December

So, new template here. I like this layout better.

Brian is doing well. He has almost outgrown the 6 month size sleepers (He only has 3/4 in. to go before that happens). He is sleeping through the night now. We did not (nor was it ever recommended to us) have to let him "cry it out" and ignore him for a night to get him to sleep through the night. He is currently eating either 24 oz. or 30 oz. of formula a day (just depends on the day). He is not on cereal and will not be until he is six months old (in January). He rolls to his side now, "talks" to get your attention, has favorite toys, and grasps toys really well. He sings. He turns himself around completely in the crib. 360 degrees. He tries to help you hold his bottle when you feed him. He is teething. We can see teeth up in his gums. Nothing has broken through yet. His eyes are still blue. His hair is darker rather than lighter blonde. It has reddish highlights (like his mom). He loves the Christmas tree. He has grabbed Biscuit twice.

The weather here is yucky. Ice storms and snow together. It is currently raining. It looks like (so far) we will have a white Christmas. Somewhat of a rarity here to actually have snow on Christmas. Usually it is rainy and cold with ice. Back when I was little, we had snowy Christmases, but the recent years not so many. We were usually in Florida for Christmas, but flying was almost always difficult with all the ice storms. I spent part of the morning chipping ice/slush at the end of the driveway.

A picture of Brian and me from Hawaii

Most of September

Live is Never boring here. Even though September is just about half over, we have had a lot happening. I should start by talking about the last week in August. So here goes. If you couldn't tell already, this is going to be a Long post . This post has been trying to be written for little over half a week....

Last Week in August

Okay, so after trying to get a hold of my nephrologist's office unsuccessfully the week before, Mom, Brian and I took a group trip to the Barrington Office on Wednesday, August 29. We ended up taking to his assistant/reception/nurse (Doctor wasn't in yet). She is very nice, I actually like her. I had her pull up my bloodwork from Brian's birth (the ob's office was supposed to have faxed all the bloodwork from July to the nephrologist's office, but as usual, had not...a whole different story there, I'm not too happy with that). The reason she was able to pull the bloodwork was because it was done at Good Shepherd and every doctor that has admitting privilages can pull patient's bloodwork electronically (even if they had not ordered it) and view it. So, she pulled it and was very concerned that I was very anemic when Brian was born (heme was 9.something it was supposed to be over 12). I think the creatnine number was higher too, but I can't remember the specific number. The bloodwork number(s) caused her to make out a perscription for me to have bloodwork drawn immediately, and we scheduled an appointment for October 10th contingent on the bloodwork not coming back too funky.

So, off to Quest, Mom, Brian, and I went. I had a new girl draw my blood, at least she was new to me. I usually go in the mornings to have blood drawn, not the afternoon. She had some difficulty (like everyone does), but evently got it. Yay. I would have preferance going to Good Shepherd for bloodwork, their phlebotomists are very good at sticking me, but Quest is covered 100% by our insurance, and usually they are good too.

Friday, August 31st

Another Group trip day. This time we took a trip to the Lake County Health Deptarment's Midlakes Clinic in Round Lake for a meeting with the WIC counselor. It had taken quite a few tries on the phone to actually get this appointment; the phone line are almost always busy. Brian and I both had to be there for this appointment, Mom drove because I was too exhausted (still am pretty exhaused) to make safe driving decisions. The appointment went well. They weighed me, and checked for anemia witha finger stick (I came up at 14.4, so I am not anemic anymore), and they weighed and measured Brian. He was 9 lbs. 13 oz. and 21 inches long. We actually had the appointment with the site coodinator, who incidently, was the same person I had scheduled the appointment with in the first place. Both Brian and I were "certified," and we were given our coupons. Our next appointment is on October 1st.

For anyone who is unfamliar with WIC, it is a government-sponsored supplemental food program for low-income women, infants, and children. Hence the abbreviation WIC. I'll inculde a link in my sidebar. I wish I had known about this when I was pregnant...it would have been very helpful.

First Week of September (The REALLY interesting stuff begins)

Labor Day Weekend

Question: When is the Best time for a baby to be sick? (I mean that sarcastically, of course)....
Answer: Yup, you guessed it, when the Doctor's office is closed and it's a holiday weekend.

This all started Saturday morning. Brian had three tiny, tiny (pinpoint is too big of a description) red spots on his face. We passed them off as bug bites as I had killed a couple of mosquitos in his room the night before. He seemed okay otherwise. Then Sunday mornig came...He had five more on his face, and they were bright red. I called my mom and had her come check him out. While we were watching, Brian developed at total of 15 bright red spots on his face and two on his arm. Brian had also been very fussy the night before, and protested both the bottle and the boob, and he was not sleeping. So, something wasn't right. Mom came over with Dad, and we called Liz to look at Brian. Liz was a nurse, and is now a chaplain at Good Shepherd. So, Group trip to Liz's house with Paul, my Mom , myself, and Brian. Her advice was to call the on-call doctor (which we were going to do anyway).

We called the doctor, he told us to take Brian in. We weren't sure that the place he recommended was covered by our insurance, so we took Brian to Good Shepherd's ER because we knew it would be covered. (We called the on-call doctor back to tell him this and annoyed him even more...he was anoyed to begin with because we were interupting him at some sort of picnic...I just want to say the on-call doctor was not one of our doctors). So, off to the ER Brian, Paul and I went. We checked in, and had to wait a few minutes before seeing the nurse (she takes initial vitals, and stuff before they admit you, I call this person the "weed-out nurse" because she decides whether or not you actually need to be admitted). We gave her Brian's symtopms, and she took his temperature using one of those themometers for your forehead. He had a fever (100.3). Paul and I felt awful because we had not even thought to take his temperature. She also took his blood pressure (88/58), and weighed him (9 lbs. 13 oz.). Brian pooped right before he was weighed, all over the scale. The nurse had put down a towel before hand thankfully, and that was what Brian pooped on (not normal poop either...it was green followed minutes later , in a fresh diaper, by a yellowy-brown breast milk poop). The nurse made a call to someone, and said she was thinking it was something that started with a v, but had not told us yet....We diapered Brian, wrapped him in a blanket, and were told to take a seat in the waiting area.

We were taken to an ER room. This particular room was definitely a detox room, but it seems these were the only ones available at the time. So, we spent time in the room. We kept the door ope for the most of the time. We met the nurse tech, I think her name was Lisa. She took Brian's temperature and told us the doctor would be around soon. I had to feed Brian, so we closed the door, and of course this was when the ER doc came to see us. He politely excused himself and said he would be back in ten minutes. So, he came back, looked Brian over, and ordered bloodwork....Let me tell you how thrilled I was with that...not at all. My child has veins like his mom right now. The nurse came back in with another nurse, and they used a butterfly needle. Brian Screamed (this was definitely the "I'm in PAIN" scream, a new development we had first heard on Saturday night when the mosquitos were in his room). Paul and I were there with him. I was holding Brian's hand and stroking his head. After they were done taking his blood, I immediately wrapped Brian up tightly, and held him close to me. We rocked back and forth a little bit and walked around the room. He did quiet down, and eventually fell alseep on my shoulder.

The ER doctor came back. Brian's bloodwork had come back normal. But he wanted the pediatrician to talk to us. So, in came the pediatrician who tried to tell us Brian could have bug bites or Possibly a low grade respiratory virus. We were to watch Brian, and make a follow up appointment with our doctor on Tuesday. If his symptoms got worse we were to come back to the ER. So, we were discharged, and took Brian home. His temperature was 99.3 (rectally) when were discharged.

While all this was happening with us, apparently our downstairs neighbor's son was also in the ER. The police had brought him in for attenping to throw himself infront of a train. Brian and I stayed over at Mom's house Sunday night, so I could sleep. Paul got home, only to take our neighbor to the ER to see her son...when they got there, the ER staff would not let her becuase he was over age (21) and she could not remember the doctor's name who called her. They wouldn't even confirm that he was in the ER...So, Paul and our neighbor came home. Monday came and went, and Brian's spots faded. He did develop a few more by Tuesday, but none of them were the bright red shade they had been on Sunday.

