Jellybean Update

Well, we had a brief visit at the doctor's today (this is good - a lengthy visit would mean problems) and found out a bit more about Jellybean and her arrival.

First of all, we had our sixth sonogram. She was still uncooperative. Figures, don't it? Thankfully, they only had to check a few things that were left after the last sonogram, and the tech was able to check them and see that everything was fine. We also had her double-check the gender - since this is the first time that we are buying gender-specific gear, I want to be darn sure that I know I'm bringing home a girl. Jellybean is still a girl. I'm still surprised because it seems to me that she acts like a boy...but what do I know? The placenta has moved up a bit, but remains in placenta previa position - again, no big deal due to the C-section.

After getting more sonogram pictures (we'll fill our photo book next time - we've had that many sonograms), we were told we'll be back for another sonogram at 30 weeks. So - in seven weeks we'll see her again. This is definitely the bonus of the high risk pregnancy. Found out that I was down another two pounds (after eating a huge lunch at 1:00 - appointment was at 2:00), so that's a good sign for me healthwise. I'm not being unhealthy and dieting or not eating; I'm just eating better and trying to make good choices. The doctor is pleased.

We then met with the doctor who got a good heartbeat (chasing Jellybean around - she would NOT sit still) of 147-150 and said that I'm measuring exactly as I should. For those of you who haven't had these experiences, this is the point in time where they pull out a tape measure and start measuring top of uterus to pubic bone (I believe) and your measurement should pretty closely correspond to your week of pregnancy (so I should have measured about 23). This means that your calculations are correct and everything is developing as it should.

We went over the restless legs and I turned down the meds again. I'm going to keep trying to tough it out on my own, but I may cave before this is over. It would be nice to make it to the last trimester before giving in, though. We also talked more about delivery. Of course, everything depends on the baby's readiness, but the plan is to deliver at 38 weeks for sure if we can. We pulled out a calendar to look at the week (since it is Thanksgiving) and she said it would most likely be that Tuesday, November 22. As you can see, I have a new ticker above to reflect that due date. 15 weeks and we will finally get to meet Jellybean. While a due date is nice, having such an actual date makes it more real and gives us a pretty definite plan (of course, Katie arrived at 36 weeks, so we still have to be ready for an early or late surprise - who knows!). She said that we'll put that on the calendar (schedule the surgery) when I hit the final trimester.

Speaking of that final trimester, that's in four weeks. I return to the doctor at that time for my final "monthly" appointment and then move into visiting her office every two weeks. This is yet another huge milestone that we will hit in only a month and I'm very excited for it. The down side to the next appointment is that it will be the dreaded glucose test. Again, for those of you who haven't had this fun, you get to fast before going into the doctor. I was always told 12 hours, but I've heard some people have shorter or longer fasts. You go in and drink a really nasty, sugary concoction (mine was orange last time) and sit and wait for an hour so they can check your blood sugar levels for signs of gestational diabetes. Obviously, we want to avoid this complication if at all possible since it brings with it the most bland and awful diet known to man. I was lucky enough not to develop it last time, so we'll hope my luck holds. Thankfully, I was able to schedule an appointment for 8:30am this time. With Katie, I had to do mine at 2:30pm and they made me fast from midnight...by the time I could eat (approximately 4:00pm), I was very very sick. This will be much nicer.

I'm trying to think of whether I have missed anything. Lovenox shots continue, of course, and we checked to see if there was a possibility of doing them anywhere but the stomach (like the thigh) since it's really getting painful. My stomach is one very very large bruise (each time I do a shot, a bruise the approximate size of a golf ball appears and remains for a week or so - imagine what your stomach looks like after a while. You have to find new spots that aren't in the bruise to stick each day, but then you can't use that spot again until the bruising heals) and with Jellybean kicking as she does, it's a painful combination. I did *just* learn (why did no one tell me this???) that it's good to aim for your "love handles" to avoid a lot of this kind of pain and so I started that a couple of days ago. It hurts a bit more to give the shot, but if it gives my belly a break, I'm all for it. Unfortunately, the stomach is the only area my doctor will allow me to give these shots (but that includes the love handles), so I'll keep looking for new real estate....perhaps I should gain more weight just to increase the space....

Whew - I thought this would be brief, but I guess more happened than I thought :) In any case, all is looking good and Jellybean is doing just fine. It's all good news and I thank God every day that we have made it this far and hope we continue to do as well for the next fifteen weeks.