I Can See the Light...

I had my OB appointment yesterday morning with one of the Doctors that also works out of the Hospital where I will be delivering. I actually saw her once with Oliver when I first went into Labor & Delivery for the itching. She really helped me feel at ease and I answered all my questions really before I even asked them. She had read all of the notes from the Dr.  that was on-call when I was taken in for my c-section and knew my history. That was so great! I didn't have to really explain it all over again. She told me that I have a 70-80% chance of having a successful delivery if I go into labor on my own. She also explained that they will only use pitocin if I have sort of started to progress and am starting to dialated or thin and having a few occasional contractions. Otherwise, she scheduled me for a repeat c-section for April 24th. If I don't go into labor before that date, then I will just be admitted. 

She did my Strep B test, and the rest of the appointment was just like any other pre-natal one, so that made me feel better since my next scheduled appt. with my midwife wasn't until the 14th and the last was the beginning of March. The baby's heart sounded good and I assume I measured well as she didn't make any comments. My blood pressure was 90/60, so still normal. Though it did throw the Student Nurse who took it for a loop! She was concerned that she hadn't done it right...

After my Strep test, she also checked me to see if there was any sort of progress yet and told me that my cervix was Very Unfavorable! Basically, nothing has happened yet and likely won't very soon. She also noted that I didn't have the roomiest of pelvises either. A first that I had ever heard and nice to know.

She had mentioned that most likely my induction didn't take because my body just wasn't ready, since I was induced early. We talked about baby size as Oliver was 2 ounces shy of 8 pounds and he was 1 1/2 weeks early. She said if this baby is too big for my not so big pelvis, that I would just stop progressing and have a c-section.

I left the appointment feelin a lot better with so  many questions answered and having that c-section date in place so there is an end in sight. As she said I can't be pregnant forever! (even if I feel like I will be/have been!)

They also set me up to see her again next week for another check up and then I have the one already for the next week with my Midwife/NP and then the 20th I am scheduled for a Pre-op appointment. I don't know why, but for some reason I have the inkling that I will be going until the 24th, but we will see what happens!

Attitude Adjustment

Ever since Oliver's weekend falls, he has had a change in his attitude. Now, of course I don't think it's anything to worry about but just a little odd. He has been in the best mood all week (except for making him the wrong dinner on Tuesday night) He has been happy, cheery, chattery and back to the sweet little boy he was a few weeks ago. Maybe something got knocked back into place?! HA HA. It could all be a coincidence and i'm not complaining!! Last week was a tough one and this one has been so pleasant! He didn't even freak out about the tub last night. I hope it lasts and he got all the stubborn fit throwing out of his system...(wishful thinking, i know.)

First Blood

...and Second.

 

OK. So it isn't technically the first and second blood but they are probably the most tramatic blood injuries to date. 

Oliver did not have the best weekend.

 

Sunday our good friends Chad and Marci Silbernagel came up for a visit. We had a great time visiting, a yummy mexican lunch on Alberta, and was successful at keeping Graham awake!

Oliver had been playing and basking in all of the attention, making rounds between everyone's lap. He was hanging out with Chad for a bit when he decided to get down. He started to slide off Chad's knee like he had multiple times already, but he must have misjudged how far he needed to go, and Chad thought O had got his feet under him. Next thing we all knew he face planted on the hardwood floors. Now this is no way the first time he has face planted on the floor, it may have been the biggest distance, but not by much.

Of course he started crying and Graham scooped him up to console him and asses the damage. Nothing appeared right away and Oliver had to come to Mama (cause you know only Mama's can Really fix a boo boo). As I was holding him, Graham noticed that he had a bloody nose! I knew it was coming one of these days and was glad that it happened when Graham was home. I myself have never had one. It wasn't bad, just a little blood mixed with snot from crying. 

Oliver finally calmed down and fell asleep on me. (he had missed his nap for the day so it wasn't very surprising). Graham convinced me that I should put him down in his crib, which I doubt would work. I made my way there, started to lay him down and his eyes popped open, he started to cry and would not let go of me so I took him back to the couch when he instantly fell asleep again.

It must have been close to 2 hours that he slept, tossed, turned, & drooled on me. At one point Graham tried to take him, he woke up, fussed and crawled right back to me. 

Finally he woke up in high spirits as if nothing had ever happened. His face was another story! He had a slightly swollen nose with some faint bruising by his eyes, a tiny scratch on the end of his nose, a little scrap under his nose on his top lip, and a swollen upper lip with a very tiny cut on the inside. He truly looked like a little boxer!

