Pregnancy after Infertility

[suzfuzsunflower]

Just wanted to say welcome to Patience. It's good to see you in here. :)

[Jenean]

Jess, lol, thanks. I try to stay smiley! :) Congrats on just about being in the 2nd trimester! Such a great milestone!!! I'm glad your aspiration went well and I hope you've heard good news already. Woohoo for maternity clothes! I felt so funny wearing them at first, but now I can't imagine giving them up - elastic waistbands are fabulous! :D

skb, you didn't mislead me at all. I just wanted to make sure you knew I was thinking of you, too, and hoping that you're back to 100% soon!

karlatta, that is AWESOME! Congrats on your little girl!

Sammy, awwww to your first view of the little one. I can't wait till you hear that h/b on Friday!

Patience, OMG, it is SOOOO great to see you in here! I am so excited for you and I wish you a very H&H 9 months! No more ER runs and cyst scares, you hear me?! ;) Thanks, I'm trying to remember that everything I do affects my babies, and they are worth doing everything I can for them!

jjsanner, great news!


All is well over here. We had a long weekend filled with other people's problems, but it kind of made us both step back and realize how lucky and happy we are. DH has been out of town for 2 days on a business trip and will be back this afternoon, yay! I took my 1-hr GTT on Wednesday and failed :( so I took the 3-hr on Friday to get it over with and I know the results are at my doctor's office, so I'm just hoping that no news is good news. I decided that ignorance is bliss and until they call to tell me otherwise, I'm going to assume/hope that I did fine and can go about everything like normal.

Been doing little things around the house and I'm happy with how it's looking. One more week and we make the basement the office and I can organize it. I can't wait! I'm also doing good with the relaxing - I read 3 books last week and about a dozen magazines, and today I am DETERMINED to get some cross stitching out and work on it while I watch a movie. And that's about all!

[FSUSammy]

jenean - Sorry you failed your 1hr GTT. Hopefully your 3hr test was much better. But as they say no news is generally good news!

Me - Had my first OB appointment today. It was pretty uneventful but I figured it would be. They did a pap, urine test, and took 4 vials of blood. Glad I'm an expert at getting my blood drawn thanks to my RE!!! LOL He moved my EDD to 10/22 based on my LMP, really in the end its not going to matter because the baby is going to come when its good and ready so I'm not going to focus on that date really. He told me that I can stay on metformin indefinitely and I'll stop the prometrium at the end of the first trimester. I go back in 4 weeks and he said we should be able to heart the heartbeat at that time, I'm assuming on doppler.

[Patience]

suzfuzsunflower Nice to see you again! I can't believe your little one will be here in less than 3 months!

Jenean Hi again! I've been slowing down my daily activities, so hopefully no more ER visits for me. Sorry about the failed 1 hr GTT, but fingers crossed that you passed the 3 hour one. Have a great time with your cross stitching. I have a friend who loves to cross stitch and she has created very beautiful pieces that she displays at her home.

FSUSammy Uneventful OB visits are good because it means everything is going well. I bet you're counting down the days until your next appt. when you get to hear the heartbeat. :)

Me ~ I went back to work this week and all is well so far. No more pain unless I walk too quickly. Can't wait for next Tuesday's appt.!

[skb]

jenean Good luck on the 3 hour, I'm sure it will go fine. Sounds like things are going well at home. I'm finding it to be at bit of a challenge as I start to feel better. You know how that it...when I'm at work, I think about the things I would do if I had more time. Now that I have "more time"...initally incapable/sick/restricted and unable to do much...and now as things are slowly improving just minor, light daily tasks. No photo album projects, reorganizing, visiting shops, having friends over for dinner or anything! Oh well, I'll have remind myself about priorities! Glad you are well and hope you get some cross-stitch done!

[Jess71903]

Jenean-Good luck on the 3hr GTT! I hope no news really is good news! Sucks that you had to go through that twice! I hear it's no fun! Also LOVING elastic pants!

Patience- glad you're not huring anymore! I hope that continues!

Sammy- hope the appt. with RE goes well! It's cool to hear the HB!

me-13 weeks and going strong! My PT friend has to "adjust" me every few days, but it works, so I am sticking with it. My dr. said that when she doesn't feel comfortable doing it anymore she can send me to one that specializes in OB. Who knew!? Thanks for asking about the cyst! I forgot to update in here. Everything was fine...no abnormal cells! YAY! So that's behind me and I don't have to worry about it anymore.

[honeygirl]

user: honeygirl
Me: Anne, 29
DH: Wonderful, 29
TTC since: April 2006
TTC issues: weak ovulation, MFI (morphology)
Successful Protocol: super long cycle, was off meds (taking a break) and had done a HSG
BFP: 3/8/07
Due: Sometime in November

I am still in complete shock about this morning's BFP. I wrote more of my "story" in the SAI and Nov mommy's thread, but basically it's been a rollercoaster. We were told by the RE less than 2 weeks ago that we couldn't get pregnant without IVF. He'd do a IUI but only gave us a 5% chance. We were taking this time to decide what to do the next cycle! I had a beta/progesterone 2 weeks ago and was + for O but I was told that I wasn't pregnant and would get my period in 10 days. Last week I found out that my Grandmother was dying (same day as the RE appt), so that was a big stressor. I flew out here (to WA) last friday am and have been helping with funeral arrangments.

I knew that something was off, but I figured it was all of the layers of stress. However, when I got to CD50 (we didn't chart this cycle, so I'm not sure when I O'd) I decided to get a test.

I'm in shock. I haven't called the RE yet (since today was Grandma's burial), but will soon. Happy to be joining so many familiar SAI faces!!!

[jjsanner]

OMG, Honeygirl, I am SO excited to see you here! I still keep up with SAI, and when you still hadn't received a visit from AF, I thought "I bet she's prgenant". And lo and behold, here you are! Woo hoo! I am so sorry to hear about your grandmother, though. Such joy and sorrow at the same time.

Jess, great news on the cyst! And yay for 13 weeks!

Jenean, good luck with that cross stitch! I used to sew when I was growing up. I made a few cross stitch pillows for my grandparents for Christmas over the years. I think they still have them!

Me: My next u/s is on Monday, and it cannot come soon enough! Ladies, I am still incredibly nervous about the possibility of miscarrying. In fact, I have been making myself sick these past few days, worrying that something is wrong with the baby. The problem is that I don't have morning sickness (I wasn't sick with DS either) and my only real symptoms are sore breasts, occasional slight cramping and occasional back pain. Plus, I started a new job on Wed. and have been very nervous for that, too, even though things have gone well so far. Please reassure me that everything is OK! I really need to relax :rolleyes: .

[FSUSammy]

Holy OMG I don't know what to say. Honeygirl I'm beyond HAPPY for you!!!!! Super congrats and I wish you a H&H 9 months. Yay I just got chills reading this.

jjsanner - Try to relax until your next u/s. I know its not easy because I was freaking out waiting for mine today too. LOL

Me - Have a GREAT update! Went for my 2nd u/s today and before the RE came in I told the baby that he/she needs to cooperate for mommy and give her a nice heartbeat so that she could get released from the RE. Well baby listened!!! Not only did we see the baby but a NICE heartbeat. It was beating at 154bpm. I'm measuring 6w5d today. It was soooo great seeing the little heart beating like crazy. What a great site. The doc says that everything is looking fabulous. He said that he thinks this is a good pregnancy becaus the baby and yolk sac are just looking GREAT! Oh and my uterus is "picture perfect" LOL I'm officially released from my RE!!!!!!

[Jess71903]

This is what I get for checking SAI before this thread...I always say "join us in PAI" and then you're already here. YAY again, honeygirl! So glad to see you here!

[Asha]

CONGRATS, honeygirl!! its wonderful to see you over here. happy and healthy nine months to you.

[jodylovesscotty]

Sorry ladies I haven't been around in a while:confused:

Big Congrats to honeygirl! I always say God works in mysterious ways. I got pregnant right before my due date would have been from my m/c. So I am sure your grandmother was looking down on you!

Me: I had my hemotologist appointment on Monday and everything was still good. No need to up my lovenox,yeah:) Then on Thursday we had our RE appointment, only one more then he releases us for good. We had a u/s and it is just so amazing how much it has grown. It has arms and legs, and was kicking and swimming around like crazy. It was so awesome to see. He did move my due date up to Sept. 22nd, so that puts me at 12 weeks:) Hopefully that means I am close to the end with the morning sickness.

Glad to hear you are all doing well! Hopefully I will be better at keeping up here soon (after all my big projects for graduate school are over).

[skb]

Jodylovesscotty Glad to hear all continues to go well fo you. Nice to be 12 weeks! Can I ask you what your doctor said about the nuchal translucency screen? I'm scheduled to have one but haven't discussed it with any of my doctors. I'm undecided at this point if I really would like the screen. I hear ya on the progesterone. There was talk that I would possibly discontinue prometrium suppositories week 10. I have mixed thoughts...it's almost a security blanket now. I wonder if most women continue with it until the very end of the 1st trimester?

Congratulations honeygirl !!! Looks like you fell into the 5% with a little help from grandma!

[Patience]

honeygirl Congrats again! What a wonderful surprise! It seems your little one already has a guardian angel.

FSUSammy That must be great to see the heartbeat! Glad to hear that everything is going so well for you.

jodylovesscotty Hooray on the great progress! I hope your morning sickness will end soon. Good luck on the rest of your school projects.

[FSUSammy]

honeygirl - I agree with the others I'm sure your grandmother had something to do with this. Actually I have a feeling mine had something to do with mine too. February has been a BAD month for us for the past 4 years because my grandmother passed away the day after DH's birthday so deep down inside I think my grandmother did something to help us turn February into a good month instead. I wish you the best girlie!!!

jody - I LOVE your due date. That's my birthday!

me - The m/s is kicking my butt! I was so nauseous last night I was on the brink of exploding last night. I actually sat in front of the toilet for a few minutes just in case. But nothing happened. I'm at work now and not feeling good still. I'm just hoping I can get through the day. I'm feeling super tired too and of course the time change didn't help with that!

[jodylovesscotty]

FSUSammy~ I have so many people hoping for different days in Sept. because of their birthday. I am glad it is a good day for you too!!! I hope that m/s gets gentler on you, but my experience is it has to get worse to get better. I am only throwing up in the morning now, instead of all day long.

Patience~ Thanks! How is everything going for you???? I am so glad your here:)

skb~ All they did was measure the nuchal fold. I guess there is some formula they use with your age and the measurement of it, but I am not sure. I just know he is going to measure it again in two weeks to look for changes. And for the progesterone, I was so scared, but I dont know why, it is so nice not to be on it. He even said I could have quit it at 10 weeks, but I guess I didn't hear him when he said it. Oh-well!

[honeygirl]

Thanks Ladies, I am so happy to be here. :)

I called the RE this am and they're sending me for a blood test. I asked if they'd do any follow-up (betas or ultrasound) and she said that since it was a non medicated cycle they wouldn't. They'd just release me to my ob. I'm kind of bummed but I think that I remember my OB saying that she'd do an ultrasound as soon as I got a BFP. I especially need one now b/c my LMP was 1/18 and I'm not sure how far along we are.

I called a friend yesterday and found out that she's pregnant with twins! They'd been trying a lot longer than us and I am SO happy for her. However, when I told her that we were pregnant she told me this weird story about how one of her friends had a false-positive HPT. Why would she tell me that? So I started worrying that I wasn't really pregnant or something was wrong. However, I've had 2 BFP's and no period so I'm trying to remain calm. Why do people say stupid things? I'm re-thinking telling anyone that we're pregnant for a while b/c I don't want that to happen again. :(

[FSUSammy]

honeygirl - That was VERY rude of your friend! Don't worry about what she said you've had 2 BFPs and no AF you are doing good!!!

[skb]

honeygirl That's strange. I've always heard that todays home tests are more superior compared to yester-year, basically the same as the ones used in clinics...and that it is very unlikely to ever have a false positive. False negative.....yes (because it was taken too soon), but false positive no. I would almost wonder if there wasn't more to the story ie. her friend misread the test. My home test was postive long before I had what I considered to be an official result from the doctor. All of the doctors considered me to be pregnant based on the home test. If you've had 2 positives...you're pregnant! BAD friend!

Thanks jody. I've read up on the screening itself. But was just more curious what your doctor had said about it in relation to IVF/ICSI. KWIM?

[FSUSammy]

Speaking of the NT screen. When I went to my first OB appointment last week I asked about it and my ob told me that he didn't think I needed to have it done. He said that if I wanted to to just let him know and he'd refer me to someone who could do it. I'm all for knowing stuff ahead of time and of course I'd love to have 1 more u/s before my big u/s but is it even worth asking about???

[skb]

fsu I'm still weighing it out. It wasn't an active decision for me...the appointment was made. At this time we do not intend to have an amnio. If something on the NT showed a potential chromosomal abnormality, perhaps we would decide to go ahead with the amnio to diffinitively diagnose the abnormality. The only benefit I can think of is to be more prepared following delivery. Although I'm still undecided if even that is necessary for us or hte baby's well-being. We would not terminate.

[suzfuzsunflower]

Hey everyone. I hope that you are all doing well. :)

Honeygirl - What a horrible thing for your friend to tell you just after you've told her your good news! I wouldn't listen to her at all. When do you go to the dr?

I spent an hour in labor and delivery yesterday.:o Sat. I felt the baby very little, and Sunday even less. I called my doctor and was told to go to L&D so that they could make sure the baby was ok. I was so nervous, but the baby ended up being fine. Last night at about 11 I woke up to my little one doing flips (which was really uncomfortable, but I was SO HAPPY to be feeling him), and today things are back to normal. Maybe the baby was just turned in such a way that I couldn't feel him. :confused:

I have a 4D ultrasound tomorrow. I'm so excited!

[jodylovesscotty]

skb~ My RE always says we are at more risks because we did IVF and ICSI than those who don't. I am not surprised by that though. Each time we go to him our paperwork always says "suspected fetal abnormality", and I asked and says because of the ICSI he has to put that. Each time I go and see "birdie" and see that it is growing normally I am relieved:)

[Sarah051504]

I joined this thread and then didn't post anythign esle. Sorry about htat. I was just scared things weren't gonna stick but I had my u/s today and we saw and heard the heartbeat so I'm feeling a bit better about things. I have a question for you girls, my LMP was Jan. 22 and I had my IUI on Feb 8. I figured that my due date would be Nov 1st but my RE said it was Nov 5th. I know it's only 4 days difference but I don't get it. Can someone explain it to me?

[Patience]

Sarah051504 We had the same IUI date! Following the rule of 38 gestation weeks, our due date should be Nov. 1. If I went by my LMP (Jan. 28), my due date is Nov. 4, but I know I didn't O on CD14 (CD12 for my IUI). That's very odd that your RE would give you a due date of Nov. 5. The only way I could arrive at that date based on your info is that your RE counted 41 weeks for a full-term pregnancy (starting from your LMP). That doesn't make sense. I'm going to my first Ob visit tomorrow, so I'll ask.

suzfuzsunflower How scary! But I'm glad your little one is active again, so you can put your mind at ease. Please let us know how your 4D u/s goes.

honeygirl That's completely horrible of your friend to say such a thing! Don't believe her. You've gotten several + tests and I'm sure they're all correct.

jodylovesscotty Thank you! I'm very happy to sharing this with all of you. I'm doing ok. No major complaints except for the cysts pain from a couple of weeks ago. I hope it continues like this, but I'm sure that's wishful thinking. :p

[honeygirl]

suz - Glad that you got to see your little baby, sorry about the scare. I guess it is normal to be worried the whole time. Enjoy your 4d ultrasound, so cool! I had my bloodtest this morning btw and see my ob this thursday.

[skb]

jody

I posted a thread in family planning regarding ICSI, amnio and genetic counselling. It provided more detail then I'll go into here. But basically given our informed consent information my understanding is that the risk of increased chromosomal abnormality is related to DH's sperm count. Very low sperm counts (I believe the number was under 10,000 but perhaps your doctor can clarify) in combination with ICSI can lead to very slight increased risk of chromosomal abnormality. I think that number was 1%.

In our case, DH did not have a sperm count problem. I spoke with my doctor today about the nuchal and basically he said it is a standard of care. Between 11-13 weeks women are sceduled for nuchals end of story.

suz Glad everything is OK.
patience Glad you are feeling better....knock wood.

[wonderousglance]

*delurking, although I could join being that we ttc for 5 years...*

Suz - Hey there. There are still times when my little one is quiet. Sunday & most of Monday she hardly moved at all & then all of a sudden she went crazy last night. :) I hate not feeling her because I worry like crazy. Thank goodness our little ones will be here soon! :D

[Patience]

Sarah051504 Had my Ob visit today and the doctor confirmed a due date of Nov. 1 for me. So, the both of us should have the same due date unless your RE knows you didn't O on the date of the IUI? :confused:

skb Of course as soon as I said I was feeling better, I'm having the ovarian pains again today (just off and on). Just have to remember to take it s-l-o-o-o-o-w. Thanks for your concern. I'm glad to hear your chance of chromosomal abnormality is so low. One less thing to worry about, right? :)

Update: First Ob visit today (6w5d), everything is fine. Only one sac (whew! thank goodness because there was a chance for multiple with injectables) and saw the heartbeat at 150 bpm. Yay! DH and I are very relieved because I was not feeling many pregnancy symptoms other than the frequent bathroom visits during the night and it kinda worried me for a bit. KWIM?

[Jess71903]

Honey- don't listen to your friend. If you are really worried about it, go get another brand test, but you ARE pregnant, girl! SO SO glad you're here!

suz- sorry for the scare, but so glad everything is good and little one let you know he was still there that night :)

patience- sorry the pain came back! Take it easy and I really hope it subsides!

me- nothing much pregnancy-wise. I can tell I am getting bigger, although nobody else can. It's nice and firm below my belly-button (different for me!). I can't wait til I can feel little Peanut! That must be so cool!

[FSUSammy]

Patience - Congrats on the ob visit and YAY for one sac! LOL

Jess - Glad you are doing well and getting bigger!

Me - Nothing new to report really. M/S comes and goes. I did have to get up twice last night to go to the bathroom and am having a hard time sleeping, and I know its just going to get worse!

[skb]

Hi patience. Congratulations on seeing the sac and the heartbeat! Wonderful stuff. I hear ya on the pregnancy symptoms. I think the one everyone always thinks of is the nausea/vomitting. I've had it easy in that department and couldn't help but to wonder. But so far, so good. I hope those pesky ovaries settle down already!

[honeygirl]

The RE's office called and I'm pregnant. ;) Not a big surprise but great to hear nonetheless. My beta's were at 5461, which I think puts me in 5-6wks (I saw a chart somewhere). They told me that they'd like to do an ultrasound at the estimated 7wk date. I told them how the office said on monday that I would be released after the bloodtest b/c I was on a unmedicated cycle. She said that was fine, that it was up to me. Since I already made an appt with my Ob (for tomorrow) I'm sticking with her. That and I really like my Ob and I'm not super thrilled with my RE office.

Sammy - Have you found anything that helps with your m/s? Those pops or ginger or something? I had some ginger green tea yesterday that was calming (but I don't have real m/s yet so don't listen to me ;) ).

Jess71903 - Thanks, I think my friend was wrong too. I really wish that I hadn't told her, I should have told her later and just celebrated her news. Sigh. I think that she felt bad b/c she sent an e-mail later that night congratulating me. Glad that you're feeling bigger, and what a weird feeling it must be to have a tight lower stomach. I'm looking forward to that. I'm skinny but soft. ;)

Patience - Congrats! It must be calming to actually see your baby and know that things are progressing just fine.

I'd better get to work, I'm off to a slow start. I was so tired yesterday btw that I went home early to sleep! I told my supervisor on monday about our pregnancy, so at least she'll understand why I'm dragging. She's super excited for us and had been praying that we'd get pregnant (I work for a Christian Agency).

