31 Weeks

31 Weeks

What a week! Quinn spent his 31st week of life in a tiny room with me, while I wrote all day for four days for my comprehensive exams. I finished on Friday, having spent over 24 hours writing over 46 single-spaced pages, all from memory! It went really well. It was a pain in the butt and very fatiguing, but I remained stress-free the entire time. I had Quinn's stuffed froggy next to the computer, a back pillow, food and water, and my baby to keep me from stressing. I'm really happy with how it went, and will now just be waiting to defend my answers in the oral exam on August 23. I'm not going to stress about that one, either. Hopefully I will pass and be registered as ABD - all but dissertation! Yahoo!

Aside from getting some back ache from sitting in a chair all week, I'm feeling really good. The contractions are still occurring, but they haven't been bad or too regular. The most fun development this past week was feeling Quinn's hiccups for the first time. He gets them almost every day, and they are so strong that even Jonathan can feel my belly shake and quiver with each one. It's happened a few times at night, such that I couldn't sleep until they went away. They are most prominent when his back is right up against my belly - I swear you could almost hear them. We had our first childbirth education class last week, and will be meeting with pediatricians this week. Now our appointments are every two weeks. We only have 6 weeks until he is full-term, and 9 until his due date!

Another baby butt shot

Here is how he is growing this week:

This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.


 To celebrate finishing a rough week of writing, we went to visit family, swim in the pool, and do a little maternity clothes shopping. Up to this point, I only owned one maternity item. I can still wear one pair of non-maternity pants, but they are getting pretty uncomfortable. We had a great time swimming in the cool(er) evenings and eating out at Olive Garden. J.J. always has a great time swimming - he should have been born a fish. 

Gonna get the toy!

Almost there!

Got it!

Oh, good, I do still have feet!

Comps update - Halfway done!

Hurray - I'm halfway done with comps! I spent 6 hours writing on Monday, and over 7 hours writing yesterday, producing a total of 25 single-spaced pages. Whew! I felt like my brain had melted by yesterday evening. Today I am taking the day off and will spend tomorrow and Friday finishing the exam. Then I'm done until the oral exam, which will be one month from now. Yea!

I've been able to stay surprisingly calm and de-stressed through this process, which is a new experience for me. I usually get so wound up about these exams that I get sick, lose weight, lose sleep, etc. Not this time! Maybe it's knowing that something so much more important is happening in my life. While the questions have been challenging and a lot of work, I feel good about them. I haven't lost any sleep thinking about what I should have written or who I forgot to cite. Things are going well so far and I am so looking forward to finishing this exam on Friday.

30 Weeks

30 weeks

 Can you believe it? I am 30 weeks pregnant! That means that we are 3/4 through the pregnancy - only 7 weeks until Quinn is full-term, and 10 until his due date. I have been feeling great, except for being a little tired. I really feel pregnant though - my belly feels huge and I walk funny. It's fun. :) I'm still monitoring my blood sugar every day to figure out which foods cause it to spike, and I will probably have to do this throughout the rest of the pregnancy. I am also still having contractions, but excluding last night, they have been infrequent and irregular. Last night they were more regular and bothersome, but I didn't eat or drink as much water as I should have. So far I've gained around 14.5 pounds and 9.5 inches around my waist!

Quinn's development this week:
"Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and he weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds him, but that volume will decrease as he gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. His eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after he's born, he'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When he does open them, he'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means he can only make out objects a few inches from his face."

This weekend Jonathan presented at a professional conference. He left Thursday evening and returned last night, and I missed him so much! He had a great time and made some good connections. While he was gone, my mom and sister came over for a girls' night. We ate Middle Eastern food and talked until the wee hours of the morning. Mom also took my maternity photos, which I will post sometime soon.

Here are some fun pictures from the week. The heat has driven everyone indoors (high on Thursday was 111!), so I apologize for the lack of stimulating photos. Hopefully it will cool off a bit and then I can take my camera outside.

What a baby!

Wish I could be Zoie sometimes...

Tomorrow is my first day of comprehensive exams. I will be in a little room with a computer from 8-5 every day except Wednesday this week. I've been studying all day, with breaks to cook and eat. I'm feeling pretty good about it. I mainly want to get it out of the way so I can go back to spending my mental energy on fantasizing about my baby. :) My strategy to reduce stress during the exam is to bring in Quinn's stuffed froggy to help me remember what is truly important.