Tuesday, September 4

I called and got Brian an appointment at his doctor's office for the afternoon. Because Paul had to work, Mom came over to help me take Brian to the appoinment. On our way to the appointment, my nephrologist's nurse called me back. They had gotten the bloodwork results back. Everything was normal except my creatinine was elevated (1.7) and my potassium was also elevated (4.9). So, that means, yup more tests. Can you come in tomorrow? Of course, I could. So, with a walk-in appointment for the next day to see the nephrologist's assiatant, we all trooped in for Brian's follow up appointment.

We saw Brian's doctor's partner. She ran strep tests on Brian and me because Paul's boss' kid had strep and we wanted to make sure Brian and I did not have it. Both were negative. She also had Brian's doctor come in and look over Brian. I told them both that the ER docs had tried to tell me it was bug bites and that I knew this was not bug bites. They both said I was right. Brian was diagnosed with the low grade respiratory thing...no one has given me a name for it. To my surprise, I also got checked out (we have a general practice doc, not a pediatrician, who has been my doctor since at least 1996). I was running a very high (for me) fever of 100.4. I honestly thought I was hot because it was hot in our apartment, and I was exhausted. Nope. So, I was told to go home and rest and drink plenty of water. I was told to take tylenol if I needed to. If I still felt bad on Thursday, I was to call the office. So, we went home. Brian had nap, and so did I. Mom stayed to watch over us. Paul went in after work for a strep test; his was also negative. His miserableness was being caused by allergies.

Wednesday, September 5

Again, Mom, Brian and I took a group trip to the nephrologist's office. The assiatant ran the scan, and it came back with good results. So, she told me she would be in-touch and would be mailing out perscriptions for more bloodwork and a kidney and a bladder ultrasound after she shared the results of this first test with the doctor.

Thursday, September 6

I had to call our doctor back. I was feeling quite horrible. My throat was so sore I had trouble talking. My head hurt so bad, I couldn't think straight, and my eyes hurt. I was miserable. Of course, I had to leave a message with a nurse. She called me back and talked to me. She told me doctor thought I had allergies, and they wanted to perscribe Allegra. I asked her if they knew I had kidney disease and couldn't take many allergy medications; she said yes, and they "think" allegra is okay. I was feeling quite awful, and I was not at all appy with they thought it was okay to take. She offered to let me, if I wanted to, call my nephrologist's office to see if it was okay. This annoyed me too, since when do patients have to call their specialists to see if drugs are okay to take? Well, I called, and it was okay, but even nephrologist's nurse had to call and sak him... So, the Allegra was called in, and Paul brought it to me. It was the generic, and insurance still charged $25 for it. And this was only a 15 day supply....allergies...yeah right. They are treating symptoms. I took a pill and started feeling sllightly human an hour later (my head wasn't trobbing anymore, I could think).

I had Another appointment this day with a different doctor entirely. I went to see the foot doctor for something on the bottom of my foot. He's not sure what it is (a blister that popped or a callus), but he gave me some cream for it. It seems to be working, but I have a recheck with him on September 20th.

Friday, September 7th

My Mom's birthday. Another doctor's appointment today. This time it was the check up with my ob. I had had to reschedule because she had had emergency surgery the week before. She had to have her appendix taken out. This appointment went well. Everything seems to be healing okay, if I still have trouble, they will see me and fix it. I am still tender and exhaused. I was given the 2 hour glucose tolerance form to check for underlying diabetes. And told to get it done. Mom, Brian and I went to this appointment. Mom and Brian waited in the lobby for me. Ob came out to see Brian after we were done. Mom took Brian home with her that afternoon so that Paul and I could get a few things done and sleep before going to the wedding the next day.

Saturday, September 8th

The day of the wedding. Paul had to work in the morning. I was trying to get packed and everything ready to go. I still ran out of time. Paul got home, we packed the car up, said hi to our downstairs neighbor's son, and were out of Barrington by close to 2 pm. The wedding was in Lake Geneva, WI. I was as dressed up as I could be, but still needed to change into my dress (it was ball gown, I couldn't wear it for an hour in the car without it not looking right when I got out of the car).. We were checked into the hotel by 3:00 pm. I was in my dress, and we were walking the the ceremony by 3:15 pm. The ceremony started at 3:30 pm. We were not the last ones there. After the ceremony there were cocktails, then dinner started at 6:30?.

Paul decided, after every course was served including cake, to check his cell phone. This was around 8 pm. He wanted to make sure my parents hadn't tried to call us about Brian...Well, my parents had not called us, but Jake and our neighbor, Jayme, had. It was odd to get a call from Jayme because I had talked to her earlier in the day to tell her we were leaving for the wedding that afternoon. Jayme's message was disturbing enough for Paul to be visably upset, and motion to me he had to go out in the hall immediately...he practically ran out the ballroom door. once we were out the door (just barely), he told me what Jayme had said. Our downstairs neighbor's son (the 21 year old mentioned earlier in the Labor Day Weekend paragraph), was dead. He had thrown himself infront of a freight train that afternoon around 3 pm. so, my evening was shot (enough that I actually had a half shot of amaretto when the bar opened, a big thing, since I don't drink). I wish Paul had not listened to his voice mail. We stayed the night at the hotel and went home the next afternoon.

Second Week in September

Monday, September 10th

I had to call my general doctor' s office because of the cough It hurt to cough. Bad enough to call them... They had me leave a message for the nurse who called me back and told me there wasn't anything they could give me for the cough because I am nursing. I pushed and said, "If I wasn't nursing could you give me anything?" She said, "No, you're allergic to everything. The only thing we could do was perscribe a chest x-ray which would rule out pneumonia." And if it was pneumonia? Basically, they would tell me to stop nursing and put me on heavy drugs. I told her I didn't want to do the chest x-ray yet, it wasn't that bad. She told me to call the next day to tell them how I was feeling...

Tuesday, September 11th

Humana's nurse for the Humana Beginings Program called. We talked for an hour about all sorts of things. She gave me a website for Paul to visit called newdads.com. We'll see if he actually looks at it. I did not call back my doctor's office. I was sick of talking to the nurses.

Wednesday, September 12th

I don't think anything happened.... This was Paul's day off. He went downtown to a job fair.

Thursday, September 13th

Mom, Brian, and I went to Quest for my 2 hour glucose tolerance test. This was the test to see if I was diabetic still. I actaully had to schedule it. We went in at 9 am and were out by 11:30 am. Yes, there was a lot of difficulty getting blood out of me. I was stuck at least 4 times when I was on;y supposed to be stuck 3 times. As usual, as we got home, the perscriptions from my nephrologist's office were in the mail. So more bloodwork next week.

Friday, September 14th

The wake for our neighbor's son was 3 pm to 9 pm. She told me she did expect me to be there and it was okay. Mom and Dad went around 4 pm, and Paul stopped by on his way home from work. At some point, my cell phone battery died, so I missed a few calls and lost the call I was talking to Paul on. I missed the call from my ob's office telling me I was not diabetic, and a call from my friend who wanted to come see me and Brian.

Third Week in September

Monday, September 17th

My Dad's birthday. This morning, I scheduled my ultrasounds at Good Shepherd for Tuesday morning. My friend came over around noon, and she, Brian and I went to Bolony's for lunch. We split the tuna fish sandwich. I was very happy to have tuna because Paul won't let it in the house. We walked over to the bank after lunch to say hi to Paul. We came home and talked. It is so good to have someone to talk to. My friend left for work around 2:30 pm. Paul came home from work around 5 pm. We went to my parents' house for dinner and cake.

Tuesday, September 18th

Paul's Day off this week. We dropped Brian off at Mom's house (he hasn't had any vaccines yet, so I didn't want to take him to a potentially germy hospital). Paul and I spent the morning at Good Shepherd for me. I had my ultrasounds and had them do the bloodwork for the nephrologist. We were done there by 10:30 am. We came back to our house, got together all the paperwork for the charity assistance for my hospital stay, Brian's birth, and Paul's ER visit from May. There were a lot of pieces of paper to photocopy: bank statements, utility bills, ect. We headed back to Mom's house around lunchtime because we had forgotten todrop off Brian's formula with him that morning. After lunch, Paul took the packet of information to the hospital and got ready to go in to work for a meeting; I stayed with Mom and took a nap. We left Brian with her and Dad over night so that I could hopefully get more sleep.

