Sunday, February 28, 2010

Pregnany Timeline...

These next couple of posts are probably going to be a very long and very boring post for anyone but me...but I need to get this info down before I forget any more details than I already have.

TTC: I went off my BC pills around our first anniversary. It had been 10+ years since I'd been off of them so I expected it to take it a little while to get my body to a regular cycle. But after a year with only 3 periods and tests to confirm I wasn't ovulating we decided to try Clomid. The first 2 rounds at 50 and 100 didn't cause me to ovulate at all. The 3rd and 4th rounds, both at 150, did cause ovulation.

June 1: The best birthday present ever, a POSITIVE pregnancy test!

June 30: This was our first Dr appt and u/s. The u/s showed me to be about 9 weeks along and my due date was set at January 31, 2010. Baby's Heart Rate was 180+.

August 3 (14 weeks): Check up. Baby's HR 152.

August 24 (17 weeks): Baby's HR 137. My BP 124/70. I felt baby's first movement at 17w 5d and was feeling consistent movement around 20 weeks. Quad screen test was performed last week and the results came back with an increased risk of Down syndrome. My risk was 1/80, which is considerably higher than the risk based on my age and is considered a "positive" test. Level II u/s scheduled for next week.

18 weeks: Level II u/s performed in Denver. Baby's long bones in arms and legs were measuring about a week behind. Dr advised that this is a marker for Down syndrome, but a weak marker. Ds risk left at 1/80. Amnio was offered but we declined as we wouldn't terminate and didn't want to risk a miscarriage. Dr wants to watch baby's growth so we will have u/s every 4-6 weeks.

September 25 (21 weeks): Baby's HR 139. Darren felt the baby move at 21w 6d. You could see the baby's movement from the outside at 22w 1d.

October 6 (23 weeks): Baby's HR 138. My BP 118/70. Growth scan looked good. Arm/legs bones still measuring about a week behind. Back in 4 weeks for growth scan and 3D u/s.

November 6 (27 weeks): Baby's HR 135. My BP 120/72. Arms/leg bones still measuring the same. Baby's overall growth was right on track. The u/s tech found that the dopplers, blood flow through the cord, were elevated and this could cause IUGR. Back to Denver to have high risk Drs look at the dopplers.

November 11 (28 weeks): The Dr confirmed that the dopplers are elevated. This could indicated a problem with the placenta. Back in one week to see if dopplers have changed.

November 18 (29 weeks): Dopplers are still elevated and values are the roughly the same as last week. The u/s tech and the Dr found what appears to be a heart defect. If the defect is confirmed to be an AVSD this will increase our risk for Ds to 50/50 odds. Back next week to check dopplers and a growth scan. Also meeting with a pediatric cardiologist for an echo on the baby's heart to see if we can confirm defect.

November 20 ( 29 weeks): Check up. Baby's HR 139. My BP 124/70. Glucose and CBC are normal.

30 weeks: First appt was with the cardiologist. The tech did the echo and said that she was able to get all the pictures she needed for the Dr to review. The cardiologist confirmed that the defect is an AVSD, and that this defect is very common in babies that have Ds. He told us that our baby would need open heart surgery before 6 months of age. He said that the surgery has very good results and that meds aren't normally needed after the repair is completed. We left the appt feeling good and headed to the growth scan. Dopplers were still elevated, but unchanged. Baby's growth still good overall with long bones still measuring short. Back in 4 weeks for another growth scan. Weekly non-stress tests and fluid level checks will also be performed at regular OB. Amnio was offered again but we declined as we didn't want to risk preterm labor

31 weeks: Went to regular OB for NST and baby was non-responsive. Since my Dr wouldn't be in for a while they sent me to L&D to be monitored. I spent 2 hours on the monitor before they got the activity the were happy with. The baby's HR was always steady, but they said it wasn't increasing enough with the movement. Dr advised to watch kick counts closely.

32 weeks: Another NST with OB. Baby's heart rate in response to the movements still wasn't what they wanted it to be. BPP was done and baby passed with a full score so they let us come home. Still advising to watch kick counts.

December 15 (33 weeks): Baby passed NST. Fluid levels good. I didn't seem much difference between this NST and the prior 2 weeks, but the Dr said it looked better. I wonder if they have just decided my baby responds a little differently than most.

34 weeks: Growth scan in Denver. Baby's overall growth is right at 50th percentile. Long bones about 2-3 weeks behind. Dopplers still elevated but unchanged. Baby's weight estimated at 4 lb 11 oz. Back in 3 weeks to pick induction date.

December 29 (35 weeks): Baby's HR 138. My BP 130/88. Baby passed NST. Fluid levels good.

January 5 (36 weeks): Baby's HR 133. MY BP 128/88. Baby passed NST. Fluid levels good.

