35w4d Doc appt

I went to the doctor today and was very anxious. I had the ultrasound first only to find out that Jaxson only gained less than 200 grams or 3 oz. He is now 4 pounds 13 ounces. At this point in pregnancy baby's are suppose to pack on 1/2 - 1 pound per week. He's in the 10-15 percentile which makes for a small baby. Most babies weigh close to 6 pounds by now.

Dr. B isn't too concerned over this because she put him on a growth chart and that's where he's been the whole time. He's border line IUGR and we will continue to watch him. If he dips below 10% then we will worry. Ha! Like I'm not already worried. I'd much rather here that my baby is packing on the weight and thriving then wonder if he's not getting what he needs.

My blood pressure was 125/85 at my appointment but my urine looked good so that is another thing we will keep our eye on. If I get a headache that won't go away or start seeing spots I'm to call immediately.

Because Jaxson is not 5 pounds yet she said she doesn't want me to stop the terb pump until Wednesday when I turn 36 weeks so that he can have a little more time to reach the 5 pound mark. If born under 5 pounds, baby's are sent to the NICU because they have trouble keeping their body temperature up, that is why 5 pounds is such a push to get to.

I asked her about what she has seen in regards to people coming off the terb pump and then going into labor. She said its unpredictable. Sometimes women go into labor immediately and others take several days or don't go into labor at all. She said that isn't common so that I should be looking at going into labor soon after I stop the pump. She even mentioned that she wasn't on call this weekend in case I wanted to wait until Monday to stop the pump.

She checked my cervix and I have made a little progress! I'm 1 cm dilated and 25-30% effaced

I plan on going off the pump at 12:01 am Wednesday, ha! So I will update if anything happens.

Hmmm...

well it seems my blood pressure has been on the high side this past weekend. I noticed my face feeling puffy on Friday and especially Saturday. I started tracking my BP on Friday night and my diastolic pressure has been high. I've been running around 120/(90-100) all weekend. This can be a sign of preelampsia or maybe a side effect of prolonged terbutaline use, I'm not sure. Guess we will see tomorrow when I go to the doctor.

I've decided that a bday of 10-01-10 or 10-10-10 would be pretty cool. 10-01 is on Friday so that sure would work for me :)

I'll go ahead and knock on wood that I'm not jinxing myself for a latter delivery but if you can remember the reason I was induced with Brody was because my BP was high

35 Weeks

We made it another week! I'm getting very anxious for the 36 week mark when my terb pump will be stopped. Everything I've researched online points to going into labor within 2-7 days after the terb has been stopped. I'm sure I will be one of those few that goes the distance and will have to be induced! I'm definitely ready for this little guy to come out. I know he's better off right now staying inside but it's hard living out the movie "Groundhog Day". I'm ready for this chapter to be over and to have him safe in my arms. I've been on bed rest for 5 weeks now and will hopefully be given more privileges next week as I am about to go stir crazy.

I went to the doctor on Monday but didn't get to see my doctor :( She had been on call all weekend so wasn't in Monday morning. I did see her assistant and she checked my cervix which was still closed. I was contracting every 4 minutes but baby looked good. I am having a lot more cramping now. Feels like menstrual cramps that are pretty strong at times. I didn't have these with Brody so I'm not sure what is causing them. I hope it's my cervix starting to prepare for birth! I've gained 21 pounds thus far which I think is pretty good considering I've been on bed rest for 5 weeks and I'm not burning many calories.

Jaxson weighed 4 lbs and 9 oz which is still measuring 2 weeks behind but thankfully he put on some more weight.

Jaxson's 35 week development:
Your baby weighs about 5 ½ pounds now and measures about 18.9 inches long. As you know each baby has a different weight and length at birth, so these measurements are just an average. Now your baby will start it’s most rapid weight gain, adding ½ to ¾ of a pound every week until they are born.