[Asha]

sarah - congrats on hearing the heartbeat! sorry i can't answer your question on due dates bc i didn't do an iui.

suz - how did your 4d ultrasound go?

wonderousglance - wow, 5 years!! i wouldn't mind you joining. there are other women here who got preggo on natural cycles but had been ttc for a very long time.

patience - yay, for seeing one sac! it just gets even more exciting from here.

jess - that's great you have a nice firm belly. mine is firm under the pudge. :)

sammy - i hope your m/s doesn't get worse. i had it really bad from about week 11-17. now, i never sleep through the night. its mostly that i wake up feeling like the sahara dessert is in my mouth and i must have water.

skb - lucky you for not having much nausea and vomiting! :)

honeygirl - yay for the high beta!! don't worry about what your friend said? did she get pregnant with treatments? perhaps, she is jealous you got preggo on a natural cycle.

****
well, we had our anatomy scan yesterday, and we are having a little baby girl!!! i would have been thrilled with either, but it just seems so much more real to know the sex. now, we can stop calling the baby it, and refer to her by her sex. we also got a bonus bc the technician was waiting for the baby to turn to get a good view of the spine, so she decided to give us a shot of our little girl with the 4d ultrasound. so, here's our little girl at 18w1d.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/157/421962835_4dc639518d.jpg?v=0

[FSUSammy]

honeygirl - Yay on the RE confirming the pg!!!! Great Betas too yeah that sounds about right to be around 5 weeks. Will your ob do an u/s. If not I say take advantage of the one your RE is gonna do. The only thing that I have found that helped my m/s are these cuban crackers that I'm eating. They sell them down here in South Florida probably because we have so many spanish folks down here. LOL For some reason I don't like the taste of ginger so I can't use anything like that.

Asha - OMG I feel like I have the Sahara Desert in my mouth too!!!! I can't drink enough water. I try not to drink water at night but I have a glass by our bed just in case it gets really bad!!! OMG your little girl is absolutely adorable! Super congrats on finding out yesterday I'm sure its GREAT to be able to call her by her proper sex now. LOL

Me - Nothing new, m/s is coming and going! LOL

[Jenean]

Sammy, I’m glad you had such good appointments! Good work Baby, on cooperating for your parents! And woohoo for being released from the RE! Have you tried the Sea Bands for your m/s? They really helped me a lot! Read what I wrote to skb below about the nuchal screening.

Patience, I’m glad you’re feeling better. Of all the cross-stitching I’ve done over the years, we actually only have one piece of mine hanging in the house. I end up giving them all away. But it’s fun to do stuff now knowing it’s for my own kids, and I also have something for DH I hope to get completed relatively soon (like before the kids start school! ;) ) I vote for you to give birth on 10/31. That’s my birthday and I can guarantee your child will love having a Halloween birthday! Glad to hear that your first OB appointment went well!

skb, I do know what you mean. I try not to kick myself for having done so much over the last 2 months and am just focusing on those priorities and keeping myself horizontal now. I hope you’re back to normal soon! We did a nuchal translucency screen combined with b/w at 13 weeks and were very glad we did it. My midwife offered it to us at our first appointment and DH and I are both the kind of people who like to have as much info as possible, so we signed right up. It was at a perinatologist’s office and involved genetic counseling, b/w, and a detailed u/s for the measurements. Our numbers went from a generic 1 in 600 chance, just based on age and family histories, to 1 in over 10,000, so we were really glad we did it! I never heard anything about it being different or anything in relation to IVF/ICSI. We mentioned to the counselor that our babies were IVF babies and she didn’t even make note of it at all or say anything about it making a difference.

Jess, woohoo 2nd trimester! That’s great news about the cysts. What a relief that must be! How awesome to have a friend in PT who can keep you feeling good. Enjoy it!

honeygirl, CONGRATS! I am so glad to see you over here. I am so sorry to hear about your grandmother. That was so insensitive of your friend and I am so glad you had to hear that. If she starts in again, just tell her that you’re staying positive and would appreciate her not sharing any other stories like that! Some people just don’t think! How was your appointment today???

jjsanner, no symptoms is not a bad thing. I didn’t have a single one for quite some time. The fear of m/c doesn’t really go away, but do try not to think about it, ok? You deserve to enjoy every single second of your pregnancy!

jody, another woohoo 2nd trimester! That is fabulous news and I’m glad that all is going well! Sept. 22 is definitely a great day – it was the day of my ET! :D I wonder why the ICSI makes us at a higher risk for something? My RE never said anything about that to me.

suzfuz, sorry you had that scare! But I’m glad all is well. How was the 4D scan?

Sarah, even when you KNOW what your conception date is, the docs never really pay attention to that. They just use their little wheel and figure it based on the first day of your LMP. What I did, to make my EDD match my conception date, was fib a little and give my OB a different date for my CD1 of my LMP when I switched from the RE to her. It doesn’t make a huge difference, but I’m anal like that and just wanted everything to match! :rolleyes:

Asha, CONGRATS on your little girl!!! That’s such great news and what a wonderful picture! I’m so happy for you!


Let’s see, how can I make this brief? (If you can’t tell, I can be quite wordy, hehe.) First, I passed my 3-hr GTT! YAYAYAYAY! :D My numbers were actually really good and the midwife was very pleased, as was I! Whew. We also had a quick peek at the babies this morning and they are just too cute for words. Laurel unfortunately has flipped around again and has its head up by my belly button, but there's still time for it to switch back, so hopefully it'll do that! My BP is great, weight gain is perfect, babies' heart rates are excellent.

The bad news is that my cervix is still shrinking. I'm down from 2.9 to 2.5 cm in 3 weeks. Sigh. So it's back to pretty much strict bedrest. No more running errands or really going out. And I'm supposed to be reclining more than sitting so the babies aren't putting so much pressure directly on my cervix. I am very committed to this and seriously came straight home and got on the sofa. I'm just about done with my house projects, thank goodness, and my mom will help me finish up a couple of things this weekend and the rest of it when she comes back next month. I am allowed to go for my haircut tomorrow evening and I can go to my shower on Saturday, but I have to sit and let everyone come to me (Queen for a day!) and not move around.

So, our goal is 32 weeks = Tuesday, April 17. After that I can resume limited activity. And if I'm still pregnant on April 29, I can go to DH's best friend's wedding, and even dance! :) But for now, one little goal at a time. I’m on weekly appointments now, with u/s at every other visit, so we’ll get plenty of updates on how things are going as we wait.

Also, our nursery furniture is in, except the glider, but that will be here before it’s all delivered (after the babies are born). We think we’ve chosen a pediatrician, we finished our birthing class, we’re taking a tour of the hospital and NICU next week, and have signed up for an infant care and breastfeeding class on April 19. So all is coming right along!

Happy almost-Friday ladies!

[Jess71903]

Asha- don't be fooled. I am still quite fluffy. I can feel the firm below my belly-button...I think little Peanut is just pushing the fluff higher up because it's all really soft up top! Your baby girl is a cutie!

Honey- YAY for confirmation, even though I never had a doubt! Congrats, again! SO happy for you!

jjsanner-I hope you can relax and enjoy your pregnancy! I know it must be hard since you have lost before, but I have faith that this little one is very sticky!

jenean- sorry about your cervix and the strict bedrest! So cool you got to see your babies again! I love that you're wordy! It makes this thread more fun to read! Take care, girl!

[honeygirl]

Asha - Yes, my friend is having Clomid twins. I wish that I hadn't told her yet, I know she was rude, but I still blame myself. What a wonderful picture of your little girl, congratulations!!

Sammy - Glad that you found some crackers that help. I've started to feel icky (thought I'd throw up earlier today when I opened a mint tea bag of all things) and am eating lots of pretzels. I had a ultrasound today so I'm glad that I didn't wait for the RE!

Jenean - I liked your post but I'd call it "informative" rather than "wordy". ;) Best wishes for your bedrest, hopefully you have lots of interesting things to keep you busy.

Jess - Thanks for the congrats. I am SO happy to be sharing a pregnancy thread with so many of you familiar and friendly faces. :)

My first Ob appt was today and it went GREAT. My Ob was so happy to see me, she gave me a hug right away. She did some testing for a while before I moved onto the RE and was wonderful. So, I'm thrilled to be back with her (and glad to be done with the RE). She did a full exam (pap included even though I had one in Oct), answered a bunch of my questions and did a ultrasound. We could see the sac and a tiny baby in the top of it! I am SO thrilled. She said that since we can see a baby my chance of miscarriage drops to 10%. I measured at 5wks which is what I figured I'm at (5w3d today). My next appt will be in 4 weeks where we should see the heartbeat.

She told me that I could only eat tuna (canned) 1x a month. This is a bummer since I LOVE tuna. But, on the bright side she said that green tea is okay. This is good b/c the ginger green tea that I've been drinking helps me feel less sick. (it's a Tazo tea).

That's it! I still get excited and teary when I think about the fact that there is actually a baby in me, after all this time! I feel much better now that I have high betas and a photo of my little honeybaby.

I'm spotting a little but she said that I would b/c of the internal exam. Does anyone know how long spot would be expected? I'm guessing that it will be done by tomorrow. It helps that she told me that I'd see it, but I still don't like it.

Whew, that was a long entry. Sorry. :)

[Asha]

thanks, sammy!

jenean - yay, for passing your gtt!! i am sorry you still have to be on strict bedrest. are you watching all those baby shows that are on all day? i never really liked to watch those until i was preggo myself. have fun at your baby shower!!!

honey - that's great your first ob appt went well. well, i have heard you can eat tuna once a week, but you should follow the advice of your ob. since dh is the biggest worrywart, i have been missing my green tea fix. i am sorry but i don't know how long spotting should last, but a lot of women have spotting, so what you are experiencing is normal.

******

ok, i am sorry for always sounding like a nervous nelly, but i have this weird symptom. i get this weird pulsating feeling in the middle of my chest. i don't know if this is anything to worry about or normal during pregnancy. its been happening for about 4-5 days now. its not a constant thing. it seems to happen more often after i have eaten or i have been running around too much.

also, this is a funny/strange thing, but i really believe my pregnancy phermones are pushing my cat, bili, to constantly be in heat. she acts more "excited" when i am around. also, she gets excited when she sniffs my clothing. thank god we are getting her fixed next week.

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - Yeah I've tried the Sea Bands but they really didn't make a difference with me. I don't know if maybe I didn't position them just right or what. I followed the direction too. Thanks for the info on the NT screen. I sooooo want to do it just because its another chance to see the baby before my big u/s plus we also want to know as much as possible health-wise. Ugh what to do what to do. I take it these are normally done at perinatologist offices??? That would make sense why my ob told me he'd have to send me elsewhere for it. Congrats on passing your 3 hr GTT. Sorry you are back on bedrest, but it is for the best!

honeygirl - Yay for a great appointment!!!! Looks like your appointments will be a week after mine LOL. I'd say if you are still spotting today to call up the doc.

Me - Nothing new really. Totally turned off by food. My mouth is SUPER dry though. I'm drinking water like crazy and it doesn't help. I had bought startburst the other day and brought some to work with me. I ate a lot of them yesterday and surely paid for it when I got home. I guess metformin is still doing its thing because it doesn't want me having too much sugar! Well tomorrow morning DH and I will be driving about 4 hours to see his mom in Daytona Beach. Her birthday is on Wednesday and we told her that we wanted to come up to take her out to lunch before her birthday. She has no idea why we are *really* coming up there! She's going to FLIP!!!!!

[FSUSammy]

Asha - Does it feel like your heart is racing really quick and then goes back to normal? If so I've had that too, I think that's normal.

[Asha]

sammy - that's great that you are able to even drink water during your m/s. i had a total aversion to water, and just now i am able to drink a little bit of it. the only liquids i could somewhat stomach were whole milk and pomengranate juice. yup, it does feel like my heart is racing, but not in the usual racing way like if i worked out too much. its a more strong pulsing feeling.

[FSUSammy]

Asha - That's exactly how I feel. A quick pulsing feeling but nothing like when you are working out. I think its normal. I wanna say I read it somewhere. Oh and regarding the water, it tastes weird to me LOL but I'm forcing myself to drink it.

[skb]

fsusammy What a nice bday surprise for you MIL. We plan to tell my ILs when we see them at Easter. Part of me likes to have this secret all to myself and part of me can't wait to spill to the rest of our friends and family. Silly to be nervous but excited all at once, wouldn't you say!

asha Sorry I have nothing to add about your symptom. But I hope you're able to avoid your cat! LOL. And congratulations on having a daughter!

honeygirl I am very disappointed to hear about the canned tuna. Yesterday I grabbed a can in anticipation of making a tuna melt for lunch. My mouth was watering. But given I had fish for dinner the nigth before I restrained myself and put it back. Honestly I can't get this fish stuff straight.

jenean That's ineteresting. I'll be having the NT because it is a standard of care in my doctors practice. But I've been told by the IVF docs and another perinatologist that the b/w screens are not accurate following IVF. I might have to clarify? Enjoy your baby shower and I hope that cervix stays put from here on out. April 17th isn't that far away!

[Patience]

Asha Congrats on your little girl! As for your question, I'm going to guess it has something to do with the increased blood flow through your heart because of your pregnancy. But of course, I'm not a medical professional so I might be totally wrong. That's pretty strange about your cat (funny though).

honeygirl Hooray on seeing the sac and baby! Isn't that good feeling to know that a little one is growing inside of you? :) My Ob mentioned the spotting from a Pap shouldn't last more than a day, so I hope yours has stopped already.

Jenean Your kids are going to have the best looking rooms with all your wonderful cross-stitch hanging on the walls! So, you're a Halloween baby? That must have been cool to have combo Halloween/birthday parties growing up! We'll see when this little one will arrive. I'm definitely more partial to Oct. birthdays because many of my relatives and friends are born in Oct. Congrats on passing your 3-hour GTT!! I hope your strict bedrest will stop your cervix from shrinking. Have a fabulous time at your shower! Queen for a day sounds great. :D

FSUSammy Sorry to hear about your m/s. Have you tried ginger? I've heard that's supposed to help. As for the water, a friend of mine hated the taste of plain water too, so she would always add a little lemon juice to her to make it taste better.

skb The ovarian pain is manageable. The only thing that frightens me is the chance for rupture or torsion. That's why I keep hoping for my ovaries to shrink already! One day at a time, I guess.

Jess71903 I hope you get to feel Peanut soon!

[Jess71903]

Asha- so funny to me that your symptoms are lasting longer or starting later than mine. I had that heart thing for a few weeks earlier on...It's annoying but totally normal. It would happen to me when I was more hydrated, which makes sense because what I read said it was due to more blood volume and your heart trying to adjust to it.

honeygirl- Yay for seeing little Honeybaby! How cool! I am so glad you love your OB so much and that it all went well!

[suzfuzsunflower]

Asha - I had the same thing (heart pounding) starting around 15 weeks. It seemed to be much worse at night. I asked about it, and was told that it's due to the increased blood volume in your body. Haven't had that symptom in a while.

3D/4D ultrasound was great! Baby boy had both of his feet on top of his head. I'll have to post a picture with his feet later on, but for now here is a head shot.

4D face shot
http://images1.snapfish.com/3496%3B49%3C%3B%7Ffp38%3A%3Evq%3D32%3B5%3E957%3E88 8%3EWSNRCG%3D323567%3A%3A3%3B%3A26vq0mrj

And a belly picture from a week and a half ago...28 week belly shot
http://images1.snapfish.com/3496%3B49%3C%3B%7Ffp386%3Evq%3D32%3B5%3E957%3E888% 3EWSNRCG%3D323567%3A%3A3%3B%3A24vq0mrj

[Jenean]

Jess, lol. Thanks!

honeygirl, you should see the stack of magazines I’m working my way through! And I actually managed to fill up my DVR memory, so lots to watch, too. :) I’m glad you had such a good first appointment! I hope the spotting is gone and that you’re still just enjoying knowing that you’re growing a person inside you!

Asha, oh yeah, I know the exact schedule for all the Baby Story and Bringing Home Baby shows all day! I watch ‘em on and off. I think I’m near the end of being able to watch all those women screaming in the delivery room, though. :p I get that heart pounding feeling a lot. Often after doing a lot, and usually within an hour of eating, especially in the morning. I think it might have something to do with my blood sugar dropping after eating. It feels like I can’t even move, I’m so thoroughly exhausted, and all I can manage to do is lie down and breathe and wait for it to pass.

Sammy, hopefully the m/s will be gone soon! I think the screens are done wherever they have a higher level u/s. My OB’s office only has the basic one, so they sent me out for it.

skb, I could see how the b/w might be different after IVF or even IUI b/c of the artificial hormones we take. What I liked about the ultrascreen was that it combined b/w with u/s to give a better overall result. Perhaps that’s why we weren’t told about any possible differences. I think it’s good that your doc includes it as part of the regular practice.

Patience, aw, thanks! Halloween has always been such a great birthday, and definitely when I was a kid!

suzfuz, wow, that’s so amazing! You look fantastic! I can’t believe you’re about to reach 30 weeks! :eek:


Everything is going well here. My parents were here this weekend for my shower, so I was probably up a little bit more than I should have been on Friday, following my dad around the house as he hung pictures for us and helped with a few other chores. Saturday was my shower and it was so much fun! I had a really good time and the twins got so many goodies. Both our strollers, both high chairs, both bouncy seats, tons of clothes, and my smart SIL got us a huge pack of diapers. My best friend also gave me 2 packs of diapers and a half a dozen boxes of wipes, plus refills and two giant bottles each of shampoo, baby wash, lotion, etc.

Yesterday we managed to get our home office moved to the basement and our den reorganized. I lay on the sofa in each room and just pointed to where I wanted things to go while everyone else moved the stuff. :D Today I’m back on the sofa. DH leaves for a business trip in a couple of hours, but will only be gone 2 days, and I have enough leftovers from this weekend to feed me the entire time, plus have people coming by each day to keep me company and make sure I have whatever I need, so I’m sure I’ll be fine. Four more weeks to go, for now! :)

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - Glad your shower went well and you got lots of goodies for the twins!

Me - Feeling ok had to go home around 1 today because I had this awful pain in my stomach. This time it wasn't coming from my uterus. I couldn't stand up straight. And then the smell of food was killing me too so I asked my boss if I could just finish up the day from home and he said sure. I'm feeling ok now but I thought I got hungry and I ate some crackers but now I feel nauseous again. I'm in a nerve-ending cycle! I went ahead and scheduled my NT screening for April 9th. Actually my OB originally scheduled it for the 5th which won't work for me but I also think it would have been a tad too early because my LMP I would be 11 weeks which is perfect but based on my last u/s with my RE I'll be only 10 so I moved the appointment to the following week.

[Jess71903]

Jenean- Yay for 4 more weeks! Sounds like you are all set! Any belly pics for us?

Suz- AWWW! Your little man is too cute! I love those 4-D u/s's! You look so good!

Sammy- sorry you are feeling so crappy! I hope it goes away soon! I know that can't stand up feeling. I guess it's just gas or muscle cramps or something. It happens pregnant or not, so I guess it's not related.

No news with me pregnancy-wise. Just chuggin right along at almost 15 weeks. We leave Thurs. to go to my mom's, then early Mon. morning we will leave from there to go to the beach for 5 nights!!!!!!!!! YAY! I can't wait! It's much-needed relaxation!

[Asha]

jess - i would have loved to go to the beach at 15 weeks and just relax in the sun bc i was so exhausted at that time.

sammy - oh, i totally sympathize with the nausea. i couldn't stand the smell of food. i couldn't cook bc i was so repulsed by even the thought of food. it gets better.

jenean - that's great you got double of most everything. i am requesting diapers for my baby shower too. it sounds like your house is practically ready for the twins.

suz - you're looking great, and your little one is precious. yup, my doc said the same thing about the increased blood flow. at least, i don't have to worry about it now.

****
i had another ob appt. it was pretty uneventful. it was exciting bc we started talking about the hospital stay, and i had to fill out some paperwork. i was a bit disappointed that you can't reserve a private room ahead of time. its basically first come first serve on the day of delivery. i would like a private room, so dh can sleep with us over night. the baby will be able to sleep with me regardless, but it would be nice to have dh there too.

i also learned that i gained a record breaking 10 pounds in one month!!!! :eek: the ob didn't act concerned at all, and said i was actually gaining too little in the first four months, so she said i am all evened out now. she said if i continue to gain at this rate it will be cause for concern but she seems to think my body was just adjusting itself. though, it did give me a wake up call that i at least need to incorporate some light exercise into my daily routine. its a beautiful day today, so i will try to go for a walk on the boardwalk. i also must admit this was the first month in which food seemed appealing and i just was so happy that i wanted to eat, i think i just indulged just a little too much.