Wednesday, September 18th (Today!)

Suprisingly uneventful day. Mom, Brian, and I went out to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to buy bridal shower gifts for my friend. Her shower is on Sunday. Other than that, nothing exciting happened. I can say that I am thankful for that. Too many things have been exciting lately.

Safe

This post started off being written on Thursday August 9th, so I am leaving it in that tense. Brian takes up a majority of my time lately...Go figure, but at least I can post this tonight August 13th.

Yesterday was definitely an interesting day. It did not start out that way though. Actually it started out quite normally: Paul went to work; I was up with Brian. Brian ate well that morning, so I got to make myself breakfast (because he was sleeping in his crib!). Of course, my making breakfast was not normal.... Mom showed up to surprise me while I was flipping my egg. After breakfast, I showered, and Mom and I hung out. Brian woke up, I fed and gave him a bottle. He was still pretty active, so he stayed up for awhile, but eventually got sleepy again and was down for the count (again back in his crib). Mom went to go see Dad around lunch time, and Paul came home for lunch. Right before Paul got home for lunch, Brian woke up, and I fed him again, but this time he wanted to stay up (he was still hungry, but not crying), so I put him in the bassinet, so that Paul and I could eat together. Brian was quite content there for a few minutes, but decided that he was still hungry. Mom came back just as Paul got home. I handed Brian off to her. She fed him a bottle while Paul and I ate lunch. Paul went back to work, Mom hung out with Brian while I had a nap. Fairly normal typical day/afternoon.

Things got interesting when Mom and Brian woke me up from my nap. She told me I needed to stay calm that Paul had just called from the bank, and we were under a Tornado Warning...I was fairly disoriented from waking up to being with, and the words didn't immediately click until I came out of our bedroom, heard the siren, and saw the weather warning crawling across the screen on the weather channel....Then I lost it. I started babbling about the diaper bag...I had had it all ready for something like this two nights ago, but had unpacked most of it the night before because Paul and I took Brian on a walk and didn't need everything that was in the bag. I believe I kept saying I need the formula and a bottle....how am I going to feed him? And blankets.....I was Shaking very badly. Mom told me, you can feed him remember? And that clicked some sense back into me (not much, but some). She told me to grab Java, who was running around the house panicking, and go to the basement she would follow with Brian right behind me.

So, I took the cat, and I pounded on my neighbor's door on my way to the basement; just to make sure she was okay and knew what was going on. Mom ran into her because I was already in the basement (I was too freaked out to stay in the stairwell) by the time Janet answered the door. She knew what was going on, but still had to get ready for work anyway, but thanked us for thinking of her. Mom told me this when she got down to the basement. We put Java in a closet, Mom handed me Brian, and asked where Biscuit would be. I told her under the bed in Brian's room. Mom went back upstairs to get Biscuit-she dragged her out from under the bed by her toes. They came downstairs and Biscuit went into the closet with Java. Mom took Brian back because I was still shaking. And we waited....

The rain is literally pouring down from the sky. I have used bath tub faucet analogy before, but this was even worse than that. All you heard was the rain. Our basement has little casement windows that are about 1 foot by 2 feet. I could see the rain. There weren't any cars on the street except for the lone UPS driver who had to make a delivery at one of the businesses down the street. I'm sure they didn't answer the door because he came back up the street in his truck fairly quickly. I remember hearing a few claps of thunder, but not many. The siren conitnued to go off. Mom called dad to find out when it was safe to comeout of the basement...(he was just about to go off shift at the village when the sirens went off). It was okay to go back upstairs, so we did. We left the cats in the basement for a while while we were upstairs.

We came upstairs and looked at the weather channel again. Apparently, the warning had made national weather news for the half an hour or so it was in effect, because the weather channel people were talking about the tornado warnings for Cook County in the Chicago Area. We found out from watching them that there were four funnel clouds sighted in the area: one in Schamburg (by Woodfield Mall), one in Elgin, one in Maple Park, and one in Barrington Hills. Yes, I said Barrington Hills.....It is no wonder the Barrington sirens went off. I found out just how close the funnel cloud was when I found this on the Village of Barrington's website:

August 8, 2007
Tornado Warning Has Expired
Based on information from Barrington Hills Police Department, a funnel cloud had been spotted in the Otis/Bateman area. The VOB Tornado Sirens were activated at approximately 3:15 p.m. on August 8, 2007. The Tornado Warning for NW Cook County expired at 3:30 p.m. The severe weather has now moved out of our area.

Mom stayed around until just before Paul came home from work. After the storm moved away, the sun came out, and it was beautiful outside. The few clouds were puffy and white, and the sky was very blue. Ironically, this warning was issued on a Wednesday. The sirens in town are tested the first Tuesday of every month, which was the day before.

Anyone who knows me, knows I am terrified of storms. I always have been even before I knew tornadoes existed. Thunderstorms have always terrified me. Over the years, it has gotten easier to except the storms, and I sleep through the minor ones occassionally, but the severe storms still scare the crap outof me. I am usually glued to the computer or the weather channel watching the storms if they are severe. Neither of my parents have any problems with storms or any other aniexty issues. So, it didn't come from them. It's just me.

Another interesting fact about this area: usually severe weather, meaning tornadoes, seem to miss Barrington. The last one to hit was back when my Mom was a little girl. It was either in 1967 or 1969, I think. My parents have the article from the newspaper about it, but I haven't looked at it recently to see the exact date. Oddly enough, that tornado did actually hit at the corner of Lake Cook and Bateman Roads. Basically just past Countryside Elementary School. I remember Nana saying something about having to go pick someone up, and looking in the rearview mirror and seeing this black wall. The person who was with her asked what it was, and she said, "That's the tornado." So, the tornado sirens do not go off very often here. We have our share of severe thunderstorms with heavy rain, wind, hail, thunder, and lightening, but not usually tornadoes.

I'm adding a slight vent about the warning system. I am glad we have one, but there wasn't an all clear signal. Back when I was in elementary school, there was one. I remember from the drills we had. For some reason there isn't one anymore. The village supposedly has a system that calls phones to tell people everything is ok. They just installed it, and it was just tested not too long ago. There must still be bugs in it because it didn't work. They seem to expect everyone to have a weather radio or access to television where ever they take cover for a storm. In fact, the village tells you not to call the police, fire department, or the village hall if the sirens go off. It seems pretty stupid to assume everyone has access to something that could tell them that it is safe.... Added note: I just checked the village website http://barrington-il.gov/index.asp; apparently the new notification system you have to sign up for it...which is nice that they let people opt out, but really why then did they test the system using everyone's house phone?

Priceless

I think everyone knows this already especially since Paul updated his blog. Yes, he is as good a baby as Paul says he is. Paul has been getting up occassionally with him, but I am the one who gets up with him the most. Paul is a heavy sleeper....where as I am not.

Brian sleeps a lot. I mean, he should, but it really surprised me how much he does sleep. He also gets the hiccups constantly. I think Paul probably covered most of the stats for his birth, but I'm going to add them too.

This kind of reminds me of the old Master Card commercials. You know the ones that said something like Tickets $75 dollars, Peanuts, Hot Dogs, and Popcorn $25, Souveniers $20...A day at the Ballpark with you kid: Priceless....

Labor: 12 hours (about 7 am to about 7 pm)
Pushing Stage: 45 minutes
Epidural: Yes, Started at 11 am; started to wear off around 3 pm
Blood Sugars: Stayed fairly consistant. Was given an iv sugar drip near the end
Labor Nurse: Quite frankly can go to hell....told me to push before I was fully dialated and threatened me with a c-section right before we seriously started pushing- after she told me to push too early (at that point since I could feel everything, I would have welcomed the c-section)
OB: Great. Was there when we needed her to be. Checked in two or three times. Told the labor nurse to get the anesthesiologist when I could feel her stitching me up after delivery -Brian came out with his entire arm next to his head.
Anesthesiologist: Very good, but for some reason couldn't figure out why the drugs he gave me weren't working. Especially at the end. I think he felt bad. He stayed in the room during delivery.
Husband: Did fairly well, except for the crossword book...Didn't faint. Did cut the cord. Was only told to shut up a couple times (after repeating blood pressure numbers that started freaking me out).

