Update! :)

I had (hopefully my last) doctor's appointment today, my doctor was out again delivering a little one so I had to see another OB. He checked to see if I had made anymore progress and he confirmed that I was 4 centimeters dilated and 80% effaced!! :) He made it seem like she could come any day now. The nurse told me to make my next appointment for Monday but she said most likely that she wouldn't see me. So that's where we stand, Maddie could be here before the weekend is over! :) I'm ready and so excited for her to get here!!! We'll keep everyone posted!

Feeling Great!

The appointment went well today, the cerclage removal went smoothly. Although a little painful and lots of discomfort, it was as I suspected it would be and I'm glad it's out! We got to see the little blue stitch that held our baby girl in for all these weeks, pretty emotional. The doctor then checked me to see if I was dilated and sure enough I was...2 centimeters! Clay was shocked but from all the research (reading baby books and watching baby shows in the past 4 months) I know that some woman can go a couple weeks being 2 cm dilated so it wasn't as shocking for me to hear but I'm really excited! Dr says it could be anytime or I could still go to my due date, there's no way of knowing at this point so the waiting game continues...I have another appointment with him next Thurs. the 22nd!

I feel good now, not a lot of pain and the best part is I'm off bedrest! Once I fully recover, I'm going to take very short walks around the neighborhood since I haven't walked a whole lot in the past 4 months, I want to prepare my body for labor and delivery.

I just want to thank everyone again for all the prayers and support, we have amazing friends and family and we couldn't have gone through all this without you all helping us along the way.

Nursery Pics- Finally finished!

The pink explosion (as Clay likes to call it) is finally finished! We're 36.5 weeks now...not too much longer!

Lots of clothes!

Claudette painted the letters for Madelyn, she did such a great job!

Soon to be pictures of Madelyn and family...

Clay and Larry MADE these beautiful bookshelves!

Maternity Pictures- 33.5 weeks!

Officially 9 months pregnant! Holy Cow!!

Wow, I'm so happy we made it this far without further complications...I truly feel blessed and I know that God has been answering many, many prayers!

I had my doctor's appointment today, the doctor was very pleased with everything and we went ahead and scheduled the cerclage removal for next Tuesday the 13th! He said it should be a pretty simple procedure that he can do in the office...I hope, we'll see. He also confirmed again that I would be off bedrest completely, woo hoo! And...I don't have to take my progesterone anymore, yay!

So baby could be here in a week to 4 weeks...we're definitely ready. Nursery is completely done and I'll post pics soon! Thanks again for all the support and prayers!!!

35 weeks today and only 35 days (or less) to go!!!

Today marks 35 weeks...woo hoo! I can't really say that time is flying by but it is going by faster than when I was first put on bedrest. I can't believe it's been 14 weeks since I first went on bedrest, when all is said and done it will probably be a total of 4 months! The good news is in two weeks exactly, I will be completely off bedrest!!! :)

No doctor's appointment this week but I go back next Wednesday the 7th, at that appointment we'll set up a date for the cerclage to come out...will probably be the 14th! :)

This weekend we have our childbirth preparation class (all day on Saturday...sorry Clay) so I'm looking forward to that!

Will post again next week, thanks for all the prayers!!

Update- Good news!

I had my doctor's appointment this afternoon and my doctor walked into the room with two thumbs up! He's very happy that I've made it to 34 weeks and even scheduled my next appointment two weeks out at 36 weeks! I didn't have an ultrasound at this visit and probably won't have another one since it doesn't matter anymore what I'm measuring. So the next time I see my baby it won't be on a grainy screen but in person! :) We also scheduled a date for when the stitch will come out, the date is Oct. 14th! That's only 3 weeks away...whoa! I need to pack my hospital bag now :) The doctor also said that once the stitch comes out, I'm done with bedrest...woo hoo!

Shouldn't be too much longer now...I probably jinxed myself but I bought a Halloween onsie (just in case) it says "Daddy's little pumpkin"...I couldn't resist!

Thanks for all the prayers and support!

