My doctors appointment started out shaky when the nurse finishes taking my blood pressure and looks at me and asks if I've been taking it a lot lately, which I haven't. I told her no, what is it?! She said she didn't want to tell me because I would only worry... ummmm... too late. It was 140/100 which isn't crazy high but it's not ideal and mine typically runs around 110/70ish. She told me to calm down (impossible) and she would go make sure there was no protein in my urine then recheck my BP. She left the room and I was flipping out... I know the symptoms of preeclampsia but immediately whipped out my doctor iphone apps and started perusing. The room was also about 1000 degrees and I start sweating which did not help my calmness. My sweet nurse pops her head back in to let me know that there's no protein in my urine and everything was going to be fine. I tried to calm down and when she retook the BP it was 128/90... better but not ideal. I don't know what my deal was but I felt like I was going to cry when all this was going down? I started second guessing how much I'd been feeling her move, her size, etc. and had some serious worries going on.
The doctor came in and was asking about how much I'm exercising, how I'm feeling and all that stuff. I told her I still feel totally fine and although we haven't had time to go walk at night we had been staying super busy every night working on house stuff. I also told her that Harper hadn't been moving a ton that morning (she must've been feeling lazy cause she's been a busybee yesterday and today) and that I was concerned about how big my belly was measuring. Because of the marginally high BP and possibly decreased movements she asked me to have a nonstress test done that afternoon. The NST went fine! She looked great on the monitor and I had 7-8 contractions in the 30 minutes I was hooked up. They weren't strong or regular or anything so nothing to be concerned about. At the end of the appt, they did my first cervical check and the excitement continued. After she finishes she says, wow! (not something you ever want to hear at the lady doctors office) She then told me I'm 4 cm dilated and 75% effaced and was not really expecting that at all! I had asked her to feel my belly and make sure she's still head down but she said she wouldn't need to do that since she was able to feel the sutures of her skull during the exam... cray cray!! She went ahead and ordered me an ultrasound to check size and fluid levels but the earliest I could get in is next Tuesday and the doctor kept alluding to the fact that there's a good chance I might not be pregnant when the ultrasound rolls around.
Andy didn't come to this appt since they had to do all the fun exam parts so I was trying to text him to keep in the loop... wish I could've seen his face. I think we both had a minor freak out on Monday. I immediately left that appt, went home and packed all three of our hospital bags then headed back for the NST. I was worried my BP would be even higher or she wouldn't look good on the monitors and we'd be admitted into the hospital. Needless to say, that didn't happen thankfully! I really didn't ask a whole lot of questions at the end of my visit because I was just so shocked and worried but Andy had a ton... he said he wanted to schedule a conference call with Dr. Dad ;) This has been the most motivating news ever for us - Andrew has gotten SO much stuff done around the house this week and has also put me on husband imposed bedrest. haha. Not really but he is trying to keep me from doing anything physical at all. After I sort the laundry he even loads it as he thinks all that bending over may squeeze Harper on out ;)
After all this excitement, I've done a lot of googling and talking to other people and have found out that this actually isn't super uncommon for people to be dilated for a while before going into labor. Mom said she was dilated 3 cm for 3 weeks with David and same with Aunt Jennifer. Dad said that basically all this means is the whole labor process should be a lot faster for me which will be nice. If my BP is high again he said it's likely they would go ahead and offer induction. It also means we aren't leaving Lexington until there is a baby in the car with us ;)
I was kind of surprised at how scared/unprepared I felt when I thought her arrival may be imminent... I'm guessing that even if she came on her due date I would still feel the same way simply because how can you ever really be prepared for something like this?! It's calming that if she comes now she will at least be a full term baby but I know babies continue to do better the longer they are in there. A few people have asked me now if I have a feeling of when she will come... no clue. I do know that I am supposed to work 5 10-hour ER shifts next week and would love to get those done prebaby but all that standing around probably isn't going to encourage her to sit tight. One of my best friends is also working in the newborn nursery the first week of July so she would be there to protect sweet Harper from any other med students who may be lurking around trying to practice their physical exams on her ;) On Monday when I was convinced she'd come any moment I thought of all the awesome things about her being born in June... haha! I have pros to both a June or July birthday so whenever she comes will be perfect no matter what :) Is it weird that I'm hoping my water breaks in some dramatic fashion? Preferably something public and embarrassing that will serve as a good story in the future ;)
Last weekend we had another amazing baby shower in Meade County! Lisa and Jan did such an awesome job and everything was so cute!! They had asked our Moms to bring baby pics of us and Andy and I were just about as opposite as you can possibly get. He was a blonde baby with blue eyes and I had such dark hair and dark eyes. I should've asked the doctor if she felt hair when she was touching Harper's head ;) We really have nearly everything we need for our girl and are so thankful for everyone's gifts! We got our pack n play set up in our room and we're just waiting for a baby to fill it. Andy also put together our strollers and I am SO pumped to take her on walks :)
Her room is looking much more put together but is still not quite finished. Carrie and David have ordered her a painting that will go up on one wall. I'm also going to get canvases of her newborn pics to put above her changing table after those are taken. Here's a couple pics of the current progress:
We've got one more shower this weekend that I am super excited about - the Brownie girls and OJ are hosting it here in Lexington at our house. I'm so excited to see a bunch of my friends and see all this secretive crafting the girls have been up to! Paige just started a blog and you all should check it out - http://www.natashapaigebrown.blogspot.com/ She's soo crafty and has posted a few of the things she has made for Miss Harper. I told her it's officially time for her to start her Etsy business so we will see! :)
I know I am probably amusing the world with my planning... mom told me everyone is excited to see what happens when Harper doesn't follow my timeline ;) I figure everything works out exactly like it's supposed to and although sometimes you don't understand things it all makes sense eventually! So here's our update for the week... maybe the last?! We will see!!!
How far along: 37
Total Weight Gain: 28
Stretchmarks: Nope... fingers crossed
Sleep: Slept great except for Monday night... everytime I woke up I thought of something else that needed to be added to my to do list
Best Moment This Week: the reassuring NST and getting exciting news that I'm basically half way through the whole labor process.. ha ha
Movement: yes, but it's a lot of slower rolling and stretching, not so much thrashing around
Gender: Baby girl!!
Labor Signs: some braxton hicks occasionally
Belly Button: innie :)
What I Miss: nothing! I feel so thankful to have had such a great pregnancy and hope it continues for a little bit longer :)
What I am Looking Forward to: shower this weekend! dr appt on Monday! ultrasound on Tuesday! and getting my first exam out of the way tomorrow :)
Milestones: 4cm dilated... and she's the size of a watermelon!!
Andy so sweetly reassured me that my bump looked huge tonight... thanks Andrew ;)
My July 4 date is looking good!!!
ReplyDeleteLove the blog. Hope you have all of these blogs for Miss Harper's baby book, she will love them when she gets older! They are so sweet!Love & prayers for you all, waiting for the arrival.
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