Dr Appointment 11 June - Birth-day Decided

I was a bit worried on Friday because for a long time I coudn't feel the baby move around - I phoned the Dr and he said if nothing happens within an hour I should get to the labour ward.  I ate a nice big chocolate and drank some orange juice and a while later I felt him moving around again, but not as strong as before.   I had also booked to see the Dr this afternoon, just to be safe.


Today's appointment didn't go as well as I had hoped.  I'm 31 weeks 4 days along.  Baby is stressed, there is almost no fluid left (5,5cm with the amniotic fluid index), but he has gained 303g - he weighs 1,919kg now.  I'm sure it's all partly because of all the Milo I've been drinking.  He hasn't turned, and doesn't have enough fluid to try, feet are at his face so he's still breech.  He also said that babies that have been stressed normally do very well. The umbilical chord is near his neck, doesn't look like it's around, but hanging just behind. I'm wasn't so comfortable hearing that though. 

Dr doesn't want to take any chances and will deliver him by CS on 28 June if nothing happens sooner, but basically my bags have to be packed and ready.  My next appointment is on 26 June, and then we will run through everything with the Dr, what will happen, who's who and hopefully also get to meet the Paed.  Dr told us that he always trusts a mother's instinct and that we should rather err on the side of caution and go to the labour ward immediately if I am worried or if I feel that anything could be wrong.

Dr said he hopes our baby will be around 2,4kg by then, and I'll be 34 weeks on the dot.  He thinks there is a good chance that baby will not have to be kept in NICU and that we will be able to take him home when it's home time.  His little lungs should be good to go, given the steroid injections I had the other day.

This is all happening so fast, I can't really think straight.  I can't remember what we did with today's scan either, I think maybe we left it there at the doctor's rooms.  Can't really blame us, can you?

When he told us we both kind of just sat there, not really knowing what to say.  I knew there was a possibility of the baby still arriving early, but nothing can prepare you for hearing those words.  We drove home, got inside and sat down, mostly in silence.  I think hubby's head was racing just as much as mine was.  We phoned our families to give them the news and watched some TV together.  Later we started chatting a little, and I asked him if he is ready to be a dad and he said he's been ready all along.  He also said he can't wait to have Ashton here with us, and then asked me how I feel.  I don't know.  We also laughed.  

I feel scared, nervous, overwhelmed, worried, excited, and so many other feelings all at once.  Almost as if I'm in disbelief.  This all feels so unreal.  I know we are in good hands, just that there is so much to try and sort in the next 2 weeks, and then there is the work situation.  I already emailed the directors to give them the news and tell them I need my retrenchment and maternity package sorted out.  I'm stressing about having to leave without having this resolved.

But - one thing I can say, is that I've never felt all the feelings I'm feeling now, all at once.  I can't explain, it's so soon, but we've waited for so long for this little miracle so I am beyond happy that we will get to bring him home in the next few weeks (days!).  God has this.  We've been in His hands all along.  I think 'life' could be about to begin.  

Scan, 27 Weeks 5 Days

Back to the doc for our check up this morning... for some reason traffic has been really bad the last few visits.  Anyway we made it there in time.

We had to go in the back door because the Dr took his Receptionist's keys the night before and he hadn't come in yet.  She let us in, and as we sat down (after her locking up behind us), it was time to go to the loo.  Such an inopportune time.  I collected my sample cup (routine by now), she let me out the back door, made my way to the bathroom and went to do my thing.

After getting back I had been sitting for about 5 mins when the Dr arrived and we went straight through.  He asked the usual questions... and then we got down to business.

Dr asked if I had experienced any swelling and I said I hadn't really noticed anything.  When I took my shoes off he looked down and with a worried face asked if I'm sure because my feet look a bit swollen. I said no, they look totally normal to me - my feet are just fat.  He said my belly has grown nicely, and I said it has, people have been commenting - and he said other people are always good crits, you can usually judge things by their comments.  He then felt my belly and said it has grown quite a bit since we last saw him, which is really good.

The scans never cease to amaze me.  Our first glimpse showed the baby's head near my left ribs, with both feet in front of his face.   Dr said he was in a breech position.  What a strange sight - seeing this little face, and then two feet just in front of it.  He then took a few measurements, and looked at a few things, showed us where the umbilical chord was (I had really been worrying about this), and there was nothing to worry about.  We also got to see baby's tummy, bladder, head, feet, chord (love those precious little feet - can't wait to kiss them), and a slight view of his face (as good as the monitor can show I imagine).

He checked the amniotic fluid.  Still low but slightly better - he said the baby has some fluid so he should be able to turn.  He needs to start turning from now onwards.  He also said some people don't feel anything when the baby turns, and others do.  

A little while later baby seemed to change positions - because when we looked again there were two feet on one side and his head on the other side.  Chord safely between the feet.  

My little string bean weighs 1,227 kgs today, at 27 weeks 5 days.

My weight is ok, I have lost 200 grams since the last appointment - which I can't understand, I've been eating a lot more and drinking plenty of fluids.

All in all the Dr was happy.  We see him again in 2 weeks' time.

Here's a pic of the scan - we only managed to get foot pictures today, aren't they precious?

April Scan! 25 Week Dr Appointment

We went for our monthly appointment on Thursday 26th April.  25 Weeks!  This baby is going to come early.    


Baby boy has been so busy, I feel him move around and kick so often during the day.  On Monday night I felt him above my belly button for the first time.  I pushed there with my finger and felt something hard so poked once or twice... and he actually pushed back twice.  Quite strong too.


Anyway, back to our appointment.  I still have low fluid, and my boy is really big.  The placenta is healthy though, but what he thinks happened I can't really explain properly.  From what I could make out, something about what the placenta does in stage two regarding getting the food to the baby.  I was too busy panicking.  


Dr said we will start steroids next week, on Thursday 3rd May.  I need to have two injections, 12 hours a part.  He first asked if Hubby could inject me, and must have seen my big eyes and said, alternately we can come to the hospital - we'll do that.  I'm also booked off on bed rest for the week.  Dr says we will monitor the baby's weight as well as he is concerned that he will start losing weight at some stage, and if he does he will need to take him out.  


For now we are going to try to get to 32 weeks.  That's in 7 weeks time, on 14 June!  Oh.  My.  I want to keep him in here as long as possible.  I'm supposed to have an exam on 23 June, but I'm sure they'll understand and let me reschedule if anything happens.  June is way early.  I pray that my baby stays put for a while longer. 


I'll see the doc again on 15th May, which is just over two weeks away from our last appointment. 

Everything else with baby boy seems to be ok.  His weight was 886 grams...  the average for 25 weeks is around 660 grams if I remember correctly. 

My poor doc must think I'm a big baby, cause I had a good cry too.  He kept telling me not to stress too much, we will take it step week at a time.  From now on I will need to see him every 2 weeks, unless sooner visits are needed. 

Have to get the baby's room ready in a hurry. 

On the plus side, I could be a mommy sooner than planned.  And more appointments mean I'll get to see him more often.

I went in to work to give in my doctor's note, and finish up on a few things, and when the girls asked me how it went and what was wrong, I had another cry.  I think it's all a bit too much to process, feeling a bit overwhelmed, and worried about my baby.  At the end of the day,  do know that this Dr saved my life, so I trust him with my baby's life.  The girls did manage to get me to have a good laugh, especially when they said the up side is that I'll have less stretch marks!  

Here's a pic of the scan (not very good though), and also the growth chart. 

March Scan! 21 Weeks & A Bit!

We went for our doctor's appointment this morning... everything is good and our baby boy is growing well.  I've picked up a bit of weight, so the doctor is happier.

Our baby boy weighs 463 grams now, and his thigh bone is 4,8 cm long.  We think he's going to have long arms and legs.  Eep.

I took my camera with this morning because sometimes just when you get to see something the baby moves, and the print outs end up being quite blurry.  

I can't believe the change and growth since our last scan.  

The doctor tried to get a view of his face, but the way he was lying was nearly impossible!  He is lying with his head at my bladder, facing my back!  We eventually got to see a slight view of his profile, and little nose.  I think he has his daddy's nose, but I could be wrong.

Our 4D scan is booked for next Saturday.  Can't wait.  I really hope we get to see his face nicely, so excited and been wondering who this little guy looks like!

Where is the time going?  We're past half way... I am loving this experience, and as much as I want to see this little guy in person, at the same time I want to keep him all to myself for as long as possible.  

You'll see below - we got a really nice picture of his arm and hand.  Pretty cool huh?

It's a .......

BOY.  We're so, so happy!

We went for our monthly checkup yesterday.  I'm 17 weeks along!  Everything with baby is just perfect, I'm so in love with this little thing. The doctor is happy with all his measurements, I think besides the scan where we got to hear the heart beat for the first time, this has been the most awesome one to date. We got to see the little fingers and toes, stomach, umbilical chord, head, thigh bones, spine, and long legs and arms!  It looks like he takes after his daddy!  Our baby weighs 200 grams now and everything is on track.  

Just as the doctor started with the scan I shouted out "It's a boy, I knew it, it's a boy!" and he smiled and said yes.  To be honest, my eyes teared up.  I still can't believe this dream has finally come true for us.  We are so blessed.  At the previous appointment he asked if I had a feeling about what the baby is and I said yes, I think it's a boy but let's see.  Then he started the scan and said "your son...." and "oh sorry, I'm just saying that because you said it" and we all laughed.  

The only real worry the doc has at the moment is my weight loss - he's not happy about this.  I've lost about 4kgs, so he's instructed us to get me some supplements.  I need to try to pick up, if not maintain my current weigh by the time we get to our next appointment.  

Apart from the work stress, I have been eating, but healthy food.  My appetite isn't huge, but I make a point of snacking and eating regularly, so let's see what happens.

I also had to pee in a jar and had some blood drawn to do a few tests, so the doc will call in a few days with the results for downs, hiv and other (can't remember what they are).  The pee test was all fine, no funnies there. 

Our next 2 appointments are on 30th March and 26th April.  

Then there's the 4D scan booked for 7th April!

The scan pics didn't come out too clearly, I had a chocolate after breakfast so baby was moving around like crazy.  Quite freaky to see - twice the doc asked if I could feel it, and I said nope.  I think I felt something once or twice before, but for now I'm not sure - something else to look forward to!

Dr's Appointment, Check!

Finally managed to schedule my doctor's appointment.  We are seeing Dr G on 13 December 2010, at 11h30.  Waiting sucks, but I'm relieved that it's been done!

So, 2 months to go...