34 weeks today!!!!

Yay! I'm official 34 weeks today and according to my doctor I am now "golden"! Only 6 more weeks till my due date if Maddie even decides to stay in there that long...I have an appointment tomorrow, I'll post again then!

Grrghh...

This morning we had our breastfeeding class at 10 am...I was all prepared, we got up early, I had packed a journal for taking notes, and we even left early...or so I thought. For some reason, still unknown to me, I thought the class started at 10:30! I had this panic feeling as we were driving down I-77, so I checked the registration form and sure enough it was 10! Grrghhh...I'm hating this pregnancy brain, I can't remember anything anymore! Well, luckily (I guess) we rescheduled for Oct. 10th...hopefully we won't miss this one and hopefully Maddie won't decide it's time to come before then because I really want to go to this class. On the bright side, we went to USA Baby and finally ordered a glider and ottoman set...hopefully that will arrive before she does!

Also, I'm soooo ready for this weather to clear up and be sunny again. It's bad enough being on bedrest but this weather is making it harder and depressing!

Next appointment is Thursday...hope it goes well!

We found a Pediatrician!

Thanks to Marisa for the reference we made a consultation appointment with Southlake Pediatrics this morning and we really liked the practice! We met with two pediatricians and a lactation consultant, they were really nice and very informative. We had two previous meet and greets with other Pediatric offices but Southlake had the total package. We're getting excited and closer to our due date and we can't wait to meet our little girl in a couple weeks! :)

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Feeling HUGE!

I had my appointment today with my regular OB, no ultrasound though so I'm not sure how my cervix is measuring and I'm not even sure if I'll have an ultrasound next week. But things seem to be fine according to my OB, he wants me to continue my bedrest and just keep taking it easy. I had a pretty rough week last week (lots of pelvic pressure) one of the doctors I saw last week said that the baby's head was resting right on my stitch which was causing all the pain. I think she may have moved because I don't still have that horrible feeling anymore and hopefully it won't come back!

I also had my seasonal flu shot today and will probably have the swine flu vaccination in a few weeks when they get those in...kinda worried about that one but if the doctor thinks I should get it then I will.

Well, that's the only update for now...next appointment is Sept. 24th and we'll see how things are going then!

I'm 8 months along now! :)

I had my last appointment with the perinatologist (high risk doc) yesterday, it was definitely bittersweet. I was going to him every 4 weeks but now that I'm 32 weeks along he said I didn't need to see him anymore (I guess because I'm in the "safe zone"). He's a great doctor and I always enjoyed those visits, but since it was my last one with him it just shows how close I am to having this baby! While at the doctor, I did have my cervical length checked and it was shorter than last week but not by much and the doctor didn't seemed worried. I was told the baby is actual measuring bigger at a whopping 4lbs 11 oz so her weight could be contributing to the decrease in my cervical length. I'm just going to take it easy until the next appointment which is Tuesday, I don't think I'm having an ultrasound at that visit so I may not have an update until the following week. I do have another baby shower this weekend, I'm really excited! Can't wait to see everyone on Saturday!!

Weekly Update

I had a doctor's appointment on Friday with the usual routine. My cervical length has shortened since the last visit a week before and seems to be slowly shortening but not too significantly. It's always a wait and see game because it could stay the same by the next appointment or it could get shorter. I think since the baby is getting bigger (almost 4 pounds now) she is putting more pressure on my cervix and therefore causing it to shorten. The doctor just wants me to continue the moderate bedrest and they'll see me back on Wednesday. I'm also seeing the high risk doctor then so I'm interested in hearing what he thinks. I know they want to get me to at least 34 weeks so that's only 2.5 weeks away...if I need to be stricter with my bedrest until then I will definitely do it. So for now things are still okay and I'll find out more Wednesday and then post again! Please keep praying that we make it as long as we can to ensure a healthy, term baby! :) Thanks for all the support!!

Nursery Pics!! Just a preview...

