Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Our Little Butternut Squash
Today marks week 29, and BabyCenter claims that our little one now weighs about 2.5 pounds (think of your average butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. Her muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and her head is growing bigger to make room for her developing brain. To meet her increasing nutritional demands, I am to consume plenty of protein, vitamin C, folic acid, and iron. And because her bones are soaking up lots of calcium, it is also quite important to make sure my calcium intake is up. This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited into the baby's hardening skeleton each day.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
North Carolina Baby Shower
Jarrett and I went to North Carolina over the weekend for a baby shower at his mom's house in the High Point/Greensboro area. We started out the trip late Thursday afternoon, and made a pitstop at my parents house in Charlotte on Thursday night. We had a good time visiting and going through boxes of old stuffed animals and baby clothes to see what might be worthy of passing down to Baby Helms.
After a nice breakfast with my parents late Friday morning, we headed further north to meet up with Jarrett's mom and sister, who were out shopping for decorations for the shower. When we arrived at the store, Jarrett started feeling a bit under the weather, and I felt quite tired myself, but thought it was just because of the hugeness of the store, which can often tire me out quite quickly. By the time we were ready to leave, Jarrett really felt the need to just go to his mom's house so he could rest for awhile. Within 20 minutes of being there, Jarrett was sick -- and it was the kind of sick that was coming out both ends, if you catch my drift. The poor thing was running to the bathroom every fifteen minutes, and it lasted (tapering off some) until around midnight when we were finally able to at least try to relax and get some sleep. I was able to sleep okay, but I don't think Jarrett slept much at all. I woke up around 5:30 Saturday morning and asked Jarrett if I could get him anything, and after a run to the kitchen to get him something to drink, I realized it was then my turn to get sick. And so it started in for me.
With the shower starting in a matter of hours, it was a bit of a worry whether to go on as planned or attempt to call it off. I was determined to let things roll (and figured it would be very difficult to try to get in touch with everyone at that point -- not to mention all the work that had already gone into it!), so we did. I got sick for the last time right after my mom and a couple of her friends arrived, but then somehow Jarrett and I made it through a four-hour event. The shower really was lovely -- we had a really nice time and received many wonderful gifts. Our friends, Erin and Jason, were able to make it down from Raleigh, and it was nice spending some time chatting with them after most of the other guests had left.
After Erin and Jason headed home, though, we completely crashed. We intended on taking about an hour nap and then getting up to eat something, but that turned into about three hours of sleep. We did eat a little and then laid back down, but Stephen noticed when he came in the room to chat with us that I was burning up. So we took my temperature and, sure enough, I had a fever... of 101.3°F. Jarrett called the OB/GYN office for the second time that day (he called earlier in the morning to see how concerned we should be about the loss of fluid and whether -- if this was caused by bacteria -- we should be concerned about the baby, but the doctor on call said things should be okay unless it lasted over 24 hours), and then talked to the same doctor, who was somewhat concerned about the fever and said that if it reached 102°F, we should be at the hospital. Jarrett's sister was kind enough to run out for us (again) and pick up some Extra Strength Tylenol (which is the only thing I can really take to bring down a fever), and within a couple hours after taking it, my temperature came down -- thank God. I did NOT want to end up at the hospital, for sure.
We were fairly worn out for the drive home on Sunday, but faired okay and are both back at about 100% now. Despite the ugly illness, the trip was so worth it for the shower, and I thank Jarrett's mom especially, as well as Bethany and my mom, who helped out with the food and decorations!
Here are some (okay, many... sorry) photos from the event. Enjoy.
After a nice breakfast with my parents late Friday morning, we headed further north to meet up with Jarrett's mom and sister, who were out shopping for decorations for the shower. When we arrived at the store, Jarrett started feeling a bit under the weather, and I felt quite tired myself, but thought it was just because of the hugeness of the store, which can often tire me out quite quickly. By the time we were ready to leave, Jarrett really felt the need to just go to his mom's house so he could rest for awhile. Within 20 minutes of being there, Jarrett was sick -- and it was the kind of sick that was coming out both ends, if you catch my drift. The poor thing was running to the bathroom every fifteen minutes, and it lasted (tapering off some) until around midnight when we were finally able to at least try to relax and get some sleep. I was able to sleep okay, but I don't think Jarrett slept much at all. I woke up around 5:30 Saturday morning and asked Jarrett if I could get him anything, and after a run to the kitchen to get him something to drink, I realized it was then my turn to get sick. And so it started in for me.
With the shower starting in a matter of hours, it was a bit of a worry whether to go on as planned or attempt to call it off. I was determined to let things roll (and figured it would be very difficult to try to get in touch with everyone at that point -- not to mention all the work that had already gone into it!), so we did. I got sick for the last time right after my mom and a couple of her friends arrived, but then somehow Jarrett and I made it through a four-hour event. The shower really was lovely -- we had a really nice time and received many wonderful gifts. Our friends, Erin and Jason, were able to make it down from Raleigh, and it was nice spending some time chatting with them after most of the other guests had left.
