38 Weeks

Well we have reached 38 weeks and still no baby, and we were so worried we wouldn't reach 34 weeks. I think little Abigail enjoys being in my belly and doesn't want to come out. I went to the dr. on Thursday and I'm 3.5 cm dilated with a paperthin cervix and her head has moved even lower. We went ahead and scheduled an induction for 4/8 so we will definitely have a little baby by then. My feet are still swelling, the right foot more than the left, it looks like an elephant foot and I can only fit into 1 pair of shoes.

A big thank you to Momma Jo and Pop for taking me to lunch today and helping me organize Abigail's room, I think everything is ready, if she would just get here.

Another Week

I had a Dr. appt yesterday and she is surprised little Abigail is still hanging on since my cervix is paper thin, I'm still 3cm dilated, so she stripped my membranes. See below information about the membranes:

As you probably know, the bag of waters is inside the uterus, and the bag is composed of membranes. The membranes tend to cling to the wall of the uterus until after the baby is born and the placenta is expelled. As the cervix begins to soften and open (dilate) at the end of pregnancy, the part of the membranes that was over the cervical opening can be felt through the opening when a vaginal exam is done. "Stripping the membranes" is done by inserting a finger between the membranes and the wall of the uterus to loosen the membranes from the wall. Sometimes, this stimulation of the uterine wall can help to start labor. Sometimes, the loosening of the membranes allows more water to collect in front of the baby which puts more pressure on the cervix and perhaps labor is stimulated that way. The procedure can be a little uncomfortable for some women. If the woman is truly near delivery, she often gets a contraction as a result of the procedure.

She said if Abigail hasn't come by next Thursday we will schedule an induction date just in case for April 8th. At this point I feel like I'm going to be pregnant forever!

Almost 36 Weeks

I went to a weekly Dr. Appt yesterday and I am still 90% effaced and now I am 3 cm dilated. Dr. Riseling also felt my belly to try to estimate little Abigail's weight and she said she is a good size baby and estimates 6-6.5lbs right now! I told her it must have been all the oreos I ate on bedrest. I also showed her my legs/feet that have started to swell, but she said its only mild/moderate and since my blood pressure is fine its perfectly normal. Dr. Riseling would like me to make it another week and since my contractions have been very mild this is possible, however she said she would be surprised if I lasted another 2 weeks (although it's possible, but unlikely).

BACK TO WORK!

I had a FABULOUS Dr. Appt today. Dr. Riseling said that things look good and since my contractions are infrequent with minor discomfort I can go back to work this Monday 3/10!!!!!! I'm so excited.
Since nothing has really changed from last Thursday she decided to wait to check my cervix until next Thursday. I will also be checked for Group B Strep Infection at the next appt. This is a common infection in pregnant women so they check for this at week 36 and if it's a positive result they give me antibiotics during delivery so its not passed to the baby. At this point we just wait for REAL contractions to start then we go to the hospital to have a baby. Hooray!

Another Week Behind Us

I saw my regular Dr today and she did another fFN test today (should get results tomorrow) and if this is negative she will consider removing me from bedrest the week of March 10th, I will be 35 weeks that week and she feels more comfortable. However, she manually checked my cervix and I am 90% effaced and 1cm dilated. So she definitely wants me to remain on bedrest at least 1 week, 2 at the most. She said at 36 weeks (week of March 17) she has no problem with me resuming regular activity (including working), but she thinks once I'm 36 weeks labor will not be far behind, more than likely I will not make it to the original April 13th due date. Everything else looks good, I'm measuring on target and Abigail's heartrate was good.


FYI: Just found out the fFN test was Negative, woohoo!

Released from High Risk Dr.!

I had a good report on Friday at the high risk doctor, I have been released from their office and only have to see my regular doctor going forward. They didn't measure my cervix or do the fFN test, because they no longer do this once your 33 weeks. The dr still wants me to remain on bedrest....yuck, and I am still being monitored (at home) twice a day for contractions. The contractions aren't bad yet, most of time I don't even notice them, the doctor has assured me I will definitely feel them once labor truly begins....joy, joy. So we have another week behind us, hooray! Our next major milestone is next Sat when I am 34 weeks. Little Abigail's lungs should be more mature by then so if she comes early she will have minimal time in the NICU.

A big thank you to mom, Julie, and Aunt Carolyn for coming over this weekend to clean and wash Abigail's clothes. She has tons of clothes and mostly pink, so hopefully she likes this color, ha ha. Yesterday Chris put together her swing and we put a baby doll in it to test it out; I didn't realize the swing would move that fast on the high setting, little Abigail will probably enjoy the slower settings.

Furbaby Annabelle had to go to the vet this weekend, she had an upset stomach (vomiting and diarrhea), however she has been on meds for 2 days now and feels much better. A big thank you to cousin Jen for taking care of her at the vet even though it's obvious Annabelle did not appreciate her.

Our next Dr. Appt is this Thursday, hopefully Dr. Riseling has an easy time finding her hearbeat, little Abigail has been such a wiggle worm lately and is all over the place.

Friday - High Risk Dr.

I went to the high risk dr this morning (Dr. BK) and the ultrasound went well, they decided not to check the length of my cervix since they did that last Friday and I also had a negative fFN test last Friday. Little Abigail is head down (her head is way down, which causes my bladder to spasm, yuck), and the tech said she has lots of hair! She weighs approx. 3lbs 14oz, which is average and all her other organs look good. She didn't want to move that much during the ultrasound so they also hooked me up to the contraction/heartrate monitor, so they could monitor her activity over a 30 minute period. She decided to wake up and was moving around like crazy while the monitor was on my belly, she tried to move the monitor several times and Chris said it looked like I have a alien moving in my belly! I was also having contractions, which I didn't realize without looking at the monitor, it only feels like slight cramping and very manageable. Matria (the company that gives me a contraction machine to monitor the contractions at home) is coming out this afternoon to hook up the machine and show me how to use it, this way we can see how many contractions I have and the strength of them. The nurse said if my contractions continue on this path they will probably increase the procardia (meds that help relax my uterus) and the contractions will probably decrease. I go back next Friday for another checkup.