36 weeks & We're back on track!!!

Sorry for the delayed update. I was taken off bed rest yesterday & I went straight to Reserve to see Haley because it had been weeks since I saw the little monster. Once I got home, I visited with Jason for a little while & crashed. I can't believe I slept so long (13 hrs.) At yesterday's appointment my AFI went up to 8.9!! Dr. Mullins was very surprised that my AFI leaving the hospital was 6.9. He was under the impression that it was around 13 when I was discharged. Thank goodness for misunderstandings because from what the doctor said I should have been kept in the hospital through the weekend with an AFI under 8! I was given a copy of my chart & admit papers for the hospital because I can go into labor any day now which is exciting & scary at the same time. The doctor said I am 1 cm dilated which is progress from last week, but he wants me to go on short walks at night to get me moving again & to encourage progress. He thinks gradual progess over the next few weeks will help me stick to my goal of having a natural birth by reducing the amount of progress that could happen on the day of delivery. Above all he wants me to continue to drink water as much as possible to keep my fluid levels up. I'll have another ultrasound on Monday & hopefully my AFI will stay up.

Conner's Nursery is Finished!

35 weeks - Night at the Hospital & Bed Rest Again!

Yesterday's doctors appointment was no fun. My AFI level was 5.7, so I was admitted into the hospital. Jason & I stayed the night at the Hospital. (Poor Jason slept on the tiniest chair ever made.) This morning Jason had to go to work so I had a nice quiet day. While there they gave me 2,613 ml of saline fluid with dextrose over the course of 21 1/2 hrs. It raised my level to 6.45 which isn't great but is getting better. They also measured Conner's size & he's now 5 lbs 2oz. I was released this afternoon to go home & stay on bed rest until further notice.

Dear Family & Friends,

Your support & love during our pregnancy has been overwhelming. Jason & I would like to thank you all for being so wonderful the past few months.

-Special thanks to our moms who have helped so much especially with cleaning and painting the house to get it ready for Conner’s arrival. He is one lucky grandson!

-Thanks to my sisters and brother-in-law who have been amazing, as usual, helping at the house and being my shoulder when I need one.

-A big thanks to Zack & Jay for helping us move, Beth & Adam for making our move less stressful by helping us find the essentials we needed, and Kallie & Dustin for bringing us water when the U-Haul broke down.

-Thank you to Bridgette for all you’ve done especially visiting while I was on bed rest. You really saved my sanity!

-Thanks to all of our family & friends who have been so helpful. We are blessed to have such loving people around us & are so glad you’re going to be a part of Conner’s life.

We Love You All!!


Because most people who are planning to come to the hospital will be driving 30 minutes or more to meet Conner, we thought we’d share the rules and regulations on visitation Woman’s Hospital has told us about, so there are no surprises later and no one drives out of their way to have a frustrating visit.

Basic Info:
Visiting hours are from 9 AM- 9PM. Mother/baby rooms are located on the 3rd, 4th & 5th floors. Parking is available in the garage for a flat rate of $2 & has a walkway to the hospital on the 2nd floor. There is free parking around the hospital in parking lots also. The hospital cafeteria is on the first floor by the lobby & there are vending machines throughout the hospital. There is also a Subway on the first floor of the Physicians Tower. The hospital has free wireless internet available. To call the recovery room from outside the hospital dial (225) 231-5 + the room number. For patient room information call (225) 924-8157.

Labor:
During labor only four people (Jason, his parents & my mom) are allowed to come into the room. Please understand that the hospital makes this rule (not us.) During the delivery, only Jason & I will be in the room.

Visiting:
After Conner is born the hospital will notify our family in the waiting room by paging the family member with the hospital beeper (yes, like at a restaurant.) We decided to trust Conner’s Nanny with the beeper, so once Janelle is paged she will share the news with everyone in the waiting room. Generally visitors are limited to one or two at a time. (We are going to talk to the nurse about this because we realize this is going to be hard with our large families & people driving to visit.) Because of this rule we ask that only family visit the day of delivery so we don’t get in too much trouble for having too many people in the room at a time.

Very productive Sunday!

Today was great!! Jason woke me up with breakfast in bed. It was so sweet. We spent the day working on the house (surprise, surprise right?) Jason was in the yard ALL DAY. It was the first time he's had a chance to work outside the house & he accomplished a lot. I spent the day inside. It's crazy that I'm still organizing everything, but we're really close to being finished.