After Erin and Jason headed home, though, we completely crashed. We intended on taking about an hour nap and then getting up to eat something, but that turned into about three hours of sleep. We did eat a little and then laid back down, but Stephen noticed when he came in the room to chat with us that I was burning up. So we took my temperature and, sure enough, I had a fever... of 101.3°F. Jarrett called the OB/GYN office for the second time that day (he called earlier in the morning to see how concerned we should be about the loss of fluid and whether -- if this was caused by bacteria -- we should be concerned about the baby, but the doctor on call said things should be okay unless it lasted over 24 hours), and then talked to the same doctor, who was somewhat concerned about the fever and said that if it reached 102°F, we should be at the hospital. Jarrett's sister was kind enough to run out for us (again) and pick up some Extra Strength Tylenol (which is the only thing I can really take to bring down a fever), and within a couple hours after taking it, my temperature came down -- thank God. I did NOT want to end up at the hospital, for sure.
We were fairly worn out for the drive home on Sunday, but faired okay and are both back at about 100% now. Despite the ugly illness, the trip was so worth it for the shower, and I thank Jarrett's mom especially, as well as Bethany and my mom, who helped out with the food and decorations!
Here are some (okay, many... sorry) photos from the event. Enjoy.
28-Week Belly Shot
Drum roll please...
The skin is an amazing organ, is it not?
And you see that belly button transforming into an outie? Yeah, well, I am a little disturbed by that. People laugh at me, but I was actually quite happy with my belly button prior to this whole pregnancy thing. I'll get over it, though. Baby Helms will certainly be worth the deformation (and hopefully it will just snap back into place, right?).
The skin is an amazing organ, is it not?
And you see that belly button transforming into an outie? Yeah, well, I am a little disturbed by that. People laugh at me, but I was actually quite happy with my belly button prior to this whole pregnancy thing. I'll get over it, though. Baby Helms will certainly be worth the deformation (and hopefully it will just snap back into place, right?).
28 Weeks
We've hit the 28-week mark -- only 12 weeks to go (maybe). At this point, Baby Helms weighs approximately two and a quarter pounds (babycenter compares the size to a Chinese cabbage; Parents.com makes a comparison to a pair of sneakers -- but what size?) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes, and with her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through the womb. She is also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.
I had my last visit at North Pointe OB/GYN yesterday, which was a bit of a fiasco. When I signed in, I realized that no one else on the list had written a midwife's name under "doctor" on the sheet, so I already anticipated a problem. Then there was some mumbling among receptionists behind the glass... and then inevitable call of my name. I was told that Robin, the midwife I was scheduled to see, was at the Cumming office that morning -- not the Roswell office. Lovely. I had called to reschedule my appointment over the phone and, when I did, the woman I talked to failed to tell me that she had rescheduled me at a different office -- an office I have never visited. Thankfully one of the other midwives was working, so they were able to get me in anyway, despite the fact that my chart was in Cumming. That made things interesting, as they were just writing down my blood pressure, urine analysis results, weight, etc. (which all looked good, by the way... and I'd only gained one pound from the last visit), on a little slip of paper, and had to ask me such things as my due date, whether I'd yet had the glucose test, etc. It was me that had to tell them that I was due for my rhoGAM injection since my blood type is O negative. After the usual routine with the nurse, I met with the midwife and we heard the baby's heartbeat again (still sounds perfect), and she made sure I was feeling okay and that everything was progressing as normal. I told her I'd been pretty sick over the weekend (which you'll have the grand opportunity to read about in the post about our first baby shower), but she said I wasn't showing any signs of dehydration or anything, so I seemed to be doing quite well. After our conversation, the nurse came back in to administer the injection in my hip, and it was surprisingly painless. We still don't know for sure if Jarrett is RH positive or negative, but we did talk to his mom over the weekend and she is A positive and remembers that she never had to be concerned during any of her four pregnancies, which likely means that his dad is positive as well, though we forgot to ask him when we saw him on Sunday. So, anyway, we're assuming Jarrett is positive at this point, which means I would have needed to get the injection anyway.
Because they didn't have my chart, it made it a bit difficult to request my records so that I can take them to the new office I'm going to on July 1 when I meet with Margaret. After all the chaos, I just went ahead and made my next appointment as if I am coming back and figure I will just call in today to cancel and give them the fax number to use to send over my records to the new place. Hopefully they don't get too bent out of shape, but it's my decision right?
