After having some bad headaches last night and today, Aunt Mary brought over my Grandpas blood pressure machine to check my blood pressure. It was sky high, so I called my OB. He suggested Tylenol, and to lay down for 30 minutes and recheck and call him. There was no change so I found myself back at the hospital.
They admitted me for Preeclampsia, and to monitor me and do some testing for at least 24 hours, maybe longer depending on how I do. The Dr made it very clear he thinks this baby is coming in the next 10 days, but he also said he hope he is wrong. I told him I refuse to left him come any earlier than 2 weeks and 4 weeks sound better. He agreed.
He set up for the neonatal Dr's to come talk to us tomorrow about the baby so hopefully they give me some hope and optimism. We will now be missing our BIG cardiologist appointment AGAIN, I'm convinced this baby doesn't want us to see his little heart.
I'm going to go get some rest before they come back in for vitals in 3 hours. Keep the prayers coming. Thanks you EVERYONE!
Showing posts with label Nolan Prayers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nolan Prayers. Show all posts
Sunday, June 7, 2009
26 weeks
A month ago today changed this whole pregnancy. It's probably been one of the most emotional months Chris and I have ever endured, but it has also brought out the strength in each other. I am getting through this because of him. I hope the news can only get better from here on out.
Tomorrow is the new cardiologist appointment. We have to drive 2 hours to Tampa, but it's worth it. We are hoping and praying the Dr gives us good news about the heart. Then we drive strait back to Ft Myers to go meet with the specialist again. He has to check the reversal flow on my arteries again. Hoping there is no change and I don't have to be admitted.
I'm still on bed rest. I really hope it's helping him. I miss work and miss having the freedom to go to the store to get my own stuff. BUT if this is what it takes to give this baby a chance I will do ANYTHING. I wanted to say THANK YOU to Aunt Mary and Cathy for bringing me homemade dinners on nights Chris has been at work. It takes a lot of stress off the both of us to find something healthy to eat and let alone prepare. I am so thankful we have you guys. And much thanks to Trisha, my sister in law for spending boring nights in front of the TV with me.
I am excited for this Thursday, Maggie is flying down a week earlier to hang out with me. THANK GOD, it will give Chris a break. LOL Then a week after that the whole family will be here, Mom, Dad and Molly. It will be nice to have everyone here. Now this baby just better stay put. (You hear that little one?)
Baby Shower Update:
(since a few of you have asked)
We were suppose to have our baby shower in 2 weeks while my family is here for my brother Charlies graduation, the invites were almost sent until we had another disappointing Dr's appointment early last week. We have decided to cancel the shower for the time being. Maybe there can be one after he is born and we can celebrate then. I'm bummed because they had the BEST baby shower invitations that I was soooooo excited about, you know me..anything with anchors and sailboats wins my heart over.
Wish us luck tomorrow. I will keep everyone updated as soon as we get home.
How far along? 26 weeks
Maternity clothes? Everything
Stretch marks? Not yet, thankfully
Sleep: Too much, being on bed rest gives you a lot of time for naps
Best moment this week: It was a crappy week, so i have to say the BEST moment was finding out I doubled my fluids. Any other news i take with a grain of salt and hope for the best.
Movement: He's been really quiet this week, but the Dr said it could be from the steroid shots. He said it makes the babies sluggish sometimes.
Food cravings: I've been craving free for a few weeks up until last night... I want anything I can put tarter sauce on.
Gender: It's a BOY!
Labor Signs: Had a scare, but Dr confirmed I'm okay for now. STAY THAT WAY!
Belly Button in or out? Almost out.
What I miss: Being anxiety free.
What I am looking forward to: The cardiologist in Tampa tomorrow morning. I hope and pray he gives us good news.
Weekly Wisdom: You can't give up hope
Milestones: He's 26 weeks, almost and maybe even 500g by now so everyday he stays in, the better chance he has at survival. He's our fighter.
Tomorrow is the new cardiologist appointment. We have to drive 2 hours to Tampa, but it's worth it. We are hoping and praying the Dr gives us good news about the heart. Then we drive strait back to Ft Myers to go meet with the specialist again. He has to check the reversal flow on my arteries again. Hoping there is no change and I don't have to be admitted.
I'm still on bed rest. I really hope it's helping him. I miss work and miss having the freedom to go to the store to get my own stuff. BUT if this is what it takes to give this baby a chance I will do ANYTHING. I wanted to say THANK YOU to Aunt Mary and Cathy for bringing me homemade dinners on nights Chris has been at work. It takes a lot of stress off the both of us to find something healthy to eat and let alone prepare. I am so thankful we have you guys. And much thanks to Trisha, my sister in law for spending boring nights in front of the TV with me.
I am excited for this Thursday, Maggie is flying down a week earlier to hang out with me. THANK GOD, it will give Chris a break. LOL Then a week after that the whole family will be here, Mom, Dad and Molly. It will be nice to have everyone here. Now this baby just better stay put. (You hear that little one?)
Baby Shower Update:
(since a few of you have asked)
We were suppose to have our baby shower in 2 weeks while my family is here for my brother Charlies graduation, the invites were almost sent until we had another disappointing Dr's appointment early last week. We have decided to cancel the shower for the time being. Maybe there can be one after he is born and we can celebrate then. I'm bummed because they had the BEST baby shower invitations that I was soooooo excited about, you know me..anything with anchors and sailboats wins my heart over.
Wish us luck tomorrow. I will keep everyone updated as soon as we get home.
How far along? 26 weeks
Maternity clothes? Everything
Stretch marks? Not yet, thankfully
Sleep: Too much, being on bed rest gives you a lot of time for naps
Best moment this week: It was a crappy week, so i have to say the BEST moment was finding out I doubled my fluids. Any other news i take with a grain of salt and hope for the best.
Movement: He's been really quiet this week, but the Dr said it could be from the steroid shots. He said it makes the babies sluggish sometimes.
Food cravings: I've been craving free for a few weeks up until last night... I want anything I can put tarter sauce on.
Gender: It's a BOY!
Labor Signs: Had a scare, but Dr confirmed I'm okay for now. STAY THAT WAY!
Belly Button in or out? Almost out.
What I miss: Being anxiety free.
