 |
  February 12, 2000 ~ I had a get together today for lunch with some cyber friends from the Todays Parent Site. There are about 8 of us who meet quite regularly, and I thought this was to be one of our regular lunches, however, they surprised me with a baby shower! I was so thrilled, as I'd never had one before with either of my other kids. I got such beautiful gifts! I was so surprised to see some people there who had driven about 6 hrs to come, and there were about 6 ladies there that I had never even met, showering me with gifts! Wow! I'm still overwhelmed at their generousity! I can't thank them enough.
February 15, 2000 ~ I fell down in the living room tonight, slipped on a book actually. I fell face first, but I think (based on the rug burns) that my right hand and left knee stopped my belly from hitting the floor. I called the Dr. on call, and he said to expect some Braxton Hicks contractions, and if there was bleeding, to come in to be checked. Everything was alright but I decided I'd call my OB in the morning anyway. February 16, 2000 ~ I called my OB, and based on my past history of "silent labour" - I never feel early contractions, nor Braxton Hicks, they decided it would be a good idea if I had a non stress test just to be safe. I went to the hospital up to maternity and started the test. I'd never had one before, so it was neat to experience it. The nurse had a hard time finding the heartbeat, but that was because he kept kicking the monitor, and her hands too! It took about 15 minutes to finally find a spot where he stayed close by for the test. The heart rate ranged from 140-150, and there were no contractions at all. I was glad to have had the test to ease my mind. While at the hospital, I got a tour of the labour rooms (I went straight to delivery the other times), and asked about what to do should I be so close to delivering upon arrival like I was with Brayden. She told me to skip right past the registration desk and to come straight up. I was really glad that I asked her! I also pre-registered while I was there. February 17, 2000 ~ Went to the hospital again today, but for my glucose tolerance test. I didn't mind the drink, and for some reason, I only had to drink half as much as I did the last time, and they only took blood after the drink, and not before as well, like the last times I took it. February 19, 2000 ~ I measured my waist today (big mistake) at 28 weeks and found it to be quite large! I went into my pregnancy diaries with the other kids, and found my waist measurement to be identical to that at 36 weeks with Blake, and at 34 weeks with Brayden! Yikes! I must be huge! How much bigger can I get? February 22, 2000 ~ Well, my newest craving is raisin toast. Today I finished the second loaf in just about 2 weeks, but that's ok, there's one more in the freezer! I'm addicted to the stuff all of the sudden. I suppose it could be worse, it could be chocolate bars I'm craving! :0) February 28, 2000 ~ I found out today that I failed the glucose tolerance test. The range is up to 7.0 and I registered a 7.5. I will have my regular appointment with my Dr. on Thursday, so I have to discuss the test with him then, and possibly see a dietician. I'm not sure at this point what will happen! The nurse said that I also have low iron, so I have to take an additional iron pill each day. March 2, 2000 ~ Well, had my dr. appointment today. My regular OB is on holidays still, but that's good, because that means he'll be around come May! I gained another 3 pounds, for a total of 21. 11 of those pounds have been in the last 6 wks, and now that I find out I have Gestational Diabetes, I guess that helps explain that. Apparently a symptom of it is excessive hunger and thirst - both I've been experiencing and giving into lately! Also, being carbohydrate intolerant is not good for someone who likes to eat cereal and toast for a snack, and pasta and rice frequently for dinner. I have an appointment with a dietitian, and am looking forward to my regular Dr. returning, so that I can ask more questions about GD, including whether I'll be having another ultrasound near the end to check on baby's size. I'm nearly 30 wks now, and my fundal height measures 32 cm, which is good. March 3, 2000 ~ Took some photos today, I'll be 30 wks tomorrow. In the one photo is the kids, Blake is 3 3/4 and Brayden is 21 months.   