Miss Rhys is doing really well!
It's quite a bit different experience with the feedings so far. It took Natalie about a week before she was interested in nursing, but Rhys is already catching on! She does little marathon sessions (off and on for 2+ hrs) and then sleeps, sleeps, and sleeps! Both nights she has only been up once to eat between 11pm and 7am! It's funny - the nurses prefer she is up every 3hrs, but the pediatrician is encouraging us to let her sleep. We obviously like the Dr's position better :)
Since Rhys is nursing I'm not having to pump like I did with Natalie. So much better! No pump parts to clean, fewer middle of the night interruptions, and much less stressful! (although the pumping gave David more duties since he was the bottle feeder last time..I told him to rest up - I'll definitely need more help at home!)
I feel a little more soreness than I remembered having last time. But, I'm still able to get up and walk around. Just a little slow on the getting up part. We will probably go home tomorrow (Saturday). Overall I feel pretty good. No major pain, no swelling, no nausea. Blood pressure has been great. And eating real food again is super!! (even if it has been mostly hospital food). Tania brought us Panera Bread salads last night - so nice to have a decent amount of Bread again and not worry about the effect on blood sugar!
I think it's about naptime now :) will update more later.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
7.29.2011
7.27.2011
Rhys Kathryn is here!
Rhys (pronounced Reece) was born this morning!
7/27/11 @ 7:36am
7lb 8oz, 20in
She has lots of dark hair and this morning after her bath it had a lot of curl to it!
Rhys had lots of visitors today! She mostly slept through all of the commotion, but did open her dark eyes a few times to say hello. No idea yet what color they are.
She has been nursing off and on, so I think she will really do well with the feedings. Very different experience from Natalie's eating habits the first week.
The c-section went great! I was so much more alert and aware the whole time. I mentioned to antisthesiologist (no idea how to spell!) that I was really sick after Natalie's surgery, so he put some magic potion in my IV and I wasn't even the slightest bit nauseous! So much better! Took me a while to get feeling back, but I think that's good since I haven't had any pain yet! David & Rhys were able to hang out in Recovery Room with me, so that was really special!
Rhys' blood sugar tested fine 3 times, so they are done poking her poor little feet! Yay! And I haven't had to test mine all day, such a nice break! Even got to have juice today! My how I've missed my apple juice!
We are resting now. Rhys is sleeping, and David & I slept for a while. Felt good since I woke up at 1:30am and couldn't go back to sleep (made mental notes of all the things I didn't want to forget to pack!) got to hear the rocket launch from VAFB. So, it's been a looong day.
Will update more later. iPhone pics aren't the best, so I'll have to post more after we get home.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
7/27/11 @ 7:36am
7lb 8oz, 20in
She has lots of dark hair and this morning after her bath it had a lot of curl to it!
Rhys had lots of visitors today! She mostly slept through all of the commotion, but did open her dark eyes a few times to say hello. No idea yet what color they are.
She has been nursing off and on, so I think she will really do well with the feedings. Very different experience from Natalie's eating habits the first week.
The c-section went great! I was so much more alert and aware the whole time. I mentioned to antisthesiologist (no idea how to spell!) that I was really sick after Natalie's surgery, so he put some magic potion in my IV and I wasn't even the slightest bit nauseous! So much better! Took me a while to get feeling back, but I think that's good since I haven't had any pain yet! David & Rhys were able to hang out in Recovery Room with me, so that was really special!
Rhys' blood sugar tested fine 3 times, so they are done poking her poor little feet! Yay! And I haven't had to test mine all day, such a nice break! Even got to have juice today! My how I've missed my apple juice!
We are resting now. Rhys is sleeping, and David & I slept for a while. Felt good since I woke up at 1:30am and couldn't go back to sleep (made mental notes of all the things I didn't want to forget to pack!) got to hear the rocket launch from VAFB. So, it's been a looong day.
Will update more later. iPhone pics aren't the best, so I'll have to post more after we get home.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
7.22.2011
Still on schedule!
I'm home from what I hope is the last of my Dr appointments for a while! I had another ultrasound to check the Fluid level this morning. I was surprised (as was the Dr) that it was back up to 12! Normal!
She asked what I had done differently this week. I told her Nothing. She said that rest and water will generally help a lot. I'm not on any type of Dr ordered bedrest, but I have been getting good naps and doing a lot of reading the past two days. I guess my self-imposed rest has really helped!
I had an NST at the OB office and that also went well. Few contractions, but baby's heartrate looked good.
Oh, and since baby had more room to move today, the Dr was able to confirm GIRL! (she offered, I didn't even think to ask)
So, I'm just relaxing and waiting for next Wednesday to get here! 5 (yikes!) more days. I was sort of hoping it would be earlier, but I'm ok with waiting. She'll be here soon!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
She asked what I had done differently this week. I told her Nothing. She said that rest and water will generally help a lot. I'm not on any type of Dr ordered bedrest, but I have been getting good naps and doing a lot of reading the past two days. I guess my self-imposed rest has really helped!
I had an NST at the OB office and that also went well. Few contractions, but baby's heartrate looked good.
Oh, and since baby had more room to move today, the Dr was able to confirm GIRL! (she offered, I didn't even think to ask)
So, I'm just relaxing and waiting for next Wednesday to get here! 5 (yikes!) more days. I was sort of hoping it would be earlier, but I'm ok with waiting. She'll be here soon!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
7.19.2011
Staying put for now
Had my OB appointment today. David and I both thought he was going to be extra concerned and want to schedule surgery for tomorrow, so I rushed around all morning doing all of the last minute stuff while David cleaned up things at work. Went to the appointment and Dr said "don't worry, everything is just fine."
Sooo, staying put for now. It's kind of confusing because the specialist that did the measurements definitely seemed concerned.
The NST seemed to go well today. Baby's heartrate looked normal. The monitor kept losing her though; she was wiggling around a lot.
The current plan is to go back to the specialist on Friday morning for another fluid check. I have my NST scheduled for later that morning so I can discuss results with my OB. He said if levels are less than 5, we'll need to take action.
At least now I should get a few days of rest in before her arrival!
Maybe 8 days, maybe fewer, who knows?!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sooo, staying put for now. It's kind of confusing because the specialist that did the measurements definitely seemed concerned.
The NST seemed to go well today. Baby's heartrate looked normal. The monitor kept losing her though; she was wiggling around a lot.
The current plan is to go back to the specialist on Friday morning for another fluid check. I have my NST scheduled for later that morning so I can discuss results with my OB. He said if levels are less than 5, we'll need to take action.
At least now I should get a few days of rest in before her arrival!
Maybe 8 days, maybe fewer, who knows?!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
7.18.2011
9 days - and maybe even fewer..!
David and I went to the Growth Scan ultrasound today. Here's the latest!
The Dr. came in and did a bunch of measurements on the baby. She is definitely head-down. He checked the head, abdomen, and femur for size. He thought the baby's size looked good. He checked her heartrate and that also seemed good and strong. She was so crammed in there that there was definitely no confirming "boy" or "girl" this time around!
Towards the end of the measurements, he measured the amniotic fluid...and, the result was low. Came in around 7cm. So, he checked it again, and it was between 6cm and 7cm. He said that normal range is 5 - 21 cm, but most women at this point are between 12 and 16cm. He said causes would be:
1. Placenta is matured and beginning to deteriorate.
2. I am leaking fluids (not that I know of).
3. I am past my due date and baby is overdue (not the case).
4. There was some obstruction in the flow (not that he could see).
So, it's probably #1 or #2 above. He setup another ultrasound for Friday to check the levels again. I have my regular OB appointment tomorrow, so he'll have a copy of today's ultrasound report and I'll discuss with him. I'm not sure if he will want to take action or wait until Friday to see how things look. I suspect tomorrow's NST will have some influence, but I'm not sure.
Handy-dandy Google searches seem to indicate that numbers below 5 result in immediate induction or c-section. So, I guess we'll know tomorrow what the plan of action is!
I relayed the info to Natalie's babysitter and she said "good thing you took time off to relax before the baby!" Ha! Yeah, maybe 2 whole days...which mostly involved Dr. appointments and picking up around the house.
Guess we'd better get serious about picking this girlie's name!
The Dr. came in and did a bunch of measurements on the baby. She is definitely head-down. He checked the head, abdomen, and femur for size. He thought the baby's size looked good. He checked her heartrate and that also seemed good and strong. She was so crammed in there that there was definitely no confirming "boy" or "girl" this time around!
Towards the end of the measurements, he measured the amniotic fluid...and, the result was low. Came in around 7cm. So, he checked it again, and it was between 6cm and 7cm. He said that normal range is 5 - 21 cm, but most women at this point are between 12 and 16cm. He said causes would be:
1. Placenta is matured and beginning to deteriorate.
2. I am leaking fluids (not that I know of).
3. I am past my due date and baby is overdue (not the case).
4. There was some obstruction in the flow (not that he could see).
So, it's probably #1 or #2 above. He setup another ultrasound for Friday to check the levels again. I have my regular OB appointment tomorrow, so he'll have a copy of today's ultrasound report and I'll discuss with him. I'm not sure if he will want to take action or wait until Friday to see how things look. I suspect tomorrow's NST will have some influence, but I'm not sure.
Handy-dandy Google searches seem to indicate that numbers below 5 result in immediate induction or c-section. So, I guess we'll know tomorrow what the plan of action is!
I relayed the info to Natalie's babysitter and she said "good thing you took time off to relax before the baby!" Ha! Yeah, maybe 2 whole days...which mostly involved Dr. appointments and picking up around the house.
Guess we'd better get serious about picking this girlie's name!
7.17.2011
10 more days!
Our family of 3 will shortly become 4! My c-section has been scheduled for July 27th if baby doesn't come before that! Crazy how time has flown by!
A fair warning..most of this post is just so that I remember all of the details of this pregnancy...probably not too interesting for others...
The past 2 months have been quite interesting as far as the pregnancy goes. Mid-May I took the 2 hr Glucose Test for and it came back elevated. My Dr. recommended I be treated for Gestational Diabetes (GD). I was really upset about the whole thing. I didn't understand how I could have this as the only risk factor that applied to me was being over 25 yrs old. I Googled everything I could think of and asked everyone I knew that had dealt with it before. I'm sure I was driving my Dr. crazy with my questions and resistance!
I setup my appointment with Sweet Success - a statewide program to help pregnant mothers deal with GD. I was somewhat relieved that they couldn't get me an appointment for 3 weeks, but I immediately changed my eating habits while I was waiting. I went for my first appointment there on June 13th and was setup with a Blood Glucose Meter, instructed to test 4 times a day (prick my finger - ouch!) and continue to watch my carbs. The first week went pretty smoothly, but I discovered my morning coffee would have to go - it gave me a high reading and I wasn't about to subject myself to insulin shots if I couldn't keep it under control! After the first week, my hormones continued to rise and caused my morning blood sugar to rise significantly. It didn't seem to matter that I was still eating the same foods; my body seems to have a mind of its own. So, at my next appointment, I was given a low dosage prescription for Glyburide to help control my fasting blood sugars. Thankfully it is an oral medication, not insulin shots!
I went in for another appointment around 36 weeks and the dietitian and Dr both seemed to think that my numbers were acceptable and that my hormone levels would be dropping in the coming weeks. I still have to test my blood sugar and continue the low carb diet, but I don't have to go back for monitoring. Hooray!
The low carb diet has saved me quite a few extra pounds this time around. Total weight gain is around 22lbs, which gives me hope it will all disappear quickly this time! I must say I won't be surprised if this baby doesn't like peanut butter or nuts..I've been going through both in large quantities. I can't wait until I can eat all of the wonderful summer fruits again...I've been limited to one or two SMALL pieces a day (as long as I eat it with nuts), which is soooo hard for someone who loves practically any and all fruit and lots of it!
So, that has been my GD experience. While I still don't understand why it it effected me, I think I was able to come to terms with the fact that I did not cause it, it is something controlled by hormones and out of my control. Very ready to be done with it - and have a Starbucks Mocha!
The other issue that I had to deal with this pregnancy has been pelvic pain. In one of my mid-pregnancy blogs, I mentioned that I had a lot of pain but that my midwife said it was round ligament pain. Well that pain continued to elevate and persist so much to the point that I could hardly walk! It got to where I couldn't lift either foot off the floor without shooting pain, rolling over in bed was miserable, getting dressed and getting into the car were horrible. The worst part was that it hurt so bad to pick up Natalie. So, back to Google I went. I came across some articles that listed a bunch of symptoms for Pelvic Misalignment and I had 9 of the 10! Some sources suggested that a chiropractor could help. I've always been skeptical of chiropractors as I hadn't ever needed one, but I immediately found one and went. I figured it couldn't get any worse!
