Gastric System Issues for Coby...

On Friday we had to see the pediatrition again because poor Coby has been just a mess. He cried for around sixteen hours on Thursday and nothing consoled him. The quick version has us seeing a pediatric gastro specialist sometime on Monday due to microscopic blood in his bowel movements along with his other symptoms. He is not digesting the Nutramigen formula as easily as he should be so he has been switched to a new formula too.

So far we know Coby has acid reflux. He is on Prevacid, gas drops and now Pepcid as well. We had been doing Mylanta too, but with the addition of Pepcid yesterday we have stopped that. He is in pain most of the time and it is heartbreaking. Hopefully Monday we will have some sort of answer and a "solution" to the problem. Please say a little prayer for Coby that the issue is relatively simple. Until then, we are on a goose chase to find a new formula too - called pregestimil. It is manufactured by Enfamil, but is not widely stocked in retail stores; so we are off to Painesville soon. It is just like the Nutramigen we were on (predigested) but contains a different type of fat, a triglyceride, that is easier to digest for some babies. Weird to be wanting to give a triglyceride, we thought those were the bad ones!! Oh well, if it helps who cares.

Nate on the other hand is doing great. He had quite a haul from Santa including the "upside down crash" race track, a firehouse, new tool box like daddy, real tools for his tool box, a TRAIN TABLE which we set up downstairs and lots more. With family gifts added, we think that we may need to seriously consider adding a toy wing to the house. Contributions to the college fund were also in abundance, and who could complain about that?? :) Thanks to everyone for a happy holiday, and we hope that the New Year rings in with the quieted tones of a sleepy, pain free baby...........

Have a Colicky, Colicky Christmas...

Can't believe Christmas is almost here! Nate is so excited he can hardly wait. Today he said, "Mommy, it is so hard to wait for Santa!" We are counting down how many sleeps it is until Santa comes. What does Nate want? What doesn't he want? Not much. He was such a big helper putting Christmas tree up, literally branch by branch, and then he couldn't wait to add the decorations. It was so fun to see his reactions to the ornaments and all the lights. "Wow, it's beautiful!" Sigh....He is still having some trouble accepting Coby as his little brother. Hopefully as Coby gets older and starts interacting a little more he will warm up. Hopefully....

As for Coby, we hit a rough spot. He is just turning a month old and is having a lot of troubles with eating. Lots of spitting up, crying and he really seems like he is in pain. We went to see the doctor on Tuesday and he put Coby on Nutramagien formula, all elemental not milk based, to see if he is intolerant of lactose. That is the first step. If it is not this we move on to other things. Reflux or possibly an issue with esophogus itself. It is also possible that he is just going to be a super fussy little guy....

Two Weeks Old!

Just thought we would post some pics of Jacoby, can't believe he is two weeks old. He is more alert and opens his eyes more; tries to focus on mommy and daddy when they are close and tracks lights. Night time is still challenging, hopefully we will get on a more regular schedule soon. Big brother is still adjusting a bit, but warming up. He tried to give Coby his bottle today, but still not sure he wants to try to hold him. Enjoy the new pics of our sweetheart!!

Playing in the leaves

Here is Nate having a great time in the leaves today. He is working hard to become a good big brother - he has been the only one for so long so there have been some trying moments. but here, he is having lots of fun and getting some much needed outside time.

Jacoby Maxwell Dell Arrived!!!

He's here!!! We can hardly believe that he is here, healthy and we are so in love. Jacoby, or Coby for short, decided Tuesday the 13th was a good day to get the ball rolling. Contractions began around 3:30 p.m. and were about 10 minutes apart in my back. They weren't bad, so it took about four regularly spaced to convince me to really pay attention. I called my nurse and let her know, and she said I had two options: lay down and maybe they would stop (ha, ha) or go for a nice walk. So I called Mike, in tears, to let him know things were starting and then went for a big walk with my dad. By the time Mike got home contractions were regular at five minutes apart so he called the hospital and said we were coming.

Timing was perfect; we got there and got checked in. I was 4.5 dialated and the contractions were starting to pick up in intensisty. One of the doctors we had met on Mac 6 last year came in to talk to us and told us she was convincing the attending to keep us regardless of what this labor was producing. So with my dates in hand she went to get our birthday arranged, and she did! When she came back to tell us we both cried and she told us to stop because she was crying too. Then we got our first labor nurse, Leslie, who was incredible. She recognized how hard the loss of Max would be emotionally on the entire labor and delivery and did everything she could to help us through. She made sure when it was time for my epidural the best man for the job did it and promised he would do a good job - and he did. :)

Around midnight they checked me and decided to add pictocin to the mix. We were both able to rest for a while before we were checked again with little progress. So we napped for a while. I awoke with a start, a pop and a SPLASH around 2:30 a.m. My water BURST! I called my new nurse, Sarah, and she got the attending to check. Much to all of our shock, I was complete.....10 centimeters. Instead of having me push immediately, they told me we would wait until I could feel the urge to push. They sat me up and allowed me to labor down. I felt contractions and pressure, but nothing that reminded me of the intense pain from Nate or Max's delivery, so I kept waiting. Finally around 4:31 they decided it was time to push. I still did not have the intense pain from the contractions or rectal pressure, but pushed anyways. Progress was very fast and sixteen minutes later, Jacoby emerged into the world. He was plopped onto my chest, my dream since Nate's birth, and I got to see his dark, dark head ful of wavy hair, his ten perfect fingers and toes. I didn't feel any pain and I couldn't believe this was my birth story. It truly resembled something from TLC a Baby Story, and I honestly didn't belive those were possible. Jacoby weighed in at 7 pounds, 15 ounces and was 18 inches long.

