lbs 10 oz (2.65 lbs), or about 1204 grams. Dr. Wells came by the next day and I asked how accruate those estimates are and he said for this size it's about +- 5%. So, oeverall a little on the small side but completely normal. The tech even said "congratulations on having a perfectly normal baby". Music to my ears. However, he was facing my back so no good pictures, darn it.
Snow: it snowed on Friday night/Saturday which limited visitors due to the road conditions.s Last I heard we got 5 inches! It didn't really bother me since I'm inside, but sounds like it was pretty precarious out there. Eric was going to stay here Saturday night and work from here Sunday, rather than going home Saturday afternoon, but he braved the roads and drove slowly. He made it home and to work with no issues and even came out here to see me last night.
Tilted: I now have to lay on my side or tilted (with a pillow under my back/butt) so as not to put pressure on that artery that goes up my back, that flows to the placenta.
Everything else has been about the same. Nurses are still wonderful, baby is doing well, and we're hanging in here! This coming weekend is the big baby shower at Amy's house. Unless the weather gets bad, some family from Richmond are coming down too, so it should be a fun time. Eric got my Yahoo Messenger working so we can use that to video me in so I can watch the festivities!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
catching up!
It's been a pretty uneventful few days here at Wake Med. I am a giant ball of pregnancy hormones the last couple of days; anything and everything can make me teary. I'm sure after this is over, Eric and I will have many things to laugh about. :)
The weekend was good. I had a few visitors, including the in-laws, plus a friend from work who brought me a Pandora charm - so sweet! A couple of folks could not visit since they were sick/recovering and didn't want to pass on their illnesses too.
Amy, Rachel, and Rachel's friend Jillian recorded a video for me, celebrating 29 weeks. It was the cutest thing, and I saw a shot of Aggie in there in the end. It was so adorable; I was laughing and crying all at the same time.
Eric and Adam got the chair rail put up in Tyler's room on Saturday - hooray! We are now working on finding the best price for the crib mattress, glider, and dresser and will be pulling the trigger on those hopefully this week.
Looking forward to tomorrow night - mini-shower with Jen and the girls from the s crapbooking group. It will be wonderful to see everyone.
Then, on Thursday, Eric will be here for his usual Thursday-Friday-part of Saturday stay. We're also having an ultrasound - whoo hoo! It's been 3 weeks so I'm excited to see how much Tyler has grown.
The weekend was good. I had a few visitors, including the in-laws, plus a friend from work who brought me a Pandora charm - so sweet! A couple of folks could not visit since they were sick/recovering and didn't want to pass on their illnesses too.
Amy, Rachel, and Rachel's friend Jillian recorded a video for me, celebrating 29 weeks. It was the cutest thing, and I saw a shot of Aggie in there in the end. It was so adorable; I was laughing and crying all at the same time.
Eric and Adam got the chair rail put up in Tyler's room on Saturday - hooray! We are now working on finding the best price for the crib mattress, glider, and dresser and will be pulling the trigger on those hopefully this week.
Looking forward to tomorrow night - mini-shower with Jen and the girls from the s crapbooking group. It will be wonderful to see everyone.
Then, on Thursday, Eric will be here for his usual Thursday-Friday-part of Saturday stay. We're also having an ultrasound - whoo hoo! It's been 3 weeks so I'm excited to see how much Tyler has grown.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Gestational Diabetes and more
I apparently am right on the borderline of having gestational diabetes. They did the 3 hour test on Tuesday, and of the 4 thimes they took my blood, I passed 2 and failed 2 (by 1 and 2 points respectively). I thought the doc said they wouldn't change my diet, but they did - no concentrated sugars, etc, and they are monitoring my sugar levels after each meal. One of the docs said it might be just for a few days, but I guess wel'll see.
All the docs are now saying I'll be here for the duration (which I have already accepted), and that they doubt I will make it to 36 weeks w/out going into labor on my own. So now it's a waiting game, hoping to keep the baby in there to "bake" longer.
Jill & Amanda came by Tuesday night to hang out which was a ton of fun. We watched AI and hung out all evening long. Fun fun! Eric has been here since Wednesday after work too. He'll be heading home tomorrow to get the chair rail put up in the baby's room (with Adam's help). My parents also sent money (rather than buying and shipping something for the shower) so he's probably going to order the dresser, glider, and crib mattress.