What I am looking forward to: The cardiologist in Tampa tomorrow morning. I hope and pray he gives us good news.
Weekly Wisdom: You can't give up hope
Milestones: He's 26 weeks, almost and maybe even 500g by now so everyday he stays in, the better chance he has at survival. He's our fighter.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Rollercoaster
Seriously, everyday is a roller coaster to us..it is running minute by minute even. I guess it's preparing us for the NICU life we will soon endure. Which we are hoping this baby grows a littl more to make it to that step.
We went to another Fetal maternal appointment. It's one of the bi-weekly scheduled ones. It started with the ultrasound tech asking if she could take an extra look at the heart. She said she knew I never made it to the cardiologist yesterday so she figured what was the harm.
She said she thinks we should get prepared for some good news because things are looking pretty decent. She thinks the enlarged heart is due to the placental insufficancy requiring the heart to overwork and grow bigger. She said the lung cavities are developing which is good. So we were crossing our fingers that the Dr would be optimistic on the heart too. She remeasured my amniotic fluid and she got a measurement of 6.9 So it has doubled in 3 days, thank god. Anything under 8 is critical but at least I am climbing back to where I was.
The Dr then came in. Keep in mind its the first time he had seen me so he is going off a lot of todays ultrasound and my chart. He said he is most concerned with his heart right now. He really needs me to go to a certain cardiologist in Tampa ASAP. He said we can't wait to see the local one that was SUPPOSE to happen yesterday and got rescheduled for next Wed. He promised this is one of the best in the SW area. He wants to rule out a VSD and Tetrolgy of Fallot. He is suspecting TOF because of a slightly enlarged aorta. So he must suspect something that either the u/s tech didn;t pick up or he is considering all my previous appointments and charts. He said he has treatment plans in mind for both but they both differ. We are all hoping the heart is ok and the u/s tech was correct.
Sooo, Monday we drive up to Tampa to see the cardiologist then right back to Ft Myers to see Fetal Maternal specialist right after. He did say I might be admitted next week for daily monitoring of the doppler flows in my uterine arteries but it all depends on what the cardiologist says. As of now, I'm still on bedrest, but I'm hoping its helping with my fluid levels as it seems to be.
We went to another Fetal maternal appointment. It's one of the bi-weekly scheduled ones. It started with the ultrasound tech asking if she could take an extra look at the heart. She said she knew I never made it to the cardiologist yesterday so she figured what was the harm.
She said she thinks we should get prepared for some good news because things are looking pretty decent. She thinks the enlarged heart is due to the placental insufficancy requiring the heart to overwork and grow bigger. She said the lung cavities are developing which is good. So we were crossing our fingers that the Dr would be optimistic on the heart too. She remeasured my amniotic fluid and she got a measurement of 6.9 So it has doubled in 3 days, thank god. Anything under 8 is critical but at least I am climbing back to where I was.
The Dr then came in. Keep in mind its the first time he had seen me so he is going off a lot of todays ultrasound and my chart. He said he is most concerned with his heart right now. He really needs me to go to a certain cardiologist in Tampa ASAP. He said we can't wait to see the local one that was SUPPOSE to happen yesterday and got rescheduled for next Wed. He promised this is one of the best in the SW area. He wants to rule out a VSD and Tetrolgy of Fallot. He is suspecting TOF because of a slightly enlarged aorta. So he must suspect something that either the u/s tech didn;t pick up or he is considering all my previous appointments and charts. He said he has treatment plans in mind for both but they both differ. We are all hoping the heart is ok and the u/s tech was correct.
Sooo, Monday we drive up to Tampa to see the cardiologist then right back to Ft Myers to see Fetal Maternal specialist right after. He did say I might be admitted next week for daily monitoring of the doppler flows in my uterine arteries but it all depends on what the cardiologist says. As of now, I'm still on bedrest, but I'm hoping its helping with my fluid levels as it seems to be.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
No cardiologist today
We were SUPPOSE to go see the fetal cardiologist today but we had a slight change in plans. On the way to the cardiologist, my OB called to go over some lab stuff for tomorrow. I had asked who was on call because I wanted to talk to them when I came in today after the cardiologist for my 2nd steroid shot about decreased fetal movement since yesterday.
This boy had his off days but the fetal Dr made it a point that I should call if it continues now since my fluid had been so low. SO, my OB said skip the cardiologist and come straight in.
Here's for some better news....
They plopped me on the ultrasound machine after giving up with the NST. He's in there wiggling around and had a strong heartbeat. The tech was surprised that I couldn't feel him. My fluids went up a little to 5, YAY! Its better than 3. She said it looks better than 2 days ago.
She remeasured him and hes now a 1lb 1oz!! He grew in just 2 days! I think the bed rest is helping. So he is about 460-478g, which is soooooo close to 500!!! The ultrasound tech was amazed, as so are we.
The Dr also checked for ruptured membranes and preterm labor, NOTHING.
So even though we never made it to the cardiologist, at least we got a little extra hope today. Our cardiologist appointment is now next Wed so we have to wait one more week, but after finding out he grew just a little more I'm okay with that.
I got my second round of steroid shots before we left today to help mature his lungs, woo-hoo.
I just want to re-thank everyone who has sent messages, comments and prayers. I wish I had the energy to reply to them all. God works in mysterious ways and I'm a true believer this baby will be one of those miracles.
This boy had his off days but the fetal Dr made it a point that I should call if it continues now since my fluid had been so low. SO, my OB said skip the cardiologist and come straight in.
Here's for some better news....
They plopped me on the ultrasound machine after giving up with the NST. He's in there wiggling around and had a strong heartbeat. The tech was surprised that I couldn't feel him. My fluids went up a little to 5, YAY! Its better than 3. She said it looks better than 2 days ago.
She remeasured him and hes now a 1lb 1oz!! He grew in just 2 days! I think the bed rest is helping. So he is about 460-478g, which is soooooo close to 500!!! The ultrasound tech was amazed, as so are we.
The Dr also checked for ruptured membranes and preterm labor, NOTHING.
So even though we never made it to the cardiologist, at least we got a little extra hope today. Our cardiologist appointment is now next Wed so we have to wait one more week, but after finding out he grew just a little more I'm okay with that.
I got my second round of steroid shots before we left today to help mature his lungs, woo-hoo.
