Doctor Appointment

I had a doctor appointment yesterday morning, and I needed a little time to think about it before I wrote anything, but I have found this blog to be very cathartic, so I am going full-steam ahead with discussing some news that has me freaked out.


So, yesterday's appointment started with my weight, which has not changed in a month!!  WOOT! (no worries, though; "plus-sized" mothers do not usually need to gain as much weight.  The doctors are happy with my weight progression) and a urine sample which was "fantastic" according to my doctor (I like that he likes my urine so much).  My blood pressure was 118/68, even though I was very worked up (since I have still been spotting since my last visit two weeks ago when they ran the EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLAR test to make sure there were no signs of premature labor and my cervix was in good shape).  The baby's heartbeat was great, even though she moved away from the doppler THREE times while the doctor was trying to get her heart rate! :)  I told him she was a mover!


So, everything was fine until he did my fundal measurement (*The height of my uterus.  Picture below if interested) and saw that I was measuring 3 centimeters ahead of 33 weeks, even though I was only at 32-and-a-half weeks, which puts me just over the "not normal zone." My doctor told me there was slight concern because I have been absolutely on with my measurements the entire time, never wavering one bit, and then there was a rather large jump into the abnormal range so suddenly, so he scheduled an ultrasound ... in TWO WEEKS.  I have to wait TWO WHOLE WEEKS to see if something is wrong or everything is fine and she is just in a very strange position, causing the measurements to be skewed.


He tried to calm me down and tell me not to worry (nice try, doc), but explained very rationally that combined with my spotting, the fact that I had not gained any weight but my uterus got so big so fast, AND my sugar was fine (so it is obviously not gestational diabetes making the baby big), it was necessary to take a quick look to check the size of the baby and check to make sure everything is still okay with the placenta, amniotic fluid, and umbilical cord.


So, there are many options here:  

• It could just be a very large, but still very healthy baby -- however, the doctor said big babies tend to grow at a steady rate
• The baby could just be messing with us and be in a strange position (I am crossing my fingers for this one)
• There could be too much amniotic fluid, which could be a symptom of many, many things (Which I will not go into detail here.  I am trying to hope for the best)
• The placenta could have slipped from its posterior position to covering or partially covering the cervix (This would also not be great)
• I could be at risk of the umbilical cord prolapsing (Also not awesome)

Jeremy will probably think that I am sharing too much here, but I really feel better after writing everything down and taking a critical look at it. Plus, there is always the chance that some of you reading might have had a similar experience and could give me some comfort! :)

It was just so disheartening to hear that everything looks amazing ... ooops, except this one thing that could be nothing or could be a huge deal.  And then my doctor tells me not to worry about it while I wait two weeks for the ultrasound.  GUH!!!

I also feel tremendously guilty, because I have been saying I am SO ready for her to be here.  I mean, I am having a tough pregnancy and I am DYING to have a baby instead of a belly, but I obviously never meant I wanted her to be premature and in danger.  I wanted a baby NOW who was healthy, fully grown, and a nice healthy weight.  Maybe I should have specified that.  

However, I had Jeremy give the baby a stern talking-to when he got home from work.  He told her to "grow normally!" and "stay in there until you're cooked!" and told me if I ever needed to, I could just tell her, "wait until your father hears about this!!"  He's a big help! <3

*Fundal measurements, if interested:

Doctor Appointment

Sorry I couldn't come up with a more interesting and original title, but ... just another of the bazillion doctor's visits in my near future.  I am getting close to once-a-week visits.  Yikes!


Everything was fine today.  Her heartbeat was great, I was measuring exactly on, and, if you can believe it -- I didn't gain a SINGLE pound in the last two weeks!  Amazing!  Especially since I may or may not have eaten six pieces of of this amazing baby shower cake in the past week:

(Yes, I know I haven't blogged about the shower yet, but it seems like a big overwhelming thing.  But I promise I will!!)


My blood pressure was 112/78, which is still great, but I got a little nervous because for almost my entire pregnancy I have been very low, like 100/60.  So, of course I asked my doctor if I should be worried that it is rising, and he said no, that my blood pressure is amazing.  However, I think that means I should probably worry.  


I also told the doctor that I had a tiny (TINY) bit of spotting two days in this past week that were not associated with heavy lifting or strenuous activity.  So, the doctor said, "Let's take a good look!"  Great.  I kind of like to be mentally prepared for that, but she's the doctor.  


She was not kidding about getting a good look -- when she came back she had a nurse and two other doctors with her.  I figured this is a good preview of the circus attraction I will be when I give birth, so I went with it.  At one point, she actually said, "What is that?  Is that a cyst or a pollup?"  and I wanted to shriek "WHAT THE EFF????" but the nurse grabbed my hand and said it was no big deal, they just wanted to see if anything was irritating me to cause the bleeding.  So, both of the other doctors leaned in for a good look (and it was not a pollup, which I gathered would have been bad).  Three heads, VERY close to my lady parts.  Frankly, I didn't care for it.  


So, one of the other doctors (actually, my favorite) took a closer look.  In the end, they all concluded that things looked good and my cervix was closed and I should keep an eye on things but not get worried.  Yeah, right.  If I am worried about my blood pressure being below normal, I am going to worry about this little adventure.


I had also mentioned to the doctor earlier that she seemed MUCH lower in the past two weeks and was kicking SUPER low and I had an irrational fear that she was preparing for delivery or trying to kick her way out.  After the exam she also assured me that the baby was not, in fact, trying to kick her way out.  So that was comforting. :) 


They sent me off saying everything was great and I was doing a great job, but this appointment was certainly a mixed bag.  I'll take the bad with the good, though.  It's all worth it!

21 Weeks

Today is 21 weeks!  

The baby is probably about three-quarters of a pound and 10 1/2 inches long.  She is all done getting her proportions figured out, and she looks like a miniature newborn.  She even has her eyebrows now!! 

I am past the halfway point and moving right along.  Of course, we just had the ultrasound and discovered we are having a BABY GIRL (!!!), and I was sure they would either say I was so dang big because I had two babies in there or because I was off on my due date and the baby was weeks ahead of schedule.  Sadly, neither was true.  The baby is EXACTLY on for 21 weeks, there is only one, and I am just bigger than most women because ... well, because.  


I still have not gained much at all, and I am excited about that since I was already on the "dark side" of the scale and was sure I would gain like 50 pounds in the first few months.  However, I sure feel like I have gained weight!  The baby is so high that she is already pressing on my diaphram, and just walking across campus can be a feat!  I bet I look pretty classy huffing and puffing my way to teach every morning! 


Overall, I still feel great.  My big problem with sleeping now is that since I have gotten big enough, my doctor and I had the talk about how I go to sleep on my left side (like I was instructed!) but wake up flat on my back.  I just feel much more comfortable on my back, so apparently I move to that position to get restful sleep, but the weight of the baby now puts too much pressure on my inferior vena cava if I lay flat on my back, which can cut off blood flow (and then oxygen) to the baby.  He said to barricade my back with pillows so I can't roll over, but he didn't realize he was dealing with the girl who would take her retainer out in her sleep and then sleepwalk around the room and hide it.  So, I barricade myself, and then wake up on my back anyway.  Sigh.  


I was hoping it wasn't THAT big of a deal to sleep on my back (even though everything I read said the opposite), but the doctor said I should at least TRY not to cut off blood flow to my baby.  So I am working on it.  Last night I only woke up on my back once, so I guess that is an improvement.


Anyway, we get more excited by the day!  Can't wait to meet her!

More Stuff For the Baby and More Gender Woes

I did not set out for Monday to be a big baby day, but it turned into one.

First, I went to visit my dear friend Melissa at her new house, and she gave me a gift for the baby!!  And look how perfect it is!!

Isn't that wonderful?  I think I am going to put some headphones on my belly and start playing it for the baby tonight.  I have such wonderful friends!!

After I spent some time with Melissa, I met my mom and dad for dinner.  After a delicious meal, we headed to Target to return some maternity clothes my mom had generously bought me ... but didn't fit. Sooo frustrating, since I had other shirts in the same size by the same designer, but these were like 15 sizes too big.  Grrr.  And then there really wasn't much there.  It really seems like when I was wishing I were pregnant, I saw awesome and inexpensive maternity clothes in my size everywhere, and now that I need them, there is like one rack at Target.  Oh well.  I got one really cute shirt, anyway.  

That same night we also went to Joann Fabrics to do some looking around.  I found some fabric on sale that would be perfect for receiving blankets.  

One was a cute neutral:

This picture isn't amazing, but if you look hard, you can see pink, blue, and yellow.

And one was the prettiest little girl print in the whole wide world:

I figured I should make a few and then if I don't have a girl, I can save them for a little girl who might come in the future or give them to the next friend who has a girl. Either way, it was too cute to pass up.

Finally, I found a good pattern for baby bedding, since I have been LESS than impressed with the bedding I have found thus far.  Nothing is really THAT great, and everything costs WAY too much money, so I figured I could make my own:

Now, here comes the real problem:  Fabric.  If I am going to lovingly make all this bedding, I want it to be for that baby, and not just some neutral boring something.  I found the perfect fabric for a little girl's princess bedroom, and I have visions of a baseball bedroom for a little boy, BUT Jeremy is still being stubborn and wants to keep the sex a surprise.  Everyone knows there is no WAY I will make bedding AFTER the baby is born -- even though Jeremy still maintains we could do all the decorating after the baby is born so I could have a gender-specific bedroom and he can have his surprise.  I mean, come on.  He is clearly grossly underestimating the amount of exhaustion that will be happening around here when that newborn shows up.

I started looking for neutral stuff, and there is nothing I like ENOUGH to design a whole nursery around it.  I am just very disappointed.  I want to celebrate our little boy or little girl, and, in my mind, that includes a fun nursery and clothes that aren't ALL green or yellow.  How can I find a way to make both me and Jeremy happy???  (No, seriously, I need guidance!)

15 Weeks

Today is 15 weeks, and the baby is at least 4 and a half inches long and weighs about two ounces.  It is the size of a navel orange, which is hard to believe, considering how big I am already!  EVERYONE keeps asking me if I am having twins!  I try not to take it in a bad way, since I still haven't gained back a single pound of the 20 I lost since Christmas.


Anyway, the baby is busy "practicing" this week -- practicing breathing, sucking, swallowing, curling its toes, kicking, doing somersaults, and waving its little arms around.  


I found a few amazing pictures of babies in the womb at 15 weeks ....

Pretty amazing.  It makes me want the baby to come NOW even more!

I had a few rough days on Thursday and Friday, but I am doing better.  I had some spotting on Thursday night and just about had a complete breakdown.  The doctor said I was fine, but I had some pain the next day, and was pretty panicked until Jeremy got me calm enough to fall asleep on the couch.  When I woke up, I was feeling better, and I hope to continue that way.  I haven't had any symptoms since then, and the doctor tells me not to worry, that spotting can be caused by many things, and if in very small amounts and not combined with cramping, doesn't mean the worst.

Overall, I have been feeling MUCH better.  I would not say I am feeling great yet, but when I remind myself what I felt like for the first three LONG months, I can appreciate how much better I feel.  

And finally, we got to see most of the Dimicks today (YAY!) and Grandma Dimick (or whatever moniker she will choose when the time comes!) got us two great books:

Baby Names Now: From Classic to Cool -- The Very Last Word on First Names by Linda Rosenkrantz and Pamela Redmond Satran.  

It is a HOOT.  These ladies are so snarky and just have a comment about every name.  

Like, they will tell you a little about the name listed, but then list a few that are similar but they think are much better.  They also call a lot of names overused, and, including some of the Dimick names.  Oops!

I love the little asides like, "we think parents can find a much more substantial and lovely names for girls than this."  Priceless.

However, it also includes the meanings, any special stories, the use in popular culture and when the name has been the most popular.  It is very interesting.

She also got us the baby's very first book -- There's a Wocket in My Pocket by Dr. Suess, which I had no idea was Jeremy's favorite book as a child!

Jeremy had a great time reading it today, and it even brought back the scary memories of the "Vug under the Rug" -- the image just showed a huge lump under a rug in a dark room.  

Oh, isn't that the best way to scare the crap out of a child -- leave them to create the scariness in their own minds!  It's funny how strong those memories are too, that they can come flooding back to you at a moment's notice.  Jeremy will have to use special caution when reading this book to our little one so the same fate does not befall him or her!