Baby shower preparations are underway. Jen and some folks from the s crapbooking group are coming by on Wednesday night for a shower here since they can't make it to the big shower on 2/6. Invites for that shower went out today, and I think I mentioned that it's at Amy's house. Eric will be there and I will be video'd in. Should be fun!
All the docs are now saying I'll be here for the duration (which I have already accepted), and that they doubt I will make it to 36 weeks w/out going into labor on my own. So now it's a waiting game, hoping to keep the baby in there to "bake" longer.
Jill & Amanda came by Tuesday night to hang out which was a ton of fun. We watched AI and hung out all evening long. Fun fun! Eric has been here since Wednesday after work too. He'll be heading home tomorrow to get the chair rail put up in the baby's room (with Adam's help). My parents also sent money (rather than buying and shipping something for the shower) so he's probably going to order the dresser, glider, and crib mattress.
Baby shower preparations are underway. Jen and some folks from the s crapbooking group are coming by on Wednesday night for a shower here since they can't make it to the big shower on 2/6. Invites for that shower went out today, and I think I mentioned that it's at Amy's house. Eric will be there and I will be video'd in. Should be fun!
Monday, January 18, 2010
Weekend update
Satuday ended up being a so-so day. I was very bummed about not going home, but as I mentioned the nurse we had was very helpful in getting thru. She answered a ton of questions we had, and the talk with the NICU people was very reassuring. Basically they are ready to take care of the baby whenever we deliver and walked us thru what the challenges can be and how they deal with them.
My super-nurse offered to color my hair for me since I'd mentioned that I didn't get to do it before being hospitalized. I thought that was the sweetest thing, but wasn't going to make her do that...well, she insisted, so she colored my hair on Sunday after Eric went to Walgreens to get the color I use. I do feel a lot better and look better too. :)
Amy came by and we nailed down shower details, all set for 2/6 at her house. I will not be there, Eric will be the 'honoree', and I will get to see everything via video conferencing. Gotta be creative with our situation, you know. :) A few of my friends can't make it so they are going to come by to see me at the hospital. Very exciting!
And today we did my 2nd one-hour Glucose Tolerance Test. I passed it a few months ago when they made me take it early, but today my levels were a little high. I personally think it's because I had waffles with syrup for breakfast and that was still in my system. Anyway - no food for me after 10pm tonight, and then tomorrow morning we'll do the 3 hour test. Wish me luck!
My super-nurse offered to color my hair for me since I'd mentioned that I didn't get to do it before being hospitalized. I thought that was the sweetest thing, but wasn't going to make her do that...well, she insisted, so she colored my hair on Sunday after Eric went to Walgreens to get the color I use. I do feel a lot better and look better too. :)
Amy came by and we nailed down shower details, all set for 2/6 at her house. I will not be there, Eric will be the 'honoree', and I will get to see everything via video conferencing. Gotta be creative with our situation, you know. :) A few of my friends can't make it so they are going to come by to see me at the hospital. Very exciting!
And today we did my 2nd one-hour Glucose Tolerance Test. I passed it a few months ago when they made me take it early, but today my levels were a little high. I personally think it's because I had waffles with syrup for breakfast and that was still in my system. Anyway - no food for me after 10pm tonight, and then tomorrow morning we'll do the 3 hour test. Wish me luck!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
28 weeks!
Jan 16 - today marks 28 weeks - a HUGE milestone for baby's viability! That is the really good news; we have made a lot of progess since getting here 31 days ago. The bad news for the days is I am not going home any time soon. I had tried to not get my hopes up too much but human nature won out and I am kinda down about not getting a little bit of normalcy back in my life. However, I know it's for the best being here where they can take excellent care of me. I'm still dialated about the same, and I have what is called "hourglassing membranes" which menans a marble-sized portion of my membrane is coming thru my cervix. With that, the doctor did not feel comfortable sending me home to continue home bedrest. I know the docs meet regularly to discuss high-risk cases like me and I'm hopeful that they will give me an idea of "the plan" later this week.
Today I have a great nurse who has been very supportive. She also has a call into the NICU people to come by and spend some time talking to us about how much the situation has changed since we first had those scary conversations 4 plus weeks ago.
Today I have a great nurse who has been very supportive. She also has a call into the NICU people to come by and spend some time talking to us about how much the situation has changed since we first had those scary conversations 4 plus weeks ago.
