Happy Birthday, Kason!

Three years ago, you made me a Mommy! We love you soooo much!



Happy, happy birthday, little dude!

Noah's Birth Story - Happy 4th of July!

Confession: I was hoping that Noah would arrive, just as Emily did, the day after the Waiting post.

And, he did. Noah Samuel made his arrival, July 4, 2011, at 1:06 pm weighing 8lb 13oz and 20.5 in long. He also has the most beautiful, highlighted, head of hair! I just love his hair!!!

As I said in the last post, the days and weeks leading up to Noah's arrival were full of "I can't believe how big you are" comments. So, I was on a mission to make sure I didn't go overdue and have to make the big baby induction decision. After Kyle's mom arrived two weeks ago, I decided to take it easy the first week since my doctor was out of town. After she arrived back on July 3, though, we were ready to get him out.

Kyle and I went on long evening walks the nights of July 2 and 3, telling our neighbors we were walking the baby out. The night of the 3rd, we went to bed quite late convinced it would be at least a few more days before Noah made his appearance.

I woke up frequently, as I did every other night, having to pee and having contractions each time I woke. This was nothing unusual, especially at this point, though. I was pretty much contracting just a few minutes apart day and night. At 6am, the morning of July 4th, I woke up to pee again. I noticed that my contractions were slightly more painful, but went back to bed.

Shortly after going back to bed, Emily started making noise on the monitor. This, combined with the contractions, made it impossible for me to go back to sleep. So, I got back up for a while and paced the bathroom. At 6:30, I woke Kyle and told him I might be in labor, but wasn't too sure. He suggested I get in the bathtub.

After a few minutes in the bathtub, Kyle decided to get up and take a shower. I still wasn't sure if it was the real thing. The contractions were getting more intense and were consistently 2-2.5 minutes apart, but nothing I couldn't easily manage. After about 30 more minutes, though, we realized this was the real deal. We got a few last minute things together and headed downstairs.

Both kids were up at this point and Kyle let his mom know what was going on. He heated my rice sock and I pressed it into my back during each contraction. Right before heading out the door, I was moaning through a contraction and Emily got very concerned. She wanted me to hold her, which I did, but did not want me to leave. She cried as I handed her over to Grandma and it broke my heart. Grandma explained to them after we left that Mommy was okay, but needed to go to the doctor.

We arrived at the hospital at 8:20. Kyle dropped me off at the front doors while he went to park the car. As soon as I got out of the car, I had a contraction. I walked over to one of the pillars and moaned into my pillow. A few women stopped and asked if I was ok or if I needed a wheelchair. I declined a wheelchair and one of the nice women led me to the chairs inside the cool lobby. I had one more contraction as people walked about the lobby while waiting for Kyle.

We headed up to the 3rd floor - L&D. Kyle called on our drive to let them know we were on our way. My doctor was on 24 hr in-hospital call, so no worries there. We headed in and a nurse greeted us at the doors of L&D. I stopped to lean against a wall through a contraction. The nurse asked if we were going natural and we said 'yes'. All of our worries about going natural in the hospital were immediately alleviated. The nurses were amazing!

As we were checking in, they hooked me up for my 20 minute strip on the monitors, to get paperwork signed,my hep-lock placed, and an initial internal (5cm and 90% effaced). After this, we were free to use the shower and tub since my water was still in tact. The water from the shower was amazing on my back, but I soon wanted to sit. The jacuzzi was also great. There were a few points early on where I felt like I was losing control a bit, but the water gave me enough of a break to recompose myself. I remembered from the many birth stories and books I read that one coping technique was to count breaths through the contractions. This helped me so much that Kyle actually asked me if I was even still having contractions.

After about an hour, at 10am, my doctor came in and told me if I wanted to get out of the tub, she would break my water to speed things up. So, after a few more minutes, I got out. She checked me and to my great surprise, I was 9cm! I was thrilled. I had made it to 9cm and wasn't even thinking about an epidural. Dr. L said she had another patient ready to deliver, so she didn't want to break my water or she would miss the delivery.

