Count(ing)down...

Picture courtesy:dctvdallas

Week 38 Pic!

Check out the ready-to-go hospital bags in the background!! The smaller one belongs to Tweety darling!

Out Goes My Birth-Plan!

I had spent so much time, energy in creating my 3-paged awesome birth plan.
The idea behind creating such a birth-plan was to 'reduce the risks' that me & my baby might face considering some routine practises-procedures & otherwise which are typically observed during L&D and postpartum.
I had researched the internet, gone through published papers & various links; watched birth vdos & read books/articles to compose my plan. I had taken suggestions from a coupla friends.
I felt a sense of control after I read the final copy of the plan which was acheived after numerous edits.
I took it to Clinic for the OB to preview it, as I had some questions regarding procedures Heparin/IV lock, Vitamin K injection, Heel stick, eye ointment etc.
As I discussed the plan with the OB, it incurred to me that I actually have almost no say in the L&D/postpartum decisions! Everything that was on my 'dont want' list, was categorised under 'emergency procedure' that would be taken care off well in advance, just to avoid any last minute delays for the 'benefit of me & my baby'. For some Postpartum procedures, I need to talk to the Pediatrician. The only thing that I can waive is the eye-ointment!

I dont understand, why there is an insistance of creating a 'birth-plan' when it is the OB who is under control.
Under the pretext of us parents 'not being trained enough' or who do not belong to the medical profession aka layman; depending on the mood of the OB; every question we have is sometimes explained with well 'moulded' answers or is thrown out of the window. If I would have know this, I wouldnt have investigated so much or made a birth-plan!

Week 37 Pic :))

!Merry Christmas!

Yay! I am almost there...will be in single digits from tomorrow! 10 of my pregnancy board members have already delivered! Am only 1 NST appnts away from the last one this year!
Its been a great ride so far...now thoughts of the D day have started making me a lil anxious esp the L&D part...have my fingers xed!

That also means Tweetu darling hasnt made her grand entry! Although I am eagar to meet her, I am OK if she wants to take her 'own sweet time'; least, I will get the satisfaction of perfectly 'baking' the 'best cookie of the world'!

Gosh! Feels like I havent blogged in ages...! Since my Mom's arrival, things have been different for all of us. She has successfully pushed me & TD, out of my accident inertia.

Tweetu's lovely nursery 'corner' is ready with the crib bedding, wall paper, mobile n all. The car seat is where it needs to be. Tweetu's bag is ready & so is mine. & yes, Tweetu's stroller; of TD's & my Mom's choice, is home(after a lot of grey-cells expenditure; never imagined this would be such a hard decision to make).

Lately, I have been having a lot of ankle swelling & joint pain in my fingers. I can stand for 10 mins tops & then my legs start hurting. I am close to 80kgs - dont wanna add any more but I am sooooooo damn hungry all the time! I am eating aft every 2- 3hrs...& I am happily giving in, hoping its Tweetu who's making me this hungry! My cervix is tightly closed(once a week physical checkups have started since week 37), no bloody-show or H2o breaking yet...thankfully, the Docs havent yet said anything regarding inducing my pregnancy. So looks like, my Tweetu darling will be with us around the EDD! What a grand way to usher in the new-year!

:))

"Hee hee...this just recently appeared on my pregnancy board...
!Only 17 days!

Week 36th Photo

"Wednesday The 13th??!!"

I have never missed a single appointment in these 37 weeks of pregnancy...I was late for a couple but had informed the clinic, well in advance.
& yesterday, I missed the u/s appointment!
I got up @9am, realizing I needed to check what day appnt was on(wednesday or thursday)..
9:10am, it had completely slipped my mind!
@10:58 am, I realized I had not checked for my appnt only to realize that I had missed it. The appnt was @10am!
I am feeling so miserable...how did I forget such an important u/s appointment? What was I thinking or not thinking. This is the most important u/s(@week 36) that I need to take...
I called up to reshedule - the next available u/s appnt is only on the 26th(ie around week 39)!
Called up the Doc & she was not happy to hear I missed the u/s; she is going to try to get me in - if she can..:(
Hope, I get to see how Tweetu is doing, in the next coupla days...
UPDATE: The doc managed to get me a stat(emergency) u/s appnt. on the 14th. The 45 min u/s went extremely well. The Radiologist could not locate my Cervix. Hence we went ahead with 'internal' u/s which was thankfully better than what I had expected! The amniotic fluid volume is within the range of normal with an AFI of 11.7 cm. Normal cervical length & a posterior placenta with no evidence for previa were observed. Tweetu's estimated weight in grams was 2495. Although the
composite estimate of her gestational age was noted at 34 weeks 5 days, the OB mentioned that there is a standard deviation of 17 days which puts her back to the 36th week with no change in the EDD.