We are now the intensely proud parents of three beautiful angels. Two of those angels reside on earth with us to continue life's journey with all of its twists and turns. One of those angels is waiting for us when we are called to continue our journey in eternity. We truly believe he is here with us, watching and knowing our love for him equals that of the love we hold for our earth angels. He is one of the reasons little Jacoby is here in our arms. We hope you will enjoy these few first pictures, and thank you all for your support along this rocky journey.

38 Weeks

Well we are still pregnant. This little one seems to be pretty darn comfy where he/she is. We are guessing we will probably make our appointment on Thursday, but hoping otherwise. There's no more room at the inn!!! We'll keep you posted!

Exciting News!!

It's a............. pregnant Jen!! Yup, no baby yet. Had a visit with Dr. Judge today and we are now just shy of four centimeters dialated and 80-90% effaced. So, baby could show up tonight or we could go another week. Who knows. Dr. Judge will be out of town this weekend, so our bet is it will probably be this weekend at some point. We are hoping, though, that we can hold out maybe to Monday and she can be there to meet the little one she made possible. :) So, keep those bets coming.....could still be tonight, Friday if you're in today's pool,......well, you predict!!! (Just a heads up......if we make it to Monday, remember back to Friends when Rachel was ready to deliver Emma???? Jen will be trying all means necessary to evict the baby!!!!)

Cerclage Out!! Liberation Day!!!

Well it's out, yippee! It came out around 9:30, um ouch, and then after Dr. J checked I was 2-3 centimeters dialated with some scar tissue from the stitch. She said she thought that if we had any future children the cerclage was the route to go. So, maybe it was my cervix that caused my water to break with Max, but we still don't know. Regardless, it made me cry; if infection caused my water to break it probably ascended through the open cervix so it seems like the culprit no matter what.
Then, we had to sit for about 20 minutes and CONTRACTIONS began!!! They were 3-6 minutes apart and hurt a little - relative to childbirth anyways. Just annoying. So, the next step was to walk around for two hours to see if anything really kicked in. I was pretty hopeful, contractions continued and hurt a little more. So, after our two hours we returned to our delivery room and got checked again. This time 3 centimeters dialated with the same contraction interval. Unfortunately, it didn't pan out into anything except a teaser.
So where does that leave us today?? Well we are now full term and dialated three centimenters - maybe the baby will decide to come tomorrow, and maybe I will have to be induced. Either way, we are not preterm anymore and the baby is ready to be born. So, place your bets and get ready to ante up.......our little gobbler may wait to make his/her debut on the big day or he or she may decide to be here for it. Either way we are now very hopeful that this will be a wonderful year to give thanks for the inredible blessing of good friends, supportive family and a beautiful bundle in blue.....or will it be pink???

36W 6D....

Wow, so close...on Monday we will be FULL TERM!!!! Yup, 37 weeks is considered full term though traditionally 40 weeks was the target. We had an ultrasound on Thursday of this past week and all looked great with the baby. No we didn't look to see if we saw a bobber down there, we couldn't really see a whole lot because there is so much baby in there. So here's what we Do know:

1. Baby is vertex; head down! Yay!

2. Baby is 6 LBs 10 ou - right on target to equal big brother Nate's 8LB 11 ou. A nice healthy size. I still don't know how he/she is squished up in there though.....

3. Baby has DEFINITELY dropped (engaged in the old pelvis; but has been since 32W for me - just FYI - most subsequent babies do not drop; I don't know why. So in some ways I'm luck for this, more breathing room and unlucky in others - um, it hurts a bit baby crushing the cervix and lots of pressure. However, I don't care; he/she is still in there so I am....suffering best I can in silence....ok don't ask Mike about that!!)

4. Cerclage (old cervix stitch) comes out on Monday morning; we have to check in at 6a.m. (yuck) then we are slated as the first procedure for 8 a.m. Don't know why we have to be there so early; no IV's, spinals or anestheia for this one; just a speculum and a pair of scissors. Oh and it's a big speculum (T.M.I??? Too bad - just think, it's not you!!! :)

THEN - we wait to see what happens! Our due date, set by ultrasound, is November 26th. I am a cramping, braxton hicks contracting mama right now. Tons of pressure and pain in my legs/hips/thighs - hence the waddling people; I WISH it was because I am so big (ok I am that too), so please be merciful and spare the hee-hee she's waddling because she's a whale tales IT HURTS, every step and I am a little cranky about that.... So I am the poster preggo for preterm delivery - BUT we are no longer preterm! So it is anybody's guess when this little one will decide it's time to arrive. The baby actually gives off the hormone that initiates labor, so it really is up to him/her. Few people deliver after the stitch comes out so I don't expect Monday to be our little one's big day; maybe week 38 will look good.....my legs/hips/thighs/mind sure hope so.......so does Mike!!! He has been my rock though, through the entire crazy trip...I just hope we can end this journey with fabulous APGAR's and a beautiful bundle to introduce to you all. It is the home stretch, but things still do happen so keep those fingers crossed.

