Part 2 - Induction

So we were scheduled to report to L&D at 5am....I think we checked in around 5:10 and were set up in a room by 6am.   The amount of paperwork they have you complete is insane, and we opted to donate the remaining cord blood after delayed clamping, so that was a 50 question survey.  Thankfully my IV was in my left hand and I'm a rightie, otherwise I might have had to pass on that.   My Group B strep test was negative, so I only needed IV fluids for hydration, and of course pitocen, which they got started around 7am.   Right around this time, the weather decided to take a giant crap on our area, complete with tornado warnings and hail, so both my OB and my MW were running late, but the Dr. who delivered C happened to still be there just in case she was needed.  Around 8am my OB finally made it in to check on me, there wasn't much progress but we discussed getting the epi and I chose to hold off for a bit since contractions were no worse than the ones I've had for the past few weeks.   Our L&D nurse was great and encouraged me to be as mobile as possible while I could, so I walked around the area next to the bed or stood and rocked for about an hour.  About 10:30 my OB came in and checked me again, still only a 4 so she broke my water, which as we had previously discussed was the point I wanted the epi, well actually I had said I wanted it prior to it being broken.  I thought having my water broken would be immediately painful, but it really wasn't.  Just felt like I was repeatedly peeing myself every time I shifted position.  Things did pick up pretty quickly after that, and the 4 contractions I had while the anesthesiologist tried to place the epi (twice, she had to remove the first one and go lower) were pretty rough, mainly just a TON of pressure down.   After that of course I was confined to the bed, and since little girl was still face up the L&D nurse had me lie on my side with one leg raised in a bracket/stirrup thing to optimize pelvic space and get her to flip.   I sort of took a nap for an hour and around 12:30 I was at 10cm and almost ready to push.   I am honestly not sure the exact time I started pushing, but it was insanely fast....they had me flip to my other side and told me to let them know when I felt pressure, which happened almost immediately, then the OB and a resident came in and I pushed through maybe 2 contractions and she was out.   Elizabeth Avery was born at 1:25pm weighing 7lbs8oz and 21 inches long.

We were able to do skin to skin right away, though we did have to cut the standard hour short because she wasn't regulating her body temp enough and needed to go into the warmer.  We had a tiny scare when her initial blood sugar was low (what sent C to the NICU) but the 2nd one came back fine.   It took a little while for us to get moved to postpartum because my OB was very careful in taking extra time for the placenta to come out on its own and then waiting an hour before anesthesia came in to remove the epi so we could be sure there was no sign of retained products like I had with C.   By around 4pm we were all set and heading off to our room.  It was definitely a great feeling to be wheeled into postpartum holding my baby.

Made it to 37 weeks - she is here!

 I actually made it to my induction date, which was, as I'm sure you can tell, actually a week ago.  This past week has been crazy, and I've got lots of stuff to update, so this will just be part 1.   After my last OB visit I was 3-4cm and about 75% and I swear by the time I got home I was contracting so badly that I thought I'd need to make a U-turn to L&D.   They calmed down though and I made it through the weekend.    I actually wasn't as nervous as I thought I'd be, but I think knowing the exact date was more stressful for R.   Even though I knew I could go into labor on my own, having a set "end of the road" so to speak helped me.  I spent the weekend throwing together a few freezer meals, finishing up the nursery, and making sure everything was lined up for C while we were gone.

Here is the nursery all set to go!

And C's room:

I do have my final bump picture somewhere, but it appears to have been lost among the 100+ pictures of our little girl, so I'll find it later.

36 weeks!! Induction scheduled!

So this is likely my last weekly update while still pregnant (because lets face it, I'm a blog slacker).  Last week we met with the MW and she gave us the impression that as long as my biophysical ultrasounds looked good, we could hang on until 37w3days or so.  Last night however I finally got a call back saying that my OB wasn't comfortable with that and I'd be induced at 37 weeks exactly or very close.   So we are scheduled to go in to L&D at 5am on Tuesday the 13th!!  

As of last week I am still only at 1cm and around 50% effaced, but my MW said I was considered a good candidate for induction and I wouldn't be needing the foley bulb.  Very happy to hear that as I've heard that hurts like a bitch.   Hoping for a little more progress by my appointment on Friday, with all the contractions and pressure I've had I can't imagine something hasn't progressed.   I am a little concerned about induction increasing my risk of repeated retained placenta and I'll bring that up again but I know my Drs and the hospital are aware of the issue.   She is also sunny side up right now, so I'm hoping she'll turn either prior to induction or during labor.

Aside from a sudden increase in itching over the weekend I've been doing okay.  An increase in my meds helped ease the itching again and I'm sticking to a pretty strict low fat diet that seems to help as well.   I screwed something up yesterday though and my ankles are back to being balloons again.

Pretty much everything is in place now....R just has to put her name letters up on the wall in the nursery and I have to add a few last minute things to the hospital bag.   So hard to believe she will be here in less than a week!

35/35!!

I finally get to make this post!  Of course, I don't have 35 days left, but still....I made it to 35 weeks!  A little over 2 weeks to go.   I started Ursodiol on Friday to help the Cholestasis, but it takes 2-3 days for it to even begin working so I haven't noticed much difference.   Last night I had to sleep with an ice pack pressed between my hands because that was the only thing that calmed the itching (itching comes from bloodstream, so ice slows blood flow and lessens itch).   I called the nurse this morning to ask if my levels should be retested and if I should continue p17 injections if they want to induce in 2 weeks and she actually wasn't very helpful.  Usually they are pretty good about answering questions but this time I don't think she even conferred with my OB.   I do have my mid-wifes direct number but I don't think my questions are that critical since my MFM appt was moved to tomorrow and my OB appt is Thursday.

