Infertility and Me

First of all I would like to apologize for the two week hiatus.  Things have been a little crazy around here.  With the start of Choochies nursery (better late than never), and the numerous doctor appointments we both have been going to, I have not had the time to get the posts up.  I had them in draft waiting to be published, but I just never got around to it.  Otherwise everyone is doing great!!  We are trucking right along with the end finally in sight.  I never thought we would get this far!  We even have a date for Choochies arrival.  So set your clocks, mark your calendars and pray we make it to the date!!  11/22/10 10am!!

How far along? 32 Weeks 

How big is Choochie this week?  This week Choochie weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long.  She weighs about as much as a large Jicama (I have no clue what that is either ) And though that’s a head-to-toe length, Choochie is actually back to a curled-up position.  At 32 Weeks Pregnant, Choochie is a bit tight for exercise space right now.  She has also probably settled into the head-down, bottoms-up position in the pelvis in preparation for birth.  That’s because the fetus’s head fits better at the bottom of the inverted, pear-shaped uterus.

Sleep? Sleep is overrated!

Movement? I think Chooch is running out of room, I can even see the belly movement when she has hiccups!!

Food cravings? Cheesecake Factory Chocolate Cake, Apple Jacks, Product 19, Bar Pie, Gatorade (red),  Water!!!!

Gender

Milestones? Baby Shower This Week!!

Emotions: Ups and Downs and completely exhausted!!

How far along? 31 Weeks 3 Days

How big is Choochie this week?  Weighing in at three-plus pounds and measuring 18 inches long, Choochie weighs about as much as four naval oranges. She’s has to pack on another three to five pounds before D-day. Also developing at an impressive clip: Choochies brain connections (she’s got to make trillions of them!).  She’s now processing information, tracking light, and perceiving signals from all five senses.  Choochies brain is working overtime these days, developing faster than ever.  

Sleep? Sleep is overrated!

Movement? Sometimes Choochie looks like she’s going to jump right out of Jess’ belly!!

Food cravings?Cheesecake Factory Chocolate Cake, Bar Pie, Gatorade (red), Water, any type of sweets!!!!

Gender

Milestones? Nothing to write home about!

Emotions: Ups and Downs!!

How far along? 30 Weeks 3 Days

How big is Choochie this week? Choochie rivals a good-size cabbage in weight, tipping the scales this week at  little more than 3 pounds.  Choochie will be packing on the weight at a rate of half a pound per week for the next seven weeks!

Until now, the surface of your Choochies brain was smooth.  Now that little brain is taking on those characteristic grooves and indentations, which allow for an increased amount of brain tissue as Choochie prepares for life outside the womb.  Choochies bone marrow has taken over production of red blood cells (before, tissue groups and then the spleen took care of producing the blood cells).  This is an important step for your Choochie, because it means she is better able to thrive on his or her own once born!

Sleep? Jess dreads the time at night when we go to bed!!

Movement? Sometimes Choochie looks like she’s going to jump right out of Jess’ belly!!

Food cravings? Bar Pie, Chicken Parm, Chicken Francaise, Gatorade (red), Pink Lemonade, Water, any type of sweets!!!!

Gender

Milestones? 10 weeks left!!!! 

Emotions: Ups and Downs!!

Last night was our first scare/dry run to labor and delivery!!  Jess and I were relaxing on the couch watching tv, when weird cramps began to occur.  She described them as feeling like period cramps.  We tried all the tricks to get them to go away, water, left side laying, you name it, we tried it.  When we both realized it wasn’t subsiding, Jess put the call in to the doc.  The doc called back real quick and gave us our marching orders!  We gingerly made our way out the door, and to the hospital.  We ended up in labor delivery with Jess hooked up to the cardiotocograph, and then we waited.  The doc ordered aFetal Fibronectin test (fFN), an ultrasound (cervical measurement, and check on the Chooch), and urine screen.  Thankfully, all tests and monitoring came back normal.  We ended up being discharged (very late may I add).  At least we know what to expect now when the actual day arrives!! 

One good thing that came out of last night was that we got to see Choochie again!!  The ultrasound tech was kind enough to print us out another photo!!

As for the past week, we had a couple more OB appointments.  One was a checkup with the doc, and the other was an ultrasound.  The doc checkup went well except for the news that Jess had failed the 1 hour Gestational Diabetes Screening.  The doc stressed not to worry.  He ordered the 3 hour screen and said many people fail the 1 hour but pass the 3 hour with flying colors.  I’m glad he was right, because Jess got the results of the 3 hour yesterday, and she passed!!  Other than last nights drama, and the Gestational Diabetes debacle, everything was pretty quiet.  Here is a shot from last weeks ultrasound.

Now, On to Choochie!!

How far along? 29 Weeks 5 Days

How big is Choochie this week?She weighs nearly three pounds now and measures about 17 inches, about the size of a butternut squash. Even though she’s getting pretty close to her birth length, she still has to chub out a bit.  Over the next 11 weeks, she’ll more than double — or even come close to tripling — her weight!  Choochies wrinkled skin is smoothing out as more fat is deposited under the skin surface.  This fat, called white fat, is different from the earlier brown fat that Choochie accumulated.  Brown fat is necessary for body temperature regulation while white fat (the fat you have now) actually serves as an energy source.

Sleep? Jess dreads the time at night when we go to bed!!

Movement? Sometimes Choochie looks like she’s going to jump right out of Jess’ belly!!

Food cravings? Bar Pie, Chicken Parm, Chicken Fraincaise, Gatorade (red), Pink Lemonade, Water, any type of sweets!!!!

Gender

Milestones? OB appointments every 2 weeks now! 

Emotions: Ups and Downs!!

Yesterday was Jess’ Birthday!!  She turned the big 31!!  We both thought we would have long been parents by now, but all I can say is that we are blessed.  Better late than never!!

Last week we had our final (hopefully) appointment with the high risk / super cervix measuring doc.  The measurement remained the same from when the original shortening occurred.  The doc felt comfortable that this would probably be the status quo for the rest of pregnancy.  The only thing that could drastically reduce the size of the cervix quickly, would be labor.  We got a couple more snapshots, and he sent us on our way.  We graduated from another doc!! Woo Hoo!!

 Now on to Chooch!!

How far along? 28 weeks 3 Days!

How Big Is Choochie? Choochie is now about 2.5 pounds and almost 16 inches long, the size of a Chinese Cabbage.  She’s busy adding new skills such as blinking to an already impressive repertoire of tricks like coughing, sucking, hiccuping, and taking practice breaths. Choochies sleep now includes the REM (rapid eye movement) phase — and that means she could be dreaming already.  Though her lungs are nearly fully mature, she still has plenty of growing to do.

Sleep?  Jess dreads the time at night when we go to bed!!

Movement? Sometimes Choochie looks like she’s going to jump right out of Jess’ belly!!

Food cravings?Bar Pie, Chicken Parm, Chicken Fraincaise, Gatorade (red), Pink Lemonade, Water, any type of sweets!!!!

Gender 

Milestones? We are officially in the third trimester!

Emotions: Ups and Downs!!