Baby: Brian 6 lbs. 11.3 oz., 20 inches long. Came out screaming. APGARs of 9 and 9. Very alert for the next three hours. Good Baby!!!

News

This week has been pretty Busy, to say the least. Somewhat more hectic than the previous ones. Twice weekly appointments started this week. This all started with the bloodwork I had drawn on Saturday 7.7.07.

Unexpected (but should have been ) Test
So, anyway Monday 7.9.07 was a noraml morning until I got a phone call around 9:30 am from my ob's office. Paul was at work, and I had been sleeping. The bloodwork from Saturday was showing some numbers as being elevated. She could not tell me which numbers as she was not the doctor. But, doctor wanted me to come in for a non-stress test. So, could I come in? Well, yes. I hung up the phone and called my mom. Mom couldn't come with, she had a job interview. Dad actually had work to do at the village, so he was out too. It was just a non-stress-test and I didn't want to worry Paul, so I decided I was okay to go by myself.

I took ten minutes to shower, and headed over to the office (less than five minutes away). I got there. They had power outage because of the extreme heat. My nurse, Barb, tried to find a room with power to run the fetal monitor, but we didn't have any luck. In fact, while we were trying to get the machine to work, the power failed again and fried the machine. So, the nurse looked at me and told me to go to the hospital for the test. I asked her if I should go by myself, and she said to get Paul (because knowing me, I would be less stressed if I had someone with me). So, as I left the office, nurse was on the phone with the hospital to tell them I was coming. I was on the phone with the bank telling Paul I needed him to get off of work for the test now. By the time I drove to the bank, Paul was waiting for me in the parking lot.

We drove to the hospital, went up to the birth center, and were put into a room by 10:30 am. It was one of the older rooms. But it was still nice. My nurse asked medical history questions and hooked me up to the fetal monitor. We were checked on every so often. Baby kicked the monitor for contractions quite a few times. They sent in the blood sucker. She took a couple viles of blood. I ended up with some lovely bruises from that. And we waited for the results. Mom got out of her interview around noon. And went to track me down at the doctor's office. Barb told her I was at the hospital and what had happened with the power. So, Mom came to find us at the hospital.

While we were waiting for Mom, the nurse (Sarah) brought us in bracelets...That was not what I was expecting. I started getting more than a little nervous. They don't give you bracelets for a non-stress test. Mom came up with Paul, and we waited for the doctor. She got the blood work back. It looked better than she was expecting. I don't know all the numbers on that one either. A little side note: this was the fourth doctor in my practice, and we had not met her yet. She turned out to be really nice. She was under the impression that she was going to deliver me that day due to the bloodwork results from Saturday, but the ones on Monday looked okay. As usual, I was registering contractions on the monitor. This resulted in the expected internal exam and surprisingly, an ultrasound. She told us I was 1/2 cm dialated. Baby looked good, and was about 7 lbs. She also told us the entire office had been worried about me. She ordered blood work and a 24 hour urine to check the numbers in a day. She told us that they would probably deliver me by the end of the week depending on the bloodwork results. We were discharged around 2 pm.

Bloodwork
The bloodwork I had taken on Wednesday 7.11.2007. I had it taken at the hospital outpatient pavillion because doctors would get it back faster. The head of my practice, the crabby one, called me back that morning to see how I was feeling. We found out later that, apparently, she had just gotten the results from Monday's labs on her desk. She actually sounded concerned. My liver enzymes (the one test she mentioned) were elevated by 1 point over the cut off number. She wanted to make sure I wasn't having any bad headaches....And to tell me that if the numbers kept going up, they would have to get me delivered. I told her the doctor on monday had mentioned this. Crabby doctor was much friendlier after that and told me my regular doctor would talk to me about it at my appointment the next day.

Thursday 7.12.2007 Appointment
There weren't any power problems yesterday. All the equipment was working. I was hooked up the World's Oldest Monitor, but it worked for what it was supposed to do.

Stats
Weight: 174 lbs.; lost 2 lbs
Blood Pressure: 131/81
Contractions: Yes, small ones
6th internal exam (I think)
Dialated: Yes, 2 cm
Effaced: Yes, 50 %

My doctor actually had Wednesday's bloodwork results infront of her. She had just gotten off the phone with a doctor at the perinatologist's office. Since the numbers are staring to creep up, they are worried about pre-eclampsia, but more so worried about kidney damage. This docotr basically told her that it was not worth the risk of me being put on dialysis in a year if the numbers keep going higher just to keep me pregnant. He told her the recommended course was delivery, but it just should be done soon, not immediately (i.e. Thursday). We talked about inducing, that it had to be done (apparently, with blood pressure problems, inducing is the safer route to go). And who was on call which days. The practice head is on call all weekend, so we didn't want to do it Friday. The doctor I saw on Monday is on call next Monday, and my doctor is on call on Tuesday. So, we "picked" Tuesday. Hopefully, I make it that long. My doctor is happy that my body is doing what it should be doing to prepare for delivery: dialating and effacing. Monday wouldn't be a horrible day, but I really want to avoid this weekend if possible. She ordered more bloodwork, and depending on the results we would induce on Friday or Tuesday. I also have a non-stress test on Monday just to check on things.

So, off to the hospital yet again, for more bloodwork. The receptionist recognized me. I had the same woman from Wednesday draw my blood...No bruises! I love the outpatient blood people. The person on Monday was from the main lab. Bloodwork was drawn by 2:30 pm. My doctor had the results around 4:30 pm. The numbers are Stable, so Tuesday it is. She wants me to watch the baby. Just make sure he is moving, but remember that he does sleep too. For me, I get to watch for signs of pre-eclampsia. If baby doesn't move enough, I develop any of the pre-eclampsia signs, or I feel bad, I am to call the office immediately.

So, we'll have a birthday of 7.17.07 if everything goes well!!!!

Weekly Appointment

Appt 7.5.2007
Regular Ob Barrington, IL
35 weeks 2 days

4th non-stress test
Contractions- Yes; 2?
Cervix: Dialated about 1 cm
Weight: 176 lbs; gain of 3 lbs.
Blood pressure: 122/83
Belly: 37 cm

Well, the weekly appointment went well. This was one of the quickest visits I have had so far. Baby was cooperative right away (I think it is because I have lunch right before we went to the office). Mom went with me because Paul had to work. She ended up going home and getting my blood pressure and sugar numbers because I forgot them. By the time she got back, I was almost done being on the fetal monitor. I have gained three pounds due to swelling (my ankles). I am supposed to do less (spend less time standing), and rest with my feet up (above my heart if I can help it) more often. My blood pressure is starting to creep higher. We'll just watch it closely. Dr. Keith isn't too worried about it yet because it is still fairly close to normal range, and no where near the 140/90 that they worry about. She even said my blood sugar numbers looked okay with a few exceptions (Burger King and Chinese food are evil!). My cervix has started to dialate. She says not to get too excited about this, it can be this way for weeks before labor starts. But I am excited: 1 cm now is 1 cm less when I actually in labor (unless, of course, if they end up doing a c-section then dialation does not matter). She did a Strep-B test this visit. It takes a week for results. If it is positive, they treat me with antibiotics during labor so the baby won't get sick. If it is negative, they don't have to do anything. I was also happy because my belly measurement has stayed the same for the last three doctors' appointments! If this keeps up (fingers crossed!), Baby might not be considered to be huge in 2 weeks (when I get to 37 weeks). :) I also got my blood order for my last (hopefully) 24 hr. urine and the monthly bloodwork order (for CMP, CBC, and Uric Acid). Mom and I will go get that drawn tomorrow.

Doctors' Appointments

Okay, so the last Baby Update I wrote about was the perinatologist appointment on May 31st. Since then, I have had 5 other appointments (I am on weekly appointments with the local ob here in town, and I have seen the perinatologist once more).