34 weeks!

As is usual, the week got away from me, so now I am technically 34 weeks 4 days....the same gestation I was admitted with Colton.  The good, actually fantastic news, is that there has been little to no change since last week.  My midwife said I am probably a little more thinned out than 50, but still holding strong between 1 and 1.5cm.    I would have guessed around a 2 and 80% based on the number and strength of contractions these last 3 days, so I am very relieved.   On the bad news end of things, my blood work came back showing elevated cholic acid levels, so it is probable that I have developed Cholestasis.  My mid wife is going to talk to my OB and get back to me by tomorrow morning, but if she agrees they will induce at 37 weeks if I make it that far.   Obviously that raises some other questions about delivery, but we'll get there when they make a definite call.    At least she said they can prescribe some meds to help relieve my itching.

On a different note....we bought a car!  Last night my mom watched C so we could go test drive a few more, which always ends up taking longer than you think.  We basically looked at 2 cars, the Hyundai Santa Fe and Toyota Highlander, and from walking on the first lot to the point we decided to buy was close to 3 hrs (and the dealerships were minutes from each other) and then another 1.5hrs for paperwork.  So to that point....it was a bad, BAD idea to time things like that.   Silly us thought we'd do some quick test drives and then get dinner.  I didn't eat until we got home at nearly 11 and I was contracting majorly.  I was almost in tears from the pain, but thankfully they stopped as soon as I ate and lay down.    Anyway...we picked up my car today and I love it.   Still hanging on to my trusty old jetta as good mileage get around car, but I'm so glad to have something with so much space that doesn't drive like a tank!



Aaaaand....since Internet explorer has decided to be a dickbag and crash every time I upload pics, I guess I'll once again be adding those later.

It's here! It's here!

My super awesome stroller arrived today!   Very happy with the color and glad that my carseat fits well in the adapter.  I have the 2nd seat too, but we are keeping that in the box for now.

Isn't it wonderful?

It is really easy to steer with one hand and has a ton of options for seat positioning.  And unlike a lot of other tandem strollers, the stadium seating allows for great storage underneath rather than losing half or most of it to another seat or needed foot room.

And while I'm AWing out pictures....here is a sneak peek of the curtains that I have finally finished!

Pink sheers with ruffles at the top and bottom of panels for her room.

And transportation themed valances with dark blue panels for C's room. (plus the mod podged switch plate).

Left on our/my to do list:
Finish and hang her name letters.
Pack hospital bag.
Put away her clothes.

Getting so close!

the beginning of the end?

I had my regular OB appt. yesterday and I asked for a cervical check because I had some contractions Tuesday night and even a few while sitting in the exam room waiting for the doc.   I just had a feeling things were changing and I was right. I am about 1-1.5cm dilated and 50% effaced.   Not a big deal at all in the world of normal pregnancies, and my OB still wasn't really concerned, but we are moving to weekly appointments now, rather than the usual 36 weeks.  I will also be stopping baby aspirin on Monday, to reduce the risk of excess bleeding during delivery.   While I was never diagnosed with Pre-E while pregnant with C,  I think I was showing preliminary signs of it when I went into PTL, and I know the aspirin is helping keep my blood pressure down and the swelling better, so that stuff will be coming back into play in full force soon.   I am also getting tested for Cholestasis, because I've had horrible itching on my hands and feet in the past week.   There isn't a whole lot they can do about that, other than add frequent blood tests to monitor my liver function, but it will mean full term is off the table entirely, because it increases the risk of fetal death after 38 weeks.    But I'm not stressing about that until I actually have my blood work results.   Right now I just want to make it until my appt next Thursday, which will be 34w4days....where I was when I was admitted to L&D with C.

33 weeks

Some days I feel like the end is almost here and others full term seems like an impossible goal.  Overall this week has been better than last week, though the last 3 days I've felt off.    Even though you can't tell by looking at me, I think she has moved down.  So I can breathe better now, but it feels like she is trying to punch her way through my cervix.   I think I'll be opting for a cervical check tomorrow at my check up just to be safe.

Still making fairly steady progress towards being baby ready.   I got my stroller! (well, it is ordered...still waiting for it to ship).  The registry event was so, so much better than what I expected.   I expected it to be a crowded ass mess like the big children's resales I've been to.   Instead, it was well run and no more crowded than a regular shopping day...with plenty of sales people on hand to help.   The downside to that is I spent much more than I planned to because it turned out the 20% off could be applied to things not on my registry, so I picked up a few nursing tanks, some clothes for C, and even a Sharper image humidifier I swore I was going to buy from Bed Bath and Beyond all winter but never did.   All I need (ok, want) now are few things that only BRU carries...like another sound machine since C still uses his.

We are on night 4 of C sleeping in his new room and I think he is all settled in.  The first two nights were rough, but still better than I expected.  We are beyond lucky that, at this point, he sits in his bed and cries for us rather than getting out.  Yesterday at naptime was the first time I didn't have to go back in to soothe him, and we've had no crying before going to sleep since, though he still wakes up sad.  I've been napping when he does most days, and today I was jolted awake by a cheerful "Hi Mommy!".   So we've breached the limits of the toddler (though he knew how to get out before, I just don't he is comfortable doing it when sad).   Very proud of my little man.

I've finally got the 0-3 month clothes pulled out and amazingly they haven't yellowed at all, so I just to do a quick re-wash and get those sorted.  Beyond that all that is left are her curtains and name letters, I'd like to borrow my MILs carpet steamer and run that before putting new stuff in the nursery, and finishing packing the hospital bag.  Oh, and at some point deciding if we want to set up the pack n play downstairs and get the swing out yet.

