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Pregnancy Journal
March 21-23, 2001: Estimated conception dates. I have not had a cycle since January 31, 2001. Had blood test on March 20, 2001 and it was negative.
April 2, 2001: Started bleeding, which I thought was my cycle. Turns out to be implantation bleeding!
April 3, 2001: (Not knowing I am pregnant at this point..)Had doctors appointment with OB/GYN for annual check up and referral to fertility specialist. Doctor did exporatory on me back in June 1998 and said everything was normal as far as he can remember and said we shouldn't be having any problems. Gives me referreal to fertility specialist.
May 1, 2001: Had appointment with fertility specialist. Doctor thinks because I am Type II diabetic, I am not ovulating every month. (This much I knew because I have been using the OPK several months in a row) She gives me a prescription for Glucophage and tells me start as soon as my cyce starts for this month.
May 2, 2001: I am anxious to start on the prescription, but don't want to get it filled in cause I don't need it. I take a HPT for fun and nearly freak out when the positive line comes up faster then the control line! I go to work and don't say anything to anyone. I get home from work and take another test to make sure my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. It is positive also :) I tell Rob and he can't believe it, saying Wow, Wow, Wow. ha ha
May 8, 2001: Confirm positive test with OB/GYN, no denying it now! I am 5weeks 3(9 weeks 2 days) days along. We decide to wait to tell anyone due to risks.EDD January 15, 2001. Conceived on tax day, April 15, 2001 ha ha.
June 5, 2001:9 weeks 3 days(13 weeks 2 days). I have been feeling okay, really really tired and just a small amount of nausea during week 8. Red sauce makes me loose it, so no more Italian for awhile! Doctors appointment today, our first ultra sound. The baby is very active, but we get a wonderful picture :) Rob is with me and we both get teary. Doctor says I am measuring at 10.5 weeks and all is well.
June 18, 2001: 11 weeks 2 days(15 weeks 1 day) Doctor appointment due to way too frequent urination with small amount of pain. Doctor does urine stick, no infection but cultures just in case. Have to wait for culture to come back.I get to hear the heartbeat for the frist time :)
June 26, 2001: 12 weeks 3 days(16 weeks 2 days) Doctor calls with urine culture results. I am Group B Strep postive, and need to go on antibiotics. I semi freak out and read up on diagnosis http://epregnancy.com/info/birth/gbsinfection.htm I largely freak out after reading about this! Of course everything terrible that you can imagine goes through my mind. I decide there is nothing I can do to prevent it, and deal with it.
July 1, 2001:13 weeks(17 weeks) Rob calls his Mom and tells her the news. Naturally she is happy for us :) Rob and I fly to Toronto for vacation and to tell my Mom and Dad. It has been hard to keep this secret the last 10 weeks! Dad picks us up at the airport and I can tell he knows by the way he looks at me, but he doesn't say anything. I don't say anything because I want both Mom and Dad to hear at the same time. I nearly spill the beans many times during the hour drive. We get to the house and I pull out the ultra sound and Dad says I knew it! and all Mom can do is look at the picture, pat my tummy and cry. Ha ha, it was worth the wait :)
July 10, 2001: 14 weeks 3 days(18 weeks 2 days) Doctor says all is well, I am measuring at 15.5 weeks and I confess that I am totally freaked out about the GBS thing. He assures me not to worry and it's better that we find out early that way I can be put on AB's as soon as I go into labor and there will be no problems with the baby. I heave a huge sigh of relief. I have gained more weight then he told me I could, but I told him I wasn't eating alot and no junk food. He says I am reataining some fluids, but nothing to be worried about.
July 19, 2001: 15 weeks 5 days(19 weeks 4 days) Felt the baby kick! Feels like rolling water to me. Pashmina sits on my stomach but she can't feel the kicks, which is probably a good thing as some of them are quite powerful! Can't wait to see her face the first time she feels it, ha ha.
