which I promise I will soon provide, but in the meantime, a bit of good news.
The baby boy is growing! 6 lbs. 3 oz. at my 35 1/2 week ultrasound today. We're looking at a 7 1/2 lb. baby, at least! Yeah! I don't think Maura was 6 lbs. until she was 2 months old.
He's no longer breech, either, which is a shocker, as he has been most of the pregnancy. Literally yesterday I was planning my c-section with the doctor, just waiting for final confirmation at today's ultrasound that he was in fact still breech. Now it's just a waiting game!
I promise an update with pictures later this week.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
back to the real world
I've been living so much to make sure I follow all my restrictions, do as I'm told, take it easy, etc. that somehow a month has passed since I last updated.
All is well, as best as can be.
I have done what they have told me, and as a result, I've made it to 32 weeks with no additional complications, and only a few bouts of aches and pains from doing too much. But all and all, just like the bed rest, the restrictions do become second nature after a while. I miss being able to live my life as normal, but it feels like we're finally in the home stretch. I'm so excited to meet him, and I'm trying my best (from a seated position) to do my best to get ready for him. We have most of the things we need, and although I haven't been able to get out a pick out cute outfits and things, we've got the basics and online shopping has become my new evening activity. We're still going to be borrowing a lot, but that's just how it goes. The tape is up in the room, ready to be painted, and that will happen in the next few weeks. I'm back to my usual obsessing; this time, it's about finding the right pj's to take with me to the hospital so I don't have to be in a gown the whole time like I was with Maura. I'll feel so much more human, but I really don't need to obsess quite this much. I'm packing my hospital bag tonight, and had Jay go to Target to get me sample size toiletries so I could have everything I need. I'm making a list tonight, too, of things I need to throw in the bag at the last minute.
I feel comfortable and ready to do all of this because the baby is growing just fine. At our appointment on Wednesday at 32 weeks, he was 4 lbs. 3 oz., just 12 oz. shy of Maura's birth weight, which is pretty unbelievable. He'll grow (hopefully) a half pound a week for the next 8 weeks, so if I deliver around 40 weeks, he should be 8 lbs. or so. Perfect. I'm still nervous about the growth because this is about when Maura stopped, but they're watching me closely and I'm trying to relax. We had a non-stress test today, and his heart rate was great with no contractions on my part. I am breathing a little easier. Here's the man, sucking his thumb like his momma and sister:
Maura is doing great. As I've said before, she's quite the toddler, and it is frustrating for her to want things and not be able to say them. We're working on her speech, and she gets better everyday. She still cannot/won't/doesn't say Momma or Mommy, which is tough. I know once she does say it she'll go overboard and I'll regret that I was worried, but I just don't feel too good about hearing Dada all the time and nothing even close to resembling Momma. I'm trying not to get a complex. At 19 months now, she is smart, creative, adorable, cranky, cuddly, spastic and focused, and every other mix of characteristics you can think of. She is currently obsessed with her activity table my Mom bought her last weekend, and this morning, refused to have her diaper changed and instead insisted on coloring at 6:30 a.m. She looked so beautiful I had to take pictures:
All in all, the next few weeks will fly by, I'm sure, as most of our weekends are fully booked and work is plenty busy and life must go on without us holding our breath. I'm so ready to meet him already, but hoping to hold out just a little while longer.
All is well, as best as can be.
I have done what they have told me, and as a result, I've made it to 32 weeks with no additional complications, and only a few bouts of aches and pains from doing too much. But all and all, just like the bed rest, the restrictions do become second nature after a while. I miss being able to live my life as normal, but it feels like we're finally in the home stretch. I'm so excited to meet him, and I'm trying my best (from a seated position) to do my best to get ready for him. We have most of the things we need, and although I haven't been able to get out a pick out cute outfits and things, we've got the basics and online shopping has become my new evening activity. We're still going to be borrowing a lot, but that's just how it goes. The tape is up in the room, ready to be painted, and that will happen in the next few weeks. I'm back to my usual obsessing; this time, it's about finding the right pj's to take with me to the hospital so I don't have to be in a gown the whole time like I was with Maura. I'll feel so much more human, but I really don't need to obsess quite this much. I'm packing my hospital bag tonight, and had Jay go to Target to get me sample size toiletries so I could have everything I need. I'm making a list tonight, too, of things I need to throw in the bag at the last minute.