32 weeks

I had a moment this morning.  One of those OMG things are really going to change soon moments.  C woke up early but was in a pretty good mood so I just went in and got him rather than giving him the usual 5 minutes or so to go back to sleep.   I was promptly instructed to hold Cookie Monster while he held Teddy and then carry everyone downstairs to get milk.  Most mornings he takes off around the kitchen while I get his milk and start fixing breakfast, but this morning he wanted to keep being held and was just super snuggly.  I know I won't always have that option soon and it makes me a little sad.   I hope I can find a good balance quickly.

On the physical front I am struggling....a lot.  I don't know if it is the heat, her size, my lack of exercise or what, but I feel like crap much of the day now.  I am out of breath all the time and I feel weak/shaky if I stand too long.   Swelling is here more often than not, though still not super visible.   I don't think it is blood pressure related, because so far that has been really good, but I'll bring it up at my appt next week.

I finally got ahold of someone at Buy Buy Baby about their registry event.  I made registries this time in order to get completion discounts, but BBB has an event that gives you 20% off instead of 10.  Apparently I made my registry just after the invites went out, but after 3 phone calls I got  a manager that said it was no problem for me to attend.  I'm sure it will be a crowded clusterfuck, but I hope to walk out of there with about $125 off my City Select double, plus some diapers and other things I could use a discount on (that are normally excluded from coupons).  We will see.

I am so, so close to finishing up my curtain sewing projects.  C's are done and I'm pretty damn proud of them.  R just has to put up the hooks for the tiebacks and they'll be set.  Then it is just a matter of mounting the video camera on the wall and getting the power strip for the sound machine in place behind the anchored dresser and we are set to move him over.

31 weeks and triage AGAIN

And I was about to write up a post saying I feel like I make the same updates every week.  Thank you body, but I'd prefer that over something new to report.   Yesterday morning was my MFM appt and I had a contraction before even getting there at 8am.   Since I'm beyond 30 weeks I won't check any more cervical length checks, but when it comes down to it, things can change pretty fast.    Baby looked great and is estimated to be about 4lbs12oz!!   So still 2 weeks ahead, but the tech said she wasn't so big they'd consider her outside the normal range.     The sporadic contractions continued throughout the day, but that has been pretty normal lately so I tried not to worry about it.   Damned if the stupid things didn't ramp the hell up as soon as it was after hours.   Between 6pm and 7pm I easily had 20.   These were also more painful and just felt different than the past 2 times, so I was more nervous this was it.   Thankfully it wasn't and the trip was more or less a repeat of the 2 times before, but I did get an IV for fluids and based on partial urine results a UTI was the culprit.   I started antibiotics since the holiday means I won't know results for a few days, but I've had about 13 contractions over the course of the day so I hope they help soon.     The fFN was once again negative, so at least I know I've got less than 1% chance of delivering in the next two weeks, but it is hard to believe with all the discomfort and pressure I've been feeling.  My guess would be I'm starting to have some shortening at this point.

30 weeks!

In the 30s finally!  A few more weeks and I'll be in the late term preemie window if this little gal shows up early.   Not that any preemie is something to be excited about, but 34 weeks over 24 weeks would still be something to celebrate if you ask me.

Everything still looked good at the MFM last week, so I am back to just restricted activity thankfully, which in all honesty, probably isn't that much more restrictive than normal pregnancy is this time of year.  I'm not exercising or lifting heavy things and I'm on pelvic rest....everything else is "as tolerated".    So really, I just do small doses of things here and there.   I don't in any way feel ready for a newborn.....I feel like our house is a disaster and I've got no room for anything, but it is coming together.   I keep reminding myself that she isn't going to come out crawling, so the 40 million puzzle pieces, alphabet letters, etc that are continually spread around the downstairs aren't a critical concern at the moment.    Figuring out whether or not we can fit an infant seat and the Britax in the back of my Jetta, however, is....we need to get on that.   I did call the store I ordered my breast pump from, and they were really cool about contacting my insurance for me and filling the order early since I'm high risk for PTL.   So my pump arrived a few days ago....one thing checked off.

C's big boy room is almost complete.   I need to finish sewing the curtains and I'd like to get her curtains ironed and measured out/cut before we move him in there (because right now it is the best work space that is easily closed off from little hands) but we are in the final stages.  Hopefully the transition goes smoothly sleep wise.   Once all his stuff is moved over, then I'll really get down to organizing her stuff in the nursery.

After going back and forth for months on whether or not I would buy a double stroller new or try to find one used, it finally occurred to me that I could use registry completion discounts on one.   So I made more or less identical registries at Buy Buy Baby and Babies R Us.  BRU's website says no exclusions, but fine print says special orders are excluded, so I'm not sure if they'd try to call an online only stroller special order or not.  If that fails, Buy Buy Baby will be my back up option.

And I suppose at some point here I should think about packing a hospital bag.  I wasn't prepared with C, but 40 hrs of labor gave us plenty of time to get cameras, clothes, etc in order.  It is highly possible this one could come much faster....so yeah, my to do list isn't getting shorter yet!

For some reason it looks like my bump shrunk from 29 weeks to week 30.  Oh well.

28 weeks and triage again

If I'd made this post on Monday when I should have, it would have gone in an entirely different direction, because I was really starting to feel more confident that my last triage visit was just a fluke and things were getting back to normal.   I don't think anything I did resulted in this trip, as I was still taking it easy, but Wednesday night I had a lot of contractions show up out of nowhere.  The 7 I timed within a 30 minute period were 3-4min apart and about 40 seconds long.  They weren't very strong, in fact I missed the first 3 or so because I thought she was just shifting around, but after seeing the spacing on my app, I knew I had to call and in to triage I went.   Just like last time they couldn't find a reason for them, but she is head down again, so I do wonder if major position changes just irritate things.  I was in there about 4 hrs, contracting the whole time, but the docs didn't seem as concerned this time.  Most were still pretty small, but I did have a few that registered around an 8 (1-12 scale) that I had to breathe through.   The only super scary point came after about an hour of monitoring, when her heart rate deceled to about 109 during a contraction.   I was *thisclose* to pushing the call button and freaking out when she started kicking the heck out of the monitors and they both went all over the place, so despite being able to hear the HB clearly, I think the angle she was in just made the readout wrong.