Monday, January 11, 2010
pretty fingers & toes!
Sunday 1/10 - Jill came by to visit for a bit (and brought me lunch - thanks Jill!) on Sunday, and then a little while later Amanda showed up and they pulled a surprise on me! They gave me a manicure and pedicure and painted my fingers & toes! what a treat from two really cool, special friends!! Amanda hung out here for a while until my friend Kristen got here, and then she headed home and I hung out with Kristen (and Ed came by too). Kristen also brought us some yummy dinner! So nice to get caught up with my wonderful friends!
Today (Mon 1/11) Joan and Lynda from work came by to visit. It was great to see them and hear what was goingon at work and stuff.
Still plugging along with no further developments, which is good. The doctors are still cautiously optimistic about me going home soon. Still keeping my fingers crossed there.
Today (Mon 1/11) Joan and Lynda from work came by to visit. It was great to see them and hear what was goingon at work and stuff.
Still plugging along with no further developments, which is good. The doctors are still cautiously optimistic about me going home soon. Still keeping my fingers crossed there.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Saturday Update
27 weeks today!!
Since we last chatted here's what's been going on....
- Dr. Wells, the perinatologist, came by to confirm that the ultrasound and associated measurements looked really good. We discussed Eric's and my "plan" (I put that in quotes because we're not the doctors and will do whatever they say) is to get to the first milestone of 28 weeks, and then pretty much every even week after that - 30, 32, etc...and liberalize a little eat each point. From 28 to 32 weeks I'll probably stay horizontal as I am now, just getting up to eat, shower, and go potty. Then maybe sit up a little bit more after 32 weeks. Dr. Wells said after 36 weeks I can pretty much go take a job around the block, so that is my overall "big" goal.
- He also confirmed that if I go on home bedrest, I'll likely go to see hm on a regular basis so that they can assess the growth regularly
- and 36 weeks is only 9 weeks away!
- being on bedrest is a real pain, and not something I wanted, but after the importance is laid out to you, it makes it a whole different picture. I'll do whatever is needed, and Dr. Wells said the investment we're making right now will payback for about 80 years!!
- got to take a shower today - whoo hoo!!
- Dr, Wheeler came by this morning and said that they all discussed my case at their high risk meeting this past week and were pleased with the progress I'd made so far. They all agreed that IF ALL GOES WELL, I can go on home bedrest next weekend. They will check me the latter part of this coming week and if that looks good and all my NSTs (daily monitoring) etc look good then they will be ok with that. I will go in for weekly appts once I am home since I'm now really a high-risk case. Not getting my hopes up too much, but I'm cautiiously optimistic about going home soon. I will do whatever it takes and not get distracted by the fact that I am home.
Since we last chatted here's what's been going on....
- Dr. Wells, the perinatologist, came by to confirm that the ultrasound and associated measurements looked really good. We discussed Eric's and my "plan" (I put that in quotes because we're not the doctors and will do whatever they say) is to get to the first milestone of 28 weeks, and then pretty much every even week after that - 30, 32, etc...and liberalize a little eat each point. From 28 to 32 weeks I'll probably stay horizontal as I am now, just getting up to eat, shower, and go potty. Then maybe sit up a little bit more after 32 weeks. Dr. Wells said after 36 weeks I can pretty much go take a job around the block, so that is my overall "big" goal.
- He also confirmed that if I go on home bedrest, I'll likely go to see hm on a regular basis so that they can assess the growth regularly
- and 36 weeks is only 9 weeks away!
- being on bedrest is a real pain, and not something I wanted, but after the importance is laid out to you, it makes it a whole different picture. I'll do whatever is needed, and Dr. Wells said the investment we're making right now will payback for about 80 years!!
- got to take a shower today - whoo hoo!!
- Dr, Wheeler came by this morning and said that they all discussed my case at their high risk meeting this past week and were pleased with the progress I'd made so far. They all agreed that IF ALL GOES WELL, I can go on home bedrest next weekend. They will check me the latter part of this coming week and if that looks good and all my NSTs (daily monitoring) etc look good then they will be ok with that. I will go in for weekly appts once I am home since I'm now really a high-risk case. Not getting my hopes up too much, but I'm cautiiously optimistic about going home soon. I will do whatever it takes and not get distracted by the fact that I am home.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
3 weeks down!