I feel comfortable and ready to do all of this because the baby is growing just fine. At our appointment on Wednesday at 32 weeks, he was 4 lbs. 3 oz., just 12 oz. shy of Maura's birth weight, which is pretty unbelievable. He'll grow (hopefully) a half pound a week for the next 8 weeks, so if I deliver around 40 weeks, he should be 8 lbs. or so. Perfect. I'm still nervous about the growth because this is about when Maura stopped, but they're watching me closely and I'm trying to relax. We had a non-stress test today, and his heart rate was great with no contractions on my part. I am breathing a little easier. Here's the man, sucking his thumb like his momma and sister:
Maura is doing great. As I've said before, she's quite the toddler, and it is frustrating for her to want things and not be able to say them. We're working on her speech, and she gets better everyday. She still cannot/won't/doesn't say Momma or Mommy, which is tough. I know once she does say it she'll go overboard and I'll regret that I was worried, but I just don't feel too good about hearing Dada all the time and nothing even close to resembling Momma. I'm trying not to get a complex. At 19 months now, she is smart, creative, adorable, cranky, cuddly, spastic and focused, and every other mix of characteristics you can think of. She is currently obsessed with her activity table my Mom bought her last weekend, and this morning, refused to have her diaper changed and instead insisted on coloring at 6:30 a.m. She looked so beautiful I had to take pictures:
All in all, the next few weeks will fly by, I'm sure, as most of our weekends are fully booked and work is plenty busy and life must go on without us holding our breath. I'm so ready to meet him already, but hoping to hold out just a little while longer.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
A Round of Updates
So much for things being pretty uneventful lately. A bunch of updates:
Mauralicious:
At her 18 month appointment, she was a whopping 20 lbs. 14 oz. and 30 inches, down from the 9th to 7th percentile. Can I get a growth spurt? Please? Pedi's not concerned as this basically follows her usual curve, but my word, she's a peanut. But she's doing AMAZING -- running around, talking more, all around a true joy. Meals are still the most frustrating part of the day, but I think it's par for the course for most toddlers so I try not to let it stress me out. Overall, she is like this most hours of most days:
The Momma:
I had a bit of a scare on Friday (at 27w2d) and started bleeding and ended up in labor and delivery, so I'm on bed rest this week and then very restricted activity the rest of the pregnancy. Like, no grocery shopping, no cleaning, no lifting Maura, can only work three days a week; pretty much no anything. It's going to be a massive adjustment and it's taken a few days for it all to sink in. The full extent of it has not yet.
After some initial confusion, it seems the bleeding was caused by a bit of detached placenta (which, frightening as it sounds, is apparently a common cause of bleeding during pregnancy.) They assured me there's plenty of placenta to go around, and that I may, in fact, lose more and keep bleeding off and on for the rest of the pregnancy and still carry to full term. They cannot confirm or detect this on ultrasound unless the placenta is literally detaching itself, so it's nothing but an educated guess we can't predict.
So from now on I go every other week to the doc, and once 32 weeks hits at the end of the month, I'll go every week to her, every week for non-stress tests at the hospital, and every two weeks for a Level 2 ultrasound. This is one of the most examined kids in history, I think. That's all very reassuring, and there's nothing we can do but take it at two week intervals at this point. The next goal is to make it to 32 weeks, which secures him in a good position if he happened to be born (even though he'd be in the NICU for a while) and that's only 4 weeks away, so I feel positive we'll meet that goal. Bed rest is hard, but I'm loving the time at home with both Jay and Maura. The saddest part is now I see what I've been missing everyday when I'm at work and that pretty much breaks my heart.
Here's my belly about 10 days ago, which has increased dramatically in girth since bed rest began (although oddly only up another pound! So bizarre!)