So I was discharged with threatened PTL again and put on modified bedrest for about a week until my appt next Wednesday.   I only had 4-5 contractions yesterday and no timeable ones so far today.   The fFN was negative again, so my chances of seeing 30 weeks at least are pretty good.   I have a feeling this will just be a cycle we go through until her weight reaches a point where contractions actually cause dilation.

Anyway...as I said, prior to all this things were looking up.   C's big boy room is almost done.  I bit the bullet and started sewing his curtains.  Very daunting to start, but actually each step was easier than it looked.   I got the two panels completed, now I have the valances and the tie backs left, then it is on to her curtains. 

 I finally got my Adobe Creative Suite transferred over to my current laptop.  That seriously took almost a whole day of trying various forms of installation and serial numbers (because it was a downloaded upgrade and my legit numbers are now too old to work).  Thank goodness I registered my stuff because they do have it still available for download on the website, no thanks to the near illiterate customer service.   So I've been to mess around with some ideas for decorating her name letters.  I was going to use the same stripes and polka dots I used on Colton's, but I might go full out crazy and try my hand at a damask pattern that matches the crib blanket.

Here is the nursery currently:

 

So wall color, furniture, and most bedding is staying the same.  Not sure about the picture, since it was a gift for C, but probably won't go in his new room.   Her letters will hopefully go right in the existing holes (or at least cover them) and I want to add paint chip chandeliers on either side (search Pinterest if you have no clue what I'm talking about).   I've got the material for her curtains, which will be pink, as will be her name letters and I've got some ideas for sprucing up that crappy lamp shade.   I know.....a lot to do when I can do very little at the moment but in the end, this time the needed stuff is all there so I will just do what I can, when I can.   I have a list of non-baby/kid things I wanted to have accomplished by now too....such as the one plantless planter outside our front door.

Awesome ultrasound!

I had my monthly ultrasound with MFM yesterday and everything went great.  Cervix is still long and closed, so no concern there.   Little girl is now breech, which I expected from some pretty sharp cervical kicks yesterday...it was either that or she was coming in the middle of the grocery store.   She still has plenty of time to turn, so for now I'll happily take the lack of pressure on my SI joint.

The tech checked the brain, heart, kidneys, etc, along with the placenta, cord flow and fluid levels, so pretty much everything that could raise cause for concern.   She measured the abdomin about 10 times, so I knew something was up with weight measurements.  Sure enough, this girl has caught right up to her brother and is measuring 2 weeks ahead at 2lbs 14oz at 27w3days!  So currently in the 90th percentile.  I have to be honest, I was happier with just a week ahead, even though higher birth weight is better in preemie terms.   Trying not to jump to any conclusions, but this makes me pretty sure I won't be allowed to go past my due date if we get to that point.   I will ask my doc in 2 weeks, but I know when C was measuring 2 weeks ahead at 30 weeks with his abdomen in the 93rd percentile the possibility of a c-section was brought up.   My other thought of course was that if she is on the same track weight wise, and they don't know the cause for PTL the first time, maybe my cervix just craps out once baby hits a certain weight.  I was hoping with a week ahead or on track she'd make it 2 weeks farther, but now I'm not so sure.

The tech also spent some time getting us some really amazing shots of her face.  The quality of 4D has improved vastly since I was pregnant with C, and I thought it was pretty great then....I was just blown away at what I could see now.  It was almost like looking at a photograph of her.

So here is our beautiful daughter!

 

She looks so much like C.   I looked back at his 4D pics but nothing was even close to clear enough to show the similarities, so here is C on the day he came home.

 

I just can't get over how clear this picture is!

3rd Trimester and a 2nd Birthday!

It was a busy weekend but I've finally made it to 3rd trimester!  I am glad I managed to stay away from Google when I had my PTL scare at 24weeks...I didn't realize just how low survival rates actually were that soon after hitting viability.   At 27 weeks it jumps to 90%, so our odds are much better now.  She is still turning around like crazy in there, and every time she picks a new position I have a few hours of what feels like contractions beginning, but not ever happening.   I've had one or two full contractions here and there, but that is it.

I am still taking it easy, and I am glad we decided on a low key event with just the grandparents for C's 2nd birthday, because I was exhausted just handling that.  In the end it all worked out well and C loved his cookie monster cake.   I can't believe my little man is 2 already!

 

My next appt is Thursday and will be a full u/s, so hopefully I get some good pictures of our little girl.

 

 

26 weeks

Blogger sucks and I am lazy.  I couldn't get the picture feature to work so I haven't made the effort to even write a post.  All my appts. last week went well.  Apparently that Ffn test was the only reason I wasn't admitted to L&D that Thursday.  I asked if they would repeat the test and my OB said not unless we are faced the admit or don't admit choice again.  I almost made it 2 weeks with no contractions, but I had one last night and have had BH off and on all day today.    I also had some godawful round ligament pain yesterday afternoon.  So bad that I almost called my OB just to ask WTF I could do to help it go away.  It lasted almost 20 minutes and all I was doing was resting and reading a book when it started.  Horrible burning pain all over.  Ugh.   I felt sore and yucky for the rest of the day.    My guess is it has something to do with the sudden jump in temperature....it has been in the 80s the past 2 days, up from mid 60s-70.   Doesn't really bode well for the rest of the summer.