You may be able to distinguish body parts such as a head, hand or foot now that your baby is getting larger and your uterus is getting thinner. Baby’s hearing has completely developed now and the lungs are very close to being complete and ready for birth.

The kidneys are fully developed and the liver is able to process waste products. Fat is continues to accumulate at a rapid pace now, which will help your baby stay warm after they are born

34 Weeks

This is a HUGE milestone! If Jaxson were to be born he is now making enough surfactant so that his lungs would be able to handle his breathing without needing support. It does make me sad to read below that he is suppose to weigh 5 lbs and we know this little guy only weighs 4. Please continue to pray that he grows and catches up in weight. It's very important for them to be plump so that they can maintain their body temperature and have enough energy to eat the amount that they need to eat. Brody was pretty small and grew by leaps and bounds once we got him here. I'm hoping that once Jaxson comes my milk comes in quickly so that he can do the same.

Just yesterday I felt like Jaxson had dropped because I was having a lot of pelvic pressure and pain but it might just be that he's getting bigger. Brody and I are doing pretty good together as long as Brody gets some outside time when Papa gets home for lunch or in the evenings. Otherwise he goes a little stir crazy. Daddy is missing us like crazy and hates coming home to an empty house. We are gonna go home tonight to spend some family time. Other than that I'm just trying to get through each week/day the best I can.

We only have around 28 days left if not less!

The quality of this pic is terrible because it was at night with my camera phone but I wanted to get something up.

Here’s Jaxson’s Development this week:
Besides looking like a newborn at 34 weeks of pregnancy, your baby is acting like a newborn as well. His eyes open when he’s awake and close when he is sleeping. His sleeping cycles are the same now as they will be when he is born. He has learned to blink and can see better when a bright light is shined on your stomach. He recognizes voice and sound patterns from the outside world and is most comforted by the sound of your voice.
He weighs about 5 pounds now and is about 18 inches long. His fingernails have reached the end of his fingertips at week 34 of pregnancy and he may even scratch his face before he is born. His fat layers are growing every week to fill up that wrinkly skin and he may have already turned into the head down position for labor. Your baby’s central nervous system is still maturing, and his lungs are almost fully ready to breathe air. If your baby is born this week, he has a 99% chance of survival outside of the womb, pretty darn good odds.

Random Pictures

Thanks to technology I'm able to get some pictures quickly from facebook or other sources that people have taken while I'm on bed rest and Brody has different events to attend!

This pic was taken at my uncle's bday party a week or so before I went on bed rest

Brody bowling at Ben's bday party! He LOVED it



Andy & Brody at TBall game

Playing in the pool at Granny's

34 week doc appt

I went to the doctor yesterday for another check on Jaxson. He grew to 4 lbs since Thursday but is still measuring 2 weeks behind. The doctor was happy that he grew and said she isn't worried unless he gets further behind or stops growing all together. But as long as there is some growth he's better in than out.

Other than that it was the usually blood pressure and weight check which hasn't changed in 4 days :)

She said we will talk next Monday about giving me more privileges at home and then the following week, 35 weeks, we will talk about stopping the terb pump but she isn't sure if she wants to do that at 35 or 36 weeks considering I still average 6 contractions per hour on the terb, we think once the terb is stopped I have a very high possibility of going into labor soon after.

Hard to believe we've made it this long and that I'm 34 weeks this week! That means we only have 4 weeks left at most!!

We got a good look at Jaxson's face yesterday and I can tell he looks different than Brody but has the same chubby cheeks :) cannot wait to meet this little one!

33 week doctor update

Just got back from the doctor. My cervix is still closed and Dr. B is running my final FFN test! We should know the results tomorrow. She's very happy that my cervix is still closed and said Jaxson's head isn't pushing down on the cervix yet which is good.

He is measuring small and is almost 2 weeks behind in his growth but she said it's something we will have to keep our eye on and see if he catches up. Brody wasn't very big either so I'm trying not to worry about it. He's estimated to weigh 3 lbs 8 oz.