The Little Man:
Despite all of this, the baby is growing GREAT. Huge in fact! He already gained a pound in the last three weeks since my last ultrasound and is 2 lbs. 11 oz. already. Something like the 65th percentile. He's under no stress whatsoever, and as long as I comply with doctor's orders, I'll be doing everything in my power to be sure it stays that way.
I couldn't do this without Jay, as if that even needs to be said. So many men would have given up on me a long time ago, and he continues to show me tremendous patience and strength, and I know this is very hard for him. He has to do everything. Not that I'm much of a housekeeper, but to not even be able to help a little...it's tough, to say the least. And he's exhausted, since his sleep is so off now -- since Maura was born he's gotten to sleep in on the weekends since he works so late at night, and now he can't because I can only lift her once a day to put her into her crib at night for bed when he's at work so I can't get up with her in the morning by myself. We'll be relieved in more ways than one when the baby is born happy and healthy (and fingers crossed, full term). 9 more weeks until full-term; we can do it, I know we can.
That's all for now. Overall, we're managing just fine and have had many a laugh laying on the sofa this week. As much as adversity sucks, it has always helped to bond Jay and me even closer together. I'm so thankful.
Mauralicious:
At her 18 month appointment, she was a whopping 20 lbs. 14 oz. and 30 inches, down from the 9th to 7th percentile. Can I get a growth spurt? Please? Pedi's not concerned as this basically follows her usual curve, but my word, she's a peanut. But she's doing AMAZING -- running around, talking more, all around a true joy. Meals are still the most frustrating part of the day, but I think it's par for the course for most toddlers so I try not to let it stress me out. Overall, she is like this most hours of most days:
The Momma:
I had a bit of a scare on Friday (at 27w2d) and started bleeding and ended up in labor and delivery, so I'm on bed rest this week and then very restricted activity the rest of the pregnancy. Like, no grocery shopping, no cleaning, no lifting Maura, can only work three days a week; pretty much no anything. It's going to be a massive adjustment and it's taken a few days for it all to sink in. The full extent of it has not yet.
After some initial confusion, it seems the bleeding was caused by a bit of detached placenta (which, frightening as it sounds, is apparently a common cause of bleeding during pregnancy.) They assured me there's plenty of placenta to go around, and that I may, in fact, lose more and keep bleeding off and on for the rest of the pregnancy and still carry to full term. They cannot confirm or detect this on ultrasound unless the placenta is literally detaching itself, so it's nothing but an educated guess we can't predict.
So from now on I go every other week to the doc, and once 32 weeks hits at the end of the month, I'll go every week to her, every week for non-stress tests at the hospital, and every two weeks for a Level 2 ultrasound. This is one of the most examined kids in history, I think. That's all very reassuring, and there's nothing we can do but take it at two week intervals at this point. The next goal is to make it to 32 weeks, which secures him in a good position if he happened to be born (even though he'd be in the NICU for a while) and that's only 4 weeks away, so I feel positive we'll meet that goal. Bed rest is hard, but I'm loving the time at home with both Jay and Maura. The saddest part is now I see what I've been missing everyday when I'm at work and that pretty much breaks my heart.
Here's my belly about 10 days ago, which has increased dramatically in girth since bed rest began (although oddly only up another pound! So bizarre!)
The Little Man:
Despite all of this, the baby is growing GREAT. Huge in fact! He already gained a pound in the last three weeks since my last ultrasound and is 2 lbs. 11 oz. already. Something like the 65th percentile. He's under no stress whatsoever, and as long as I comply with doctor's orders, I'll be doing everything in my power to be sure it stays that way.
I couldn't do this without Jay, as if that even needs to be said. So many men would have given up on me a long time ago, and he continues to show me tremendous patience and strength, and I know this is very hard for him. He has to do everything. Not that I'm much of a housekeeper, but to not even be able to help a little...it's tough, to say the least. And he's exhausted, since his sleep is so off now -- since Maura was born he's gotten to sleep in on the weekends since he works so late at night, and now he can't because I can only lift her once a day to put her into her crib at night for bed when he's at work so I can't get up with her in the morning by myself. We'll be relieved in more ways than one when the baby is born happy and healthy (and fingers crossed, full term). 9 more weeks until full-term; we can do it, I know we can.