So 2 years ago today we were heading in to L&D thinking we'd get sent home in a few hours, only to be admitted until C was born 2 days later.  There was a big heat wave that weekend too...pretty sure if I was farther along now and this LO was in the 5-6lb range I'd have made another trip to L&D this time too.   Only a few more days until 3rd trimester.

25 weeks!

Still pregnant!  Overall I'm feeling better, both physically and mentally.  Friday I still had contractions throughout the day, but not frequently enough to call...closest were about 30 minutes apart in the evening.   Saturday evening I had 5 or 6 contractions and haven't had any since, so that is good news.   I am still taking it easy of course, but I am not as panicked that the littlest thing will be the tipping point.    I spoke to the nurse at my OB's office this morning, just to clarify what I should and shouldn't be doing, and she seemed pretty happy with my update on lack of contractions.   I can do light activity, such as washing a few dishes or folding laundry, just as long as I take breaks.  I still need to avoid lifting Colton, which is of course the hardest part.   Today was a little better, but I feel like I'm missing out on time with him since I can't do anything...and it has only been 3 days!   He is growing up so quickly right now, more and more I look at him and see a little boy rather than a baby and I don't want to miss a single moment of these last baby days.   I guess this is my first taste of balancing two children.

In finding a silver lining in all this mess, my sciatica pain is all but gone.  I am almost positive she is transverse now, and I really wonder if that could be what set this all off in the first place.   Right now she is getting some kicks up near my ribs, but her hands are definitely down on my left now rather tucked far to right sitting on that nerve.  I feel about as big as I did at 30 weeks with C though....like I'm already running out of room when I sit down.   The other fun thing the last few days have brought is sore boobs.  I don't know if the steroid shots have any side effects for me, but holy hell I feel like I've been breastfeeding for a few weeks they hurt so much. 

Haven't taken a weekly bump pic yet, but I will. 

****

24 weeks and a trip to triage

This post might be a hot mess I'm going to try usethe speech to text feature on my smartphone ....yeah..its not so smart.

this morning I woke up with sharp pain in my lower abdomen it came and went last for a couple hours so I put in the usual call and as suspected was sent into labor and delivery from monitoring was really worried because I wasn't feeling contractions and the first hour I was in there pretty much confirmed that but then the doctor came in and did a fetal fibronectin test along with a cervical check which must have kicked something into gear bevause up those contractions started.

*****
Yeah...that was too much effort last night, though maybe not as much effort as fixing whatever gawdamn keyboard issues my laptop seems to have developed.

Anyway....yesterday was long and exhausting to say the least.  I woke up with a low sharp pain that came and went....kind of like the old implantation/stretching pains I had in the beginning, but combined with feeling off the past week I made the call to my OB.  I thought they'd bring me in to rule out a UTI first, but they said to go to triage.  Since I had no actual contractions at that point, I wasn't really worried, but at the same time it was frustrating to be in pain  with no answers.  My urine came back clear, and the Dr. came in to do a cervical check and a Fetal Fibronectin test.  I am not sure if that triggered something or baby was just sick of the not so comfy position options I was in on the triage bed, but shortly after contractions started registering regularly.   At that point they were no different than what I was told was "practice contractions" at 34 weeks with C.  They went up to around a 4 on a scale of 1-12 (though I am pretty sure that isn't reliable strength wise because of monitor snugness errors, positioning, etc).  It was now about 3 hrs in to my visit and of course my phone was near dead so I just sat there wondering what the next steps would be.  The answer came when the nurse walked in with an IV.  Up until that point they'd been talking quick discharge, so that was my first oh shit moment.  And of course they couldn't find a stupid vein to get the needle is so they gave up and waited for the next check by the doctor.   Contractions never really went away for the duration of my stay and even spiked to an 8 once or twice, but cervix was still closed and an ultrasound with the specialists down the hall that I see regularly showed it was still above a 4.  FFN test was negative and even bloodwork came back great, so I was discharged with "Threatened Preterm Labor".  While waiting for blood results, my on call OB decided that I should go ahead and get the steroid shots now...which was my big oh shit moment and by then I thought I'd end up being admitted.

Last night was a rough night, between being on edge and being sore from 5+ hours in a hospital bed with sciatica pain, I just didn't sleep well at all.  I've had a few small contractions and some low back pain, but nothing like yesterday so I am hoping it was just a freak thing that we won't see a repeat of anytime soon.   .I was semi-mentally prepared for complications as I got further along, but not this early.  I figured 30 weeks would be my mark for increased swelling, back pain, whatever.   6 more weeks...ugh.   Today puts me 10 weeks from the day I was admitted with Colton exactly.   And I thought 5 weeks early left us unprepared....I spent half my time in triage trying not to freak out about the medical health aspects and freaking out about all the stuff we haven't done yet instead.   Poor C will be 2 in just over 2 weeks and the kid will be lucky if his cake even slightly resembles cookie monster. 

So the comfort of hitting 24 weeks and viability, while still a great milestone, isn't that reassuring right now.  Here is my pic from monday (tuesday?).  I think it is time to find a new shirt for pics.