Jan 7th -been in the hospital over 3 weeks now.
Yesterday Jen K and Jen M stopped by to visit and brought lunch (thank you again!). They had great timing, because the ultrasound technician came by while they were here so they got to see baby Tyler on the ultrasound with us. He's growing well, just shy of 2 lbs (842 grams) which means he's grown a lot since we first got here. The u/s tech said everything looked normal which is a victory!
This morning the doctor on call stopped by and we discussed shower priveleges. Earlier in the week they had said we'd assess this mid-week. She said she'd prefer to wait, she is self-admitted very conservative about this, but if I were going nuts she would sign off on shower priveleges. We met in the middle and decided we'd reassess and if all goes well start showering on Saturday. (Don't worry, I still get spongebaths in bed!). She also mentioned that she was on bedrest with her twins for 9 weeks and delivered at 28 weeks, and her twins are healthy and happy. I want to go much further than that, but it is good to hear another success story!
Yesterday Jen K and Jen M stopped by to visit and brought lunch (thank you again!). They had great timing, because the ultrasound technician came by while they were here so they got to see baby Tyler on the ultrasound with us. He's growing well, just shy of 2 lbs (842 grams) which means he's grown a lot since we first got here. The u/s tech said everything looked normal which is a victory!
This morning the doctor on call stopped by and we discussed shower priveleges. Earlier in the week they had said we'd assess this mid-week. She said she'd prefer to wait, she is self-admitted very conservative about this, but if I were going nuts she would sign off on shower priveleges. We met in the middle and decided we'd reassess and if all goes well start showering on Saturday. (Don't worry, I still get spongebaths in bed!). She also mentioned that she was on bedrest with her twins for 9 weeks and delivered at 28 weeks, and her twins are healthy and happy. I want to go much further than that, but it is good to hear another success story!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Our Friends, Family and Employers
I knew we had cool friends and family, but this little hiccup in our plans has really shown us both how absolutely wonderful they are. We have the most generous, helpful, and just amazing friends out there.
Here are just a few things they have done for us during our time at WakeMed:
- Eric's parents and his brothers family have been alternating taking care of Aggie. I miss her a lot but know she's in good hands with them.
- Kristen wrapped all of our Christmas presents for us. I'd done all the shopping online before the hospital stay but had no way to get them wrapped
- Nick brought us an air mattress for Eric to sleep on which has been a lifesaver for him
- We have had tons of treat brought by - dinner, brownies, cookies, hot chocolate, lunch
- My boss and coworkers have been great. The leave of absence team and disabilty people have been great to work with, and relatively easy. My boss knows I'll be out for approx 6 months between bedrest and maternity, but still calls to check in on me. And our disability coverage rocks as far as pay and benefits.
- Eric's boss and insurance have been great as well. Eric used sick days the first week we were here as we didn't know what was to come, and his boss was great about it as well. We are on his company's health insurance and it has amazing benefits
- we have had TONS of visitors
- TONS of text messages, phone calls, Facebook comments & messages
- beautiful, handmade cards in the mail
- neat care packages that have been hand-delivered and mailed - with puzzle books, travel games, magazines, TV guide, and a Pandora Charm
Here are just a few things they have done for us during our time at WakeMed:
- Eric's parents and his brothers family have been alternating taking care of Aggie. I miss her a lot but know she's in good hands with them.
- Kristen wrapped all of our Christmas presents for us. I'd done all the shopping online before the hospital stay but had no way to get them wrapped
- Nick brought us an air mattress for Eric to sleep on which has been a lifesaver for him
- We have had tons of treat brought by - dinner, brownies, cookies, hot chocolate, lunch
- My boss and coworkers have been great. The leave of absence team and disabilty people have been great to work with, and relatively easy. My boss knows I'll be out for approx 6 months between bedrest and maternity, but still calls to check in on me. And our disability coverage rocks as far as pay and benefits.
- Eric's boss and insurance have been great as well. Eric used sick days the first week we were here as we didn't know what was to come, and his boss was great about it as well. We are on his company's health insurance and it has amazing benefits
- we have had TONS of visitors
- TONS of text messages, phone calls, Facebook comments & messages
- beautiful, handmade cards in the mail
- neat care packages that have been hand-delivered and mailed - with puzzle books, travel games, magazines, TV guide, and a Pandora Charm
Holidays at WakeMed
Sure didn't plan on celebrating Christmas and New Years at WakeMed, but we made the best of our situation.