** FYI** Our friend's Denise and Matt welcomed their new bundle, Trey Bohden on the 30th, safely and soundly. Thank you to all who included them in their hopes and prayers, he is beautiful and we are so very happy for them all. It has been a long road. His name has a lovely meaning: Trey = the third and Bohden = gift from God; hence, their third gift from God.......welcome little Trey, we are so happy you are here.

Almost 36...

Our appointment on Thursday went well. Got a flu shot to boot, and it wasn't even in the boot! Hooray. Get the last, yes LAST, P-17 shot in the old tooshie on Tuesday this week. Yee haw.

I would like you all to be thinking of our friends the Kraska Family as they go in to be induced this week.They lost their son Henry two years ago and have been so very helpful and wonderful, we just can't hope and pray enough that their little one is safely delivered into their arms on Tuesday. We will be waiting on pins and needles to hear.

I am posting a couple pics of me; of course the biggest belly one is the most recent. Things are starting to get more painful now, so I am getting less and less ambitious. Nate has been great and the weather is kind of helping out right now too. Fall has arrived!! I just hope winter stays away for quite a while.

Mike has the carpet out of the baby's room and it is starting to look really nice in there. My only hope is really to get the closet organized before the baby comes home. That way all his/her neccessities will be right there ready to go. This week we have an ultrasound on Thursday to attempt to predict this baby's size; Nate was 8LB 11ounces and a very difficult delivery. I am hoping that Dr. Judge will be merciful and allow an earlier induction if this baby's size is comparable. That's about all from our camp, just hoping to hang out until the cerclage comes out. :) Thanks for following our crazy tale.....hopefully a happy ending is just around the corner, or at the end of a rainbow?

35 WEEKS!!!

Holy moley, we are 35 weeks! Of course when you see me this is obvious, but honestly each passing week seems like a blur. We actually went shopping and bought some baby supplies we do not have from Nate's infant days and it was a little fun. Mike is working hard on getting the carpet out of baby's room and then I guess we are as ready as we can be. The nursery will be officially finished after baby comes home, that way I can paint and and customize what is already done. I just don't want to jeopardize anything now!
So happy 35W!!!! Hopefully Thursday's appoinment will be pleasant.

34 Weeks

Well today we are 34W 6D! Monday will be 35 W and we can't believe it. Dr. Judge said all still looks well with the cerclage and my size is perfect. We scheduled another "quick" prenatal for next week and then an ultrasound for 36 W where they will give us an estimate on size and check the placenta ect. Then, the Monday we turn 37 W the cerclage will come out. Orignally we had expected it to be removed at 36W 5D but Dr. J will be out of town until the following Monday. She gave us the option of having it out at 35W 5D but we decided that we are more comfortable with 37W. That gives this little one's lungs an extra week to mature in case labor would set in - which I am not thinking it will. I am sure that even after all the pokes, prods, kicks and cerclage pinches (ouch!) this little one will have to be evicted at some point. Dr. Judge said she would not let us go past 40 W - something I am very thankful for! Not only am I already big as a barn but going later into pregnancy also gives the placenta extra work it was not really designed for and it could begin to deteriorate. So, anytime after the cerclage comes out would be, um, lovely.
Nate has been such a big helper getting things cleaned up and fixed for the baby. He helped get the car seat, mobile and some toys set. He talks about all of the things he will be able to help the baby do and learn so we think that maybe he is getting ready for this little one to come home too. We just hope he doesn't feel like we have less love for him, so we will be working hard to be sure he feels extra included. He is still loving school and is sad on the days he does not go! So, we still feel very happy with our choice. We have even met two, count them, two little boys in his class who live in our neighborhood. Amazing; after all this time of looking for some nice boys to play with, they are literally in our back yard. So, that's it until next week - grow baby grow!!!

Pregnancy Loss Preemie Loss and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

Pregnancy loss, preemie loss and infant loss remembrance day was created to provide support, awareness and education for those who have experienced miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, a preemie loss, stillbirth or the loss of an infant.

On October 15th everyone is invited to light a candle at 7:00 pm andkeep it burning for at least an hour so that there will be a continuous wave of light over the entire world on this special day.

Some ideas for the 15th of October

*Light a candle and display it in your window

*Leave porch lights on

*Contact your local radio station and request that they publicly announce the day.