23 weeks

Well, 23w3days to be exact.   We had our fetal echo this morning and everything looked great.  As I mentioned before I wasn't really worried, and, just like with C, it was all I could do not to fall asleep during parts of it.  Some extra good news (I think) is that she is only measuring about a week ahead right now, going off of what I wrote down for C at this estimated weight.  C weighed 1.7lbs at 22w3days and this little girl is about 1.8lbs at 23w3days.  They weren't concerned about C yet this early, but I'm hoping if she isn't as far ahead as he was she won't have her own plans to come as early either.  My cervical length still looked good....down to about a 4.7, but still plenty long.  As long we don't see a continuing drop we are good (me saying this, the doc just said it looked totally normal).    This scan was the first time someone has brought up my tilted uterus since we went through treatments for C.  The tech said it was a hard cervix to measure and that baby's head was actually tucked down behind it.   So the lowest part of my uterus is actually below the cervical opening, putting pressure on my lower back and SI joint, which is killing me.

I'll upload pictures later...maybe even later this weekend, because the sciatica/SI pain is so bad right now I have trouble getting up off the sofa.  And going up and down stairs, to the bathroom, getting in bed, etc.   I went to change C's diaper on the floor earlier today and was seriously in tears because I couldn't figure out how to get back up because even crawling to the couch was excruciating.   I did go back to physical therapy this morning before my u/s, and she said I was way out of line in my hips and really inflamed, so it might take a few days of rest before seeing any improvement.    Meanwhile, I think I'll have to move into our spare bedroom because it really is too hard to get in our master bed (mattress is about waist level with our 4 poster bed frame, I use a step stool while pregnant).  I'm struggling with this because I feel like it is the beginning of the end and we'll just cycle downward to barely feeling like a couple those first few months after baby arrives.   I don't know if I've ever mentioned it here, but looking back I realize I had PPD to some degree, in that I had irrational levels of resentment toward R at times, and it changed just like that when I weaned.   I really need these last few months of normalcy to help make sure my head is in the happiest spot possible before I'm smacked with whatever hormones may come.

*****
bump pic!

22 weeks

Starting to feel more like my belly is out front now.  Every now and then I even catch myself starting with the pregnant waddle.   Everything still looks good.  My last cervical check measured me at a 5, so still nice and long.  I've had a few contractions here and there, but nothing to be concerned about.   Only 2 more weeks until baby hits viability.

In the next month or so I will probably be seeing the most rapid change in belly size.  I never made it past 35 weeks with C, so I don't know what the end feels like.   I think it was around 24 weeks that I started getting some swelling too.  I'm hoping being a lower weight will help this time, but paired with the arrival of summer I'm sure I'll get some.  Once that happens, monitoring weight gain will go right to hell.  I'm still doing pretty well....around 12-14lbs gained depending on the degree of water retention.  I've got a little more retention already than I realized....this past weekend was a little crazy and I didn't get around to eating lunch until almost 3pm one day.  Between 7am and 3 I lost about 3lbs of water weight.  Whoops.

So here are my last 2 bump pics.

"Popping tags"

It is resale season and I've been hitting them hard.  I picked up one lot of about 25 items from a fellow local moms...it was an all or nothing deal for $12, so some of it is showing a bit of wear, but we had the same with hand me downs for C and used the hell out of most of it anyway.   Today I went to one of the few BIG resales in our area and picked up everything you see below for $25.....and $8 of that was 3 sets of PJs for C (harder to score cheap deals as they get bigger).  Most of the onesies were 50 cents and show little to no wear! 

 

We also got a big storage bin FULL of clothes for C from one of R's co-workers.  The child is seriously set for the next year as long as he is in 2T.  So I'm pretty sure, with the exception of a few heavier winter items, I am set for kid clothes until Christmas.  Score!

20 weeks (and 19 because I'm lazy)

And the blog slacking continues.  Not much difference between 19 and 20 weeks though so I'll just mush it all together.   Our anatomy scan was last week and everything looked great.  I wasn't really worried, while it isn't a logical approach, part of me felt like since everything was fine with C, the same would go for this one since they are from the same batch of embryos.  Silly, but it made me feel better.   However, this little gal gave the tech a run for her money.  1.5hrs of trying to get all the right measurements, with the hardest shot being the face.  I guess they need a single picture of the mouth and nose, and she kept turning or blocking her face.  I almost asked if something was wrong after the tech spent almost 30 minutes trying to get the shot, but I could see in split second flashes that there was no abnormality so I kept quiet.  On a fun side note, we had to bring C with us because our appt was at 7:30am....thank goodness for streaming video.  I never thought we'd be the parents entertaining our kid with a smartphone, but sitting in that dark room we didn't have a lot of options.  He was a champ and made it through with only one or two attempts to flee down the hall.

Here is our little girl!

 

They also did the usual cervical check and things still looked good there.  Baby is measuring around a week ahead and estimated at 11oz as of `19w2days, so right up there with her brother.  Hopefully she doesn't have his plans of arrival in mind, but I am still starting to feel the pressure of time running out.   We will be moving C to the bedroom next to the nursery and keeping the nursery mostly as is.   I'll devote a whole other post to this, as my ideas keep piling up, but C's room will be transportation themed and I'm hoping to have it ready for him by the end of May.   I've started buying some girl clothes here and there at resales and I'm lacking a staging area for all this.  We don't want to move C over until at least June because his new room will have a twin bed, but I want her clothes sorted and ready by 34 weeks, which is mid-July.  34 weeks is when I'll be stopping this progesterone shots.  I've done 4 so far and unluckily each one has been progressively worse.   The first 2 were easy and I thought people were wussy for whining about them, but Monday's shot burned like nothing I've felt from a shot before.  One more shot left in this vial before ordering more, hopefully it isn't a continuing trend.

 

Not much difference in bump size between the 2 weeks, but here are both anyway.

18 and Team....

PINK!!!!  So very excited to be expecting a little girl.  Of course we would have been thrilled with another boy, and that certainly would have made many things easier, but now we will have the best of both worlds!