Eric brought our table-top, fiberoptic Christmas tree to the room. We do have a giant tree but ti's in storage and too big for our house, so we use the fiberoptic one, which is great because it was easy to move into the room.
Eric's mom and a few other friends brought Christmas decor too, so we had a pretty festive room.
For Christmas Eve, Eric's parents came over and we did our gift exchange.
Eric got me a Pandora Bracelet and an acorn charm to commemorate how we met in Raleigh (the city of Oaks). I'm super excited about this as I'd been hinting for it for a while, and can't wait to add to it!
I got him a battery, remote control, and battery grip for the big camera, figuring we'll be using this a ton in 2010. I also got him a video game for his PS3 and the book The Dangerous Book for Boys so that he can read up on things to teach Tyler. :)
His parents got me the Clip it Up for scrapbooking, a nightshirt, and a bookmark. they got him some needed accessories for the PS3. We got them a CD, a book, and a white noise machine.
Eric's parents and brother and family all came up on Christmas day and brought us Christmas dinner too.
His brother's family got me a charm for my bracelet (YAY!), and got him 2 games for his PS3. We got Adam accessories for his Xbox 360, and got Amy a Memory Foam pillow. The kids got toys from us (video game, bionicle, and Moxie girl).
My parents had already sent us money for Christmas which we used to buy the crib (with a 20% off coupon at BRU). Eric got the crib put together and from the pix he took it looks great.
All in all a good Christmas!
New Years Eve was fairly uneventful, although we stayed up to see midnight. Next year we're gonna have to celebrate big to make up for it. We were happy to be celebrating 2010 still being pregnant! :)
Eric brought our table-top, fiberoptic Christmas tree to the room. We do have a giant tree but ti's in storage and too big for our house, so we use the fiberoptic one, which is great because it was easy to move into the room.
Eric's mom and a few other friends brought Christmas decor too, so we had a pretty festive room.
For Christmas Eve, Eric's parents came over and we did our gift exchange.
Eric got me a Pandora Bracelet and an acorn charm to commemorate how we met in Raleigh (the city of Oaks). I'm super excited about this as I'd been hinting for it for a while, and can't wait to add to it!
I got him a battery, remote control, and battery grip for the big camera, figuring we'll be using this a ton in 2010. I also got him a video game for his PS3 and the book The Dangerous Book for Boys so that he can read up on things to teach Tyler. :)
His parents got me the Clip it Up for scrapbooking, a nightshirt, and a bookmark. they got him some needed accessories for the PS3. We got them a CD, a book, and a white noise machine.
Eric's parents and brother and family all came up on Christmas day and brought us Christmas dinner too.
His brother's family got me a charm for my bracelet (YAY!), and got him 2 games for his PS3. We got Adam accessories for his Xbox 360, and got Amy a Memory Foam pillow. The kids got toys from us (video game, bionicle, and Moxie girl).
My parents had already sent us money for Christmas which we used to buy the crib (with a 20% off coupon at BRU). Eric got the crib put together and from the pix he took it looks great.
All in all a good Christmas!
New Years Eve was fairly uneventful, although we stayed up to see midnight. Next year we're gonna have to celebrate big to make up for it. We were happy to be celebrating 2010 still being pregnant! :)
The Doctors and What They are Saying
I see a practice that includes 7 different doctors that deliver babies. The goal while you are pregnant is to see each of the 7 doctors so that when you deliver, you have at least met that doctor. Each day one of them is on call at Wake Med, so in our stay we have seen each of them multiple times and gotten to know a little about their personalities.
After 3 or 4 days in the hospital, we asked to talk to the doctor just to hear what"the plan" was. The most optimistic of the doctors, Dr. Wheeler, was on call, and she came to talk to us when she had a moment. Se indicated that the plan is to balance the baby's viability with my sanity. So initially we'll be very cautious, but at some point, if things continue to go well, we could liberalize a little bit, perhaps including trips to the bathroom at maybe 26 weeks, and possibly home bedrest at 28 weeks. While trying not to get my hopes up too much, these became the milestones to shoot for. Over the next few days we mentioned this to the other doctors and they seemed to agree that this was a good course of action/goals to have.