March 4, 2000 ~ Started following a "sample" diet based on some I got from people from the internet also with Gestational Diabetes. It's going to be very hard for me to follow, and I'm already missing certain foods (especially pepsi!) and mourning the fact that I won't get to sample any chocolate easter bunnies! March 7, 2000 ~ Today I met with the dietitian and was given a 2000 calorie diet to follow. She weighed me, and will do so again next Wednesday when I go back to report to her on how the diet is going, and if I'm having any difficulties with it. I am allowed up to 2400 calories according to her figures, so I think I'll likely be very hungry on this plan. I think I'll be able to manage it alright, it's not the food so much that's a problem, just the drinks I can't have. Also, measuring is a pain in the butt! But, it's only 10 weeks, and I am scared of the thought of a 10 pound baby! March 9, 2000 ~ The weather outside this week has been wonderful! Today it was nearly 20 degrees (C), and I took the kids for a short walk in the wagon. I was beginning to think it was a mistake, they were very heavy for me to pull at this stage! The two combined are nearly 60 pounds, and the extra weight from the baby made it very hard to pull. But, the kids had fun anyway, even though it was a short walk! It's nice to be outside again. I hope spring comes soon (especially because I'm growing too large for my winter coat!) March 10, 2000 ~ Today was a big day! We finished getting the "boys" room ready. We have installed a closet organizer to separate the two boys' clothing, and set up a second crib in the room (we already had a second one from when Brayden was born, and Blake was still in her crib). The room is a little more crowded than I'd like, but we haven't got much choice! It is getting exciting now. Blake keeps asking "is the baby coming soon mommy?" I think she's getting excited too. She tells me she's going to help with the baby, and that she wants to hold him! :0) March 11, 2000 ~ Well, I've been on my diet for a week now, and am doing pretty good. It's really hard not to cheat on it! I am finding myself hungry between meals, so perhaps the dietitian will increase my allowed servings. I'm anxious and scared to see what my weight will be when I go back to see her! Hopefully I haven't gained much (although, I have no idea how that is even possible!) March 12, 2000 ~ Today I bought the boys their first matching shirts! They are so cute, little blue shirts with sail boats on them. I figure they will wear them about September or so for a photo. It'll be so cute! :0) March 15, 2000 ~ Today I went to the dietitian. I was very nervous to be weighed, but it turns out I only gained 350g (3/4 of a pound). The dietitian was pleased, and said I'll come back in 2 weeks. If I've gained too much she's chopping servings off of my meal plan (yikes!) and if I've lost weight she'll add some. She said it's too hard to tell how it's working in just 8 days. She does want a slow gradual weight gain, so that's what we'll try for! March 16, 2000 ~ Today was my Doctors appt. I am so glad my OB is back from his holidays! According to their scales I only gained 1/2 pound in 2 weeks, so a grand total of 21 1/2 now. This is by far the lowest I've gained yet! I measured 34 wks at 32, so the baby is still a little bigger than "average". I was given the requisition to have another blood test to check my sugar level the week of the 27th. I was also told an ultrasound will be scheduled for the 38th or 39th week of pregnancy to check on the size of the baby. I'll be happy to see the baby one more time before birth! March 24, 2000 ~ Today I had an eye doctor appointment. Apparently gestational diabetes can affect your eyes, so you should have a check up each trimester. I was relieved to find out my eyes are fine. I will go back for my regular appointment after the baby is born, but apparently I have to wait until I'm done nursing because you still retain water (which is why you shouldn't have your regular eye check ups during pregnancy) and it can affect your vision! March 29, 2000 ~ I'm a little stressed today, I took my blood test to re-check my glucose levels. I fasted for the morning test, then came home to eat breakfast, then went back to have blood drawn an hour later. I'm so nervous to hear the results. March 30, 2000 ~ Big day for me today! I saw the dietitian and my OB. My dietitian was pleased with my weight gain (750g or 1 1/2lbs.) I see her again in 2 wks, and then probably will just see my OB because