We did the reveal on Saturday, and after a little more effort than I had imagined was needed in finding a big box, it went really well.  Our neighbor did a great job putting it all together and I think we got some cute pictures.   I normally don't put full pictures here, but I guess I'm at the point where there is enough identifying info here anyway that if someone knew me, they could put 2 and 2 together, so I may as well AW it up.

We saved the balloons and told our families on Easter by having C walk in with a pink balloon.  Simple but fun.  We've told several of our friends as well but haven't made it "facebook official" yet.  I only got the pictures yesterday and at this point we might just wait for extra confirmation next week at our anatomy scan.

On a less fun note, I'm still not feeling right half the time.   I went back a re-read entries from this point with C and I honestly can't remember if I felt this way with him or not this early.  The amount a stretching and pressure I feel in my lower belly is what I remember in 3rd tri with C, but more odd.  It is like someone is pushing on parts of my belly sometimes, but it isn't clear contraction tightening so I don't know WTF is going on.  I'm going to really work on upping my water intake for the next day or so and hope for an improvement, otherwise I guess I'll call the OB.  Baby is still super active so I know she is fine in there for now....I even saw movement last night!  A good kick I'm assuming, right around my belly button.  I guess I'm finally in the showing more than the first time through stage, so maybe that is part of it.

17 weeks

This has been the first of hopefully not that many "hell weeks".  The week when all my doctor appts pile up on top of an already busy schedule.  This week I had 3 appts, a vet appt for my diabetic cat that decided to stop eating, an easter egg hunt party, a birthday party and of course Easter this Sunday.   Next hell week will be late April, when all my appts once again pile up in front of a busy wedding weekend.

So Monday was my first cervical check appt.  I know I had them with C, but the were paired with a regular monthly u/s so they weren't as boring.  This was just going to be a 3 minute monitoring of only my cervical length, without the baby even visible on the screen.  Luckily the tech was cool, and when I asked if we'd be looking at the baby because we didn't know the sex yet, she said not normally but took a peek anyway.   So here it is:

No, I haven't looked yet.  The card is actually in the hands of our neighbor now.  She is going to put either pink or blue balloons in a box and we'll open it on Saturday if the weather cooperates.

Today I had my monthly OB appt, which wasn't anything unusual, my weight and blood pressure look great.  I told my doc. that I haven't been feeling real great the past 24hrs, but since my cervical check went great, the pressure I'm feeling is likely normal.  Maybe it is because I've really popped, or maybe my muscles are weaker because I haven't actually worked out in two weeks, but it feels like a cross between after you've eaten way too much and that sick stomach feeling after you get the wind knocked out of you.  Not fun and just enough "off" to keep that little voice of worry going.   My other irritating symptom that is new to me is itchiness.  I'm guessing it is probably because of the sunburn, but it wasn't that bad so it has to been hormones or something too because this is awful!   My back, chest, belly and the front of my upper legs itch all the damn time.   My doc. said to use Aveeno lotion but so far it doesn't help much.

And, finally, the good old weekly bump pic:

16 weeks - vacation!

We are back from vacation and overall we had a great time.  The day before we left and that first day were rough for me, but I did better than I thought and only really cried after dropping C off with my inlaws.   He was an angel while we were gone, and my MIL left a message for me first thing Monday morning letting me know that he went to bed and slept through the night without a peep that first night, so when I picked up that message during our layover it really made me feel better.  

 

So this was our 3rd time vacationing in St. Thomas with my friends, and each time has been great, but not without glitches.  The past 2 times it was just other guests that were near impossible to get along with, this time it was just bad travel luck.  Nothing huge, but I don't have many pictures to share because R's waterproof camera decided to stop being waterproof, so all we had were our phones.  Here is my 16 week bump pic, taken on the south terrace of the place we stayed.

 

So that was the day we arrived, and I really think I popped while we were down there.  R commented on it several times.  I am proud to say that I did rock a bikini a few times!  

 

I am not sure if baby hates flying or loves it, but movement during the trip was pretty sporadic, except during flights....when baby moved almost non stop.  The very first leg of travel brought on some cramping too, but thankfully that was my only worrisome moment.   I will also say that the increasing number of differences between this pregnancy and Cs are making me start to think girl.  With C I had to be very careful of sunburn, but I got the most beautifully even tan I've ever had in my life.  This one?  Random splotchy burns no matter how many times I reapplied the 50 spf.  At one point it looked like little baby fingers/handprints all over my back.  My friend thought that was cute, but it creeped me out.

Movement!

At last!  I realize in the grand scheme of things it is still early, but I've been feeling the swishy rolling-like movements for almost 2 weeks now, so I've been waiting!  Just like with C, I thought I felt a thump here and there the past week, but nothing definite.   Just as I sat down to go over all the information documents we are taking/leaving, etc, I felt a poke, and then another, and another.  Feels like someone is poking me gently with their finger from inside.   Perfect timing too, just as I'm feeling really, really sad about leaving C, it is like this one is speaking up and saying hey, I'll help you through it!

15 weeks

Ugh...this week has been rough!  As we are closing in on vacation, I've had a ton of stuff on my plate and last week I was doing a great job of getting stuff accomplished.  Good thing too, because Sunday I was hit with a nasty cold and more or less stayed in bed most of the day.  Tuesday I thought I had it beat, then yesterday it was so awful I was nearly in tears.  I *think* I've seen the worst, but we shall see.   Nothing knocks me down a few pegs on the positivity ladder faster than feeling like shit and not being able to breathe without pain.  I actually felt depressed for a little bit earlier in the week, but I managed to pull myself together enough to do a few things that on my endless list that cheered me up.