Lots of BH...

contractions...
Since a coupla days, I have started getting these regularly. Earlier, they arrived only by the evening & @night. But today, I have feeling them throughout the day. So much so that I cant walk! All of a sudden, my tummy tightens & pressure builts up. It subsides in a coupla minutes. It makes me uncomfortable but luckily they are not painful...I wonder if BHs' are painful...
The other day@ the clinic, the OB checked me for dialation as I had quite a few contractions(spaced 5 mins apart) during NST. I never felt them though.
GBS test negetive! Zero dialation! OB said, I might deliver, naturally, around 39th week. She suggested if I dont, inducing is the way to go considering the placental abruption history. I say, lets wait & watch!

36th week...here I come!

Its 5 am &...I am wide awake, & so it Tweetu :) And know what? We are having fun, playing with each other! Everytime I roll my hand on my tummy & keep it still, Tweetu either crawls under it or just kicks! I am so loving it...this probably indicates how good a time we are gonna have, playing with each other...my baby is soooo reactive to my touch - even in utero!

Yesterday, I had a tiny fall...not actually a 'fall' fall but I was squatting down trying to get the darn sponge from under the kitchen sink, when I lost my balance & landed on my left 'cheek'(u know what I mean!)...it happened so quickly, I had nothing to hold on to or grab...
Neways, Tweetu was active as usual untill lunch time & then she slowed down...by evening I was sure that we were going to make a trip to the ER. When TD got home, we thought we would observe her after-meal-kicks & then plan our next steps. My baby kicked 10 times in 40 mins soon after dinner! Phew...!

It is slowly getting uneasy, switching positions in the bed. There is a constant pulling/stretching belly pain...Its a good sign-Tweetu is growing! My best sleeping position, still, is laying on my back & I do sometimes accidently get into it... While going to bed, I constantly remind myself to sleep on my left. Snoogle does come handy most of the times. I am so blessed I found the perfect pillow when I needed it the most!

Now I am eagarly looking forward to spending some quality time with my Mom! She will be with us from the 12th! Currently, she is soooo deep into her office work... handing over stuff... plus she now has the additional burden of shopping for her trip & all that jazz...I would love if she manages to get some time to rest before Tweetu darling makes her grand entry!

BTW, last night, TD & I realized, how less a time we have on hand to enjoy each others company - as a couple! After being together for almost 6 years... we will have company@home from the 12th - my Mom, & after Tweetus birth, she will be the biggest part of our lives...! Only after 16-18 years, when Tweetu leaves home for college, we will be back to being a couple...!
I am sure, TD will miss just being together... as much as I would... but the joy & happiness of having our darling Tweetu in our lives, cannot be described in words...! 3 cheers for the 3 of us!

Week 35 Pic...

Look@ these cuties...

The National Geographic Channel is premiering a new documentary that takes viewers inside the wombs of elephants, dolphins and dogs to trace their different paths from conception to birth. Watch it on December 10 @ 8pm.

At 12 months, an elephant foetus is on average 18 inches long and weighs approximately 26 pounds. It can use its trunk, curling it right up into its mouth and over its head. Click here to check out more pictures of animals in the womb. They are pretty amazing!

So last night, we shopped @Target until 10:30pm. I am glad to say, we are all set(xcept the travel system) & done with the 'basics'! I have everything I need for the first few days. We will buy stuff as we go on. It's anyway very hard to say what & how much will be needed. TD is prepared to make ample of trips to the store!
NST#5 was awesome - we were out in 30! Baby Tweety was actively kicking. The CNM took a swab for the GBS test. I am 171 lbs now...I am gaining weight every visit - not every week...I am sure its my weight coz I dont see Tweety putting on weight that rapidly :)

Me & My Lil Bro...

Here are some of my lil bro's photos...he was the cutest & the most perfect baby I have ever known...wish, I had known then:)
Funny, he looks almost the same, even after 24 years!

Babyshower #4!

Yipee! Last night we were at my 4th babyshower...! Had so much fun! Card,cake - the whole enchilada.
This time, blindfolded, I picked the sugar-cane stick meaning 'boy' & not the Strawberries! So the final score of the babyshower gender guessing game is 2:1!