That's all for now. Overall, we're managing just fine and have had many a laugh laying on the sofa this week. As much as adversity sucks, it has always helped to bond Jay and me even closer together. I'm so thankful.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
quick update
Baby Boy is doing great! 1 lb. 11 oz., 45th percentile, and looking fantastic. Finally I'm 1 lb. over my pre-pregnancy weight. So bizarre, given his size and the size of my belly. And he's no longer breech. Hee haw. I should know tomorrow whether or not I passed my gestational diabetes test.
All for now! Look at that sweet face!
All for now! Look at that sweet face!
Monday, February 8, 2010
she walks!
On her 17 month birthday on January 21 (and be reminded that 17 months is the cut off for "normal" age for walking), Maura took her first independent steps. From then until now, only two short weeks later, she has gone from taking 3 steps to walking around the house, turning around, squatting and picking things up, and then coming at you with her arms wide open for a hug. As everyone said, I can hardly remember what it was like when she didn't walk. I'm relieved, sure, but more overjoyed that she is enjoying herself so much and getting so confident. She is certainly a full-on toddler at this point, picky about her food, cranky one minute and lovely the next, but I really am lucky that she has stayed quite happy through almost every stage. This face makes up for any amount of half-chewed fish sticks I pick up off the floor.
I'm getting more and more excited for the boy to get here. As much as I love being pregnant, it's so much different this time around, and I know now that's because I know how great it will be when he gets here so I just want him to hurry and up and do it! I'll be 25 weeks on Wednesday and have a hard time believing I have 15 weeks to go. Sleep is tumultuous, depending on the day -- a mix of nightmares, chills, anxiety, insomnia and utter exhaustion. I'm not having to pee 40 times a night like I did with Maura, but paybacks are hell and the alternative is much, much more unsettling. I got so good at peeing at night I could almost do it without opening my eyes. Waking up from a nightmare thinking someone is robbing my house -- not so much.
Otherwise, he seems to be growing fine -- I'm GIGANTIC, as big as I was when I delivered Maura. I've only gained 3 lbs., but the belly is fully out of control. He's a quiet baby during the day, and kicks the hell out of my pelvis at night. It still feels like he's trying to crawl out, and I could seriously use one of those belly support belts but I'm just too ick feeling right now to add some kind of contraption to my wardrobe. I want to be in nothing but pajamas these days. I have another appointment on Wednesday and we'll see then how big he's gotten. Last month he was measuring a week ahead still on ultrasound and my belly was two to three weeks ahead. Yikes. We could have a 10 pounder on our hands.
Here's some more recent photos of the walking. When I can figure out how to upload a video, I will.
I'm getting more and more excited for the boy to get here. As much as I love being pregnant, it's so much different this time around, and I know now that's because I know how great it will be when he gets here so I just want him to hurry and up and do it! I'll be 25 weeks on Wednesday and have a hard time believing I have 15 weeks to go. Sleep is tumultuous, depending on the day -- a mix of nightmares, chills, anxiety, insomnia and utter exhaustion. I'm not having to pee 40 times a night like I did with Maura, but paybacks are hell and the alternative is much, much more unsettling. I got so good at peeing at night I could almost do it without opening my eyes. Waking up from a nightmare thinking someone is robbing my house -- not so much.
Otherwise, he seems to be growing fine -- I'm GIGANTIC, as big as I was when I delivered Maura. I've only gained 3 lbs., but the belly is fully out of control. He's a quiet baby during the day, and kicks the hell out of my pelvis at night. It still feels like he's trying to crawl out, and I could seriously use one of those belly support belts but I'm just too ick feeling right now to add some kind of contraption to my wardrobe. I want to be in nothing but pajamas these days. I have another appointment on Wednesday and we'll see then how big he's gotten. Last month he was measuring a week ahead still on ultrasound and my belly was two to three weeks ahead. Yikes. We could have a 10 pounder on our hands.
