Calling all the Pregnant PS''ers

[snlee]

Hi all, self centered post here. Hope to catch up soon.

Last night, at 17 weeks, I started feeling frequent contractions so I had to make my first trip to L&D. They usually don''t even have you come into L&D before 20 weeks but they made an exception. I was there for about 4 hours. I had an internal check, was monitored by the machine (but it''s very early to pick up contractions), and had an u/s. It''s just BH but far too often for my liking. I''m still having them but everything looks okay right now. I''m supposed to take an easy, mostly bedrest, but I haven''t been put on strict bedrest.

They did a detailed u/s (pretty much a detailed anatomy scan that took about 30 mins). The good news is my cervix looks good - long and closed – and my placenta moved way up in just 1.5 weeks so I don''t have to worry about that anymore! He/she looked great - yup, you read right! Thought we were having a boy but now we don''t know if baby is a boy or girl!!! The tech today looked for a long time and didn''t see any boy parts. He did spot some GIRL parts though. I saw 3 lines and no boy parts sticking out. He said at 16 weeks it was early - it could have been a swollen labia sticking out. Or the boy part is hiding today. He said if the other tech hadn''t told us it was a boy he would have told us it was a girl today. Guess we''ll find out on Wednesday when I have my big u/s then keep checking at my u/s appointments.

Hopefully things don''t turn into PTL. This pregnancy has been so stressful!

 

[lover in athens]

SNLEE...welcome to my world! so sorry you had to go to L&D... there have been MANY nights where i probably should have gone in, but i''m trying to just monitor things on my own so far. but thank goodness cervix isn''t shortening and that the placenta moved up. that is hilarious about the maybe boy/girl!!!! can''t wait to find out at your big ultrasound! are you leaning more towards getting the shots with all the BHs???

 

[taovandel]

Snlee--similar thing happened to me. Don''t buy anything until you know 100% and see it with your own eyes.



Happy Mother''s Day to everyone!

 

[Bliss]

HAPPY MOTHER''S DAY, PRETTY MAMAS!!!!!!

 

[vespergirl]

Hey everyone, I''m still in the weeds here with my newborn, so I haven''t had time to catch up with everyone''s posts, but this is just a drive-by to say Happy Mother''s Day to all the preggos!!!

 

[Puppmom]

Snlee, i''m sorry to hear your pregnancy has been stressful thus far. I hope things settle down soon.

Swimmer, sending some cervix progress dust your way!

I had my glucose tolerance test this morning. The stuff you have to drink isn''t that bad but, then again, I have a SERIOUS sweet tooth. Hopefully, I''ll pass because 3 hours in a lab is not my idea of fun and neither is a diet!

Just to clarify on the Rhogam. I don''t think my doctor''s office needs to bloodwork to get the Rhogam. In terms of timing though, getting my test resullts back is what would have triggered them to call me for the next thing which is the Rhogam. I still think it''s a load of crap and I''m the only who would''ve remembered.

 

[Puppmom]

I think "Gary" (that''s what we call our LO in utero) has the hiccups because I''m feeling repeated light taps that happen every few seconds in the same spot. Weird.

 

[swimmer]

Allie, Gah about the student/desk! Did you file paperwork at your school, I hope you establish a paper trail for any incidental costs would be covered by school''s insurance (comp). I know the tendency is to say "oh I''m fine" but your co-pays and other incidental costs plus any extra monitoring b/c of that on the clock incident can add up. I''m glad you are doing well! (yes, I was a teachers'' union rep for ages)

Snlee, good news about your cervix, I hope everything continues to go that way. Scary still. Ah, to be on pins and needles about gender now too. Good luck W.

Ctek, so true, but you never know... DH wanted a girl so badly but now is of course thrilled to be having a boy.

AGBF, all is good, thank you! feeling some weirdness, but yes, this waiting is wearing on me.

Jas, how you doing? you enjoying your spicy food this time around?

Happy Mothers Day to you Bliss! (and everyone else here of course!)

PupMom, thank you! good luck with the GD results. Yeah, I also thought the drink wasn''t that bad...

So, I''m only 3 days post dd, and while I''ve thought that my belly couldn''t get any larger, it has! It seriously defies gravity at this point and I feel weird stuff, but not "contractions" though what would I know? Reading Ina Mae makes me feel good and walking/working out is so key to getting this guy out, trying to do a few miles a few times a day. DH and I made a pretty birth plan with 5 points, and I''m trying to get a few errands done every day. Cloth diaper research and ty notes on the docket! Yay for sun and of course loved the Babies movie! You all must go see it!