So, we waited about 30 minutes for her to deliver the other patient. She came back, broke my water, and everyone got ready for delivery. But...I was still 9cm....for a loooong time. Noah was posterior (face-up) and seemingly stuck. I panicked - thinking about Kason's birth (stuck at 9cm for 3+ hrs) and the back labor was getting to be absolutely horrific. Kyle later told me that my back had a large bulge where Noah was pressing on it. Contractions were 1.5 minutes apart, lasting 1 min+ each. With such little time to collect myself in between, I lost it. After being stuck for so long, my nurse suggested an epidural and I jumped at it. They pushed fluids quickly and the anesthesiologist arrived shortly after. This was my savior.

The pressure was excrutiating, but nothing I couldn't handle. Once I finally reached 10cm around noon, Noah still had not turned, so I chose to labor down instead of wasting energy pushing. My doctor came back in around 12:45 and Noah had finally turned. We started pushing and he was born at 1:06pm.

He was immediately placed on my chest as everyone exclaimed that he was sooo big! He was purple, though, and not wanting to breathe on his own. We immediately knew it was concerning when Dr. L clamped the cord and had Kyle cut it right away (she typically waits for it to stop pulsing and knew this was one of our wishes). Noah was taken over the the warmers where he still didn't want to breathe right away. His APGARS were 5 at 1 minute and 8 at 5 minutes. While he did perk up, they decided it would be best to be taken to the transitional care nursery right away to be monitored. I got to hold him fora few minutes and Dr. L convinced them to take his weight before leaving, though...8lb 5.8oz.

The TCN nurse didn't buy the 8lb 6oz, so re-weighed him in the nursery. Imagine our surprise when he was almost a half-pound larger at 8lb 13.4oz. This put him in the 90th percentile and classified him as an LGA (large for gestational age)baby, which meant heal pricks before every feeding to monitor his blood sugars for 24 hrs. After a couple of hours in the nursery, he got the all clear and was released to our room for the remainder of our stay.

We came home on Wednesday and are thrilled to be a family of 5.

Meeting Noah for the 1st time


First Family Pic


Ready to go home


Welcome Home, Noah!


I'm a cutie-pie!


Noah brought us a present (a water table)

Waiting, take 2

Shortly before Emily was born (the day before, actually), I wrote a blog post about waiting on her arrival. I was worried about taking something away from Kason...but, after the addition of Emily to our family, I realize that we were giving something to Kason. While they have their moments, they definitely love and adore each other and I have no doubt they will love and adore their baby brother just the same.

So, here we are again, waiting...

I will be 39 weeks tomorrow and while I am nervous to be a mommy of 3, I am ready to meet our newest addition. I have had constant contractions for many weeks now, I am 2cm dilated and 60% effaced (as of Thursday), and I am HOT!!! It is so hot. I took my wedding ring off a while ago. While I can get it on in the morning, it is stuck within 30 minutes, so off it went. I am, in the meantime, wearing the James Avery band we bought in anticipation of swelling that never happened when I was pregnant with Kason. It is getting good use now, though.

I get comments everyday from people about how big I am. I was recently asked by a random lady in the grocery store when I was due. I told her less than 2 weeks and she followed up with, "Is it just one?". Why, yes, it is. She caught me again later and asked if it was my first. After telling her it was my third, she said, "Were the others this big?". Neighbors have been telling me for many weeks that I look like I am going to pop and could not possibly get any bigger. They immediately follow up with, "It is all belly, though". These comments, along with our growth ultrasounds have me a little anxious about his size, but I am hoping it is true what they say--your body will not grow a baby too big for you to birth. I am convinced he will be somewhere in the 8 - 8.5 lb range, which I am totally comfortable with. We shall see.

In the meantime, we would appreciate any prayers you could spare for happy, healthy baby and mama, a safe delivery, and an easy adjustment period for Kason and Emily. The next time you hear from me, I hope it will be with a birth story (unless I find some time to post some pics of the kiddos in their 4th of July outfits).

Happy Father's Day

5x7 Folded Card

View the entire collection of cards.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AatnDZszcNWLuw&cid=SFLYOCWIDGET

Lucky

I'm putting this here, not only in honor of Father's Day, but also in case my kids ever need a little reminder of just how lucky they are to have a dad like Kyle (or, in case I ever need a little reminder of just how lucky I am).

