OB Appointment #12

Yesterday marked another appointment with my wonderful doc. I was really anxious to talk with her since I had been feeling pretty great throughout this whole pregnancy until this last week.....thinking that maybe Peanut was on their way a little sooner than expected. As it turns out feeling icky, crampy, having weird things come out (sorry if that's TMI) and having erratic contractions some days are just part of the end time of pregnancy. She mentioned that this was why some women chose to not work up until the end of pregnancy, even though it is just fine to do so. So, I'll take my lumps along with the occasional Tylenol. I've been so extremely lucky this far with feeling well, it couldn't all be that easy, right?

My curiosity was also getting the best of me as to whether or not all these cramps and contractions were doing anything to help Peanut settle into their transition. As it turns out, we made some good progress this last week. I'm still only dilated to 1cm, but my cervix has gone from 0% effaced to 50% effaced. Peanut too, has started to descend from basically free-floating in his/her private "pool" to the -2 pelvic station. Below is an illustration to give you an idea of what the pelvic stations are.

Easter Chicks & Bunnies Galore

Happy Easter everyone! We wish we would have been able to make it home this weekend, but we weren't sure that we wanted to make the drive at this stage. We'll be there again when we can.

Since my last OB appointment, all sorts of interesting things have been happening! I'll try to keep things light for the young, uninitiated, or otherwise casual reader. Since last visiting the doc and being checked, a number of interesting....things have been emerging in varying consistencies and colors. That might sound like TMI, but it's the most painless way I can describe it. It's a really good thing that I have some good friends, forums and books to refer to so I kind of knew this was coming! HA HA.

Today, while driving to Milwaukee in search of some Easter lunch I had a few pretty intense 'squeezes' fairly close together. These seemed a little bit different than the other squeezes that I've had in the past, but still not what I would call painful...just more intense. However, once we got some lunch and liquids into us, everything seemed to quiet down.....well, that is except for Peanut to resume their methodical torture of my internal organs. That is the part that is really starting to become painful!

If anyone wants to know any more detail, give me a call on my cell, I'll get there sooner or later, depending on where I set it down, and how soon I remember where I placed it! ;) So, for a brief while today, I thought that you all might become aunts and uncles today. I mentioned to Dan, though, that I did not want to be the one to take the docs away from their families today. Peanut has been happy to oblige. However, they're letting their presence be known by a particularly intense set of hiccups at the moment. I'm pulling for April 1 now! I think Grandma R. would have gotten a kick out of that. :)

OB Appointment #11

The first weekly appointment was today! There were all the regular elements as with previous visits. Urine sample, weight, BP, belly measurement, Peanut's heartbeat (today it was 137 BPM - giving me an added flipped intuition that now Peanut is a boy...and always has been. Time will tell.) Liz told me that until today, the heart rates have always been solidly in the girl range, but that as the heart matures to where Peanut could be born, it settles in towards where it will be in the outside world. Makes sense, and makes me thing even more strongly now, that the 'Nut is a boy, despite my feelings of 'girl' throughout most of the pregnancy.

I talked with Liz about what I'd learned about the CSE and about a whole host of other things. Then it was time for the strep test and to be 'checked' for the first time since becoming pregnant. I told her that I already thought I knew what she was going to tell me. With how I feel and how the baby seems to be sitting, I figured she'd tell me everything was still 'locked down.' So, she was expecting to have to work hard to check the progress. Well, she didn't have to look too far. I guess things have started to flip forward. My cervix is not effaced at all, but I'm dilated to 1 cm already. Huh. I figured I would have known SOMETHING like that was going on, but I guess I have had a few interesting days with contracting....but nothing that is really distracting yet. So, she got to touch Peanut's head and pushed on them a little to see how engaged they were. Peanut is still able to bounce around quite happily in their little private pool, so she says I probably have a couple of weeks yet.

At least she was able to confirm that the Nut is head down. We've thought they have been for quite awhile now just through feeling my belly and where I feel the hiccups when he/she gets a fit of them. So, this appointment kind of made it hit home... 'holy $&(*, there really is someone in there, and they're going to come meet us....soon!'

