The day after my trip to REX… Patrick reminded me that I want to capture the good and the bad and to still get in front of the camera.

 

What a whirlwind the past few weeks have been. Just when I was SO excited to get back into blogging, one thing after another after another happened. SO, here is the update on the past few weeks.

Symptoms?

31-32: Back tension, nothing major. Occasional nausea, round ligament pain, heartburn. Really nothing horrible.

33: So, Friday night (Aug 8th) I started to get really uncomfortable. I was cramping so I tried stretching, laying on the floor, Patrick massaged my back, I was drinking a ton of water and finally I decided to go to bed. The next morning, Patrick and I decided to try a new breakfast place in Wake Forest, so I threw on my yoga pants, a hat, brushed my teeth and went out the door to enjoy the morning adventure. Patrick and I are notorious for Saturday morning adventures. We head out really early and end up at a coffee shop, a random yard sale, maybe even in a different city. With both of our busy schedules, it’s always fun to have a morning not to plan anything and just go.do.enjoy.

Well, throughout breakfast, I started having braxton hicks. Then I started realizing that they were happening pretty close together and THEN I realized, maybe I should call my OB. Now, I REALLY didn’t like the idea of calling the on-call OB at the hospital. I have only even called the office a few times with questions and normally try and hold out until my appointments. Patrick and I agreed though that I should call just to be safe. We paid the tab, got in the car and I called the on call service and waited for the OB to give me a call back.

We headed home (it was a nasty, wet, rainy day) and set up to enjoy the rest of the morning relaxing around the house. My phone rang about 20 minutes after the initial phone call; I explained my symptoms and to Patrick and I’s complete shock, they wanted us to come in to be monitored before the decision would be made to admit us or let us return home. Slight panic arose in the Tobler household. We hadn’t showered, bags weren’t packed, what if we had to stay? What if this was the start of Bennett’s arrival? Patrick jumped in the shower, I packed a very basic hospital bag and we ventured back out into the rain for the 35 minute drive to Rex. It was a weird drive. Pouring rain, we hit every green light and we nervously joked about what if this was “it”. Patrick likes to keep a “everything is going to be alright” attitude in stressful situations so that I remain calm and then once we ACTUALLY know everything will be alright, then he admits to being nervous. He’s my calm when the waves get choppy. We prayed over Bennett and me and finally arrived at the hospital.

Check in was a breeze. I was admitted into the “triage” which is where they monitor you to either send you through to a delivery room or send you back home. It was so official. I had to change into the hospital attire, get hooked up to all the machines and monitors and sign a ton of paperwork. I wasn’t feeling well and was slightly overwhelmed watching the contractions on the monitor. We were monitored for 5 hours and the only good part about that, was listening to sweet Mr. B’s strong and loud heartbeat for so long.

They tested me for pre-term labor which came back NEGATIVE! 🙂 The test is 99% accurate that I will NOT go into labor for 14 days after the test is initially taken. My doctor was very happy with those results but then said that once we hit 35 weeks, they will not stop him if he decides to come. We found out that the contractions were caused by a UTI which surprised the nurses AND me. I have had no symptoms, no cloudy urine at the hospital etc. They prescribed my some antibiotics and sent us home to enjoy at least another 2 weeks without Mr. B. My contractions finally stopped on Tuesday once the antibiotics had started to cycle through my system.

Now my sciatic nerve has been acting up. I’ve never experienced such hip/joint pain in my life. Walking has become hard and general movement has become a challenge. I’m working with a chiropractor, doing yoga, stretches, heating pads and sitting on my yoga ball in hopes that I can get it all realigned and sorted out. Can you tell that I’m nearing the end?

Philippians 4:13

13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

Next time you see a pregnant woman, offer her encouragement instead of commenting on how large she is. Encouragement goes a long way when the end seems unreachable.

 

 

 

Cravings? Aversions?

I had a strong craving for rice krispy treats a few weeks ago… so I bought my first ever box. It took Patrick and I 20 minutes of searching Wal-mart to finally find them though! Who knew they would be on the cereal aisle???

Cherries!!!! I can EAT some cherries. 🙂 No longer craving green grapes or lucky charms but I gotta have my daily cherry fix 🙂

I also am beginning to crave more and more chocolate. I hope this craving doesn’t stick around long!

Sleep?

What is sleep? Between my sciatic nerve, not being able to sleep on my back, peeing every 2 hours….. I stare at Patrick’s peaceful slumber with jealousy. Guess it’s just my body’s way of preparing me for what’s to come!

Belly button? In or out?

It’s still in but definitely become more flat!

Weight gain?

Ohhhhh the weight gain and swelling. By the end of the day my feet are so swollen it’s hard to curl my toes. My fingers also get pretty swollen.

Movement?

Always moving around. He also gets hiccups about 10 times a day!

What’s going on with Mr. B?

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark (about the size of a pineapple). He’s rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren’t fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don’t entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

 

My next post will be about poop, pee and diapers…. you won’t want to miss it. 😛