4 more weeks!

July 17, 2008 ~ 34 weeks 4 days

4D of Her Precious Little Face, she is resting on her hand.

I have no idea where she gets those chubby cheeks!

This update is a little late, I went to Iowa to paint a few rooms in our house we are re-modeling for the day, and we didn't get home until very late yesterday. Got two rooms painted, the spare bedroom is a red color and the baby's room which is pink and brown. They will both need a second coat, but my mom is going to be doing it this weekend when I am at work.Our appointment on Wednesday was at 1:oo and our ultrasound lasted until 2:15, I think it may be one of the longest one yet. There was a GE sales rep there trying to sell them a new ultrasound machine, and they asked if I would be a guinea pig. I said sure, but didn't realize it would take so long. The pictures were really clear and at the end of it they did some 4D pictures which we haven't had before.


Everything on the ultrasound looked pretty much the same as it had the month before, same organs involved, but Dr. Gray said that since things looked the same, that was the best we could hope for. As for my amniotic fluid level, he said that it is a but higher than average, but overall it doesn't look any higher than a month ago, so that is a great sign too! As for our little princess, she didn't reach mom and dad's goal of 5 pounds, they said that she was weighing in just under 5 pounds and is in the 20th percent on the growth chart, so I guess she is going to have to really start gaining for these last 4 weeks.


After the ultrasound, I met with one of the OB nurse practitioner for a check up to ensure that I was not getting pre-eclamptic. The swelling has gone down dramatically in my shins and ankles. Brian and I discussed the reasons for this, and we are pretty sure it was because the days before my appointment I worked 3 12 hour nights, and then spent the entire weekend working on my house in Iowa, and then went to the doctor first thing on Monday morning. I think I just over-did it and needed to get off my feet for a while. They did a blood test to test my liver enzymes which is a pretty accurate indicator of eclampsia, and all my blood work came back normal. As for my weight and blood pressure, both were fine, no weight gain since last week, so basically that says I am not filling up with fluid.


With all this good news, no changes in the baby especially her movements, as she was super active at this appointment, even Dr. Gray remembered from last time how "naughty" she was. She was even trying to kick the ultrasound wand off of my belly, but Brian and I thought she was actually behaving pretty good considering her normal. Anyways, with baby and I both looking well as can be expected, the team at St. Luke's has decided that I can try to make it to 39 weeks. So the tentative induction date is August 18th. They said that I don't have to come back for any more check-ups or appointments until I am in labor or on the 18th which ever comes first. I will continue to have weekly check-ups with Dr. Feuerbacher in Maryville until birth-day, just for the regular business. Brian and I were pretty excited about this news, so fingers crossed, we have 4 more weeks to get ready for this little lady to make her debut.

This has been a pretty tough week for other CDH babies and their families, two CDH babies, Seth and Daniel have earned their wings this week and Sophie has possibly reherniated, so please continue to pray for their families to find the strength needed to get through these difficulty times. We continue to thank everyone for their comments, thoughts, and prayers for us and our families, keep them coming, we love to hear from everyone!