I'm finally posting some nursery pics, however it's still a work in progress but we're excited with what's been done so far. I ordered some wooden letters that spell out Madelyn to hang on the wall above the dresser, we're hoping to have a corner bookshelf to display some of her books in the corner between the crib and the dresser, and I also ordered some decals that say "Dream a little a dream..." to put above her crib. We also want to replace the glider that Clay's had since college with a new one and hang some curtains, so we still have a ways to go but hopefully we'll have everything done in the next month or so...Clay has done a great job putting everything together! :) We'll post the final pics of the nursery once it's complete!

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We just got the decal in the mail today....looks great!

Weekly Update!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend! I just wanted to post a quick update since I went to the doctor yesterday. I had a good report, meaning nothing has really changed since last week (which is always good news to me!) I wasn't able to meet with my doctor since he was out delivering a little one but I'm okay with that since I have another appointment next week. Still just taking it one day at a time and marking off the days till I meet my little girl! Only 9 more weeks to go!!! :)

WOO HOO! 70 DAYS (or less) TO GO!!!!

Baby Shower!

I had my first shower yesterday, it was hosted by Claudette, Amanda, and Lori (aka Punk). I had such a great time and it was a beautiful shower! I got the cutest gifts for little Maddie, I'm so excited to go through all the toys and clothes (she is going to be one well dressed baby!) I loved the decorations that Amanda had put together, you can see in the background of the picture that she had put some onsies, socks, hats, and bibs on a clothes line- such a cute idea! Thanks again to all my hostesses for throwing such a great shower!!

Wednesday marks 30 weeks which means only 6 weeks till the cerclage comes out and 10 weeks until baby arrives, hopefully these next few weeks go by fast! My next appointment is Friday, I'll post again then!!

Update

I had another doctor's appointment today, everything looked good according the ultrasound technician. I didn't see my main OB today but the doctor I talked to seemed pleased with everything and just told me to continue my bedrest and do what I've been doing. It's nice to have good news after being holed up in the house all week. The past 8 weeks of bedrest have been tough but I know it's serving its purpose and I'm so thankful for that! So all in all everything went well today and now I can look forward to the weekend! Speaking of weekend, I'm so excited about my first shower on Sunday. Claudette (mother-in-law), Amanda (sister-in-law) and Punk (Clay's Aunt) are hosting the event and I know it's going to be great! I'll definitely post some pics next week along with some nursery pics! Thanks for all the prayers and support!!

NURSERY PICS COMING SOON....

Our first milestone!

We're excited to say that I'm officially in the third trimester...woo hoo! I'm 28 weeks today and very happy to have made this far without further complications! We had our two doctor's appointments yesterday, the perinatoligist (peri) confirmed after the ultrasound that everything looks fine, the stitch is "doing it's job" and he's real glad to see that I've made it to 28 weeks...I go back to see him in four weeks at 32 weeks! I also saw my regular OB yesterday after seeing the peri and he agreed that he was happy with everything. He wants to continue to see me weekly for cervical measurements and also to continue my moderate bedrest.

In 8 weeks, I'll have the stitch removed so I'm trying hard to make it to 36 weeks! I'm taking it week by week for now...it's hard to believe I've been on bedrest for the past 7 weeks! It's been pretty difficult but it is getting easier...thanks for all the visitors and support we've had over the past several weeks, it's definitely made this process a lot easier!

My next appt is 8/20...hope it goes as well as this last one and there are no changes to report!
Thanks again for all the prayers!

Happy Friday!

No updates yet, my next appointment is Tuesday the 11th and it's with the high risk doctor...hopefully things will look the same if not better. I'm trying to take it easy after registering this week, I went to Babies R Us on Wednesday and Target on Thursday. It was so nice getting out of the house and picking out items for the baby, I'm getting excited about the showers! Clay is also picking up our new mattress tomorrow and the baby furniture (woo-hoo!) I can't wait to see the room come together, I wish I could help but I know either way it's going to turn out beautiful! I will post pics as soon as possible...

Have a great weekend everyone!

Happy birthday to me! Plus, we have somewhat happy news!