I just want to re-thank everyone who has sent messages, comments and prayers. I wish I had the energy to reply to them all. God works in mysterious ways and I'm a true believer this baby will be one of those miracles.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
3 weeks?
So we went to the fetal specialist today. To the same office I was hoping we would never step foot back in but they made sure I saw a different Dr and I am so glad we saw this one. We did the ultrasound and we were hoping my amniotic fluid went up after the fluids they gave me yesterday in L&D and the fluids I drank last night...but it remained 3.7 So I was expecting bad news when the Dr came in. The tech tried so hard to get some extra fluid by his face so she could get me a 4D picture of his face, but there just isn't enough fluid.
The Dr came in and said the good news is he is still growing, slowly but he is. He said that everything still looks good with the head and legs and stomach growing. He said in a disease state those are the first to lag behind. He believes his size has to do with my placenta. He thinks my placenta isn't providing the baby with what he needs. I guess some evidence of this is I'm starting to get reversal flow in the umbilical cord. This is major. He needs to have me come in twice a week so monitor the flow because as soon as it's completely reversed we have to deliver. This why he thinks my amniotic fluid can't be fixed by drinking more fluids, damn. He also said even though the chromosomes looked good on one test doesn't mean that the placenta got some bad chromosomes. He said the baby COULD have an unknown syndrome but we wouldn't know that until later, and that is something that could be causing all of this.
He mentioned he hopes that I can make it another 5-10 days to get him to a closer viable weight. He said if he was born today, his survival rate is 5-10%, but if he DOES have a heart defect (which we find out tomorrow) it goes to pretty much nothing because he wouldn't be able to fight the surgeries.
So our plan is cardiologist tomorrow, back to fetal every Monday & Thursday. They are also now testing me for Preeclampsia, my blood pressures have been higher lately but I really think it has to do with stress, so they are just making sure. He thinks he might have me hospital bedrest by nest week.
He went ahead and have me the steroid shot to help mature his lungs because he really does think he is making an apperance in the next 2-3 weeks if he makes it that long.
This sucks, I can' even explain the emotions we go through. I know God does everything for a reason but it is so frusterating. I don't wish this on anybody or even a worst enemy. We want NOTHING more than to have this baby boy and hope he's a fighter and proves all these Dr's wrong.
The Dr came in and said the good news is he is still growing, slowly but he is. He said that everything still looks good with the head and legs and stomach growing. He said in a disease state those are the first to lag behind. He believes his size has to do with my placenta. He thinks my placenta isn't providing the baby with what he needs. I guess some evidence of this is I'm starting to get reversal flow in the umbilical cord. This is major. He needs to have me come in twice a week so monitor the flow because as soon as it's completely reversed we have to deliver. This why he thinks my amniotic fluid can't be fixed by drinking more fluids, damn. He also said even though the chromosomes looked good on one test doesn't mean that the placenta got some bad chromosomes. He said the baby COULD have an unknown syndrome but we wouldn't know that until later, and that is something that could be causing all of this.
He mentioned he hopes that I can make it another 5-10 days to get him to a closer viable weight. He said if he was born today, his survival rate is 5-10%, but if he DOES have a heart defect (which we find out tomorrow) it goes to pretty much nothing because he wouldn't be able to fight the surgeries.
So our plan is cardiologist tomorrow, back to fetal every Monday & Thursday. They are also now testing me for Preeclampsia, my blood pressures have been higher lately but I really think it has to do with stress, so they are just making sure. He thinks he might have me hospital bedrest by nest week.
He went ahead and have me the steroid shot to help mature his lungs because he really does think he is making an apperance in the next 2-3 weeks if he makes it that long.
This sucks, I can' even explain the emotions we go through. I know God does everything for a reason but it is so frusterating. I don't wish this on anybody or even a worst enemy. We want NOTHING more than to have this baby boy and hope he's a fighter and proves all these Dr's wrong.
Monday, June 1, 2009
It's not fair
I don't even know where to start.
We went in to the regular OB for another growth scan today. The appointment didn't go so well. He only grew 48g in the past 2 weeks and he should have grown twice that. On top of that, my amniotic fluid is dangerously low. I have been sitting around an AFI(amniotic fluid index) of 7-8 at previous appointments. I am now at 3.
My Dr's main concern is the amniotic fluid at this time. He said typically anything under 5 they go strait to be monitored and then deliver. So he said at this point he would usually admit me to the hospital for fluids and monitoring until further notice. But there's a problem, even though I am past 24 weeks (viability date) he isn't matching a size of a 24 weeker and he is about 368g. Babies need to be close to or over 500g to have a surviving chance. So he said if I decided to get admitted I have to be ready to deliver via c-section as soon as that heartrate drops- but he said I would have to be ready for a baby that wouldn't make it. We both decided it was better to go home and be on bed rest and hope for the best. I would hate to deliver prematurely just b/c his heart rate droped once. If our baby was bigger, I would probably be typing this from the hospital room.
Instead they sent me to OB triage to get an IV with some fluids, in hopes that it helps my fluid levels. I already drink CRAZY amounts of water so he doesn't think dehydration is an issue. He believes the placenta is getting ready to give up and the baby isn't able to keep up with the fluid. He also said the baby has a bright bowel on the ultrasound (echogenic bowel) which indicates a chromosomal abnormality or infection. He said the baby could still have an abnormality that wasn't tested for in the amnio. He said he thinks the baby has some sort of sydrome, minor or major is totally unknown.
He agrees my case is so rare and nothing makes sense with all the findings. He said the low amniotic fluid and the severe IUGR is very very critical and hes only seen it maybe once in 17 years of practice. Now that I am on bedrest for the time being, he didn't think going to see the specialist in Sarasota was the best idea. Instead he made me an appointment for tomorrow morning that I went to before but with a different doctor.
What he wants to know from them is when would be the right time to admit me given the baby has a fighting chance. He also gave me an option to meet with the NICU doctors and get their opinion. We're waiting until tomorrow to see what happens. My Dr truly thinks something is going to happen in the next 2 weeks, good or bad. Im hoping he is wrong (and he hopes he's wrong too) and our baby keeps growing as long as he can.
Any and all prayers are appreciated greatly, we need them. This whole thing is just so unfair. We have been so excited to start a family and then we get this handed on our plate. Why?