I'll be on weekly appointments then anyway. The dietitian wants me to lose an extra 15 pounds on top of all my pregnancy weight. At this point, I'm up 23 pounds, so my goal will be nearly 40 pounds to lose - yikes! Sounds like I'll be on this diet for a while. I confirmed with her that the diabetic diet would be safe to be on to lose the weight, but still get enough calories for nursing. She said the diet is a very healthy one, and in fact, everyone would benefit from such a diet! I found out that my blood tests were great! I scored a 4.3 for my morning level (they hope for under 5.5), and my one hour level was 5.4 (they hope for under 7.8), so this is very good news, because it means my diet is working! At the doctors I was weighed again, and of course, it was the same as at the dietitian. My blood pressure is good, at 110/65, and the baby's heartrate was 147, and he was kicking away at the doctor. His head is down, likely a little more than last time, since my fundal height stayed the same this time, measuring 34, exactly how many weeks I am now. I see him again in 2 wks, and I'll likely be scheduling my ultrasound at that time. March 31, 2000 ~ Today we took another belly shot! I'm 34 weeks tomorrow, and I think I've grown "out" since last time. You can judge for yourself though. Here's the photo below!  April 12, 2000 ~ I've been slacking on the diary lately. Thanks to both Melissa and Jodi for reminding me to get on it! The truth is, there's not much development going on baby wise. I did have a dentist appointment today. One cavity, which isn't too bad, since apparently I haven't been to see him since December 1997! I can barely remember that far back. I guess the time really flies when you have kids, because I was sure I was there recently. I guess what I'm remembering is taking Blake there when she had a chipped tooth. Anyway, I'll have more updates tomorrow, since I have a couple of appointments. April 13, 2000 ~ Busy day today! I saw the dietitian and found out I'd gained no weight in the last two weeks. She didn't like that, she wants me to gain a little weight each time, and definitely not lose. So, she added 500 calories to my diet. I'm going to feel like I'm binging tomorrow with all the extra food I'm allowed to eat! Now, I have to go back and see her again in two weeks so that she can check up on my weight, hopefully for the last time! I went from the dietitians office to the Dr. My blood pressure is fine, and I measured 38 at 36 wks, which is a 4cm growth in 2 weeks! The dr. did the Group B Strep test, and I could know the results tomorrow afternoon for that. Lets hope it's negative so that I don't need antibiotics during delivery. I asked him to order the ultrasound to check on the baby's size, and he did. I also had to go and get bloodwork done - again! They were going through my files and realized some of my prenatal work up was missing, mainly the hep b test and the rubella test. Since I was going they decided to check my iron level, and my sugar level. I can't believe I'm on weekly appointments now! Times ticking down quickly! I phoned the ultrasound clinic (we decided to go to the Ottawa clinic again), and unfortunately they are so booked up that the earliest appointment I could get is on the 25th. I wish I could go earlier, I was hoping to get an appointment next week. I'm anxious to see how much the baby weighs and to get one last peek at him before he's born. I asked to be put on the cancellation list, but was told that people rarely cancel.
April 17, 2000 ~ Phoned the Dr. today. My group B strep test was negative (thank goodness), but my bloodwork shows an infection somewhere, so I'm on antibiotics to clear it up before the baby is born. My iron is still on the low side, but climbing since I started taking the iron pills. My random sugar was 4.0, which is wonderful! It was taken 2 hours after lunch. April 20, 2000 ~ I saw the Dr. today. My weight remains unchanged, still holding at 23 pounds. My blood pressure was fine, and the baby's heartbeat was 150 today. My urine was negative for sugar. I didn't grow any this week, but last week measured 38 when I was 36 wks, and now I'm 37 wks, so I'm not worried. Baby's head is down, but still "floating". I'm looking forward to my ultrasound on Tuesday. I spoke to the ultrasound clinic today, and they said they want me to drink 5 8oz glasses of water the hour before the ultrasound. I don't think that will happen at this point!