Melissa came visit after Sigma's Bid Day, so I got to hear about their very successful week. I'm so happy for them. It was fun to just sit & talk for a while. & she got to see the progress on the nursery.

Janelle & Wayne came by again today to bring some things from Reserve. (Thanks Aunt Juliette for the bottles!) They also helped Jason & I put up Conner's shelf. Thank you guys! We're so lucky Conner is going to have family like you.

Arts & Crafts - Charissa & Aiden Visits

Someone needs to keep me away from Hobby Lobby. I went to buy wooden sports pieces to put on Conner's shelf to cover the hearts that were originally carved & got creative. I made inexpensive closet dividers (take that Babies R' Us for trying to sell them to me for $10.) to match Conner's nursery.

Janelle & Wayne brought the bed & shelf that are going to go in Conner's room. I feel like things are starting to come together. I can't wait to have the crib set-up & the room finished.

This evening Charissa & Aiden came to visit. Aiden & Jason bonded over Madden '11. If Conner has the same interest in TV & video games as Aiden, we should have no problem entertaining him. Charissa also let me know that I have my glider set-up incorrectly, so now I'm in a mission to figure that beast out. It was so great to sit & visit. It makes me really happy to be back in Hammond.

** I figured out the glider!! That sucker is tricky. **

Still working on the Nursery!

Finally got the time to paint Conner's name on the wall. His crib will go under it. I'm not a Cubs fan, but Jason is so he is very happy about the logo. I am glad we found a fun way to put Conner's name in his nursery & it matches the colors on his bedding.

Hopefully soon I'll be able to share pictued of the completed nursery.

34 weeks - Getting better

Today's appointment went well. The ultrasound was quick (just checking fluid levels) so I barely got to see Conner. The ultrasound tech pointed out how low Conner has dropped (it was hard to see his face around my hips) & that made me realize just how close we are to his due date.
My AFI level is up to 8.1 from 6.4, so I no longer have to be on bed rest (WooHoo!) My levels are still considered low, so I have to keep hydrating like crazy. Jason, aka the water nazi, is making sure I drink as much water as my body can hold.
I gained a pound from last week, but I am still 6 pounds below where the doctor would like me to be. As a result the doctor added Ensure to my diet to try to get some extra pounds on me. Yuck! But whatever works.
Since my weight & amniotic fluids are low I have to go back next week & have another ultrasound (Yep, #8.) If my fluids are okay, it should be my last ultrasound of the pregnancy. Hopefully by next week my AFI will be 10 or higher.
On Sunday we're going to tour the hospital. Thank goodness we'll have a chance to get familiar with it before Conner is here.

I hate water & being in bed

I am miserable! Hopefully it'll work & tomorrow's appointment will go well. I just don't think I can do this any longer. I am not made for bed rest or to consume this much water. Ugh - thank goodness Bridgette came visit today for a while or I would have lost my mind!

Yay! Progress is being made in the nursery.

Well, one side of the nursery is done. After tomorrow hopefully we'll be a little further along. Poor Jason has worked his butt off today. I am drinking as much water as I can, but gosh I hate it. Mrs. Susan sent me a recipe for Adele's Green Drink so tomorrow when the organic/health food store in downtown Hammond is open Jason is going to pick up the ingredients & hopefully that'll help. Today's fruit of the day has been grapes. Yum! Conner has been passing the movement tests that the doctor asked me to do. (After each meal I have to count his movements. If he moves less than 8 times in an hour I need to call the doctor.) It usually only takes 5-10 mins for him to reach 8 movements. Hopefully tomorrow will be as sucessful as today.

33 weeks - Bedrest

I had a doctor's appointment today at 9 am. I lost 2 lbs (most likely from working on the new house so much recently) and Conner's heart rate was low again, so we did an ultrasound AGAIN. Jason thinks we are going to set a world record for the most ultrasounds in one pregnancy. We've had 6! During the ultrasound we found out that Conner now weighs 4 lbs 9 oz & is the cutest thing ever. He kept playing peek-a-boo when the tech was trying to get a picture of his face. The ultrasound also showed that my amniotic fluid levels are low. Darn this Louisiana heat! To try to get my levels up, the doctor has put me on bed rest until I have a follow up ultrasound on Wednesday (that's right #7 is already scheduled.) While on bed rest, I am going to try to hydrate as best as I can & hopefully that will get my levels up. Jason's going to get me a watermelon on the way home to help get more fluids in me. Yum!