July 23, 2001: 16 weeks 2 days(20 weeks 1 day) Back at doctors due to very frequent urination again. I am going every 30 minutes especially during the night,(and it's not just dribbling!) and also with great pressure down below, and not getting any sleep. Urine stick comes back negative (surprise, surprise) and doctor does an exam to make sure I am not "silently dialating" (his words) Everything checks out okay, and he says as long as I have no fever, spotting or heavy cramping I'll have to deal with it. Thanks Doc! I grumble out of the office and immediately have to return to pee before getting back into my car. Sigh.
August 1, 2001: 17 weeks 4 days(21 weeks 3 days) I have an alien living inside of me. I get this really weird feeling right below my rib cage on the right side and I can't describe how it feels. Everyone tells me it's the baby's feet, but the baby is only measuring around 5.5 inches right now so I can't believe that is what it is! I know all my organs are all over the place so I don't know what is where right now. The only thing I can think of is Braxton Hicks contractions, but what is contracting?
Did a mini ultra sound at work, but couldn't see anything. Have to remember to ask the doctor on my next visit.
August 13, 2001: 19 weeks 2 days(23 weeks 1 day) Rob felt the baby kick for the first time! He thought I was playing tricks on him. I told him I don't have that kind of muscle control in my stomach anymore, ha ha.
August 14, 2001: 19 weeks 3 days (23 weeks 2 days) Had doctors appointment today. Not really much of an update to report. Everything is still progressing as normal. I am still gaining wieght despite my lack of appetite. The doctor says as long as I'm gaing weight we know the baby is getting nutrition and that is all that matters. Also had a vag culture due to what I think is excessive discharge and odor. Results are expected in 3-5 days. The "alien" I have been feeling (see August 1 entry) is my gall bladder get caught up under my ribs and the rolling feeling is it trying to get back out! If anyone has ever seen a gall bladder, it does look kind of like an alien so I wasn't far off ha ha. We have an appointment for our 20 week ultra sound on August 24 and I can't wait! I just want to know that everything is developing normal and then I can get real excited and start shopping for baby stuff :)
August 18, 2001: 19 weeks 7 days(23 weeks 6 days) Mini ultrasound done at work. Saw the heartbeat, stomach, hands, feet and face :)
August 20, 2001: 20 weeks 2 days (24 weeks 1 day) Phone call from doctor regarding vag culture results: positive for Group B Strep ... again! So I am back on a 10 day course of Clindamycin, every 6 hours. Will I ever get a full nights sleep again? ha ha Maybe this will even help with the PU ...
August 24, 2001: 20 weeks 6 days (24 weeks 5 days) We had our second ultrasound done today. Everything is developing perfectly, the baby's heartbeat was 167bpm which is normal. We saw the heartbeat, the four chambers of the heart, the kidneys, the bladder, the face, hands, feet, spine. There are no signs of spina bifida or Down's Syndrome. Of course with DS you don't really know unless you have an Amnio or wait until the baby is born, but so far nothing is abnormal. The big shocker is that the technician says I am further along then we thought I was by almost 5 weeks! This puts my new due date at December 9, 2001(Uncle Steve's birthday) if she is correct. I will be talking to the doctor next week to find out for sure. Hopefully the baby is just big, December seems alot closer then January! Yikes. We did find out the sex, I'm not going to broadcast it here, but somewhere on the website is the answer :)
August 30, 2001:25(25 weeks 4 days) No idea how many weeks at this point! I am starting to feel tired again, but it has been raining almost constantly for the past 4 days so that might have something to do with it. My stomach doesn't seem to be getting bigger when I look at it, but everyone is commenting on how big I am getting so it must be growing. The baby doesn't seem to be very active, but I've read that when the mother is active, the baby is usually lulled by the motion and sleeps a lot. I've been doing a lot of running (not literally) around at work the past week, and being busy I just might not be noticing movement as much. I do seem to get more movement at night when I am trying to sleep (getting me prepared for the future) I listen to the heartbeat almost everyday on the monitor and it's getting louder on a daily basis. Heartburn has started also, this is some terrible stuff! I am very thankful for fruit flavored Tums :) I also found out that my best friend is also expecting her first and I am so happy and excited for her!