Today Blake told me that I was as big as a house, and that my belly was so big it would break the house! She's started to ask a lot of questions today about the baby, how it is going to come out. She actually asked if the baby was coming out my mouth! LOL. I told her that the baby would come out in the hospital, I think she's a bit young for specifics! April 25, 2000 ~ Today was an exciting day! We went for my ultrasound in Ottawa. We were amazed at the show, it was about a half hour long and the details you can see on a baby this age are amazing! We saw his eyes moving, his lips moving, his aorta, he had a full bladder, right and left brain, etc, etc. It was really neat. The technician estimated his size to be 7 pounds 3 oz. at 37 wks 3 days. She also said though, that the estimate could be high or low by a pound or more, so I guess you really can't know! We got a picture of his face, close up. Here it is below:0)  April 27, 2000 ~ Today I saw the Dr. for my regular weekly check up. I gained 4 pounds (which is practically impossible!) but is explained by the fact that I'm retaining fluid. Oh well, I know I didn't eat 4 pounds extra in food from my diet, which I'm still following! Hopefully the fluid retention will lessen by next week, I'm going to try to drink more water, that is supposed to help. My blood pressure and everything was good. My urine was negative for sugar. Baby's heartbeat was 150 (while moving). I measured less again today, 36, but that could be because the baby has lowered a tiny bit into my pelvis, who knows? I had an internal, and my cervix is still high and closed tight, just as I expected. I was never dilated early with the other two either!
I also saw the dietitian today, and she's dismissed me from her care, which makes me happy, it's hard to go to both appointments each week. She says she's happy with my progress, and wished me well. She said perhaps she'd be up to visit when I delivered the baby. May 1, 2000 ~ The baby has started to slow down a lot lately. He's still moving regularly, just not as forcefully as he was before. I guess he's run out of room! May 2, 2000 ~ The girls at playgroup threw a shower for me today. It was mainly a casserole shower, so I got quite a few dishes to put in the freezer for when the baby is born, so that I can take a night or two off of cooking. I also got some cute outfits for our little guy. It was my 2nd shower ever, and both were with this baby! May 3, 2000 ~ Well, my sister (Melissa) has come home, so I guess I'm safe to have the baby now. She'd warned me not to give birth while she was away on a class assignment with the university. I guess any day now would be fine with me too! May 4, 2000 ~ I had my 39 week Dr. appt. today. All is well. His heartbeat was 135 today. I had Brayden with me, so he got to hear it too. My cervix is still closed up tight, and high, but, his head is partially engaged, which is a good sign I guess. I assume that is why he's slowed down on the movement, because he's partially engaged. I made an appointment for next Thursday, I'm quite certain I'll still be pregnant then, however, my Dr is on call this weekend, so it would be a good time to give birth to this little guy! :0) May 8, 2000 ~ I phoned my OBs office to find out which Dr. is on call this week. It turns out my dr. is on call Tues, and Thurs, so I'll be hoping that I either give birth during the day so that he can deliver or on one of those nights. I'm a little stressed today because Geoff works the night shift tonight and tomorrow night and I don't want to go into labour after he's been up all night. Lets hope that doesn't happen, as much as I'd like to give birth really soon! May 9, 2000 ~ I'm starting to face the daily questions, "are you still pregnant?" and everyone I meet everywhere seems to want to know when I'm due, I guess I have the "fed up" look! We took another belly shot today, here it is below. I'm hoping this will be the last one!  