Sorry if this all makes no sense, I'm pretty overwhelmed right now and it hardly makes sense to me.
I would post the video from the ultrasound, but it's pretty blury since the amniotic fluid is so low its hard to get a good picture.
We went in to the regular OB for another growth scan today. The appointment didn't go so well. He only grew 48g in the past 2 weeks and he should have grown twice that. On top of that, my amniotic fluid is dangerously low. I have been sitting around an AFI(amniotic fluid index) of 7-8 at previous appointments. I am now at 3.
My Dr's main concern is the amniotic fluid at this time. He said typically anything under 5 they go strait to be monitored and then deliver. So he said at this point he would usually admit me to the hospital for fluids and monitoring until further notice. But there's a problem, even though I am past 24 weeks (viability date) he isn't matching a size of a 24 weeker and he is about 368g. Babies need to be close to or over 500g to have a surviving chance. So he said if I decided to get admitted I have to be ready to deliver via c-section as soon as that heartrate drops- but he said I would have to be ready for a baby that wouldn't make it. We both decided it was better to go home and be on bed rest and hope for the best. I would hate to deliver prematurely just b/c his heart rate droped once. If our baby was bigger, I would probably be typing this from the hospital room.
Instead they sent me to OB triage to get an IV with some fluids, in hopes that it helps my fluid levels. I already drink CRAZY amounts of water so he doesn't think dehydration is an issue. He believes the placenta is getting ready to give up and the baby isn't able to keep up with the fluid. He also said the baby has a bright bowel on the ultrasound (echogenic bowel) which indicates a chromosomal abnormality or infection. He said the baby could still have an abnormality that wasn't tested for in the amnio. He said he thinks the baby has some sort of sydrome, minor or major is totally unknown.
He agrees my case is so rare and nothing makes sense with all the findings. He said the low amniotic fluid and the severe IUGR is very very critical and hes only seen it maybe once in 17 years of practice. Now that I am on bedrest for the time being, he didn't think going to see the specialist in Sarasota was the best idea. Instead he made me an appointment for tomorrow morning that I went to before but with a different doctor.
What he wants to know from them is when would be the right time to admit me given the baby has a fighting chance. He also gave me an option to meet with the NICU doctors and get their opinion. We're waiting until tomorrow to see what happens. My Dr truly thinks something is going to happen in the next 2 weeks, good or bad. Im hoping he is wrong (and he hopes he's wrong too) and our baby keeps growing as long as he can.
Any and all prayers are appreciated greatly, we need them. This whole thing is just so unfair. We have been so excited to start a family and then we get this handed on our plate. Why?
Sorry if this all makes no sense, I'm pretty overwhelmed right now and it hardly makes sense to me.
I would post the video from the ultrasound, but it's pretty blury since the amniotic fluid is so low its hard to get a good picture.
Friday, May 29, 2009
24.5 weeks & Belly Pic
I think I am growing, so Valorie had to compare with a beach ball.I have noticed I'm starting to get the "pregnancy face" Ahhh the joys.
We went to a Margaritaville Birthday party last night that Valorie threw for her boyfriend Travis. We had a good time, but after being on my feet for 2 days in a row, I sure felt the effects this morning. My darn ankles disappeared. LOL
Not much else is new, just waiting for all our Doctor appointments this week and hoping we get some good news. Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers you guys keep sending. We appeciate it so much!
Monday, May 25, 2009
24 weeks!
How far along? 24 weeks
Maternity clothes? Gotta love them, miss some of my old outfits though
Stretch marks? Not yet, thankfully
Sleep: I need to go buy a snoogle pillow. And waking up to pee every 45 mins doesn't allow me to sleep very good
Best moment this week: Getting some decent news from the Doctors
Movement: He LOVES to kick my bladder constantly, u/s tech even confirmed this. He moves all the time when I am relaxed.
Food cravings: Nothing lately, wonder if the craving thing is over for now
Gender: It's a BOY!
Labor Signs: Defintely NO, stay that way!
Belly Button in or out? It's starting to make an apperance
What I miss: Not having a constant worry and anxiety
What I am looking forward to: All of next weeks Dr appointments, I want to make sure he's still growing and we get an answer on his heart too.
Weekly Wisdom: Drink lots of water.. LOTS AND LOTS! It's helping keep my AF up.
Milestones: He is age of viability, meaning if he were born today his chances went way up on survival. I am now not allowed to travel far from home since he can come early and have a fighting chance.
Nothing much else is new. We're still working on the nursery and I just got a text from Chris who is giving in to the white crib after talking to his boss at work who talked him out of the dark crib because they got it and regret it. SWEEEET!
I will post a belly pic sometime this week (sorry Mom). We tried to take one tonight but they all came out shaky, guess that's what happens when you ask Marie to take a pic with my iPhone.
Noelle my bestest friend is flying in this week to visit her grandparents who live 3 hours away. So she is coming to hang out with me for a few days. I am so excited!!! She will be a good distraction to make this week go by fast, and then we only have a few more days until we go see the cardiologist.
Keep the prayers coming. We hope next week brings more good news. I will be the happiest mom on the planet!
Maternity clothes? Gotta love them, miss some of my old outfits though
Stretch marks? Not yet, thankfully
Sleep: I need to go buy a snoogle pillow. And waking up to pee every 45 mins doesn't allow me to sleep very good
Best moment this week: Getting some decent news from the Doctors
Movement: He LOVES to kick my bladder constantly, u/s tech even confirmed this. He moves all the time when I am relaxed.
Food cravings: Nothing lately, wonder if the craving thing is over for now
Gender: It's a BOY!
Labor Signs: Defintely NO, stay that way!
Belly Button in or out? It's starting to make an apperance
What I miss: Not having a constant worry and anxiety
What I am looking forward to: All of next weeks Dr appointments, I want to make sure he's still growing and we get an answer on his heart too.
Weekly Wisdom: Drink lots of water.. LOTS AND LOTS! It's helping keep my AF up.
Milestones: He is age of viability, meaning if he were born today his chances went way up on survival. I am now not allowed to travel far from home since he can come early and have a fighting chance.
Nothing much else is new. We're still working on the nursery and I just got a text from Chris who is giving in to the white crib after talking to his boss at work who talked him out of the dark crib because they got it and regret it. SWEEEET!
