Work Baby Shower!!

After all of the drama of Monday, Jeff and I were able to have some fun on Tuesday by attending a baby shower thrown by my wonderful colleagues at Siena College! It was so nice being able to see everyone after being on bedrest for almost a full month now!! They had a wonderfully delicious lunch for us, cake and gifts for the baby. The also made us a baseball themed parenting scrapbook. Everyone contributed by adding a quote and/or recipe. It is such a unique gift and so meaningful! We could not have asked for a better day!

The very delicious cake!

Looking at the scrapbook.

Another Unexpected Twist!

Well, today did not go exactly as planned. I started the day by visiting a potential daycare provider and that ended up being a nightmare! It was a center and it was horrible. My first thought was you could not pay ME enough to leave my child here! It was filthy, the entire place smelled of urine and it was completely disorganized!

So, after that I came home to relax before my noon doctor's appointment. I had some lunch and then off I went. Well, first things first I had gained 7 pounds since Thursday - yes, in 3 days! Very quick weight gain can be a sign of preeclampsia so both nurses we right by my side from the beginning. Then they took my blood pressure and it was too high considering I am on medication - 151/89. Then during the NST our little guy really did not move too much - he was very lethargic. The nurses had me eat a Twizzler and then he moved a little bit more but his heart rate was a bit lower than usual. The monitor was also picking up some mild contractions. After an ultrasound, to be on the safe side my doctor sent me to labor and delivery to be monitored at Bellevue Women's Hospital to get a better idea of what was going on.

I spent the rest of the day at the hospital so they could closely track my blood pressure and the baby. I also had to have more bloodwork done! Throughout the afternoon my blood pressure did go down and the baby became much more active. His heart rate was back to the norm for him - around 140's. Jeff came to keep me company and raise my spirits!! That certainly helped and made me feel so much better! At the end of the day my doctor came to the hospital and discharged me since everything stablized by this evening. We are going to have to up my medication a bit more to keep things in check a bit longer. Obviously, I am still on bed rest and taking it easy. I go back to the doctor's on Thursday.

On the positive side of things, I had the opportunity to meet some of the nurses at Bellevue who may be there when I actually deliver. Everyone was so nice and friendly. I am very happy with the hospital we chose. I am considering this a bit of a trial run for the big day!!

A Very Nice Day!!

• So, I am in my 4th official week of bedrest and it really seems to be helping our little guy a lot! It makes me feel good to know just how worth it this all is and to feel him move around and be nice and healthy!

• Yesterday was a super fun day! Some of my favorite Siena gals stopped over to bring me lunch and visit! Mary Beth, Karen and Janice brought pizza and chocolate chip cookies (my favorites)! We chatted and I was able to show-off the nursery. Having some company really makes all the difference in making the day go by faster! It was such a treat getting to see them!

• Then last night we went to our 3rd (of 4) birthing classes at Bellevue Women's Center in Niskayuna, NY. This is where we will be having our little guy. We toured the facilities and that made the whole labor and birth experience seem so much more real. My heart started to beat really fast and I got a little sweaty when we toured the birthing suite. Reality is starting to set in that I am actually going to have to go through labor to meet our son. I have known this all along but before it seemed so far away and nowit really could be anytime. Thank goodness, they have been teaching us cleansing breaths in class!

• We visited the nursery and we able to see some of the babies there. All those cute little faces peeping out at us. I could tell this part really made Jeff excited, to think that in a few weeks our baby boy will be the one in there peeping out at us!

Looking up!

Today's OBGYN visit could not have went any better! All of the new test results came back stable which means that so far the gestational hypertension I was diagnosed with has not progressed anymore towards preclampsia. I am still on modified bedrest because that seems to be helping as well as the high blood pressure medication. My doctor keeps telling me to enjoy this time because once the baby is here I will wish I had it! The baby passed his NST test with flying colors. He was quite active today and was kicking the fetal monitor so hard you could easily see it from the outside moving.

More Visitors!

• Jeff has been away this weekend to attend the Phish shows in Saratoga so I have been on my own! Yesterday, I spent the day resting on the deck by the pool at my in-laws house. It was such a beautiful day and not too hot...I think I really needed the fresh air. I spent about 30 minutes in the pool which felt really nice my more sore back and joints.

• Then after my brother-in-law, Andy, and my mother-in-law, Kathy, made us a delicious steak dinner I headed back home for the evening. My niece, Allison, came to stay overnight and "take care of me." My close friend, Star, and my adorable godson, Liam, also came over to visit and they brought me my absolute favorite, Fudge Fancy cookies!!! Deliciousness! We spent the evening chatting and relaxing.

• I said it before and I will say it again...having visitors really makes all the difference! They days go by quicker and I don't feel like I am all alone! Poor Jeff comes home from work each time and I bombard him and talk his ear off because after sitting alone the whole day things can get pretty dull.

• The baby has been moving around like crazy in my belly and seems to be doing quite well. I will know more once I get my tests results tomorrow at my doctor's appointment! Fingers crossed!

