August 14th - Well, obviously I have been neglecting this page for a while. Elena Frances arrived on our planned c-section date of August 3rd. The 1st cut was made at 7:51am, and she was born at 8:08am. She is beautiful, if I do say so myself. :)

I got to the hospital at 5:30 am. They hooked me up to the monitors, took all my info, started my IV, and then we waited. About 6:45am the anesthesiologist came in and we discussed how sick I had been after my previous c-sections. They gave me some meds prior to heading to the OR. At 7:30 we walked to the OR. I was given the spinal and then prepped. My OB came in and the first cut was made at 7:51am. Dr. Long and the anesthesiologists kept us all entertained throughout the entire procedure. Elena was born at 8:08, and I was back in recovery at 8:40. I didn't get sick in the recovery area either, so I loved my anesthesia team this time. I did feel sick, but did not actually vomit constantly asmI did after Cassie. They kept me informed as to what was going on as well, the way they are supposed to do - unlike the guy I had with Cassie's birth. They allowed my entire family in to see me at one time - even the kids. :) I was so happy to see them.

After my 2 hours or so in recovery, they wheeled me to my room. When they moved me over to my bed, I did get sick. And I did get sick a few more times throughout the day, but it was nothing to the degree it was after Cassie was born, so I can't complain much.

We did have a little incident with some pain meds the next morning though. The nurse gave me an injection of Stadol in my IV. As she was giving it to me, she mentioned that it may make me a little dizzy. So, I thought ok, it's not like I'm going anywhere anyways. I asked her about the fact that they would be taking my catheter out within a half hour so I was wondering if that would change since the meds would make me dizzy. She said that by the time I would probably need to go to the bathroom the meds would probably be out of my system. I fell asleep within a few minutes, but within 15 minutes I was having hallucinations. I was flying with Big Bird and Super Grover from Sesame Street, and we were all painting the undersides of bridges. Then I started shaking. I told Silas he needed to call the nurse because something wasn't right. When she came in she then proceeded to tell me that some people have reported feeling disconnected from the world, but I should just not fight the meds and go to sleep. Keep in mind, the drug was not doing anything for my pain either at the time. I tried to sleep, but everytime I would doze I would have horrible nightmares and more hallucinations. I got to the point here I was scared to close my eyes, because when I would awaken I was unable to tell the difference between what was real and what was not.

I had Silas get up and sit with me. I had just gotten through thinking to myself that I wish Dr. Long would come in and take care of the situation. Amazingly, no sooner had I had the thought, but who walked in? Dr. Long. LOL Of course, I wasn't really positive that he was really there or not. LOL Anyway, at this point I am crying uncontrollably and he asked me if I was ok. I told him the nurse gave me something and it was really messing with my head. He asked about hallucinations and I told him yes. And I kept crying. He said he would check on the dosage she gave me and they wouldn't be giving me that drug again.

It is funny now that it is over, but it was scary going through it at the time. My only thought was that if this is what street drugs do to people, why the heck do people want them?!?!

We came home on Friday the 6th, and I am still recovering. I am having a little more pain at my incision than I have experienced with the others by this point. I am hoping things will improve by my 2 wk post-op appointment next Wednesday.

If you want to hear more about Elena and see pics, please check out her page: Elena's page Pics will be added soon. Until then, you can see some pics at my hubby's site, Zervona

July 23 - I haven't updated in a while. Things have been going wonderfully! My pressure has been near perfect, my sugar levels are very good and the docs are happy about me not being on insulin, I am up only 1 pound this entire pregnancy, and NO BEDREST!!!! I have only 11 days left. :) I have been going in to the OB office twice a week. The first day is for an AFI (an ultrasound to check on the amniotic fluid level), an NST (non-stress test - measures how the baby's heartrate reacts during movements and such), and the regular appointment stuff. The second appointment of the week is strictly the NST an appt.

Since I last posted, I have found out that we are having a girl. I probably should have guessed that since we have had so much trouble agreeing on a girl's name. We finally came up with one this week - Elena Frances.

Finally, my next appointment is on Tuesday and it is my pre-op appt. I'm a little bit anxious since it is with Dr. Long, and he has hospitalized me 2 out of 3 pregnancies. With Jacob it was because my pre-e was getting out of control. With Cassie, I went in for the pre-op appt, and he *thought* he heard an irregular heartbeat (on me - not baby), so he admitted me for testing. So, you can see why I would be anxious about what will happen on Tuesday. Of course, I wo't complain if he wants to go ahead and do this then instead of waiting another week! ;) I'll try and update Tuesday - assuming I get to come home. LOL

June 17 - After typing yesterday, I went out and got my mail, and I received a package from ym secret shower buddy, Sabine! She is so sweet! She sent me an adorable Carter's outfit that is green and has bears on it. It is adorable. She also sent me 3 containers of RLR to strip my dipes with and a wet/dry dipe tote. :) I was so excited!

