"Stressed" Out

Hey everyone. We have arrived at 31 weeks and 5 days and everything has been a bit crazy this week. On Tuesday, I had my 31 week OB appointment and my blood pressure was pretty significantly elevated. I haven't seen any of this for several weeks so I was immediately concerned with my kidneys and Max's safety. My OB decided to go ahead and send me to the hospital to do fetal non-stress tests. Since I have had a lot of questions aimed at me about these tests, here is a definition from the American Pregnancy Association:

How is a NST Performed?

The test involves attaching one belt to the mother’s abdomen to measure fetal heart rate and another belt to measure contractions. Movement, heart rate and “reactivity” of heart rate to movement is measured for 20-30 minutes. If the baby does not move, it does not necessarily indicate that there is a problem; the baby could just be asleep. A nurse may use a small “buzzer” to wake the baby for the remainder of the test.

Why would a NST be performed?

A NST may be performed if:

• You sense that the baby is not moving as frequently as usual
• You are overdue
• There is any reason to suspect that the placenta is not functioning adequately
• You are high risk for any other reason

The test can indicate if the baby is not receiving enough oxygen because of placental or umbilical cord problems; it can also indicate other types of fetal distress.

So, all of that to say...I have been high risk since the moment I got a plus sign on the stick so it was always going to be in the plans to have NST's done. It just so happened that we started a week early due to my blood pressure being elevated. We got to the hospital and everything went fine, although 20-30 minutes is not an accurate measure of time for me since Max is only in the 31st week. It took us an hour on Tuesday but eventually he passed the test for his gestational age. I had a Maternal Fetal Specialist appointment on Wednesday scheduled, however, I started to feel very sick on Tuesday night. Our specialist is located about 2 hrs away in Louisville, Kentucky so we decided to reschedule that appointment for when I felt better. I was very concerned that I didn't feel good due to the blood pressure because I started to be dizzy and have some nausea. 

The next morning, we had my blood pressure checked and it indeed had gone down so I didn't feel a need to be alarmed. On Friday, we had another NST scheduled and went as planned. It took over 2 hours to get Max to cooperate during this one as he was probably asleep. The night before, I had symptoms of illness again and ended up vomiting, being dizzy, and even having panic attacks. The underlying cause of all of this....(not kidding) peanut butter. The days I felt ill were days I had eaten peanut butter. It has been something I have been wanting recently but for some reason, it is making me sick. At his NST,my blood pressure was back to normal and I no longer felt badly. I guess I'm gonna lay off the peanut butter.

Max and I both are doing fine and we are trudging along and hoping for a great last 8 weeks. Sleep has still been pretty difficult but last night I had some sleepy time chamomile tea and that worked wonders. Other things we have done is massage with cocoa butter (love this one), listened to classical music, read books where Anthony reads to me and Max, and sat in low lighting in front of the fan. Anthony is such a great dad and great husband as he tries to keep Max and I in the best health possible. I am a very lucky woman! I am feeling positive that Max is doing well and that I am too. I am hoping he stays in as long as possible and gets the most development he can for labor and delivery.

Our next steps are Monday the 21st having a Maternal Fetal Specialist appointment where Max will have another ultrasound and we will talk about Anesthesia. This appointment will also involve a meeting with the diabetic team to make sure no adjustments on my pump are necessary. January 26th is my baby shower and I am super excited to celebrate with everyone that loves Max and really have an opportunity to enjoy this part of the pregnancy. We recently purchased Max's crib and that will be going in soon and hopefully a lot more progress done on the nursery. It has been hard to give that time with all of these appointments. I will be having NSTs done twice a week on Tuesday and Friday in order to make sure Max stays in a healthy place for delivery. We will also see my regular OB every two weeks and probably keep with seeing the Louisville specialist less frequently due to distance and inconvenience.

Some big changes are on the horizon in the Lewis household so stay tuned and if anyone's interested, the countdown is 8 weeks and 1 day to go!

Thanks for stopping in.

Anthony & Erica

Babies need lots of stuff!