*Sponsor a candle light ceremony in your local park or church

*Release a balloon with your child's name or picture

*Release butterflies or doves

For further information on this international day of remembrance please go to the official website athttp://www.october15th.com/

We would love it if family would light their candles for Max so he can look down from heaven and see how many of his surviving relatives are keeping his memory close to heart. Thank you!!

Jen's Birthday Wishes......

I guess we all know what Jen really wants for her birthday, to still be healthily pregnant, but here are some things she has shown interest in

New mommy clothing -
1. stretchy soft pants and fun coordinating shirts for the hospital and when she and the baby come home. She likes the soft microfiber stuff (in the pajama stuff usually). A size Medium should do the trick.

2. jogging outfits (pants and zip tops) great for new mommy wear too.

3. a casserole or something to put in the freezer for after baby comes home.

4. To go out with Mike!!

Seems to be a theme here......

So far, we are still trucking right along at 33 weeks with this little one! Lots of movement from the peanut gallery. Keep your fingers crossed.....

Playschool Days

Nate has started what we are calling playschool! He is so happy and excited about it. We were able to visit the class together on Monday, 10/1, and he started on his own on Tuesday. He has been enjoying being with the kids and playing with the new toys. Wednesday was Gym Day and he was thrilled by all of the wonderful gross motor toys and activities they did. He is literally bursting when the school day is over and he rushes to greet me. He is possibly the sweetest little big boy ever. I ask him if he had fun after he describes his day and he says, "Yes mommy but I missed you!!" I think that is probably one of the best things I have ever heard. I always say, "I missed you too but I am always right here when you are all done and it's time to come home." I know we made the right choice for a school too based on how happy he is to return for more. He has a school book bag, a place to put his bag and jacket and so many big boy things to do. He attends three days a week for around two hours each day. Just enough to get his feet wet and help him adjust socially. Academically he knows all of his big and little letters, can identify many numbers and understands a little about quantities, is understanding patterns and can create his own, is rhyming, and beginning to write out the alphabet. He can spell his name and read it in print. I am so proud of my little boy, he is learning so quickly and so eager to keep going. Mike and I both have the same goal for him, and that is to be happy. So far, we seem to be helping him reach that goal.

32 Weeks.....

On Monday we reached the 32 week mark, hooray! Today, Oct 4, we saw Dr. Judge for a check up. She said all is still looking just fine. If the baby were born now, he or she would have full term survival rates, and that sounded lovely to us. The risk of cerebal palsy is also reducing as we reach the later weeks of the third trimester too. For the first time it felt nice to talk with my mom about some of the things we will need to buy for this baby to come home, though we won't really go on a "shopping spree" until we reach 34 weeks.
We will be given a cerclage removal date at our next appointment, at 34 W, and then we just wait to see what happens. The last shipment of P-17 injections arrived today and that in itself is like a little party, only four more shots! I think Mike is as happy about that as I am, though he has been such a trooper about giving them. He has been so incredible - basically taking over the laundry and doing tons of work on the house to keep things running. Luckily, I have been able to help out a little more in the past weeks. I hope this trend keeps up, he does so much and I appreciate it all, but I feel so helpless and like I cannot take care of my little family. I think we both know it will all pay off when we meet this new little one, now in a matter of weeks. :) So, keep on counting up with us as we get closer and closer to Nate and Max's little brother/sister's debut.

30 Weeks and Counting....

On Monday we made it to 30 weeks! Incredible! We're noto out of the old woods, but it is unbelievable to be able to say we are 30W along. My belly may say more, but that just means my little one is growing stronger and bigger - we all know Nate was 8Lbs 11Ou and 21 and 1/4 inches, Max (2LBs 1OU) was on pace to equal his brother and this little one is definitely in the running too (at 3LBs 2Ou at 28W). So now the aches and pains are setting - but aside from the constant nightly cramping - they are "normal" for pregnancy. No one said pregnancy was fun overall, it is just a different journey for each person. I will take the big abdomen, shots, cramps and all the aches to bring this little one home, it is nothing to pay for the joy he / she will bring to our home.
Hooray, we have our transport and post cerclage team assembled and ready to wisk us off to the hospital as soon as labor sets in. This was a very scary thing in my mind - with Nate my labor was 15 hours plus 2 hours of just pushing. With Max, labor was non-existant and pressure/contractions literally began when he was plus two or on the way through a dialated cervix. So, having someone there to get me to the hospital at a moments notice seemed a wise thing to do. It seemed especially wise after our MFM said, "Have the transport arranged." She is a no frills, straight forward doctor - which is why we liked her anyway - and for her to say that speaks for itself. I could labor for a long time, but maybe not......I'd kind of like a shot at an epidural.......and the option of having the baby at the hospital instead of on the way! So big, humoungous thank yous to Gram and Grampa Z and Neena and Papa for being able to come to visit until basically this little one decides to come. We also know that Dr. J will be able to be there when this little one does come into the world, and we are very happy to hear that she wants to be there for the birth. It feels like a big circle will come to a close in a way....it was funny becasue she said something about number four today........we said, ummmmmm not so sure about that! :) Without her firm guidance we would have lost our minds by now.....not to mention Laurel our nurse who has talked me down on more than one occasion. We cannot say enough about the care we have received and what a blessing it is to have UH so close by.
So 30 weeks and counting.....each day. Thankful for each kick and rotation from within, and still hoping for the miracle to come screaming into our arms at the end of the rainbow.