Chad of course felt bad even after a lot of reassuring. I think you can only really understand it once you are a parent yourself. They are going to get hurt and do.

 

So then.....yesterday I had my chiropractor appointment in the morning and Graham had an appointment downtown plus had to go to the DMV beforehand. He got up early and rode his bike downtown while I got ready and waiting for Granny Nanny and Max to show up. They were going to watch Oliver while I went to my appointment and then when Graham got home, all 3 were headed up to the mountain for a day of skiing.

I got out of my appointment and grabbed my phone ready to call Graham to see if he needed me to pick him up and I had a message. I thought it was from Graham but turns out it was from Nan. Oliver had tripped and hit his eye on the ottoman.

My first thought was, OK, its padded, the main reason I got it for Mother's Day last year. So I am thinking maybe a bruise. Then she says he has a gash. A Gash?! But its only about 1/4" long and she doens't think it needs stitches. Stitches?! wow. Graham called me back and he was already with Max headed back to the house. I had left him a message about the eye injury and he was going to beat me back to the house.

By the time I got there he was pretty calmed down, but of course wouldn't let anyone touch it, clean it, or put ice on it. But he was hungry! He had lunch/snack an dI had a bath once the others left for the mountain (Chiropractors orders!). Oliver and I then both took a 2 hour nap. He woke up crying and had a hard time calming down as the salty tears stung his eye. Other than the occassional bump or touch to the area, he hardly even acted like anything happened.

This morning he woke in high spirits with a very nice shiner on his left eye and a little scab at the corner. He was in one of the best moods he has been in for days all day, that is until Dinner. Apparently what I made was not what he wanted...After he ate the little food he did, I sucked his nose out, made him wash his hands & changed his diaper, he was back in high spirits. He didn't even fight me putting on his jammies! He played a little longer and went to bed easily. I heard him playing and chattering for a little while and then he fell asleep. As long as you don't touch the area he is a happy camper...

 At breakfast posing for the camera.

Droopy eyed boy.

I think he will be staying out of the public for a few days!!

The 9th Month

 (note that there are no bare belly shots as the stretch marks are too horrific and I don't have that much time for PhotoShop!)

Sunday marked the beginning of my 9th month or 36 weeks. Monday I meet with an OB at the hospital to talk about my previous birth history and ask any questions regarding the VBAC (vaginal birth after ceasarian) I have a few other questions in my head as well that I need to get on paper this week. I have been having dreams about having the baby or last night a dream about an ultrasound that showed the baby being a boy. I also had a dream last week that I had twin boys and was actually quite happy. The not knowing makes it feel less real somehow, that and I was so taken back about getting pregnant that my brain won't fully process it until the baby is actually here or I am in labor. For some reason I don't think I will make it to my due date, I have never really accepted it as the real date, but I also don't feel that it will be too early, maybe a week before?

So far no real itching or signs of Cholestatis, so that is really good. I have made it 2 weeks furthur along than when I first got the itching with Oliver and next week marks when I was actually diagnosed. I am in unchartered waters, no complications, no ultrasounds since 20 weeks and don't really know what to expect in terms of my prenatal care. I have not yet had my Strep B test and don't know if the OB I meet with will be checking me out or just there to answered questions. I wonder what happens if you go into labor for that test. Will they give me antibiotics anyway? I also wonder if the baby is perfectly healthy at the 20 week ultrasound, does that mean it will be healthy at birth? So many questions in my head. How do they know if my fluid levels are OK, or what size the baby is. Do they just used the measuring method? Who knows, well, hopefully the OB does!

I have been seeing a chiropractor the past week and have another appointment Friday. She thinks that 2-3 more visits should get me in pretty good shape before the baby comes. Next time I see her I will ask about after delivery care. As I mentioned before, it is so nice to have someone listen to you and understand what you are saying, not to mention FIX the problems. It is such a sense of validation. I don't feel that often. I quite frequently feel that others don't think my pain is real or that I am just weak. I think that I proved I am a lot stronger and can tolerate a lot more pain than even I thought I could with Oliver's birth. I handled over 48 hours of contractions before asking for any sort of pain relief. I managed a C-section recovery with primarily Ibuprofen. My pain is real and some one is listening. I could get addicted! Yesterday consisted of a lot of stretching muscles and ligaments that are pulling my left pelvis out of whack and also my tailbone. I was so sore after and felt like I was hit by a truck this morning, but as that tenderness goes away I am left feeling less and less actual pain.