September 5, 2001: (26 weeks 3 days) Still no idea how many weeks! 6 days from my doctors appointment so I will know for sure then. My stomach doesn't seem to be getting any bigger, as a matter of fact, it seems like it's getting smaller to me! I'm kind of worried about this, but the baby's heartbeat is strong and the kicks are frequent and even stronger so I'm sure that is a good sign. It seems that my stomach is shifting in shape meaning it's getting bigger up top. I know everyone's pregnancy is different, but when I see someone who is close to me in date, I want to be able to compare size so that I know all is well! Still having heartburn, but not all the time, what an uncomfortable feeling! Yuck :P
September 7, 2001: 26 weeks 5 days. I think this is how far along I am. Still confused about dates! Called my doctor today due to concerns from September 5, 2001. Talked to the nurse and explain I am feeling fine, gaining weight, baby is active and heartbeat is strong, no discharge or bleeding but that my stomach seems to be shrinking. She says it may be the position the baby is in, sitting further towards my back instead of my belly. I hang up somewhat releaved. Nurse calls me back and says she spoke to the doctor and he wants me to go to the hospital and have a level II ultrasound to make sure everything is okay. Baby is still measuring normal, heartbeat is normal, amniotic fluid is normal and confirmed the sex as being same as before :) Ultrasound technician can't give me diagnosis, but she did bring the report to the ultrasound doctor ?? and says that everything looks fine to her and my doctor will call. Doctor is closed by this time, but I feel much better after seeing the baby again. While we were trying to get pictures, the baby did a summersault and disappeared! LOL, it was so funny and I could feel the turning around. Face forward again, but hiding behind hands. Finally got two good pictures (see photo page)I have my doctors appointment on September 11, 2001 so I'll be able to discuss more with the doctor. I figure if it was serious he would have called me right away. I've decided not to correct the dates in the beginning of this journal so I can look back and laugh at how off we were. I put the real dates in brackets instead. I did change the dates on the ultrasound pictures to reflect the proper time frame.
September 13, 2001: 27 weeks 4 days. Had my doctors appointment on September 11, 2001. Everything is progressing as normal, confirmed due date is December 9, 2001 so we will have an early Christmas present :) I have to have the glucose tolerance test done tomorrow, and I am not looking forward to that! That orange drink is so awful :P I thought I had been doing real well with my numbers, but it turns out that my glucose shouldn't be above 120 and I've been measuring 140-185 so I really need to crack down on my choice of foods. Otherwise I am doing fine, getting a little tired somedays and my back is starting to ache a little, but only on my left side (??) and only after I have been sitting for a fair amount of time. We bought a few things for the baby and I also registered at Target.
http://www.target.com/target_group/gift_registry/gift_registry.jhtml in case you want to see what I've registered for. Change to Lullaby Club and enter my name. Any input on things I missed would be greatly appreciated!
September 17, 2001: 28 weeks 1 day Called the doctor regarding my GTT: 120, so I passed! I was afraid I'd failed it cause my glucometer said 147 and 140 is the maximum level. My numbers have been higher then the doctor would like, but now I know that my glucometer is not accurate. What can you expect for 8.00? ha ha. So now I have to buy a new more accurate/expensive one to keep track. I also have to watch much more closely what I eat, especially sugars and carbohydrates, which is super hard since I have such a sweet tooth. Oh well, it's all worth it :)
September 20, 2001: 28 weeks 4 days Having a hard time controlling my sugar levels :( I guess I am going to have to see a nutritionist after all. I know what I am suppose to eat and not eat, but I think I am having trouble in the how much department. I'm not really that hungry, but I know I have to increase my calories for the baby. On a lighter note, I registered at Babies R Us yesterday. That was a lot of fun! Store was huge and so much to choose from. My regestry ended up being 10 page, ha ha. Of course some stuff you register for you know you aren't going to get, just gives people that much more of a choice. Too see what I register for http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/registry/babyreg/ref=ba_hp_rs_1_1/104-4745641-2009551 Enter my name on the left hand side and it should take you to my list. Let me know if it doesn't work!