After a weekend of stricter bedrest, we had an appointment today and things seem to have been better than Friday. My measurements were better than last week but still not where they were 2 weeks ago. However, the doctor seems to think that everything is okay and he doesn't seem too worried or even too concerned at this point. Since I haven't had any contractions or any other signs of pre term labor, he told me to continue the moderate bedrest (which was a relief to not be told to go on strict bedrest) and try to take it easy as much as possible. He even gave me the go ahead to register on Wednesday which made me happy. I will still continue to get monitored each week and next Tuesday I have an appointment with the perinatologist (high risk doc). Hopefully things will look the same if not better and we'll keep everyone posted with each visit.

Thanks again for all the prayers!

On a lighter note....

To keep myself busy during the next 12 to 15 weeks of bed rest my cousin was nice enough (and patient enough) to teach me how to crochet. At first I wasn't too fond of it. I couldn't figure it out, which drove me crazy, and my hands wouldn't do what I wanted them to do. However, after several hours of frustration I finally got the hang of it and my pink scarf pictured to the left is now looking more and more like a pink blanket, in fact I think I'm a little addicted to it! It's been pretty therapeutic and definitely keeps me busy. I work on it everyday and hope to be done soon...I'll post the final version when finished! :)

My next project is a red toboggan (for N.C State of course). We'll see how that goes, seems pretty hard but the good thing is I have time on my side.

Update!

So I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and we had a good report!! My cervix was measuring the same as last week and baby was looking good! My doctor even said I could be a little more liberal with my bedrest! :) I will still, of course, take it easy and rest as much as possible but it's nice to hear news like that after this crazy and scary month! Funny story- during the ultrasound the technician noticed that she was resting her hand under her chin and as she scanned down we saw that she also had her feet crossed...she looked like she was posing for us! The technician said she was going to be girly girl...we'll see about that! But it was really cute, she is still doing great and getting bigger every week! Our next appointment is the 31st so we'll have another update then if not before...thanks again to everyone for all the prayers and support!

What's a Snoogle???

Sorry for the delay, but the reason is good...it's because nothing has changed since my last post! Well, I haven't had a doctor's appointment yet this week but I will definitely post after my visit on Thursday. Hopefully everything will be great and I'll continue the moderate bedrest as usual. Speaking of bedrest, it's been 3 weeks and I'm still trucking along...I actually ventured out yesterday to Babies R Us with my mom (she had a coupon and approved of me leaving for an hour) so off we went. I've been having lots of lower back pain at night when I sleep so I decided to get one of those full body pillows, apparently they're called a snoogle...I guess the same person that invented the snuggy and slanket invented the snoogle (who comes up with these names??) Anyways, great investment...my snake-like pillow is very comfy and even though it takes up half the bed it does the trick because I woke up this morning with little to no back pain. :) Clay likes to make fun of it every chance he gets but I think he's really just jealous, even Brody seems to like it (I caught him curled up in it sleeping like a baby when I left the room to make myself some lunch). So the next 15 weeks of bedrest should be a little easier well, I guess more comfortable now that I have my snoogle...just keep me away from the snuggies!

New Design!

Guess the boredom has set in...j/k! Hope you like the new design!!

Feeling Good!

Well we finally left the hospital at 6:30 pm on Friday night after waiting all day to be discharged! It felt so great to be home, to finally get some real rest and to see Brody. A big thanks to Claudette for getting my room all ready for the long weeks of bedrest to come...and a huge thanks to all the visitors who stopped by the hospital to see us and for sending the most beautiful plants and flowers!

Okay, so the update...after surgery I definitely had some discomfort, small contractions (which is normal after that type of procedure) and the worst headache ever from the spinal block. But two days later, all the symptoms seemed to subside and I was feeling pretty good! I had two doctors appointments today and I was a little nervous since the last three in a row had been pretty scary and unnerving. Today's, however, went really well. I had the first one with the perinatal (Dr. Allbert). I won't go into too much detail but he did say that everything looked good and that the surgery was the right decision to make. Next, with Dr. Jones, we got confirmation that everything looked good and talked about what I could do in the next few weeks. He said to continue the moderate bedrest but if everything continues to look good as they monitor me each week then he may lift some of my restrictions and allow me to increase my activity a little!!! :) He even said that it's safe for me to register at the store, as opposed to online, which put the biggest smile on my face! I'll continue to be monitored each week, take progesterone daily and keep up the bedrest so hopefully all this will help delay any preterm labor plus I know I'm in good hands with Dr. Allbert and Dr. Jones!

Thanks again for all the support, everyone has been so wonderful throughout this process and we're so lucky to have friends and family who care for us this much!

We'll continue to keep you posted....

Thank you to Everyone!

It's been a long first week of bedrest, I'm not sure at this point how I'm going to make it for the next 15 to 18 weeks laying on my side (especially during the summertime)! I do know my friends and family will make this a lot easier, you all proved that since day one. Thanks to my mom and my family for stopping by every other day to hang out with me, a big thanks to my mom for painting my toes one night- only a mother's love would do that! Thanks to my best friends Jessica and Allison for each bringing over dinner one night last week, and Stacy for hanging out Friday and bringing a huge stack of magazines! :) Thanks to my wonderful in-laws for bringing over dinner, hanging out with us, and going to appointments with us. And finally, thanks to everyone for the calls and emails to check on us, we have amazing friends and family and again I know we can get through these tough months with the support we have from all of you! We love you and appreciate everything you do!!!

At 21 weeks we were excited to go back for another ultrasound. Most couples aren't scheduled for another one until after 30 weeks, but we needed another one because the baby was so active the first time around that the technician could not get all her measurements. Looking back, we were very blessed to have this second ultrasound because that's when we got the news... the news that we weren't expecting... we were told that there was a chance of me going into pre-term labor due to an incompetent cervix. (http://www.healthline.com/galecontent/incompetent-cervix ). We were immediately sent to a high-risk doctor who suggested bedrest and weekly monitoring of the cervix. There were discussions about a cervical cerclage but in the meantime they just wanted me to be on moderate bedrest until my next visit. Since that initial visit on June 25th, we have had 3 more visits to the doctor, the good news is that my cervix is still measuring the same and hasn't gotten significantly shorter, the bad news is I've still been put on bedrest and most likely will be until I deliver. I will also begin progesterone shots next week, which will continue for at least 10 weeks. Hopefully, these shots will prevent me from having contractions. I haven't had any yet, but the doctor wants to make sure they don't start.
So this is where we are today. I will continue to update everyone on each doctor visit or post random thoughts as I get through these weeks of bedrest boredom. I will do anything for this baby to be born healthy. If the doctor tells me to hang upside down for the rest of the pregnancy then just call me Batman!
Thanks again for all the support and prayers, we really appreciate it!

Week 17 Ultrasound Pics

Recap through 20 weeks

It has all happened so quickly! We started trying at the beginning of the year, and almost immediately conceived. We found out we are pregnant on March 4, 2009 after I randomly decided to take a pregnancy test. The results were immediate and shocking...PREGNANT! Although we were completely surprised because it only took us a month, we were overjoyed! The doctor confirmed a couple days later with our first ultrasound that we were indeed pregnant and appeared to be right at 5 weeks. I'm not gonna lie, the first couple months were tough. I had morning sickness (well, sickness occurred at night) and weird food aversions. I felt like someone had sucked the life out of me, I had no energy and I was tired all the time. Things were looking up at about 14 weeks, the sickness went away my energy was coming back and I felt great. I was finally looking forward to being pregnant! At 17 weeks, we went in for a follow-up ultrasound to find out the sex. I had a feeling it would be a boy, but the technician confirmed that we would be having a little girl!!! We were beyond excited and I was ready to start buying anything pink! By 20 weeks I had bought plenty of maternity clothes, we had ordered the nursery furniture, and we started receiving our first little gifts for the baby. Everything was coming together nicely all the blood work and tests were coming back normal and we couldn't have been happier!