[Jess71903]

Glad to hear that all is well, Asha! So funny about the weight gain! Sounds like you needed it! Apparently I spoke too soon about the heart thing, too. It just started up for me again in the last couple of days, so maybe it's just one of those things that comes and goes.

[FSUSammy]

Asha - That sucks that you can't reserve a private room! Hopefully you'll get one though. But yay for evening out on the weight gain.

Jess - Sounds like there are a few of us in here with that heart thing going on.

Me - Nothing new the past few days have been pretty good. No complaints at all. Actually maybe one, I've been super moody. My coworkers are finding it hilarious though! Two of my coworkers today told me they think I'm having a boy because I'm "glowing" I thought it was too soon to be glowing. LOL Oh and they told me because my nose isn't all stretched out and wide. I guess we'll see what's inside eventually!

[angelgirl8]

asha...are you in new york? this private room thing sounds awfully familiar! i wouldn't worry too much about it...from my experience and from talking to others, it's really rare not to get a private room. it does totally suck to not be able to reserve one ahead of time. i was definitely stressed out about it and worried about me and the babies in a room with another mom and her baby (or babies!) and no DH with us!

[Jenean]

Sammy, thanks! I’m glad that you have your NT appointment. Enjoy the incredible u/s pics!

Jess, I never took a 28 week pic, but will be sure to take one tomorrow when I turn 29 weeks! I hope you’re having a great trip! :D

Asha, yup, we’re just about ready! I have a few more things to put away and then we just have to finish clearing out and cleaning up the nursery, but that will be done when my folks come back in 2 weeks. I can’t wait! I’m sorry that you can’t reserve a private room in advance, but I hope that you can get one when you get there. I would feel the same way you do about wanting DH there.

I had my weekly checkup on Thursday and I’m doing fine, but Laurel had an irregular heartbeat for the 2nd week in a row. The midwife said it’s probably nothing and is most likely related to some imbalance in my electrolytes or something minor like that, but that she wants me to get it checked out. She hadn’t even mentioned anything about it at my last appointment, but after hearing it again last week, she wants us to look into it. She said she’s not that worried b/c we know from our anatomy scan that the heart is fully formed and pumping, so I’m not that worried either (and my OB friend said they have to refer us out anyway to cover themselves legally). I’m sure it will turn out just fine! Both babies’ heartbeats were very strong and regular, but Laurel’s had an extra little thump in there occasionally. We have an appointment with a specialist on April 6 for a fetal echocardiogram, a regular checkup and Q&A session with our midwife and OB next Wed., 3/28, and our bimonthly u/s (this time with full growth scan of the babies) on Thurs., 3/29.

Other than that, DH’s grandfather passed away last week and the funeral was Friday. I was allowed to go, which was good so I could be there for DH (he spoke on behalf of all the grandkids). We decided to change our top choice baby boy’s name so that he’ll be named after him. The weekend itself was quiet; we just relaxed and then sat shiva with the family. DH gave me his sore throat, so for three days now I’ve been feeling like I swallowed razor blades, so I’m taking it very easy and am now trying to figure out my new laptop (damn that new Windows Vista!).

[honeygirl]

So now that I'm pregnant does that mean that I'm no longer infertile? I'm sure that is a stupid question, but I still feel like I have IF. I'm just a IF person who was blessed with a miracle pregnancy. Meaning, I'll most likely be IF again after this pregnancy. Does anyone else think about stuff like this? Should I feel "fertile/normal" now? Am I?

[FSUSammy]

honeygirl - You know that's a very tricky question. I have a friend of mine that has PCOS and had to go through IVF for her first son. Well just recently she found out she was pregnant and they weren't even trying. Apparently pregnancy helped straighten things out hormone-wise for her. Obviously not everyone is that lucky but ya never know. Didn't you recently have an HSG too? I wonder if that is what helped you in the end.

[honeygirl]

Yes, I had a HSG at the beginning of this cycle. I'm sure that it had something to do with the BFP even though I didn't have any obvious blockage. Really I think that it was a miracle, and wonder if it will ever happen for us again. I'm not worried per say about this, I just think about it sometimes.

[Jenean]

honeygirl, that's an interesting question. I never really thought about it. I guess I didn't consider us "infertile", maybe more "fertility-challenged". Yes, we were going through infertility treatment, but we knew I was ovulating and we knew at least some of DH's boys could swim, so I guess I just always figured it was only a matter of time before egg met sperm and made a baby. For us in the future, I feel pretty certain that we'll need IVF again to make more babies, but again I don't think I'll think of myself as infertile per se.

I hope that doesn't sound insensitive to anyone who wasn't successful with IF treatment. I certainly don't mean to offend!!!

[suzfuzsunflower]

honeygirl - I've thought about that as well. I've heard of people that were able to conceive without treatment after achieving one pregnancy. I'm not convinced that this will happen with DH and me. I know that I was not ovulating at all (at least not in the 2 years of treatment until the *magic* cycle) and DH has pretty severe issues as well, so I kind of feel like this is our one miracle baby. Treatment didn't work for us, at least what we tried. Plan is to not prevent for about 9 months, try medical intervention, and then adopt. Regardless of what happens, we plan on adopting at some point.

Today is 31 weeks for me. Yay! Waiting for the next mile stone (at least in my mind....does anyone else set little goals?)...32 weeks. Next doctor appointment is one week from tomorrow, along with an ultrasound to check his kidneys. I really hope that it's the last one....b/c that will mean that everything with his kidneys looks good! :) If all is good, then we should be released from the fetal maternal medicine specialist.

Oh, and one week from today we're taking our hospital tour. :)

[karlatta]

honeygirl - I actually think about it a lot. I am a member of another message board dealing with infertility and yesterday I even posted comments about how I still experience "pregnancy jealousy" even though I'm pregnant! It's like all of the emotions associated with infertility never left.

I am fairly certain that we will need IVF again to conceive. I don't ovulate on my own, for one. And I'm missing a fallopian tube. And I have endometriosis. We are planning to do an FET after this baby is born, and then we'll go from there. I'd like several kids close in age, so when we're not able to conceive, we'll probably do adopt foster children to fill in the gaps.

[Jenean]

suzfuz, congrats on reaching that date! 32 weeks will be here fast! I hope the next scan looks good so you can breathe easy.


Cross-post from June moms' thread: Update on us: yesterday's appointment sucked. I had a really crappy morning and was very upset, so I hadn't really eaten or drank anything and was all worked up, so my BP was high and there were protein and ketones in the little bit of urine I managed to get in the cup. Luckily I was going back today anyway for our u/s so they rechecked me and I was much better. BP was back down to 124/78, which is a little high for me, but still okay, and my urine test was better, too. But because of yesterday's results I have to go back in on Monday for another PIAC and BP check. No big deal.

My cervix is down to 2.1 cm and goes below 2 cm with any pressure, so basically any time I'm standing or sitting it's below 2. So I can go from the bed to the sofa and back and can get up in between to pee and that's about it. I have to skip Monday's seder in NJ b/c that's too long of a car ride, but I'm allowed to go to the seder that's only 20 minutes from home on Tuesday if I promise to stay on the sofa while I'm there. The word "hospitalization" was mentioned again, and I'm continuing to take this very seriously. If I have to be hospitalized b/f 32 weeks I'd have to go to the ickier hospital further away from the house (where there's a Level III NICU), but if I can make it to 32 weeks then at least I'd be able to be at the hospital by my house (Level II NICU). Of course, hopefully I'll be able to stay at home the whole time! So, 32 weeks for our next goal, then 34 (lung maturity), then 36 (bring 'em on!).

Babies are doing great! I'll post new pics and a new belly pic later on. Both are head down (YAYAYAY) and are only 2 oz apart in weight (2 lbs 13 oz and 2 lbs 15 oz). Heart rates were 143 and 136. Laurel's heart looked fine - all four chambers and pumping strongly, but we're still going for the fetal echo next week. We saw Laurel give the biggest yawn = so cute! I videotaped it since DH couldn't go and we'll watch it tonight.

So my next appointment is Monday 4/2, with our family friend to check BP and go over our L&D questions. I have to decide who I want to be my primary for delivery now that my regular OB is leaving the practice. Ideally, if I can deliver vaginally, my midwife will be there and the other doc in the practice will be on-call for a possible c/s. I do NOT want our friend delivering us if it's a vaginal birth. But if it's a c/s I think I might be okay with him doing it. I guess maybe since he won't be staring right up my hoohoo for a c/s, it feels more okay somehow. Gotta think about that one some more!

Not much else. I'm really tired today and am enjoying just lying around. I've been busy with work and am looking forward to just reading and watching some t.v. later on. I finished my third baby bib last night and am looking through my pattern books to choose what I want to stitch on the hooded towels I bought. I hope to do those this weekend and then I think I may choose and start birth records for each baby. And next week I plan to order the baby shower pics I want to put in our scrapbook and get that done, too! Lots of things to keep me busy! :D

[jodylovesscotty]

Jenean~ Stay in bed lady, we want those babies to cook! Glad to hear that heart looks much better.

honeygirl~ We are thankful for the one miracle we have brewing right now. We always said if we could have one we would be happy. So this will be a very spoiled, only child. With that said, I guess I know we will always have trouble conceiving if we ever changed our mind, but I guess I don't think of as "infertile couple" though we are. It is part of us, but does not make up who we are. Hope that makes sense.


Things are going well with me. I was released from my RE on Saturday which was kinda sad. I had been with them so long they were like family. I really do like my new OB, she is great. I had my appointment with her this afternoon. We got to hear the heartbeat which was 164. I scheduled my big u/s to find out the gender and do a level 2 ultrasound to check for blood clots in the placenta. I can't wait to find out what "birdie" is so I can start buying things.

Hope everyone else is doing well:)

[honeygirl]

suzfuzsunflower - Congrats on 31wks! Wow, you'll have that baby here soon. Best wishes with your hospital tour next week. Do you already love the hospital that you'll deliver at?

Jenean - Sorry to hear that your appt was sucky yesterday. :( I'll be praying that you make it to 32wks at home so that you don't need the "icky" hospital! Great news that the babies are doing well! Now, to just keep that cervix at the right number!

jodylovesscotty - Congrats on graduating from your RE, even if you will miss them. Glad that you like your ob, you'll be seeing lots of her for a while. ;) So, are you hoping to see a boy or a girl at your next ultrasound?


Ladies thanks for the responses to my "IF" question. I guess I'm having a hard time realizing that we may actually be "fertile" (as evidenced by the baby in me) despite all the doom and gloom/IF diagnosis that our RE gave us. Hopefully in time I'll embrace my new "fertility" and stop thinking like a infertile or fertility-challenged couple.

I'm half way thru my 7th week and still feeling pretty yucky most of the time. I welcome the nausea in the morning b/c it is a reminder that our little peanut is growing in there! However, I'm ready for the nausea to take a break by the afternoon/evening. ;) I'm already getting big, bloating I know, but it still makes wearing clothes a challenge. I'm on the small size (0-2) so I think my bloat is more noticeable! It will be easier once the news is out b/c then I can just be my bloated self and people will think its the baby. LOL!

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - I'm sorry your appointment didn't go so well. Glad you and the babies are doing well though and you are keeping yourself busy!

jody - Congrats on getting released from your RE. That's a HUGE milestone!!!

honeygirl - Sorry you are feeling yucky. It will get better at some point. LOL As for the bloat I hear ya girl!!!! I ended up buying pants a size up around 7 weeks because the bloat was so bad by the afternoon.

Me - Well ladies. I'm nearing the end of my 9th week (based on u/s). I go next Wednesday for my 2nd OB appointment and hopefully we'll hear the heartbeat on the doppler. Then the following Monday we go for our NT screening. That should be cool to see our little blob look more like a real baby. I can't wait. I'm actually feeling GREAT. The nausea has gotten soooo much better. I'm still tired but its not too bad. My main thing right now is my extreme moodiness. I bit my mom's head off last night and thankfully she called me this morning and I apologized and she said she understood. LOL

[skb]

jenean Hang in there...you can make it to 36 weeks for sure! Just don't move! Cross stitch and scrapbooking sound like perfect ways to pass the time. Question....if you deliver vaginally your midwife will be present but not necessarily your doctor? I have a feeling that when it comes time to deliver vaginally it's not going to matter who the primary doctor is...just so long as you know it's a good doctor!

jodylovesscotty Congratulations on being released from your RE. I'm glad to hear that you're comfortable with your ObGyn. It won't be long now before the shopping spree can begin!

fsu It's good to feel better! I have to admit though, at times my patience is quite a bit less than usual. Thanks goodness for understanding family members.

suzfuzsunflower Where does the time go? 31 weeks already. I really hope you're released from the maternal fetal specialist next week and can spend your remaining weeks with one less thing to worry about.

honeygirl Good question. Sorry I'm a little late to chime in. I think it depends so much on each individual couples' diagnosis and often times can depend on each particular pregnancy. Obviously nothing in life is a certainty. I personally have not been diagnosed with an infertility problem. But as a couple we have infertility. Prior to 1992 we would not be able to conceive our own biological child. Our options would be sperm donor, adoption or no children. We still have an infertility problem despite the fact we have been able to conceive with assistance. Nonetheless if I end up pregnant without assistance in the future...I'd be surprised, not surprised and elated...anything is possible. But after 2 1/2 years TTC this one we had waited long enough! A dear friend of mine has PCOS and endometriosis. After 3 years of TTC they had their first child via IVF and fortunately their second child came without medical assistance. She definitely believes they are a couple who have infertility issues. However, conceiving on their own is not out of the question as evidenced by their second child. She has primary infertility but not secondary infertility. I cannot recall your exact circumstances but believe the RE told you that there was a 5% liklihood you'd conceive on your own? If that is the case, perhaps you fell into the 5%, I suppose we could even go so far to say perhaps your REs statistics were wrong. I don't know if you'd be considered a "primary infertile" by official terms and couldn't speculate on the liklihood you may have "secondary infertility." But I agree with you that at some point we just have to focus on the current pregnancy, be thankful and leave the technical stuff to the doctors!

[honeygirl]

skb - I think that perhaps dr's aren't always right, even the good ones. We were given a 5% chance with IUI and basically a 0% without assistance. We ended up getting pregnant without assistance (on a "break" non-medicated cycle) except that I had a HSG. I do remember him saying that "it sometimes happens" (pregnancy to non medicated couples) but that the odds were incredibly slim. Of course I hear amazing "on a break" stories around here regularly. Anyway, I agree with you and will try to "be thankful and leave the technical stuff to (my) doctor". ;)

[FSUSammy]

Hey ladies! Feeling GREAT!!! I'm 10w3d based on my last u/s OR 11w3d based on my LMP. Went in for my 2nd OB appointment today. My OB wasn't there because he was delivering a baby. The nurse saw me. I did my normal urine sample and weigh in, haven't gained anything. She brought the doppler and and went on her adventure to find the baby. Couldn't find it at first and then all of a sudden she got a smile on her face and said there it is and explained what I was hearing. It was absolutely amazing!!! I go for my NT on Monday which I'm excited for to see the baby again and then my next appointment is on May 2nd. I have a feeling my big u/s will be the last week of May because by then I'll be 18/19 weeks.

[Jess71903]

Sorry it's been so long, ladies! I got back from my trip, which was great, and tis week has been busy. We are having a gospel meeting at church (a week's worth of preaching with a visiting preacher), so I haven't had much CC time.

Things with me are great! I *think* I may be feeling baby on and off. It's just kind of a wiggly feeling in my abdomen. I feel good, except for daily indigestion.

honey- I know I am late in the game, but I wanted to answer your question too. I think about it a lot. I have to say that I feel guilty for making such a fuss and being so sad about not conceiving because it *only* took us a year and 1/2. I know in the grand IF scheme, that's nothing. Also, we conceived naturally even though we had done Clomid, Repronex, and IUI. Sometimes I feel like I was justified to worry, but other times it feels like I was just a whiner and wasn't patient enough. On these boards, I felt more comfortable with those who had been trying for a long time and doing IF treatments because it seemed like everyone else got pregnant in the first 3 or 4 months of trying. Anyway, thinking about a 2nd scares me a little because the thought of having to wait so long again just seems unbearable. I don't know that I consider us infertile, but maybe that it is harder for us than a lot of other people and I am scared that will be the case with any future children.

jenean- I'm sorry about the crappy appointment! We're pulling for 32 weeks. When you get there, we will be pulling for 34, then 36! Sounds like you have your time well-planned!

suz- I can't believe you are so far along! Where did the time go?

jody-I am sorry that you *have* to leave your RE, but I am glad things are going so well that you can be released! When in your big u/s appt? Mine is April 30. SO excited!

Sammy- glad you are feeling better! I hope it continues! Deep breaths, count to 10...you know, all the calming stuff.;).

[jodylovesscotty]

Jess71903~ My big u/s is on April 16th. I sure hope the little birdie cooperates!

[Jenean]

X-post:

Hi ladies. Update first, and I'll be back later with SO's.

I just got home this morning after spending the last 2 1/2 days in the hospital. At my u/s on Thursday we saw that my cervix was down to 1.6 cm (another half cm gone in one week). The midwife had me put on a monitor to see if I was contracting, and I was, although they weren't very strong ones that I could really feel. But since the contractions can affect the shortening of the cervix, she wanted them to stop. After consulting my doc (J, our friend), she ordered me over to the hospital. I got permission to go home and pack a bag and then J and his wife picked me up and took me over. Murphy's Law = DH was out of town again, this time in LA.

So, starting on Thursday evening I was put on 24 hour IV fluids, regular pills of anti-contraction meds, plus I received 2 shots of terbutaline to stop the contractions, and over a 36-hour period I received 4 steroid shots to mature the babies' lungs. I also received IV antibiotics to fight against a possible "silent" urinary tract infection, which can also cause contractions. In short, it wasn't my best weekend. The IV was very painful and the meds made my heart race, plus they keep the maternity floor very warm for the babies, so I had to open a window and let in some 30 degree air just to breathe! And since I had to get meds every 4-5 hours, I haven't had a long stretch of sleep in a while. Yesterday morning I received a pump to give me a continuous dose of the terbutaline, and I'll be on that until I give birth. It's a very small (painless) needle inserted in my outer thigh, attached to a teeny little pump (like an insulin pump) that I wear in a pouch attached to my waistband. I can't even feel it and have to remind myself that it's there! I'm also on complete bedrest, except I am allowed up to pee and for one quick shower a day.

The good part of the weekend was all the monitoring of the babies. I was hooked up to h/r monitors for the first 6 hours I was there and then every 8 hours after that for about 30-60 minutes at a time. Plus I was on a contractions monitor each night. The babies are doing great. Their h/r are nice and strong and regular and they have been active regularly. Plus they each weigh over 3 lbs, and I'm eating as much protein as I can so they'll hopefully gain more fast. The terbutaline seems to be doing its job with me, so we're very hopeful that we can first make it through the next 9 days till we hit 32 weeks, and then even beyond that. Our goal right now is just to get to May 1= 23 days away!

Sleepy now, going to try to nap..... back later!

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - I'm so glad that you are ok. What a weekend I'm sure! I'm crossing my fingers that you can make it to May 1st.

[Jess71903]

Jenean- Thinking about you! I'm sorry you had such a rough time, and DH out of town on top of it all! I hope all of this works and those babies can bake another 9 days at least. I am so glad to hear they are doing so well!

[Patience]

Jenean ((Hugs)) I'm so sorry you're having such a tough time right now. I hope the medical treatments and monitoring will do their job and you'll sail through the next 9 days. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll reach your goal of May 1. You'll be in my thoughts.

[Jess71903]

As a preface to the copied part, I have been really unhappy with my OB practice. Spending 5 minutes a visit was great for my yearly PAP, but for a 1st time mom, it wasn't cutting it. The final straw was when I found out my hospital had a 38% C-section rate. I had an awesome phone call with a midwife that teaches Bradley classes. She does home births, which I would be doing if DH was comfy with it. I asked for recs for natural birth friendly hospital and dr.s and she gave me some names.