I was looking forward to this shower in particular as it was to be thrown by people we consider our good friends. Our 6 couple group, all in the different stages of life(TD & I are 2nd youngest; the eldest couple has been married for over 38 some years - & we consider them our guardians...) came together & have been friends for the past 2.5yrs. We are always looking forward to such reunions & everyone makes it a point to attend it. TD & I find this group very comforting & supportive & we are most comfortable in our friends company.
But life, the teacher, wanted to teach us something we otherwise wouldnt have realized. & must I say, it shocked us...

contd....

Another Long Boring Day @The...

...hospital...

I was at the clinic yesterday for the now routine NST#4...had a heavy breakfast coz past experiences have taught me that Tweetu needs to be active & fully awake while I take the NST. Food & her favourite OJ keeps her moving all the time!

The CNM saw a couple of 'variables'(read Decelerations) after nearly 30-35 minutes of monitoring & asked me to go to the hospital ASAP for another NST. The thing is, clinics are not equipped to run the test for more than an hour; prolonged monitoring is only possible@ the hospital. CNM also scared me with her '3 strikes & a Cesarian' concept!

So there I was. It took nearly 45 minutes to get a free room. I had lunch in the mean time. I was hooked up to the monitors@ 1:30pm.

Tweetu was running a little low on her heart-rate, between 126-138, than otherwise 148-155. That was a concern for me. Her heart rate was similar@ the clinic in the morning, add decelerations to that.

20 minutes later, Tweetu decided to go sleep & so the heart rate stayed steady for a while. The nurse came in & made me change my position to wake up the baby. Another 15 minutes, Tweetu was still asleep.

When the Nurse came in the next time, I told her to get me some OJ. 8 ounces later, Tweetu woke up & started activly kicking! Phew! The trick worked! The nurse was impressed...!

1.5 hrs later, the OB came in. We went over the same set of details. This is the 3rd time I narrated November 15th events, to an entirely new Doctor. It amazes & annoys me, how there is NO exchange of patient information between Doctors belonging to the same group! Let alone info exchanges between the hospital & the clinic.

The OB was satisfied with the NST results but wanted to take a look @the volume of the Amniotic fluid. So a Biophysical u/s was performed.
3 quadrants later, the OB gave me 11 points for the amount of fluid(5 is conisdered normal)! In those 5 minutes, Tweetu moved atleast 3 times. The OB checked her breathing too & gave me & Tweetu an 8 on 8 for the entire u/s! It was time to go home!

I hate to be classified under 'high risk' pregnancy. But...

Life has become a little different after the accident...
I am now in the 35th week...the thoughts of pre-term labor do bother me sometimes. Cross week 36th , & I will be relieved! Then Tweetu can pop whenever she wants.
I dont know how my labor is going to be but I am +ve and I am not seriously thinking about it @all...hakuna matata!

For me, everything has slowed down! I cant move like I normally used to...
I have prenatal/NSTs lined up...If tweetu is awake & 'cooperates', I am done within 30 mins else i have to make trips to the booooooooring hospital.

I am not cooking anymore & that is a relief. Aft the accident, we were going out for food all the time & we started hating it. It took us a while to get a cook and make arrangements for home-cooked food. Lucky me, I met a lady who now comes home & cooks food enough for 4 days...& thats a blessing!
My Mom got her visitiors visa...she will be with us from December 12th...& thats another blessing!

My house is a mess right now! Poor TD is doing all the running around. We dont have our SUV yet and wont be getting it from the bodyshoppers for @least 15 more days. We will have to borrow/rent a bigger SUV/car from friends as getting Mom from the airport with bags & all, is just impossible in TDs 2 door coup.

Baby's stuff is part done - I mean shopping.
Last weekend, we got the crib matteress & I have ordered the crib bedding(estimated arrival date:11th December!)
We are no longer buying the travel-system. As I am petite, weight of these systems was an issue. We have finally decided on getting an infant car seat & a convinience stroller.
We still have a lot of 'must haves' on the shopping list like Tweetu's mittens, caps, booties, diapers! Wash all her clothes will be the next task...the list is unending!

I can hardly walk :)) 15 mins & I am done...have a lot of pelvic pressure, have been breathing heavily, trips to the loo for 1 or 2(wow, that rhymes perfect!)...so visits to malls are rare! Even if we had our SUV, I doubt I would have gone out on my own...I am a lil scared of driving now...