 

[lovinsparkles]

Date: 5/10/2010 2:50:47 PM
Author: swimmer
Allie, Gah about the student/desk! Did you file paperwork at your school, I hope you establish a paper trail for any incidental costs would be covered by school''s insurance (comp). I know the tendency is to say ''oh I''m fine'' but your co-pays and other incidental costs plus any extra monitoring b/c of that on the clock incident can add up. I''m glad you are doing well! (yes, I was a teachers'' union rep for ages)

Snlee, good news about your cervix, I hope everything continues to go that way. Scary still. Ah, to be on pins and needles about gender now too. Good luck W.

Ctek, so true, but you never know... DH wanted a girl so badly but now is of course thrilled to be having a boy.

AGBF, all is good, thank you! feeling some weirdness, but yes, this waiting is wearing on me.

Jas, how you doing? you enjoying your spicy food this time around?

Happy Mothers Day to you Bliss! (and everyone else here of course!)

PupMom, thank you! good luck with the GD results. Yeah, I also thought the drink wasn''t that bad...

So, I''m only 3 days post dd, and while I''ve thought that my belly couldn''t get any larger, it has! It seriously defies gravity at this point and I feel weird stuff, but not ''contractions'' though what would I know? Reading Ina Mae makes me feel good and walking/working out is so key to getting this guy out, trying to do a few miles a few times a day. DH and I made a pretty birth plan with 5 points, and I''m trying to get a few errands done every day. Cloth diaper research and ty notes on the docket! Yay for sun and of course loved the Babies movie! You all must go see it!

Swimmer, I just had to comment here that I''m right there with you (4 days past DD). In fact, at my doctor''s appointment this morning, the nurse said "Are you sure there''s just one in there? Oh, I probably shouldn''t have said that. But at least it''s all tummy!". It''s to the point where strangers (elevator riders, parking lot attendants, etc.) can''t help but comment. It''s pretty unreal! Also, like you, I feel "weird stuff" but no noticable contractions (though surprisingly my non-stress test did show that I was having some), and am also doing my best self-help measures to speed things along (lots of bouncing on my exercise ball!). I hope your LO comes along soon!

A little update on my previous posts re: my big baby: My Dr. is going to examine me one last time on Wed. morning to see if natural labor is close. If my cervix hasn''t shown big changes by then, she wants to go ahead with the planned C/S on Wed. afternoon (which will be 40w6d). I''d love to just let nature take its course and not rush things, but it seems like the size issue is making that unwise.

I do feel better after talking to her that she thinks it''s the safest choice (that we''re getting to a point of diminishing returns that even if I went into labor on my own by then, the baby would be estimated to be 10lbs and the likelihood of my getting through a successful vag delivery would be small anyway). She listed all the things that can go wrong in such cases, including long term problems in the mom, so I think this is the right, medically-supported choice for me. She also said one c/s would not prevent me from trying a VBAC (with a smaller baby) next time, and that a second c/s would also not be unsafe. So, I feel like I''ve considered most of the big issues and that''s going to be our plan. Wednesday will be a big day! Either I''ll be in labor on my own or we''ll go ahead with the C/S and I should have a baby in my arms by the evening. I can''t wait to officially be a mommy!

Hope all you mommies and mommies-to-be had a great mother''s day! And I second the review of "Babies" -- a cute documentary with no narration, it just let the babies be the stars of the show.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I''ve been having random cramps lately. I''m guessing they''re BH, because my tummy balls up, but I thought BH were supposed to be painless? Would someone please tell me it''s normal?

 

[snlee]

Date: 5/10/2010 4:23:41 PM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
I''ve been having random cramps lately. I''m guessing they''re BH, because my tummy balls up, but I thought BH were supposed to be painless? Would someone please tell me it''s normal?

BH aren''t always painless. Mine feel like cramps and I can feel my uterus harden with my fingertips. How often have you been feeling it?

 

[Puppmom]

HH, totally normal. I have moments when the baby balls up all in one area and it feels like a cramp but it''s really Gary trying to occupy a space he''s way too small for.

 

[swimmer]

Lovinsparkles, how are you doing? Gah, I second the comments from strangers! But I did get a free salad from the deli guys yesterday...I think they felt sorry for me! It is so hard not to waddle, I hope you are still comfortable.
I bet your baby is smaller than 10lbs and perhaps you will go naturally before W, but whatever happens, the light is there at the end of the tunnel! Yeah lady, you are almost there!

sooooooo, I''ve been having contractions for mmm, 9 hours? sometimes as close as every 6 min, but more like 8 and getting harder and harder. At first we headed out for a walk and after a few miles came home (DH timing with some phone app he has) as they were 6 mins. The doula told us to get some sleep and DH is still out cold, but it is a bit more pain than even this champion sleeper can deal with... I''m feeling good, had some chocolate milk and am working on some last minute paperwork just to capitalize on this bit of energy. Luckily we have an OB appt at 10:30am, so gah, 6 more hours till we get more info. I just really don''t want to go to the hospital only to be told to go home (MP''s story was rough!) and all the strangers who keep telling me to go driving on a bumpy road, hello! I live in the hood, the back way to our hospital requires AWD after this winter. Owwww. ok, enough from me.
happy tuesday!

