Still at the hospital

Well, it's Saturday and I'm still at the hospital (Day #5). Yesterday, my doctor decided that while things are looking good, he wants me to stay here in the hospital under close watch and in a controlled environment for one full week to make sure the baby grows at a steady pace. Apparently, getting out of the world and sealing yourself up in a hospital bed does wonders to help babies grow; my doctor is a big believer in this and I think I am too because my NST tests are much better and I feel the baby kicking more. But, hopefully I'll be able to go home on Tuesday. I'll have a sonogram on Tuesday with the high risk doctor, and he and my doctor will pow-wow to discuss my next move.

The doctor did give me wheelchair priveleges, so yesterday and today, Mike took me out for a stroll (or roll) around the hospital. Today we even went outside and watched a rolly-polly make the ardeous journey across the sidewalk. The bug took about 10 minutes to cross the cement and we were glad it made it to the safety of the grass before being squished by oncoming walkers--I'll take it as a good omen. Anyways, it was nice to just be outside on a beautiful sunny day. It the first time I breathed fresh air since Tuesday morning.

I've been feeling the baby kick a lot today and the hospital staff even fulfilled a special dietery request--a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. And that's why today is a good day! More later.

Day 3 at the hospital

Well, I'm at day #3 at the hospital. Still no word on if I can go home tomorrow (Friday). Today has been pretty quiet and I've been able to get some much needed rest--not that I've haven't greatly appreciated everyone who's come to visit me!! But I woke up just knowing that I was going to be tired today. It's raining right now, and I hope the storm continues through the night. The sound of rain always helps me sleep.

The baby has been pushing on my ribs and back today making me quite uncomfortable, so the nurse brought me some Tylenol. However, I love the fact that she growing and taking up room!

After visiting for a couple of days, my mom went back to Cameron today. It was great having her here to ask a bunch of motherly-blunt questions that Mike and I wouldn't of thought of asking. It was also fun because she did my hair and kept me company. Plus, it gave Mike a chance to go home and get some rest in a real bed. He looked refreshed when he came back.

I had lunch with a "Bedrest Buddy" group. This a group of pregnant gals who are in a similar situation as me. I met a girl having twins and another woman having triplets! I can't imagine! They've been here a few weeks and will likely be here for the long haul. We ate lunch and chatted and it was nice to escape my room for a little while. It's been a long time since I've been pushed around in a wheel chair, and while I wouldn't want to make a habit out of it, it was kind of fun.

Well, I'll keep y'all updated after I talk with my doctor tomorrow.

Hospital food is actually pretty good!

Yep, I'm in the Hospital. But before images of ER or of tubes hanging out of my nose start flashing in your mind, let me rewind to last Monday.

On Monday, March 26, I went in for my weekly doctor's appointment. I came in to have a non-stress test (NST) at the recommendation of the high risk OB. During the test, my doctor was concerned at the baby's lack of movement. Her heartbeat was strong, she just wasn't moving that much. And her movements on the monitor weren't coordinating with when I would feel her kick. So, my doctor had me go home and come back on Tuesday after eating a big lunch for a second (NST). He was looking to see if there would be better coordination and movement. Again, my doctor didn't really like what he saw, so he sent me down the hall to meet with the high risk OB for a high-tech ultra sound. The high risk OB confirmed that the baby had grown. (Thanks to everyone who has been shoveling food into my mouth for the past week!). The baby is sitting at about 3 lbs. 9 oz. (up from 3 lbs. 1 oz.). However, last Monday she was 9 days behind schedule, and now she's 12 days behind schedule. (So, more milkshakes please!)

So, the high risk OB and my doctor consulted on Tuesday and decided to admit me in the hospital for a few days. They want to monitor the baby more regularly in a controlled environment. Not that there is anything particularly wrong, but on the side of caution, they want to get a better benchmark for the baby's movement. In general, a good indication that things are going well is when the mother feels the baby kick. However, even when the monitor shows that the baby is moving, I don't always feel her. So, they want to monitor the baby on a more regular basis to make sure that even though I'm not always feeling her, that she is in fact moving. With any luck, I'll be out of here by Friday or Saturday. If my doctor (now doctors) don't like the results of my stress tests, then I'll stay here a little longer.