Turning Four....

Today is Nate's big day, and as of an hour ago he is truly four! Amazing. Thanks to all of our family who was able to attend his celebration on Sunday, he had so much fun seeing all the "Neena's and all the Papas!" He also really enjoyed his special morning with Uncle Jeffy and Grammy. Today, mommy and Nate had fun playing with all of the new toys, at the Dragon Park and having special lunch together. Then when Nate went to nap, mommy began calling preschools for next year. So, Nate will attend formal preschool next fall (2008-2009) and then kindegarten 2009-2010. We feel his late birthday and giving him one more year to mature and enjoy being a big "little boy" will be good for him. So entering kindegarten he will be five going on six instead of four going on five. Just a little update on our earth angel and what is going on in his world. Now that Daddy and Nate's birthdays are over, he understands that Mommy's will be next (ok - so Uncle Tom's, Neena's, Papa D and Grammy S' come before) and then the baby will be born!!! He has been more cognizant of the baby lately, kissing the belly and receiting when the baby will, "come out." He still has no real preference for a sister or a brother.
One final tidbit on Tater - yesterday after everyone had left Nate said he wanted to send the rest of his balloons to Max in heaven, including his special Thomas balloon. We told him if he sent them, they would not come back and he said, "That's o.k. I will send them to Max because I can play with all my toys here." We thought that was a pretty thoughtful way to include his little brother on his big day, not to mention such a sweet, caring idea and act for our big, little boy. So, he did send his balloons to heaven and mommy and daddy, near tears, cheered him on.

Child of My Heart - Walk to Remember

Today our little family participated in a wonderful event, as noted in the title as the Child of My Heart Walk to Remember. It was created by the Knoop family who lost their little boy, James Bennett, in 2001. We were able to meet Lisa Knoop, James' mommy, this morning and were suprised to find out James was born on July 28th as well. It was sort of a, "can you say that again?" moment, since Max and James share the same birthday - different years of course. The walk started at the Museum of Natural History with a quick overview of "why we were there" and an introduction to the Knoop Foundation's mission and new web site. The Knoop Foundation provides materials to UH's NICU such as preemie clothing, blankets, and materials for bereavement. So, we have benefitted from the foundation immensely. When we lost Max they provided most of the things we were able to take home as rememberances of him as well as the book, "Empty Cradle, Broken Heart." It was wonderful to meet this woman who through such pain was able to create such a wonderful, giving organization in memory of her son.

One of the things that struck us as she spoke was her stating how people didn't want her to talk about her son, to mention his name because they really just didn't know how to deal with such a loss. We have noticed how this is very true, and hope people know that it is not to make our family/friends uncomfortable but to help our little one live on. Today was a gift from the Knoop Foundation dedicated to helping families do just that. After the presentation we went outside to a notes-to-heaven balloon release, like at Max's party, and then walked a mile around University Circle. We all received t-shirts too - it was really sad and inspirational at the same time to see all of those shirts walking together to remember so many lost little ones.
It is our hope to return to the walk next year with more family and friends. Max will always be a member of our family, our new miracle can never take his place or heal our hearts. We hope that many of you will look forward to the invitation to the walk and future "To the Max" parties to help us keep his memory alive in a fun, positive way. To visit the Knoop Foundation, see www.childofmyheart.org

Nate's Turning FOUR!

We can't believe it - our little boy is turning four a couple weeks. We will be having a family party for him on September 16th from 1:00 - whenever. Again it will be casual grill out food. He is so excited!! He has already requested his real birthday dinner - Alfredo pasta and strawberries and pineapple! So funny! He has asked that his cake be Gordon this year, from Thomas the Tank Engine, because Gordon is the big number four engine. When I asked him, he gave quite a bit of thought before answering, and I thought that was a pretty big boy idea. Some things he has shown interest in for gifts include:
new Clifford books (or any books really)
the Little Einsteins jet plane
Troublesome Trucks that giggle - think these are the wooden ones
Binoculars
Cool tools - he has lots of screw drivers, wrenches, nuts, bolts...think he is talking saws ect.
Soccer Goal

He has also been enjoying:
Dinosaurs, Lightning McQueen, rocket ships.....generally big boy things to do.

We can't wait for his party - in some ways, and we could wait forever in others. It doesn't seem possible that he is four already. Time to start playschool, then preschool next year and finally the big K - kindegarten. Can mommy's heart take it?? It will have to because Nate shows no signs of slowing........as it should be. Hope to see you at the party!

