Month: February 2011

27 week check-up check-in

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

I went to the doctor last Thursday and had the one hour glucose test.  No results yet, but I can fill you in on everything else. 

First things first:  I’m now in the 3rd trimester!  Less than 13 weeks until my due date!  Yiiikes.  This also means that I will start going to the doctor every 2 weeks instead of 4.  That makes the time just fly by even more.

Weight gain so far:  16.5 lbs (I only gained 2 in the last three weeks, phew).  At this point in my pregnancy with Theo I had gained 27lbs, so I am definitely thankful!  I am on track to gain a healthy 25-35 pounds this time.  The baby should be weighing about 2 pounds now and measuring approximately 14.5″ long.  That’s a lot of baby!  No wonder I am feeling so much movement.  It’s good to know that if the baby was born now, chances of survival would be very high. 

I’m feeling good for the most part.  Much of how I feel is tied to sleep… how much I get and how well I rest.  If I’m well-rested, the only time I feel bad is when I get up and haven’t had anything to eat for awhile.  I get nauseous and weak but that usually goes away after I get some protein.  The heartburn hasn’t been too terribly persistent.  I haven’t had to take anything over the counter yet besides Tums.  I don’t quite remember when it got really bad with Theo, but it was worth it for his gorgeous head of hair (supposing that Old Wives’ Tale is true) and I hope this baby has just as much of it. 

People have been asking me if this baby is more or less active in the womb than Theo was and up until the last week or so, I’ve said it’s too hard to compare.  I’ve been paying close attention lately and this kid is definitely more of a wiggle worm.  For example, while my OB/GYN was trying to get a heartbeat with the doppler, we could visibly see this wild child squirming under my skin to get away from the noise.  We were both laughing and that didn’t help matters, with her hand shaking and my big belly jiggling.  She even said I was going to end up having to have an ultrasound to get a heartrate if the kid didn’t cooperate.  Obviously, we both knew the little one was alive and well.  Spunky little booger.  She eventually got it and it was averaging in the 130s-140s again. 

We talked about the possible birthdates for the baby, supposing I don’t go into labor on my own.  My doctor said she is on call Thursdays and some random Fridays.  If I am scheduled for a c-section, it will be at 39 weeks so the baby would be born on Thurs 5/19 or Fri 5/20.  If I am induced, she wants to do it at 38 weeks (supposing an amniocentesis shows that the baby’s lungs are fully developed) and I would be induced on Thurs 5/12 or Fri 5/13.  Naturally, my hubs is hoping for a Friday the 13th baby (if you know my hubs, you totally get this!). 

So, there you have it.  I’ll update about the results of my 1 hour glucose tolerance test soon. 

fingers crossed,
~C~

not super excited

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

I have my 27 (random) week check up today and with that, the dreaded 1 hour glucose tolerance test.  I’m so not looking forward to it because I know if I have “abnormal” results, I’m going to have to do the dreadful, terrible, horrible, tragic 3 hour glucose test.  My doctor told me if my results are 190 or 195, she won’t make me do it because levels over 200 mean you surely are diabetic.  Oh, I guess I should explain what I’m talking about in case anyone isn’t all caught up here.

With Theo, I had gestational diabetes.  There is a genetic factor to it and obese people are more predisposed to it.  I’m not obese, so I guess I have my dad and most of my grandparents to thank for the genetic part.  Although I think they are/were all Type 2.  Anyway…

The test:  You drink 6 or 8 ounces of disgustingly sweet orange syrup and wait an hour, then get blood drawn.  From the blood draw, they test your glucose level to see if your body produces enough insulin to handle the extreme amount of sugar.  If you are over say 140(?) or maybe 160 (?), that’s considered abnormal and you have to do a 3 hour glucose tolerance test to see how your body handles the even more disgusting, even more sugary liquid over a three hour period (meaning they do 3 fun blood draws instead of just one).  The worst thing about that…you can’t eat after midnight the night before and you can’t leave the doctor’s office.  So three hours of sitting in the waiting room with nothing to do (meanwhile, on the verge of puking because that stuff really is sickeningly sweet AND if you are diabetic, you’re probably sick anyway from not eating for so long). 

If you have gestational diabetes with one pregnancy the chance that you’ll have it with subsequent pregnancies is quite significant.  If, by some miracle, I do not have it this time, I will be SO happy because that will mean I’ll (more than likely) get to try for another vaginal birth. 

If I get it, and definitely if I have to go on insulin this time (I didn’t last time), I’ll be having a c-section.  Boo.  Anyway, I’ll check back in with the results of the test and updates from my 27 week appointment soon. 

Happy weekend,
~C~

p.s.  What about the name Dexter?  Nickname Dex?  Cute, right?  Theo and Dex.  What about Mallory for a girl?  Kind of loving both of these names right now.  Holla?

sad scribble

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

Things are starting to come together for Theo’s first birthday party (in less than two weeks).  We bought the decorations over the weekend.  We talked to the cake-making lady and have a better idea of what’s going on there.  We have a semi-decent idea of how many people are coming.  I talked to a friend who advised me on how many pizzas to order.  The anxiety about all of this is coming down a little. 

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my dad.  I miss him every day but sometimes he just comes up in the most random ways.  Shortly after he died (and occasionally still), I’d say something about going to “Mom-n-Dad’s house” or calling “Mom-n-Dad” to ask a question.  Mom-n-Dad is kind of like a run-on word/title/entity growing up, so when one of them is gone, it’s hard to just say “Mom.”  It’s missing something (or someone). 

Are you wondering what these two seemingly random topics have in common?  I was writing a list of people that have RSVP’d to the party (thank you, kind souls) and sure enough, it looked like something this:

aunt
uncle
cousin
cousin
blah
blah
mom
DAD

Stop.  It just came out of the pen before I had a chance to think about what I was writing.  As soon as I wrote the letters d-a-d, and before I realized what was happening, I scribbled those three letters out.  Then I stopped again.  What am I doing, scribbling Dad out?  All of that happened in a matter of a couple of seconds and the whole 2 second ordeal stopped me in my tracks.  I felt guilt for scribbling and panic for wanting to unscribble…to undo what I had done…to undo that he won’t be at Theo’s first birthday party.  It was the first time I thought about the fact that my d-a-d won’t be there.

As I sat there paralyzed, not able to continue with my list, I stared at my scribble and a massive, unexpected wave of sadness swept over me.  They say you never really lose the ones you love.  They say that the hurt lessens over time.  It’s true – I don’t feel that kind of intense emotion every day.

BUT. 

There’s something about having all of this emotion coming out of nowhere 4 years later over a scribble and a vacant chair at a baby boy’s first birthday party that knocks the wind right out of your chest.

wondering why that had to happen,
~C~