Made by Memilyrae

This morning I had my 35 week check up. And since my mom and dad are in town, I invited my mom to come with me. It wasn’t one of those ‘big’ appointments but I still liked having her with me. Things are going good so far – I’m at 35 weeks but still measuring 33 weeks…which honestly I’m a bit okay with…AS LONG AS HE’S HEALTHY!!!  At the last ultrasound they made an estimated guess on his birth weight if he was going to go full term… 8 lbs 8 oz. Ouch…that number just hurts, but I know it’s really not THAT big. I mean, I was 10 lbs 8 oz. – BIG BIG. But, if he’s measuring a little small…and is healthy…then that’s okay with me.

Dr Young asked if I wanted to schedule an induction date – I really don’t think I need one but I figured why not – especially since Dr Young says that it’s best to schedule it early so the dates don’t fill up. SO, TO BE NICE TO MY HUBBY – I scheduled it for 2 (Yes, only TWO) days before my due date to shoot for Steve’s wish of an 8/9/10 birthday. (You’re welcome sweetie!) I sure hope I go before then but just in case, I’ll help Steve get his wish. LOL Love you sweetie!! (Dr Young doesn’t think I’ll make it to the induction date…I sure hope he’s right!!!!)

On another note – Pat & Alec (Steve’s parents) found us a dresser – Alec is going to reinforce the insides of the drawers but other than that it looks pretty good. So I’m excited to get it home and put the baby’s clothes away. Now we just need to finish the room – getting the office stuff sorted, getting the crib up, the dresser and clothes put away, etc.

Next – I need to pack a hospital bag (yep – still haven’t done it yet), buy diapers and wipes, etc.

So I’m totally fooling myself and I know it. I came to terms with it last night. I won’t be meeting this little man for a few more weeks instead of by next Monday when mom and dad leave town. And that’s okay. I guess having Evie early (and then getting into my pre-prego pants 3 days later) makes it hard for me to want to go full term but I know he needs to be healthy so I’m okay with it. I do, however, hope the next few weeks fly by super fast so I can get out of this uncomfortable and hurting stage of pregnancy.

Your baby doesn’t have much room to maneuver now that he’s over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it’s so snug in your womb, he isn’t likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he’ll spend the next few weeks putting on weight. (Babycenter.com)

And, you know, since we don’t have the ‘nursery’ set up yet (no crib, no dresser, etc) then I guess it’s okay that he’s not here yet (then again…maybe it’d help us speed along the process instead of us putting it off like we are! LOL) I just hope Steve won’t be right on the date – he wants him to come on 8/9/10 – which would be a cool birthday, but that’s only 2 days before my due date. I think I’d die. LOL

Well, at least I’m not longer delusional to think he’ll come in the next few days, but I’m sure I’ll still be whiney with the things that make me uncomfortable – so be prepared! LOL

So at my appointment last week the doc said the baby is measuring about 5 pounds…sounds bigger than what 34 weeks should be measuring…So I’m guessing I’m still measuring a week big. I forgot to ask last time. Here’s what Babycenter says:

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. His fat layers — which will help regulate his body temperature once he’s born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. His central nervous system is maturing and his lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you’ve been nervous about preterm labor, you’ll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

I’ve been thinking about having a hospital bag ready to go but I haven’t done anything about it yet. I also want to have bags in the van for the kids too…that way, wherever we are and whomever takes them, we’ll have something to send them with – especially clothes wise! I’ve seen list after list of what they suggest taking to the hospital but most of it I can forget because I haven’t needed them in the past, so why start bringing it now? Here’s my list of what I’ll be packing:

Toothbrush/paste, hair brush, makeup, deodorant, etc.

Clothes – comfortable clothes while at the hospital, clothes to come home in (need to make sure I remember a nursing bra! Sorry boys!)

Laptop & charger

Camera & charger

Book – not sure which one yet…a few will be coming out around the time I might have him so who knows!

Cell Phone – I don’t usually leave home without it

baby’s going home outfit

baby’s car seat

light blanket

diaper bag – leave in the van

Uh….am I forgetting anything? It’s been nearly 4 years since I last had to do this. I can’t remember!!

Pat and Alec gave up their Saturday to help us get a lot done on my list (posted earlier this week). I’m starting to feel pretty darn good about where we are with the house now and even though we’re all tired (the men did so much – thank you boys, especially for the big manual labor and carpet cleaning, etc. etc) it feels so good getting things checked off that list. Mom Shaw and I did the smaller items, which was nice to have someone to work with and help with the kiddos, etc – so thank you so much for that too! We still have a lot to do but we are getting so much closer. We are letting some of the carpets dry overnight and we’ll work on cleaning more over the next 2 days. The kids are moved in (and sleeping) downstairs and they are excited! Our room, the living room and the front room are where we’ve been storing things while we clean carpets and will sort through and put away as we get to it. But over all, I’m feeling good! YAY!!!

I’ve decided I cannot go by how many weeks I have left at all…I was measuring a week early last week, so most likely I’m measuring at 34 weeks this week…which would give me 6 weeks left! But with the pre-term labor I had with Evie, that could even cut the 6 weeks down in half, or less – who knows! He’s still bouncing around in there and sometimes he ‘elbows’ me (I think it’s his elbow) hard enough that it hurts a little….little stinker! Here’s what BabyCenter has to say about week 33…even though that was probably last week!

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. He’s rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren’t fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don’t entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Well, here’s hoping that the pineapple will stay in for another few weeks and keep cooking – I’m mainly hoping that whenever he decides to come he’ll be far enough developed that he will not have any problems…at least any serious problems. It’s crazy how fast this part of the pregnancy feels and how quickly the end is nearing.

Oh, I have my next appointment with my Doc tomorrow – I’ll update this tomorrow!

I’ve had a few requests from some amazing friends and family members to come down and help us get more organized and ready for adding child #3 to our family…why? Because we’re in the middle of moving the kids to the office and making the kids room into the nursery…and the house is a mess! So, this is really for my benefit, and by all means, ignore this if you don’t care…and believe me, if I were you I’d just skip this post! 🙂 Also, this is not all for before the baby…but it’s things that I want to do around the house, so it seems daunting, but it isn’t that bad if you consider that it doesn’t have a deadline of 7 weeks or less. 🙂

MY LIST

…move food storage out of the garage COMPLETED – 7/1/10

…check kids room for coax connection. COMPLETED – IT’S THERE! 6/23/10

……if there is one, move computer stuff out of office and put upstairs (Steve) COMPLETED 6/26/10

…clean carpets downstairs COMPLETED 6/26/10

…move bunkbeds downstairs COMPLETED 6/26/10

…….wash sheets and pillow cases

…….buy new egg carton cushion things for both beds

…move kids dresser downstairs COMPLETED 6/26/10

…clean out kids room – get rid of extra toys, minimize amount of clothes, etc COMPLETED 6/23/10

…wash material from baby car seat. put in trunk until needed.

…clean carpet in ‘nursery’ COMPLETED 6/26/10

…put up crib (nursery or our room? we haven’t decided yet)

…buy dresser for baby

…get newborn baby boy clothes from Annette’s house. COMPLETED 6/24/10

……wash COMPLETED 6/25/10

……fold COMPLETED 6/28/10
……put away

…get other baby gear from Alec & Pat’s basement

…borrow a bassinet

…switch sides of bedroom with Steve COMPLETED 7/2/10

…sort through (keep, store, throw away) office stuff – all sitting in my living room

…get shelves put in the closet by the front door

……move food storage onto shelves in the closet by the front door

…re-caulk bath tubs

…re-tile all bathrooms

…….get downstairs toilet to quit rocking

…paint little bookshelf to cover up crayon marks

…use Magic Eraser on crayon mark on all doors and walls from previous owners COMPLETED 6/26/10

…get shelves above washer/dryer

…get baskets for socks to put above washer/dryer

…swap kids bathroom stuff with downstairs bathroom – make upstairs bathroom a guest/visitor bathroom

…hang up posters in the kids room (downstairs) – need to attach them to something or put them in frames

…sew up kitchen chair cushions – COMPLETED 6/22/10

…get KitKat healthy COMPLETED 6/29/10

…….find KitKat a new home

…put chair railing in master bedroom

…paint living room

…put up bead board in living room

…buy new couches

…build new shelves in garage

…wire in a light above the stairs

…big clock above the stairs

…open handrails for stairs

…wood floors upstairs

…find decor to put above kitchen cabinets

…find decor to put on shelf in master bedroom

…accessory tower in master bath COMPLETED 6/23/10

…better wall decor for living room

…canvas of wedding day in front of temple

…have kids sort through toys – give away toys they do not play with  COMPLETED 6/23/10

…etc, etc, etc

I’m ready for bed so that’s as far as I’m going right now. Again, half of the list has an open deadline…others have a before baby is born deadline, and others have a non-committed before baby comes deadline. Fun Fun!

