Praying for those in the F-M area

Watching this video brings back so many memories of the 1997 flood, when I was going to Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. Yet this flood is even worse than 12 years ago. It's amazing how entire communities come together during times like this- good ole midwestern people! We are praying for those in the Fargo-Moorhead area and hoping that the river has crested and will not rise anymore. Thanks, Leah, for this link, and yes, it did bring tears to my eyes!

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdxtwROYTgE

The countdown has officially begun!!

Today was yet another appointment with an ultrasound. The office has the 3D/4D, so I was able to see her image really well, and even tracked some of her movement. She was a little performer again, showing her breathing movement as well as her swallowing- wow you can really see a lot with these images. The 2D images showed her kidneys and then a peak at the bladder showed it was full, meaning her kidneys are working- all very reassuring. This pic is the 3D.
On Monday, the date was set for the C-Section- April 17th- for those that think that date sounds familiar, it is also Scott's birthday. We knew it may be around that day- the first time we tried to set up the C-Section, there was an appointment on the 22nd that one of the Dr's had available, but about 5 minutes after I got off the phone with her, she called back and sd that the hospital was all booked that day, so how about the 17th, with another one of the Docs, the one which I have seen the most and happen to like and respect a lot. So, it worked out well. Really, though, this is if all goes as planned...
Sandy bought her tickets to come out, too, so she will be here for Maya's birth and a few days afterwards. Can't believe it's only 3 weeks away!!!

Update

Just another Dr's appt this morning- still measuring right on track- Maya is approximately 5 pounds 7 ounces according to the ultrasound measaurements- which is right at 50th percentile. Can't get more "average" than that! It was cute- she was playing peek-a-boo- had her hands covering her face on and off throughout the ultrasound- just like her big sister would often do once she was born! In any case, the report was good- my gestational diabetes is being controlled well with just the change in my diet, and my blood pressure was actually down a little this morning- Great news, too! Really looking forward to Monday, when I meet with the Dr. to schedule the C-Section- wow! Time is really going by- already will be at 35 weeks on Monday- good thing we are pretty much ready!

Another update...

Another Dr's appointment done, another week gone by, and more importantly, more time for little Maya's lungs to develop and for her to grow atronger. Now, we are right at 34 weeks, vs. 2 weeks when we were shipped to the hospital for monitoring...like I sd, every day counts! The Dr's appointment today included yet another non-stress test. However, this time, Maya was moving too much- everytime the monitors would pick up her heart beat, she would literally kick off the electrodes. Hmm, she already has a mind of her own : ) Even though technically they couldn't get a good read on the strip, it wasn't because she wasn't moving- they were happy that she moved as much as she did, they just determined that just maybe she was too little to sit in one spot for the duration of the test. In any case, instead of alternating between the non-stress test & the biophysical profile every week, the orders will be for biophysical profiles twice a week, at least for now. That means every Monday and Thursday I head up to the valley for some testing, which is absolutely fine with me- they can test as MUCH as they want to. Also, for the time being, my blood pressure is stable and my sugar numbers have been very well controlled- this is all good news, too. Next Monday I will meet with the Dr. who will do the C-Section, so hopefully we can set up a date!

A quick update...

Yesterday was my first Non-stress test for Maya. During this test, the Dr's look at Maya's movement and how her heart reacts (like accelerating, decelerating, etc.) After 20 minutes of being hooked up, we determined that Maya was resting and was comfortable- AKA - not MOVING! But, her heartbeat was pretty strong, just keeping at a steady 150 beats per minute. So, in trying to wake her up, the nurses had me turn on my side, etc. Still- moving, but not as much as they wanted to see, AND her heartrate wasn't really changing. They called it a non-reactive stress test...SO- the Dr referred me to Chandler Hospital's Labor & Delivery. Oh what a scary moment, as well as A LOT of memories from what happened to Norah.
We arrived at the hospital, where I was hooked up to more monitors...another Non-stress test that was non-reactive, and then back to the L&D triage section, where I got to lay down, relax, they gave me some crackers and peanut butter, and then Maya moved a whole lot more. Her heart rate was a lot more variable, with some good accelerations, as well as decelerating pretty soon after that.
The next test was a Bio-Physical Profile. This tests for a few things- breathing movements made by the abdomen, amniotic fluid volume, gross body movement including watching the baby make some sort of rolling motion as well as a kick, and then a heart rate. Well, the tech put the sensor on my belly and right away, Maya kicked. She was actually able to identify everything she was looking for the first time she looked for it, which was very reassuring, since the techs have up to 30 minutes to locate. We remembered this test taking ALOT longer with Norah, and although she had scored 8/8, it was all pretty marginal. So, they sent us home, saying that everything looked ok. Also, I'll be followed pretty closely with the twice weekly testing. We are now at 32 weeks, which is still pretty soon to deliver a baby, but we sure thought it might have been last night...
Thanks to all that we talked to and for keeping us in your prayers. We will certainly keep everyone up to date on the progress and of all the tests...