 

[Puppmom]

Date: 5/10/2010 9:31:46 PM
Author: puppmom
HH, totally normal. I have moments when the baby balls up all in one area and it feels like a cramp but it''s really Gary trying to occupy a space he''s way too small for.

Big...I mean way too big for.

Go baby Swimmer!!!!!!!!!

 

[Puppmom]

I''m barely awake today. I was up with BH contrax until 4.

They *felt* like they were coming every few minutes but, over the course of 5 or 6 hours, I probably had about 20. They stink.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

LOL pupp I (literally) feel your pain. I haven''t timed mine, I just try to be aware of them. Right now they''re just random, at their worst they''re like 20 minutes apart. But I swear when I touch the area that''s cramping I can feel a specific bump, like maybe a head or an ass? So it could definitely also be Aidan pretending to be a boulder.

Good luck Swimmer!!

 

[lovelylulu]

thinking of you and your babe swimmer!!!!

thinking of you too luvin!

snlee - yikes! hope that your little one stays put for approximately 23 more weeks!! can''t wait to hear a final answer on the gender!! perhaps I was correct after all

pupp and HH - sorry for the BH pains. So far, I haven''t had any contractions that I''ve been aware of and am curious. though I will probably regret typing that soon enough!

*************
Hope that everyone had a lovely mothers day - count me among those that convinced their significant others to take in a Babies matinee. It was pretty darn adorable, though I am *definitely* the target audience with my huge belly! On saturday had a friend shower and it was lovely. No games, just good friends, good food (CUPCAKES

) and lots of love for the babe - also my girlfriend hostess asked that everyone bring a book which turned out to be an excellent idea!!

Off to the Dr. for another (hopefully) quickie appointment

 

[blushingbride]

Swimmer - thanks for the advice on the skin care. I know I''m asking a little late in the game, but my skin is acting up. I still have the occassional breakout (which I never had before I was preggo), but yet in the afternoon, my skin is so dry. So, it''s combo of oily and dry. Just want to make sure what I''m using is safe.

Anyway, it seems like it''s any day now for you - how exciting!!!??? Sounds like you are keeping plenty busy while you wait which is good!

Snlee - what a scare that must of been for you! I''m so sorry to hear that this pregnancy has been so stressful for you! Definitely take it easy and fill us in on Wed. when you find out for sure what the sex is!

Lovely - sounds like you had a great weekend! I definitely want to check out the Babies movie - it looks adorable and fascinating! As for your shower, I like the book idea - might have to steal that for my own shower!

As for me, my mother''s day weekend was wonderful! My parents came into the city and as a gift for my mom, my sister and I got her a facial at Bliss. Meanwhile, my mom treated us to spa treatments as well. I just got a mani and pedi (to be safe), but we had a nice, relaxing afternoon and then that night we went out to dinner with the whole fam.

My DH was so cute - he got me a mom-to-be mother''s day card along with a gift certificate to Destination Maternity!

It was a perfect gift because I am definitely at the point now where I need to move into maternity clothes full-time!

Question for all of you, one of my good friends is also pregnant (she''s exactly a month behind me) and she just got her results back yesterday. She’s a little concerned because her results were 1:700 which I think are pretty normal for women who are in their 30’s. However, mine were much higher than that (1:4,000) so, I don’t know what the norm really is. She’s been asking around to find out what others had gotten. Anyway, any info you can provide on this as far as what''s "normal" that I can pass along would be great!

 

[vespergirl]

Swimmer, your day may be coming very soon! Sounds like labor to me!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

BB, I''m 30 and my doc said that the average for my age is 1:700. My results from the first tri screenings came back as 1:1100 but were then upped to 1:550 following the anatomy scan when they saw a calcification on Aidan''s heart. However, given that the odds for complications from amnio are 1:250, my doc, husband and I all felt that the odds were better to just wait and see what happens. My OB was very positive (as in outlook, not confirmation) that we''d have a very healthy baby in the end.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Good Luck, Swimmer!! Can''t wait to hear the news after your appointment, but I guess we''ll know what to assume if we don''t hear from you!! So close and so exciting!!

 

[blushingbride]

Just to clarify - this is the NT scan we''re talking about - I forgot to mention that in post.

Thanks HH - her Dr. didn''t seem concerned by the results, but my friend said that she and her DH left their appt. scratching their heads. BTW - she''s the same age as me - 32. I had been reading a bit about it online to figure out where my results fell in the range, but never really found anything on what''s normal. I just found that other women who were my age that they had lower odds than me had perfectly healthy babies.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Yea, so her odds according to my doc are slightly above average for age 30, but she's also slightly older than 30. I think you need to look at things collectively. She could have the amnio now for a firm answer, or wait to have the anatomy scan at 18-20 weeks to confirm things are ok (or not). She'd still have time for the amnio and a decision to interrupt (or not) based on the findings of the amnio and their personal choice.

