Me at 33 weeks 3 days pregnant!



Here's a record of our prenatal appointments:

May 15 -- I had my 40 week appointment today. No weight gain, so the total for this pregnancy was 22 pounds. I'm being induced tonight!

May 11 -- I woke up feeling some contractions. Dylan's Tiger Cub trip to the Zoo was this day, so I called my mom to go with us (I didn't want to drive). Walking through the zoo, the contractions went from 20 minutes apart to 7 minutes apart. By the time we got home, they were 6 minutes apart! I got very excited thinking this was it! Jeff told me to lay down and get some rest because I looked exhausted. I did, thinking I'd need to reserve some energy for delivery later that night. Unfortunately, the contractions stopped. UGH!!!

May 8 -- I went for my 39 week appointment expecting to be induced on the 9th or 10th but it's not happening. {sigh} I measured 39 cm and have gained two pounds. Matthew's heartbeat is still nice and strong, but he shows no signs of wanting to come join our family.

May 6 -- I left work early because I was still having contractions, although I was certain I was dehydrated again and they were not real. I now have an urinary tract infection. The midwife said if my cervix softens by my appointment on Wednesday, she'll induce my labor. So I am taking Primrose Oil, and drinking lots of Red Raspberry Tea.

May 3 -- I was having sporadic contractions all day (nothing new for me). Around 5:00, I started getting these back pains that felt like I was being ripped in two. By 6:00 they were non-stop. I was still getting stomach contractions off and on, but wasn't really timing them. Jeff was at work, and I was running some errands with my dad. My dad said maybe we should go home, but I said that false labor would stop if I kept walking and real labor would become stronger, so I wanted to continue on. By the time we got home at 9:30, the pain was so bad that I could barely walk. I called Jeff (who was on his way home), and told him that I was going to soak in the bathtub and to come check on me when he got home. He did and found me in the most pain I'd been in yet. He helped me up and into our bedroom. He got me a glass of ice water, tried to help me get comfortable (which was impossible), and started timing these contractions. After 20 minutes, she said they were 4-5 minutes apart, and how long had they been that way? I said I didn't know. I hadn't been timing them before he got home. I called my mom for some motherly advice and kindness, and she told me it sounded like hard labor to her and to call the midwife. I called my midwife and told her how I was feeling. A contraction hit while we were talking, and I handed the phone to Jeff. She said I sounded like I was in labor and to come in. So off to the hospital we went. They hooked me up to monitors and sure enough, contractions were registering! I got very excited thinking this was really it -- I was in labor! About three contractions later, my midwife came in during one, and commented how close together they were. So she said she wanted to check my dilation to see how close to being ready Matthew was. I'm still only 1 cm. dilated. So she said there had to be another reason I was having contractions if it wasn't causing my cervix to dilate. They checked for an UTI and dehydration. Sure enough, I was dehydrated AGAIN! They rehydrated me and the contractions stopped. I became so depressed that I couldn't even look at my MW when she talked to me. I just stared at the wall. She offered to try to induce me, but said she didn't think it would do anything much because nothing was going on down there yet. So she gave me something to help me sleep (with my permission, of course) and sent me home..

May 1 -- I had my 38 week appointment. There was no weight gain. I measured 37 cm. My midwife said Matthew has dropped some more. As usual, the heartbeat was nice and strong.

April 24 -- I had my 37 week appointment. I gained another pound, so I'm up to 20. Sigh! I measured 38 cm. Matthew has dropped some, but my midwife doesn't think he'll drop into zero station until I go into labor because he's my second baby. (I asked how he knows -- did Dylan write "Dylan wuz here" on the walls of my uterus? lol) He cooperated and let us hear the heartbeat this week, and it was nice and strong. My next appointment is May 1.

April 17 -- I had my 36 week appointment. I gained another three pounds, so the total is now up to 19 pounds. I measured 37 cm. Matthew is still in the head down position, but we think he is facing forwards, not backwards, which means back labor if he doesn't turn around! We didn't get to hear the heartbeat because my midwife ticked him off by touching his head when she checked my dilation (I'm at 1 cm), so he kept moving away from the doppler! She laughed and said she wasn't concerned because the activity meant he was just fine! she said at this point, she considers me full-term and would not stop my labor whenever it begins. So we could, in theory, have a baby at any time! My next appointment is April 24.

April 2 -- I had my 34 week appointment. I gained three pounds (for a total of 16 lbs.) and measured 35 cm. I guess Matthew had a growth spurt! My midwife discussed my birth plan with Jeff and I, and everything looks good. Matthew is in the head-down position, although she said he still has some room to move around at this point. As always, his heartbeat was nice and strong! My next appointment is April 17.

March 20 -- I had my 32 week appointment. I lost a pound, so my total weight gain is 13 pounds. Everything is still normal. My next appointment is April 2.

March 6 -- I had my 30 week appointment. Everything is still normal. I gained 3 more pounds for a total weight gain of 14 pounds. The results from my GTT were normal, but my iron is low, so I was "yelled at" for not taking my prenatal vitamins. Matthew's heartbeat was nice and strong! I'm measuring accurately again -- 31 cm at 30 weeks, so another ultrasound may not be needed. My next appointment is March 20.

February 27 -- An accident at work sent me to the hospital. One of my students was pushed by another student and fell backwards into my stomach -- elbow first! The hospital did blood tests to make sure the placenta was functioning normally, monitored Matthew's heartbeat and my uterus for contractions, and did an ultrasound. Everything looked good. Matthew was hanging out, sucking his thumb, and playing with his foot. He'd grown a lot in the last 10 weeks! I wish it had been a 3-D ultrasound because he was looking right at us! We could have seen his beautiful face! Oh, well! It won't be long until we do see him!

February 19 -- I had my 28 week appointment. Everything is normal. I filled out the pre-admission papers for the hospital, had the 1-hour glucose test, and got my RhoGAM shot. There was no weight gain at all! Matthew's heartbeat was nice and strong, as usual! We've decided to use the midwife at my OB's office for the delivery. We're going to try to have this baby without any drugs! My next appointment is March 6.

February 15 -- I had to go to the hospital. I had the flu and wasn't able to keep anything -- not even fluids -- down. When my temperature got to 101, I was told to come to the hospital. I was dehydrating and had a couple of contractions. I was rehydrated with two bags of saline and given medicine for nausea. Matthew's hearbeat remained strong throughout the entire ordeal.

February 5 -- I gained another 5 pounds, putting my total weight gain at 11-1/2 pounds. Matthew resisted the doppler again, but his heartbeat was nice and strong! I measured big this time, so the doctor said we'll have to do another ultrasound before the pregnancy is over to see how big this baby really is! I have to start going to the doctor every two weeks now since I'm about to begin my third trimester. At my February 19th visit, I'll do the one-hour glucose test and get the Rh shot.

January 8 -- I'd gained a total of 6-1/2 pounds this pregnancy, and 5 of those pounds were over Christmas! Matthew didn't like having his heartbeat checked. He kicked the doppler and rolled away! And he did this more than once! My belly measured 22 cm, which is perfect since I was 21w6d. It was a very uneventful checkup, which is how I like it! They'll schedule my Rh shot and one-hour glucose test at the next appointment on my birthday, February 5!

December 20 -- We had the ultrasound done. As I stated, it's very clearly a boy! No doubt -- we saw things too many times! LOL! Matthew looks very healthy. Everything is developing normally. My only concern was his size: at a time when he should have weighed 7 ounces, he weighed 11 ounces!








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