ONE appointment was all it took to figure out the cause! The right side of my pelvis was shifted forward causing bones to rub and muscles to stretch and pull in ways they weren't supposed to. My right leg was visibly (to the chiro, anyway) longer than the left. She had me turn on my side, and did one "pop" of an adjustment and it was back in place!! It took another week or so for the muscles to stop being sore, but I could lift my feet again! I continue to go back for periodic adjustments. I guess the hormones that relax the joints for birth were causing things to shift, but for the most part I've been able to keep it under control. So glad I made that appointment, because I couldn't imagine surviving another 10 weeks of pregnancy with that kind of pain! (and it's not in the cards for me, but I have no idea how I would have survived a natural birth)
The GD has also made this pregnancy somewhat high-risk. The Dr. likes to monitor GD patients closer to make sure the baby is not at risk. I started going twice a week for NSTs (non stress tests)..it sounds worse than it is. I go into the office and they hook me up to a monitor for 20-30 minutes to record the baby's heartrate and any contractions. They are watching for the baby to move and see that the heartrate accelerates and then returns back to normal. It's kind of a nice break in the middle of the day and I get to hear the baby moving around. This last Friday (just short of 38 weeks), I finally showed some contractions. I wasn't entirely sure whether I was feeling contractions or just baby stretching, but the monitor was definitely showing contractions. I've continued to feel them off and on, but nothing consistent.
This coming Monday (July 18th), I'm going in for another ultra-sound to check the baby's size. (GD can cause large babies). I'm guessing (hoping!) it shows that everything is normal, since I'm still measuring right on track. David's coming too which will be nice since he hasn't gone to most of the routine appointments.
My blood pressure has been super, so that is a relief. A lot of times women with GD end up with elevated blood pressure and pre-eclampsia. I was worried that mine would creep up, but Friday it was 110/60, so definitely not elevated. And I've had virtually NO swelling! A couple of times my feet have been sensitive after standing for long periods of time, but other than that, everything looks normal. In fact, I can still fit my wedding ring...it feels a little tight, but it does fit!
I've definitely been having more of a "Nesting" instinct this time around..at least the last week or so. We've been rearranging furniture, cleaning out cabinets, I've got the baby clothes sorted, washed and put away. We're going to try having the girls share a room, so we've been moving things around a bit to make room for everything. David installed the car seat and bases yesterday! Only thing left on the to-do list is to pack for the hospital - and I'm even a little nervous that that won't get done!
I'm officially on Maternity Leave! We did some last minute cramming at work to get most of my projects cleaned up. I hate the feeling of leaving things half-done for others to pick up my slack, but we did what we could to get most things done. I'll have to go back around September 1st to help with an ugly deadline on the 15th, but hopefully I can do some things from home and help out when I can.
Another update coming soon..!
A fair warning..most of this post is just so that I remember all of the details of this pregnancy...probably not too interesting for others...
The past 2 months have been quite interesting as far as the pregnancy goes. Mid-May I took the 2 hr Glucose Test for and it came back elevated. My Dr. recommended I be treated for Gestational Diabetes (GD). I was really upset about the whole thing. I didn't understand how I could have this as the only risk factor that applied to me was being over 25 yrs old. I Googled everything I could think of and asked everyone I knew that had dealt with it before. I'm sure I was driving my Dr. crazy with my questions and resistance!
I setup my appointment with Sweet Success - a statewide program to help pregnant mothers deal with GD. I was somewhat relieved that they couldn't get me an appointment for 3 weeks, but I immediately changed my eating habits while I was waiting. I went for my first appointment there on June 13th and was setup with a Blood Glucose Meter, instructed to test 4 times a day (prick my finger - ouch!) and continue to watch my carbs. The first week went pretty smoothly, but I discovered my morning coffee would have to go - it gave me a high reading and I wasn't about to subject myself to insulin shots if I couldn't keep it under control! After the first week, my hormones continued to rise and caused my morning blood sugar to rise significantly. It didn't seem to matter that I was still eating the same foods; my body seems to have a mind of its own. So, at my next appointment, I was given a low dosage prescription for Glyburide to help control my fasting blood sugars. Thankfully it is an oral medication, not insulin shots!
I went in for another appointment around 36 weeks and the dietitian and Dr both seemed to think that my numbers were acceptable and that my hormone levels would be dropping in the coming weeks. I still have to test my blood sugar and continue the low carb diet, but I don't have to go back for monitoring. Hooray!
The low carb diet has saved me quite a few extra pounds this time around. Total weight gain is around 22lbs, which gives me hope it will all disappear quickly this time! I must say I won't be surprised if this baby doesn't like peanut butter or nuts..I've been going through both in large quantities. I can't wait until I can eat all of the wonderful summer fruits again...I've been limited to one or two SMALL pieces a day (as long as I eat it with nuts), which is soooo hard for someone who loves practically any and all fruit and lots of it!
So, that has been my GD experience. While I still don't understand why it it effected me, I think I was able to come to terms with the fact that I did not cause it, it is something controlled by hormones and out of my control. Very ready to be done with it - and have a Starbucks Mocha!
The other issue that I had to deal with this pregnancy has been pelvic pain. In one of my mid-pregnancy blogs, I mentioned that I had a lot of pain but that my midwife said it was round ligament pain. Well that pain continued to elevate and persist so much to the point that I could hardly walk! It got to where I couldn't lift either foot off the floor without shooting pain, rolling over in bed was miserable, getting dressed and getting into the car were horrible. The worst part was that it hurt so bad to pick up Natalie. So, back to Google I went. I came across some articles that listed a bunch of symptoms for Pelvic Misalignment and I had 9 of the 10! Some sources suggested that a chiropractor could help. I've always been skeptical of chiropractors as I hadn't ever needed one, but I immediately found one and went. I figured it couldn't get any worse!
ONE appointment was all it took to figure out the cause! The right side of my pelvis was shifted forward causing bones to rub and muscles to stretch and pull in ways they weren't supposed to. My right leg was visibly (to the chiro, anyway) longer than the left. She had me turn on my side, and did one "pop" of an adjustment and it was back in place!! It took another week or so for the muscles to stop being sore, but I could lift my feet again! I continue to go back for periodic adjustments. I guess the hormones that relax the joints for birth were causing things to shift, but for the most part I've been able to keep it under control. So glad I made that appointment, because I couldn't imagine surviving another 10 weeks of pregnancy with that kind of pain! (and it's not in the cards for me, but I have no idea how I would have survived a natural birth)
The GD has also made this pregnancy somewhat high-risk. The Dr. likes to monitor GD patients closer to make sure the baby is not at risk. I started going twice a week for NSTs (non stress tests)..it sounds worse than it is. I go into the office and they hook me up to a monitor for 20-30 minutes to record the baby's heartrate and any contractions. They are watching for the baby to move and see that the heartrate accelerates and then returns back to normal. It's kind of a nice break in the middle of the day and I get to hear the baby moving around. This last Friday (just short of 38 weeks), I finally showed some contractions. I wasn't entirely sure whether I was feeling contractions or just baby stretching, but the monitor was definitely showing contractions. I've continued to feel them off and on, but nothing consistent.
This coming Monday (July 18th), I'm going in for another ultra-sound to check the baby's size. (GD can cause large babies). I'm guessing (hoping!) it shows that everything is normal, since I'm still measuring right on track. David's coming too which will be nice since he hasn't gone to most of the routine appointments.
My blood pressure has been super, so that is a relief. A lot of times women with GD end up with elevated blood pressure and pre-eclampsia. I was worried that mine would creep up, but Friday it was 110/60, so definitely not elevated. And I've had virtually NO swelling! A couple of times my feet have been sensitive after standing for long periods of time, but other than that, everything looks normal. In fact, I can still fit my wedding ring...it feels a little tight, but it does fit!
I've definitely been having more of a "Nesting" instinct this time around..at least the last week or so. We've been rearranging furniture, cleaning out cabinets, I've got the baby clothes sorted, washed and put away. We're going to try having the girls share a room, so we've been moving things around a bit to make room for everything. David installed the car seat and bases yesterday! Only thing left on the to-do list is to pack for the hospital - and I'm even a little nervous that that won't get done!
I'm officially on Maternity Leave! We did some last minute cramming at work to get most of my projects cleaned up. I hate the feeling of leaving things half-done for others to pick up my slack, but we did what we could to get most things done. I'll have to go back around September 1st to help with an ugly deadline on the 15th, but hopefully I can do some things from home and help out when I can.
Another update coming soon..!
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