I will post a belly pic sometime this week (sorry Mom). We tried to take one tonight but they all came out shaky, guess that's what happens when you ask Marie to take a pic with my iPhone.
Noelle my bestest friend is flying in this week to visit her grandparents who live 3 hours away. So she is coming to hang out with me for a few days. I am so excited!!! She will be a good distraction to make this week go by fast, and then we only have a few more days until we go see the cardiologist.
Keep the prayers coming. We hope next week brings more good news. I will be the happiest mom on the planet!
Friday, May 22, 2009
Nothing new
Nothing new has really gone on in the past week, which is actually a good thing. I went back to work on Wed night and for once I was happy to be back working. It was nice to see everyone and have them all comment on my growing belly, which by the way keeps getting bigger. Hopefully it means this lil booger is growing too. Oh and...this baby still has NO NAME...so keep the suggestions coming.
We went to Babies R Us to start our registry tonight. It's semi overwhelming so we only did some major stuff and I'll add the small things later after we decide what bottles, pacifiers and ect. that we want. My family still plans on having a baby shower June 20th..hopefully this baby boy decides to wait longer than 27 weeks to make his apperance.
Yes Mom, I promise to add a belly picture and his last ultrasound picture sometime this weekend. I tried taking a belly picture tonight, but I didn't look too hot after the Florida rain shower. We have another ultrasound next Monday so Ill have her give us another video of it so I can share it again.
Alright, I'm off to research more baby stuff.
We went to Babies R Us to start our registry tonight. It's semi overwhelming so we only did some major stuff and I'll add the small things later after we decide what bottles, pacifiers and ect. that we want. My family still plans on having a baby shower June 20th..hopefully this baby boy decides to wait longer than 27 weeks to make his apperance.
Yes Mom, I promise to add a belly picture and his last ultrasound picture sometime this weekend. I tried taking a belly picture tonight, but I didn't look too hot after the Florida rain shower. We have another ultrasound next Monday so Ill have her give us another video of it so I can share it again.
Alright, I'm off to research more baby stuff.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Some Good News
First off, THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts, for all the prayers, thoughts and cupcakes (thanks Ash) sent our way. They truly seem to be working, so keep them up.
We were suppose to have 2 Drs appointments this morning, on with our normal OB and one with the fetal specialist. Our baby is still growing, measuring about 21 weeks, so 2 weeks behind, but he IS still growing. He still has a strong heartbeat and was moving all over the place. The u/s tech said she only notices a enlarged left atrium with his heart so she said the cardiologist will take a deeper look into that. BUT, she did say she does not notice any major structure defects such as Transposition of the great arteries or Tetralogy of Fallot.... So that's a good thing.
We then went to meet with one of our favorite OB's from our practice, she said the good thing is he is growing and hasn't given up yet. She tried to call down to the fetal specialist to get my results but they would not give them to her so I was going to have to wait until 12:15 to get the darn results. She did say she is going to recommend seeing a different perinatologist in Sarasota due to my awful experience at the one we went to. She also said patients are very happy witht he one in Sarasota.
She said her main concern is getting this baby to the right point for delivery. She said typically with heart defects they want the baby to grow and stay in the womb as long as possible so that way the baby is strong enough to handle surgeries and interventions. BUT, since our little man is so tiny, she said they have to be ready to deliver him early because sometimes they do better outside the womb as far as growing and feeding. So she said with the NEW perinatologist & pediatric cardiologist they will calaborate a delivery plan. She said I will most likely be starting steroid shots for the babies lung maturity soon. My ultrasounds are now every 2 weeks to monitor his size and growth, so hopefully he keeps growing.
We then ran down to the fetal specialist and begged them to give me the results to the amnio early so we didn't have to wait until 12:15. We had no plans on ever going to this Dr again so no reason to go to the appointment today, even our OB agreed. They had no problem and the nurse came to give us the results...
So we ran upstairs to show Dr F, and she was soooo excited and she said our main focus now is the heart and a delivery plan. I'm so happy to be under some of the best caring OB's. I have full faith in thier work and trust everything they do.
I can not even tell you how happy Chris and I were when we left Healthpark today. I feel like a HUGE weight was lifted off our shoulders. We are so thankful for everyones prayers, they really seem to be working. Our baby is a fighter and I know he will be our little miracle.
I'm off to take a much deserved nap and will post his ultrasound picture later.
We were suppose to have 2 Drs appointments this morning, on with our normal OB and one with the fetal specialist. Our baby is still growing, measuring about 21 weeks, so 2 weeks behind, but he IS still growing. He still has a strong heartbeat and was moving all over the place. The u/s tech said she only notices a enlarged left atrium with his heart so she said the cardiologist will take a deeper look into that. BUT, she did say she does not notice any major structure defects such as Transposition of the great arteries or Tetralogy of Fallot.... So that's a good thing.
We then went to meet with one of our favorite OB's from our practice, she said the good thing is he is growing and hasn't given up yet. She tried to call down to the fetal specialist to get my results but they would not give them to her so I was going to have to wait until 12:15 to get the darn results. She did say she is going to recommend seeing a different perinatologist in Sarasota due to my awful experience at the one we went to. She also said patients are very happy witht he one in Sarasota.
She said her main concern is getting this baby to the right point for delivery. She said typically with heart defects they want the baby to grow and stay in the womb as long as possible so that way the baby is strong enough to handle surgeries and interventions. BUT, since our little man is so tiny, she said they have to be ready to deliver him early because sometimes they do better outside the womb as far as growing and feeding. So she said with the NEW perinatologist & pediatric cardiologist they will calaborate a delivery plan. She said I will most likely be starting steroid shots for the babies lung maturity soon. My ultrasounds are now every 2 weeks to monitor his size and growth, so hopefully he keeps growing.
We then ran down to the fetal specialist and begged them to give me the results to the amnio early so we didn't have to wait until 12:15. We had no plans on ever going to this Dr again so no reason to go to the appointment today, even our OB agreed. They had no problem and the nurse came to give us the results...
NORMAL!
EVERYTHING CHROMOSOMAL LOOKS NORMAL!
EVERYTHING CHROMOSOMAL LOOKS NORMAL!
So we ran upstairs to show Dr F, and she was soooo excited and she said our main focus now is the heart and a delivery plan. I'm so happy to be under some of the best caring OB's. I have full faith in thier work and trust everything they do.
I can not even tell you how happy Chris and I were when we left Healthpark today. I feel like a HUGE weight was lifted off our shoulders. We are so thankful for everyones prayers, they really seem to be working. Our baby is a fighter and I know he will be our little miracle.
I'm off to take a much deserved nap and will post his ultrasound picture later.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Growing? New Bump Picture
Do you think I'm growing?
I swear I think this baby has gone through a growth spurt in the last few days.
I've been in Ohio all weekend visiting my Mom, Dad & Sisters. I'm so happy my Dr said it was okay to go on this one last trip because I really needed to come home. It was a great weekend. I swear I have grown over this weekend. I have increased my protein & fluids and hopefully it's helping. This baby has been kicking the crap out of me and I am NOT going to complain. It's always a good day when I wake up and he's kicking me reminding me he's still fighting.
I swear I think this baby has gone through a growth spurt in the last few days. I was finally able to meet one of my awesome friends,
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Ashley(ashnicole311) who is also pregnant who lives close to my parents in Ohio. (Our babies are going to get married one day, ya know we will have a full arranged marriage, lol) We went baby shopping together all day yesterday with my mom and found a whole bunch of goods for both our nurseries. I found the best curtains so I cant wait to go home and get them up.
So we also took the famous bump picture together, but don't mind our awful hair as it was a rainy crappy day.
It's going to be a busy week. I fly home early tomorrow morning. I hopefully will be able to return to work On Tuesday. It's going to be a long day on Tuesday, we have a normal OB appointment/ultrasound and a few hours later we have to go back to the specialist. Hopefully we find out our little boy has gone through a growth spurt. We also hope to get the results from 2nd part of our amniocentesis. ((Cross your fingers & pray that they are normal)) Then if it's all good news, I'm back to work that night. The pediatric cardiologist called and we have an appointment with him on June 3rd. I was hoping it would be sooner but at least I get to go see him.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
More answers
We had another Dr's appointment today but today it was with our normal OB and not the specialist. It was a last minute appointment they called and asked if I wanted to come in to discuss what has happened in the past week. So of course we didn't turn that down. The only Dr they could get me into was one I haven't seen yet, so she had to go over my whole chart and start from the beginning.
We were finally able to get a more clear picture on what is going on with our baby. She believes his size is due to the unknown heart defect we were earlier informed of. She did go over some of the structure of the defect which made sense why he would be small, the heart is not supplying enough oxygen to the tissues to grow appropriately. She said her main concern is getting our baby big enough and viable to under-go surgery. She also said our goal is to make it to 32 weeks and then deliver. She said he will most likely need intervention but until we know what it is exactly we are in a waiting game. She is referring me to a pediatric cardiologist for a 2nd opinion on top of the fetal maternal specialist. She wants a pediatric cardiologist to do an echo of the heart because he is only going to look at the heart and not all the chromosomal mess that FMS is looking at. She assured me that she is sending me to a WONDERFUL cardiologist.
This news brought us hope. We have a very long road ahead of us and she said we will be taking it one week at a time. She also said we might not even deliver him at our hospital, she said she might have to send us to another state to see the right team of Doctors to take care of him. So our goal is to fatten him up, make him grow and keep him tugging along as long as we can so that way when he is born he can survive such a surgery. I am still considered very high risk due to him having a poor heart and still at high risk for him not making it to delivery.
Please keep the prayers coming, we appreciate any and all that our sent our way.
On another note, Chris swears my belly has really grown the past few days. So hopefully he got the hint to start growing bigger. He has been very active the past 2 days, so maybe he's getting his exercise and he's catching up on size a little bit.
We were finally able to get a more clear picture on what is going on with our baby. She believes his size is due to the unknown heart defect we were earlier informed of. She did go over some of the structure of the defect which made sense why he would be small, the heart is not supplying enough oxygen to the tissues to grow appropriately. She said her main concern is getting our baby big enough and viable to under-go surgery. She also said our goal is to make it to 32 weeks and then deliver. She said he will most likely need intervention but until we know what it is exactly we are in a waiting game. She is referring me to a pediatric cardiologist for a 2nd opinion on top of the fetal maternal specialist. She wants a pediatric cardiologist to do an echo of the heart because he is only going to look at the heart and not all the chromosomal mess that FMS is looking at. She assured me that she is sending me to a WONDERFUL cardiologist.
This news brought us hope. We have a very long road ahead of us and she said we will be taking it one week at a time. She also said we might not even deliver him at our hospital, she said she might have to send us to another state to see the right team of Doctors to take care of him. So our goal is to fatten him up, make him grow and keep him tugging along as long as we can so that way when he is born he can survive such a surgery. I am still considered very high risk due to him having a poor heart and still at high risk for him not making it to delivery.
Please keep the prayers coming, we appreciate any and all that our sent our way.
On another note, Chris swears my belly has really grown the past few days. So hopefully he got the hint to start growing bigger. He has been very active the past 2 days, so maybe he's getting his exercise and he's catching up on size a little bit.
Monday, May 11, 2009
First bridge crossed!!
We just got a call from our specialist, the preliminary results came back.... NORMAL!!! It was so good to hear the word "normal" come out of her mouth. We still get more results back hopefully next Tuesday, but these were some of the major chromosomal defects that came back first.
We still have to keep praying for even better results next Tuesday. We are hoping and praying he keeps growing and getting bigger, maybe he's just a late bloomer.
The heart is still an issue and won't be addressed until after next Tuesday's results. So we still have a very long road ahead of us.
Keep the prayers coming, he's a fighter and know he will make it through this bump in the road.
We still have to keep praying for even better results next Tuesday. We are hoping and praying he keeps growing and getting bigger, maybe he's just a late bloomer.
The heart is still an issue and won't be addressed until after next Tuesday's results. So we still have a very long road ahead of us.
Keep the prayers coming, he's a fighter and know he will make it through this bump in the road.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Mother's Day
Happy Mother's Day to everyone. I wish I could say my "first' Mother's Day was spent under better terms and not so much worry and anxiety but we're still praying for the best tomorrow. But the best Mother's Day present was a kick from our son this morning, just a sign he's still fighting in there.
Chris woke up and made me my favorite breakfast, chocolate chip pancakes, yum!! My mom wanted to make sure we did what I wanted to do, I laughed because it's always been the other way around. I honestly didn't feel like going out so instead we rented movies and sat around in our pajamas.
Tomorrow is the day were suppose to get a call from the Dr letting us know preliminary results from the amniocentesis. It's going to be a long night full of worry. Chris has been giving nightly pep talks to him telling him to drop and give him 50 (push-ups). I'm hoping he listens and gets a growth spurt to show the Dr he's just a little procrastinator and doesn't have a chromosomal abnormality. The heart problem can be addressed but I just want to get through this first bridge.
Thank you everyone for all the thoughts and prayers sent our way. We also appreciate all the prayer requests & prayer chains sent to your churches. We just have to keep thinking miracles happen everyday. I hope our baby is one of them and proves our Dr wrong.
Again, Happy Mother's Day.
Chris woke up and made me my favorite breakfast, chocolate chip pancakes, yum!! My mom wanted to make sure we did what I wanted to do, I laughed because it's always been the other way around. I honestly didn't feel like going out so instead we rented movies and sat around in our pajamas.
Tomorrow is the day were suppose to get a call from the Dr letting us know preliminary results from the amniocentesis. It's going to be a long night full of worry. Chris has been giving nightly pep talks to him telling him to drop and give him 50 (push-ups). I'm hoping he listens and gets a growth spurt to show the Dr he's just a little procrastinator and doesn't have a chromosomal abnormality. The heart problem can be addressed but I just want to get through this first bridge.
Thank you everyone for all the thoughts and prayers sent our way. We also appreciate all the prayer requests & prayer chains sent to your churches. We just have to keep thinking miracles happen everyday. I hope our baby is one of them and proves our Dr wrong.
Again, Happy Mother's Day.
Friday, May 8, 2009
It CAN get worse, but maybe better
Just got home from the hospital, yes, we had to go back. I noticed I had felt NO movement from him since last night. I had a strong cramp/contraction this morning and I was worried since he would not move all day. I went ahead and called the OB who made me hang up and call Fetal Maternal right away. They wanted to to come in right away to check for a heart beat.
The worst 30 minute drive ever.
He is still in there with a beating heart...152 bpm. Thank God! The Dr we saw yesterday came back in to talk to us and semi answered a few questions.
She is preparing us for the worst but wanting us to hope for the best. She kept stressing how important being around Chris and my family right now. She said she can see that I have accepted our situation but I need to let my heart accept it and thats the hard part.
So I went ahead and asked:
Is there a possibility he can be born healthy, maybe get a growth spurt sometime soon and the results come back negative? Yes, miracles happen every day she explained. But on the other hand she went on to say I am at a very very high risk for him to pass while still inside me sometime soon or in a few weeks.
Is he growing or did he stop growing? She said it looks like he stopped growing at 18 weeks, but she isn't sure if he is still growing slowly and she will know more when she can do another ultrasound on the 19th.
What is going on with the heart? She thinks she sees something but doesn't want to cross that bridge until we know what the amnio results. I think she knows I know too much about medical stuff and maybe she doesnt want to get me worried about something that we might not even get to that bridge.
Lastly I asked about my low amniotic fluid, I know mine was under 8.5 3 days ago, and the tech told me I was 11.6 yesterday. I was so excited that all the water I drank helped. The Dr said the u/s tech was being very generous with that number and mine is still very low. Damn Damn Damn.
So we left there knowing the next 2 days (weekend) will be the longest weekend EVER. The Dr expects to have preliminary results on Monday afternoon. So hopefully we will know what path will soon to be crossed by then.
The worst 30 minute drive ever.
He is still in there with a beating heart...152 bpm. Thank God! The Dr we saw yesterday came back in to talk to us and semi answered a few questions.
She is preparing us for the worst but wanting us to hope for the best. She kept stressing how important being around Chris and my family right now. She said she can see that I have accepted our situation but I need to let my heart accept it and thats the hard part.
So I went ahead and asked:
Is there a possibility he can be born healthy, maybe get a growth spurt sometime soon and the results come back negative? Yes, miracles happen every day she explained. But on the other hand she went on to say I am at a very very high risk for him to pass while still inside me sometime soon or in a few weeks.
Is he growing or did he stop growing? She said it looks like he stopped growing at 18 weeks, but she isn't sure if he is still growing slowly and she will know more when she can do another ultrasound on the 19th.
What is going on with the heart? She thinks she sees something but doesn't want to cross that bridge until we know what the amnio results. I think she knows I know too much about medical stuff and maybe she doesnt want to get me worried about something that we might not even get to that bridge.
Lastly I asked about my low amniotic fluid, I know mine was under 8.5 3 days ago, and the tech told me I was 11.6 yesterday. I was so excited that all the water I drank helped. The Dr said the u/s tech was being very generous with that number and mine is still very low. Damn Damn Damn.
So we left there knowing the next 2 days (weekend) will be the longest weekend EVER. The Dr expects to have preliminary results on Monday afternoon. So hopefully we will know what path will soon to be crossed by then.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
He looks so perfect, a perfect little boy. I never ever thought we would be faced with such news. But he has a story that we are in the process of trying to figure out.
Today was our appointment with the Maternal Fetal Specialist due to his size. I can honestly say I went into this appointment with a VERY positive attitude. I thought we would go in, get all the measurements and find out he has IUGR (Intra uterine growth retardation) I was ready for that news, sure our baby was small and he might deliver a few weeks early, but everything would be okay.
The Dr came in and started of by saying we have a very very sick baby on our hands and we have a lot of discussing to do.
The bigger problem is the baby also has a chromosomal defect and has pretty much stopped growing about 3 weeks ago. There is still a heartbeat and everything, so, he's still alive, he looks so perfect...he just isn't growing anymore. At this point, the doctor doesn't know what type of defect he has. She said its either a lethal defect or a good (viable) defect. In which there is still a defect but the baby will hopefully survive to term.
