Baby Shower

It's not common to have a baby shower with the second baby, but my friends from Baby Boot Camp days decided to have one for me anyway. (This was February 24 but I forgot to blog about it.) We went to Olive Garden and unfortunately I forgot to bring my camera but my friends Jamie, Kim, Tonya, Kara, and Lisa were there and we had a good time laughing and talking. It was strange to realize that out of all of us we had 12 births but only one was a vaginal birth. That's a lot of cesareans! I really enjoyed opening up my little girl gifts - so many cute outfits and I loved the diaper cake! The next day we also had a play date/baby shower for Kerry who has since had her second baby. I feel very blessed by these women, and it's fun to get excited about my girl with other moms. I appreciate the effort they make to stay connected even though I live in Vancouver now, and we no longer have our Baby Boot Camp exercise.

I also like to glean advice from moms with multiple kids. One mom said to stay in the hospital an extra day if I can because although I'll want to get back to Desmond as soon as possible, it's really hard going home. Best to use the help from the hospital staff while you can. Plus my labor and delivery will be free since I met my out-of-pocket maximum, so might as well. The other thing I've heard a lot is that the physical side of having a second child is one thing, but the hardest part is the emotional side. You can no longer focus all your attention and affection on one child. Learning to balance that will be hard. Desmond's my little guy and we are both used to spending all day, every day together. Maybe I should plan a few more special things to do with him in the next seven weeks.

First Non-Stress Test

Here come the doctor's visits! I have 13 appointments scheduled for the next seven weeks: a non-stress test every week, a check up every two weeks, and an ultrasound every four weeks. This baby will be well checked. I don't like having the non-stress tests so much because any little thing might cause them to send me to the hospital or want to do an induction or whatever. So I'm praying that she'll check out perfectly every time. Also I have to find someone to watch Desmond for these 45 minute tests because I have to lay still the whole time.

Monday was my first non-stress test (NST). The fluid measured just right but it looked like she was sleeping at first which isn't ideal. Toward the end we got in the heart rate variation and extended acceleration they require for a "pass." The quick ultrasound also showed that she is head down. I thought she had flipped because my pelvis has really been hurting - as in it hurts to walk most of the time - so I figured her head was resting down there. Also my bladder has been spared and all the kicking has been on the top lately.

I also had my 32 week check up right after the NST. Dr. Wright talked to me about labor stuff. They want me to check in to the hospital early once labor starts rather than laboring for awhile at home, and they also want me on the epidural early rather than waiting until closer to transition. All this is to monitor me closely due to the VBAC situation and to keep the stress low on my body due to the heart stuff. This basically goes against what I had planned to do. I felt I was at the hospital too early last time, and I want to do more early labor at home. I also want to wait as long as possible to get the epidural so we don't start intervening too early and possibly slow down the natural process. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how I'm feeling when the ball starts to roll.

Dr. Wright also told me she won't let me go too much past my due date since they don't want the baby to get too big and they can't use all the intervention they might otherwise use to induce since this is a VBAC and they have to be more gentle with my uterus. I hope our dating is correct and she shows up on time! Everything just needs to go perfectly to make this a VBAC. They'll assess me at 38 weeks with another ultrasound to see how big baby is, positioning, and all that to come up with a probability for a successful VBAC. A certain number of risk factors will cause them to suggest a repeat cesarean. I'd really rather not have another cesarean, but I feel much more prepared for it if that's what happens. It won't take away the joy of having our daughter! And how nice it would be to walk into the hospital and a few hours later be holding our baby!

I'm getting the nesting urge this week. I cleaned a lot yesterday and I feel like continuing today. I just have to get it done quickly before my back is screaming at me. Maybe today I'll finally start her curtains.

Ultrasounds

I had another ultrasound today at exactly 30 weeks to check baby’s growth. I was supposed to have one in January but cancelled it due to finances. These things cost almost $400! Since I was in the hospital recently I’ve nearly met my out of pocket maximum and at the most I’ll only have to pay 20% now. The cardiologist really wants me to continue checking up on her via ultrasounds and I am glad to see her again anyway.

Everything checked out fine. She’s growing well and is in the 83rd percentile which is excellent. She weighs about 3.5 pounds now and we could see her practicing her breathing. The above pictures show her face straight on and from the side (the top of her head is on the left). It looks like she has chubby little cheeks. The technician could also see hair on her head.

The new thing I learned is that she’s currently in the breech position. It’s still okay since she has time to turn, but I’d feel better if she were already head down. As she gets bigger it will be harder to turn, and I don’t know that I want to attempt a breech VBAC. She was head down for my December ultrasound sitting so low they had a hard time seeing her face. She tends to move a lot so maybe she’s been flipping back and forth. Currently her back is on my left side and I feel all the action from those arms and legs on the right.

Here are her earlier ultrasounds:

Sept. 17, 2010 – 8 weeks Oct. 21, 2010 – 12 weeks

Dec. 3, 2010 – 19 weeks

Tiny Baby Clothes and Shrinking Maternity Clothes

I made quite a haul at the consignment clearance sale last Saturday. I got there about twenty minutes early and waited in line with about thirty other people to get in when they opened. I've already gone through Desmond's old clothes so I knew what sizes I still needed. I grabbed anything cute I saw and ended up with one bag full of 56 items all for only $15. I saved $147 off of the original consignment prices. By the time I left the clearance racks were just about empty so I'm glad I got there when I did. I feel good about what I got and it's nice to know she'll have some pink girly things to wear, too. I probably won't do any more clothes shopping for her unless I find I need something else after she's born.