Mediction to prevent contractions and Non-Stress Tests (NSTs) on the baby continued. The NSTs are where the baby's heartbeat and my uterine activity (contractions) are monitored for 30 minute sessions. While we could see the number go up on the uterine activity, they are indications of normal activiity and not contractions. NSTs were done twice a day until Jan 3rd, at which point I was moved to once a day, since the tests have all looked good.
I had a bout of low blood pressure for a day or two, but that did not worry the doctors. Being inactive plus the medications causes this, and given that I had no dizziness (except for 2 brief episodes of like 2 seconds of dizzy) it was not anything to worry about.
I had a long bout of constipation that was pretty miserable. Again, inactivity can cause this, so after an initial voluminous bowel movement (that is now a Haywood family joke), I had 8 days of no activity. Misery. Food started to not appeal to me, and I just felt awful. They put me on Miralax and thankfully after 4 days it did it's magic and all is well now.
After 18 days in the hospital, I was cleared for bathroom priveleges on Jan 3rd. I never thought I would celebrate going to the bathroom on my own, but came just shy of posting this as my Facebook Status that day! The first time getting vertical after 18 days was interesting - got a huge headrush, and my legs were very wobbly, but it's gotten much better over the last few days. Also noticed once vertical that my belly has gotten bigger!
After 3 or 4 days in the hospital, we asked to talk to the doctor just to hear what"the plan" was. The most optimistic of the doctors, Dr. Wheeler, was on call, and she came to talk to us when she had a moment. Se indicated that the plan is to balance the baby's viability with my sanity. So initially we'll be very cautious, but at some point, if things continue to go well, we could liberalize a little bit, perhaps including trips to the bathroom at maybe 26 weeks, and possibly home bedrest at 28 weeks. While trying not to get my hopes up too much, these became the milestones to shoot for. Over the next few days we mentioned this to the other doctors and they seemed to agree that this was a good course of action/goals to have.
Mediction to prevent contractions and Non-Stress Tests (NSTs) on the baby continued. The NSTs are where the baby's heartbeat and my uterine activity (contractions) are monitored for 30 minute sessions. While we could see the number go up on the uterine activity, they are indications of normal activiity and not contractions. NSTs were done twice a day until Jan 3rd, at which point I was moved to once a day, since the tests have all looked good.
I had a bout of low blood pressure for a day or two, but that did not worry the doctors. Being inactive plus the medications causes this, and given that I had no dizziness (except for 2 brief episodes of like 2 seconds of dizzy) it was not anything to worry about.
I had a long bout of constipation that was pretty miserable. Again, inactivity can cause this, so after an initial voluminous bowel movement (that is now a Haywood family joke), I had 8 days of no activity. Misery. Food started to not appeal to me, and I just felt awful. They put me on Miralax and thankfully after 4 days it did it's magic and all is well now.
After 18 days in the hospital, I was cleared for bathroom priveleges on Jan 3rd. I never thought I would celebrate going to the bathroom on my own, but came just shy of posting this as my Facebook Status that day! The first time getting vertical after 18 days was interesting - got a huge headrush, and my legs were very wobbly, but it's gotten much better over the last few days. Also noticed once vertical that my belly has gotten bigger!
Day 3 - moved to our new "home"
Dec 19th - Once we finished the mag sulfate day, the doctors decided things were looking positive enough to move me to an antepartum room. I had no idea that all of this existed, but the hospital has certain rooms designated for moms on bedrest.
This day also marked 24 weeks!
I got my first hospital meal - breakfast - which after 2 days of basically no food, was good. I believe I declared the coffee the best coffee ever.
We moved into room 4B24 and got settled in. Well, I was wheeled in, and Eric moved all of our stuff to the new room. This room was bigger and instead of having one nurse all day we had a nurse and a nurse tech who checked in on me on a regular basis. The bed was much more comfortable too. Still not my bed at home but it would do. I was also moved to a flat position instead of feet higher than my head.
Eric had already called in to our health insurance and found that since we are in-network this whole stay would be covered 100% covered (big relief). He went home and got some necessities, including our table top Christmas Tree.
This day also marked 24 weeks!
I got my first hospital meal - breakfast - which after 2 days of basically no food, was good. I believe I declared the coffee the best coffee ever.