ETA: meant to add, but the results from her NT scan are not really within the range that the docs would recommend an amnio or CVS for. They're good results.

 

[sbde]

hello everyone!

i figured i should just bypass the barely preggo thread and jump in and join this one now that i''m almost 12 wks preggo!

things have been going well so far - we had our NT scan yesterday and things were looking good. they didn''t venture a guess on the baby''s gender though so i suppose i''ll have to wait until the big u/s in 6 weeks. symptom-wise m/s has been pretty terrible for the past 6 wks but zofran has helped and i''m managing.

oh, for those who don''t know - this is my 2nd pregnancy. we have a 16 mth old son who is the light of my life and has no idea how much his world is going to change come november haha!!

i hope everyone is doing well!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

SBDE, Congrats and welcome!

 

[sbde]

thank you HH!

 

[blushingbride]

Date: 5/11/2010 11:40:28 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
Yea, so her odds according to my doc are slightly above average for age 30, but she''s also slightly older than 30. I think you need to look at things collectively. She could have the amnio now for a firm answer, or wait to have the anatomy scan at 18-20 weeks to confirm things are ok (or not). She''d still have time for the amnio and a decision to interrupt (or not) based on the findings of the amnio and their personal choice.

ETA: meant to add, but the results from her NT scan are not really within the range that the docs would recommend an amnio or CVS for. They''re good results.

HH - the highlighted part above is what I told her. I said that if there any red flags raised at the anatomy scan, it wouldn''t be too late for the amino. I am pretty sure she wouldn''t terminate if something was in fact wrong, but it''s more for peace of mind.

CONGRATS and WELCOME SBDE!!!!

 

[ChargerGrrl]

Hello Lovely Preggos! glad to see that everyone is plugging away.

There''s been lots of bebe activity lately (not just talking about the movement in my belly!). I had my mat shoot a couple of days ago, and it was fun! It helped that the photog was an old client/friend. I felt totally comfortable letting the belly hang out and be "captured" on film. We took some "indoor shots" meant only for DH

and then headed outdoors for some more pics. Can''t wait to see how they turn out!

Went to breastfeeding class at the hospital last night, and was again impressed by the quality of the class/instructor. The LC that ran the class also owns her own BF resource/retail center which is a stone''s throw from my home. She shared her fave BF products with us (this is just her opinion):
- Best pump- The Medela PIS ("it''s better than the Medela handsfree version")
- Nursing pillow- My Breast Friend ("but the boppy is OK")
- Bottles- Dr. Browns ("just be prepared for all the parts"), or Playtex drop-ins ("tried & true")
- Nursing pads- Lilypads ("if you can get over the fact that they look like a giant contact lens")

Had my 34-week OB appt this morning, and all looks good. Doc did a quickie ultrasound to check my fluid levels (due to GD), and they''re a bit high but nothing to worry about. Bebe is head up, which is why I''m now feeling movement down low (kick, kick, kick!). She''s delighted with my weight gain- just shy of 15 lbs, and that i''m keeping my blood sugar under control. DH went with me this time and we asked a bunch of questions. I go back in two weeks, and then it''s weekly!

I have to run to a meeting, but will be back to chime in on earlier posts.

 

[Jena17]

Hi Ladies! I really haven''t been able to keep up with everything going on here lately. Work has been busy and we have been busy at home with our bathroom remodel! So I hope everyone is doing great and I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother''s Day!

As for me, I am almost at my 20 week mark. We have our next appt this Friday! I am getting a little worried about my weight gain! I have already gained 16 pounds and I am not liking the way my arms and legs are looking at all!!!! I am a short person as it is so that is a lot of extra weight for me to get used to! I was already up 10 pounds before I got pregnant that I was wanting to lose! The first trimester was hard for me cause I was way too tired to work out and I was eating a lot of carbs and bad food cause that was all that made me feel better! I really don''t want to complain much about my weight gain cause I know having a healthly baby is all that matters! I have started doing some pregnancy DVD''s and walking these last 2 weeks. In your past experieinces do you think I can control my weight in the last 20 weeks enough to stay around the 30-35 pound weight gain?? I think I am past meeting the 25 pound mark already!

And I really want to get my arms and legs toned up as much as I can! Is that possible without losing weight?

 

[AGBF]

The computer just ate my message to you, swimmer. I was saying that although I am not telling you to head for the hospital, that I am sure that this is it! Your babetta has decided to make an appearance at long last!

Major hugs,
Deb