Copied from journal:
I am SO happy right now! I just called and got in with another Dr.! I think I posted that the midwife I talked to gave me names of some natural-friendly dr.s and I got in with the one whose wife had twins using the Bradley Method! My 20 week ultrasound appoint is April 23- a week before I was supposed to get to go for the one at my old dr! I am so excited! Hopefully we will find out if Peanut is a boy or girl and can tell all of my family at my brother's graduation (May 5)...that is, if we can keep it a secret. Not sure I can.

[FSUSammy]

Jess - I'm so glad you found a new doc and will get in soon. I can't wait to hear what you are having!

Me - I went for my NT screen this morning. It was awesome!! As soon as we started the baby took one of its arms and stretched and placed it by it's face. Too cute. It stayed still the rest of the time and allowed the tech to do her thing. I'm measuring 11w1d but since my OB has me at 12w1d based on LMP and its close enough my EDD doesn't change. I go back in 4 weeks. They said based on the u/s everything is looking good.

Here's the pic. You can see the tiny hand by the nose/eyes area.

http://samanthazullo.com/BioPics/12w1d.jpg

[Jess71903]

How neat, Sammy! So glad things look good!

Copied from my journal:
My old dr. called me today and said that my quad screen was positive. Intellectually I know that it's probably fine and that this test has a very high false + rate. I just got really upset because it brought to my mind that there IS a possibility that I could have a baby that has a severe disability...even a fatal one. Now I have to go for a level 2 ultrasound, which I guess could be seen as a blessing. I've heard that they're neat and we'll probably get to be more sure about what the sex is. I am just fervently praying that the sex is the most notable thing we find out.

This was all compounded by the fact that we have been through a lot with getting pregnant and my health in the last year. We didn't go through near as much as many of you did, but it has just felt like it is always something. We did the lap, drugs and IUI and none of it worked. Found the lump back in my breast and had to have it out...then found out I was pregnant, which was awesome, but meant I couldn't have the surgery. They had the cyst drained in the office, which went fine and nothing was wrong, but now I can feel a lump there again. That probably means I'm in for surgery after this baby gets here, which I hope doesn't mess with breast feeding. UH! I am just so frustrated! I can't wait to get this test done so I can either quit worrying or start preparing for what's to come.

[FSUSammy]

Jess - Sorry the quad screen came back positive but you have a great attitude about it!!! When will your level 2 u/s be? Are you just going to wait and do it with your new doc?

[Jess71903]

Not sure yet when the level 2 will be. It requires a referal to a specialist, so I went ahead and let the old dr. make the appt. to get things moving, since they still have my records and stuff. I just went in today to sign the release to get them to send my records to the new dr. My old dr. said that the girl that does the referals will call me when she has me an appt, so I assume I will know tomorrow. She was really sweet about it. I told her I was changing practices and she said she would go ahead and do that for me so there wouldn't be a delay.

[suzfuzsunflower]

Jess - Sorry about the positive on the blood test. I never had that test done, but I did have a level II ultrasound due to some "markers" that showed up on the anatomy ultrasound that could have indicated a chromosomal disorder. The level II ultrasound is amazing! I hope that you are able to get an appointment with the specialist soon so that you won't have to worry for long.

Sammy - I'm glad that the NT ultrasound went well, and that you saw the baby move. :)

Jenean - Sorry to hear about all of the trouble that you've been having, but I'm glad that they were able to stop the contractions. You should be around 30 weeks, right? Close to another milestone... hang in there!

Me:
I am going to be 33 weeks pregnant tomorrow! I just can't believe it sometimes.

I didn't come in and update after the ultrasound on Wed., but baby's kidneys look perfectly fine. The fluid back-up is lower than 3 weeks ago :) , so we are released from the fetal maternal specialist and should expect little baby boy to be OK in that department. We just have to carefully watch for urinary infections, which could indicate that the condition did not go away/returned. Baby is also head down and I hope that he'll stay that way! I'm trying hard to enjoy the last week weeks, but I'm ready to meet my sweet baby. Not long now! Next appointment is a week and a half away (at 34 weeks, 3 days).

[honeygirl]

Jenean - Thinking happy "stay put babies" thoughts for you. What a stressful weekend you had! Take it easy.

Jess - Sorry to hear that you had a stressful test result, although like you said most likely it was a false positive! Keep praying and you'll have that beautiful level 2 ultrasound before you know it.

Sammy - Beautiful baby photo! If you stay 1wk later then we may end up in the same mommy thread afterall. ;)

Suz - Yay for good news! You're in the home stretch now, I can imagine that you are anxious to see your little one!

I'm doing fine at 9wks. I am really looking forward to my ob appt this thursday. It will be a relief to see the baby again and to know that everything is going well. For some reason I've had some nervous thoughts lately about the baby, wondering if everything is okay. I think it's b/c I actually had 2 days where I wasn't sick the entire day. I was happy to feel better but worried that it meant something. Sigh. I keep praying and trying to stay positive, but seeing that ultrasound will help. I'm sure you ladies can relate/understand!

[Jenean]

Everyone, thank you all SO MUCH for all the well wishes. I know you guys have a unique appreciation of how scary some of this pregnancy stuff can be after all we went through to get here and I appreciate everyone's support so much!

skb, if we get to try for a vaginal delivery, my midwife will hopefully be able to be the "primary" but I will also have an OB on hand in case we need a c/s.

Jess, that's great that you got in with the new doc! But I'm sorry to hear there are still struggles. I will be crossing my fingers for a good NT very soon. Your "intellectual" thoughts are right on - those tests aren't always the most accurate, but even so, I do understand the worrying. I'll be thinking of you!

Sammy, aw, what a cutie! I'm glad it went well and you got to see your little one wiggling.

suzfuz, 31 weeks today! I woke up this morning and told DH "Happy 31 weeks!" and he grinned. Congrats on good lookin' kidneys and a release from the specialist! Definitely enjoy these last few weeks; I'm trying to do the same. :)

honeygirl, absolutely, checking in on the baby helps so much. Two more days till your appointment! :D


Yesterday was good and bad on and off. I felt good for much of the day, but also had somewhere around 20 contractions and a couple of teary breakdowns. DH was great in getting me everything I needed, but I know he's having a hard time adjusting to doing EVERYTHING, plus still trying to work his full time job. We talked a bit about it last night and are going to talk more today about making a list of chores and errands that will need regular running and trying to get him on a schedule of sorts for them all so his day can stay streamlined and allow him to do everything he needs to do. It will help when my folks arrive tomorrow b/c they'll be able to help with a bunch of housework and errand running and my mom is planning to cook a ton of food to freeze for us for the next few weeks.

Today I woke up determined to stay positive and calm. I'm also sucking down water as much as I can. I've got a couple of work things to finish up, plus a bunch of other things lined up along the coffee table to work on. Like I said above, I am trying to enjoy every moment that I can of what's left of my pregnancy!!! :)

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - Sorry you had an up-and-down day yesterday. About chores. DH and I just bought a white board at officemax that has a huge calendar on it. We needed something to list out our daily chores otherwise they'll never get done. It holds us accountable. Well we put it up by the kitchen and we listed out all the items that needed to be done and how often and put them on the calendar. It's making a HUGE difference so far. You might want to consider something like that to help your DH out.

[Jenean]

Sammy, thanks, that's a good idea. We have a whiteboard/bulletin board in our kitchen that would probably work. :)

[Jess71903]

Jenean- Glad you're hanging in there. I am sorry you are having the down times. I can't imagine doing what you are doing! You are much more organized than I would be. Hang in there, girl! 7 days to go to meet goal #1!

Sammy- thank you!

Suz- YAY for countdown! I am so glad things look good!

I didn't find out anything today :mad:. I called the dr's office and tried to talk to the schedule girl, but they took my # but never called back. Makes me so glad I am switching drs. Don't they know that stress isn't good for the baby!!!!!!!!

[Thea]

I guess it is time for me to join!

Me-31, DH -38
TTC since 5/04
TTC issues: MF ( very low morphology), fibroids, possibly 1 blocked tube
Other Children: 9 yr old DS (adopted)
Protocol that worked :1st IVF cycle with ICSI
BFP: 3/21/07
Due: 11/28/07?

I have been waiting to see how things go, but have been following along here, and feel ready to join. We had our first U/S last Wednesday and the RE saw 1 sac, but due to a new fibroid growing (I had several large ones removed last Feb.) they couldn't get a good look or see a heart beat. I will be 7 weeks tommorow, and we have another U/S with the RE on Friday. Hope we can see more! Glad to join you ladies!

[honeygirl]

Welcome Thea! I'm a November mommy too.

Jess - Darn office, I hope that they give you some news tomorrow!!

Jenean - Good for you for determining to stay calm and positive! Have a great wednesday. :)

[FSUSammy]

Welcome Thea! I hope you get to see the heartbeat on Friday!

[papergirl]

I’m hoping to join this thread. With just a few days to go before hitting the two year ttc mark we finally got a BFP.

I am 8 weeks today. I haven’t really had too many symptoms and those that I have seem to come and go with the days. I’m not sure how common this is but it makes me uneasy in one moment and thankful in the next. I have also had constant spotting that the doctors keep telling is common. I’m not sure we will ever feel comfortable with this but I’m hopeful that things will get better.

me – old
dh – older
children - none
ttc – too long (23 months)
successful protocol – ivf
bfp - march 2007

[honeygirl]

Welcome papergirl, to this thread and CC!

Ladies, do we have a threadmistress? I was just noticing that the front page isn't updated (and hasn't been in a while).

[FSUSammy]

papergirl - Welcome!

[Jess71903]

Welcome, Thea and papergirl! Congratulations! I am sure you will find this to be an awesome group!

I FINALLY heard from the dr's office. I have an appt. with the perinatologist this coming Monday, April 16. YAY! I have talked myself out of being worried, and I am back to being excited to find out if we have a boy or a girl and just enjoying being pregnant!

[jodylovesscotty]

Jess~ I am glad you finally got an appointment. Will they be checking the gender as well at that appointment? If so, you and I will find out at the same time, my appointment is on Monday as well:)

honeygirl~ Good question, I don't know. Maybe you could PM a mod and ask.

papergirl~ Welcome:)

Thea~ Glad to see another IVFer over here! Welcome:)

FSUSammy~ Isn't it great to see your little one. I feel like I have been so lucky to get a u/s every two weeks. I love the reassurance.

Jenean~ Keep cooking those babies! I bet you will make every milestone, but I will continue to pray for you! I can't wait to find out what those little ones are:)

As for me: not much new to report. I am finally over the big morning sickness. I still have a good heave every now and then, but nothing compares to the first trimester. I am now 16 weeks which is so hard to believe! I have my level II ultrasound on Monday so they can check for blood clots in the placenta and make sure the baby is growing like it should. I don't really think anything will be wrong as we have had u/s every two weeks and so far everything looked good! We will also find out whether "birdie" is a boy or girl, so long as it decides to cooperate. I sure hope so because there are a lot of cute winter baby clothes on sale right now!

[Jenean]

Jess, aw, thanks. Honestly, I couldn't have imagined it until it happened. Even before when I was on partial bedrest, I couldn't imagine not getting up at all. But I guess we all do what we have to. I realize that in a lot of ways, I'm really lucky and am hanging on to that! Awesome attitude!!! I can't wait to hear what you're having!

Thea, woohoo, welcome! I followed along with you in IVF and I'm SO glad to see you here now. Congratulations!

honeygirl, thanks!

papergirl, welcome and congratulations! Stay thankful and enjoy every moment. I understand how worried you can get, but believe me, it's much better to stay positive and just relish finally being pregnant!

jody, thanks, everyone else is getting anxious to know, too! I'm so glad you're doing well. 16 weeks already? Wow! Enjoy that u/s on Monday!


I had a good appointment today! In brief:

*Baby A (Hardy) = head down, heart rate averaging in the 150s, weight = 3 lbs 2 oz (but w/o an accurate head measurement since it's so far down in my pelvis)

*Baby B (Laurel) = head up, heart rate averaging in the 140s, weight = 3 lbs 11 oz.

*Mom = BP great, pulse good, weight "perfect" (about 40 lbs gained now), cervix GREW to 1.9 cm, adjusting well to meds.

The day started off a little scarier when I had six contractions in one hour while on my monitor. My own fault - I hadn't eaten or had anything to drink since last night, so that was probably the cause, but just to be safe the nurse from the monitoring company had me give myself a booster dose of my meds and then they called into my doctor's office to let them know so they could have me monitored again when I went in for my appointment. We started with the u/s and saw that my cervix is a little longer, so that's a good sign that the complete bedrest and meds are working. We took a look at the babies and they were all wiggly. Laurel is just a real gymnast and flipped completely around again! Its head is all the way up on the high left side and it's feet are back down where it's head was last week. Sigh. Hopefully it'll keep on wiggling and make its way back down again! Otherwise, I won't even have to worry about deciding whether to try for a vaginal birth and will just be going right in for a c/s. We'll deal with that later! In the meantime, my midwife says that if I can keep this up then she sees no reason why I can't get at least another few weeks out of this pregnancy!!! :)

[Jess71903]

Jenean- Awesome report! I am so glad your cervix is doing it's job and it got thicker! So, do you think you will opt for vaginal for Hardy, then C-section for Laurel if (s)he stays head up, or C for both? I hope you don't have to decide that and little Laurel decides to flip around again!

jody- Yes, we will be finding out Monday. cool! I am glad to have a gender info buddy! They even canceled my "20 week" big u/s the next week since I am doing the level 2, which I am glad of.

copied from journal:
So DH and I came up with a fun plan for telling my parents what this baby is. My little brother is 15. He's an awesome kid and we are really close. I called him today and asked him if he could keep a secret. Of course, he said yes. I told him to call me Monday when the parents get home and I will tell him what the baby is and let him spill the news at his discretion...as in "I'll tell you if you give me $100" or whatever. It'll be fun! I think we may send everyone else a pic of the u/s saying "love, Gracie" or "love, Gage".

[FSUSammy]

Jody and Jess - Good luck at your u/s on Monday!!!!

Jenean - Glad you are doing better. Keep up the good work! I'm glad the babies are doing well too.

Me - Nothing new to report really. DH will be donating blood tomorrow morning in order to find out what his blood type is. That was the cheapest solution for him to find out so we are going with that. I've noticed that my m/s isn't completely gone. Now it has turned into evening sickness where I have absolutely no desire to eat anything for dinner. It makes it VERY difficult to cook dinner for DH, who still WANTS to eat.

[skb]

Welcome Thea and Papergirl!

jess That sounds like fun. I hope your brother can make some money!

jenean Glad to hear you are hanging in there. Now just a few more weeks!

jody It sounds as though evrything continues to go well. It will be nice to find out if birdie is a boy or a girl. Let the shopping begin!

question Can anybody tell me about the level II ultrasound? I'm assuming this isn't the fetal anomaly/anatomy scan?

[Thea]

Just a quick post because I am back to work this afternoon, but we saw a heart beat!!! 130 bpm. :) Feel much better now! More later...

[Patience]

Thea Glad to see you here. :) Hooray on seeing the heartbeat!

Papergirl Welcome! I think we can all relate to feeling happy and worried at the same time because I can't see how anyone who's gone through IF won't be worried at some point.

FSUSammy LOL at your comment about your DH and eating. That must be so hard to have to cook when all the cooking smells make you sick. Perhaps you can compromise by doing more salads and have your DH BBQ outside?

Jess71903 Bet you can't wait for Monday! Any guess on the sex?

Jenean I'm so happy about your great progress. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that you can hold on for a few more weeks.

jodylovesscotty That's wonderful you're not sick anymore. It must be so exciting to find out the sex. I hope everything is normal at your Level II u/s.

Me - I thought I posted in here after my last appt., but I guess I didn't. I had my 2nd appt. and u/s last week. I got to see the baby move which was very cool! Too bad my DH couldn't make it to the appt. Everything is normal. The OB did the NT scan and everything looks good. She also checked on my cervix and said that it appears normal (she mentioned that some women who underwent IF treatments have shorter cervixes). Finally she checked on my cysts and they've decreased in number and size. I was so relieved because now I won't have to have surgery. Yay!

[Jess71903]

Patience- so glad everything looks good, and especially that the cysts have decreased! It is so cool to see the baby move! I don't know what I expected at that appt, but I was surprised to see mine move!

Guesses- I'm going to say girl, just because that's what everyone else is saying. I really have no idea or no preference. Girl stuff is more fun, and we won't have to visit the circumcision issue if it's a girl (that's a point of contention in my house), but my BFF has a boy and it would be fun for them to get to grow up best buds too. Either way, I will be thrilled...just DYING to know!

[Asha]

welcome thea and papergirl!!! congrats on your pregnancies. we were also successful with an ivf protocol.

jenean - you have every right to get weepy and down. it must be so hard to be inactive and have to take all that medication. plus, you are so worried about the little ones. sending my prayers and thoughts up that you make it to your goal of may 1st. that's great that your parents are coming to help you out.

jess - i think its sucky that they give you positive on just the blood test alone. with me, they did a combined blood test and ultrasound at the same time. i think that way there is less of a chance of a false positive. i hope you get good news today.

sammy - ah, your lil one is precious. seeing them move around is the best.

honegirl - i think its normal to worry when you don't feel many pregnancy symptoms, but i also think its normal to have days where you feel like your old self too. i still worry when i don't feel pregnant.

******
not too much pregnancy related stuff for me to report. i have been so busy moving and all that i need to get back on track preparing for our daughter.
we have been discussing names, and we finally have one name that is a contender. i still need to finish up my list for the baby shower in june. i am not doing a traditional registry at one of the baby stores bc i would like to give people the option of shopping around for the best deal and such, so i think i am going to try to get my brother to set up a website for my registry so there's a way that people can record what they bought so i don't get too many duplicates.

i am feeling more normal these days. i am still feeling pretty tired and sick by the end of the day, and my stomach is always feeling so stretched out in the evening too. i am starting to feel some movements and few of them make me jump a bit bc they are strong. the ob said i won't feel them too consistently till a bit later. she said my placenta implanted in the front, so i will feel things later.

[papergirl]

Jess and Jody – Best wishes on your appointments today.

Jenean – Thinking of you.


Thank you for the kind welcome ladies. :)

This weekend I had minimal spotting, probably the lest amount since it started weeks ago. This has me in high spirits. I’m seeing a potential OB tomorrow and I can’t wait. I’m still seeing my RE but they have been dispensing details very vaguely so I’m eager to see someone who’ll be a bit more clear and upfront.

I know it’s early but I already find myself dreaming of nursery furniture. I haven’t began looking at things too intently but my mind does race with ideas.

Is anyone else taking Metformin? How long do you expect to take it?

Anyone else have very on and off symptoms early on? I find that one day I’ll have major food aversions but the next day it’s gone. Then another day I might have a headache that sticks around for two days and then that’s gone. The only thing that seems to be sticking around is my over the top sense of smell.

[jodylovesscotty]

No time for SO's, but promise to do them later. I just wanted to come in and update:

We had our big ultrasound. Everything looked great!!!! And we found out we are having a Girl.

[FSUSammy]

Ahhh Jody congrats!!!! I've been waiting for you and Jess to post.

[Patience]

jodylovesscotty Congrats on your little girl!! I can tell you're going to have a blast buying clothes for your daughter. Girl clothes are so much cuter than boy clothes.

[Jess71903]

copied from journal:
Well, it looks like our positive was not a false one. The baby does have Spina Bifida. We have been in shock and just trying to figure out how to assimilate this news. We have cried a lot today, but ultimatly have come to the conclusion that this will all be ok and our baby will be deeply loved. We have talked about our unique skills that make us more capable, at least in theory, to deal with this kind of thing (SH is an RN, I am a pediatric occupational therapist). Right now, we don't know much about severity or prognosis. We do know that the lesion is very low on the spinal cord, which is good-the lower the better. We could be dealing with anything from urinary and bladder control issues to total lower extremity paralysis. We may have to have a shunt placed, which isn't that big a deal, just to drain fluid off the brain. At any rate, we will be at Children's Hospital and cared for by some awesome doctors and nurses.

So the good news is that we are definitely having a baby BOY! Gage Anthony will be his name and we are very happy about that! We hate that this awesome news has been overshadowed by the above, but it's much more fun to focus on than the diagnosis.
Congrats, jody on your girl!

Jenean-thinking of you. Any update?