Here are some fun facts that I've learned in my studies for the week:
- Formula feeding increases the risk of death for infants from respiratory illness by 2-5 times, death from gastrointestinal illness by 10 times in developing countries (accounts for about 300 infant deaths a year in the US), 5 times risk of death from SIDS (about 4,000 deaths a year in the US), 4 times increased risk of bacteremia and meningitis, and 2-5 times increased risk of acute otitis media (ear infection; about 30 million office visits a year).
- Long-term effects of formula feeding over breastfeeding include: increased instances of IBS, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, celiac disease, and juvenile diabetes (about 25% of all cases in the US could be prevented by breastfeeding); increased risk of childhood leukemia (6-8 times increased risk from formula feeding), breast cancer (25% reduction from breastfeeding), multiple sclerosis (2-3 times increased risk from formula), allergic disorders and asthma (4 times the risk), coronary artery disease, chronic respiratory disease, lower IQ and delayed psychomotor development.
- Women benefit from breastfeeding by reduced risk of postpartum hemorrhage, and reduced risk of breast and ovarian cancers, diabetes, obesity, and bone fractures.
- Errors in formula manufacturing have caused lung and retinal disease, IQ deficits, cirrhosis of the liver, botulism, SIDS, salmonella poisoning, brain deposition, meningitis, intestinal gangrene, and growth and neural deficits.
- Finally, did you know that a few drops of breastmilk in a test tube kills many bacteria and parasites on contact! Forget the germ-X!
Funny that breastfeeding and formula feeding are still portrayed as relatively equal by the media, and that formula companies tout their products to be safe and beneficial for babies, right? Don't mothers have a right to know these statistics before deciding what to feed their babies? It may surprise you that these effects have been known since at least 1995, when the source was published. Lots of children survive being fed infant formula, but have you ever known a formula-fed baby not to at least suffer from frequent ear infections, gastrointestinal problems (gas, colic), and allergies? What is sad is that these frequent childhood illnesses are viewed as normal in our society, due to the high prevalence of formula feeding. Research shows that children have short and long-term benefits from exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months, and continued breastfeeding beyond 2 years. Based on the research, breastfeeding is not always possible (due to many maternal constraints like employment and lack of social support), but it should be viewed as a medical necessity rather than a personal preference.

29 weeks

29 Weeks

 This week was leaps and bounds better than the previous week. I've still been having contractions, but they haven't been anything like they were last week in terms of frequency and accompanying symptoms. I'm back to doing yoga every morning (but don't worry, it's not crazy power-make-you-sweat yoga). We had our 28 week appointments with the OB and our midwife this week. Quinn is growing very well, and I'm right on track in terms of weight gain (about 14 pounds so far), blood pressure, etc. My blood sugar was a bit high on Friday, so I'm going to be tracking it every day this coming week to make sure that I'm not at risk for gestational diabetes. We've also been talking a lot about our birth options, realizing that we will have to make some decisions in the very near future. We are only 8 weeks from being full-term, and 11 from our due date! I can't believe how fast it has gone by. We are getting super exciting about meeting Quinn - looking into his eyes, hearing his little voice, counting his toes...

Here's how he is growing this week:

Little butt on the left

"Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day."
Quinn is now in the head-down position most of the time, facing my spine. He likes to stick his butt out and dig his heels into my belly. It's a lot of fun to rub and tickle him, and feel him move and squirm in response. We've been playing lots of footsie. 

Great face, babe!

Last weekend we drove south to visit family and see Jonathan's brother perform in Tent Theatre. That man can dance! I don't know how they can tap that way. Lydia and Ricky made us a delicious breakfast the next morning, and we spent the afternoon playing Disney Charades and catching up. It is always such a delight to see them. The visit was probably the last time we will see Ricky before Quinn is born, since he will be living up north until the end of the year.



In other news, I have been saving all Christmas and birthday money for the past two years to buy a nice digital SLR camera. Our little point-and-shoot has served us well for the last 5 years, but it has many limitations that frustrate me. With our little guy on the way, we really wanted to get a high quality camera to capture those first beautiful moments of his life. I finally saved up enough and found a great deal online last week, and we got it in the mail a couple of days later. Since I've been doing so much studying for comps, I haven't had a ton of time to play with it, but we've both pulled it out enough to capture some fun moments.

I've got one week until my comps. I finished reading and taking notes on all 106 of my sources, and now it's down to memorizing and studying until the big day.

28 weeks

28 weeks

 As you noticed from the previous posts, last week was scary and a bit stressful. It was hard to monitor frequent contractions and feel like we were just waiting to check back into the hospital. More than anything, we wanted our baby to be healthy, which meant keeping him inside as long as possible. After Saturday's OB appointment, we feel so much better. We are much less concerned now that Quinn will come early. I'm also feeling a lot better getting off the medicine; I'm back to feeling super. I'm still having contractions, but they are not as regular or intense. Hopefully they will stay that way until it's really time. I have a little back/feet ache, but other than that, I really do feel good. I'm starting to feel pretty big, and have had people tell me that they wonder how much bigger I can get - I wonder that, too, but I bet the answer is "pretty darn huge." :)

I actually love how the pregnant belly looks and feels; this is such a special time in my life. I feel delighted every time I feel him move, emphasizing our fleeting shared physical connection. He is a very responsive baby. I know I've mentioned how he responds to Jonathan's voice, but he is now responding to mine as well, and to touch. Some research indicates that babies in utero will stay still to listen to foreign sounds, but move actively in response to familiar voices/music. I sing him a specific lullaby every day, and noticed last week that he would move while I was singing, and pause in between verses, as if waiting for the song to continue. What fun! And while driving on Sunday, he and I played a game of footsie. He likes to stick his butt up on either side of my belly button and kick with his heels. Whenever he would kick, I would poke his foot. Then he would pause, move his foot about 2 inches, then kick again. We kept going back and forth, each time him moving his foot and waiting.

 Here is what he is up to in terms of growth this week:
"By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world."

Zoie's new favorite napping place

With all of the startling baby developments last week, it was really hard to focus on studying for my comprehensive exam (which is now just 12 days away). I didn't finish my readings list on time, but I've now finished 96 out of 102 sources, so I'm almost there. This week I am meeting with committee members to try to study more efficiently. Aside from being a bit behind, the process has not stressed me out too much. I am trying to stay calm and not worry about it, which is much easier to do knowing that any increases in my cortisol will increase for Quinn as well.

Thank you again for all of the kind emails, comments, and positive thoughts sent our way. The love made us feel much better going through such frightening events last week.

Update 2 - Better news

I need to do the 28 week post, but I've been very busy trying to get caught up on my comps reading after being in the hospital (the exam is only 13 days away). Until then, I thought I would give a little update for any of you who might be wondering how things are going.

Things are going much better since the last post! I continued to have contractions all last week (still am actually), so my OB had us go in Saturday morning at 7am for an ultrasound. He checked my cervix to see if all of those contractions had caused any cervical change (which would indicate that labor had started), and it looked perfect! No change whatsoever. Most women do have cervical change with the symptoms I was having, which is why I was repeatedly told to go to the hospital and have it checked. However, some women also just have irritable uteruses that contract without starting labor. Add a very active little boy to an irritable uterus, and you get lots of contractions and discomfort.

The bottom line is that this may be normal for me, at least for this pregnancy. I may continue to have these symptoms for the rest of the pregnancy. I don't mind the symptoms too much as long as I am not told to count constantly, and worry about repeated hospital visits and pre-term babies. I don't have to continue taking the medicine, but can use it if the contractions get worse. This is great because it was causing icky side effects - my legs would get bright red, swollen, tingly, and numb for about an hour every time I took it, plus dizziness, headache, and fatigue. The biggest problem I had with the medicine though was that it is a Class C; I'm trying to eat healthy and avoid any potentially harmful substances, so this made me nervous.

I'm so excited that Baby boy is safe and healthy, and that he will likely be born right on time (i.e., any time after 37 weeks). That means I get to stay pregnant - I love being pregnant! Thanks for all your positive thoughts and prayers - it means a lot to me and obviously works. :)

Update

I apologize for the negative tone in the last post, but that was my state of mind when I wrote it. The last couple of days have been a roller coaster. I've felt better and reassured, and then had the contractions pick up again, which frightened us. The contractions increased to 2 minutes apart yesterday afternoon, and I had lower back pain and some minor cramping. I was at that point when the nurses rushed in with an injection on Monday. It was a bit scary. We debated going to the hospital again, but I took my medicine and waited to see if it would help. Over an hour later, the contractions started to become more irregular and the discomfort subsided. Today I have to call my OB, because the medicine he gave me to take every 6 hours is not a permanent fix - I can't take this for the remainder of the pregnancy (in fact, it's usually only recommended for 4-7 days). So we will see what the next plan is. I am staying incredibly hydrated, eating well, staying out of the heat, and engaging in very little activity, so there isn't much more I can do to influence the pace of the contractions. This is one of those wait-and-see games. As a planner, the lack of control over the situation increases the anxiety, though I am trying to remain calm.
Thanks for your prayers and thoughts!

27 weeks and some time in the hospital

27 weeks

Hospital gowns - only the best in fashion

 Sorry for the delayed post - things have gotten a bit crazy around here. Before we get to the typical weekly post, let me describe the latest events. We spent 5 hours on Sunday night in the hospital, and 9 more hours there yesterday. I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions practically the entire pregnancy, and some level of these without other symptoms is considered normal. Over the weekend it seemed like they were getting more frequent, so I decided to time them Sunday evening - 6 an hour. Most doctors usually recommend that you go to the hospital if you have more than 4 in an hour. Our OB said it would be best to go to the hospital to be safe, even though my contractions weren't painful.

So we checked in at 8pm on Sunday. They hooked me up to monitors to monitor the contractions and baby's heart rate; we were at about 8 contractions an hour. Then they ran some tests to determine the cause. All came back normal - no infection, dehydration, etc. They gave me a drug to relax the uterus and continued to monitor. Quinn was handling things very well - his heart rate was great, no distress, and he was very active. Five hours later, I still was not in pain, no cervical dilation, baby was great, and no real change to the contractions. They decided to send us home at 1am, but told us to keep an eye on the contractions and come back if they got worse.

Are we really back here again?!

After a few hours of sleep, we got up the next morning for work, and I started counting contractions - 14 an hour. After calling the hospital, we were told to come back. Grrrr. Same drill - monitors, meds to relax uterus, tests. I was having a lot of contractions, but they weren't painful and I still had no dilation, so they concluded that I may just have a very irritable uterus. Things continued uneventfully until after lunch, when they started to get very regular and somewhat painful - about 2-3 minutes apart, a minute long. They didn't want to check the cervix again (checking can actually stimulate contractions), so they went ahead assuming that it was "labor." They started an IV with fluids and gave me an injection to stop the contractions. It worked very quickly, and aside from making me feel pretty yucky (heart racing, shaking), it did the trick. I continued to have minor, irregular contractions for the next 4 hours, but they didn't get any worse. Quinn did well the entire time, so they weren't concerned about his reaction to the contractions. After giving my OB the puppy-dog face, he agreed to let me go home at 7pm, 9 hours later. I'm not on full bed-rest, but the doc recommends reduced activity (no exercise or vigorous activity), to stay out of the heat, and stay hydrated.

14 hours strapped to this stupid thing!

I've been monitoring the contractions all day. They are still coming but I don't think they've increased in frequency or intensity. I'm taking a uterine relaxer every 6 hours to try to keep the contractions minimized. We had a few very scary moments at the hospital, but were in survival mode - do what you have to to make sure this baby doesn't come now mode. Now that the emergency aspect of it has dwindled, the emotional reaction has kicked in. I'm scared. I know that he has a good chance of survival if he is born this early (about 85-90%), but he would be in the NICU for months. He would be premature. We would have him and have to leave him at the hospital (although I might have to start paying rent as much as I would be there!). Some premature kids never catch up. Just the thought of the labor progressing and them having to take more serious measures to stop it is scary - even if he's not born early. The drugs they give to stop labor are less risky than birth at 27 weeks, but they are not without risk. This has been a very disheartening experience for me. I haven't even had caffeine for the last year and a half to try to make everything safe for this baby boy. And now I have to take a class C drug every 6 hours to keep contractions under control. I'm trying to relax and not stress, as I'm sure that doesn't help matters, but it's hard not to feel on edge, waiting for things to get worse again. Please keep little Quinn and me in your thoughts and prayers.
On a more positive note, I am married to the greatest man in the world. Jonathan never left my side the entire time except to fetch me things. He helped me get in and out of bed, and laid in the tiny bed with me to comfort me even after the nurse said it wasn't really allowed. I have the most caring husband in the whole wide world.

Ah, I've got to calm down - I've been crying too much today! In other news, we did hit the 27 week mark on Friday, which is exciting because it is the beginning of the third trimester! Here is how little man is developing:
"This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle."

Last day at one job with friends

We also finished classes and one job last week, so our July schedule will be much clearer. We will just be working at the Writing Center and studying for comps. Yea! My comps are 3 weeks away, so I'm studying (but not stressing).  Hopefully all will be well the next few days and weeks. If we can keep the little guy inside for another 9 1/2 weeks, we will be in the clear! Hope you all have a safe and wonderful fourth of July.