May 11, 2000 ~ I saw the Dr. today, I have lost 3 pounds in a week, which brings my total gain to 24 pounds. I'm very happy with this to say the least! I wasn't happy to hear that my cervix is still closed and high though. I guess the baby isn't in much of a hurry to come out. I really hope that something happens soon, I didn't plan on going overdue! My belly measured 40cm, same as last week. I had to book an appointment for Monday to be checked again, and should nothing be happening we're going to have to discuss induction, because of the Gestational Diabetes. I really hope to go naturally by then to avoid this discussion altogether. As much as I'd like the baby out sooner than later, I am really against induction. I guess we'll wait and see. May 13, 2000 ~ I can't believe that my due date is here and I'm still pregnant! I never thought I'd go to term with this baby, and certainly never imagined I'd go overdue! I was really hoping that the baby would have been here by now, because we're missing a family wedding today because of the baby, and mom and dad are missing it too. It was a long drive (5 1/2 hrs) and they felt they should stay because they didn't want to miss the birth of their 3rd grandbaby. Unfortunately, it looks like they gambled and lost, seems they could have gone to the wedding after all. I feel really bad that they missed it for nothing! May 14, 2000 ~ Today is Mothers Day, and I'm now officially overdue! We went out for brunch today, which was nice, I kind of gave up on my diabetic diet, and just ate what I wanted for a change! It was a long day for me, I am starting to get cranky that the baby isn't here yet. I guess it looks like my Dr. will be able to deliver the baby after all, since we've nearly made it through the weekend! We went for a long drive tonight, on some country roads to see if we could maybe start something with a bumpy drive. The kids were with us and were in the back chanting "lets bump the baby out!" It was really funny, and we got to see some deer, so that was a nice treat!! May 15, 2000 ~ Today I saw the Dr. It was kind of scary because the nurse told me that at my appt. on Thurs. the Dr. thought that the baby's head was in crooked, and wouldn't be able to put enough pressure on my cervix for him to be born naturally. He thought if the baby's head was still like this today, I'd almost certainly need a c-section. Hearing those words were scary! But, it seems he moved a bit to avoid that for the time being. He's dropped a tiny bit, 1cm, so I'm measuring 39cm now. The Dr. said my cervix is still closed, but is "very soft" which is good to hear, and he says it could be "any time now". He asked me what I wanted to do about being overdue, and I said that I didn't want to be induced, I'd rather wait a bit. We made a deal, that if on Friday I have still not had the baby, I'll be admitted to the hospital and he'll put the gel on my cervix to see if we can get something going. He says if at that time the baby is ready, then it'll work, if he's not ready, it won't work. Lets hope that the baby comes on his own by then, I am not sure about the thought of artificially starting labour after 2 successful natural ones so far! I guess the Dr. really thought it was possible that baby would come today, b/c he had his nurse phone at 5:15pm to check if I was contracting at all. If I was starting labour, he was going to stay on call to deliver the baby, b/c tonight isn't his night on call. I kind of got my hopes up that the baby really will be out soon, since the Dr. was so positive about it! May 16, 2000 ~ Yet again, I wake up, and I'm still pregnant! I really truly can't believe it. I think it's time to get moving, so we're going to go out shopping and hope that all the walking can help get something started. I don't know why I have the feeling that if there's nothing starting in the morning, I'm doomed to wait another day. I guess I need to realize that just because both kids labours started in the morning, doesn't necessarily mean that this one will too. I guess it really can happen at any time! May 17, 2000 ~ Well, when I woke up today still pregnant, I decided I'd better phone the Dr. for more details on the induction. When he suggested it I was sure I'd never be still pregnant this late, so I agreed without much hesitation. However, as it's only 2 days away now, I am having doubts, and need more info. The nurse said that it was a slow morning, and if I liked, I could come in, be examined again, and ask him the questions I had. I decided to go ahead with it, and went in to be examined. My cervix is still closed, but very soft, and baby has dropped another cm in 2 days, which is a very good sign. The Dr. wanted me to have a non stress test to check if the baby is under any distress. He's not, which is good, and I'm glad that I had the test. The dr. assured me he's not inducing b/c he thinks the baby is too big, he doesn't think he is, which makes me a bit relieved, but he says it's because the placenta is deteriorating at this point, more so because of the Gestational Diabetes. Anyway, he feels the gel will work quickly, and should it not work, I can go home, and we'll wait a bit again, and not do the IV drip, as I don't want that. Well, that's the latest update, lets hope that is the LAST update before the baby is born!!!!!
 |
