My friend Staci took this picture, she's a photographer in the Ventura area.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
30 Weeks!
We've made it to 30 weeks. Seven weeks of bedrest done! At 32 weeks, my doctor will let us go take our hospital tour and child-birth classes. So that's the next big milestone. The doctor is really happy with the progress (or lack of progress, however you want to look at it) we're making. I'm still getting the shots of progesterone weekly. Next week we have another ultrasound, probably the last one we'll have. They'll measure the baby's growth and estimate her weight.
My friend Staci took this picture, she's a photographer in the Ventura area.
My friend Staci took this picture, she's a photographer in the Ventura area.
Friday, February 19, 2010
29 Weeks and Counting
Well, I've officially been on bedrest for six weeks. Amazing. Looking back, it's gone by faster than I thought it would, thankfully. I've done a handful of knitting projects, ordered some stuff for the baby's room, and gotten some things organized. Like our address book, for example. Send me an e-mail with your address and birthday if you want to be included in our new and improved address book. I've also been going through cookbooks and magazines and making a list of "must-make" dishes. Once I'm able to be on my feet for more than 10 minutes, I'm looking forward to cooking. Do you have a "must-make" dish? If so, send me the recipe along with its story (as to why it's so great or where you found it) and I'll add it to my list!
This week was full of visitors, which I love! Everyone's reaction is the same..."this is what you do all day" as they look at me laying on the couch. Yep, that's it! A big day for me is when I go to the doctor and actually get out of the house. Or when I have a visitor. My friend Staci came down from Ventura to knit with me and take some maternity pictures. I'm hoping to have them sometime this weekend, and will post them here. My neighbors Ciara and Denise have brought over movies and spent time with me on the couch catching me up on what's happening in the outside world. One of my former employees, Cionie, came by yesterday bringing wonderful food and gifts from her trip to the Philipines. It's always so good to see her, she is coming up on the first anniversary of her retirement from IP and her husband is getting ready to retire. She's on the go non-stop, and I'm so happy she's enjoying her retirement! That's why we're all working, right? So we can eventually stop working and get on with the stuff we really want to do!
I hope you all have a great weekend, don't forget to leave a comment! You can also sign up to follow our blog, that way you know when it's updated. Just cick on the "follow" button on the right hand side. Thanks for stopping by : )
This week was full of visitors, which I love! Everyone's reaction is the same..."this is what you do all day" as they look at me laying on the couch. Yep, that's it! A big day for me is when I go to the doctor and actually get out of the house. Or when I have a visitor. My friend Staci came down from Ventura to knit with me and take some maternity pictures. I'm hoping to have them sometime this weekend, and will post them here. My neighbors Ciara and Denise have brought over movies and spent time with me on the couch catching me up on what's happening in the outside world. One of my former employees, Cionie, came by yesterday bringing wonderful food and gifts from her trip to the Philipines. It's always so good to see her, she is coming up on the first anniversary of her retirement from IP and her husband is getting ready to retire. She's on the go non-stop, and I'm so happy she's enjoying her retirement! That's why we're all working, right? So we can eventually stop working and get on with the stuff we really want to do!
I hope you all have a great weekend, don't forget to leave a comment! You can also sign up to follow our blog, that way you know when it's updated. Just cick on the "follow" button on the right hand side. Thanks for stopping by : )
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
I was just thinking....
about things I can't wait to do when I'm finished with bedrest.
1. Walk. Around the block, around the world, whatever.
2. Get a manicure and pedicure.
3. Get a massage.
4. Get a facial.
5. Clean the house.
6. Spend time in my craft room.
7. Get back to my photography.
8. Do Pilates.
9. Cook and bake.
10. Plant some tomatoes, herbs and veggies.
That's just off the top of my head. Just a few more months!
1. Walk. Around the block, around the world, whatever.
2. Get a manicure and pedicure.
3. Get a massage.
4. Get a facial.
5. Clean the house.
6. Spend time in my craft room.
7. Get back to my photography.
8. Do Pilates.
9. Cook and bake.
10. Plant some tomatoes, herbs and veggies.
That's just off the top of my head. Just a few more months!
Monday, February 8, 2010
A Visit From Uncle Charles
Yesterday, Uncle Charles came to visit. He has been on a three-week cross country trip visiting friends and family. It was a quick visit, but a good one. We really enjoyed seeing him. He's en-route back to Alabama.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
The Belly
So many of you have asked to see it, so here it is. The nightgown is vintage, from my great-aunt Cath's collection of beautiful things.
Friday, February 5, 2010
More Ultrasound Pictures and Lots of Updates
These didn't scan very well, but hopefully you can see some of the important stuff. Since the last update, LOTS has happened! First, we found out that we're having a girl! We're so excited, and can't wait to meet her. But along those lines, we also found out that I'm at high risk for delivering early. I have what they call an "incompetent cervix" meaning that the pressure from the weight of the baby and my expanding uterus, etc. is too much for my cervix to handle, causing it to prematurely shorten. A "normal" cervical length is anything greater than 2.5cm, and shortening "normally" happens naturally as labor begins. Apparently cervical incompetence is a pretty rare thing, affecting only 1-2% of pregnancies.