Here's some more recent photos of the walking. When I can figure out how to upload a video, I will.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
22 weeks
Things are going well in the Smalley household. The doldrums of winter have set in and it feels a bit like the same thing every day at this point. Maura is becoming quite independent and quite strong, and everyday I feel a mix of pride and sadness that she is growing up. She'll be 17 months tomorrow, and is almost walking on her own. She'll push every cart or toy in the house imaginable, walking everywhere into walls, and just this last week (and perfected today) she can stand on her own. I think it's a confidence issue at this point, and I give it another week until she's walking all on her own. It really is remarkable to watch her do these things that a few short months ago they said she would never do without tremendous trouble. 17 months is the top of the curve for walking, and developmentally she's always been about 6 weeks behind since she stopped growing at about 34 weeks, so really, we're right on target (or maybe that's just my justification).
The baby boy does not seem to have the same issues, at least at this point. I'm going every month for an ultrasound with the perinatologist and every month to my OB, so literally every other week he's getting poked and proded and looked at, and so far, so good. At last week's ultrasound he was measuring his usual 4 days ahead. Today at the OB, my belly was measuring almost 2 full weeks ahead, at 24 weeks as opposed to my real 22, and I gained 6 pounds this month, which although a lot, brings me even with the 8 lbs I had lost the first trimester. Hard to look at me now and believe I weighed this amount, but differently distributed, before I was even pregnant. Motivation for sure to get my ass in gear after he's born. Regardless, he's had quite a growth spurt even in the course of the week, and while it scares me a little to think about delivering a 10 lb. baby, I'll be thrilled to do it, if it means he's healthy. I look enormous, and have grown so much even over the past week. It really is bizarre to see my body grow along with him.
He's quite active, and breech, so he kicks me in the crotch all day with the occasional flailing punch in the gut. That's the feeling I miss most not being pregnant. While there's nothing like holding them in your arms, a close second is feeling that movement tucked away inside you.
It's cold here, and snowy and grey and wet, and every day I wish for at least 40 degrees so I can thaw out. I've had about enough of winter this year. No signs of spring yet, but hopefully soon.
Here's Miss Attitude and her mother, Miss Holy Hell That's a Big Belly.
The baby boy does not seem to have the same issues, at least at this point. I'm going every month for an ultrasound with the perinatologist and every month to my OB, so literally every other week he's getting poked and proded and looked at, and so far, so good. At last week's ultrasound he was measuring his usual 4 days ahead. Today at the OB, my belly was measuring almost 2 full weeks ahead, at 24 weeks as opposed to my real 22, and I gained 6 pounds this month, which although a lot, brings me even with the 8 lbs I had lost the first trimester. Hard to look at me now and believe I weighed this amount, but differently distributed, before I was even pregnant. Motivation for sure to get my ass in gear after he's born. Regardless, he's had quite a growth spurt even in the course of the week, and while it scares me a little to think about delivering a 10 lb. baby, I'll be thrilled to do it, if it means he's healthy. I look enormous, and have grown so much even over the past week. It really is bizarre to see my body grow along with him.
He's quite active, and breech, so he kicks me in the crotch all day with the occasional flailing punch in the gut. That's the feeling I miss most not being pregnant. While there's nothing like holding them in your arms, a close second is feeling that movement tucked away inside you.
It's cold here, and snowy and grey and wet, and every day I wish for at least 40 degrees so I can thaw out. I've had about enough of winter this year. No signs of spring yet, but hopefully soon.
Here's Miss Attitude and her mother, Miss Holy Hell That's a Big Belly.
Monday, January 4, 2010
holidays in pictures
As is the way around the holidays, there were tears and there was laughter, and in the end (once the tree comes down and the presents are all put away), I am reminded yet again of the real magic -- my baby girl. I would give up every holiday if it meant she would only ever know love.
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