Today was our appointment with the Maternal Fetal Specialist due to his size. I can honestly say I went into this appointment with a VERY positive attitude. I thought we would go in, get all the measurements and find out he has IUGR (Intra uterine growth retardation) I was ready for that news, sure our baby was small and he might deliver a few weeks early, but everything would be okay.
The Dr came in and started of by saying we have a very very sick baby on our hands and we have a lot of discussing to do.
The bigger problem is the baby also has a chromosomal defect and has pretty much stopped growing about 3 weeks ago. There is still a heartbeat and everything, so, he's still alive, he looks so perfect...he just isn't growing anymore. At this point, the doctor doesn't know what type of defect he has. She said its either a lethal defect or a good (viable) defect. In which there is still a defect but the baby will hopefully survive to term.
They did an amnio and preliminary results will come back on Monday. These results will show whether the defect is on a "bad gene", meaning the baby won't survive...or that the defect is on a "good gene" and he will suruive...just with many complications. In about 10 days we will have a more definite answer and know what path to start taking.
On top of that, our baby has a very sick heart. He has a mis structured heart. The Dr said the heart defect is not in relation to the size of the baby. Typically babies with a heart defect grow at a normal size until about 3rd trimester. She said something about overlapping aortas and something else, but we were both not in the right state of mind to even remember much of what she said. She also does not know if the heart defect is due to the chromosome or unrealted.
We are in shock, complete shock. It feels so numb. We won't have any defined answers for over a week but in the mean time she told me to take time off with Chris and be together and grieve over the information we recieved.
We have a long long road ahead of us as she explained. A lot of things are going to happen in the next few weeks. We are scared to death. This baby was planned and we will make sure we do everything in our power to fight for him.
I wish I had more answers but I don't. I can't even explain how hard it is to look at a perfectly structured moving baby on the ultrasound machine but then to get hit with this news that he is so sick. We are asking for a lot and a lot of prayers right now.
(I might edit this more later when I have time to think and explain more)
I know I'm not the best catholic out there, but I do hold true to my religion and have to have a lot of faith in it right now.
I just said my first Novena. A Novena is a prayer said for 9 consecutive days to a particular saint asking for an intention. Or intention is to have strength for Chris and I and for our precious little boy to have a healthy outcome.
The power of prayer can be so powerful, my grandma had 7 stillborns, the 5 viable pregnancies she had (my mom and 4 uncles and aunts, were the ones she did Novenas for. I have full faith in God to help us get through this, even though it seems so impossible right now. I prayed for a healthy outcome for our little baby. Im in tears again, I hate this.
Please say prayers for our family, we are so grateful for all the ones being said already. We love you all and I never realized how much support we have out there.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Prayers Please
So today was our follow up appointment to the last we had 3 weeks ago where my Dr told us about the baby measuring very small in the 8th percentile. She said it could be b/c of a few reasons. She also thought the baby was still due for a growth spurt and wanted me to come back in 3 weeks to re-evaluate. (Last appointment post is a few posts down)
Well, it didn't go too well. I was pretty confident going into the appointment because the lab had called back early last week to say my blood draws were all negative. And since the baby had really started kicking this week I wasn't too worried going into today's appointment.
The ultrasound went okay, he was turned with his back to us as usual and she did some measurements but still couldnt get the heart. So she sent me walking for 30 minuets to get him to move. That didnt work. Then I thought it would help to put my iphone to my belly with Bob Marley on to get him moving- it worked, the u/s tech couldnt believe it.
So the resuts...
Baby is now measuring 5th percentile vs 3 weeks ago at the 8th percentile
He is only in the 3rd percentile for weight
Dr is sending me to Fetal Maternal Monitoring...tomorrow at 315 to do a whole bunch more ultrasounds, and measure heart
Possible Reasons for his small size:
Chromosomal Abnormailty
Placental issue and he isnt getting enough perfusion to help him grow
Low amniotic fluid causing baby to curl up due to pressure on the baby (my amniotic fluid is
even lower than last appointment)
Heart defect (will evaluate tomorrow)
He said the positive thing is everything else in my scan looks normal and blood draws are normal, but he said tomorrows appointment will give us a better look. Then I go back to get another u/s with my OB and follow up appointment again in 2 weeks.
So today sucks, I left in tears (again)...Im calling off of work tonight because I dont think I would be very effective with all this on my mind. It's a lot of information to take in and it's a little overwhelming. My mom is the BEST, after calling her in tears she called me back minutes later to tell me she has a plane tickets to be here tomorrow for my appointment. I feel so guilty, I didnt even ask her to come... but I guess her being a mother she is hurting just as much as I am.
So I am asking for A LOT of prayers that everything is okay and baby is just a small baby.
Well, it didn't go too well. I was pretty confident going into the appointment because the lab had called back early last week to say my blood draws were all negative. And since the baby had really started kicking this week I wasn't too worried going into today's appointment.
The ultrasound went okay, he was turned with his back to us as usual and she did some measurements but still couldnt get the heart. So she sent me walking for 30 minuets to get him to move. That didnt work. Then I thought it would help to put my iphone to my belly with Bob Marley on to get him moving- it worked, the u/s tech couldnt believe it.
So the resuts...
Baby is now measuring 5th percentile vs 3 weeks ago at the 8th percentile
He is only in the 3rd percentile for weight
Dr is sending me to Fetal Maternal Monitoring...tomorrow at 315 to do a whole bunch more ultrasounds, and measure heart
Possible Reasons for his small size:
Chromosomal Abnormailty
Placental issue and he isnt getting enough perfusion to help him grow
Low amniotic fluid causing baby to curl up due to pressure on the baby (my amniotic fluid is
even lower than last appointment)
Heart defect (will evaluate tomorrow)
He said the positive thing is everything else in my scan looks normal and blood draws are normal, but he said tomorrows appointment will give us a better look. Then I go back to get another u/s with my OB and follow up appointment again in 2 weeks.
So today sucks, I left in tears (again)...Im calling off of work tonight because I dont think I would be very effective with all this on my mind. It's a lot of information to take in and it's a little overwhelming. My mom is the BEST, after calling her in tears she called me back minutes later to tell me she has a plane tickets to be here tomorrow for my appointment. I feel so guilty, I didnt even ask her to come... but I guess her being a mother she is hurting just as much as I am.
So I am asking for A LOT of prayers that everything is okay and baby is just a small baby.
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