At our appointment on December 16 (at 20 weeks), my cervical length was 3.5cm which was normal, but shorter than my original measurement of 4cm (at 15 weeks). Since it was slightly shorter, they wanted me to come back on January 8 (23 weeks). At that appointment, it was down to 1.5cm and my doctor put me on immediate bed rest and a weekly progesterone shot. I'm basically limited to getting up to go to the bathroom or take a shower, no working. I had to go in again on January 15 (24 weeks) where it measured .9cm. I went back again on January 21 (25 weeks) and my cervical length was back up to 2.7cm, which was great news. Additional good news was that the baby weighed in at about 1 pound 12 ounces. As a result, I didn't have to go back for a measurement until yesterday, February 4 (27 weeks). Unfortunately, the measurement was back down to 1.2cm.
What's frustrating (aside from laying on the couch all day) is that the doctors can't really explain why this happens or what to expect as far as when I might deliver. I could go into labor today, or anytime between now and my due date in May. Now, I had to take statistics in college twice. But a 13 week variance on a 40 week pregnancy seems like a ridiculous deviation. So, we just take it one day at a time. The days have added up to 4 weeks TODAY, and have taken us from 23 weeks to 27 weeks. If I were to deliver at this point, the baby would have about an 85% chance of survival with about a 72% chance of not developing major complications (althought it would certainly not be an easy road with lots of time spent in the NICU before she could come home).
That pretty much gets us caught up. Dan has been a great nurse, and makes sure I have everything I need. We're really very lucky for a bunch of reasons. First, that Dan gets to work from home. He's here whenever I need something and is able to go to all of our doctor appointments. Second, we have great insurance, both disability and health. We know how lucky we are, believe me and we're glad we both work for wonderful companies that provide such great benefits at a relatively low cost to us. Third, my blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, etc. all continue to be good...each of those things if they were out of whack could further increase the risk of delivering early.
Here I am in my spot on the couch. I had just woken up from a nap (I'm not that sickly looking in real life). This was taken during week 25 (week 2 of bedrest). For those following the "extremely large blanket project," said blanket is pictured here. It's a combination of all kinds of wonderful yarns, a bunch of old ones that were my grandma's, some beautiful silks, mohair, angora, ribbon, wool, etc. Dan's very excited about it because I've gone through a TON of my stash. It's truly a beautiful and comfortable blanket, I love it. It's going to be huge though. HUGE. Like 10'x13'. It's about half way done. I'm not sure where it's going to go or how functional it's going to be but I still like it, and it keeps me busy. I am now a big believer in checking my gauge. Shirley Todd, I know you'd be proud that I'm finally on board with that, 20 years later. All it takes is making a blanket that could carpet a room : )
At our appointment on December 16 (at 20 weeks), my cervical length was 3.5cm which was normal, but shorter than my original measurement of 4cm (at 15 weeks). Since it was slightly shorter, they wanted me to come back on January 8 (23 weeks). At that appointment, it was down to 1.5cm and my doctor put me on immediate bed rest and a weekly progesterone shot. I'm basically limited to getting up to go to the bathroom or take a shower, no working. I had to go in again on January 15 (24 weeks) where it measured .9cm. I went back again on January 21 (25 weeks) and my cervical length was back up to 2.7cm, which was great news. Additional good news was that the baby weighed in at about 1 pound 12 ounces. As a result, I didn't have to go back for a measurement until yesterday, February 4 (27 weeks). Unfortunately, the measurement was back down to 1.2cm.
What's frustrating (aside from laying on the couch all day) is that the doctors can't really explain why this happens or what to expect as far as when I might deliver. I could go into labor today, or anytime between now and my due date in May. Now, I had to take statistics in college twice. But a 13 week variance on a 40 week pregnancy seems like a ridiculous deviation. So, we just take it one day at a time. The days have added up to 4 weeks TODAY, and have taken us from 23 weeks to 27 weeks. If I were to deliver at this point, the baby would have about an 85% chance of survival with about a 72% chance of not developing major complications (althought it would certainly not be an easy road with lots of time spent in the NICU before she could come home).
That pretty much gets us caught up. Dan has been a great nurse, and makes sure I have everything I need. We're really very lucky for a bunch of reasons. First, that Dan gets to work from home. He's here whenever I need something and is able to go to all of our doctor appointments. Second, we have great insurance, both disability and health. We know how lucky we are, believe me and we're glad we both work for wonderful companies that provide such great benefits at a relatively low cost to us. Third, my blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, etc. all continue to be good...each of those things if they were out of whack could further increase the risk of delivering early.
Here I am in my spot on the couch. I had just woken up from a nap (I'm not that sickly looking in real life). This was taken during week 25 (week 2 of bedrest). For those following the "extremely large blanket project," said blanket is pictured here. It's a combination of all kinds of wonderful yarns, a bunch of old ones that were my grandma's, some beautiful silks, mohair, angora, ribbon, wool, etc. Dan's very excited about it because I've gone through a TON of my stash. It's truly a beautiful and comfortable blanket, I love it. It's going to be huge though. HUGE. Like 10'x13'. It's about half way done. I'm not sure where it's going to go or how functional it's going to be but I still like it, and it keeps me busy. I am now a big believer in checking my gauge. Shirley Todd, I know you'd be proud that I'm finally on board with that, 20 years later. All it takes is making a blanket that could carpet a room : )
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