So here we are embarking on 24 weeks tomorrow. Yes, that means I am 6 months pregnant. Since I most likely will give birth early, this starts my third trimester. Anthony and I have been doing a lot more prep work since figuring out that we are in the home stretch. Since we have been so focused on the present, we really did not see this third trimester sneak up on us. The pregnancy has seemed to fly by.

This last week we focused on a few tasks that needed to get completed in order to have a successful baby shower. Baby showers are far more necessary than I ever imagined they were. From now on, when I am invited to a baby shower there are a few things that I have decided.

1. I will either go to the baby shower or at least send a gift.

These things are the answer to all parent's needs. It is so expensive and overwhelming to shop for a new baby. They need so much more than you ever imagined when you didn't have one or were planning on becoming parents. They need so many items that add up in your pocket and in your to-do list.

2. I will use the registry list.

I have registered so far at Kohl's and Target and at both stores I was incredibly meticulous about picking things out for Max. I tried to pick clothes according to the seasons and what age he would be, toys that were appropriate for his age for bath time, and all of the necessary toiletries for his mixed skin. Yes, I am that mom. In saying that, my sister quickly told me that when she had her baby shower, no one bought from the registry! I could not believe that was true. I have been pretty good over the years at buying wedding gifts and baby gifts from the registry because I was too clueless most of the time to pick something that the baby or couple would actually need. This awed me that people do not shop from the registry. I think that we spent about an hour and a half in Target yesterday picking out things for Max and although it was fun, it would be great to see him get some of those items from people that love him in his family. I have decided that I am going to stick with what I have always done...buying from the registry. I know we did it for a reason!

3. I will talk with the parents!

I think that it would be helpful to ask the parents from now on if they used a registry and if they did, how serious they were about it. Most of the items that Anthony and I registered for were in the $0-$10 range because those are the things that add up on our budget. We are obviously happy to buy those big ticket items like crib, stroller, car seat, high chair, etc....ourselves but it would be so helpful to be able to overlook some of the smaller items like wash cloths, socks, bibs, wipes, etc... with the help of friends and family. I can now see why these baby showers are so imperative to a set of new parents. We are doing our very best to plan well but man...who knew these little miracles needed so much!??!!!

We had a great time registering last night and enjoying our dinner out to celebrate 6 months with our little Max and we will cherish this time either way. I am looking forward to my baby shower in January to get together with those that love Max, have prayed for him, and watched us yearn for him. We know that it will be a blast being able to have our first real celebration about his life.

Another thing we have been diligently working on is the nursery. We have this great room in our place right by our room that is spacious and awesome for our little guy. It has (in the past) been filled with things we wanted to go through and possibly give to Goodwill, put away in different areas, and things we just didn't feel we had a space for. It is our time to find places for these items, give the things away that are no longer necessary, and get working on making this Max's room. We have decided to go with a Jungle Animal theme for his room in light blues, browns, and light greens. I picked up a few items at Michael's to do a few projects for his room and of course he already has all of the Scentsy Buddies and a warmer of his very own for his bedroom. We are excited to do this new room in our house and make a place for him to call his own and put all of these awesome things we have acquired over the months. For sure as we make progress, pictures will be posted on this blog! :)

As far as the pregnancy goes, we are in the process of doing a new test on my kidneys for the third trimester. This is a little more detail than you all probably want but I have to collect 24 hrs of urine and give it to the hospital and then get blood work immediately after to make sure my kidneys are functioning well for the delivery and rest of the pregnancy. In the morning, we will turn in this glorious sample and also go to my OB's office to get my blood pressure checked again. I have also noticed for the last couple of days that my sugars are starting to elevate. I will be contacting Maternal Fetal Medicine in Louisville to possibly make changes on my pump that will help have tighter control over this last three months. Please continue to pray for us in these areas!

I hope you are all doing well and I will do my best to continue to update especially since I start my maternity leave on December 21st! I am looking forward to some down time to be honest in order to get ready for my little dude!

Thanks for stopping in,

Erica & Anthony