[Jenean]

Jess, you are amazing. I am so sorry that you are being faced with this, but I am in awe of your incredible outlook and determination to love your son and give him a wonderful life. He is lucky to have you both! I'm thinking of you and hoping that you and your family are doing okay tonight. Many hugs.....

[FSUSammy]

Jess - I agree with Jenean you ARE truely amazing! I'm sorry that today you both got to find out you are having a little boy but also had to find out that he will have spina bifida. You both will be fantastic parents!!!

[Jenean]

Jess, no, we will do one delivery or the other, but not both (unless something goes wrong and we have to switch to a c/s after successfully delivering one vaginally). If both babies are head down when we get to the hospital, we'll try for a vaginal delivery, but if either or both are in breech position, the docs will put us right in for a c/s. It's kind of a relief, actually, to have that decision taken out of my hands.

Sammy, that's a good way to find out blood type! I never would have thought of it. It's not anywhere in his medical records?

skb, I believe a Level II u/s is just a higher quality one. I had mine done at a peri's office.

Thea, that's great! Congratulations!

Patience, glad to hear that all is well. That's interesting about IF treatments causing shorter cervixes. I hadn't heard that, but I wonder if that's why mine started shrinking so quickly. It was really long back in January when I first started having contractions, but shrunk so fast after that. The docs have always chalked it up to my contractions and just the amount of pressure that two babies are putting on it. I find it somewhat curious how so many docs make a big difference b/w a pregnancy resulting from treatment v. one that did not.

Asha, my parents were a big help! I'm looking forward to having them around when the babies are born. They will be invaluable! I'm glad to hear that all is going well with you. Yay for movement!

jody, congrats on your baby girl! That is wonderful news and I'm so excited for you!


All is well over here. My parents were a huge help this weekend and got so much done around the house. The nursery was emptied and painted (blue stars on the already-yellow walls) and it looks like a real nursery now! Plus other misc. things were done and a lot of errands run. I was emotional again, reacting poorly to a few things that my mom did (silly things, just had a hard time with someone else doing them for me), but she was understanding about it.

I'm feeling okay physically. Definitely reaching the point in my pregnancy where I'm about ready to pop these kids out. The bedrest and meds are draining, but I'm dealing and I hope that they give me a few more weeks with the babies inside. The twins are doing fine; we had our fetal echo today and it went great. Both hearts are fully formed and beating strongly. We saw the chambers and the valves opening and closing and the blood moving in and out of the veins and arteries. Our next u/s with my regular OB is on Thursday for a cervix check.

[Patience]

Jess71903 I'm sorry about the sad news, but I want to commend you for your positive outlook on this. I hope the severity of the problems will be very limited since the lesion is lower on the spinal cord. Congrats on your little boy!

[suzfuzsunflower]

Jody - Congratulations on your little GIRL! Have you chosen a name yet?

Jess - Congratulations on your sweet baby BOY!. I love his name! You have an amazing outlook on the situation with your little boy. While I know that wasn't what you wanted to hear at the ultrasound today, all will be ok, just like you said. Please keep us updated on everything. :)

[Jess71903]

Thank you so much ladies. It really means a lot. We are doing ok. So far, all of our family has been very positive, and that helps. I don't think my dad or stepmom loved the name, but they will get over it.

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - I'm sure his blood type is somewhere on his medical records but not with any of his recent docs. Glad you and the twins are doing well.

Jess - Who cares if your Dad and step mom don't like the name. LOL It's YOUR child not theirs LOL They will definitely get over it.

[TazLuv]

Hi ladies, I'm going to cautiously join you if that is okay. I got my BFP Saturday and my beta drawn Sunday was 413! :eek: I'm freaking out about that just a little but trying not to get to worked up about it.

Cheri - 30
DH - 30
No children
TTC since June '05
PCOS
150mg Clomid 3-7 & 75ui Gonal-f 3&4
BFP date 4/13/07, EDD 12//21/07
gender still unknown

I've had some spotting since yesterday morning but its all brown and I'm told that is normal since I'm on progesterone suppositories. I have my first u/s 5/7 when I'll be 7w4d.

[Thea]

Thanks for the warm welcome! I can't possibly keep up in here right now....I am so tired right now. I think it might help if the sun ever came out around here!

Jody Congrats on your baby GIRL! What exciting news for you!

Jess Congrats on your baby BOY! I love the name! I will agree with everyone else and echo how amazing you are. I will keep thinking positive thoughts and sending them your way and hope for the best outcomes for your beautiful little boy.

Welcome TazLuv!!! Congrats!!!!!!

[FSUSammy]

Cautious Congrats TazLuv!!! Great Beta by the way. Nice to see another SAI member over here!

[papergirl]

I posted yesterday but it seems my post isn’t showing up. Humph! I will try this again as I had a question. Is anyone else taking/took Metformin? How long into the pregnancy will you take it and what were your doctors thoughts on this?

Jody – How fun on having a little girl. Congratulations!!

Jess – Wow, a boy! What a great name. I am saddened to hear your news but it sounds like you have a great spirit. You are in my thoughts.

Jenean – Aren’t moms great. I love how they always understand breakdowns and never take it personally.

Taz – Welcome and congratulations on the BFP. Your beta is awesome... possibly twins?

[angelgirl8]

jess...thinking of you.

papergirl...i was on metformin until about 7 1/2 weeks. also, my pregnancy symptoms came and went for awhile. totally freaked me out!

[FSUSammy]

papergirl - I'm still taking metformin. My RE told me if I wanted to I could take it through the 1st tri. He said it was up to me and I knew that it would help prevent a m/c. However my OB told me I could continue to take it throughout the entire pregnancy. Not sure what to do about it.

[Jess71903]

Huge congrats, Taz! SO good to see you over here!

Thank you for all the kind words. I'm not doing so hot today, but I know as things settle, I will be able to get back to looking forward to meeting my little guy. I think a big part of it right now is that I can't do anything. I can't hold him or see his face, but I guess taking care of his mamma is the next best thing. Thanks for being there, girls. Yall are the best!

[Patience]

TazLuv Welcome! So happy to see another familiar face here. :) BTW, my beta at 15DPO was 423 and I'm having a singleton, so maybe you just have a high levels of hcg in your system like me.

Jess71903 ((Hugs)) I know you're going through a lot, so please take care of yourself.

[MSH]

high BETAs add me to the high BETA club. When I was PG when DS my Betas at 17DPO were 4300+!

[TazLuv]

Thanks for all the warm welcomes ladies.

Patience & MSH - thanks for the reassurances on the betas, that really does help!

Jess71903 - you and your family are in my thoughts. Someone told me once its perfectly acceptable (and you should) grieve that perfect child that you won't have, only then can you fully appreciate the one you are blessed with.

[Jenean]

Jess, I'm glad you're getting good support from your families. Ignore any opinions on the names - your parents had their chance to name their own kids and this one is yours to name. And definitely take good care of yourself. Everything you're doing for yourself is helping your little boy!

Sammy, gotcha. I'm glad the donation will allow you to get that info!

Taz, it is SO GREAT to see you here! Welcome and congrats. Fingers crossed for your first u/s and lots of sticky vibes comin' at ya!

Thea, get as much rest now as you can! That tired feeling is awful.

paper, oh yeah, I am lucky to have one of those awesome types of moms.

[lawphil]

Taz - I was with you on the SAI thread. I am so happy to see you over here. Congrats!!

Jess - Congrats on your baby boy. I hope you and your DH are holding up. YOu are definitely in my thoughts and prayers.

Ok. Back to lurking!!

[Loud_curly]

I just wanted to say hello and congrats again to many familiar faces from the SAI thread. It is so great to join you all "on the other side" of the TTC boards. I don't know if I "technically" meet the requirements for being IF, since I had not yet started treatment, so I'll just be a lurker.

Taz - Great betas!!! My Ob doesn't have betas done, so I have no idea what mine are.

Jess - Congrats on your little boy. You and your DH have a wonderful attitude, and your child is certainly blessed to have you two as parents. I'll be thinking of you.

Jody - Congrats on your little girl!

[FSUSammy]

Welcome over here Loud_Curly!!!! I'm so happy for you what a great xmas present to have too!!! And you CAN be here so no lurking for you!!!!

[Asha]

jess - i already posted in your journal, but i just wanted to say that i'm still thinking of you.

tazluv - congrats!!! its great to see you over here.

jody - congrats on the little girl!!!

[papergirl]

Welcome Loud curly!

On Tuesday I got in to see a potential OB. The guy seemed nice enough but I wasn’t over the top about him. I’m wondering how much this really matters. I want someone who deals with high risk and he falls into that category. I brought his name up to my REs office and they had great things to say about him.

My biggest issue was how much time things took. For example, I had to go to one section of the floor for an u/s and then get dressed and go to another area to wait (again!) before getting to see the OB. Is this normal? I’m use to everything being done in the same room.

The guy himself was also on the slow side when speaking and such and I was ready to be done. And then I have to say he seemed a bit waspy and neither my husband or myself are white. It was a bit comical but I was also thinking “huh.”

Ultimately I’m not sure if a slow office and a possibly waspy doctor are enough to make me hunt down another practice. Anyone else think there OB is just ok but still planning to stick with them?

The only other significant thing I have to report is that our due date changed. They are pushing me back two days to November 23, which is the day after Thanksgiving this year. I was a bit concerned since our conception date is pretty clear since we did IVF but they said this is normal and is probably from late implantation.

[FSUSammy]

Hey ladies. Well tomorrow is a big day I'll be using my last progesterone suppository. I'll admit I'm SCARED to stop thinking that the prometrium will do the same to me that it should do when you are trying to induce AF. But I know that by now the placenta has taken over so I shouldn't worry. I guess just the fear of knowing I have PCOS is making me think that my body still doesn't know what to do. Ugh! Need to get over it!!!!!

[Jenean]

Loudcurly, congrats and welcome!!!! What a great holiday season you'll have this year. :)

papergirl, at my OB's office, I do see the u/s tech and OB separately. They're actually two separate appointments. I usually get my u/s first and then only have to wait a few minutes before getting called back again for the OB. Interesting that they changed your EDD, but I guess that doesn't matter too much since Baby will come when it wants to! ;)

Sammy, I was very nervous at first when I stopped the supplements. You'll be fine!


Today we had just an u/s appointment, but I am THRILLED to report that both babies are head down and now over 4 lbs!!!! :D :D Just barely, at 4 lbs 1 oz apiece, but that's good enough for me! I really hope we can last long enough to get them over 5 lbs. My cervix is down just a bit to 1.7 cm, but it's still a teeny bit longer than it was 2 weeks ago when I was admitted to the hospital, so as long as we can keep it steady now I should be fine. Our doc friend said he's not as worried about it shortening so much as he's worried about the babies putting so much pressure on me that my water breaks. He also said not to worry about losing weight; he said it's common in many women at this point in pregnancy and that as long as I'm taking in the right nutrients and the babies are gaining, I'm doing just fine. I go back tomorrow for my regular PIAC, BP, h/b check appointment, and then have my next appointment (u/s and OB) next Thursday, 4/26. I can't believe I'm down to my last few appointments now! :eek:

Oh, and one other awesome thing - the doc said on the days I have to switch my pump site, I can take out the old one, shower, and then put in the new one. I have to wear the pump in a plastic "purse" in the shower and it really gets in the way. It was so great to shower today without being attached to anything! :)

[Jess71903]

Loud_Curly- WELCOME! You are forbidden to be just a lurker! I really think those of us that made it to SAI just have a different experience than those that come and go from threads like SWH and Charting. This is a more comfortable place for me because of that and because it's not quite as busy as my mommy thread. I feel like I know these ladies better from going through TTC with them. Anyway, just stick around. I would call myself "borderline" too, as it didn't take tx. to get my preggo either, and I hadn't done a whole lot before that.

Sammy- YAY for no more supplements! That was a happy day for me too! I never had even a hint of spotting. You'll be fine!

Jenean- awesome news, all around! So glad both babies are head-down, that your cervix seems to be cooperating, and for bagless showers! YAY!

[Thea]

loudcurly Welcome and congrats!

papergirl Had my first OB appt yesterday and I am not wild about them, but I think I am going to stay put. I knew I would have a hard time REALLY liking an OB/GYN after LOVING my RE's office and all of their support. There are only 2 OB practices in the area where I can use the local hospital and after driving 2 hours each way for the RE, I am really liking the idea of office visits being so close by.

FSUsammy Yea for finishing the suppositories! I am paranoid about a lot of things, but really looking forward to being done with 2 30 minute periods a day of lying down and the mess! Maybe I will get more paranoid about that too when I get closer to it!

Jeanann That is AWESOME news! I am so glad everything is looking great. Hoping those babies make it to 5 lbs too!

Me, like I said, first OB appt yesterday. He says my due date is 11/27 or so, but he hasn't seen an U/S yet. It was funny, because I have to have a C-section due to my abdominal myomectomy last year, DH was asking him when they might plan on scheduling that. The OB says, oh, we only do planned sections on Tues and Thurs, and since the Thurs before your due date is Thanksgiving, it will probably be 11/20! I know that may change, but I really had no clue that I might have a tentative date this soon! I guess it just feels weird putting a date on it like that. I am feeling better today, but this has been a weird week of nausea throughout the work day and just plain being tired when I get home. Off today and this weekend, so I hope to get some rest!

[papergirl]

Jenean – Thanks for chiming in on the OB/US appointments. It’s good to know this is standard practice for some places. And yes, I was definitely concerned about the changing EDD. My REs office was actually the first to bring it up. They told me I was measuring behind but made it into no big deal saying late implantation. My OBs office confirmed this. It seems I have been consistently behind by two days so I at least feel good that it’s steady.

Based on your update I really think you’ll be able to take the babies to 5lbs. I really hope you are feeling proud of yourself. :D

Thea – I seriously feel better after reading your post about not loving your OB either. I do think it will be fine in the long run so for now we’ll stay put as well.

[skb]

loudcurly We won't hold it against you since you're "technically" normal. :p Drop by whenever you wish. Congratulations on your pregnancy!

I think I already congratulated tazluv. But congratulations again and welcome aboard!

[Asha]

loudcurly - sorry i missed your post. congrats!! we won't chase you away with sticks bc you didn't have to receive treatment. now, if there were one of those lucky fertiles who conceived after a month or two of trying and tried to join the thread, that may be a different story.

****
i have a unsual question.

if i were to have a c-section, would it also be possible for the doctors to take a look at my insides to check on the health of my tubes and digestive organs? (btw, i am not planning on a csection just if it became medically necessary) i really want to know the extent of the possible scarring caused by the ruptured appendix and abdominal infection. i have never had a laproscopy for a definitive diagnosis, but i figure if they are inside me anyway they might be able to see that anyways. since we would have pursued ivf regardless of the diagnosis of scarring, i never had the laproscopy done, but i still kinda wonder if that was what was wrong with me. also, i have had pretty bad digestive issues for a few years, and wonder if that could be due to the scarring as well. some other people with ruptured appendix like me found out all the organs are stuck together from the scarring, and they also had digestive issues like me.

[Jess71903]

Asha- seems to me that they could. It seems like if everything was all stuck together it would be obvious anyway. I would definitely ask if that happens.

[TazLuv]

Hi ladies - I've been gone for the last 4 days so I have some catching up to do but something FSUSammy really hit home. I guess just the fear of knowing I have PCOS is making me think that my body still doesn't know what to do. Ugh! Need to get over it!!!!!

I feel exactly the same way - I keep looking for signs that I'm still pg and that this is going the way its "supposed to". My first u/s isn't until two weeks from today and I'm just petrified that I'm going to get there and there will be no heartbeat. The m/s is coming I think. I have a head cold which I got from DH but now I'm queasy and he didn't have queasy when he had this last week.

We went to our first function where we were hiding our pregnancy this weekend and no one said a word about me not drinking, I was SHOCKED! But that is good, now one more family function to get through before the 12/13 week and announcement mark.

Hope all is well with everyone - I will try to come back later today and catch up.

[Asha]

copied from my journal.

well, things are not going so well for us. i was being monitored in the hospital for about 10 hours last night. i started having cramping yesterday afternoon but didn't call the ob until later in the afternoon bc i thought i was just having digestive cramps. when they lasted longer than usual, i called and i was surprised they told me to go straight to labor and delivery. dh couldn't get off work, so i took a subway (ok'ed by dr.) to the hospital. my ob wasn't there but the hospital staff took care of me and seemed to look at me a little skeptically for coming in for cramping at only 24 weeks, but perhaps i was just feeling a little sensitive and reading too much into their reactions. i did tell them my dr. sent me. so, i was hooked up to monitors, and at first it appeared like everything was normal, but later on they started detecting regular contractions. they checked my cervix several times, and thankfully it never dilated. they ended up giving me an i.v. for fluids. that helped decrease the contractions somewhat but not completely. eventually, they released me and j took me home. i continued having pretty bad contractions/cramps throughout the night. they have lessened some as the a.m. has progressed. i have an appt with my ob today, so hopefully we can get to the bottom of this. i was given a test with 90% accuracy for predicting preterm labor, and that was negative. so, hopefully this was just a random event. i wont' know too much until i meet with my ob today. keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

[FSUSammy]

asha - wow what a scary day you had yesterday! Please take care of yourself and let us know what your doc says. I'll be crossing my fingers and toes that everything will be ok.

[TazLuv]

Asha - very scary, you are in my thoughts and prayers.

I don't know how you ladies do it. I'm not cut out for this. The spotting I had right after I got my BFP finally stopped last Thursday but then this morning I had a red streak on my first wipe of the morning, now the brown spotting is back. My breasts are still tender but don't feel as "heavy" as they have the last few days. I'm over analyzing EVERYTHING and while I keep trying to tell myself if a miscarriage happens there is nothing I could have done about it I'm driving myself NUTS!

Please tell me you've been there and are still plugging along this long 40 week road. I'm just struggling with this.

[Loud_curly]

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome - it's nice to see so many "familiar" faces here!

Asha - How scary!! I hope it's just a random event and the rest of your pregnancy proceeds without issue.

Tazluv - I hope all the spotting is normal and goes away (for the sake of your sanity!!).

[Jenean]

Jess, thanks!

Thea, that is so funny to have a predicted ADD for your baby already! I wonder if the little one will cooperate. ;)

papergirl, thanks, sometimes I feel like I should have done more (less!) earlier, but overall I guess I've done what I can and now I'm working hard (hardly working!) to keep them in as long as possible.

Asha, I hope you can get "checked out" during your c/s. I know that some women have their tubes tied or even have hysterectomies following a c/s, so I don't see why they can't just take a look around, and it'd be so good for you to have answers! I'm so sorry you had that scare last night. I'm glad you went in to get checked out and I hope that things are settling down. That test you had for preterm labor - was that a swab that the doc took? I had that done twice and both times it came back negative. Contractions are normal, especially once you start getting this far along, and hopefully they can keep them under control. I went months with semi-regular contractions that were pretty much controlled through fluids and modified bedrest, so it can be done!

Taz, you just get through it. I had three episodes of bleeding during my first trimester and each time I freaked out and was so upset. Eventually they stopped, but I wasn't always able to breathe easy. Just focus on the good and keep thinking positively. Worrying doesn't do much good in the end and you should be enjoying every moment of being pregnant!!! Good luck, and many hugs.....

[Patience]

TazLuv I don't think I welcomed you, so WELCOME! It's very good to see you here. I hope all your worries will be for nothing and you'll go on to enjoy the rest of your pregnancy. Please take care. Hugs.

Asha How scary! Please take care of yourself and I'll definitely keep you in my thoughts.

Loud_curly I'm not sure if I welcomed you over here either, so WELCOME! It's always great to see familiar faces join this thread.

Jenean It makes me happy to see you post with your latest week of pregnancy because that means your twins have made it another week. Yay! The longer they stay inside, the better, right? So, I'm rooting for at least 4 more weeks for you! :)

[honeygirl]

Asha - What a scare! I hope that the cramping goes away completely and that this was just a fluke. You and your precious baby are in my prayers!

TazLuv - I am so sorry to hear of your anxiety over spotting. I can imagine that is a very scary experience right now. I didn't have much spotting early on (except after a ob exam), but I have a friend who had 2 seperate bleeding episodes. Each time they did u/s and each time she and baby were fine. She's at 12 or 13wks now. Have you had a u/s yet?