October 9, 2001: 31 weeks 2 days Doctors appointment today. All is well in baby land! Doctor says I am doing great during this pregnancy and was amazed I don't have any stretch marks so far :) The HR was 168bpm and the baby is weighing approximately 4lbs and measuring around 11" long. We are still on target for December 9, but I have another ultrasound for November 3, I guess to make sure the baby is facing down and still growing at a good rate. I'm just excited I get to take another peek! We also discussed C-Section for various reasons, but no definated decision as of yet. I am really starting to pop out now, the baby is moving higher up and I have a hard time breathing. How do you stop this terrible itching? I am using lots of lotion, but I just want to scratch like crazy! I dread it when I have to sneeze, it feels like my back is going to blow out! I am also experiencing heartburn and acid reflux. The makers of Tums are doing good business with me! I am also into the every 2 week appointments now, so the updates should be closer together. I am off to Canada on October 17, so I will update when I get back.
October 14, 2001: 32 Weeks Had a baby shower today for Dr. Cate and I hosted by Heidi and the staff from AHJR. Got lots of great stuff and played silly games and ate wonderful food (thanks Kathy!) I really need to get the baby's room done so I can put all the stuff in the appropriate place ...
October 24, 2001: 33 Weeks 3 Days Had a wonderful time in Canada! Of course it was a bit chilly, but at least there wasn't 10 feet of snow. It was great seeing my family, and we even had a small family reunion with my dad's 2 brothers and some of their kids coming up for the weekend. It was kind of strange flying, there seemed to be more noise in the terminal and on the airplane then usual. I'm not sure if it was nervous energy in light of recent events or if I just never noticed it before. Even on the plane there is that time frame when the plane is almost silent and everyone is reading or sleeping, but on this flight it seemed like there was constant chatter. The plane was full on the flight to Canada, but only half full on the return flight. I didn't have any trouble with security, although they thought my electric toothbrush could be a weapon and had to search my carry on bag, ha ha. There was more security, including guys in army fatigues with big rifles getting into the Houston airport, then there was when I went through customs and immigration in Canada. I Canada I just showed them my passport and on I went. I guess I didn't look like terriorist material :)
Had my doctors appointment today also ... Nothing too exciting to report. The heartbeat was 153bpm and everything seems to be progressing right on schedule. The baby is head down and the doctor says he doesn't think that will change but you never know! I have gained a total of 26lbs and the doctor says it is all baby, although I have had to up my ring size from a 4.5 to a 7.5! I have fat sausage fingers, ha ha. Rob says from the back I don't even look pregnant, but Mom says she was the same way with me. Hopefully that means the baby won't be very big and I will have an easy birth (a girl can hope can't she?!) Next appointment is an ultrasound on November 2 and then doctors appointment on November 7.
November 5, 2001: 35 weeks 1 day Had our ultrasound on November 2. Everything looks great! The baby is weighing approximately 5.5lbs, the heartbeat was at 133bpm (sleeping) and the head was measuring almost 9cm. We couldn't get an overall length becuase of position. And the sex was confirmed AGAIN as being same as before. The ultrasound technician didn't even hesitate when she got to the genital area so after 4 different ultrasounds by 3 different people, I think the chances are pretty good :) I am feeling good, starting to swell up in the hands, feet and face area quite a bit. My blood pressure has been fine for the whole pregnancy so I don't really think it's a problem. I have a doctors appointment on November 7 so we will see what the doctor says then.
