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.
Saturday, February 13, 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!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