We moved into room 4B24 and got settled in. Well, I was wheeled in, and Eric moved all of our stuff to the new room. This room was bigger and instead of having one nurse all day we had a nurse and a nurse tech who checked in on me on a regular basis. The bed was much more comfortable too. Still not my bed at home but it would do. I was also moved to a flat position instead of feet higher than my head.
Eric had already called in to our health insurance and found that since we are in-network this whole stay would be covered 100% covered (big relief). He went home and got some necessities, including our table top Christmas Tree.
Day 2 - Mag Sulfate Day
Dec 18th - Reality is starting to set in that I'm going to be on bedrest for the duration of this pregnancy.
The 2nd day in the hospital I was given the first of 2 steroid shots that would help develop the baby's lungs in case we delivered early. These were shots in my hip, given 24 hours apart, and weren't altogther too bad.
I was also put on Magnesium Sulfate via IV for 24 hours. This was to prevent contractions, and also helps wit the baby's development. No food while I was on this, and my urine output had to be monitored for the full 24 hours. My blood pressure was checked every hour, and the baby and my uters was montiroed the entire day. This stuff was supposed to make me feel pretty poopy, but I didn't find it too terrible at all.
Oh, and did I mention my position for these two days? I was in what they call Trandellenberg, whic is lying in a hospital bed with my feet elevated above my head. And I could not get out of bed for anything. Yes, that means using a bedpan, which went on for over 2 weeks.
The 2nd day in the hospital I was given the first of 2 steroid shots that would help develop the baby's lungs in case we delivered early. These were shots in my hip, given 24 hours apart, and weren't altogther too bad.
I was also put on Magnesium Sulfate via IV for 24 hours. This was to prevent contractions, and also helps wit the baby's development. No food while I was on this, and my urine output had to be monitored for the full 24 hours. My blood pressure was checked every hour, and the baby and my uters was montiroed the entire day. This stuff was supposed to make me feel pretty poopy, but I didn't find it too terrible at all.
Oh, and did I mention my position for these two days? I was in what they call Trandellenberg, whic is lying in a hospital bed with my feet elevated above my head. And I could not get out of bed for anything. Yes, that means using a bedpan, which went on for over 2 weeks.
23 weeks 5 days...."routine" doctor's appt
Dec 17th - Eric and I went to our regularly scheduled 4-week doctor's appointment at Kamm-KcKenzie. We were scheduled to see the last of 7 doctors in the practice, Dr. Hardin. As usual they did the normal checks - blood pressure, urine check, etc, and then we went back t othe exam room. I had my usual list of questions that I bring to each appt and ran down those wtih Dr. Hardin - I was getting over a yeast infection and wanted to make sure that was all cleared up, and also had started over the last couple days feeling pressure in the bladder area. Thosetwo things caused Dr. Hardin to check my cervix, and that's when the world changed.
Dr. Hardin started talking about my "incompetent cervix" and said I was going to have to be admitted to the hospital. Our heads were sort of swimming at this point - this was completely unexpected! He talked about laying me flat to pull pressure of my cervix since I was dialated. Finally when I got my head around what he was saying I asked, do you mean run home and get a bag packed and then go to the hospital? He said, no, go there now. 9:45 am, freak out moment #1.
So, we got in the car and headed to WakeMed. I called work to let them know I wouldn't be in, probably for a long while.
When we got to Patient Registration, we gave them my name, and next thing I know there is a wheelchair behind me. I get rolled to Labor & Delivery (L&D) triage, where I get my hospital gown. IV, and get hooked up to all kinds of monitors. We had to sign papers relatd to me, and to the baby. Freak out moment #2.
At some point they moved me to an L&D room, which became our home for Thursday and Friday. Dr. Rush was on call at the hospital, and she was the first of many doctors to come and see us. Initially she mentioned getting me stable enough to do a cerclage (cervical stitch to keep it shut), so I was told I could not eat anything in case we went that route.
The the parade of doctors started. Dr. Wells, the perinatologist, sent an ultrasound technician over with a portable ultrasound machine over to do a growth scan which would tell us the baby's size, which is important at this stage. The benchmark was if he was over 500 grams, and in addition to more ultrasound pictures, we heard his estimated weight was 533 grams, good news.
Dr. Wells came by himself later after seeing the scan and was reassuring. However, he did not recommend the cerclage due to how far along I was, so I was finally cleared to eat something around 9pm.