November 7, 2001: 35 weeks 3 days Today's appointment was very exciting! I am 1cm dilated and 20% effaced. The baby's head is down very low. I know it's not much but it's definately a start :) The doctor says that should I go into labor, he won't stop it as the baby is healthy and sound enough to do okay. I have been feeling tremendous pressure "down there" when I walk and sit down and know I know why. I gained another 3.5lbs, but I'm blaming that on Halloween and also our anniversary since I pigged out on both days! Also had another culture done due to itching etc. I'm sure it will come back GBS positive again ...
November 12, 2001: 36 weeks 1 days Phone call from doctor ... culture positive for GBS again. Sigh, another round of Clindamycin for 10 days. The baby has started to drop dramatically, I can actually breath again! It's also nice not to be able to taste my food the second time around, yuck :P
November 14, 2001: 36 weeks 3 days Internal exam reveals that I am just a little bit over 1cm dilated and about 60% effaced. So not much change from last appointment. Small amount of bleeding from exam, but the doctor said that was to be expected since everything is so "ripe" down there, ha ha. The doctor says the baby's head is right there. We have decided to induce on November 28, 2001n due to my group b strep positive status. The doctor thinks that once labour starts, it will go so fast and he is worried that I won't get the required antibiotics. That's okay with me, I am ready to get this baby out!
November 21, 2001: 37 weeks 3 days Only one more week left to go! Doctors appointment revealed today that the baby has dropped more and I am now about 1.5cm dilated and still around 60% effaced. Seem to have bled a lot more this time, so I called the doctor. The nurse told me that it was normal, that it would take some pretty heavy duty contractions to put me into labour. As long as it's normal, I'm okay with it.
Camryn's Birth Story
November 21, 2001: I worked late, got home around 7:00pm and had frosted mini wheats for dinner :) I was feeling fine, still bleeding a little from my doctors appointment, but not feeling any pain. I puttered around the house a little bit and had a shower. Crawled into bed around 9:00pm and watched the Spurs game for awhile. At 9:20pm I was lying in bed and I felt a little "pop". Got up to go to the bathroom and felt a small trickle like I had peed myself ! I didn't think much of it as I had been suffer from incontinence for the past4-6 weeks. On the way to the bathroom I trickled a little more. They say if you are leaking amniotic fluid, you shouldn't be able to stop the flow when you do Kegels, so I tried this as I peed (sorry to be graphic!) but the flow stopped. As I was walking back to the bedroom, I felt a gush, and knew that it wasn't pee this time! I said to Rob, "I don't want to alarm you, but I think my water just broke". He didn't seem too concerned, as I wasn't 100% sure at this point. As I was walking to my side of the bed, I felt a much bigger gush and said to Rob, "Yep, my water broke!" and then he hopped out of bed. I called the doctor on call, not my regular ob/gyn, and he told me to go to the hospital right away, not to wait for contractions, due to my group b strep positive status. I had my suitcase packed from a couple of weeks ago, so all I did was throw a couple of things in there. The cats were wondering what the heck was going on as we were rushing around like the three stooges, minus one! We finally got everything together, fed the cats and went to the hospital. Rob still wasn't convinced as I wasn't in pain, having any contractions or carrying on like they do in the movies. When we got to the hospital, we went up to the second floor and signed in. They took me to a room and had me change into a hospital gown, hooked me up to 2 monitors and tested the fluid to see if it was amniotic. It was, and I was admitted. It was around 10:30pm at this time.