Okay, so if you read my previous post, I over did it. And now I’m hurting. I started hurting Saturday evening and all day Sunday. Sunday night was worse. I laid down to sleep at 11 p.m. and the last time I looked at the clock it was nearly 2. I had a lot of sharp pains just lying down. Then I’d get uncomfortable, turn to my other side (which hurt just to turn) and then lay there for a while until I had to switch sides again. Plus our cat kept meowing to go out so I had to grab him, take him downstairs and lock him in the bathroom…again. I slept for maybe 30 minutes…then it was time to start my ‘every 2 hour potty break’. But some of the sharp pains woke me up before my 2 hour mark. I kept praying to know whether or not I needed to wake Steve and gather the kids to go to Labor and Delivery or not…there was just a ton of pain. After a while I fell asleep…again with the 2 hour potty breaks…but by morning the pain was a lot less frequent and more manageable. BUT, i was also super tired (and still am!)

I called my doctor’s office on the way to work this morning. My doctor isn’t in town today, which I knew, so I left a message for his nurses. They told me to go to Labor and Delivery and get evaluated for pre-term labor. Once I got things squared away at work, Steve picked me up and away to the hospital we went. I was more nervous this morning because, although the pain wasn’t as frequent, the baby wasn’t moving as much either. We got to the hospital, told them what we needed and what’s been happening. I got changed into the gown and got situated on the bed. The doc came in and started listening for the heartbeat. After trying all around the lower areas of my belly – where most babies usually like to stick – Steve and I looked at each other a bit worried. No heartbeat. The doc moved it around and focused more on my right side – where this baby (and Spencer) prefer to be. Somewhere on the right side and above my belly button she found the heartbeat. I was really worried that we might have lost him and that I should have gone in last night instead of waiting. We were both relieved when she found it! She strapped it on to my tummy and added another one above my belly button to monitor any contractions I could be having.

I admitted that I don’t think I know what a ‘real’ contraction feels like. With Spencer my water broke and I had an epidural before things got to be too much. With Evie, it was pre-term labor (lower cramping) so the full effect of the contraction wasn’t what they describe as a real contraction. This time around, there wasn’t cramping, but sharp pains. While we were talking she said, ‘oh – you just had a contraction’ – really? felt like a little sharp stabbing pain to me…weird. Other times it would happen and I just assumed it was something else. They took my blood temperature and when she looked at the baby’s heartbeat she said it was a bit high…could be that I’m getting sick without knowing it. The baby would know before I would. She took my temperature with this really neat thing that just swipes across my forehead and wammo! temperature taken. Said it’s about $30 at places like Costco. Seriously cool.

Next I got to do something really fun…not really though. The stirrups came out and so did the little stretchy thing…and not to get too graphic, but it allows the doc to take a look-see inside…farther in the back. Uh, yeah. They swabbed behind the uterus (I think that’s what she said was happening) and then tested the chemicals from there. It took nearly 30 minutes to get the test results, which were negative…MEANING I will most likely NOT have this baby in the next 10…yes TEN days. At least there’s a 97% chance I wouldn’t go into labor in the next 10 days. LOL – 10 days. Wow…that gives me so much time to prepare! BUT, I could also be one of the 3% who does anyway. I’m not dilated at all, so hopefully I’m more the 97% instead of the 3%.

The doc at the hospital called my doc…wherever he is…and talked to him about all of the results. Not sure what the sharp pains mean, but in case they are connected to the contractions I need to time them and see if they get closer and closer. They also gave me a list of things to pay attention to that would send me back to Labor and Delivery, just in case. She did mention that since I’m measuring at 33 weeks that if I did go into labor and I was closer to or past 34 weeks that they would not try to stop delivery. I hope I can at least get the steroid shot on Thursday to help him develop more quickly in case I do go into labor any time soon.

Until something else happens, I am to take it easy and take it slow. Luckily I’m not on bedrest but I should half pretend that I am. I’m so not ready to have a baby yet – he needs to come out healthy so as long as my body isn’t doing anything harmful to his development….let him stay in for a bit longer!