Saturday I've got a bridal shower, a baby shower and a St. Patty's day dinner.   Did I mention R will be out of town?  Yeah, I'm probably insane, but my mom is watching C for the bridal shower, so at least he'll have had a nap.  Anyway, this is my first opportunity to show off what little bump I've got going and I decided last week to pull together a pretty cute outfit.  I started with a green dress that I bought a month or so ago, then found the perfect belt on amazon, already had the necklace, and I made the earrings Tuesday night.  I love them...so pretty and sparkly.  Shiny things make me happy.  Don't hate.

And speaking of things that make me happy, the other week a friend posted on facebook about Coach Outlet's sale....so of course I looked, just to see.  In general, I am not a designer girl.  I'd like to be I suppose, but my wallet doesn't agree (nor does my logical side).  But since we had just broken down and invested in fancy smartphones...I bought a little wristlet wallet.  But in order to do that I had to give them my email, and then they had an even bigger sale....
So after trying to ignore the 50% off clearance email for half a day, I looked again...and found that the $300+ baby bag that I see everyone carrying was now $136.   I mentioned it to R, thinking I'd get "the look", but he basically said go for it, so I tried to add it to my cart and it wasn't available!  BUT, I called the two outlet stores somewhat nearby and one had one, so C and I took little road trip down to the beach.

 

And while we are on a picture roll, here is my weekly "bump" and the pic I put up on facebook this evening!

 

T minus 3 days before we drop C off at my in-laws and head for St. Thomas.  Excited but hoping I can hold myself together over leaving him.

14 weeks

Its funny...I really thought I was starting to show, but my weekly picture really doesn't look all that different than last week.

My butt looks like it grew 3 sizes again though....stupid camera.   I had my first round of Braxton Hicks at 13w5days....much earlier than I expected but there was no question that is what I was feeling.  A sudden tightening like my whole uterus just turned into a ball, but with no pain.  It happened twice and then nothing.   In the evenings when I'm resting on the sofa I'm getting odd sensations too, somewhere between uncomfortable clothing and flip-flopping stomach, even if I'm wearing loose pants and not feeling any m/s.  I am pretty sure this is the precursor to real movement because I remember this around 15-16 weeks with C.

Announcing to my friends didn't really go as planned, but that seems par for the course this time through.  Of my 5 close friends, one moved to Texas last month, so obviously she could not be there in person, but the remaining 4....one had to work, one texted an hour before the party that she was sick, and one wasn't sure she'd make it at all (did end up coming late).   So I went ahead and put C in his big brother shirt for the one friend that did show up and ended up texting everyone else.   At least that is it for planned announcements because I'm over it.  We'll put it on FB in the next week or so.  I was going to do it this week, but a friend just had her 2nd failed IVF for #2 and I feel it is in bad taste to do it right now even though she already knows our last cycle worked.

13 weeks - 2nd tri!

Late in posting, again, so at 13w4days I'm officially in the 2nd trimester!  Starting to feel a little better and I've actually had a few 4-6 hr stints at night without waking up to pee.  Of course, when I do wake up I'm all crampy from a full bladder but at least it helps in the sleep department.   We've lifted the gag order on family, so word is now beginning to spread.  I think I waited a little too long to tell my friends though:

 

And that was 4 days ago before eating any breakfast...another quarter inch and my belly will be preceding me into a room.   Oh well, we are having people over for my birthday tomorrow anyway, so I think I'll just throw the Big Brother shirt on C and see who notices what first.  For people who don't know I've been working out and trying to lose weight pre-baby it still isn't noticeable.  I wore a fitted shirt to my book club last night and only 2 people out of 14 said anything and even then it was a "are we okay to assume what we think?" question.  Another person told me I look great so I guess it is a crap shoot whether it will be immediately obvious to my friends.

 

And I'm still fighting with the bella band muffin top for now.  My neighbor re-lent me all her maternity clothes again, but bottoms wise everything is too big, particularly at this point.  Motherhood Maternity is also all over the place with their fucking sizing BTW, so I can't even order online.  I've got 2 pairs of borrowed size large pants that basically fit if I roll the waist down (otherwise they are penguin pants), one pair of my own mediums that look okay except very bunchy around the waist....so I think I'm stuck somewhere between medium and small.  And don't get me started on jeans...they all suck.

12 weeks - NT scan

I was going to title this post Doctors, doctors, doctors, but I decided that was slightly overdramatic.   I won't be getting that 6 week downtime of no Dr. appointments though.   

I was kind of nervous going in to the NT scan, since this was FET literally nothing has changed since I had C, but I guess that waiting for the other shoe to drop feeling never really goes away.   This time the appt went a lot faster than I remember with C, and thankfully everything looked great!  The nuchal measurement was somewhere around 1.6 and the nasal bone was present.   Combined with the bloodwork I had already completed, my age (the embryo's age in this case) based risk dropped from 1 in 651 for DS/1 in 1185 for Trisomy 13&18 to less than 1 in 10,000...the lowest result you can get.   Baby was moving like crazy most of the scan, but we still got some good pictures.

 

Still no change in me, though crappy eating sent me up 2lbs this week.   I am committing to some type of exercise, even if it is just a few arm strenthening moves, every day until we leave for St. Thomas.

 

 

I had my initial consult with the nurse at my OB last week...mostly just paperwork and going over stuff I already knew.  She did say they would most likely put me on P17 shots, and that they are referring me to MFM to be followed as high risk for pre-term labor.  Mind you, I've already got a referral from the RE to followed because of IVF, but my monitoring now starts at 16 weeks rather than 24ish weeks.  Better safe than sorry of course, but I was looking forward to a few weeks of a doctor free schedule.   So I have my monthly appt. with the midwife on Thursday, then my next u/s with MFM the 25th, right after returning from St Thomas, and I'm guessing my next OB appt will be that week too, then our anatomy scan on April 10th at 19 weeks.