We got into a room and they hooked me up to the monitor to register my contractions and also the monitor to watch the baby's heartbeat. Since I wasn't having any contractions, they started me on Pitocin to get things moving along. They also started me on my first round of antibiotics, Clindamycin for the groub b strep. Seemed like every 10 minutes the nurses were in checking on me, telling me to get some sleep. I thought how am I suppose to do that when you keep waking me up?? Rob was crashed out on the sofa they have in the birthing room. The doctor came in around midnight and did an exam. I was still only around 1.5cm dilated and around 80% effaced. He told me to let him know when I wanted an epidural, and I told him don't worry, you'll hear me screaming for you! haha. Around 2:00am, the doctor came in for another exam, I was around 3cm dilated and still at 80% effaced. I was feeling pretty good contractions at this point, but nothing I couldn't handle. The doctor asked if I wanted the epidural, he okays them at 3cm if needed, and I figured might as well in case the anesthesialogist is busy at the time it really starts to hurt. So at 2:30am the anesthesialogist came in and gave me the epidural. Now, I had been watching A Baby Story and Maternity Ward and was expecting some serious pain! The worst thing was the local they put in first, that burns! I joked with the doctor that if they mix it with sodium bicarbonate it wouldn't burn (doctor didn't think it was funny, sigh) It took about 10-15 minutes and when I laid back down on the bed, it was almost instant numbness. But poor Rob...he can't stand needles at the best of time and here was his wife getting a huge one in her back! He wasn't even looking, but after it was done and I let go of his hand and looked up at him, I thought I was looking at a ghost. He was white as a sheet and sweating, I thought he was going to faint! He had to lie down for awhile, cause he did feel faint. I'm sure it was the excitement of everything happening. Not much happened for a long time, they kept upping my Pitocin drip, I watched the monitor for contractions since I couldn't feel anything, and I slept in between the nurse and doctors checking on me. I received another dose of Clindamycin around 6:00am. Around 8:00am, the doctor did another exam and I was fully dilated and fully effaced and he could touch the baby's head :) I had requested not to push until I felt the need, and I was still numb from the epidural so they turned it off. At 9:00am, the doctor came back and asked me if I was ready and I told him I still couldn't feel anything. He said we had to push anyway, the baby can't sit in the birth canal any longer. They set up the mirror so I could watch and everyone got everything into position. We all watched the monitor, and when a contraction started, I pushed and pushed and pushed. We did this 4 times, a total of 26 minutes which seems like 26 seconds to me, and out came my beautiful baby girl. Rob cut the umbilical cord, and they put her in the warming unit to clean her up (I had requested she be cleaned and examined before I held her) While the doctor sutured me up from my episiotomy, I watched and listened to the miracle I had carried for 9 months. Once she was cleaned and checked, they put her in my arms and I cried and cried. She was so beautiful, not your usual old man looking baby. She had to go back into the warming unit until her temperature was up to where they wanted it and I was starting to feel really nauseated. They gave me something IV and it knocked me right out. I could hear Camryn crying, but I couldn't move to do anything. It was the most horrible feeling and I wish I had of just thrown up instead of receiving the drug. We missed special bonding time for the first 4-6 hours because I was so dopey. Breastfeeding got off to a bad start because I was so tired from the drugs. Eventually it wore off and went spent some time together. She was so sleepy that she would latch on, and such maybe 2-3 times and nod off again. The one nurse told me she absolutely had to nurse for at least 5 minutes on each side and I started to panic thinking she was starving etc. Finally in frustration, around 4:00am I asked the nurse to take her and give her some formula. I wish I had of remembered all the stuff I read and realized that babies don't even know they are hungry for the first 48 hours! Anyway, we had some good nursing times and some bad nursing times, it's not a skill that is built in, it's a learned skill that takes a lot of patience and practice for both baby and mother. We lef the hospital on the Friday, the doctor said he usually likes to keep the mother/child for 3 days, but I just wanted to be home in my own bed etc.
I learned a lot of things during my first pregnancy and delivery. It was the most amazing experiences in my life. Camryn will definitely have a little sister or brother sometime in the future :)
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Second ultrasound at 24 weeks 5 days-August 24, 2001
In this picture you can see a hand, a foot and the face. More pictures (including the sex of the baby picture) on our photos page. |