Jenean - So glad to hear good news from you about the babies! I hope that the babies are closer to 5lbs by your appt this week (is that realistic, 1 lb in 1 week?)!

I'm almost to 12wks and doing just fine. I'm starting to feel less sick, but still nauseous a chunk of the day. I'm hoping that it goes away by the 2nd tri. I saw our little baby at 10wks and got a great photo. :) So, after that appt we sent out the announcement e-mail to all our friends and family. We've been getting lots of congrats, especially from those that knew our struggles. I like to call our honeybaby my "miracle baby". I know that all babies are miracles, but I think when the odds are stacked against us it is a little different, KWIM?

My work decorated my office yesterday with balloons, streamers and other decorations to "celebrate" my pregnancy. They also gave me a gift (some bodysuits). I feel so loved. I had to tell them all (last week) b/c I'm showing already. Many of them (and some clients) had guessed and weren't surprised. My dr says I'm showing early b/c I started out so skinny. I feel kind of silly wearing some maternity (pants) already, but most of my regular clothes (like 90%) are too tight/uncomfortable. Darn those skinny jeans and low-rise clothes I used to wear. ;)

[TazLuv]

honeygirl, Patience, Jenean, Loud_Curly - thanks for the reassurance. I know I'm over-reacting. The spotting has stopped again so that is good. honeygirl, I have not had an u/s yet - it is scheduled for two weeks from yesterday.

honeygirl - glad to hear the m/s is clearing up, that must be a welcome change. I'm afraid I'll show early too since I'm a petite person to begin with, hopefully we can hold out until 12 weeks before we have to tell people.

[papergirl]

Asha – I am thinking of you.

Taz – My spotting finally stopped but it lasted weeks. Always red or pink. Very scary and even know I find myself in fear when I go to the restroom. I kept my feet up a lot. Basically went home from work and laid on the couch till bed. I can’t say it worked but it made me feel like I was doing something to help the situation. Hugs!

[Thea]

asha How scary! Thinking of you!

honeygirl Yea for a good picture! That was really great of your office! My boss brought in sparkling cider and did a toast when I told and it made me feel so loved!

TazLuv I don't hav any advice. Luckily I haven't haany spotting, except for the first week of my BFP, but I have been known to run to the bathroom and check! The ultrasound when we saw the heart beat really helped a lot!

Question: Did any of you who were spared M/S (for the most part I feel REALLY lucky in this regards) get car sick even though you never used to? I find if I am not driving I am fairly miserable in the car these days, even with a Sprite and some crackers.

[Suzlywoozly]

Jenean- Too funny about the pump and shower bag... I have the same thing but mine is for the hyperemesis. It is such a PITA trying to take a shower with that thing attached to my leg!! It is even worse when I try to shave my legs.

[Asha]

taz - i'm sure you're fine since i've heard lots of women talk about spotting during their pregnancy and going on to deliver healthy babies.


honeygirl - that's great you were finally able to share the good news with everyone. how nice that your work celebrated your pregnancy!!

thea - never got m/s, but i do want to forewarn you that you can still get m/s later in the game. i didn't get m/s until about 10 weeks and it lasted until about 18 weeks. i do hope that isn't the case for you.

*****
thank you everyone for your supportive thoughts and prayers. the ob visit was reassuring. she seems to think that it is not preterm labor, but that i was just dehydrated. i am now supposed to relax for the next few days, stay inside, and drink 15-16 glasses of liquid/day to see if the contractions go away. she actually said some women just have contractions throughout a lot of their pregnancy and go to full term. i really hope that i don't continue having them bc they are quite painful and worrisome. i was actually able to sleep most of the night when i wasn't getting up to use the bathroom, and i only felt a few contractions. luckily, this a.m. i have only felt one very mild contraction. hopefully, i continue getting better. thankfully, our lil girl still shows that she is doing well despite all this action going on.

jenean - yes, it was the swab test. also, they measured my cervix yesterday and that was normal too, so they are confident that it is not preterm labor.

other frustrating news is that my ob office is dropping my insurance. i am not happy about this at all. i was happy with them and i felt like their office was run very well. i really wish they would just continue with their ob cases until delivery and then drop us. i think its a bit unfair to just drop us in the middle of a pregnancy. they did refer me to two different dr's who do take my insurance, who are taking transfer patients from them, and are affiliated with the same hospital. one of those dr's just left that practice, so i have seen her before, and i like her, so hopefully she is not too booked already. it does make me nervous to go to a smaller practice bc i am used to their larger practice.

[papergirl]

I'm having these sharp pains in my lower right abdomen. I will have several within a few minutes and then I'll be fine. Five minutes later they are back. Anyone else experience this? Or have an answer for what's going on?

[Asha]

papergrl - i don't remember which type of treatment you used to get preggo. if you used any treatment which involved ovulation stimulating drugs to make you produce more than one egg, then it is possible that your ovaries are swollen. i had a similar pain and it was bc one of my ovaries got really swollen. it couldn't hurt to ask your dr. about it.

[Patience]

Thea I haven't experience m/s either, but I don't get carsick like you described. Hopefully it's temporary.

honeygirl You certainly have a miracle baby. :) Your co-workers are so sweet!

papergirl Like asha said, you could have some ovarian cysts either from the fertility medication you took or it could just be a corpus luteum cyst. I had three sizable cysts when I first got pregnant (two on the right and one on the left). I had pain in my right ovary area whenever I walked too quickly. Have you had an u/s yet? The u/s will tell you whether you have a cyst or not.

Asha Happy to hear that the contractions have eased. I'm sorry to hear about the insurance/OB office situation. Hopefully you will be able to find another OB you like.

[Thea]

papergirl I still get sharp pains on both sides if I move too quickly, but I am not sure that is what you are describing.

asha Happy to hear that your contractions have eased....hope they stay away! Yesterday I was nauseous all day.....I think that is what I get for posting that I have been lucky.

I had spotting this am and properly freaked out. Called the doctors, and after a bunch of questions the nurse told me I should take it easy and call back several times today and update them. I still have (TMI) brown when I wipe. Trying to stay calm. I know the progesterone suppositories cause extra blood flow in the area, and the nurse said it could be the placenta attaching. I guess I will just see how it goes today.

[TazLuv]

papergirl - thanks for the experience, luckily the spotting has stopped (again!) and the symptoms are back in full force.
Asha - glad to hear you got good news though I'm sorry to hear about your OB, its so hard to find a good doctor I hope the one you want isn't full.
Thea - thinking of you and hoping the spotting is normal

As for me - the symptoms are back in full force, I'm a side sleeper and I woke up several times last night b/c of pain in my breasts. The m/s is picking up as well. So far I feel fine when I first get up but by 8:30 or 9 I start getting queasy. I'd rather be sick first thing in the morning, this is going to be harder to hide. I also found myself getting queasy about 2 hours after dinner last night so I think I'm just going to have to snack more, maybe I'm just hungry.

[Jenean]

Patience, aw, thanks! Yes, longer is absolutely better! If they were born this week, then they'd be okay but would need a couple of weeks of NICU time. I'd like to keep them in long enough to get over 5 lbs and only need a few days in the NICU, if any at all. Fingers crossed that my body can hold out!

honeygirl, thanks! The average is about a half a pound a week at this point, so hopefully by next week we'll see 5 lbs! That's so sweet that your work did that for you. It's great that everyone is so excited for you! I think you definitely have a miracle baby growing there!

TazLuv, it's never over-reacting! I think we all will agree that it's totally normal. It sucks, but it's normal. Eating a TON of small snacks helped keep my nausea at bay. I ate probably about every hour so that there would always be something in my belly. Even if it was just a handful of nuts or a couple of crackers, it seemed to help a lot.

Thea, yes, I did feel sicker in a car. I usually can read or do whatever in a car while a passenger, but I couldn't anymore after we got pregnant. I hope the spotting stops soon!

Suzly, I didn't know you had one, too! Yes, it definitely is hard to shave! I think I'm going to save my leg shaving for the days when I switch my pump site and can shower w/o being attached to it!

Asha, I am SO glad to hear that you're doing better now. Definitely take it easy for a while, and as much as you can going forward. That really sucks that you have to switch doctors. Insurance companies are awful!

papergirl, could just be growing pains. It's hard not to worry about every twinge, but your body is going through so many changes now and things start stretching fast!


We had a pretty good appointment today. I don't know how, but somehow Laurel managed to flip over yet again and now its head is up under my left boob. Even the tech was amazed. There's not really a lot of room left in there! Sigh. So Laurel is transverse across the top of my uterus and Hardy is still in the same head-down position on the left. Its head is causing all the pressure I feel, pushing right down on my cervix. I can't remember which weighed which, but the weights were 4 lbs 5 oz and 4 lbs 7 oz, so just under 4 1/2 lbs, and hopefully on track to be close to, if not over, 5 lbs by next week. I really really hope we can make that milestone! Everyone at the office was so excited that we made it this far and my midwife is still hopeful that we can make it a little longer. I am, too!

Some very good news = I'm allowed to go to DH's best friend's wedding on Sunday. I adore this friend of his and really wanted to be there. This guy is going to be godfather to one of the babies. I'll give myself a booster dose of my meds before we go, and I'm only staying for the ceremony (and maybe a few minutes of the cocktail hour if I'm feeling okay) and then we're going to arrange for a car to take me home. DH will stay b/c he's in the wedding party and is giving the toast at the reception. So hopefully on Sunday I'll wake up feeling good and be able to go and enjoy! My only dilemma = figuring out what to do with my meds pump! I can't really have the tubing snaking out from under my dress, so I think I might have to find a way to strap it to my leg or something. I wonder what I did with the garter from my wedding...... ;)

[Thea]

Spotting has slowed, I think to a stop, this evening. Luckily today was a day off for me so I took it really easy. I did go to my sons baseball practice tonight and feel fine. :) Thanks for the positive thoughts ladies!


TazLuv I keep saying as long as I have food in my stomach I am fine. I am at the snacking every hour stage, which can be difficult at work, but most of my co-workers are having a laugh about it now.

Jeanan That is AWESOME news! (Except for Laurel turning!) I am so excited for you on how big they are!! And I hope you have a great time at the wedding!!

[Suzlywoozly]

Jenean- Did they give you the little black bag to carry the pump around in if you don't want to attach it to your pants? I want to wear a dress to my shower but I was trying to figure out how to carry it around with me until DH reminded me of the little bag they gave me. Is Matria the homehealth care company that manages your pump? Maybe they have a suggestion.

[FSUSammy]

papergirl - Hope the pains have subsided.

Thea - Hope the spotting stays away.

TazLuv - I found that eating every couple of hours helped to keep me less nauseaous. It'll get better!

Jenean - Glad the babies are hanging in there! And congrats on getting the OK to go to the wedding. Hope you enjoy what you can of it.

Me - Hanging in at almost 15w now, time sure is flying. My first week without progeterone suppositories has gone well. So I'm a bit more comfortable with NOT taking them. I decided to stay on metformin for the remainder of my pregnancy only because my OB actually said it was OK. I rather not take any chances and it should help prevent GD. I'm practically in maternity clothes full time only because its a lot more comfy than wearing my old clothes with a bella band. I'm still able to wear a few items but everything I can't fit in is in huge containers that are stacked on the floor of our closet. I've been suffering from either a cold or bad pregnancy rhinitis this past week. Not sure which it is only because since I can't breathe from my nose at night I'm forced to sleep with my mouth open so my throat becomes sore the next morning. I've been taking Sudafed (thankfully I can take that stuff!!!!) it has been my lifesaver!

[papergirl]

Asha – Thanks for your thoughts on the pains. That definitely sounds like a possible reason.

Thea – It sounds like you might be having round ligament pains. That is definitely not what I am having but that might explain your pain. And I am so happy to hear that the spotting has stopped. Since you are taking progesterone suppositories I would figure that’s the problem. I hear that happens a lot but I’m sorry you had to experience it.

Jenean – I’m so happy you’ve made it another week.

FSU - My OB is ok with me taking my Metformin until week 20. I'm really fearing GD and figured the Metformin might help but I'm just making a guess. Did youd doctor specifically say it does help?

Me – My pains lasted all day but they were gone in the morning. They were a bit painful which I think added to my fears. Not at all pleasant and so sharp at times that I wanted to yelp out loud.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend.

[FSUSammy]

papergirl - No my OB didn't say it would specifically help prevent GD. He just said I can take it throughout the entire pregnancy since its safe. But that it "could" help prevent GD.

[suzfuzsunflower]

papergirl - I know I'm a little late coming in here, but I just wanted to echo others that your pain sounds like possible cysts. I had a nice large one on one of my ovaries that caused me some pain, but when away by the time I was 12-15 weeks pregnant. Hope you're feeling better!

Sammy - I'm glad that you're doing fine without the progesterone. I'm glad that time seems to be flying for you!

Jenean - I'm glad that you are still hanging in there! Do you have a delivery date set yet?

I hope that you are all doing well. I'm doing just fine. Almost 36 weeks, can't believe it. Trying to get all the last minute things set for little baby. I'm going to go shopping today to take care of that.

Swelling is horrible. I've been wearing socks almost all the time (which haven't been fitting at all, but I like my feet warm) and yesterday I wore sandals all day long. Well at night I looked at my feet and actually screamed! They looked huge and just horrible. Another joy of pregnancy. ;) I think that my rings are going to have to go this weekend. I've been trying to hold out on them, but they are making big indentations in my finger.

As much as I am EXCITED about my little boy's arrival, I am trying to enjoy the last few weeks. I am a bit sad that it's almost over. I guess I don't know if I'll get to experience it again. I'll miss his little kicks. Anyone else feel this way? I feel so conflicted. I want him out and safe, but I still feel sad.

[Jenean]

Thea, I'm so glad your spotting has stopped. Are you feeling a bit better?

Suzly, I have the small black bag that clips to my pants, but that's it. I was more worried about how it would work with the tubing snaking out from under my dress, but read below and you'll see that I didn't have to figure anything out. Yes, Matria is the company. I like them, do you?

Sammy, thanks! I hope you're feeling better!

papergirl, thanks, me too! :) How are you feeling this week?

suzfuz, you are getting so close now! I'm so excited for you!!! No delivery date for us yet. We'll go as far as we can on our own, and if I manage to make it to 37 weeks or so, then they'll schedule a date for us. My OB has said before that he won't let us go past about 38 weeks. I'm so sorry you're dealing with all that swelling. I hope it gets at least a little better for you. I definitely feel conflicted like you described. I wish I had had a different pregnancy experience, at least for the last six weeks or so, and I will miss being able to feel the babies moving around. But at the same time, I'm ready to have my body back and to be holding my kids in my arms.


X-post (long one) from June moms...

Let me just start out by saying... TODAY WE ARE 34 WEEKS PREGNANT! WOOHOO! I'm so excited to reach this next milestone. We're into May and I just realized that I'm going to have TWO babies THIS month! :eek: We're so excited! I still hope we can last another 2 weeks or so, but now I'm just so ready to meet them and start the next part of our life. Wow.

DH and I started packing my hospital bag yesterday. We got all the clothes in there. Toiletries will go in last minute. Today I'm filling out the hospital paperwork - living will and all that, and we'll pack another small bag with the "other" stuff like a couple of books/magazines, camera and charger, cell phone and charger, etc.

I had a really crappy weekend this weekend. I'm definitely nearing the end of my emotional capabilities and it's showing. DH's best friend and his fiancee (now wife) basically uninvited me from their wedding on Thursday night. It seems that they (well, I think it was more her than him) were concerned that I might go into labor at the wedding and I guess they didn't want to deal with that. So they made it pretty clear that they thought it better if I stayed home. DH and I went back and forth about it on Friday and Saturday and I ended up staying home, which I would have done anyway b/c the stress of it all was causing me to have numerous contractions and I wouldn't have risked it even if they called me last minute and begged me to come.

Anyway, it really affected me. I was so incredibly hurt and also was so disappointed b/c this was really my last chance to get out before the babies arrive and I had so been looking forward to being out amongst people, even if just for an hour (I was only planning to go to the ceremony and maybe the very beginning of the cocktail hour). I love my internet, but it's not the same as being around people IRL and lately I've been starting to feel isolated here on my sofa. I'm also finally truly bored with bedrest - tired of reading, tired of t.v., tired of stitching. I know I sound like a whiny baby right now, and at the end of the day I'm still grateful for every day that I get to lie on this couch with my babies still inside me, but I'm also looking forward to being able to regain some of my independence, and my abilities to be a social person again! I know you guys can relate.

Other than all of that, everything seems to be okay. I probably had over 50 contractions in the last few days, but I am chalking that up to stress and a combination of dehydration (all that crying will do that, I guess) and exhaustion (not been sleeping well). They are the same BH type contrax that I've been feeling for months and are not painful, and I show no other signs of going into true labor, and the nurses at the monitoring service are keeping an eye on me, so hopefully my body will calm down as my emotions do. I have this feeling that we're good for now, but that things will happen b/w weeks 35 and 36. Just a gut feeling. Hopefully I can stick it out till 36. Fingers crossed! I'm much calmer today and have had only about a half dozen contrax all day, which is a big improvement! I also think I'm over the hurt part of it and am definitely on to the angry part, as evidenced by me ripping the wedding invite into tiny shreds and throwing it away, and also throwing away the favors I got at the bridal shower and the yarmulke from the wedding (that one I actually poured old leftovers on top of). :rolleyes: I'm hoping I can get past this soon and can figure out how I'm going to react to seeing them when they get back from their honeymoon. He's the godfather to one of the babies (which won't change) and will be around a lot. One step at a time, I guess!

[Asha]

i'm so excited for you ladies that are going to meet your little ones in just a couple of weeks!!!!!!

suz - oh gosh, i am sure the swelling is really uncomfortable. i had to resign myself to looking like a lady in sin just the other day bc my hands are swelling so much from the warm weather.

jenean - that's horrible that they uninvited you. for goodness sakes, what did she think you would do if you did go into labor during her wedding? its not like you would have screamed out in the middle of the ceremony and demanded that the officiant and groomsman take care of you, and use their limo to get to the hospital. i lol when you talked about ripping up the invite and such. good for you!

sammy - yay, for no more progesterone. i was so happy to be off it.

papergirl - hoping those pains have subsided.

thea - that's good to hear the spotting has gone down.

taz - morning sickness really should be renamed. its so misleading to make us think it only happens in the morning. mine was always the worst in the evening.

[skb]

jenean I'm sorry you had such a rotten weekend. Perhaps your friends were only concerned about your health and the health of the babies. I know that I would feel terrible if somebody attended my wedding during a high risk pregnancy and the result was a premature delivery. Hopefully they were just thinking about your best interest and not so much the visual of your water breaking all over the church! So happy for you that you've made it to 34 weeks! It won't be long now before you're off the couch! But I can definitely relate to what your saying about social isolation. I didn't see any of my friends for the first 16 weeks of my pregnancy. It has been really nice to visit with them again and get out a bit more! Try not to worry. Soon you will have those babies and everyone will show up on your door-step! Take care.

[Jenean]

Asha, that's exactly what I was thinking!

skb, I'm sure that was part of their concern, I just wish they would have trusted the two medical professionals who gave me permission to attend, and trusted me to make the right decision for myself. Me going to their wedding (I had only planned to attend the ceremony, which is only about a half hour (we Jews like 'em short)) wouldn't have involved any more on my part than me going to the doctor, in terms of time getting ready, driving to/from, and sitting there and with the meds, the danger of my actually going into labor was and still is pretty slim. Also, they had been saying for weeks how much they hoped I'd be there and had offered to do all kinds of things to make attending easier on me, so to hear something so different, and in the way they presented it, so soon before the wedding was a big shock. I'm just trying to get past it. It was a crappy situation and was just handled poorly and thankfully it's over and we have a lot of much better things coming up. This weekend my best friend and her DH are planning to come hang out Saturday night and other friends are coming for lunch on Sunday, and I plan to ask the doc on Thursday if I can take DH out for dinner on Friday. I was really looking forward to having the wedding as our last "date" before babies, and since I didn't get to go to that, I'm hopeful the doc and midwife will say that going to dinner at the place just down the street is an acceptable alternative! :)

[Jess71903]

Jenean- SO happy that you're still pregnant! These babies are going to be healthy and huge! I am sorry you're at that point where you're bored and uncomfortable! Good for you for tearing up the invite and such. I don't blame you at all! I would have been hurt too!

suz- WOO HOO for being almost there! I can understand your anxiety about not being pregnant anymore, too. Even though it didn't take treatment for me, I am scared it will be as hard or harder to get pregnant again and it makes me crazy to think about TTC again!