January 12 (37 weeks): Headed back to Denver for last growth scan and to pick induction date. The growth scan showed that baby hadn't grown at all from the last u/s 3 weeks ago. All measurements at this time are 3-4 weeks behind. So, it's time to have a baby!



As I read back over this time line, the one thing I've left out is the emotion of being pregnant. I LOVED being pregnant! I did have an easy time of it, no morning sickness, not too much weight gain, but the whole experience was just amazing for me. I loved knowing that a new person was growing and would soon make an entrance into the world. I loved feeling every wiggle and movement of the baby. I was even sorry to have missed out on the last 3 weeks of my pregnancy.

But I also worried. I worried about our baby's health. I worried that something was going to happen to her before she was born. But all of this worry stemmed from the tests that we had. We would discover some new problem with the pregnancy, I would finally get comfortable, and then something new would pop up. While the tests were very helpful at the end, when she wasn't growing, I'm still unsure if we will do all this scanning and testing on our next baby.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Traveling

Claire had a very busy weekend last weekend. It was her first over night visit to the grandmas and she also got to meet most of her aunts, uncles and cousins. We scheduled our departure time around her feedings and it worked well. She slept all the way to moms and we arrived right on time for another feeding.

Saturday was spent catching up with my brother, Jake. He just returned from Marine boot camp, and was only in town for a few days. While he was here, he and his girlfriend Erin got married! Not only is Jake now a Marine and husband, he is also a father to Erin's 3 kids.



It was snowing like crazy last weekend so we left mom's house a little earlier than we'd planned so we could make it to Darren's parents before the weather got any worse. We spent Saturday night and Sunday morning with them, before heading home to meet my aunt, who had just flown into town to spend some time with Claire. Talk about hectic!

Little girl was exhausted from being passed around and meeting all these new people, but she was still cheerful. I was a little worried about being away from home and all her things at first but it worked out well. We didn't forget too many things and I think our next over night visit will go even smoother.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Dr appts and daycare



I look pretty tired in this picture of us from Valentine's Day, but I don't have very many of Claire and I. I always seem to be behind the camera, so this one will have to do for now.
Claire had her one month well baby check up and her one month cardiology appointment last week. Both appointments went very well. She weighs 7 lb 1 oz and both doctors were very happy with her weight gain. The cardiologist echo'ed her heart and said it looks great. There isn't any enlargement at all. He said he won't echo her next month, but will do a chest x-ray instead to make sure her lungs still look good. They will continue to monitor her growth, but at this point the Dr is optimistic that we can push her surgery back to 4-5 months of age if her weight gain continues at this same rate.

On the daycare front we found a great situation for Claire. The gal we found recently left her job and has been staying home. Her kids are older (middle school and high school) and she wanted to have a baby around again. She was initially looking for a couple of kids, but when we explained Claire's heart condition she was fine with just taking her. We spent 2 hours at Carmen's house getting to know her and she was great with Claire. She has a beautiful and spotlessly clean house and is reasonably priced. We feel *very* blessed to have found her!

Saturday, February 13, 2010

1 month old...


I can't believe my girl is already a month old. It seems like we just got home from the hospital, but instead I have to go back to work in two weeks...

Claire, you are such a sweet and happy baby and I cherish all of our time together. You've grown and changed so much already, and can't wait to see what adventures you have ahead of you!

Monday, February 8, 2010

Early Intervention and vaccinations

Claire had her first Early Intervention (EI) meeting with providers today. I had met with the service coordinator last week, but it was mostly to go over the program in general and to set up this meeting with the providers.


Today we met with an Occupational Therapist and a Registered Nutritionist. They came during Claire's morning feeding so the first half of the meeting was mostly just chatting and getting acquainted. Once she was done eating the OT showed us a few things we could be doing with her tummy time to help strengthen her neck. She said that her the amount of movement of her head and strength in her neck was very good. She also mentioned that her muscle tone in her arms and legs was good. The OT recommended that in addition to tummy time we prop her up on her sides to allow her to work with her hands at her mid line.

The nutritionist did a bunch of calculations based on Claire's weight to make sure she is eating enough. She is eating an average of 3-3 1/2 oz per feeding and that is over what her caloric needs are. The nutritionist said that she thought we could stretch Claire's 1 am feeding out a bit, which would allow me a little more sleep! We go back to Claire's Dr on Friday for her 1 month check-up so I'll ask him what he thinks about this too. Before the nutritionist left she weighed and measured her. Her length is 18.75 inches and her weight is 6 lb 15 oz! Claire weighed 5 lbs 12 oz at her Dr appt less than 2 weeks ago, so I am thrilled that she is gaining so much weight.

For Claire's appt on Friday I also need to decide what I want to do for vaccinations. I want to do a delayed schedule, but don't have a specific schedule in mind. Did any of you do a delayed schedule and was there one that you would recommend?