28 Week Check Up

We had an ultrasound today to check out how baby was growing and how the cerclage was holding up. All looked good! My cervix is a little shorter than they would like, but it hasn't changed from last month - 2.4mm. So I was really happy to see that. Baby's brain and heart are, "as good as it gets." Placenta is working quite well and baby Dell now weighs 3 pounds 2 ounces!!!! Sooooo, now we just keep doing what we're doing to keep baby growing and comfy until hopefully November. We see Dr. J in two weeks for a prenatal check, and by then we will hopefully be 30 weeks along!!! Wow! We talked a little about induction on our last visit, and Dr. J said I would be a good candidate having had two successful vaginal births - it all depends on the cervix and baby's position. So, at least we can "think" about it. With how quickly Max arrived - my cervix dialated almost painlessly with Max as opposed to a regular painful labor with Nate - she said it was a good idea to have a transport plan ready. Since Mike can't drive that is a little worrisome, and if it happened in the day most family are not so close or working. By the time I was in pain with Max he was already plus two and ready to be pushed out, so it really is pretty logical to hope for an induction with this little one. But that is thinking pretty far ahead. All I am looking for is to make 30 weeks now! Grow little one, grow!!

What's with the pink????? & 26 Week prenatal

Had some more pink today.....ugh. Woke up to cramps around 1 a.m. and again at 3 a.m. The round at 3 just kept me up. Then I found the pink after going to the potty for the seventh time. I also had some pink last monday and ended up going to see Dr. J. All checked out fine with the cerclage though. We are frustrated with these occurences, they scare the bologna out of us. I am supposedly "over" my third.....yes third, urinary tract infection, but who knows? I will have another urinalysis next week and we'll really see. That or the contractions will come back.....ughhhhhh! Grow, baby grow! We also talked about inducing possibly; Dr. J said I am a good candidate with two successful vaginal births. It all depends on baby's position, dilation and effacement around 38 weeks. I really hope to move it up a little more.....not too much. But that will mean an amniocentisis, so we'll just wait and see.

Last Thursday we had our 26 week prenatal appointment, had a lovely chat with Dr. J and all seems to be going well. She checked my stitch again and it still seemed good. When she checks she is checking to be sure there is no tension on the stitch, for effacement and dilation. All look good. Since I have about half of my cervix left, I am 50% effaced or thinned out already, but that 50% seems to be in it for the long haul. Baby is now around 2 pounds or so. Hooray!

With passing day 26W 5D gestation we have passed Max's birthday. On Monday, today August 27. we will pass 27 weeks too.....the day Max died. It is not something anyone else would think of really, but it really gives this baby his/her own pregnancy from this point on. We have passed all of Max's dates and can only hope that this new little miracle has many, many more of his/her own dates.

24W Ultrasound - Howdy baby!!

August 9, 2007
We got to see our little one again today. The fabulous thing about UH is the time and attention they have given us at every twist and turn of this pregnancy, and today was just as thoughtful an experience. We were seen by both a songrapher and our ultrasound MFM, Dr. L. Dr. L has seen us through every ultrasound in this prenancy, so it is nice to have such consistency for the baby. He said that all development is very good. He has no worries about the heart, gastro system......this is as good as it gets. :) So we were very happy to hear this. We were also able to see our baby in 4D, and it is the most amazing thing ever. The details are so clear, it is a true sneak peak at your child. We also saw the skeletal images, but the 4D is overwhelming. Dr. L said he was starting a new family album for us - and it is so true. We were given at least ten new pictures of our little one, and most of them are 4D. When we figure out how to get them added to the blog, hopefully everyone can enjoy them.
The only "grounding" news was that my cervix has shortened to around a 2. 4. In pregnancy they usually like to see at least a 3cm and above. But this is why we got the cerclage. When pressure was applied the cervix did not shorten any more so, this is good. The tech also said she thought she saw something inside the interior of the cervix (blood clotting maybe, but definitely not the amniotic sac - if the amniotic sac dips into the cervix it is called funneling and can break the bag of waters). The MFM, Dr. L, said he did not see anything that we need to worry about. So, at this point we are going t continue to do things as we are - with me on some physical restrictions but not on bedrest at this point. Our next appointment is Aug 23 with Dr. J. So all in all, a good day. Mike and I are hoping for many, many more of these and praying for many more weeks of baby baking for this little one.

Pregnancy Snapshot

So, this is a quick look at how we got to 24 weeks....

• April 2007: Surprise, we're pregnant! Found out in April while Mike was in Utah.....holey moley, the ride begins!
• May 3rd (10 weeks) First ultrasound to determine viability of the pregnancy. A very bittersweet day since the last beautiful heartbeat we had heard was our darling Max.
• May 11th (11 weeks): Nuchal Translucency Scan and First Check appointment; FYI - The NT test uses ultrasound to measure the clear (translucent) space in the tissue at the back of the developing baby's neck. Babies with abnormalities tend to accumulate more fluid at the back of their neck during the first trimester, causing this clear space to be larger than average. The first of our hurdles: our baby's NT measurement was increased at 3.3mm. 2.5mm is normal. Our baby may have chromosomal defects or heart abnormalities. We are told we need to do a Chorionic Villus Sampling that day.....terrified we begin to inflate my bladder and prepare until a Genetics Couseolor arrives and helps us decide to wait until the blood testing is in.
• May 18th (12 weeks): Blood testing is in and we have decided to go ahead with the Chorionic Villus Sampling. It is an invasive diagnostic test that will allow the baby's chromosomes to be mapped to determine if abnormalities are present. The test was not fun, the babies NT was still enlarged so we feel it was a good decision for us. Our alternative was to wait until 16 weeks and complete an amniocentesis. Now we wait another two weeks for results.....all in all a very stressful month!!!
• June 1st: Results from the CVS are in: the chromosomes are NORMAL!!!! They could also tell us the baby's gender, but we are waiting until this little one is born, just like we did for Nate and Max. Now we wait until 22 weeks for an echocardiogram to rule out any heart issues resulting from the enlarged NT measurement.
• June 5th: (15 weeks) Cerclage Day. We need a stitch in my cervix to perhaps prevent future issues with this pregnancy. I am given a spinal (fun - I recommend you do NOT allow a resident to practice on you, just get the anethesiologist!) and the stitch is sewed into me. Sick for three days, lost weight but finally back on track.
• June 14th (16 weeks): Cerclage check day. Time to see was still well with the new stitch and it was. Also, we will begin P17 injections weekly starting in week 17. P17 is a synthetic progesterone that research has shown to help reduce occurrence of preterm labor. Mike practiced injecting me in the office and will be giving the shots each week. I don't know who is more excited, him or me???
• June 28th (18 weeks): Anatomy Ultrasound Day. For most parents this is so exciting because you get to see your baby and maybe find out the gender. But for us it was just scary - another opportunity for something awful to be found. However, we had a bright spot - all the baby's systems were forming beautifully and the enlaraged NT from 12 weeks, now called a Nuchal Fold, is just fine for this gestational age!!!! Hooray, we may not have to worry about Cystic Hygromas at all! We still have the echocardiogram at 22 weeks. But all in all this was a GREAT visit. Baby is in the 71% for growth and we also got 4-D ultrasound shots of the baby - they are amazing!!! Will post those soon.
• July 12 (20 weeks): Quick prenatal appointment: All looks well, Dr.J is happy with the stitch and the 18week ultrasound results, including heart formation. We feel pretty good after this appoitment.
• July 21 (21 weeks): Labor and Delivery Visit: After waking up to cramping around 3:30 a.m. (which is not unusual for this pregnancy) I had them all day. Finally around 4:00 pm we called the doctor service (it is saturday) and they told us to come in. Long story short, minor contractions, cultures taken, cervix looks good, stitch is good and we go home. Around 11 first call on an infection found from cultures after urine dipstick was called "clean." Minor yeast infection, yuck. Then on Sunday we get the call that I had a urinary tract infection. Antibiotics prescribed and by Wednesday I feel almos like a normal pg woman again - contractions have subsided as have the cramps. Earlier in the week I thought I would be on bedrest because of the frequency of contractions when I did next to nothing!!!
• July 26 (22 weeks): Echocardiogram day for baby. The heart looks BEAUTIFUL!!!!! No need to see us again unless something comes up at a later ultrasound. AMEN and hooray to that! Visit with Dr. J goes well, stitch is good. She reassures us our decision to go to L&D was a good one: a urinary tract infection can trigger Preterm Labor and it sounds like that is just what it was doing for me. She tells us we have Card Blanche and to trust our instincts. My body is pretty good at telling me something is wrong and we feel like we have made it a few steps up the mountain of this pregnancy.
• August 4 (23 weeks): Back to L & D: Wouldn't you know it is Saturday morning and I awoke to red blood in the toliet. Red blood is the cardinal warning sign of danger in pregnancy, especially in the later trimesters. So instead of making pancakes, Grammy and Papa come to watch Nate and we go to L&D again. :( While there, my body is making so much urine I think my water may have broken again on top of the blood. *when it broke with Max it was not a gush like you would think, but a slower emptying out that caused me to keep going to the bathroom at a ridiculous frequency. Long story short: all looks well. Cervix is closed, a little blood near stitch, ultrasound shows no internal blood and that the placenta is firmly attached to the uterine wall. All tests show no amniotic fluid, hooray. We see the baby swimming and flipping around in his/her dark world oblivious, thank goodness.
• August 6: 24 WEEKS GESTATION today!!!! Why excited? Today is the day that medical science recognizes our baby as a viable human, and they call it viability of the pregnancy. Our little one could possibly survive outside of the womb if he/she had to. Survival is about 60% and goes up with each day inside the womb. Each week increases survival chances tremendously. At 26 weeks Max had a nealy 80% chance at survival, but his immune system was not strong enough to fight the horrible e-coli sepsis invasion. We are hopeful that this little one will stay inside and bake for many more weeks with his big brother Max guarding close by.
• August 7: Crap. Another call from the hospital, another stinkin' urinary tract infection. Back on antibiotics and feeling pretty lousy today. Lots of cramping in the past 3 days with my wake up call being around 3:30-4 a.m. The only thing that helps is tylenol with codeine #3 that we were given after the cerclage. Hopefully we will just clear this one up and feel pretty good again. Only two days from our 24 week ultrasound.