Appt. Thursday 6.7.2007
Regular Ob Barrington, IL
31 weeks 2 days

Weight: 173 lbs; gain of 1 lb?
Blood Pressure: I can't remember
Belly: 35 cm

This was the appointment when insulin was perscribed for my fasting blood sugar levels...And I caused all sorts of problems by actually questioning the perscription of it (i.e. I called the perinatologist's office on Friday morning). The peri's office said no insulin, my regular ob's office said take the insulin (we had dropped off the perscription at the pharmacy Thursday night). It was not fun. I got stressed out, and the nurse from the regular ob's office told me to take the weekend to figure things out and calm down. So, I did.

I called Monday morning to tell the regular ob's office that I would take the insulin, but was not happy about it. My doctor called on the house phone as I was telling that to the nurse, and I actually talked to my doctor. She said my numbers looked good the week the peri saw them, but had been "bad" the week she saw them, so insulin was her recommendation, and oh, by the way, you have a risk of stillbirth in third trimester because of the gestational diabetes and hypertension (high blood pressure). If they had just told us that at this appointment, I would have started the insulin that night. She did say that my numbers for the (at the time) current week were good, and I could wait to start the insulin, but if the numbers started creeping up again, I would definately have to start taking it. To her credit, she was not even at her office that Friday, so she came back on Monday to a pile of phone message from me.

She had other blood work results. We found out that:

1. I was/am slightly anemic, and needed to start an over-the-counter iron supplement. This is apparently fairly normal the last trimester in pregnancy.

2. The amount of protein in my urine has gone down slightly to 1617 units. My creatinine clearance number is 1.3, and my uric acid is 8.9. All these numbers are considered to be Stable for me. The uric acid and the protein are both lower than the last time, and the creatinine clearance has remained the same since before I was pregnant.

3. Apparently, all the other results (from the CBC and CMP) all looked good: platelet count, ect. becuase she did not mention any of them specifically to me.

As usual, there is more to the insulin story, but I will tell it when I get the perinatologist appointment on Monday, June 25th.

Appt. Thursday 6.14.2007
Regular Ob Barrington, IL

32 weeks 2 days

1st non-stress test
Contractions- not felt at all
Weight 172 lbs; loss of 1 lb
Blood pressure: 117/72?
Belly: 36 cm

This was the first time I was hooked up to the fetal monitor for the non-stress tests. We had to wait for Baby to be active. It took awhile. Everything did look good, aand even though I had contractions, since I could not feel them, and they were small ones, it did not result in an internal exam.

Appt. 6.21.2007
Regular Ob Barrington, IL
33 weeks 2 days

2nd non-stress test
2 contractions; one small, not felt, one big- felt it- uncomfortable
Weight 173 lbs; gain of 1 lb
Blood Pressure: 111/68
Belly: 37 cm
First Internal exam- VERY UNCOMFORTABLE

The second nonstress test, as you can see from reading the brief version, did result in an internal exam. I was not prepared for it. I was not seeing my regular doctor. It was incredibly uncomfortable. There weren't any changes to my cervix. Again, we were there for quite awhile while the baby was monitored. The internal exam was done after the contractions were seen on the monitor. One was quite large, and I felt it, but it didn't hurt. It was just very umm uncomfortable- felt like a lot of pressure and tightening. The smaller one I did not feel at all. Paul sat right next to the monitor and tried to tell me when they started, but I finally told him not to do that, if I could feel them, I did not need him to tell me (he would read the numbers about how high they would go- that was annoying).

Appt. 6.25.2007
Peri Park Ridge, IL
33 weeks 6 days

Ultrasound
Baby’s Estimated Weight: 6 lbs. 13 oz
Weight: 173 lbs
Blood Pressure: 100/58
Belly: 37 cm
Baby Position: Head Down (Still)

Yes, we had another trip to Park Ridge. Traffic on the way there was not as bad as traffic on the way back. We were supposed to be the first appointment that morning. We got to the office only to see three other couples waiting for the doctor too. One was taken in before us for an ultrasound. The other two just go their vitals checked by the nurses. We had our ultrasound with the same tech as last time. She was friendlier this time, and more talkative than last time. He is still measuring quite large, even though the tech didn't think he was huge.

The consultation with the doctor afterwards was short, but we didn't have many questions either. Remember how I said there was more to the insulin story? Yup, here it is. He says that the insulin will most likely not help me this far along. And that my numbers are soo close to normal that their office would not have even perscribed the insulin. (the doctor who looked at my numbers on 6.8.2007 had said no insulin was his associate, not him. So a fifth doctor's opinion was added to the four we already had, and we were not even aware of it). He told me that taking the insulin would not hurt me, so I might as well keep taking it since we had paid for it. In reguard to the supposed stillborth risk, he said it was Not True. He is very pleased with the way everything has gone so far, big baby included. We are not in automatic c-section land yet. He did say If I could somehow "talk" the baby and my uterus into labor between 36 and 37 weeks, that would be great, but they don't know what starts labor in women, and every woman is different. He said there was nothing urgent that he would need to call the regular ob's office about before my appointment with them on Thursday 6.28.2007. :) The next time I see the perinatologist is on Friday, July 20th for an ultrasound to check on Baby's growth.

Appt 6.28.2007
Regular Ob Barrington, IL
34 weeks 2 days

3rd non-stress test
Contractions: Yes
2nd internal exam- not as uncomfortable

Weight: 173 lbs
BloodPressure: 117/68
Belly: 37 cm

I actually saw my regular ob this time. Yes, the non-stress test took a long time too. Paul was not able to come with this time because he had to work (because he went to the Cubs game on Wednesday. See his blog for details: http://www.ostrichjockey.blogspot.com/). Mom went with me. The monitor and Baby were both not cooperating this time, each at seperate times. The internal exam was not as uncomfortable this time. My doctor was very gentle. There are still not any changes to my cervix. So, I am just contracting without any changes, can anyone say Braxen Hicks?

We learned a few other things on this visit. This baby will be born most likely before his due date of August 7th. My doctor will not let me go past 39 weeks. My due date is not changing, but the baby's birthday will most likely be in July. She checked her medication palm pilot thing, and it turns out, I can breastfeed as long as they do not put me back on my pre-pregnancy drug regiment (the Altace, Cozaar, and Zocor) immediately after birth. This is assuming my kidneys remain Stable as they have been (and it is okay with my nephrologist). She did not up my insulin dose even though my after breakfast numbers are higher than the 120 they want them under. She says they are fairly close to normal, and I should slightly change my breakfast to inculde less carbs and some protein. I have varicose veins in the backs of my legs (I had no idea, the nurse noticed them). As long as they are not hurting me, I don't need the support hose. Apparently they look like they should be hurting though. I can take Pepcid and Tums together for the indigestion I have been recently having. Oh, yes, and the other thing I learned: Do Not Talk While They Take My Blood Pressure- talking causes it to go really high 134/86. My next appointment with her is on Thursday 7.5.2007.

Summary

Everything seems to be going well so far. Even though I have not gained much weight, all the doctors are okay with that because it is clear that Baby is still growing. I am measuring ahead by 3 weeks. This is because baby is big, and the ultrasounds in the last trimester are unreliable for date estimates (hence the reason for ultrasounds early in first trimester for people with irregular periods or who are unsure of their conception date to determine a due date. First trimester ultrasounds are fairly accurate when it comes to due dates). Baby has gained almost half a pound per week for the last month. A normal rate of growth for babies during this trimester. I am on weekly visits with my regualr ob. I will be making as many appointments with her (as opposed to her associates) as possible. :) For anyone who is concerned that Baby will be here not exactly at 40 weeks, full term is actually considered 37 weeks these days.

Things We Learn in Birth Class

Last night was our second of four birth classes at Good Shepherd. Yes, we take notes. I think it annoys the other couples, but hey, we paid for the class, and we're going to remember it- one way or another. We were almost the last ones there with the exception of two or three of the other couples. I wouldn't let Paul park in the expectant mother spots this time (we did that last time), so we walked through the parking lot a little farther. We had to wait to get our badges at the desk. There was a volunteer explaining to the people in front of us that they were at the wrong entrance for cardiac care. It was close to 6:30 pm by the time they were done, and we walked as fast as we could to class. Each couple had another bag of freebies on their chairs this week. Freebies included an American Baby magazine, a sample pack of White Cloud newborn size diapers, a Gerber NUK pacifier, a Pampers spring blossom-scented wet wipe, a sample pack of disopable nursing pads, yet another JC Penney picture coupon, and a sample of Dreft laundry detergent.

Class started with a review of last week's topics: the timing of contractions, when to call your doctor for contractions before 37 weeks, and the first phase of the first stage of labor: early labor. This review lasted about half an hour. Then she talked about this week's major topic: active labor, phase two of the first sage of labor. Contractions are typically 3 and half to 5 minutes apart, and on average this phase lasts three to five hours. This is also the point where they will usually give you medication if you want it. If you don't take it, there is a chance you will not get it: it depends on your doctor, your body, and how close you are to delivering if it is offered later. We were introduced to the "labor ball." It is basically an exercise ball you can sit on to relieve pressure. They are available in everyone's birth suite (i.e. labor and delivery room) if you want one, ask.

After the lecture (and everyone finally was at class), the fun part started: The Tour of the Birth Center. Paul and I both forgot the camera, so we don't have any pictures. The Birth Center is on the third floor of the hospital. It has a small waiting area for family members that has a couple sofas, two vending machines (one for drinks, the other for snacks), wireless internet access (if your computer has a card), a plug in for nonwireless- enabled computers, a tv, and a small play area for kids. That is where we started our tour. Next, it was off through the locked glass doors to look at a labor and delivery suite (room). Good Shepherd had nine of them- supposedly it all works out.

The labor and delivery suite has absolutely everything, but you would not know it. All the medical equipment is cleverly hidden unless you are looking for it, you won't find it. The one thing I did notice was the laptop used for taking medical histories, ect. There is a tv and a cd player. The room has wood floors. There are pictures on the walls. There is a recliner for Dad and a glider chair for Mom. It looks more like a hotel room instead of a hospital room. As I said before all the medical equipment is cleverly hidden. There is a huge light that folds down from the ceiling when they need it. The monitor for contractions and baby's heart rate looks like a dresser. In the "closet" directly infront of Mom's hospital bed is the bed that they first put the baby in. It is an open bed with a radient warmer attached to the top. It is moible. There is also a plastic bassinet that is built into a rolling dresser for baby to be transported around in when he/she is in Mom' s room. Baby can room with Mom for as little or as much time as she likes (24 hr. rooming-in is available). With the exception of a c-section, everything can happen in that room.

There are 2 recovery rooms for c-sections. We could not look at them because they are in a sterile area. We did get to look at a post partum room. There are twent-two of those. Each of those rooms has two flat screen tvs and look more like hospital rooms to me. There is only one bed in the room. Rooms are not shared unless it is absolutely necessary, and even then they take volunteers first. Each room has it's own nurse and tech (nurse assistant). In addition to the call button, the nurse has a cell phone so you can reach her when/if you need her. Next we saw the nursery. It is probably bigger than it looks. The regular nursery is upfront by the glass windows. In the back, behind another set of glass walls, is the neonatal unit. They take babies born after 28 weeks with problems (breathing, ect.). Paul did ask about the formula they use. It is either Similac or Enfamil depending on what rotation the nursery is on. They will tell you which one they start your baby on so you can keep the formula consistent.

After our break, we watched two videos. One was the segment on active labor from the video from the previous week. The other was a video about a woman who gave birth without pain medication when originally she had intended to use it. Then it was practice session time. Last night's topic was massage and a new breathing technique called modified pace breathing. The massage felt wonderful. The instructor gave each couple a tennis ball and had the coaches roll it around their partner's back. It felt sooo good, I almost fell asleep. We had to practice the new breathing technique at the same time, so much for sleeping. Afterwards I felt like I had so much more energy!

So we learned about the brith center, a new breathing technique, and that tennis balls are Good for massage. I am so glad we don't have a dog!

More Baby Gifts

We have received a few more gifts for Baby in the last week. One box came from Aunt Patsy and Uncle Rick in El Paso, TX. It is the quilt handmade by Patsy that I mentioned in the previous post about baby gifts. It came with a nice note and a repair kit. Here are a few pictures:



We also received a box from Kathie, Jerry, and Kelly. Kathie gave it to my mom the last time they saw each other. In the box was an asssortment of baby related things :). There was a very soft blue teddy bear, a toy dragon that crinkles, squeaks, and rattles, two 3 month Carter's creepers, and a three-piece 6 to 9 month surf outfit with a t-shirt, shorts, and a sweatshirt.

I've started collecting a few things on my own. A set of Carter's Dribblehappy Bibs, a couple of sleep 'n plays, two 5-packs of 3 month size Carter's onesies, and a set of First Moments 3 month size onesies.

Registries

In case anyone is wondering, we do have two baby registries with stuff on them. One is at Babies 'R Us; the other is at Target. Both are available online for looking at. The Babies 'R Us registry you need to look up using my name. The one at Target gives you the option to look up using either Paul's or my name. There is more stuff on the Babies 'R Us registry. The Target registry has more Winnie the Pooh things on it. Baby clothes are welcome! But considering Baby might be bigger than we thought he would, you might want to skip the newborn size.

So far, we've figure we need only a few necessary things before he arrives:

1. Pediatritian- I know, not on the registry, but we supposedly need one before he gets here
2. Car Seat- Must have to take him home form the hospital
3. Bottles with liners- Decided to use Playtex Premium with silicone nipple and disposable (drop-in) liners
4. Formula- Haven't decided on the Brand yet, need to ask hospital, or pediatritian
5. Diapers- I want to use Huggies Supreme Gentle Care
6. Baby Wipes- Pampers Sensitive
7. Onesies, Creepers, and/0r Sleep 'n Plays- I like Carter's brand, but anything will work
8. Possibly Laundry Soap- Dreft, but have to ask the pediatritian if it is necessary
9. Changing Pad- Would be nice to have along with covers for it too
10. Mattress Pad- Have one, would like to have at least two
11. Blankets- To wrap him in i.e. receiving-type
12. Crib Sheets

There aren't any showers planned that I know about.

Perinatalogist Appointment

30 Weeks 2 days

Mom's Stats

Blood Pressure: 90/50
Weight: Lost 1 pound
Belly Measurement: 35 centimeters
Feeling: Tired, but good

Baby's Stats

Heart Rate: Not given
Estimated Weight: 5 pounds
Activity During Scan: Sleeping and sucking
Interesting Info: Has hair!!!


The appointment today was a good one. We had the same ultrasound tech as last time, but she didn't seem as crabby this time. Paul and Mom got to see Baby as all the measurements were taken. I got to see Baby at the end when the screen was turned towards me. He was sleeping, we think, during this scan with his face away from the camera (he was on his belly with his back towards us). He didn't really want to move for any face shots this time. The tech was able to get him to look at us halfway, but not full on.



Doctor is still very pleased with everything. He did say Baby is "growing just a little too well," and we might have to consider a c-section because of his size. He says it is most likely genetics because, even though women with Gestational Diabetes tend to have bigger babies, the diet and sugar control is all I can do, and the diet is working. My numbers are excellent especially because I am not on any medications (Glyburide or Insulin). We are almost past the point where I would have to deliver anywhere but Good Shepherd.

Baby Gifts

Well, we have started receiving gifts for our baby :).
The first gift came in April from Jake and Erin: a 9 month cute onesie with turtles and matching pants.


Jim and Kathy brought us these wobbly fellows when they came to visit the week after Easter.

And a photo album:

Amy and Jon sent a polar bear and a bouquet of "flowers" made out of baby clothes. It just arrived today (as Paul would point out box surprisingly intact; the glass belongs to Paul):

We have also been gifted with a family crib and dresser from my Auntie Lisa and Uncle Andrew. The dresser is also a changing table. We need to fix the hinges on it, but other than that, it is in great shape. The mattress is a gift from Jim and Kathy.


A quilt is in the works from Aunt Patsy. She has a work-in-progress picture of it on her blog: http://www.picklebilge.blogspot.com/

We've started collecting a few things too. Peanut, the yellow elephant, I bought for Paul back in November. He has recently been joined by Cloud, the white polar bear. I bought him at the Jewel across the street from Lutheran General before our most recent perinatalogist appointment on April 25th.

If I have forgotten anyone, please tell me. I seem to be having problems remembering lately. :)

Mom and Baby Update

So, things here are as interesting as ever. We've had a few doctors appointments, and now I have more. The last time I posted was almost a month ago. See the previous post for that information. :)

Bloodwork
This month I had my 24 hr. urine test on the 5th. As usual a pain inthe butt, but it is good to keep an eye one me, even if I am doing excatly what my nephrologist said I would: leak protein like a sieve. This isn't a big surprise to any of us, except, it seems, my local ob. It always freaks her out. And for a normal pregnancy, the numbers should freak her out, but I am not a Normal pregnant woman. So, the numbers on that bothered her, but there is nothing they can do about it (they do have me on a blood pressure medication to prevent more kidney damage), and the baby is actually growing quite well.

On the 19th I had the 1 hr. glucose screen in the morning. I felt very crappy after and during that test. I didn't have a good feeling about it. But we waited for the results, which came a hell of a lot quicker than expected: Friday morning at 9 am. As usual, when doctors call you the same day (or close to) of the test, the result was not great. I had failed it. At 1 hr. I had a number of 157 mg/dl, and I had needed a number under 130 mg/dl to pass. This means I had the joy of taking the 3 hr. glucose screening.

The 3 hr. glucose screening was scheduled for the 23rd at 8 am (this after much hassel of calling the hospital to schedule it; they won't do it without having an order in their files or your hand. I tried for hours on Friday morning, after the nurse called me, to schedule, but it didn't happen until Friday after noon late. They finally had received the fax from the office). Paul couldn't come with, so my mom did. We arrived at the hospital outpatient pavillion early like we were supposed to only to have the receptionist lady say there wasn't a diagnosis on the order for the test, and she wasn't sure if they could do the test because there wasn't a diagnosis....Well, she told us to go sit down, and took it back to the lab people. One actually told her there was a diagnosis on it. The receptionist just didn't know how to read it. So, we were late for our scheduled test by fifteen minutes.

So, first they stick you witout drinking the liquid. If you pass that, they have you drink a liquid containing 100 mg of glucose. Mine was orange flavored (I had a choice of that or cola). It tasted like flat, watered-down orange soda with a slight edge to it (the glucose, I'm sure), and it was cold. Then I got to sit for a total of 3 hours. They drew blood at 1 hr., 2 hrs., and 3 hrs. after drinking the liquid. I did not feel as sick this time, but between the second and third stick, I did feel really tired.

The results for that test came back even quicker than the 1 hr. results. By 2 pm on the 23 rd, a nurse called me to tell me I had failed this test too. So, now I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I had the feeling I had failed, but really didn't expect the news so quickly. The nurse asked me how I had known, she wondered if I had had this before. I told her I just had a feeling. This means more appointments, and self checking myself for sugar levels. I'll write more on the diabetes after I talk about doctors' appointments.

Doctors' Appointments

Local Ob
24 weeks 2 days

I had an appointment with the local ob on the 19th. She did not have the results from t he 1 hr. glucose screening from that morning yet, so we did not go over them. We did talk about the 24 hr. urine test and other bloodwork numbers that she had. I had gained weight, my blood pressure was fine, and the baby's heart beat was at 160. She said to schedule another appointment forr 4 weeks, and after that I would probably be seen every 2 weeks. All in all a pretty good visit really (Yes, she was concerned about the protein number, as usual. That is the only number that is rising. Creatinine is stable.)

Perinatalogist
25 weeks 1 day

Yesterday, the 25th, we had an appointment with the perinatalogist. First, we had the doppler scan and ultrasound. The tech was not as friendly as the one we had last month. She barely gave us any information, and I couldn't see the screen until she turned it at the end when she was done getting her measurines. I did not get to see the doppler flow part at all (it literally looks like the weather channel). She did tell us he looks fine, and weighs about 2 and a half pounds. Paul pulled the heart rate number out of her: 151. Baby is doing well. He is in the 77th percentile for weight. Everything seems to be functioning normally. The tech said he was active that morning.

We saw an assoiciate of the doctor we had seen at our appointment last month. While he was more upbeat than the other guy, we didn't get any straight answers out of him. After looking at my blood pressures, he did say they might lower my dosage on my blood pressure medication. He said that many more women are diagosed with gestational diabetes now because they keep lowering the numbers you have to be under to pass the tests. The 1980s numbers are higher than the current numbers. He also said now that I have this, I will continue to have it...this is not what any other doctor, website or book I have says. I think what he meant to say was that I have an elevated risk of getting diabetes after having gestational diabetes. This was the quickest office vist we had so far. I felt rushed through and wasn't incredibly happy feeling that way. It didn't help that he tried to talk to me like I didn't know anything about my kidney disease or body. Hello? I've been living with this disease for years now. I do know something about it.

More on the Gestational Diabetes (The Plan So Far)
I mentioned having more appointments now than I had before. That starts tomorrow with an appointment at the hospital with a dietitian. She is going to talk baout excersize and diet. I also have an appointment next Wednesday with a diabetes educator at the hospital; she is going to teach me how to stick myself to test my blood sugars.

The nurse that called me on the 23rd mentioned that I would need to see both of these people. She also told me I would be checking my sugar levels in the moring and 2 hrs. after each meal (this is not to be done until after I meet with the diabetes educator). After a week of doing that, I have a schedule appointment with my local ob to go over then numbers. She sent me perscriptions for all the supplies I need: lancets, test strips, and alcohol wipes. It turns out that just by calling my insurance company, they send me a glucose monitor of my choice, and as long as I use one of their prefered providers, they send it for free. My monitor arrived Tuesday afternoon: One Touch Ultra II. Insurance also covers the testing supplies as long as I fill it through a pharmacy.

We dropped off the perscription yesterday for the supplies yesterday. We had to talk the girl behind the counter into checking to see if our insurance covered the supplies, she said usually they don't and tried to tell us just to buy them retail. We pushed, and she checked, and lo-and-behold I was right. Our insurance does indeed cover the supplies (which I knew), all of them and the brand name ones to boot. This surprised the pharmcist. She had tried to talk us into the generic. But the copay is the same for both generic and brand name, so we are going with the brand name.

So, that's what I have so far in news. Life is always interesting here. So, the things to note are: baby is good, and I am too. If I had to fail any test during my pregnancy, I am glad it was the gestational diabetes one. At least they can control it.

Baby Update

Well, after a few appointments, we have yet more news. I think almost everyone already knows, but I'll write about the appointmnets anyway. If you don't know the gender, call Paul. Both the perinatalogist and the tech say without a doubt, and we have pictures.

Appointment March 20, 2007- Perinatalogist
At 20 weeks

This was the level 2 ultrasound with consultation afterwards. Incase anyone is wondering, it is just the next level up from a regular ultrasound. They take a closer look at the baby and measure things like head circumferance, femurs, ect. It is just more detailed. Nothing really to get all worried about. They seem to be fairly standard now. Dad was with us because I could have two people in the room with me. The other person was Paul, of course. Mom had to work.

We got there at 11 am and were two hours early. So, we went and checked out the neonatal nursery with Dad. We actually ended up with a tour with a very nice nurse. It has changed a lot (really an understatement) since I was in there. After that we spent some time browsing the gift shop and sitting in the cafeteria. About fifteen minutes before the appointment, we headed to the office. I checked in and they took us into the ultrasound room practically immediately. Apparently, when you schedule around lunchtime, they do the ultrasound first and the vitals (blood pressure, weight, belly measuring) second. The tech was very nice and experienced. Baby was very cooperative, and the tech got all the pictures she needed fairly quickly. Doctor came in and cheked what the tech got and looked around himself. He also said baby was cooperative :). Everything looks good. Doctor is very happy with what he saw. Baby's heart rate was 156. Baby is measuring about a week ahead (but they are not changing my due date because babies can measure up to two weeks ahead or behind at this point), and baby weighs about a pound. They couldn't give us a measurement of length because the baby was too big now. Ultrasound ended, and a nurse took me for vitals.

