Induction Scheduled!

Well, after having yet another round of tests that show Baby Daily doing just fine (and the fact that my cervix is still very "unfavorable") we have come to the conclusion that he is very content where he is. All signs indicate that he will continue to hang out for quite a while!

We talked with the doctor at length and have scheduled an induction for January 10th, which is the first day after the due date that my regular doctor is on call. We all agree that since my body is showing no signs of being ready, my sugars are well controlled, and Baby Daily is in the 50th percentile for growth, there simply isn't a need to take him out early. Going until the 10th gives us a good balance of waiting for him to come on his own vs. the risks that come with the diabetes. Of course, I still have to go in 2x next week for NSTs, but chances are they will be completely normal.

I am getting tired of going to the doctor all the time. At least there is an end in sight...only 12 more days!

12/26 Appointment

Our NST today revealed nothing but a healthy baby. The doctor we saw today said that nothing she saw would indicate that they would need to induce me early. The scare he gave the docs last Monday must have been a one time thing, since he has performed perfectly on his three tests since then. We go in again on Friday, but we're not making any predictions this time. This baby will come when he's ready!

Dr. Appointment 12/22

My fluid is up to 13 cm and the little guy did fine on his tests today, so no Christmas baby. We are a bit disappointed, but the longer he is inside the better for his lungs. The good news is that my cervix has softened since Monday and I am a teeny tiny bit dilated...so things are progressing. We go back in on Tuesday. We are looking forward to having a quiet Christmas with just the two of us, but here's to hoping he makes his appearance next week!

NST 12/20

Well, today's NST was just fine and I was in and out within a half hour. So, we wait until Friday.

Nursery Pictures

Here are some pictures of our nursery. We think it looks cuter in person than the photos show; its hard to get good pictures of such a small room. Since the room is pretty small, we've opted for minimal "foo foo decorations." We do have some decorative letters that spell out his name, but they must remain hidden until after the birth!

Trip to Labor and Delivery 12/18/06

Well, we spent 5 hours at Labor and Delivery today - but no baby. It was a long day of waiting and waiting...doesn't Marc look excited?

I had a NST this morning and the doc was concerned with the fact that the baby's hearbeat was quite low during a very mild contraction. So, off we went for more tests at the hospital.

I was hooked up to the fetal monitor for at least 3 hours and the baby performed great. I also had another ultrasound, which showed that the baby is doing fine despite my continuing low fluid (7.4 cm today). The doctor believes that the low fluid and the low fetal heartrate are due to placental insufficiency, a common side effect of Gestational Diabetes. She thinks that my placenta is beginning to burn out and that it is only a matter of time before conditions inside become less than favorable for our little dude.

We can tell that the doc believes this baby should come out soon, but since all of the tests show that he is still doing okay, we wait. She was hesitant to induce labor today because my cervix is really not showing any signs of being ready and inducing at this stage would most likely put me into a c-section. (We'd all like to avoid that if we can!) In addition, GD babies have immature lungs, so the longer we keep him in the better. The doc did say that if I were already 2-3 cm dialated, I probably would have been induced today. But, I'm not - so we wait. I have more rounds of tests on Wednesday and on Friday.

We are slightly disappointed after spending much of the day thinking - "He's coming! We finally get to meet him!" - but we obviously want what is best for our little man so we are content to wait. At least we've had a trial run and know the routine at the hospital. Our bags are packed, in the car, and we're ready to go when the time comes!

12/15/06

Today I had to go to Labor and Delivery for my tests since the regular ob's office was closed due to the power outages. They did another NST and it wasn't bad, but it wasn't good (his heartrate dipped low a few times again). So, they sent me upstairs for another ultrasound to check my fluid. We went from 6.5 on Tuesday to 9.4 today. So, the bed rest and water are working well. I go in again on Monday for another NST and on Tuesday for another fluid check. As long as my levels stay the same, or continue to increase they will keep him cooking longer. So...he may come closer to his due date after all.

36 Week Update (12/13/06)

We had our 36 week ultrasound yesterday and the good news is that our son is doing well. They estimate his weight to be 6 pounds 9 ounces, which is just fine. We also had another NST yesterday and his heartrate did exactly what it was supposed to do.

The bad news is that the ultrasound revealed that I am once again plagued with low amniotic fluid. My fluid level was at 6.5 cm, lower than it has ever been. Consequently, I have been placed on strict bedrest, which means no more school for me! I can only get up to use the restroom. Thankfully Friday is the last day of school before winter break, so I am only 3 sick days and I'll still have plenty for my maternity leave. I am surprisingly not stressed about this, mostly because I know that at this point he'd be just fine if he arrived today.
I'm sure that this bed rest thing will get old in about two days, but for now, here's to laying on the couch, drinking water, reading and watching daytime tv! Not to mention I have an excuse not to do dishes.

The doctors are hoping that strict bed rest and drinking a ton of fluids will help elevate my amniotic fluid levels. They want to keep him in through 37 weeks, if they can. I go back to the office for more NSTs (fetal monitoring) on Friday 12/15, Monday 12/18 and another fluid check on Tuesday or Wenesday of next week. If the levels have increased, they will keep him inside as long as he is not in distress. If my fluid levels haven't increased, or if he shows signs of distress, then we will need to discuss inducing.

I have a feeling this little guy will make his appearance before his due date (1/6). In fact, my prediction is that he will be here before Christmas. I hope not, but we'll see. Dad really wants the tax break for 2006 (which would be nice!), but I'd be happier if he came closer to New Years.

34 Weeks

Our little boy is growing, but luckily, not too quickly. I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes in September, which means that I need to test my blood sugar 4x per day, watch my carb intake, and take some diabetes medication. All in all, it hasn't been that bad and it will go away once I deliver. It does mean that Baby Daily has to be watched carefully, as GD babies often get big bellies, which make them difficult to deliver. I've been able to control my sugars pretty darn well and our last ultrasound at 32 weeks found Baby Daily to be right on track for weight and size. He weighed 4 pounds, 4 ounces. His femur bones, however, were large for his gestational age, which neither Marc nor I can quite figure out, seeing as how we are short people. At any rate, my next ultrasound is next week (36 weeks) and this one will give us more of an indication of whether or not I will need a c-section or not. Since I'm on diabetes medication, I do have to go into the doctor for weekly fetal monitoring, as the medication can cause premature deterioration of the placenta. Last week his heartrate had some unusually low dips, which concerned the doctor and they almost sent me to the hospital. The OB kept me on the fetal monitor for about an hour and had try lying in various positions (back, left side, right side) to see if that helped. Finally, his heartrate went back to normal with no low dips and they let me go home, figuring that my positioning was probably squishing the main artery going to the uterus when we got the low readings. So, I have to be careful to lie only on my side. I do know that they will not let me go past my due date (January 6th) because of the GD. Last time we talked to the OB about it, she mentioned I would probably be induced Jan 2nd or 3rd if Baby Daily is not yet here on his own accord. Only 4 weeks to go!

Getting Bigger

On April 29th we found out we were expecting. That's me holding the positive pregnancy test at about 6 in the morning. The next picures were taken at the beginning of September (22 weeks), beginning of October (26 weeks) and in November (33 weeks). I'll get a December one on here soon.