I had my last visit at North Pointe OB/GYN yesterday, which was a bit of a fiasco. When I signed in, I realized that no one else on the list had written a midwife's name under "doctor" on the sheet, so I already anticipated a problem. Then there was some mumbling among receptionists behind the glass... and then inevitable call of my name. I was told that Robin, the midwife I was scheduled to see, was at the Cumming office that morning -- not the Roswell office. Lovely. I had called to reschedule my appointment over the phone and, when I did, the woman I talked to failed to tell me that she had rescheduled me at a different office -- an office I have never visited. Thankfully one of the other midwives was working, so they were able to get me in anyway, despite the fact that my chart was in Cumming. That made things interesting, as they were just writing down my blood pressure, urine analysis results, weight, etc. (which all looked good, by the way... and I'd only gained one pound from the last visit), on a little slip of paper, and had to ask me such things as my due date, whether I'd yet had the glucose test, etc. It was me that had to tell them that I was due for my rhoGAM injection since my blood type is O negative. After the usual routine with the nurse, I met with the midwife and we heard the baby's heartbeat again (still sounds perfect), and she made sure I was feeling okay and that everything was progressing as normal. I told her I'd been pretty sick over the weekend (which you'll have the grand opportunity to read about in the post about our first baby shower), but she said I wasn't showing any signs of dehydration or anything, so I seemed to be doing quite well. After our conversation, the nurse came back in to administer the injection in my hip, and it was surprisingly painless. We still don't know for sure if Jarrett is RH positive or negative, but we did talk to his mom over the weekend and she is A positive and remembers that she never had to be concerned during any of her four pregnancies, which likely means that his dad is positive as well, though we forgot to ask him when we saw him on Sunday. So, anyway, we're assuming Jarrett is positive at this point, which means I would have needed to get the injection anyway.
Because they didn't have my chart, it made it a bit difficult to request my records so that I can take them to the new office I'm going to on July 1 when I meet with Margaret. After all the chaos, I just went ahead and made my next appointment as if I am coming back and figure I will just call in today to cancel and give them the fax number to use to send over my records to the new place. Hopefully they don't get too bent out of shape, but it's my decision right?
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
27 Weeks
This week, www.babycenter.com says that Baby Helms weighs almost 2 pounds (compare to a head of cauliflower) and is about 14.5 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, the baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning—with a lot of medical help—if she were to be born now. Apparently any tiny rhythmic movements I might feel are most likely a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Pretty crazy. I guess each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother the baby.
As for me, I'm feeling fine. I deal with the occasional bout of heartburn and have been experiencing a bit of back pain (in one centralized location) some evenings lately, but I can't really complain -- I've pretty much sailed through this so far, and am really enjoying being pregnant.
We are headed to North Carolina tomorrow and will spend the weekend in Charlotte and the High Point area. Jarrett's mom is throwing us our first baby shower on Saturday afternoon, which should be a lot of fun. There will be a lot of family and family friends there, I'm sure, and our good friends, Erin and Jason, are making the drive down from Raleigh, which will be a lot of fun since we haven't seen them in quite some time.
As for me, I'm feeling fine. I deal with the occasional bout of heartburn and have been experiencing a bit of back pain (in one centralized location) some evenings lately, but I can't really complain -- I've pretty much sailed through this so far, and am really enjoying being pregnant.
We are headed to North Carolina tomorrow and will spend the weekend in Charlotte and the High Point area. Jarrett's mom is throwing us our first baby shower on Saturday afternoon, which should be a lot of fun. There will be a lot of family and family friends there, I'm sure, and our good friends, Erin and Jason, are making the drive down from Raleigh, which will be a lot of fun since we haven't seen them in quite some time.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Jackpot!
Woo hoo! I think I have ESP. It was late in the afternoon yesterday, and I got the urge to Google Margaret's name to see if I could come up with any news on her in terms of her changing practices, etc., and -- jackpot! -- I found a post dated 9:27 a.m. that was written that day that gave me all the information I needed. As of next week, Margaret will be at Alpharetta Women's Specialists, which is just up the road from the hospital (the practice I was previously at was right beside the hospital, and this really isn't too much further). It was too late yesterday to make an appointment, but I did so this morning and now feel so much better about things. I guess security is bliss at this point!
Monday, June 9, 2008
Preparation for Childbirth
Jarrett and I took an all-day (8:30 a.m.–6:45 p.m.) Better Birth Foundation childbirth preparation class on Saturday. I think we were both slightly dreading it at first, mainly because of the length of the class, but the instructor was fabulous and made the class go by quicker than one would have thought possible. She didn't miss a beat as far as giving us all of the information, and she broke up the class really well in terms of the length of time spent in more of a lecture setting and the length of time spent actually practicing some of the techniques. We learned many breathing options and positions to use during labor and delivery, which I think will be most helpful. We'll just need to make sure and practice so that we don't forget anything before "labor day" (I guess this baby could potentially be born on Labor Day).
The instructor seemed to favor us a bit after she found out that we were having the baby at North Fulton Regional with Margaret Strickhouser. After we said we were going to North Fulton, she even asked if we were with Margaret... and Margaret was actually the acting midwife in one of the births we watched on video. After the class, Jarrett and I were commenting that it seemed as if Margaret is the Ina May Gaskin of Atlanta. Hey, I'm not complaining. She also commented on North Fulton several times in positive ways, so I definitely left the class feeling even better about our choices.
The due date is three months from today... can you believe it?
The instructor seemed to favor us a bit after she found out that we were having the baby at North Fulton Regional with Margaret Strickhouser. After we said we were going to North Fulton, she even asked if we were with Margaret... and Margaret was actually the acting midwife in one of the births we watched on video. After the class, Jarrett and I were commenting that it seemed as if Margaret is the Ina May Gaskin of Atlanta. Hey, I'm not complaining. She also commented on North Fulton several times in positive ways, so I definitely left the class feeling even better about our choices.
The due date is three months from today... can you believe it?
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