Child Birth Prep Class #3

Yesterday, it was time again for another class. This segment talked about C-sections, other labor and delivery interventions and the pain management options that are available at the hospital where we're planning to deliver. It was a really informative and interesting class, although I think most of us in the class could have done without the videos of watching the C-section births. It wasn't the births themselves that bothered me, it was the way the docs seemed to be rough when pulling the incision apart with metal tongs to get to the uterus and the digging around in there, etc. It was unsettling to see that happening to a person, who, on the other side of the screen was awake, smiling, and talking to her husband like nothing was going on....but on the near side. What do they call that in cinematography where you can see what's going to happen but the character can't yet? I don't recall the term with my current brain function, but you guys know what I mean.

We got to see what a vacuum looked like, as well as the internal monitoring that the can use on the baby if they're concerned, neither of those looked particularly fun...however the least fun-looking thing was a pair of forceps that the nurse passed around. Nooooo thank you! Talk about an eye opening prop! The nurse was quick to say, though, that there is only one provider at St. Joseph's hospital that will use the forceps, and he's never used them in his 7 years at the hospital. I know that my doc will try the vacuum if she thinks it's necessary, but she says that she has to be really concerned for the baby. Her mode of operation agrees with so much of what I THINK I want (but not knowing, who knows?), that I've had to specify very little in the way of a birth plan so far.

The other topic of note in the class was the drug/epidural portion. That part was really good for us to see. What our hospital offers is unlike anything that I've heard of so far. Usually, when I hear of an epidural, they give you the meds thru a catheter in your back and then that's it - you're stuck in bed. I didn't want that at all. St. Joseph's offers what they call a CSE, which stands for combined-spinal/epidural. Basically, it is a shot of pain meds into your spine that can last from 1 to 3 hours that allows you to retain all your alertness and motor function so you can still walk the halls, use the birthing ball, etc, etc. While they have a needle in the spot to deliver those meds, they place the epidural catheter in place and tape it off in case it's needed so they don't have the additional risk of having to stick you in the spinal cord again. Once the spinal wears off and if you are in need of more pain relief, they will administer an epidural thru the catheter that's already in place....however, then they do like you to stick close to bed for monitoring. By that stage in the game with the CSE, though, things should be about ready to go anyway. My biggest worry with any sort of drug intervention was Peanut's safety. According to the anesthetist, my doc, and the studies they've done with this CSE, the drugs are not metabolized by the baby. There are no byproducts found in the amniotic fluid, and the babies are not born "sleepy." So, with so many other things...since we haven't experienced it yet...we shall see. I'm keeping an open mind at this point.

Survey time!

Ok guys, it's time for some feedback! I've been asking women (and men, actually) this who are parents and have been getting a lot of great answers. These are the kinds of things that I feel help prepare us most for what's coming because of the nature of the question. So, I'm going to post the question to all of you gals (and guys) reading. Please post a comment with your answer so I can remember what you tell me! hee hee No need to leave a name if that makes you uncomfortable. Here goes:

What was the one thing that most surprised you about becoming a parent?

There are no wrong answers. The beauty of this is that it will give us a little insight to things that other new parents didn't expect as they were heading into parenthood. Don't worry, you won't scare us. :) Happy posting!

Nesting?

So these past couple weeks, I've had the urge to organize stuff at home. Things having to do with getting ready for Peanut in particular. Is this the so-called 'nesting' thing that comes near the end? It's interesting, the things that I feel I need to do. Honestly, we've done a fair amount of preparation already, so if Peanut was to come right NOW, we'd be ready....gear and organizational wise anyway. That being said...this afternoon I felt like I needed to accomplish something....something that wasn't of the routine nature....again, felt like it should be Peanut oriented, but there really wasn't anything to do at this point in that area. So, what did I do? Vacuumed, cleaned the bathroom, cleaned the kitchen, did the laundry.....and alphabetized my spice rack. Seriously....alphabetized my spice rack? Where has my mind gone?

Child Birth Prep Class #2

We attended the second of four 'Child Birth Prep' classes last night. We reviewed the stages of labor, watched another couple of movies, which showed a lot of different ways of coping with the labor process and a couple of births. The whole process seems pretty amazing. The body can do some insane things. After that, it as the portion of the class that Dan and I dreaded. Yes, it was time to learn how to "breathe." We must have not been the only ones to feel a bit weird with this....I think the only one 'shushing' with her breath was the nurse teaching the class. She handed out clothes pins to us all to put on our fingers during a 'contraction' yep, even the guys). That...was really cheesy, but what else are you going to do I guess. Luckily, that part of the class is all over now...this next Monday we get to talk about the DRUGS! HA! I know a lot of women who swear by the epidural, and many who say it's a natural thing and to just go with it. Honestly, I can only lean one way or another until I get there. Right now, from what I've learned, I'm leaning towards the natural way simply because I don't want to be stuck on my back in bed just because I've had an epidural, being on your back is one of the most inefficient ways to deliver, I'm not too crazy about the cath thing, and the last thing I read a couple of nights ago said that the epidural does cross the placenta. I don't know if I like that idea. Anyway, we'll learn all about those things next Monday. Having never been in labor, all we can do is gather as much info as possible, and the only conclusion that I've drawn so far is that labor and delivery is different for everybody.

OB Appointment #10

Another checkup with the doc today! All the usual things apply. Heart rate was a slightly slower 146 BPM, Peanut is still head down, and he/she decided to kick at Liz when she applied the Doppler to listen. So enthusiastically, in fact, that Liz saw that whole side of my abdomen move. I commented to Liz how no one told me how much it sucks to lose all of your mobility and to make sighing and groaning noises every time I get up or sit down. Her reply, "What, no one told you about the 'beached whale' syndrome?" Ha ha, I love my doc, it just gets easier and easier for me to talk with her. I told her about my fall last week (yep, yet another graceful moment in my pregnancy...ended up flat on my back and up to my ears in snow). I told her I didn't worry because I fell on my back/hip and while I was driving to work shortly after that, Peanut was up to their 10 moves in a little over 10 minutes like usual. She said there was nothing to worry about since movements were normal and there were no signs of distress to either of us....which is what I kind of figured. However, I think I would have panicked a little had I fallen forward. This time when she asked me if there had been any contracting going on, I could give her a more definite answer. I think I've been having a few of these so-called 'practice' contractions in the evenings at the end of the day when I'm tired and just trying to get the house stuff done, but nothing that has really concerned me or stopped me in my tracks to this point. I was the last scheduled patient that Liz was going to see this afternoon, another of her patients came in last night when her water broke....so after seeing me, she was off to welcome someone else's Peanut! She lit up a little when she told me that, it's obvious she loves her job.

My next appointment is on March 20th, and after that, it's every week. It won't be long now...

Child Birth Prep - Class 1

Yep, it was that time yesterday. The time to face the first of the 4 classes that would teach us about the upcoming appearance of Peanut. We learned about the signs of labor, the stages of labor, positioning of the baby at birth, learned some exercises that might help before and during labor, and got to watch a couple of nifty videos of natural labor and birth....um....yea. I don't think any of the information in the class really surprised either Dan or I...but some of the things the couples in the video were doing...well, let's just say we won't be doing those. I'll keep it at that in case there are some younger readers about. It sounds like, though, that each class throughout the month will approach different topics, and it isn't going to be the "Lamaze" classes that we were afraid that it might be, so that's a relief. On a side note, there were roughly 13 couples in the class, and our due date was the CLOSEST. Now THAT was kind of an eye opener.

Party Time, Part 2

This weekend Dan and I made the trek back to IA for what will probably be the last time before Peanut arrives. Dan took some time and hung out with his family and met up with some of his buddies from college, while I went on to Waterloo. One of my roomies from college is due April 14th, and some friends threw her a shower there. I was happy to get the invite! Another gal that I met in college thru Jen is also pregnant, due 2 months after we are. It is a great experience to be able to discuss the ins and outs of the things that are happening with us....the similarities and the differences. There's a lot of information out there, and every class, doctor, and article has at least a slightly different take on things, so it's really awesome to be able to share and discuss these things with friends who are going through the same process.

It's customary sometimes to bring a package of diapers to a gal's shower to help the new parents prepare for the upcoming needs of an infant. For some reason, I decided that instead of just bringing a package of diapers for Jen, that I would make her a diaper cake. This is a pretty girly concept, and a bit out of my comfort zone, since I usually consider myself a non-girlie girl but....if I have to tell the truth, it was kind of fun to build. Who knew a Size 1 diaper could be a used as a structural member?

Here is a picture of the finished product: