RSS

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Adventures in Labor & Delivery

So I should probably update you with my latest adventure.
Yesterday I went in for a routine Non-Stress Test and ended up spending an hour or two checked in at Labor & Delivery.
Grace decided to be naughty.
It was only supposed to take half an hour to do the test, but she was super squirmy. It probably didn't help that I had eaten a pop tart only an hour before. Mmm, sugar rush! They couldn't get her to maintain a stable resting heart rate. It was either 160 or 140. Finally she settled down to 140 for a while, and yet I was held captive. I started having irregular contractions 3-4 minutes apart. They soon started coming 2 minutes apart and lasting about a minute each. The nurse was very concerned, especially since I couldn't feel said contractions and she was unable to palpate them. So a call was made to labor & delivery where I was checked in as a precaution against pre-term labor.
So they hook me up to a similar rig in the birthing room. I had a great view by the way. I could see across the street to the clinic, and the mountains, and the fire department were running drills, so there was water shooting into the air & so on. I was highly entertained. I only had one contraction the entire time I was in the room. They checked me "down there" and I'm not even dilated to a finger tip, and less than 40% effacement. Still nice and firm. Then apparently my mother wanted to see me, and after explaining that my mother lives in California and would probably have kittens if she knew I was in a birthing room having contractions, the nurse figured out the lost woman was looking in the wrong room.
I ended up getting off the fifth floor around noon when I was expecting to be done by 10. I have been instructed to stay off my back, since it seems laying on my back triggers the contractions.
I had my friend worried downstairs, since I said I would be down there around 10 to sit with her while her husband had open heart surgery. So OF COURSE Grace would choose that day to act out, lol.
Everything turned out okay in the end, and we had an ultrasound today. I go back for another Non-Stress Test on Monday. Good times.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

ZOOM!

So I meant to get a 7 month bump photo on Mother's Day, but everything has just completely whizzed by us. We have the 2nd half of our prenatal class tonight, and today is going kinda crummy for everyone.
I did, however, manage to get some more cleaning done.



You can see the floor now! Yay!
I can almost imagine the fresh paint on the walls. Just a few more weeks.

I got my hypnobabies workbook & I'm looking forward to practicing. I've read the first week's lesson, but I have a feeling the prenatal class will try to scare it out of me, so I'm holding off on getting too far with learning, as eager as I am to try it.
I am kind of reserved about telling people my birth plan. Two of my closest friends have both said "Heh, yeah, good luck with that." Which isn't exactly the kind of support I'm looking for. It makes me feel like I'm crazy for trying the natural route, and I get discouraged easily to begin with. At least Andy is supportive. His sisters have gone the hypno route & love it. Maybe I should talk to them more often.

I saw Clarene last week. My hA1c was 5.6. She was a little nervous about it, but more comfortable than when it was 5.4. She is still concerned about my lows & me passing out. And, as opposed to my mom, she is pro-breastfeeding and wants me to have all sorts of fluids & juices when I breastfeed to help keep my sugar up.
Also, why can't more people be supportive about breastfeeding? Good gravy! It's one of the most natural things in the world. Aside from entertainment purposes, it's the main reason God put boobies on women in the first place! When I mention that I'd like a breast pump, my mom shuts me down with how much I'll hate feeding. It bugs me. Just because she didn't like it (or even want to deal with it for that matter), doesn't mean I'll feel the same way. Luckily, many of my friends with kids have all gone the "Breast is Best" route and are supportive.

I also saw the OB on Monday. Everything checked out fine. With how well I've got my sugar under control, he said they're SO not worried about complications at this point (cuz I'm an awesome mama!)
The only thing is that they want to start doing weekly stress tests on the 27. As if the whole 9 months of waiting couldn't get any worse... now I have to sit in a dark room with a monitor strapped to my belly for 20 minutes to an hour & mindlessly push a button every time the baby kicks. Won't that be fun!

So, yeah, I guess everything's going okay. You can probably tell I'm just a little irritated today. Like I said, rough awkward moments with immediate family.

To end on a positive note, I was able to find the travel system (stroller/carrier combo) that I've been pining over for the last year. It has been discontinued for months, which bummed me out, but I found a brand new one on ebay for $70. It should be here in a week or two. I am looking forward to setting it up.
I also got some safety thingies for the cabinets, and corner bumpers for the cedar chest in our bedroom that we keep banging our knees into.

By the way... prenatal class is interesting. It's full of first timers, but I feel like I'm in a room full of complete virgins. They all seem so clueless. Example: When the nurse asked what it meant if your fluid was green when your water broke, and I knew the answer, everyone oohed and ahhed. Seriously, what the heck have you been doing the past 9 months? KNITTING?! How can you sit there and not educate yourself about this monumental change that's coming. I feel like they're thinking "A fluffy pink stork is bringing my baby from the cabbage patch. When it gets here, it will poop rainbows & spit up butterflies".
Am I the only one who has spent almost every day of gestation researching pregnancy & the first year of life?

Here I go ranting again... and you thought I was going to end on a positive note, HA!

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Short & Sweet

I just wanted to post a short, random note.
My friend Sam made my day today.
She found a pink onesie that says "Someday I'll demand a pony!" and it has a pony on it. I'm so tickled to finally have an article of horse-themed clothing that Grace can wear right away-- and it's funny, to boot!

Tonight Andy & I start our prenatal class. I really don't know what to expect. I am hoping they have a refresher on diaper changing & baby bathing. Regardless, I'm looking forward to this quality time together.

Last random note: I ordered a home study guide for hypnobabies. It's similar to hypnobirthing, only it teaches you hypno-anesthesia, which helps eliminate pain during labor. Supposedly the system teaches you to view labor in a calm & positive light, rather than the typically painful screaming "Gimme drugs NOW!" method that we're all raised with. I'll have to let you know how that goes. Special thanks to Andy's older sister who got me interested in the general hypno method.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

A Box a Day...

The goal was to only do one box, but it felt so good that I just kept going, lol. This is what they call nesting, isn't it? I FLEW through the boxes that were the furthest back. They were filled with mostly empty Breyer boxes. A couple of them had Breyers in them, and I plan to sell those ones.

Anyway, I have 3 boxes left. 2 of them are full of hubby's stuff. I pushed them back into the corner where the big stack was.


EMPTY Boxes!!


The nightstand where I have her board books (and a few fun pictures books I found in the boxes). The drawers are full of receiving blankets. My baby picture is on the corner temporarily... just until we get 4D Pictures done of her :)


Now the kicker... everything from the boxes on the bed, roflmbo


I have a tendency to either want to chuck or D.I. (salvation army) everything, so hubby told me to leave things alone. I'll let him deal with the wreckage when he gets home. He can help me find places for the books and movies. I'm feelin' my oats now!