I had gained ten pounds since the last time I saw the specialist, which brought my total gained weight to fourteen pounds. This is about half of the amount they want me to gain total for my pregnancy (Much better than losing weight which happened first trimester). My blood pressure was good, but nurse didn't tell me what it was, and apparently my belly is about they size they want it to be. After vitals, I was shown to the conference roo where Dad nad Paul were waiting. We waited for the doctor. It took him longerto see us than it did for him to come into the ultrasound room. Again, he is very pleased with the way everything is going so far. He will not give any guarantees on anything, and says if I go 32 weeks, I will deliver at my local hospital. Before 32 weeks, it depends on the situation. Same with method of delivery, he won't tell me with way which one it will be. Also dependant on the situation. He doesn't see anything that could mean I have to deliver early so far. The kidney disease is a factor in that, so we will continue to watch it. The protein concerns him, but he says we have to remember where I am coming from. For "normal" pregnancies, the numbers are scary, but for a pregnant woman with kidney diease, the numbers are fairly normal. He did say that by the end, the protein would probably incease even more. My creatine is fine so far, and the numbers just need to be watched. Pre-eclampsia will be diagnosed with a significant increase in swelling, protein, and blood pressure spike. RIght now everything looks good. I am not sweeling, my blood pressures are good, and the protein is high, but okay so far. Baby is good. If something was really wrong, baby would not be thriving. The next appointment with him is on April 25th at 9:00 am (six weeks from the 20th of March). We're doing a doppler flow scan and consultation.

Appointment March 26th, 2007 - Local Ob
At 1 day shy of 21 weeks

Paul and I got there early after being out for most of the day. The appointment was at 3:45 pm. We were ina room by that time. I had my blood pressure and weight takken prior to being shown a room. Both were god, but I was a little heavier than I had been last week (by 6 pounds). Paul and I chalked this up to water retention because we had been hydrating the heck out of me because of the heat (We are having unseasonablely warm wether the past few days. Temperatures are hovering around 80). The room was very warm. The office had not turned on the air conditioning yet. We Finally opened the door to the room, and Paul went and got some cups of ice water. Unfortunately, due to confidentiality laws, the doctor had to shut the office door during the visit with her. She had not gotten the letter from the perinatalogist yet, so we briefly told her what we could. She found Baby's heart beat. It was at 160 again (the only time it hasn't been at that rate was when we were at the perinatalogist's office for the level 2 ultrasound). I have another appointment with her on April 19th at 2:15 pm (three weeks from now). I will be 24 weeks and 3 days. That morning, I will go for the glucose challenge test at a lab (to test for gestational diabetes, this is also standard now), and I have to have another 24 hour urine test done. We'll be doing that next week. Joy. Yet more bloodwork.

March Came in Like a .....

well, for the most part, lamb, I guess. We did have some rumbles of thunder last night and this morning. The lightening at 3 this morning was the kind that lights up the entrie sky. It is still raining, and we are under a severe thunderstorm watch as well as a flood watch, but really, it could have been worse. All the tornado watches are in southern Illinois right now. Tomorrow and Friday have snow in the forcast. The weatherpeople can't make up their minds as to whether or not we will get thunderstorms this afternoon.

Interesting Fun

Someone on one of the message boards I go to found this link:

http://www.thetech.org/genetics/index.php

If you scroll down, near the bottom of the page it says "What Color Eyes Will My Baby Have?" It is reallly kind of interesting. You put in your parents' and your mate's parents' eye color, your eye color, your mate's eye color, and answer the questions about your siblings, click calculate, and it tells you the probability of your children having green, blue, or brown eyes. :)

Bad News Bears

They lost. I think everyone knows that by now. I actually had to stop watching the game because I could feel my blood pressure rising. This was right before they sacked Peyton Manning. I got to see that on replay because Paul and my parents called me into the living room. At least they sacked him. In case anyone is wondering about the post name, my uncle, the season ticket holder who was in Miami, calls them that. I think it fits.

Upgrade....

Apparently, upgrading the template for blogger means I lose all the changes I made to personalize the first one. At least the counter is still on the page. Not that it is hard to make a second one, but I like the one I have now. Even if Paul says every time it looks like we are having a Cabbage Patch kid.

The bottom is about to drop out here. Temperatures are in the negative numbers at night. Only to get Colder during the day next week. The biggest "crisis" in downtown today is the temperatures are so cold that the Bears helmets made for the Lion statues at the art institute cracked. Maybe this is why in the 1985 they used Weber grills, guys instead of plastic? You think? We've also been getting snow flurries for the past couple days. Today it was more like ice crystal flakes. I do find myself missing the annual vacations to Florida that my parents, brother, and I used to take the end of December and beginning of January.

On the 23rd we had a check up with my local doctor. The baby is doing great. Measuring right on schedule and such. No, they can't tell us the gender yet. It's heart beat was 162, and it was measuring 95.5 mm. This time baby decided for the ultrasound to be upside down and was not as fussy as during previous scans. My next appointment is near the end of February, and is a "regular" ob appointment. I can't really tell you all what that entails because so far all my appointments have not been "regular"- they all included or were solely ultrasounds. We will supposedly get to hear the baby's heartbeat this next time. Something we haven't done yet :). At least it is something to look forward to.

Go Bears!

Okay, this is about as excited as I get about my hometown football team. They beat (into the ground) the Saints yesterday (much to my husband's disappointment) which means: The Bears are headed to Miami for the Superbowl. Thus I must eat my words from early last year when I said on Paul's blog that the Bears would screw up before making it to the Superbowl, but I was right in saying that it would not be Bears vs. Broncos. Incase anyone is wondering, the last time the Bears were ever in the Superbowl was 1985, and they won (against the Patriots according to Paul). That's all I know (hey, I was four years old).

A New Year and News

I realize that I missed posting in December (and it is almost the middle of January), but things have been busy and changing. Not only becuase of the holidays either.

The day I posted about the snow storm in November, we found out we were expecting our first child. Yes, that's right, Paul and I are going to be parents...I'm sure a few people are shuddering right now. Thus started the many, many doctors appointments. The first was the on December 1st for a lot of blood work. For anyone who doesn't know, my veins do not like to give up any amount of blood without a fight even if it is necessary. The nurses at the doctor's office refused to stick me and sent me for blood sucking at a local lab (not the hospital :( ). The second doctor's appointment was on December 12th. We had an ultrasound at 6 weeks 1 day. Not usually normal for a pregnancy, but they have reasons to watch me closely. So, far I had not had any mornning sickness, well, it started after that appoinment. It is mainly dizziness and nausea. Occassionally, I am sick in the mornings.

December 15th Paul and I flew out to Utah for Amy and Jon's wedding. The flight was not kind to me even though Paul kept me hydrated and fed and regular intervals, and the flight was nonstop. I got off the plane with a Major headache-I forgot to mention that I had to have more blood drawn on the 12th. This time the results were two nicely sized black bruises on the inside of both of my arms. I was able to hide these until the day of the wedding under long sleeved shirts. The wedding was beautiful and so was the bride. We told Amy and Jon before they left for their honeymoon. Paul's parents, grandparents, and rest of the family were told the next day. On the way home, we spent atleast an hour sitting on the plane at the gate waiting to be de-iced.

Then there was Christmas. It started on December 24th for us with a family gathering at my aunt and uncle's house. Everyone was there, but we didn't announce the news. I was not comfortable with it, especially after my gramma decided to snub my brother and I. Christmas Day was better with the exception of me feeling horrible about the gifts I got for Paul. Christmas dinner was nice and low-key. Just us, my parents, and grandfather.

The day after Christmas was our second ultrasound at 8 weeks 1 day. Paul didn't make it in time to see the ultrasound, but my Dad was there with me. Paul did get to see the pictures, and go out to lunch with us afterwards. New Year's Eve came and went without much ado. I fell alseep right after midnight. Paul stayed up a for a little while longer. My birthday came. Paul and I went out to breakfast. We also went to Woodfield to wander. I had many singing phone calls from family members. I couldn't go see my parents becuase they were both sick and didn't want me to catch it. We had Chinese for dinner.

On January 9th we had an appoint with with the doctors medical group at Lutheran General. We had another utlrasound. The baby is very active and measuring a day ahead of "schedule." So, everything is going well. We have an appointment with my regular ob on the 23rd of this month.