Allie, my "caretaker"

Mr. Liam and Star

An Unexpected Surprise!

Well, this week certainly ended with a bang....a big bang on my front door! I was resting on the sofa and was startled by a loud knock on the front door. To my surprise, it was a delivery from Edible Arrangements from one of my best friends, Jessica! It was so adorable and such a treat...almost to cute to eat (but, trust me....I will be eating it)! Thanks, Jess!

So, Thankful for Visitors!!

• Over the past two days I have had a few visitors that have really made the days go by much faster. Last night, my colleague, Ruth brought over a fully cooked meal for Jeff and I compliments of Siena College (my employer)! We feasted on Chicken Parm, Lasanga Rolls, Fruit Salad, Poppyseed Rolls and Italian Cookies! It was absolutely delicious and it was nice for Jeff and I to share a meal neither of us had to cook....he really enjoyed the night off!

Below are a few pics of our delicious fest!

Chicken Parm

Lasanga Rolls

Poppyseed Rolls, Bella Napoli Italian Cookies & Fruit Salad (YUMMY!)

• Then today I had two visitors stop by with goodies for the baby. My friend, Kelly, who I worked with at RPI came over for lunch and then my colleague Sue, from Siena, came over later in the afternoon to visit. I have to admit....company really, really breaks up the day!!
  

A Minor Setback

I went to the OBGYN yesterday for what has become my twice a week venture out of the house! The baby looks wonderful - he once again passed his biophysical profile test and is about a whopping 4 lbs and 7 oz! I, on the other hand, did not do quite as well as the baby. My blood pressure was up from the week before so the OB decided to increase my blood pressure medicine to 3 times a day. She also drew a whole lot of blood and ran a few other tests to see if things are still stable or moving more towards preclampsia. So, on Monday we will have the results of the tests and will know more. In the meantime, I am resting like a good patient!

33 Weeks Pregnant!

Another week down.....33 weeks pregnant!

• At my doctor's appointment this past Monday the baby looked great and passed his NST with flying colors. The medication is helping to lower my blood pressure which is exactly what we had hoped!
  
  

FIERCE!

Jeff found these Converse special addition Shark Eye baby shoes at Babies R Us and we could not resist! Our little guy is going to be one fierce and styling baby!! They are so tiny and adorable!

A Showery Shower Day

• Yesterday my wonderful sister-in-law and mother-in-law threw me a baby shower at my sister-in-laws house in Troy! It ended up being quite a rainy day but that did not effect the day in the least! It was so great see friends and family I have not seen in a while to celebrate the impending arrival of our little guy!

• After two showers all I can think is that we are truly blessed and lucky to have such amazing friends and family. Our baby is certainly going to have everything he will ever need and then some! We have just been blown away by everyone's kindness!

• Here are a few pictures from the special day!
  
  

My mom, me and my Nonny.

Anne, Dana, Jessica, Me, Star, Meghan, my neice Allison and Hailey.

The very delicious cake that I ate way too much of!

32 Weeks Pregnant!

Here are a few new belly pictures! 32 Weeks pregnant!!

The King and Queen of Bedrest!

I am learning about bed rest from my two kitties who I have officially crowned the King and Queen of bed rest. Can you tell I am very bored and going a little bit nutty!! Snoopy and Bailey have mastered the art of bed rest as you can see from the photos below! Too bad they aren't conversationalists!

Bedrest.....continues!

• I returned to the doctor's today to continue to be monitored for high blood pressure. My blood pressure was still high so my doctor prescribed a blood pressure medication in addition to bed rest to buy the baby and I as much time as possible. I will be going to the doctor twice weekly.

• One visit per week will be for a NST (Fetal Non-Stress Test). During the other visit each week I will have a Biophysicial Profile performed to continue to check on the health of the baby - basically an in-depth ultrasound. Depending on where we are in two weeks my doctor may send me to the hospital overnight to get steroid shots. This would ensure that the baby's lungs are fully developed should we have to deliver early. My doctor said the longest she would let me go is 39 weeks but she seems to think it will be sooner. So, it looks like this baby will be born in July!

• I am worried, scared and nervous but I am doing my best to listen to the doctor, do what she says and relax. I pictured myself working right up until I went into labor so I am still struggling with my new reality of modified bedrest. But, if it means a healthy and happy baby and mama then I am all for it!

Things Not Going Quite as Planned!

• Well, at my regularly scheduled 3o week appointment I received some unexpected news from the OBGYN, my blood pressure was up! So, on Tuesday after lots of bloodwork I was taken out of work for two days. I had to return to the doctor's on Thursday to see if my blood pressure had gone down at all after a day and a half of rest.

• So, yesterday when I went back to the OBGYN I just assumed my blood pressure would be lower. But, again that was not the case. So, my doctor pulled me from work until further notice and put me on modified bed rest. The hope is that this will lower my blood pressure. On a positive note, I did get to see our little guy because I had to have an ultrasound to make sure my blood pressure being high was not affecting him. He is really filling out and those who have already seen the picture think he looks like Jeff - I have to agree!