Each and every day, he comes home from work, cuddles with the kids, changes into his own version of play clothes, and takes the kids outside or in the play room. Every.single.day. He is ready for just about anything they are. He gives baths (almost every night now that I am pregnant and miserable), helps with dinner, wakes up in the middle of the night, gets up with them on the weekends and makes them pancakes, etc, etc. All he wants is to make sure his family is happy and he does a mighty fine job. It makes me feel good to know that, not only does he tell them he loves them everyday, but he shows them.

Happy Father's Day, Kyle! We love you!!!!

**I will leave you with a great article about just what it means to be a great dad.**
A Father's Day Wish: Dads, Wake the Hell Up

Sprinkler Fun

Kason's Last Day of School + 32 wk appt

Today was my little guy's last day of school for the year. It really made me sad, even on the verge of tears a few times. I know he is going to miss his friends and his teachers sooo much! Hopefully, we will see his friends at church and other activities throughout the summer. Mostly, I'm sad because he adores his teachers and talks about them all the time. He doesn't quite get that school is out for summer and I am sure I will be asked about it several times over the coming weeks.

Today was also my 32 week appointment and growth ultrasound. We had the ultrasound first and our newest addition is estimated at over 5 lbs (89%), a full pound more than Emily at 33 weeks. This estimate puts him somewhere around 9.5 lbs on my due date. Dr. L thinks he will be more around 8.5, though. He has measured big at every ultrasound since my NT scan, but usually around a week ahead. Today, though, he measured 2 weeks ahead, so we think today's might have been a little inaccurate. We will have another check in a month, though, to make sure he is not humongous. If he is still measuring big, we have the option of talking about induction, but I think regardless of the outcome at 36 weeks, I will skip the induction. So, really, what's the point of the ultrasound? A chance to see my little guy on the inside one more time before he makes his appearance. :P

Here we go again...

I had my 30 week appointment with Dr. L last week and everything was great. I don't think I've mentioned how happy I am with her. The rumors were true, she is just like a midwife, only she has an MD. For mamas that intend to go natural, she encourages small snacks and drink during labor, no IV, intermittent monitoring, can't remember the last time she had to cut an episiotomy, waits for the cord to stop pulsing before clamping/cutting, etc, etc. She never makes me feel rushed and even after just two appointments, makes me feel as if she knows me and I am not just a number. While I realize this is probably because she reviews each chart carefully before entering the room, it still makes me feel good.

At my last appointment (Thursday), we discussed all of the typical things, belly measuring appropriately, heartrate is great, contractions few and far between, etc, etc. We thought everything was great and were thrilled that I had been having only a few contractions a day.

That is, until Friday morning came around. I was feeling crampy and having an off/on backache when I realized that these were contractions. Feeling my tummy, there was no doubt. I was a little concerned because these were not my typical, painfree BH contractions and they were coming every 3-5 minutes. Since the office closed at noon, I told Kyle I would give it until 10:15 before calling. They went away around 10am, after a couple of hours of contracting.

A couple of hours later, though, they began again. Some crampy, some not. Again, after about 2 hours, they went away. At 5:30, though, I got in the car and they started yet again. This time 2-3 minutes apart, but not crampy. They did last, though, for a solid 16 hours straight before giving me a bit of a break. Saturday morning, Kyle was really trying to convince me to go to the hospital, but given that the contractions were relatively painless and not increasing in intensity, I chose to stay home, rest, and drink a lot of water.

Today, at 31 weeks exactly, I am still contracting frequently, but they have slowed down a lot from the weekend. I called Dr. L's office this morning and will be seen tomorrow. I told the nurse that I am not particularly worried about them, but that I am going out of town over the weekend, so I want to get checked to make sure all is well. She agreed that as long as they have slowed down, I am probably ok, but that I should take it easy and be checked before leaving town. She also said if they pick back up today, to call and she would try to fit me in or send me to the hospital.

So, here we go again. 9 weeks to go, give or take.