The most knowledgeable but scariest doctor (not that he was scary, but the topic discussed was) was the neonatologist - the doctor expert in caring for preemies. He came by and discussed what we were facing, odds-wise, in terms of survivability, potential birth defects, and we had to decide what our plan of action would be if we delivered that day. Freak out moment #3.
At 23 w 5d, the odds of survival were not good. 50% of babies born at 24 weeks survive, and of those 50% are deaf, blind, have mental retardation, or cerebal palsy. The odds get slightly better at 26 weeks, and at 28 weeks there is a 95% survival rate. Also, at 25 weeks there is no question of what they will do - they will do everything the can for the baby's survival. This was a sobering and scary talk. What they needed to know from us is if the baby came before that point, what we wanted to do. Dr. P gave us some time to discuss this and came by later to see what our decision would be. We knew that the goal was to hold on as long as possible, but that was, to a degree, out ofour control. So, we decided we would move forward and if I delivered, assess the situation at that point and, with the advice of doctors and our hearts, make the call.
Then Dr. Rush came in to discuss my health in connection with delivering now. If I went into labor, and they had to do a C-section, it would be a long cut on my uterus that would make any future deliveries be C-section without a doubt. This was a no-brainer decision at this point.
Eric stayed in the hospital with me that night, and I think it's safe to say our sleep was neither comfortable nor restful. What a day.
Dr. Hardin started talking about my "incompetent cervix" and said I was going to have to be admitted to the hospital. Our heads were sort of swimming at this point - this was completely unexpected! He talked about laying me flat to pull pressure of my cervix since I was dialated. Finally when I got my head around what he was saying I asked, do you mean run home and get a bag packed and then go to the hospital? He said, no, go there now. 9:45 am, freak out moment #1.
So, we got in the car and headed to WakeMed. I called work to let them know I wouldn't be in, probably for a long while.
When we got to Patient Registration, we gave them my name, and next thing I know there is a wheelchair behind me. I get rolled to Labor & Delivery (L&D) triage, where I get my hospital gown. IV, and get hooked up to all kinds of monitors. We had to sign papers relatd to me, and to the baby. Freak out moment #2.
At some point they moved me to an L&D room, which became our home for Thursday and Friday. Dr. Rush was on call at the hospital, and she was the first of many doctors to come and see us. Initially she mentioned getting me stable enough to do a cerclage (cervical stitch to keep it shut), so I was told I could not eat anything in case we went that route.
The the parade of doctors started. Dr. Wells, the perinatologist, sent an ultrasound technician over with a portable ultrasound machine over to do a growth scan which would tell us the baby's size, which is important at this stage. The benchmark was if he was over 500 grams, and in addition to more ultrasound pictures, we heard his estimated weight was 533 grams, good news.
Dr. Wells came by himself later after seeing the scan and was reassuring. However, he did not recommend the cerclage due to how far along I was, so I was finally cleared to eat something around 9pm.
The most knowledgeable but scariest doctor (not that he was scary, but the topic discussed was) was the neonatologist - the doctor expert in caring for preemies. He came by and discussed what we were facing, odds-wise, in terms of survivability, potential birth defects, and we had to decide what our plan of action would be if we delivered that day. Freak out moment #3.
At 23 w 5d, the odds of survival were not good. 50% of babies born at 24 weeks survive, and of those 50% are deaf, blind, have mental retardation, or cerebal palsy. The odds get slightly better at 26 weeks, and at 28 weeks there is a 95% survival rate. Also, at 25 weeks there is no question of what they will do - they will do everything the can for the baby's survival. This was a sobering and scary talk. What they needed to know from us is if the baby came before that point, what we wanted to do. Dr. P gave us some time to discuss this and came by later to see what our decision would be. We knew that the goal was to hold on as long as possible, but that was, to a degree, out ofour control. So, we decided we would move forward and if I delivered, assess the situation at that point and, with the advice of doctors and our hearts, make the call.
Then Dr. Rush came in to discuss my health in connection with delivering now. If I went into labor, and they had to do a C-section, it would be a long cut on my uterus that would make any future deliveries be C-section without a doubt. This was a no-brainer decision at this point.
Eric stayed in the hospital with me that night, and I think it's safe to say our sleep was neither comfortable nor restful. What a day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