Sorry I haven't been here in so long! I have been hiding out in the journals, mostly. We are doing much better with our spina bifida diagnosis and are just enjoying planning for our little boy. My mom came this weekend and we painted the nursery a very nice mustardy yellow. I love it! Now we have to find a crib!

[skb]

jenean Ugh. I'm sorry it was such a process and disappointment. It sounds as though you have a fun weekend planned and hopefully you will get that "date" too!

jess71903 I am sorry about your son's SBO diagnosis. I wish no parent had to have such worries. It's nice to hear that you're having a good time with your mom and nursery. You'll have to post some pictures when you're done. I could use some inspiration!

suzfuzsunflower Getting so close!

papergirl I'm glad your pains have subsided and hope you are feeling better. No fun at all!

[Suzlywoozly]

Jenean- I am sorry that DH's friends acted that way towards you. They suck! That is awesome news that you reached 34 weeks!! Your frustration is completely understandable... I am not even technically on bedrest but being so sick and having that damn thing attached to my leg is frustrating the hell out of me. You are doing a great job and it won't be too much longer until your little ones are here. There is light at the end of the tunnel;)

My Matria nurse gave a black strap that goes on the black bag in case I can't attach it to my pants. I absolutely love Matria... The nurse that calls me daily is awesome! She knows that I have been having a lot of panic attacks which make the hyperemesis worse. She has spent at least an hour with me on the phone before trying to help me calm down. I am really impressed with them.

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - Sorry you had a crappy weekend. That was very rude to be uninvited to the wedding. Attention whores!!! LOL Sounds like the bride was afraid you'd steal her spotlight. Some people can be so rude and insensitive! Glad you and the baby's are doing well and its always great to see you post because we all know that you made it that much further along!

[TazLuv]

Jenean - that stinks about the wedding, I agree - very rude of them. I hope you get that one last date with your DH. Glad to hear the twins are still in there a doing well, how very exciting to be so close.
Thea - glad to hear your spotting has stopped.
FSUSammy - I can't beleive you're already at 15 weeks, it seems like just last week you were still in the SAI thread.
papergirl - no words of wisdom b/c I haven't BTDT but hang in there!
suzfuzsunflower - you too are getting so close, must be SO exciting! I agree, enjoying the last few weeks will be important too.
Jess71903 - glad to hear you and DH are doing well, the nursery sounds great - can't wait to see pics!
Suzlywoozly - glad to hear you have a supportive nurse, I think when you're in a tough and unknown situation that is huge!

As for me, almost at 7 weeks, my u/s is Monday (woo hoo!). I'm very excited to get even the smallest peep at my little one (or two as some people seem to think). The m/s is here in full force though its not really contained to the mornings. The spotting also comes and goes but as long as it stays brown I'm telling myself not to worry about it b/c of the suppositories. I'm feeling less concerned about the u/s b/c I'm feeling like crap! That must be a good sign, right? ;)

[papergirl]

Jenean – Yikes, that is just upsetting. I’m so sorry you had to deal with that. I can only imagine how strained things will be when you see them again. But the truth is, brides can suck and I’m sure many of us made at least one selfish request. That’s surly doesn’t make it right and I would be PO’d. On a better not, congratulations on making it another week!! :D

Suz – You’re so close… very exciting!

I’m fine. Still a tad of a worrywart but mostly I am doing well. My crazy pains have vanished and I don’t really have too many symptoms. That’s where the worry comes in but I have an u/s next week so I’m keeping calm till then. After that appointment I think I might be ready to finally share a news with a friend or two. DH is very antsy to tell people but I’m hoping we can hold out a bit longer.

[FSUSammy]

Taz - Yup its seemed like yesterday where most of us were hanging out over in SAI. Glad you are hanging in there. Try to snack a lot for the nausea it really helps. And I also saw that if I was miserable that was a GOOD sign LOL.

papergirl - Glad you are doing ok. Don't worry about not having symptoms. Before you know it you'll have new ones to obsess over!!!

[Jess71903]

jess71903 I am sorry about your son's SBO diagnosis. I wish no parent had to have such worries. It's nice to hear that you're having a good time with your mom and nursery. You'll have to post some pictures when you're done. I could use some inspiration!

Thank you skb! We are doing much better with it, to the point of almost forgetting about it sometimes. I will definitely post pics when the nursery's done. For now, here is my bedding. The wall is the color of the little boy's hat.
http://www.annaclairedesigns.com/stock/gone_fishing_crib_setL.jpg
and we may order a crib next week.

The nurse that calls me daily is awesome!

Suzly- Glad you love your nurse! That's so important! I am sorry pregnancy has been so rough on you!

its always great to see you post because we all know that you made it that much further along!
I was just thinking this same thing! You have to keep posting regularly, Jenean, or we will think you have gone to the hospital!

my u/s is Monday (woo hoo!)...I'm feeling less concerned about the u/s b/c I'm feeling like crap! That must be a good sign, right?

Yay for the u/s, Taz!! You will have to come in and update us when you get done! It's so exciting to see your baby for the first time! It's funny how you can almost forget that you're pregnant in the early months. I always felt like there should be this grand immediate change or something, and for the most part, I felt pretty normal. It's good to feel like crap! You're body's doing what it's supposed to do!

[FSUSammy]

Jess - Love the bedding. Too cute!!

Me - Doing well nearing the end of my 15th week, boy how time flies! I think I started to really realy feel the baby yesterday. Had flutters in my belly especially after I'd eat something. Today I've had some flutters but I feel more like I have this bubble in my abdomen that is slowly moving. Very cool feeling. So if this truely is the baby then I started feeling flutters several weeks ago but they were VERY VERY VERY rare. Oh and my nose is somewhat better. I'm taking zyrtec at night and Sudafed twice a day and I'm cleared up but now when I blow my nose I'm bleeding which I know is also normal. Oh and I had my first episode of Round Ligament Pain the other day. Lasted a couple of seconds, nothing horrible thankfully.

[Jenean]

Jess, thanks, me too!!! I love that bedding. I haven't seen it before - very cute! I'm also glad to hear that you're doing okay. Pregnancy is something to cherish and enjoy! I will definitely check in regularly. And we're bringing our laptop to the hospital, so hopefully I'll be able to share the good news pretty quickly. If not, I have a friend ready to come in and update for me. :)

skb, yeah, I think I just took it harder b/c of all the other emotional crap in my life. But now I'm just looking forward to the fun stuff we have coming up - dinner, seeing friends, having babies!!!

Suzly, I can't imagine having to deal with the sickness you are feeling. I admire you for being able to get through it! Matria really is fabulous. It's so good to know that they're keeping an eye on me daily and they're definitely so reassuring when they call.

Sammy, thanks. I'm trying now to give them the benefit of the doubt and hope that they were just more concerned for me, but then why didn't they just let me make the choice myself!!! That's SO awesome that you're feeling the baby! I couldn't wait for that and it seemed like these two took forever to get moving. Of course, now I wish they'd settle down sometimes. ;)

TazLuv, date night is tomorrow night, yay! I am soooo excited now to meet our babies! Feeling like crap is good. ;) Snack a lot so you always have food in your tummy - that helps. I can't wait to hear about your u/s on Monday!

papergirl, we've been so close with them; I really hope that I'll be able to get past this so we can keep that friendship going. I'm glad you're doing okay and I can't wait to hear how your u/s goes!


We had a checkup this morning and everything is great! The babies are 4 lbs 10 oz and 4 lbs 15 oz, so just a bit under 5 lbs, and it's give or take a bit, so they might even be up to 5 lbs already. Hopefully by next Thursday we'll have them close to 5 1/2 lbs! Heart rates were good, in the 140s, and I'm doing fine. I gained another few lbs and am up about 45 now, but the midwife again pointed out that about 20 of that is made up of baby (10 lbs of baby!!!), placenta, and fluid, and I'll lose that part during delivery! My cervix is practically nonexistant (I didn't ask the number, but I know it's under 1 cm), but I expected that after the dozens of contractions that I had over the weekend. They're not very worried about that anymore, though; actually, today was my last cervical scan = yay! Laurel is still head up, transverse actually, which is frustrating, but hopefully it'll turn again. As long as Hardy stays head down I'm still going to ask to have a chance at a vaginal delivery.

So we're at a really good point now. At 34 weeks the babies' lungs are producing enough surfectant for them to breathe pretty much on their own, so if they were born this week, they might need a little bit of help, but not much and not for long. They probably wouldn't have to stay much extra in the hospital, which makes me feel really good. Next week I have my Group B Strep test and then the week after, once I hit 36 weeks, I get to come off the meds and can resume limited activity! The nurse and midwife both said they don't see any reason why I won't make it that long, so I'm really hopeful and excited now. Just 12 more days and then I give the babies total permission to make their appearance. :)

In other good news, I got permission to take DH out to dinner tomorrow night! And she even said I can have a small glass of wine! Yay! I'm keeping it a surprise from DH and just told him that he needs to be home from the gym, showered, and dressed by a certain time tomorrow night.

And that's about it. Today I'm going to work on finishing the second hooded towel so I can add that to the bag of stuff my best friend is going to take and wash for me. But first I have a big bowl of strawberries waiting to be eaten. :)

[Jess71903]

Jenean- all of your info is so exciting to me! I love that they are developed enough to breathe on their own and I love that you only have 12 more days before you let then decide when to get here! How cool! Have so much fun on your date night!

[Jenean]

We had a bit of excitement Friday night. Lots of cramping and contractions that resulted in us canceling our dinner plans (oh, well) and me spending 3 hours on the monitor and taking 3 doses of my meds at hourly intervals. In the end, they started slowing down so I was told that I could just go to bed, which I did, and the weekend was much better. Today I've been having a bunch of contractions, but no cramping and I think it's b/c I haven't been drinking as much as I'm supposed to. My OB friend thinks that I won't last the week, and I've had a feeling for a while that it would happen b/w 35 and 36 weeks, so I also think it will be soon. I'm hoping to make it to the end of the week at least, and if we can go longer, then yay us! Day by day.....

[FSUSammy]

Glad you are hanging in there Jenean!!!

[TazLuv]

Hey ladies, just a quick update on my u/s. We saw a heartbeat! I feel so releived! 143 which they said is good, they're releasing me to a regular Ob/Gyn and my next appointment is 5/24. He's measuring a little small, I should be at 7w2d and he's only measuring 6w4d - I'm trying not to worry about that.

Thanks for all the well wishes, I'm feeling much better today. :D

[jodylovesscotty]

Jenean~ I can't wait to find out what those little ones are. I am sure you are a littlel more excited than I though. Wishing you all the best:)

TazLuv~ Glad everything looked great and you heard the heartbeat.

FSUSammy~ I have the same congestion you have. I was taking sudafed for a while, but it would help for a couple of hours then nothing. I was so tired of taking drugs. Now I just wear a breathe right nasal strip whenever I can, and that has really helped.

Jess71903~ I like your bedding, good choice. My DH and I just cannot agree on the bedding. We are going out this weekend to look at some in person. Hopefully we will agree on something soon.

As for me, I am still chugging along. Today is 20 weeks, which is hard to believe. I am really starting to show now, instead of just looking chubby. I am currently in the longest stretch of time without seeing my OB and it is pretty scary. I guess since I am use to seeing her every two weeks, this 4 weeks in between is killing me. Only a week and 1/2 until I see her again. Other than that, just getting excited that we only have 21 more days of school left!!!!!

[Jess71903]

Taz- Yay for the heartbeat! So cool! I wouldn't worry about measuring a little behind. That's not even a week! I am glad things looked good!

Jenean-I'm getting excited for you too! I hope they can hold out, but if not, I how they are healthy and all goes well! I can't wait to find out what you've got and what their names are!

Me- Tony got to feel Gage over the weekend!! I was so happy! I have been feeling him move for a long time. Once this weekend he hit or kicked me so hard that it made me jump! I also had my first shower today. The teacher and aides in the self-contained class at the jr. high had one for me. It was really nice and I got some nice things.

[Jenean]

Sammy, yup, hanging in, but definitely getting ready to be done with this!

TazLuv, woohoo, that's AWESOME! Don't worry about the size measurement too much!

jody, excited, impatient, anxious, I've got 'em all! A Breathe-Right strip, huh? I wish I had thought of that! I've had this congestion for months and it is so annoying! Wow to 20 weeks! That's awesome! You're halfway through now. :) I hope the time till your next appointment flies by!

Jess, thanks! I can't wait to share the good news with all of you! I'm so glad that Tony could feel the movement! That's such a cool thing for them to finally be able to share. Very nice about the shower, too. :)


Today we had our weekly doctor's appointment. I am happy to report that Laurel now weighs in at 5 lbs 6 oz with a heart rate in the 150s and Hardy is 5 lbs even with a heart rate in the 140s. Laurel seems to be stuck in a transverse/breech position, though, and the tech thinks it'll stay there b/c they really are out of room now. So my debate over trying for a vaginal delivery v. a c/s is pretty much moot now. My doc had already told me that they would only let me try if both babies were head down, and my midwife told me today that he had told her how worried he was about even trying then - b/c we're so close with him, he feels extra responsibility for making sure I'm okay and the babies are okay and he's much more comfortable with just going forward with a c/s to avoid any potential problems (like Laurel not turning, or turning the wrong way after Hardy is born). One "nice" side effect of having a c/s will be that it means I'll get an additional 8 weeks of paid leave out of it. It turns out that my long-term disability policy covers a c/s as a "complication" of pregnancy and since I've been on bedrest and short-term disability for so long now, I qualify for this long-term policy already and will be able to get the additional post-birth benefit. This means that 14 of my 16 weeks off should now be paid for (my insurance pays me basically the same amount as my take-home salary, and my firm is also giving me 6 weeks' paid leave), which will be a huge help to us. So if I have to have the surgery, at least I'll get this out of it!

I had the GBS swab today and it was nothing, and the cervical check was not fun but not too bad. I'm about 1 cm dilated, but the midwife also said she feels a decent amount of "thickness" left, so it doesn't look like birth is imminent! On a funny note, she also said that she could totally feel Hardy's head literally sitting on top of my cervix and that she hoped it wasn't mad at her for poking it in the head as she checked me! She said she thinks she'll see me back again next Thursday, so we went ahead and made that appointment and hope to be able to keep it! I can stop the terbutaline on Tuesday and I'm allowed to go ahead and "start living again". So we're planning dinner out for tomorrow night (finally!) and we might even try to catch a movie this weekend! Yay! I'm not going to go nuts, though, and start cleaning or shopping or anything and am still spending my time on the sofa. Every extra day with them inside is a good one! :D

[FSUSammy]

Jody - Glad you are doing well and finally starting to show. I'm in the are you fat or are you pregnant stage myself. LOL

Jess - Yay glad Tony got to feel Gage. I can't wait for that to happen.

Jenean - Yay another post from you! Glad the baby's are both doing well. I know you are anxious to meet the little ones, soon enough. I just think its amazing that you've come this far and that now that its ok for them to come out, they are staying put!

Me - My big u/s has been scheduled for May 22nd. I had my AFP on Monday and I have to go back to the doc in 2 weeks. I am not sure if its because they want to go over the AFP results with me OR if its because my last two appointments I just saw the nurse because he doc was at the hospital doing his REAL job, delivering babies!! But I was able to schedule that appointment right after my big u/s which is a good thing. I've been eating like crazy. I feel like nothing I eat fills me up, its takes A LOT of food to fill me up. Oh and I booked all of my classes already so that's out of the way.

[TazLuv]

Jody - 1/2 way! How exciting! I get so jealous of teachers this time of year. ;)
Jess - that is so cool that your DH could feel him move, he must have been so excited.
Jenean - glad to hear you're still with us, sorry about the c/s but it does sound like you're getting some benefit from it.
FSUSammy - glad to hear your appointments are set, how far along will you be at your u/s?

Me - just hanging in there, I'm having good days and bad days - some days I feel fine, others I feel like I've been scraped off of the bottom of someones shoe. Luckily if I do get sick it hasn't been until mid-afternoon/evening but that means when I get home all I want to do is sleep. :rolleyes:

[FSUSammy]

Taz - I'll be 18w1d at my u/s. Hope its good enough to accurately determine the gender.

[jodylovesscotty]

FSUSammy~ I had my big u/s at 17 weeks and they could tell the gender! My little girls showed everything.

[honeygirl]

Sammy - Now that I'm finally feeling better I'm the same way, I'm ALWAYS hungry. :)

Jenean - So glad to hear that things are going well with you and the babies! Enjoy the weekend and being able to "start living again".

Jess - Does Gage move around a lot? Does it wake you up at night? I can't wait to feel my baby, it must be amazing. Yay for your first shower!

jody - I can relate to finding it hard to wait 4 weeks. That's all I've had so far and by the 3rd week I'm going a little crazy! Now I know why people rent those doppler things. My DH won't let me though.

I'm doing well and finally feeling better, for almost a whole week now! I am SO thrilled about it. I can eat and now that I've started I find it hard to stop. Last weekend I was grocery shopping (by myself, big mistake) with a cart full of things (many I didn't need) while eating a big-ole cherry danish. Can you picture it? I felt like such a pregnant woman. :)

I'm wearing mostly maternity clothes now thanks to my baby bump. I don't mind really that I'm showing early, but it's weird to have people comment on it or come up and touch it! My DH told me to tell them to back off, but so far it's just been nice co-workers.

Next monday I go back to the OB, can't wait to hear that heartbeat!

[FSUSammy]

Hey ladies. My OB's office just called. My AFP came back positive for Trisomy 18 and I have to go for genetic counseling on Tuesday and possibly even an amnio. I haven't had a chance to read into what this means yet but I just wanted to let you all know. I just can't believe we have to deal with this as if getting pregnant wasn't hard enough now we have to deal with a child that might have this and from my first read (I had to stop because I was starting to cry) it sounded like if the baby truely has this then the baby would have months to live. How sad is that Ok I can't think about this anymore I need to get through my last 30 minutes of work and then I can break down.

[Jenean]

Sammy, tons of hugs to you and many prayers that this is just a false positive. DO NOT read too much about it b/w now and your appointment. Keep as calm as you can and keep on thinking good thoughts. I hope the weekend goes quickly for you so you can get to that appointment and get some more answers.

[Asha]

sammy - i am thinking of you. try not to do too much research on your own before you consult with dr's. you'll just scare yourself into thinking the worst. i hope that the further testing reveals a false positive.

[Loud_curly]

Sammy - Just wanted you to know that I'm thinking of you, and hoping that things turn out for the best. (((HUGS)))

[Patience]

FSUSammy((Hugs)) I'm so sorry about the AFP results, but they do have many incidences of false positives. I hope that's your case. Please take care and I'll be thinking of you.

[honeygirl]

Sammy - I am so sorry to hear about your results. Like the others said don't read or worry too much b/c it could be a false-positive. Sending peaceful thoughts and prayers your way!!

[Thea]

sammy Thinking of you. Try to stay calm through the weekend. Big HUGS.

[papergirl]

Sammy – I am thinking of you. Many people have a false positive. Be strong.

Jenean - It’s great to see that the kiddos are still hanging in there. You really have done an exceptional job at baking your babies.

Me – I had an appointment this week and I’m still not liking this doctor too much. Add to that the slowness of this practice and I am seriously questioning if I should stay here. Then I think about the time and research it will take to find a new clinic (that could turn out to be just as bad) and it makes me want to stick it out. I have to go in next Friday for what they are calling a “quick” check-up. I hope things are better.

[Jess71903]

Sammy- I am sorry I didn't see your news sooner! I am probably not the one you want to hear from, given my situation, but think about it like this. The chance of AFP being false + are very high. What are the chances that 2 of us in one group would get true +s? Anyway, thinking of you and praying for you and your baby. Try not to read too much on the internet. It will just freak you out unnecessarily.

papergirl-I had a similar situation with my dr. I had misgivings, but didn't HATE my dr. I changed and I'm so glad I did! I would recommend asking around and see who people recommend...I would put the most weight with women who have had babies. I liked an inattentive dr. when I was going for my yearly exam. Meant I didn't have to stay long! I ended up calling a midwife who teaches Bradley classes about the classes and we talked about the problems with the hospital I was going to deliver in and she recommended 2 dr's, one of which I chose and now love.