Emily's 15 mo. Appt

I took Emily a couple of weeks ago for her 15 month appointment. She is doing great. Still petite, at 21 lb 0.5 oz and 30.25 in. We are still battling the never-ending diaper rash, though. At that appointment, Dr. T gave me a prescription for a concoction of nystatin, cholestyramine, and aquaphor. She said it should be clear in a week. A week and half later, she still has the rash. I did start adding some corn starch on top of all of that, though, and it is finally clearing up! Hallelujah!

Just like Kason, she has a love for Barney and will run right to her chair in the playroom if the big purple dinosaur is mentioned. She is also trying to say more and more things, including singing her ABC's. She has ABCD and a few other letters here and there. So cute!

She loooves to play outside and as soon as you mention outside, she will go get her shoes and bring them to you to put on. She and Kason have even got to play in the sprinklers a couple of times and had a blast, even though they were freezing!

Her and Kason are all settled into their new sleeping arrangements and after a few trial nights, are doing very well! I have a few more things to get finished and put up on the walls in their room and in the nursery before pictures are posted, though. I will say, though, that both rooms are coming along nicely.

Osama bin Laden is Dead

The attacks of 9/11 happened years before my children were born, but that day, will still be a big part of their history, just as yesterday will be. I remember very clearly walking across campus the morning of September 11, 2001 and hearing the hushed voices of my fellow Aggies talking about the plane(s) that flew into the World Trade Center. The actual reality of this, though, didn't hit home until I walked into my duplex, sat down on the couch, and turned on the news.

Devastation. The trade centers were collapsing, another plane had crashed in Pennsylvania, and yet another into the Pentagon. What was happening to our country? The man behind these terroristic plots/attacks? Osama bin Laden.

In the years since the attack, it has faded to the back of my mind. Still there, but not really thought of unless brought up on the news or in a political conversation. I knew no one at the WTC or in the Pentagon or in the four planes that crashed that day.

Yesterday, though, the memories from that day all came flooding back as the announcement that U.S. Navy Seals had brought Osama bin Laden to his demise. On May 1, 2011, Osama bin Laden was shot and killed in Pakistan. That day will undoubtedly be an important piece of history for the U.S.

This morning, there are, of course, interviews on every major news station with the family members who lost their loved ones in the attacks of 9/11. As I was watching the Today Show, one interview hit me really hard. The interview was with the mom, dad, and brother of a woman who died in the World Trade Center that day. At the end of the interview, the mom spoke of the last phone call she received from her daughter. Her daughter told her she was on the 104th floor, she was hot, she was scared, and she asked her mom for help. "Mom, help me. Get me out of here."

A few months ago, we were at Chick-fil-A and Kason was playing in the play land. There were a lot of older kids who were paying no attention to the toddlers in their way. At one point, Kason got stuck in the corner of a tunnel where we couldn't see him, but could hear his cries, "Mommy, Daddy, help me. Mommy, Daddy, help me." My heart was breaking that day as I couldn't get to my son as he was crying for help.

This was all I could think about as she was recounting that phone call. How must your heart break when you can't save your child? How do you recover from that? I pray that I never have to find out.

I ask that you pray for all those who lost that day and as Mother's Day approaches, I hope that you will say a special prayer for all the Moms who lost a child on 9/11 and for all the Moms who perished that day.

Please also continue to pray for the leaders of our country, that they have the wisdom to lead and guide us through whatever lies ahead, and for our military men and women, as they continue to serve and protect, and for their families, who sacrifice every day. The coming days/weeks/months will almost assuredly bring backlash from al Qaeda and bin Laden followers and it is important that we not forget those who lay their life on the line to protect our country.

Daydreaming about the Kids' New Rooms

I have, for months, now been thinking about how to decorate a combined space that both Kason and Emily would love. You see, even though we have 4 bedrooms, one is downstairs. I am not yet willing to put Kason down there alone, so he will be moving into Emily's room very soon.

So far, we have a new bed for him. The IKEA Kura bed. It is a low loft bed. For now, we will have the bed on the bottom, but later on, when Emily is ready to move out of her crib, we will flip it and build a small frame on the bottom making it low bunk beds.

The Kura bed (we got the tunnel to go with)


Now, the hard part was coming up with a theme, or even colors, that would work for both. Then, I became inspired. The walls are a beautiful olive green, but I was having a hard time coming up with boy bedding that would fit the room. That is, until I found my inspiration.

My Inspiration - this bouquet of flowers + the navy dress in the background = the perfect mix of colors for a boy and a girl and the olive walls


Emily's bedding, for now, will be just a pink sheet with a frilly bed skirt. Later on, she will move into a twin bed with a raspberry comforter (already purchased). Kason will have a navy comforter (also, already purchased). Sheets are still up in the air, but I am leaning towards letting them pick their own, as they won't really be seen and doing a solid color sham with a navy/white throw pillow for each.

I plan to make curtains in the same, or a coordinating navy/white fabric as well as a small curtain to cover their hanging clothes in the closet. Since the doors of the closet open up into the room and I want them to have as much space as possible, we will be taking the doors off. So, hanging clothes will be covered at the top, with their dresser and large toys at the bottom.

After coming up with the color theme, I finally decided on a 'theme theme' for the room...Dr. Seuss. More specifically, Oh, the Places You'll Go and I Can Ready with My Eyes Shut. Kason loves Dr. Seuss and these two books will go together nicely. So, now, I am in extreme planning/buying mode to make this room come together. This weekend, we will put Kason's bed together and make a quick trip to IKEA to return some items and pick up a couple more things.



*****
Now, for the new nursery...Kyle really doesn't want to change Kason's bedding out, but I really want our newest addition to have his *own* space. So, I purchased some Route 66 fabric that will go nicely with the blue walls and will be making a quilt. The fabric is my inspiration for the room. I would like to find some old road signs to put up, along with a few framed pics of vintage cars and places along Route 66. I'm still in the very early planning stages, so we will see how it comes together. Since Kyle really doesn't want to change it (mostly doesn't want to spend the extra $$ when we already have nursery stuff), I am going to have to be very thrifty here.

The Route 66 fabric


Stay tuned in the coming weeks to see what comes of all this....

Go back to March 14...

...to see Emily's walking post. I started it a while ago, but just brought the camera up today to load the videos. So, you have to go back to March 14 to check the videos out. Be sure to check out today's other post, too, for pics from our recent trip to PA and MD.

Our trip to PA & MD

We just got home from a nice trip to Pennsylvania and Maryland for Kyle's cousin, Erich's, wedding. It was a bit crazy getting through airport security and dealing with the kiddos during our 3+ hr delay out of Houston on Wednesday, but we managed and made it there and back safely and with a little of our sanity still in tact. They both did great on the plane. We were a little worried that the loud noises and take-off would scare Kason, but after some prep work, he was fully prepared for the noise and loved every minute of flying. On the way there, we were lucky enough to get an open seat for Emily and her carseat. On the way back, though, we weren't quite as lucky. It was hard keeping her contained, but we did have Sean and Tina there to help us out.

Carseats attached to luggage - the kids LOVED riding in these through the airport


Kason jamming out with his headphones on the airplane


While visiting, we had a great time, even if we were a little short on sleep. The first few days, we stayed at Kyle's sister's house in Allentown, PA. The kids loved playing with her animals, especially her cat, Mimi. We spent some time with Kyle's grandma and dad, too. Kason got a big kick out of feeding the fish at the trout nursery with Grandpa.

Kason and Gpa feeding the fish


On Saturday, we made the trip to Maryland for the wedding festivities. Unfortunately, we got stuck in traffic and ended up having to change clothes in the car so we weren't too terribly late for the rehearsal dinner. The actual wedding was on Sunday and the kids had a blast dancing and running around with their cousins. Then, on Monday, we took a little trip to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Kason absolutely loves the aquarium, so this was very exciting for him. We followed that up with some more family time at Kyle's aunt and uncle's house. For the three days we were in MD, we stayed with Kyle's cousin Brad and his wife, Patricia. Kason and Emily adored them and their Golden Retriever, Addie. Addie was pregnant and had her puppies the day after we left. While we would have loved to have seen the puppies, it was probably best for everyone involved that the kids were far away when these new little guys came around.

Maryland Pics:

Ottinger Siblings (Sean, Kyle, & Samantha)


Emily, with crazy hair, post-nap at the wedding


Emmy & Mommy at the Aquarium


Daddy & the kids at the Aquarium


Checking out the fishies


Kason was (and, still is) dying to go for a ride on these boats in the harbor


In front of submarine outside the aquarium


Baltimore - Barnes & Noble, Power Plant, & Hard Rock Cafe all rolled into 1


The cousins playing soccer


Just being cute


Ottinger Family Pic


Ottinger sibs


April is also a big birthday month in both our families, so after arriving back in Houston, we stopped for a birthday dinner at Red Robin for Allison. Happy Birthday to Jacob, Allison, Sean, Jim, Uncle Kim, and Kolby!!

Kason at Red Robin for Allison's bday dinner



Now, that we are back at home, we are looking forward to a quiet Easter weekend followed by more travels in the coming weeks.

First Appt at New Office...

...was excellent! Everyone is very nice and super helpful! Since Dr. L is so busy, I met with the NP today for my first appointment. She was wonderful and had lots of good info about what I can expect with Dr. L. She says everyone jokes with her that she is like a midwife with an MD. I feel very at ease with delivering with this practice and am looking forward to meeting Dr. L in 3 weeks at my 28 week appointment and glucose tolerance test.

I did ask about early discharge from the hospital and unfortunately, while Dr. L is all for it as long as labor and delivery went well, the hospital has a 48 hr hold on babies. So, 48 hrs it is. Blah!

Disappointed...

One day last weekend, I opened up the browser on my phone. Oddly, a google search for 'Pearland Birth Center' (the birth center I was using) popped up. Since I hadn't searched for this in quite some time, I was a little confused, but noticed that there were a couple of new reviews for the birth center. These reviews were from the aunt and the mother of a little boy that died. Needless to say, they were not good reviews.

The night before this, I had a strange dream that I had gotten in an argument with two of the midwives over my diet and left the practice. So, these two things together left me wondering if someone was trying to tell me something. I spent some time stressing over it and decided my best bet was to pray over it and see what God led me to do.

I spent some extra time in church that Sunday praying about what we were being led to do. Later in the week, I found the birth story on a blog that is very biased against birth outside of the hospital. (I have no desire to advertise this blog, but I do want to link the birth story, so here it is http://hurtbyhomebirth.blogspot.com/2011/03/thomas-story.html ). Nevertheless, this story made it clear what we had to do...leave the birth center. Every step along the way were poor decisions made by the midwife at this center and we could not, with good conscience, trust them with our care. I should add here that I have know idea to the truth behind this...but, I do know that it would take a very sick individual to make up a story about the death of their child. Regardless of the truth behind it, we can't unread the story, so we will always have that doubt.

So, back to the hospital it is. I am extremely saddened and disappointed that we will not get the birth experience that I so desperately wanted for this baby. I have been sick over it for the past few days. On a positive note, though, we did find a very natural childbirth friendly OB in town, who was kind enough to take me as a patient even though she is not accepting new patients at this point. We have heard wonderful things about all the doctors in the practice and are excited for our first appointment tomorrow.

**In other news, we had our appt with the high risk OB last week. Baby boy is growing right on track and weighing in at 1lb 7oz. Cervix looks great...loooong and closed! Contractions are here, but very, very infrequent. Nothing of concern.**

(P.S. That Emily walking post is in the editing process, along with some very cute picture posts)

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to my amazing husband! Can't wait to see what the next 50+ years have in store for us. I love you!


*this is the only wedding picture I have access to at the moment, so I guess it will have to do*

On the Move!

Emily has been taking steps for quite a while. At almost 13 months on the dot (2/21), she walked all the way across the living room. It still took a little encouragement after that, but within a week and a half, she was walking everywhere. Look out, world, here she comes! So, she is now, officially a toddler.

She absolutely loves to get to walk around outside with all the other kids and they (Bella, especially) love it, too! We just have to keep a very close eye on what she gets her hands on. She is teething like crazy (10 and 2 more on the way), so everything goes straight to the mouth.

Kason is also loving her newfound freedom and can't wait for her to be able to play a real game of chase around the kitchen.

Enjoy the videos -

Emily walking across the room for the first time - 13 months


Emily now + Kason tumbling in his underwear and flip flops :P

Work

I really want to update the blog tonight with videos of Emily walking. Have I mentioned she is walking everywhere now??? Well, she is...but, I unfortunately, am ridiculously tired and have just begun working again. It is that time of year, you know. State testing time. So, I will be spending most of my free hours for the next few months scoring state tests (at home). I'm sure I will find a few minutes in between, though, to update the blog.

That Emily walking post is first and foremost on my list...coming soon (maybe tomorrow).

Made the Switch

Since my last failed epidural with Emily, I have been thinking about what I would do for any subsequent births. I knew I wanted to go the natural route and just assumed I would continue with my doctor (or, another doctor in the area). The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized that natural childbirth in a hospital setting is not what I want. I don't want to have to fight to be comfortable (i.e., not having an IV, being able to use the shower/tub, not having continuous monitoring, etc). Even if my doctor is totally supportive of my choices, there is no guarantee I will have my doctor at delivery and I would be dealing mostly with the nurses, which can be hit or miss. I would also like to skip the 48 hr hospital stay my doctor requires after delivery, as long as baby and I are both healthy.

So, after a lot of research and discussion between Kyle and I, we decided to make the switch to a birth center run by three CNMs (certified nurse midwives). I met several of the office staff and one of the midwives last week and am very excited about continuing my care with them. Some friends of ours that we met through Kyle's work delivered their first son 2+ years ago at the birth center and had a great experience. They are now planning a home birth for their baby due in April with the same midwives. Their positive experiences really help to alleviate any fears we might have.

The birth center has 3 exam rooms and 2 delivery rooms, each equipped with a tub to labor/deliver in. The delivery rooms have full/queen size beds, instead of the standard hospital bed. They also have the ability to perform NSTs, ultrasounds, and routine testing (such as the glucose tolerance test at 28 weeks). They even have a movie room to sit in for the hour between drinking the sugar drink and having the blood work done. There is also a kitchen to be used for delivery, as they allow and encourage you to eat/drink during labor.

We also found out that they will be able to monitor me if/when I need it for preterm labor and they have the capability in their office to give me IV fluids and terbutaline, if necessary, to stop any contractions that come my way. The birth center is very close to a hospital if a transfer is needed any point before, during, or after labor. If necessary, they also refer patients to the same high risk group I am already seeing, so I have the option to continue my care with them, as well. Another big plus is that the average stay after delivery at the birth center is 3 hours, assuming all went well with labor/delivery and mom and baby are doing well.

My first appointment with the birth center is tomorrow and I'm excited to get to meet another one of the midwives and for Kyle to see the birth center for the first time. It is fairly small and in a strip center type location, but they are in the process of building a new facility set to be completed in July. So, who knows, I *might* get to be one of the first to deliver in the new facility.

Early Ultrasound was Wrong

As you may or may not recall, our perinatologist made a guess at the sex of this little one during our NT scan a few weeks ago. She guessed girl. We found out today, though, that she was wrong. Our second little boy is on his way in July and we couldn't be more thrilled. Kyle is especially happy, as this means he will not have to paint. :P

Our NT scan and accompanying bloodwork came back great and today, at our anatomy scan, our little guy looked healthy with a heartbeat of 152 bpm. Dr. G decided to check my cervix to make sure it was long and closed (it was) and we found out that I will be considered high-risk for the remainder of this pregnancy due to the preterm labor scare with Emily.

We discussed how difficult it was for me to know when/if I needed to go to the hospital with Emily as I often had mild contractions 5 minutes apart or less. I ignored the advice of my regular OB, Dr. T, because I would have been in the hospital daily for these contractions. So,to avoid that this time, starting at 24 weeks (6 weeks from now), I will see Dr. G for cervical length checks once a month and possibly biweekly fetal fibronectin tests (fFN) until 32 weeks. If my cervix stays strong and the fFN tests come back negative, I can monitor my contractions at home unless they get strong and/or are accompanied by bleeding.