24 Weeks

We are now 24 weeks pregnant. This means we have done a couple things:
1. We have reached what doctors refer to as viability of this pregnancy. If the little one is born from this point on they will do the best they can to sustain his or her life. Lungs will begin forming and our new little one will begin to practice breathing this month.
2. We have passed the gestational time when my water broke, or pProm'd, with our Mighty Max.

Unfortunately, we visited Labor and Delivery again this past Saturday. I woke up to blood in the toliet. It was red, which is a bad sign. So once Grammy and Grandpa Stevenson were here to care for Nate we were off to U.H. My urine was accumulating very quickly and was very pale - essentially translucent. When I was getting my sample ready at L&D I sniffed it because it was so pale and couldn't smell amonia or that, "yup this is urine" scent. This scared me quite a bit - when I pProm'd with Max fluid did not gush from me, I lost the amniotic fluid somewhat gradually. I would go to the bathroom over and over, but I could hold the amniotic fluid in like urine, so it just kept reaccumulating to be released. I was pretty scared that my water had broken again, along with the bleeding.

Fortunately, all checked out with the speculum exam: cervix is closed, the stitch (or cerclage) is as it should be, and there were no real signs of blood except after Dr. E did the thin prep for cultures. They did not find pooling (this is when amniotic fluid accumulates near the cervix), the nitrazine test was negative (a pH kind of test to see if the fluid near the cervix is basic or acidic or alkaline; vaginal secretions and urine are acidic while amniotic fluid is alkaline.)Finally, the ferning test was negative as well. Ferning is where a bit of fluid taken and spread on microscope slides. If it dries with a fern like pattern to it, it is a positive test for amniotic fluid. However, even with all the negative tests, I asked for an utltrasound at the end to see the fluid around the baby. The staff was happy to do this. I also really wanted them to make sure the bleeding did not come from inside the uterus, even though they felt confident it did not. The baby was happily spinning around in fluid, very active and the placenta was adhered to the uterine wall with no clotting behind or around it.
On Monday, I got a call from Dr. E saying my urine had tested positive for bacteria, so I am back on Macrobid. (Our first trip to L&D was two weeks ago for all day cramping that wouldn't go away and that also resulted in my urine culturing bacteria.) However, the normal dipstick test showed my urine to be "clean" both times. So apparently this is not an effective way to keep track on my urinary tract ect and we are going to send cultures every two weeks instead.
The bleeding still makes me uneasy, but it seems the answer to that is the urinary tract infection that was brewing. A urinary tract infection can send the body into preterm labor - contractions begin but they are a usually painfree tightening of the uterus as opposed to the contractions of full term labor. However, they are contractions nonetheless and are serious. For me, the contractions had started on and off fortunately not occurring four per hour. In addition I had menstrual cramping that would wake me around 3-4 in the morning. Both are signs of preterm labor. I am so glad we went to L&D - they caught the infection and we are now treating it, so things should calm down.
On Thursday we have a 24 week ultrasound. Dr. L will look at the baby's heart, again, a transvaginal ultrasound will meaure how long my cervix is and give a good look at the cerclage itself to see if there are any issues there. Hopefully we will see the baby happily swimming around, oblivious to all the craziness going on around him/her. I am going to have my urine cultured again on Thursday and then again next week to be sure the Macrobid has taken care of the infection.
So all in all, this past month has been a little more crazy than we had hoped for.

Who me, blog???

Well, I decided to start this little adventure to help aid communication within the family - definitely not because I thought I had anything interesting to say that anyone outside the family would like to read!

We are curretnly 23 weeks and 4 days pregnant with our third child. Our story is kind of long to arrive at this point in the pregnancy. It has not been simple or carefree by any means and at this point in gestation does not promise to be easy at any point. We do not know the gender of this child, and we did not know the genders of our two previous children either. That being said, we have one child here on earth and one child in heaven.

Our earthly child's name is Nate and he is an extremely active soon to be four year old. His favorite place to be is outside, preferably at the park! Our second son, Max, graced our lives for a mere four days before he earned his wings. Though he was here for such a brief time he changed our lives completely. He has a web page all his own that contains his story as well as pictures. Briefly, Nate's pregnancy was normal to full term with no complications. Max's pregnancy took a turn for the worse when my water broke when he was just 23 weeks 4 days gestation. Fortunately, we were able to hold off labor until 26 weeks 5 days on July 28, 2006 when a placental abruption caused true labor. Max was born and when the delivering doctor announced that he was a boy, I was elated as was my husband. Two boys was my idea of a perfect family. Max was two pounds one ounce, pink and just beautiful. A miniature baby with a grave battle before him. Unfortunately the evils of this earth proved too much for his small immature immune system and he succombed to e-coli sepsis on July 31, 2006.

We have just passed his one year birthday and angelversary. Oddly it is like, "New Year," for my family - as though maybe 2007 can actually begin and we can look forward maybe to perhaps the full term birth of our newest hope. But for today, we can only sit and wonder and hope.