So, I over did it. On Saturday night we had Steve’s parents and some cousins over for a BBQ and then attended a fireside from our stake. Before the cousins showed up we were rushing to clean. At one point I knew I had done too much and started to take it a little easier. The unfortunately part is that even walking is hurting. I just stood up from the bed (from sitting position) to throw something away and I almost fell cause the pain was so sharp. The pain is different than the pain I had with Evie, but I’m still worried about what it means. I think I’ll call in tomorrow and see what the nurses say – see if I need to come in before Thursday. Who knows! Every time I lay down I count how long it takes him to move 10 times (it’s the “ABCD” test the doc has us do anyway…but I do it every time I wake up in the night). So far his activity is okay and that part doesn’t worry me…but the pain does.

The crazy thing is in a week I will be as far along with this baby as I was when Evie was born….with 6 1/2 weeks left. Crazy, huh? And when I think about it…I’m at 32 1/2 weeks…so, 7 1/2 weeks until my due date. Using the 2 weeks allowance doctors take for ‘being right’ with the due date – that could be 5 weeks left. That right there makes me a little stressed cause we still have so much to do around the house to get situated and prepared for the baby. PLUS if I go any earlier than that…that’s less than 5 weeks! AHHH!

So today I had my doctor’s appointment…I’m on the 2 week plan for a while until I get closer to my due date which will then put me on the 1 week plan. Dr Young listened to the heartbeat (still sounds great) and measured my belly. I’m measuring 33 weeks instead of 32…which makes me hope that I will go 1-2 weeks earlier than my due date.

I asked Dr Young if my hips should be knotting under the skin and itching after the progesterone shots and he said that I MIGHT be forming an allergy to it. He wants me to come back in next week (instead of in 2 weeks) so he can check my cervix. IF my cervix is still ‘closed’, I can stop the shots right now. IF my cervix is starting to dilate some, I can probably get a steroid shot instead of doing the progesterone shots…that would be after a non-stress test and the shot would be in my arm instead of hip. IF my cervix is dilating a lot, we’ll stay on the progesterone shots for a few more weeks. Since I’m measuring 33 weeks and he was originally going to check my cervix at 34 weeks anyway, this really isn’t that much off of schedule…just 1 week off of my due date measurements instead of my actual measurements. I’m hoping I can stop getting shots in the hip…it makes for a sore side when I sleep.

Before he checks me next week, we will also get a follow up ultrasound. Dr Young usually does 3…1 at your first visit, 1 at 20 weeks and 1 in the early 30 week range. So next week Steve and I will go in and get to see the baby again!

The scary thing is…IF you think about it, with the due date I have 8 weeks left…with measuring I have 7 weeks left…with my past of going early I could be having this baby in 5 weeks…or 4… etc. Dr Young said once I hit 34 weeks he will be less worried about having too much of a premie baby, but would still be watchful of the next few weeks following that. THAT worries me because the room downstairs needs to have the computer/wireless/etc stuff moved out, carpets cleaned, kids moved downstairs, nursery set up, clothes picked up from Annette’s, clothes washed, dresser for the nursery, shelves in my front closet (really – we are working on our food storage and I need a place to put it!) and on top of all of that, work, KitKat, playing with the kids, my parents are coming to town (YAY!!!), me and Steve time, cleaning up the rest of the house, trying to stay on top of laundry, etc, etc, etc. 8 weeks sounds nicer when I look at what’s left to do. Seriously!

Seriously…3 visits to the vet and a few hundred dollars later and we still do not know what is causing KitKat’s fever! He was negative for the Feline Leukemia and FIV (or whatever the initials are) – which are the two diseases that are a ‘put him to sleep so he doesn’t suffer’ diseases – and they did blood work and his count was pretty right on for normal. So what gives? Why in the world does he still have the fever? We took him to a different vet (one who could see him today) and I really liked them…even walking in was nice being greeted by nice, smiling people. The assistant was even super sweet with one of those Disney Princess voices. LOL So, we have a ‘stronger’ antibiotic to try for 10 days  plus some pain medication for the next 3 (he got fixed while he was there…that’s also supposed to help stop the constant fighting…sure hope it works!). He also got shaved a little bit…mainly on the back legs and a little under his chin. He came in around 3 this morning and I could see he was in yet another fight. His back legs were scratched and sore and he had a hard time jumping to the bathroom counter where he usually enjoys his fresh water. The vet said they were swollen and looks like a bite or two might have punctured some of the tendons. My poor cat is so sad looking…not only having to be ‘fixed’ but just being sick and dehydrated (he’s been home for a good 15 minutes now and has not left his water bowl yet…and yet again, he has to stay inside for a few days….which makes me worry that he’ll poop on the carpets. Hmph!

Can’t see it very well but the white area where the collar would be is shaved…

And so are his back legs. Swollen, cut, and sore.