In other news I'm just feeling huge these days! I updated my picture on the right sidebar today. I don't just get the little belly like some of the other pregnant gals I see at church who are due before me and are about half my size. Nope. Everything gets huge on me and I'm now solidly in the 200s. I know it's bad when Desmond starts lifting my shirt in the back and poking my back fat and laughing. Yeah. I chose to laugh with him, but I feel like I could cry. Some of my maternity clothes are starting to not fit, and I'm wearing a fake ring now since my fingers even get fat. Blah. And I have three more months to expand! I'm going to be right back where I started when this is done with about two years of weight loss in front of me. Maybe I can speed it up and do it in one year but that's probably not entirely realistic.

Normal Discomforts

I’m definitely feeling pregnant. I’ve entered the uncomfortable stage though it’s still mild at this point. Sleep has still been fine so that’s nice.

Normal discomforts at this stage:

• Pelvic pain – feels like my pelvis is bruised
• Back pain – should wear my brace more but that brings it’s own discomfort
• Constipation
• Getting my bladder kicked – talk about sudden urge to pee!
• Gotta do a plié squat to bend over
• The kitchen counter hits my belly – I can still manage to lift my tummy to rest it on top, but not for much longer
• Feeling the effects of being almost 40 pounds heavier – I feel out of shape because I am

I still love the fact that I feel her move so much. Yesterday the doctor said she’s measuring big from what she can feel so that’s good. I still have over three months to carry her so the discomforts will intensify, but it’s all worth it. I can’t wait to hold her!

I also just got back my glucose screening results and I do not have gestational diabetes. Hurray for one less thing to worry about!

Cheap Clothes!

I always have my eye out for good prices on kid’s clothes because every time I turn around Desmond needs a new wardrobe.  By “good” I mean $2 or so.  Yes, I am cheap.  Every now and then I go into my favorite consignment shop Once Upon a Child and now is the time for their winter clearance.  They have a huge bag sale twice a year where you can get all the clearance clothes you can stuff in a bag for $15, but it’s a crazy busy event and you have to go in with lots of patience to wrestle the crowd, plus last time I didn’t find any worthwhile 3T stuff.  This sale is better for infant clothes where you can make quite a haul.

Before this huge sale they mark down all their clearance to $1 so that’s when I like to shop.  I went the other day to look for shirts for Desmond.  Almost all his 3T stuff is getting too short in the torso and arms.  I found a few things for him, but there’s just not much clearance in his size.  Then I moved on to peruse the baby girl clothes and they have tons of it!  I was especially excited about a cute embroidered jacket and a red velvet dress I got for only a dollar each!  I had to limit myself to only the really cute things because I can always go back and get lots of girl stuff at the bag sale on February 5th.  I ended up leaving with a bag full of clothes for both Desmond and baby and I saved $50 off the regular consignment prices which are considerably lower than retail to begin with.  Hurray for good deals!

New Medications and Complications

Last week I was hospitalized from Tuesday afternoon through Friday morning.  My heart went back into atrial fibrillation.  You can read the full story on our family blog.  I was worried about it because no matter what I did I felt like it was going to negatively impact my baby.  Even if I did nothing I was putting her at risk because I could have a stroke and she might not be getting the blood flow she needed.  At least she’s a mover and I could feel her kicking and squirming around which comforted me. 

Finally after 54 hours my heart returned to a normal rhythm on its own.  I think the new medication helped and now it’s a daily regimen at least until the baby is delivered.  I just hope she grows big enough and doesn’t have any heart defects because of my medication.  At least her heart is already formed and has been pumping for awhile.

I guess I’m a high risk pregnancy now.  I’ll have to ask my OB.  I was borderline before but now that I’ve demonstrated that I can go back into a-fib and I’m on blood thinners and other meds, they’re going to watch me even more closely.  I also wonder if they’ll just want to do a cesarean to prevent any labor complications and stress on my heart. 

My pregnancy with Desmond was easy, but the delivery was complicated and not what I expected.  This time the pregnancy has been complicated so I’m hoping the delivery will be easy.  It’s only fair, right?

Tuesday I get to see my OB doctor Tricia Wright again.  I really like her and she even stopped in to see me at the hospital which was a big relief to me.  I cried when I was talking with her.  I also get to do my glucose test for gestational diabetes at this appointment so I’m hoping I’ll pass that with flying colors so I don’t have to worry about anything new.

I had a growth check ultrasound scheduled for this coming Friday, but I cancelled it because it was going to cost $400.  I figured she’s probably fine and even if she was a bit small, what could we do about it?  Anyway, we have to pay for everything again until we meet the deductible and then we have to pay 20% until we meet the out-of-pocket maximum.  With this hospitalization we may have met both.  We were hoping to wait until delivery to shell out lots of cash on my medical stuff since we’re still trying to recover from the new roof, but we’ll be getting a huge bill soon. I might reschedule the ultrasound since I know we’ve at least met the deductible.  It takes awhile to get in though.  Hopefully labor and delivery will be free now.

I’m not too happy about all my weight gain.  The beds in the hospital can weigh you (weird, huh) and according to that I’ve just entered the 200s.  That’s about right considering my last prenatal appointment weight.  I indulged a bit too much during the holidays and I still haven’t picked up a work out routine.  Now I kind of use my heart issues as an excuse not to push myself.  I can’t have chocolate any more because of the caffeine and we’re still sticking to no ice cream or frozen treats since that’s usually what I’ve been eating when the a-fib started in the past so maybe those restrictions will help a bit.