[FSUSammy]

papergirl - I say if you are not liking your doctor maybe just go find another? I guess see how your quick check up goes and if you still feel uncomfy take the time to find someone else.

Me - I wanted to thank all of you wonderful ladies for your kind words. We are praying really hard that this was a false positive for us. I actually didn't do any research this weekend. After the one website I happened on Friday afternoon it scared me and I refused to look into it further. So DH did all the research and basically told me that there is a lot of false positives, like all you have said, and to not worry just yet. So I've agreed to not worry and I'm doing my best to not countdown the clock until our appointment tomorrow. I called the perinatologist this morning to find out what my appointment will entail and they said I'll get a Level II u/s and then meet with a genetics counselor. So I guess there is a chance we might also find out the gender tomorrow as well. Of course as soon as I know anything I'll post!

[papergirl]

Jess – Thanks for chiming in on the doctor woes. I think I am finally ready to take the plunge and start searching for a new doc. I’ve just been hesitant since most practices have the same hours that I work and my “extra long” lunch breaks are getting to be ridiculous. Between infertility, my RE visits and now this I feel a bit smug going on yet another appointment that takes me away from the office for longer then expected… which is going to be the case while I search out a new doctor. Once we find “the one” I get to deal with getting my records transferred over AGAIN and all this has made me hesitate about going somewhere else but I think I’m ready to just deal.

Sammy - I'm hoping you get good news. I can't imagine how hard this must all be.

[Jess71903]

Sammy- I am glad you have such a positive outlook on things. I hope your visit tomorrow goes well and we'll hear the good news of boy or girl tomrorow! I will continue to pray for you and your baby!

papergirl-I just think it's so worth it to have a dr. you like. All of what you say makes sense, but better to be out of the office to see a dr. you like rather than one you don't. I hope your search is quick and you don't have to worry about taking too much time off for the actual search.

copied from journal:
Appointment today went better than expected. The guy still has the personality of a rock, but I was able to ask questions and got all the answers I wanted. I will not have to have a C-section. He said that nothing indicates that it is better for baby or mom. That made me very happy. He said that they should let me hold Gage in the hospital and nurse him, they will just have to put a sterile coving over his back. This made me even happier! I asked if he was able to tell if there was any protrusion of the spinal cord or the meninges and he said no, right now everything looks flat!!! That made me SO happy! I asked if that could change and he said "yeah, I guess it could" but didn't sound like it was likely. He measured everything and said he is measuring about a week ahead in his limbs and about a week behind in his head. I asked if that was a cause for concern, and he said not at all, in fact, he would have expected his head to be too big because of hydrocyphalus (water on the brain) and it's not. His fluid levels in his head are just fine. I am just so thankful for all of this info!!! I appreciate all of the prayers and words of encouragement I have gotten here and IRL! I really believe God is taking care of my little boy and has heard all of the prayers that have gone up for him. I will go back in a month, and every month until I deliver. He said I could wait to make my next appointment until I go to my regular OB next week, and schedule them on the same day so I only have to make 1 trip to LR each month. I got pics this time, but I will have to take pics of them to post. They are all kinda weird. The face shot is his skeleton, so it looks a little creepy!

[FSUSammy]

Just got home from my LONG appointment. I had to do a urine sample, weight, and BP. Then we met with the genetics counselor who was really nice. She explained the difference between the results of my AFP (from my OB) that came back positive vs. the NT integrated screen that they did. Well my AFP showed 1:81 chance of Trisomy 18 however my integrated screen showed 1:10,000. So they gave me the option to do an amnio. We wanted to do the u/s first because that alone can clue us in if the baby has it or not. Well we did the u/s and we were in there forever. Everything on the u/s looked normal, very unlike a child with Trisomy 18. They looked at just about everything, literally from head to foot! Towards the end I asked the tech if it was too early to find out the gender and she said she'd take a look. Well she looked and had to tap on my belly to get the baby to move around and she had to keep doing that and then all of a sudden you see what you need to see.

We are having a Healthy Baby Boy!!!!!!!!

He's got quite the shlong I say!!! LOL

I have to go back in 4 weeks for another u/s and I'll have an option of doing an amnio again at that point if they see anything. I'm not out of harms way quite yet but it's looking good!

[Jenean]

papergirl, thanks! Definitely check out other docs. This is one doc you really need to be comfortable with!

Jess, I am so glad to hear that there was so much good news to share!

Sammy, that is fabulous! I'm so glad you had a good appointment and congratulations on your baby boy! That's awesome!!!


Full term twins here! :D I can come off the meds whenever I want, but have decided to stay on them till Thursday morning before my doctor's appointment in the hopes that that will help me hold the babies in till the weekend. After Friday they can come, and after Friday I'll be doing everything I can to get them to come! :) I'm ready!!!

[papergirl]

Sammy, Jess, Jenean - It's so great to see so much happy news in here!

[TazLuv]

Sammy - FABULOUS news!
Jenean - Full term - WOW!

Great news all around today!

[honeygirl]

Sammy - I'm so glad to hear your great news. Congrats on your boy!!

Jenean - Whoot Whoot! Way to make it to 36wks. Do you think they'll come pretty quickly once you stop the meds?

[Jess71903]

Sammy- I have thought about you today, and I am so glad to come in here to see good news! Congrats on your baby boy!!!!!!!!!!! So exciting! I am so glad everything looks good...dad must be proud to hear about his "goods".

Jenean- YAY for making it full term! SO excited for you! I can't wait now for you to have these babies and find out what they are!!! Congrats, mamma! You've done good!

[Asha]

sammy - congrats on your healthy baby boy! you didn't orginally get the nt screening with ultrasound done? that's what my dr. originally ordered for me, and it seems the better way to go bc there aren't so many false positives. i suppose they don't do that from the get go bc some insurance companies won't pay for it.

jenean - congrats to making it to full term!! do you have any guesses on what the sex of your babies are?

[Jenean]

papergirl, I agree! :D

TazLuv, exactly! :)

honeygirl, thanks! I have no idea - the nurse said it could be 24 hours or 2 weeks. That's why I'm staying on them just a little extra, just in case I end up being one of those 24-hour girls. I'm really trying to hold out till Friday at least. But I'll be stopping in the morning for sure.

Jess, thanks so much!

Asha, thank you! I've been thinking a girl and a boy. I hope so!


Not much to report over here. Our next appointment is tomorrow morning and I will be asking about when we can schedule this delivery. I just want to get to Friday and after that, I want them out!!! ;)

[jodylovesscotty]

Jenean~ Yeah for babies! I am anxiously awaiting their arrival:)

[FSUSammy]

Jenean - congrats on full term twins! I know you can't wait for them to come.

Asha - Yes my nt screening was with an u/s. It's definitely the better way to do it instead of doing the stupid AFP. I will NEVER EVER have them do the AFP for me.

Me - I forgot to tell you that when I was at the perinatologist he asked me why I was taking metformin still and I told him that my OB said I could for the remainder of the pregnancy. And I told him that since my RE said to stop after the 1st tri and my OB said to continue I just continued it. He said STOP it. So I did. It's weird not having to take a pill 3x a day now but its nice to know I don't have to worry about forgetting a pill either. Oh and we are now unsure if the baby is truely a boy. From the u/s pics they gave us its kinda unclear. The penis is HUGE compared to pics that I've compared that were definite without a doubt boy u/s pics. Thankfully my real big u/s is on Tuesday so we'll be able to compare. DH and I swear that we saw 3 white lines while they were trying to get the baby in position for "the" shot so I think that's why we are doubting it, oh yeah that and the HUGE penis. LOL

[suzfuzsunflower]

Hey everyone. I haven't posted in here too much lately, but I wanted to let you all know that our little boy was born yesterday.

Benjamin Matthew was born on May 16th at 12:54 p.m. He was 7 pounds, 15.8 ounces and 19 inches long. He is so sweet and beautiful, and DH and I are just so in love with him.

My water broke on its own before labor began (surprise to me), and even though actual labor wasn't really long (8 hours or so), it was a very tough delivery. I'm just glad that it's over now, and my sweet little boy is here. I still can hardly believe it. I hope that you are all doing well. Benjamin went to see the pediatrician and should be back soon, so I need to go.

[FSUSammy]

Congrats suzfuzsunflower!!!!

[TazLuv]

suzfuzsunflower - that is FABULOUS news, congratulations!

[Thea]

Jeanan So glad you and the little ones made it to full term!!! I will hope for 1 boy and 1 girl for you! Congrats!

Jess Such good news!

Sammy I was going to say congrats on the boy, but I'll hold off! Glad for your good appointment though!

Me....12 weeks yesterday. Can't hardly believe it!

[honeygirl]

Congratulations suzfuzsunflower and welcome to the world Benjamin!

[Patience]

suzfuzsunflower Congratulations!

Jenean Hooray for making it to full term! I'm so happy your little ones stayed put until now. Here's to a quick and easy delivery!

FSUSammy I'm so glad to hear it was a false positive after all. I'm sure you're anxious to find out the sex now that you kinda had a peek.

Thea Isn't it great to know that you're 1/3 through this pregnancy and your little one will be here sooner than you think?

[Thea]

I swear I didn't see suz fuz's post when I posted yesterday!!! (Can I blame this on my computer, or was it my pregnancy fog? Who knows?)

suzfuz Congrats and welcome to Benjamin!!!!!!!!!

[jodylovesscotty]

suzfuzsunflower~ Congrats and welcome to the world little guy!

[Asha]

CONGRATS to you, suz, on the birth of your precious benjamin!!!

[papergirl]

Sammy – Did the gerontologist explain why he thought you should stop the Metformin? Just asking as I am on it until 20w.

Suz – Congratulations on your little boy!

[FSUSammy]

papergirl - There were actually a few reason. 1) They don't really know the true long term affects on the baby by taking it the entire time. Yes it a category B drug but they'd rather you not take ANY drugs during your pregnancy if you can. 2) You'll be tested for GD anyways and if you came back positive for GD then they'd have you deal with that at THAT time so no need to take met to possibly prevent this and 3) It's known to help prevent miscarriages in the first trimester only because it helps level out your hormones and after the first tri the placenta takes over so you don't need the help of metformin.

[Jess71903]

papergirl-*giggle* I think a gerontologist deals with old people ;). Sammy went to a perinatologist!

Congrats to suz and welcome to the world Benjamin! He is the first baby to come along since I joined this thread! How exciting!

Can't wait to hear from Jenean!!! I hope you have your babies in your arms!

Here are some pics of my sweet baby boy! I am calling him my monster baby because of the skeleton pic, but I am sure you girls will understand. I guess that's just what a level 2 is like!
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/197/503889081_6cb7494821.jpg?v=0
Head on the right, facing you.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/229/503889089_971e8e48e3.jpg?v=0
Little feet, overlapping each other

[Tandis]

Suzfuz - Congratulations and welcome Benjamin! :D

[Jess71903]

I try to check in on the SAI thread every-so-often and it seems that we may have a new member here soon! I just get so excited when we can add someone new!

I am dying to hear from Jenean!!!

[Jenean]

I am very happy to announce the arrival of Simon Aron and Miles Logan!!!

I'll post a better recap tomorrow, but I did want to let everyone know that our beautiful twin boys are here! They arrived on Saturday, May 19, at 4:08 and 4:09 pm, respectively. Simon was 5 lbs 2 oz and 17.5 inches, and Miles was 5 lbs 8 oz and 19 inches. They're both currently in the NICU, but they're already pros at nursing and are gaining strength, and we hope to have them rooming in with us by tomorrow, and home by Wednesday.

More details and pics to come soon!!!

[honeygirl]

Congratulations Jenean on your boys! I guess you were right about them coming right away when you stopped the meds. :) Beautiful names btw! Take care.

[Asha]

CONGRATS jeanean on the birth of your sons, simon and miles!!!!!! ever since i was 13, i have thought simon would be a great name for a son. i am happy to hear breastfeeding is going well.

[angelgirl8]

congratulations jenean and suz!!

[jodylovesscotty]

jenean~ Yeah, I am so excited for you! And two boys, you lucky dog:) Cute names by the way. Can't wait to hear more and see pictures of those little ones.

[FSUSammy]

AHHH congrats Jenean on your 2 boys! Can't wait to hear the story.

[DaniML]

Hi Girls!

I know some of you from the SAI thread and decided to follow. I'm not sure if I'm ready to actually join yet (I'm going to the doc today), but I did want to go ahead and subscribe.

After almost 3 years I finally got a BFP on Friday night. It's still very surreal. I'm dying for my doc office to open up so I can call and make an appointment.

I actually checked out the Jan 2008 Mommies thread and I gotta tell you, I'm not going to join it. There are too many girls in there that conceived the first month they tried! I just don't think they see pregnancy the way you do when you have had to struggle so much to get there.

Anyway, I will update after I see my doc and hopefull will be ready to join by the end of this week!

[FSUSammy]

Welcome over here Dani!!!! It's great to see another familiar name over here! Good luck at the doc.

[jjsanner]

Dani, I am so excited to see you here! I hope you can get in right away to see your doc, I know that put my mind at ease in the very beginning!

Congrats Jenean on your beautiful baby boys!

Me: We have our big u/s tomorrow at 1:15PM. I am getting so anxious to find out if Eli will have a baby brother or sister! I'll post the news after the appointment!

[DaniML]

Thanks for the warm welcome! I went to the doc for b/w this a.m. and am waiting for results now. Nurse said it will be sometime after lunch. My doc wants to do a repeat beta on Wednesday to make sure the numbers are doubling. Since it's to early to see anything right now we won't do an u/s until next week I think.

Congrats, Jenean & suzfuzsunflower on your beautiful babies!!!

[FSUSammy]

Dani - Yay glad you got in for b/w so fast. Keep us updated!

jjsanner - I hope the baby cooperates for you tomorrow. I'm going for my real big u/s tomorrow too so hopefully they can confim the gender that my level II u/s told us last week. What are you thinking the baby is?

[jjsanner]

Sammy, you know, in the beginning I was thinking girl, but over the past month I have been feeling less sure. In fact, we started discussing boy names this weekend "just in case". I still think it's a girl, but I guess we'll know for sure soon enough (hopefully!)

I hope your little one cooperates tomorrow. I may drink something sugery before the appointment to get the baby moving.

[papergirl]

Jenean – Congratulations!! I have been on pins and needles waiting to see when your babies would arrive, and if they were girls or boys. I am so happy for you. Another one of my “clinic buddies” delivered this weekend. :D

Dani – Welcome and congratulations!!

[Thea]

Jeanan Congratulations!!! And welcome to your 2 boys!!!! That is GREAT news!!!!!

Dani Welcome to you...happy to have you!

Sammy and JJasner Hope your little ones cooperate for their pics!

[DaniML]

Thank you, Ladies!

The nurse just called. My beta results are 406. She said I am definitly pregnant, even though it could be a little on the low side. She said on the other hand, we don't know when exactly I implanted. She said Wednesday's betas will tell us if everything is going according to plan. So now I can't wait for Wednesday!!

[TazLuv]

jeanan - CONGRATS on your healthy baby boys!

DaniML- WELCOME, my first beta was 413 so those numbers sound great to me. Good luck with Wednesday.

[FSUSammy]

Dani - That's a great number! I wanna say my very first beta was even lower than yours. Crossing my fingers for you that Wednesday's is even higher!

[Asha]

congrats on your pregnancy, dani!!! i never joined my august mommy thread either. i sometimes lurk there to see if others are experiencing similar things to me, but that's about it. i have enough fun talking about my pregnancy on this thread and in my journal.

[Patience]

Jenean Congrats!!! I'm so happy for you and your DH. :D It sounds like your boy are doing great.

DaniML Welcome! I'm thrilled whenever a SAIer joins this thread. I wish everyone from there will end up in this thread eventually. It's completely understandable about not wanting to join the Jan thread. BTW, I don't think your betas are low - mine was 423 at 15piui. Good luck on your next beta!

[Jess71903]

Jenean- YAY! I am so excited for you and congrats on the safe arrival of your boys! I can't wait to read more!

Hi Girls!
So glad to see you over here! Huge congrats to you!!! Doubling vibes to you!:D


Me: We have our big u/s tomorrow at 1:15PM. I am getting so anxious to find out if Eli will have a baby brother or sister! I'll post the news after the appointment!

I can't wait to find out what you're having! I hope you and Sammy both have definitive news tomorrow!

Nothing too new with me. I went to my regular OB today, and I still love him (this is only my 2nd appt with him- the first was a week after we found out that our boy has spina bifida). We did all the normal appt. stuff, then he talked for a while about things that would help us be more ok with Gage's diagnosis, which I really appreciated. He strongly recommended that we visit the spina bifida clinic at the Children's Hospital where Gage will be for surgery. He said that his office could set that up for us. he also recommended we get with parents of kids with sb to talk to them about their experience. I started to tell him about DH's coworker with a child with sb, but apparently we told him that last time and he remembered. I really appreciated his concern for us as parents and not just my physical health.

[FSUSammy]

Jess - That is so great that your doc takes out time to actually discuss your concerns and even gives you recommendations on what to do to help you guys out. That's just so fantastic to see doctor's like that. Most are so anxious to just pass you on to someone else.

[DaniML]

O.k., hearing that you ladies have had similar numbers and think those are great makes me feel SO much better. I'm sure you understand when I say that this *HAS* to be it. I'm still a little afraid that my numbers won't double, but I guess that's normal considering the history. I can't wait for tomorrow to finally get those numbers so I can calm down!!!

Other than that, I'm feeling pregnant and loving it. My boobs hurt like crazy and I'm nauseous. But it's like I told DH, I don't care if I puke my guts out for the next 9 months. It's all so worth it.

Jess71903, that's wonderful that you doc takes time and listens to your concerns. So many docs just want their patients in and out. I hope the support groups will help you guys.

Patience, I'm with you, I hope all the SAI girls will end up here!!!

Asha, I just find it hard to listen to some of them whine about pg symptoms when it took them all of ONE cycle to get there. I know that sounds bitter, but I just can't help it. I want to say "Quit your whining and be glad you got pregnant without any problems!". I'll get over it eventually, I hope :D .

FSUSammy & TazLuv, thanks! It makes me feel tons better to hear that.

[honeygirl]

DaniML - So glad to see you over here. :) Yay for sore boobs and nausea, those are great signs.

[skb]

It's a GIRL !!! :)

jenean -Many congratulations on the arrival of your sons!

suzfuz-Congratultaions on little Benjamin!

Dani-Welcome over! It won't be long before you feel ready to join!

[Asha]

dani - you have a great attitude about your preg symptoms. i have been a real baby and whining about a lot of them.

[TazLuv]

jjsanner - hope you got good pics at your u/s

DaniML - I know what you mean about the waiting, we've waited for so long to get to this point but these first few days are SO stressful! :D Hang in there! I know what you mean about the month threads too, I joined the December thread but really just lurk.

Jess - that is great that you have a doctor who is totally supportive.

Me - so I have my next appointment Thursday at 8am. This will be my first appointment with a regular Ob/Gyn. She is a friend of mine's OB and she really likes her, however she's leaving in June so this will be my only appointment with her most likely and then they'll transfer me to someone else. I knew that when I made the appointment but there are about 8 docs in this practice I asked for her, they told me she was leaving and I said well then I don't care as long as its not Dr. X so they went ahead and put me with her. Probably b/c she can then refer me to someone. Dr. X was my OB before I switched to the RE and I did it without her support b/c she wasn't helping me so I don't want to go back to her. This is a teaching institution so the likelihood of my Dr. actually delivering me is slim anyway but hopefully I still get a good Dr. So we'll see what Thursday brings I'm hoping for another u/s or at least hearing the heartbeat on the doppler. After Thursday and depending on when my next appointment is we'll decide on when to tell people IRL. Though I'm getting to the point that I'm not sure I can make it 3 more weeks at work without them figuring it out. I'm petite but b/c of my PCOS I've always been a little pudgy in the midline, I think that is probably why I'm showing earlier then most do with a 1st pregnancy.