Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Status: 27 weeks, 5 days (This is when I started writing it, I just finished today - a week later!)

We had our monthly growth scan today with the perinatologist, and it was the best ultrasound yet! The tech came in and reminded us that we still needed some good pictures of Tobe's heart and face (which we previously had none of) to rule out problems. I let her know that he has been consistently stubborn, but that I was still trying to be optimistic that he would cooperate today.

For the first 30 minutes or so, she looked at all his organs, his brain, etc. and determined they looked great. Then she tried to get a look at his face, and of course, he was being his usual stubborn self.

We took a break for about 5 minutes while she entered info into the computer, and I decided that I would try to squish him (by curling myself around my belly) so that he might cooperate and flip over (he really loves cuddling against my back). For some reason, it actually worked! We got some beautiful shots of his gorgeous face, saw him yawn (just like his daddy) several times, and watched him punch and kick all over the place. It was so amazing to see! Here are the pics they gave us:



It was a great brithday present for Joel, and I think it really made Tobe seem a lot more "real" to him!

My strong little man!

Status: 25 weeks, 3 days

I am so proud of my little Tobe! We (he and I) were watching (well, he was listening) his favorite show, "Deliver Me" and he started getting really jumpy. I called Joel in and had him lay with me and put his hand on my belly. Tobe gave a few light kicks, but then he kicked Joel HARD! I felt Joel's hand jump! Once he knew what he was feeling for, he got the hang of it and was able to tell when he was moving around. I am so proud of my little guy for finally giving his daddy a "High 5"!

It wouldn't be so long if I wrote more often!

Status: 25 weeks, 3 days

Of course, I have been REALLY bad about keeping my blog updated. But seeing as how I am actually still blogging at all, everyone should be proud. I am not at all known for being good at long-term journaling. However, I am super proud that I am still keeping up with it, even if it is not as often as I would like.


So, here are the pics you've been missing.....

23 Weeks

24 Weeks

25 Weeks

Ok. Now that we've taken care of business, on to our update....

I'm sure most of your read my last post, which was really just a vent from what a bad day I had last week. It got a little better the next day when I went for my 24 week OB appointment. I actually got to see my regular doctor, which was awesome because a familiar face is always calming. Tobe had a beautiful strong heart rate of 142 bpm, and he was behaving and taking a nap during the doppler so we could actually find him this time!

Dr. Henke said that because of the way the practice works, I could still deliver with a midwife if I want (which I DO want - it lowers the rate of c-sections and interventions, plus they stay with you more than the docs)! I was so relieved to hear that. She also said that because they know there is a potential problem, that the OB on call will also be there, and they will have meds on standby.

On a side note...I know that 99% of you that I have talked to feel like I am being a hypochondriac. I would like to reiterate that I did not ASK for all of this. It all stemmed from the elevated MSAFP, and from my grandma not knowing what type of Von Willebrand's she has. I personally feel that I would rather be safe, than sorry. If they want to draw my blood all the time, fine. I have insurance, it's paid for. So would everyone please get off my back about me making this more than it is, because I am not! Obviously, this will not be a concern with future pregnancies, so please let me (and my husband and doctors) deal with this (and all the other things we have to do) and try not to impose your feelings on us. When I went into the hematologist, I fully expected him to say I had nothing to worry about, but he didn't. So I am doing what is recommended to keep myself and my baby safe. That's the best any parent can do.

Anyway..back to my visit. This was the joyous week of the 1-hour glucose tolerance test. I also had my liver enzymes re-tested because they were very slightly elevated last time they were checked. I called today to find out the results of my tests, and there was mixed reviews. The good news is that my AST came down to 33 from 36. Below 30 is considered normal, so they are happy with that. The bad news is that I failed my glucose tolerance test my 2 points! I got 132, the cut-off is 130. It seems that I have a trend of just barely being outside of the normal range for almost every test that I've had. The next step is to do a 3-hour test. I have to go by the office and pick up directions for how to eat for the 3 days prior to the test, then I have to be NPO (nothing to eat or drink, even water) after midnight the night before I go in to do the test. They will do a fasting blood sugar, have me drink the solution, and then test me again every hour. If I fail this one, then I will be diagnosed with gestational diabetes. If I pass...well, then I will just be a happy camper!

Another thing that resulted from this visit was a change in my work schedule. I was talking with the doctor about the cramping and Braxton Hicks contractions that have become more frequent at work, and she decided that it was probably due to me running around so much and not resting. She then put me on restricted hours. I am no longer allowed to work more than 8 hour shifts, but she did not limit my hours per week (yay!). So I am still full time, I just have to work 4 or 5 days a week instead of 3. The bonus is that I am now on the same shift (7-3) as Joel, so we see each other A LOT more. It has been really nice to have shorter days, too. I haven't had as many contractions - yesterday I only had 3!

My no good, very bad day

Status: 24 weeks, 3 days

This is just copied and pasted from my post on TheBump.com...sorry, but I'm not really feeling up to rewriting everything. I'll try to post the last 2 week's pics tomorrow.

My Post:

I thought I was having a pretty decent day today. I should have known it would end up really crappy when I woke up at 4:30 wide awake. I finally went back to bed at 6 AM when DH got up for work, and I slept until almost 10.

Fast forward to this afternoon. Traffic was at a complete standstill on 285. It took me 45 minutes to get from 141 to St. Joseph's....that's 3 exits! It caused me to arrive exactly on time for my 3:15 appt with the hematologist.

So I originally thought that this appt would be really short and sweet. I'd tell him they wanted me to have a consult b/c of the genetic counseling and my grandmother's blood disorder, and they would tell me that since my dad is fine (that we know of), that it was an overreaction and all would be well and I would be done with this. WRONG! Instead, he told me that b/c I am preggo, it can mask whether or not I have the disorder. He said he will test me now, and unless the tests come back abnormal, we will have to keep testing until after the baby is born. I asked how often that would be, and he said at least again in July, and then sometime before my due date, depending on what this round of bloodwork says.

Then, he asked where my husband was, which I thought was a weird question. I told him at work. He told me next time I need to bring him with me b/c we need to discuss how this can effect the baby, and what we want to do about it. I almost started crying right there. Basically, he said that we will have to test the baby when he is born, and then it might complicate how his bris is handled. (ie, it may not be safe to do it at home).

On top of all this, he asked who my OB was, and I told him what practice I go to. He asked for some specific docs, so I listed off 3 or 4 that I remember, but I told him I've been seeing the midwives. He told me I was no longer allowed to see the midwives, that I am no longer an uncomplicated delivery. I was literally biting my lip trying not to cry at this point. While I was waiting for him to finish my lab slip, I called the OB office and asked to be switched to a doc for my appt tomorrow. At this point, all I wanted to do was go home. I went and had my labs drawn, and left.

Fast forward 20 min. I am pulling onto my street, and there is a large tree service truck in front of me. They pull to the right, in front of another tree service truck, so I think they are going to park there and go to pull past them. WRONG AGAIN! They were actually pulling over to make a wide turn to back into a driveway on my left. I got hit by the 3 ft front tire on my driver's side door.

I thought it would be simple. I would call the owner, get the insurance infor, and call my insurance company and theirs. WRONG AGAIN! The a$$ who owns the company accused me of tailgating the truck and hitting them! How can you tailgate with stop signs, and how can I have hit them when THEIR tire was in MY door! WTF! He refused to give me the insurance policy number without a police report. I ended up hanging up on him b/c he continued to accuse me of things that just could not have happened, and I called the cops.

40 min later....a Dunwoody officer arrived at our house and took all the info, and I have to wait until Thursday to get a police report. I called my insurance company and reported it, and told them that the other company wouldn't give me the info, and she said to call State Farm (I did get THAT MUCH out of him) and they should be able to look it up. WRONG AGAIN! They found the info, but they couldn't process a claim without knowing WHICH vehicle it was, and they wouldn't take just a license plate number. They wanted the make model and VIN. We didn't get the VIN, and the driver didn't know the make and model.

So now I have a dented car, yet another medical problem to deal with, my entire birth plan has to be changed, my blood pressure is probably through the roof, and I can't do anything about this stupid accident until at least Friday morning! Please pray for my sanity!