So, for anyone who hasn't stayed overnight in a hospital for a while, here's the scoop. (At least at the Presbyterian Hospital of Plano). I get my own room and bathroom. I have a TV and DVD player. The nurses are extremely nice, but to Mike's dismay, they don't have the physical characteristics of TV nurses (like on ER, Scrubs, or Grey's Anatomy). Mike has a skinny couch that he can sleep on. What's funny is that the width of the couch is about two feet, so Mike has to sleep on his side and wedge a chair in front of him to keep him from rolling off the couch. He says it's pretty uncomfortable and recommends a twin size air matress for anyone that plans to stay with someone overnight at a hospital.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE FOOD!?! Well, I completely expected the food to be gross, frozen- dinner-like quality. But it's actually really good! I get a menu and can order 3 meals a day. Each comes with an appetizer, salad, main course, dessert, and drink. Examples of what I can get include: grilled salmon with coconut dill cream; beef tenderloin with portabella burgandy sauce; and my favorite - homemade three cheese lasagna wrap. Mmmm.. I think I'll get that again for dinner.

So, basically I eat, sleep, get monitored, and eat and sleep some more. Other than that, the nurses just stop by and check on me every once in a while. I'll keep ya'll updated if there are any changes.

Cute But Little Baby

I had my sonogram today and the baby is measuring really small. My doctor had me go see a High Risk Obstetrician today so that he could do his own (higher tech) sonogram and give me some recommendations. Luckily this High Risk doctor is just a few doors down from my own OBGYN so I didn't have to travel too far. The High Risk doctor confirmed that the baby is measuring really small so he recommended a couple of things: 1)that I eat more protein and carbohydrates (he suggested I have two Boost drinks a day and that I snack in between my three meals and before I go to bed). 2)that I start taking it really easy--don't move around too much and keep my feet up.

After getting the recommendations from the High Risk doctor, my own doctor agreed that I should definitely eat more and move less. They are thinking that while I may be eating a lot I'm also moving a lot so I'm burning the calories and stuff before it gets to the baby. So, my doctor suggested I go on bed rest to make sure the nutrients are able to make it to the baby.

So here I am--on bed rest and I'm not going to be working anymore (unless the doctor gives me a green light to go back to work...not likely this late in the pregnancy).

I will be going back to see my OBGYN and the High Risk Obstetrician once a week to get a sonogram to measure and monitor the baby. Also, the High Risk doctor was able to determine that she weighs a little more than 3 pounds right now. So a big part of the monitoring each week will be to make sure she is growing gaining weight. If she stops growing...we'll cross that bridge if we get there.

The good news is that the baby has a really strong heart beat. Also, I got a few good shots of her. I know it's hard to tell what you're looking at but here's the gist of it:

Top: The baby's face is looking at us. You can see where her eyes are (two black spots near the right of the screen) with her little nose in between those spots. If you look real carefully you can see her mouth in between two chipmunk cheeks. Her arm is right next to her right cheek.

Middle: This is a profile shot. Her head is on the right side of the screen with her hand up near her chin. The little bubble looking thing is the umbilical cord.

Bottom: This is her foot. Cute!

I'm 31 Weeks today!

I can't believe I'm already 31 weeks!

I added some pictures to the "My Pictures" link.

Sugar Baby

I had my 31 week doctor appointment today.

It was a two fold appointment:

1)I had my glucose test (to check for gestational diabetes which is pretty common in pregnant women). I was told not to eat pasta or rice for dinner last night (because they're really high in carbs and would skew the test results. I also couldn't eat or drink anything past midnight. Then I went to the doctor at 8:15 this morning and the first thing they did was prick my finger to get a blood sample. It was scary, but I got over it quick (I'm a mom now and can't be scared of those kinds of things anymore). I then had to drink this really sugary liquid. I've been told that it's a really gross drink. But I LOVE sweets so I didn't think it was so bad. It actually tasted like flat, extra sugary Sprite. And I love Sprite. Then after an hour the nurse pricked my finger again to see how my body reacted to the sugar. The results came back normal. Whew.

Note: It's not very nice to ask a pregnant woman to wake up, get out of bed, and try to look pretty before 8:00. Also, it's not very nice to ask a pregnant woman to not eat anything for about 10 hours straight...I thought I would pass out. Don't worry, I ate enough later in the day to make up for it.

2)I had my regular check-up. I got to hear the baby's heart beat. It's amazing how much better the heart beat sounds in the doctor's office than on my little 'made for home' heart beat monitor that I bought at Target. The doctor also measured my belly which is almost at 30cm. He said that I'm measuring small--that he would like to see it at least 31cm. He wants to take a look at the baby to make sure everything looks okay so I'm going back on Monday for a sonogram. Though I don't like the reason I'm going, I am pretty excited to see the baby. My mom measured really small with her first couple of kids, and since the rest of my pregnancy is pretty much following hers to a 'T', I hope this is the same.

TTFN ---(Ta ta for now--what Tigger says in Winnie the Pooh (I'm learning this kind of stuff now))

29 and 30 Week Pictures

I added pictures of me at 29 and 30 weeks in the "My Pictures" link!