Had my appointment with Dr. Wells today. It went well. I am down another 2 pounds. He looked at my sugar levels. It was a 2 page chart, and the first page had a few high fasting numbers that he was concerned about, so I told him to be sure an d look at the next page and he seemed to be much happier. He agrees with me that my body was probably just adjusting to all the changes and now is ok. He still wants me to check my fasting sugar level each morning, but since all of my others have been so well controlled I get to choose a meal a day to test after! YAY! So now I stick myself twice a day instead of 4 times a day. I feel like that is good. :)

I didn't get a heartrate or measurement today because I was too busy asking questions. *lol* I go back on July 2nd. We have my c-section officially scheduled for August 3rd at 7:30am! I have to be there at 5:30am. Only 47 days left! Guess I really need to get busy making sure everything is ready, huh?

June 16 - YAY! I am officially 32 weeks today! Woohoo! And I defeated the odds and am not yet on bedrest! How exciting is that?!?!

My sugar levels are doing great today, so I can't complain. My fasting is supposed to be below 90, but it hasn't been above 95, so I haven't called. I see Dr. Wells tomorrow, so I'm sure I'll either be fussed at or be told as long as it stays within so many points I am fine. Please pray I don't have to take insulin! Today's fasting level BTW was 87! Woohoo!

Also, Trina told me this weekend she wants to throw me a baby shower. Isn't that sweet? I'm excited. I now have something to look forward to. :) Right now we are planning on July 3rd. I'm making it small...just family really and a couple of friends. I feel a little silly inviting too many people since I just had a big shower last year.

Sunshine sent me the most adorable little cloth diaper this week! It's an Very Baby AIO. I can not believe how tiny it is! I really don't remember any of the kids being that small - not even little Jacob at 5 lbs, 2 oz. Anyway, Sunshine makes the dipes herself and sells them on her website, www.flutterbybaby.com. She's a really talented lady!

And finally, Nancy called Monday to set up my c-section. Dr. Long is on call the 3rd and 9th of August. I chose the 3rd. I know my family, especially Gramps, would love for me to have made it the 9th since it is his b-day, but it is only 2 days before my due date. Kind of cutting it close, kwim? Plus, I am ready for this baby to be here. The sooner, the better as long as it is safe to do so! Anyway, I don't know if Nancy actually got it all set up yet or not. She was supposed to call back. I wasn't home yesterday to get any calls, so I'll check with her tomorrow if I don't hear from her today.

June 9 - Had my appointment with the dietician and a nurse today. The diet doesn't seem to bad. I just have to try and figure out a lot more meals now than I am used to. 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. I also test my sugar levels 4x a day. It isn't too bad. I'm just mad at myself for having to go through this. Oh well. Only 8 weeks left max. I'll make it.

June 8 - I had my appointment with Dr. Long. I have never been so upset in my life. I was completely rushed through the entire thing. I didn't even get a chance to ask any questions! He did not tell me the heartrate, he said I was measuring 2 weeks ahead, and then told me he was going to send me to Gaye for the diet and prescription for the glucometer. He then proceeded to lecture me on how I really need to be sure I follow the diet (that I hadn't been given yet, btw). He really made it sound like my 3 hour test numbers were sky-high and out of control. Then out the door I went.

On top of that, my pressure was "supposedly" 170/80. I do not believe this for one minute though. The woman who took my pressure pumped up the cuff and barely started to let it go and then yanked it off my arm. There is no way she got an accurate reading as quickly as she went! I had no symptoms of it being up at all. I also "supposedly" lost 3 pounds. She weighed me on the inaccurate scale though, so again I don't believe it.

So, then I am shuffled off to see Gaye, who is also in a hurry. She quickly gives me the prescription (which I later find out didn't matter because my insurance does not cover the glucometer), and then gets ready to go. I asked her what exactly my numbers were.

Fasting - 104 (should have been 95 or lower)
1 hour - 200 (185 was cut-off)
2 hours - 156 (155)
3 hours - 118 (140)

So, they were not near as bad as Dr. Long had made it seem. I know he was on-call that day, and I know the entire office was having Chik-Fil-A for lunch, so maybe that had something to do with the way I was treated...I don't know. I do know that I was very upset by the time I got home from dealing with the crappy appointment and the pharmacy and insurance company (which I won't even begin to go into right now). I had a good, long cry that night.

Oh! And one more thing. I didn't get to schedule my c-section because Nancy was too busy. I think if she had known it was me, it wouldn't have been a problem, but they didn't give her a name. So, I still don't have a date for this little one.

June 4 - I got the dreaded news today....I have gestational diabetes. Yuck! So, when I go to my appointment on Tuesday I will be given the diet to follow. After I have been on it at least a week, I will have some bloodwork done to see if my sugar levels are being controlled by diet alone. If not, then I will be put on insulin. I only have 9 weeks at the most left, so hopefully it will be able to be controlled by diet only.

May 27 - Well, I didn't get a chance to post an update in a little while, so I thought I would do it now. I had an apointment with Dr. Laubscher two weeks ago. Everything went ok. My pressure was up a little, but she wasn't concerned. I took the 1 hour glucose test...and failed. It was a 157 and it should have been 139 or lower from what I understand. UGH!