I go back on Monday for another growth scan and will go again the following Monday. We will check his growth weekly from here on out to make sure he doesn't get further behind.

We will also continue what I'm doing with the terb pump and bedrest.

Until next time,
LeAnn

33 weeks

Jaxson's 33 week development:
This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead. These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

It's hard to believe this little guy is 17 inches long! He's definitely a boney little man always poking my sides. So far I've been able to feel his elbows and feet. I'm so thankful we made it another week! One more week until the big goal of 34weeks! At that point Jaxson's lungs are well developed and he will just spend the remaining time fattening up. I go to the doctor tomorrow for a growth ultrasound, check Jaxson's fluid levels and make sure his heart is still good from the motrin I had in the hospital 2 weeks ago.

My contractions have been great this week and we haven't had to make any adjustments to my medicine. Bed rest is going. It's hard but having Brody makes a HUGE difference. His hugs, kisses and loving make it impossible for me to get depressed or sad that I'm doing nothing but laying around. I just hope he doesn't think he has a big lump of a log for a mom. I am able to get down on the ground and play with him so I think he appreciates that :)

I will update tomorrow after my appointment

18 Months

On the 20th Brody turned 18 months and it was also the week from you know where for us!! He had a doctor's appointment for his 18 month check-up but that ended up turning into a sick visit because he had a virus. If you remember back he's ALWAYS sick on his well baby visits and we NEVER get his vaccines on time! EVERY SINGLE TIME! It has happened. I was actually very surprised he was sick this time around as he hadn't been anywhere but half a day at daycare and then to walmart. That's where he got it!

He weighed 24.4 lbs and I will have to see what his length was. The doctor was shocked by how much he has grown!

-He's outgrown all his 18 month clothes! Wears 24 months but we will have to check his pants now that it's cooler and see if he's still in 18 months or if 24 months will be too long

-Size 4 diapers

-Eats anything and everything! Favorites right now are popsicles and watermelon.

-New words are open although he says it "mut-mut"(hope this is normal!) I have no clue how open became mutmut but that's how he says it! Ruffruff, moo, bubba and many others that I cannot remember at the moment.

-He's loving cars and tools right now.

He's perfect in every way and I'm LOVING this time I have with him before his brother's arrival. That is the biggest positive I have with bedrest. We would be working and at daycare right now and I wouldn't have all this quality time with Brody that I'm blessed to have right now. I'm SOAKING every day up with him.

32 Weeks

We've had a really good week! (Knocking on wood) We were at my parents house this week while my dad was off. They went to the zoo, toy store and park to feed the ducks. We are probably going to stay at my parents since I seem to stay down the most there and had such a good week. When I'm at home there's so much I want/need to do that it's harder for me to stay down. We are going to see how this week goes because both my parents will be at work. We are setting up a bed in the living room and they will put breakfast on the stand for when we wake up. My dad comes home at lunch for a hour, sometimes longer and then Brody goes down for a nap around 12:30 for 3 hours or so. So really I won't be left with home alone long. I think the main thing is me not picking him up and luckily he's at the age where he can crawl up to me or I can stay down on his level.

Jaxson has been a lot more active this week and my contractions have stayed around 3-6 per hour. I went to the doctor on Tuesday and my cervix is still closed. I start going weekly for ultrasounds to check on Jaxson's growth. We discussed briefly about when we will pull the terb pump and she is thinking around 35 weeks.

Here's Jaxson's development this week:
By week 32, your baby weighs nearly 4 pounds! The crown-to-rump length of your baby is approximately 11.7 inches and the total length is about 18.9 inches. Sleeping boy, the baby sleeps 90-95% of the day, and sometimes experiences REM sleep, an indication of dreaming. The wrinkles in your baby's face are disappearing and fat is still being deposited throughout the baby's body. The body growth slows down from now on.
Finally got belly pics!


Here's my 32 weeker with Brody for comparision: