Delivery Date Set

Short and simple update: baby boy #3 will be making his grand appearance on Thursday afternoon. I've got 2 more days until then which I'm sure will drag on (I've about hit my limit of TV/movie watching, book reading and internet surfing for the time being).   I'll post an update sometime after then!

1 Week Down

I've been in the hospital now for a week - it went by fast yet slow with time occupied by Netflix, Amazon Prime, books and visitors.  Not much has changed since my last update, my water is still leaking, I'm taking antibiotics and getting general monitoring to ensure baby boy is happily growing inside.  If nothing changes, then the plan looks like he will be arriving next Thursday but we're waiting to confirm until my regular OB returns from overseas next week.

The good news about being in the hospital here in Madison is that I get regular visits from some cute boys and with Jaxon on spring break this week, they have even come a few times a day :)

I also have some awesome friends who do things like send me flowers and treats:

And in case you're wondering about my living arrangements - here they are !  I have a nice view of a courtyard but since it's early April, it's not pretty out there yet.

Change of Plans

Just when you think you have a handle on things, life throws you a curve ball!  Rochelle, you think you're going to make it to May 8 for your just scheduled c-section?  Nope, we got other ideas in store for you, including having an April baby.

Yesterday was a normal day for me, went to work and then came home to the hooligans.  Josh ran to the grocery store to grab a few last minute things for Easter dinner.  While he was gone, I started to bleed bright red blood and the nurse on call suggested a trip in to L&D to get checked out since chances of uterine rupture are higher in my circumstances.  Josh returned and we gathered everyone up and headed down to the hospital.  Spent some time in the triage area but were unable to find the cause of the bleed.  The OB decided to keep me overnight for monitoring even though I wasn't having any contractions just to be on the safe side.  Fast forward through a primarily sleepless night and the bleeding has subsided; however the OB noticed how much fluid I was leaking and tests revealed that my water has indeed broken, just a small leak but that doesn't alter the outcomes.  I'm now on hospital bed rest, getting antibiotics, another round of steroid shots for the baby boy and general monitoring for the next 2 weeks until delivery at 34 weeks.  This of course assumes that nothing comes up forcing an emergency c-section before then.

While I'm disappointed not to make it to full term, I am thankful to have made it as far as we did without complications.  Let's pray for a quiet next 2 weeks since all bets are off after baby boy's arrival!

32, 7, 5

Does the title of this post confuse you?  Let me help you out!  I'm 32 weeks today, 7 weeks post-surgery and 5 weeks away from meeting this new little one!

I had a great appointment today and here are the highlights:

• Estimated weight of 4 lbs 5 oz
• No change in ventricle size
• Amniotic fluid levels remain constant
• Little one let us look at his spinal area and things looked good there (as much as you can tell with just an ultrasound)
• C-section is scheduled for May 8 when I'll be 37 weeks 1 day
• This is the last possible date and assumes no complications arise in the next month
• It also means he could be a full term baby!  

I now start weekly appointments so will post again sometime mid-week.  I'll end this with a few pictures of the big brothers (Jaeger was afraid of the bunny, hence a solo Jaxon)

Waiting Game

I've been back at work for almost 2 weeks now and in some respects, it's nice to get back into the "normal" swing of things but on the other hand, little tasks like grabbing lunch a few buildings over require quite a bit more physical effort.  I've managed to make it through the 3500+ emails waiting in my inbox and now can begin to prepare for the next outage!  Working definitely zaps my energy but generally am still feeling alright, hoping to make it another 3-5 weeks.

One thing that I've noticed is that I'm a lot more aware of similar stories out there or references to Spina Bifida in other areas.  In particular, it seems that there are starting to be quite a few more news articles with a spot light on the in utero surgery option that I underwent ~7 weeks ago.  Here are a couple links that I've read:

* http://www.wisn.com/news/baby-still-in-womb-undergoes-groundbreaking-procedure-at-childrens-hospital/29470172
** This one showcases the first surgery at the hospital where I had mine performed.
* http://kstp.com/article/stories/S3749222.shtml
* http://www.today.com/health/parents-baby-spina-bifida-place-hopes-fetal-surgery-2D80577191?cid=sm_fbn

It also looks like PBS is doing a mini-series titled "Twice Born" featuring the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, one of the pioneers for fetal surgery.  One of the stories being told is about a couple expecting a baby diagnosed with SB.
* http://www.pbs.org/program/twice-born/

My next OB appointment is on Thursday so I'm sure I'll post another update later this week.

Recovery time has come to an end

We are all still here, just been maintaining status quo with books, TV, and kiddo snuggles.  Today I had my regular checkup for an ultrasound and OB visit.  Things are progressing just as we would like so that's great news!  Baby boy is estimated to be up to 3 lbs 5 oz (which surprisingly is only in the 38 percentile and not at all on par with my other chunky boys :)) and appears to have a head full of hair.  Ventricles are up slightly (to 12 mm)  but still within the mild range and not concerning to the doctor.  Amniotic fluid level is around 14 so also remaining constant and the uterus wall hasn't thinned at all.  When trying to check out his spine, this stinker had his hands on his back, obstructing a good view of that area yet again.  That did mean that we got a nice profile shot of him and it is very likely that he will join his brothers in having his daddy's cute nose!  We will begin discussing delivery timelines in 3 weeks when I will be 33 weeks and, based on ultrasounds and non-stress tests to see how baby does at some basics like breathing/moving, it'll be between 35 and 37 weeks.  The other piece of good (although some may not agree with that label) news is that I got cleared to go back to work tomorrow.  This means that I'll hopefully get up to 7 weeks in before this guy joins us!

I'm still here....

I know it's been a little while since an update but there hasn't been much happening except the normal "Mommy, this" and "Mommy, that"!  I've spent the week, trying to take it easy but also soak up some time with the boys.  It won't be too long before we add another one to the mix :)

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday.  Baby's ventricles have decreased some in size (normal is 10 mm or less and we're seeing 10.5 mm) and the OB actually commented that in other situations, they wouldn't even be concerned about them.  Baby's brain has also lost the "banana" shape and is returning to a somewhat normal shape/position.  Amniotic fluid levels remain good which is great and we even saw them go up a little since Milwaukee.  He's gained ~4 ounces since last week and is estimated to be 2 lbs 9 oz now.  This boy has been a stinker since the surgery and has his butt up flush with the uterus wall so we haven't been able to get a good look at his closure (they try using 3D ultrasound) but since we're seeing positive indications, there are no worries.  From my aspect, the c-section incision has healed, no infection and am generally recovered.  If I spend too much time on my feet, I notice some soreness appear but is easily cured by some couch time :) I'll most likely go back to work after my next appt in 2 weeks.  That puts me at ~5 weeks off and hopefully have 6 or 7 weeks of work before this guy arrives.