I have found the past couple of weeks that my level of irritabilty is way up, sort of unusual for me. I usually fight it and try to think through what is bothering me, but frankly I don't have the energy or paitence to do that now and just let it out. I feel no need to apolozige for it either. Graham was lucky enough to witness it the other morning and he tried to be angry too but I didn't let him and I think I caught him of guard and he just realized it was best to let it go. Shortly after I cool down but I have just been letting out my frustrations as I feel them instead of holding them in until later. It will all be over again, and hopefully I will feel the sense of lightness and energy I did after Oliver was born. You know I will need it!!!

Back Breaker

Yesterday I got to go to a chiroprator. This was only the second time I have ever gone though I probably should have been going for years. It was a great experience. Having someone listen to me and what has been going on, believing me and actually giving thought to a diagnosis what a great feeling. Being able to be fixed was the cherry on top! 
She was able to show me on a model what was going on with my body and tell me how it can be fixed. She also told me that I had a mind like a chiropractor and her life would be heaven is everyone could explain what was going on like I did. I was correct in my assumption that a lot of the pain I was experiencing in my hip was stemming from possible scar tissue and tightness from the spot of my epidural with Oliver. Muscles got tweaked and tight which then affected other joints. My left hip/pelvis was rotated backwards causing a lump in my lower back and over stretching some ligaments. There was/is another ligament on my right side that is tight and pulling causing tension on the left hip. It was pretty amazing to feel the difference in the to hips when she worked them during the physical to see what exactly was going on. The right felt nice and smooth and loose and the left was catching and grinding.
Yesterdays appointment was focused on working on the joints and relieving some of that pain. I go back next Monday for 30 mins of more ligament and muscle work. The goal is to slowly get everything back in order, of course just in time for it to get screwed up again! I don't know if I will need another appointment before the baby comes, but I do know that after this one I do want to go in after to she her and then a massage after my joints are in better working order. I hope to go back again after I stop breastfeeding as she has a theory (that I agree with) that your body keeps releasing relaxion into you joints while you are breastfeeding. All in all, I have seen the light of visiting a chiropractor and the wonders that they can do!

Escape Artist

What I have worrying and dreading for months now finally happened this morning... Oliver finally managed to get out of his crib and onto his changing table. I am glad that the table wa as far as he made it and he didn't fall and hurt himself. Because his rooms is so small and sort of awkward, his changing table has been on the short wall next to his door and his crib is in a little nook perpendicular to it. If been thinking for months he could use the bumper as a step to get out and pull himself out, that never happened and he's been without the bumper for a few months now. Then I was thinking he could use stuffed animals, but that didn't seem to happen either. I was starting to think maybe he just wasn't interesting in getting out. Guess he was! Graham informed me this morning that when he went to get Oliver for his breakfast, there he was sitting on his table surrounded with diapers and an empty package of wipes (with the wipes of course scattered around...)


My mission before nap time was a reorganization. I moved his chair to where the table had been, hopefully placing it far enough away that it doesn't inspire another attempt and the changing table is now on the opposite wall. It isn't the ideal set up but because of the room only having 2 outlets, 1 of which is behind the crib and accessible to little fingers, that is how it is going to have to be until we can move.


Now we just need for the lame money guy to give us an answer instead of a "I'll call you back."

Random Thoughts

So a couple of days ago I nodded off on the couch for a total of 10-15 minutes. Each little nod was probably less than 2 mins. Here is what happens when you have an almost 1 1/2 year and crayons, unsupervised...

 Our Bedrrom Door...

A bookcase & the floor...

The barn...

He got another spot on the floor as well as one of his lap tops and his feeding chair as well. Today though, I became a convert to the wonderfulness that is the Magic Eraser.

I have seen the commercials for years and always wondered How and If they worked. Awhile ago I got a sample in the mail and thought the perfect opportunity would be crayons and stuck it under the kitchen sink. I got is out after I put Oliver down for a nap and was amazed at how well it worked! Crayons? No problem. Food & fingerprints on white cupboards? No problem! I am think that maybe I won't hate having white cabinets now...though I still think whomever decided that white floors in a kitchen was a good idea should be drawn and quartered...

Last Monday Oliver got another haircut, it had been months since his last cut, October maybe? His hair was ridiculously long and could be put in a ponytail, if he ever allowed that sort of thing. Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures of the ordeal but video would have been even better! It took 3 grown adults to hold, distract and cut his hair along with many silly faces and goofy sounds. I am sure it was a sight to be seen! In my attempt to get pictures of the new do', I got One that was good. (It is now virtually impossible for me to get Oliver's picture since he lunges and screams for the camera.)