I had another appointment today, this time with Dr. Wells. I took my pressure this morning an hour before I had to leave for my appointment, and it was high at 142/88. I called mom and even warned her that I may very well be put on bedrest today. I got to the appointment early, and could not believe it, but it had gone down to 140/70! I haven't gained any more weight. Baby's heartrate was in the 160s. He/she was wiggling around as soon as Dr. Wells put the doppler on. He even commented on how active baby is. LOL

The plan of action is the same right now. Appointments will be every two weeks. I get to schedule my temporary c-section date next appointment! YAY! Of course, as he said, that will all be subject to change depending on my pressure. NSTs and u/s are also dependant on my pressure. If I fail the 3 hour glucose, he is fairly sure it can be controlled by diet and insulin would not be needed, which was welcome news to me. :) Next appointment - June 8.

April 30 - I had yet another disappointing appointment. I have been having some sinus problems, so when I went in today, I thought nothing of the fact that I had a headache. Well, lo and behold, my pressure was 130/90. By the time I left it had only gone down to 130/85. There is no protein and no swelling, so right now it is just PIH. Our plan of action is to do what we always do...sit and wait. I will eventually be on bedrest, have weekly u/s for fluid checks, and NSTs twice a week...oh, and tons of labs I'm sure. They are having me come in two weeks from now to get a pressure recheck. It is down at home, so they aren't overly concerned, but going on my past history they are keeping a close eye on me, for which I am very grateful. Baby's heartrate was at 155 or so and his/her movement is very good.

Silas and I have been starting to get everything ready. We have switched the kids' rooms in order to have the babies in the larger room. It is working out well, but a 4th bedroom would always be nice. ;) I'm on a search for a nice gender neutral going home outfit, but that isn't too easy nowadays. I may just have to wait and get one for each gender so I have something decent to put on this little one.

Next appointment - May 13th. I also will have every pregnant woman's favorite test done...the Glucose Tolerance Test. (Blah) Wish me luck!

April 2 - I had my big ultrasound today. The baby is measuring great and is already 14 oz! My pressure was 128/86. A little high, but they are not overly concerned right now since it has been great at home. :) We do not know the gender of this baby. He/she has his head right behind my belly button, and his rear is sitting on my cervix. So, Candy couldn't get a good look. The heartrate was bouncing between 144 - 156, so that makes it hard to determine anything as well. My boys were always 140 on the dot and Cassie was always in the 150s. And of course the baby's movements affect the rate. So it will be a surprise! Can't wait until August to find out!

March 5- Had my appointment with Dr. Long to recheck my pressure. It was 126/80. Not great, but not as bad as it was two weeks ago. He is having me monitor my pressures at home a few times a week. If the bottom number hits 90, I'm expected to call. Hopefully we won't have to worry about that though! I have gained a total of 3 pounds so far. I also officially declined the triple screen test today.

We did the usual heartbeat check, and everything was good there. The baby seems to be facing towards my belly button, so it was a little harder to hear than normal, but there and beating strong regardless. :)

And finally, the big ultrasound is scheduled for April 2nd! I'll keep you posted!

Feb 26 - Well, I know for a fact my pressure has been really high the past couple of days. I have had some unnecessary stress put on me (which has now been taken care of) and it unfortunately came at a bad time. Thank goodness my pressure check isn't until next Friday. Otherwise, I am sure I would be on bedrest for the next 22 weeks. UGH.

Feb 20 - I had a not so good appointment today. My pressure was up - 140/90. I also have lost the two whopping pounds I had gained so far. Dr. Long wants me back on the 5th to get my pressure checked. He also wants me to stay hydrated and get as much rest as possible with three kids. On a positive note, the baby seems to be fine. It took the doctor a little while to find the heartbeat because each time he would find it, little one would move. It was kind of funny. I should get an ultrasound at the next real appointment...so probably sometime late March, early April! I can't wait for some new pics!

Feb 14- I have set up a little just-for-fun baby pool. I hope you will all take a guess or two! If you go to www.expectnet.com you can play along! Our game name is our_surprise .

Feb. 13- We have been discussing names for this little one. Right now we are thinking of Nathan Lewis for a boy and Caitlyn Frances for a girl. Nothing is set in stone of course, but that is what we have for now. :)

Jan 20- I had my u/s today and the baby is measuring larger than my dates. So, Dr. Long has decided to change my due date to August 11. Boy, were we surprised! So, I will be 11 weeks tomorrow. Dr. Long is very excited about us having another baby. I was a bit surprised about that considring my prenatal history, but hey, we're probably paying for his grandkids' college now! LOL My next appointment is scheduled for Feb. 18.

Jan. 9 - Appt with Gaye and Colleen. The pregnancy was confirmed, and my due date at this time is August 21. So, I am 8 weeks today. I have asked for an u/s to be scheduled soon because my symptoms are coming and going, and after my miscarriage before Cassie, I would rather get everything checked out.