39th week check-up

My check-up went well yesterday. I still had a slightly elevated blood pressure upon arrival but it settled back to the normal range within 15 minutes of resting. The fetal monitoring showed that baby is still doing well. Gracyn was with me this week for the monitoring as she had to see a doctor that morning as well. She was my contraction monitor. She didn't really want to sit still for 30 minutes during the monitoring so I gave her a job. She watched the " green numbers" which registered the intensity of contractions. Mine were mild, but Gracyn was excited any time the numbers rose over 20...which isn't anything to write home about. Now we continue the waiting game...will baby ever arrive?

Gracyn is still battling this cough she has had since Easter. Actually, Aidan and Jack are coughing as well. We decided to take all of them to the doctor...again...in hopes of ridding our lives of constant illnesses. Gracyn has been diagnosed with some kind of bronchial inflammation which requires her to use a steroid inhaler. She was unresponsive to antibiotics and our pediatrician felt an inhaler would help. If she is still coughing after two weeks of using the inhaler, she will see an allergist. I really don't suspect allergies as she began this coughing marathon on Easter day with a fever. I believe she just never really was able to get over the cough. Aidan is on his 3rd cough and cold in 2 months. He actually gets well, but then gets reinfected. Jack, the poor guy, is getting coughed on constantly by someone and well...gets sick. I'm ready to take up residence in a bubble and have become OCD about handwashing. Miraculously I'm still fine. Thanks for your prayers. We are trying to get everyone well before the baby arrives so that our little one can start his life in a healthy environment. Please pray to that end.

Stir crazy

Yes, I'm feeling a little stir crazy. I am still pregnant! Tomorrow I will have my 39th week check-up. I have never made it to 39 weeks before so I'm starting to feel abnormal here. My babies are supposed to be born in the 38th week...what's up? Technically, I still have 9 days to go and I should be more patient. Many women go to their due dates and even beyond. I have to remind myself that this is normal...but with each passing day I fear having an enormous baby. All that extra time gives the baby time to gain more weight! I guess this little guy is just too at home for the time being.

Week 38

Tomorrow I will be 38 weeks but I had my prenatal today. My fetal monitoring tests came back fine but I do have high blood pressure today. I started out with 138/83 and then after 30 minutes it was down to 125/something. I was checked once again back in the doctor's office and was back to 140/80 something. Dr. Sankiat didn't seem concerned. I had this happen with Aidan but he was born that night. I was tested for protein and that came back negative. So I don't know what to really think about all these results. Maybe I should just try to rest and hope my BP returns to the normal range. I'm getting a little antsy now and ready to have this baby.

Full Term

Today I am at full term! I have made it to 37 weeks of pregnancy. I'm really excited to be at the point where the baby is fully developed. 26 weeks ago, this felt like an impossibility but God has brought us here. I had a prenatal check-up yesterday and all seems well. The baby passed another fetal monitoring test and was really active. I only had one insignificant contraction, but these things can get started at the drop of a hat, so one can't really tell when the ball will get rolling here. Now we just wait and view every day as possibly being "the day".

Number 3

Last night Gracyn lost her 3rd tooth! Congratulations Gracyn! The tooth fairy made a visit last night and left 100 baht! Gracyn was very excited. Her top front teeth are beginning to loosen, so we might have a little snaggle toothed girl here soon.

Getting closer

I am about 2 days away from being full term! Woo-hoo! I am so thankful to get to this point. I have another doctors appointment tomorrow with fetal monitoring. I'm starting to notice more pre-labor signs, so we are getting there! I have to view each day as possibly being "THE DAY". I'm trying to store up as much energy as I can.

36 weeks!

I am 36 weeks along. I started my weekly prenatal visits today. I started my day with a quick ultrasound to check baby's weight. He didn't gain much since last time and came in at about 5 lbs and 9 oz. So that eased my gigantic baby worries a bit. Maybe he will hit a very respectable 7 ish lbs after all. Dr. Sankiat said everything looked really good and that if I were to go into labor now, he wouldn't do anything to stop it. Next, I was sent to Labor and Delivery to have a NST which is a non-stress test. This test is conducted for 30 minutes and measures heart rate with movement. When the baby moves you push a button. With each movement you should see a rise in heart rate. This indicates that the baby is not experiencing any stress. Our baby passed with flying colors. The NST also records any contractions that you may be having and makes a graph. I had a few Braxton Hicks (prelabor contractions) but they weren't all that strong. Being in Labor and Delivery gave me a flood of memories and some butterflies too. Both Gracyn and Aidan were born at this hospital and with Dr. Sankiat attending. All the memories of their births came back and I felt overwhelmed. It was the sights, smells, sounds and the brigade of Thai midwives swirling around me that did it. I had the " I don't think I can do this again" moment. Oh, I know it'll be fine and once you are in labor you don't have tons of time to indulge your fears as you are just trying to cope with what is happening at that moment. But, the flashbacks were really taking me back and causing me to remember that labor is difficult and it is work! The midwives were all trying to assure me that this being my 3rd child would make my labor a piece of cake. They were telling me I wouldn't need any pain relief and it would be "ngai ngai" (easy). I'll be the judge of that thank you. I will have this test weekly until the baby is born. Maybe going each week will help prepare me for the impending situation upon me. Thankfully there were not any screaming women in Labor and Delivery today! :) I know in the end when our baby is placed in our hands that I will be proud of my birth experience and overjoyed to have the baby with us. It really is a wonderful gift and the culmination of a rough 6 months. I just need to face my fears right now and pysche myself up for the inevitable. We've gone through a lot and this is just our final hurdle and the trophy is waiting! After, all this I still had to have blood drawn and then I got to treat myself to a bagel and pink lemonade at Au Bon Pain bakery in the hospital. That soothed me. Will I make it to get a bagel next week? Stay tuned!

Mr. Curls

I just have to post this pic of Aidan so that our family can see he is just as curly headed as Gracyn. Our kids have no hope of straight hair...but they are cute little mop tops!

So this is me

Ok...normally I am against putting pics of myself up on a blog...you know how women are...we scrutinize ourselves too much...but I figured I would do this for our family who may want to see at least one picture of me while pregnant. I have only 3 pictures of myself pregnant with this baby. Most days of this pregnancy were absolutely not picture worthy. I don't even like these but hey...it's all I got. I have to remind myself that I have been bed bound for 5-6 months and I have an excuse for looking less than stellar! So be kind! :)

Will this cough ever leave?

My child is coughing again. Our children have been going round and round with coughing spells since Easter. It seems we just can't get rid of this illness. Other teammates kids have also been affected by it as well. I'm feeling like I may end up getting it to. I hope not. I'm feeling a little congested and heavy in my chest, which is usually the precursor for my falling ill. I have visions of coughing my lungs up while in labor. Nightmare!!! I have just 1 1/2 weeks to go before I'm full term and 4 weeks until my due date...tomorrow leaves me at the one month exactly mark! If you are a praying person, please pray that I escape this cough. I've made it this far with out being sick. I'm so close. Trying to teach small kids to not cough all over everyone is a defeating task. Sigh.

Baby Shower

This past week my teammates gave me a baby shower/brunch! It was fun to be able to do a little socializing again after being in seclusion. All the ladies brought yummy treats to eat. They all prayed for me and for the next 1 1/2- 4 weeks...the time span that this baby could be born within. Crystal made an amazing diaper cake that was adorable and I was also given a basket of goodies such as pacifiers, bib, sleeper, burp cloth and other newborn amenities. We are getting closer and closer. It was great to be surrounded by friends.