Oh, I did get one acceptable picture of us together...

He is starting to pick up words pretty quickly now, though he still refuses to say Mama. Grrrrr....Today he learned Stuck, and closed. we have been working on animal names and sounds. His favorite being Cow and Mooooooo which he says often. When he hears a train he says Toot Toot and when he hears Roxy barking he says Woof Woof. He really picks up on C and K sounds. Car, Cat, Cow and they all sound very similar. He has also discovered his lungs and how loud he can scream. He was nice enough yesterday evening to also share that with everyone at Fred Meyer's. Joy! We are working on temper tantrums and learning what is not OK. I know this is going to be a very long process...At least he has learned Thank you (Tink Too) which he says when giving something to some one. He now needs Please and You're welcome, but I am happy with Tink Too!

Some words he prefers to sign, Baby, and More. Though we have a struggle trying to figure out what he wants More Of.

During my struggle to get his picture, I let him play with the camera for a few minutes and this is one of the shots. I don't know why, but I just really like it.

I am very excited to be going to a chiropractor on Monday and hope that she can help me with my left hip and lower back. I have had pain and problems with my lower back and left side since having the epidural with Oliver. I have questioned nurses and Dr.'s and all the say is 30% of women have back pain after and epidural. I am convinced that there is something else going on. It took the anestesiologist 5-6 tries to get the needle in the right place due to my vertebrae being very snug. I have have a slight lump that is sensitive to pressure since Oliver was about 3 months old, before that it was still numb and I couldn't feel a thing. When they put the epi in, it never took to my left side as well as my right and I always had more feeling in that leg. After, I started getting numbness and tingling in my left leg when I sit cross legged, just with a bent knee and my other leg not putting any pressure on it. Since about 16 weeks, I have had a lot of pain in my left hip and my Dr. just told me it was my ligaments not being strong since it was so soon since having O. But she did say it was strange that it was only on one side. I try to stretch when I can but the pain has always felt much more in teh actual joint and very difficult to stretch just right. Some of the pain can be helped by wearing my support band if I am going to be active around the house or running errands. Some days I am limping/waddling because of burning pain in my pelvis/hip. So I am curious to see what she says and if it can be helped. Maybe it is all muscle related, maybe I am just a freak!!

Heading Out.

Today I had my 34 week check up (I am 33 weeks 4 days today) and have only 6 weeks left. YIKES! We realized this morning how fast it is approaching and how very unprepared we are. Things were sort of in limbo waiting on our housing situation but we have yet to hear back about the possibilty of a loan and now know there is NO WAY we will be moved or moving by the time the baby comes. We are however, going to start packing up things that we don't need often and drop a bunch of stuff off with the salvation army. It will be a tight squeeze for a while but we can make it work...

The check up went well, baby is head down so no ultrasound :(
As of right now we are planning for a VBAC birth and I have an appointment with a Physician at the Medical Center next to the hospital in 3 weeks to address concerns and to go more thouroughly over my experience with Oliver and what that means for this baby. The tummy measured perfect and the heart rate was good at 160 beats per minute. If you go by the Old Wives Tale, that means a girl. I have put on a total of 20 pounds so far and I feel ok about that. I am going to start watching what I eat a little better for the rest of the pregnancy and also to prepare myself to eat better after the baby is here. I imagine I will find it difficult to find time to eat for a little while after until I get the hang of 2 babies and their schedules.

I've been working with Oliver about babies. He has known and been able to do the sign for Baby since before Christmas. Now he is starting to make the connection between seeing a baby and knowing what it is. Today he decided to point and sign for 2 kids that were about his age! Too funny. I also got him a book about being a Big Brother a few weeks ago and try to also connect that there is a baby in my tummy and he is going to be a big brother. He often then lifts up his shirt as if to say he has a baby in HIS tummy too. Luckily he loves other kids and babies so that shold work out well. I think he will have a hard time with not always getting to have Mommy's attention when he wants it but he is going to have to learn to adapt. I also hope to be able to still find one on one time with both of them during the day and Graham and I are discussing ways to do that on his days off as well.

So now we wait some more...I have the contact number for Labor & Delivery in case anything odd comes up or I get my Cholestatis symptoms back. I'm not feeling like I am going to get it this time but I also was almost positive the baby's head was in my stomach...must be a foot after all!