Life Is Good: Pregnancy Highlights

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Pregnancy Highlights

Okay so this isn't my original idea, but I love that Angie does this on her blog so I sort of ~~stole~~ borrowed the idea. I didn't feel right about just stealing...ummm...borrowing it word-for-word so I changed it up a little. I think it's a great idea to have a weekly pregnancy highlight list. Thanks Angie! Be sure to check over on Angie's blog too. She is also pregnant with a precious little boy. Our due dates are very close and we're both doing (incubating on bedrest) and hoping for the same thing...a healthy baby.

Weeks Pregnant: 21 weeks 3 days

Weeks to Go: 12 weeks 4 days till my earliest goal of 34 weeks, 14 weeks 4 days till my ultimate goal of 36 weeks, 17 weeks 4 days till the farthest I'm allowed to go, 39 weeks.

Gender: Boy...Evan Alexander Stanfill

Baby Statistics: Evan is probably close to 1 pound and is around 11 inches long. The sense of touch is now developed and the sense of taste is developing. Our last ultrasound showed he is very low and head-down.

Movement: He's a wild one! He seems to enjoy bladder boxing. The last couple of days he has been pretty quiet during the day and more active at night.

Momma's Ever-Changing Body: I'm feeling pretty good. It's getting harder to get out of bed as well as finding comfortable positions while there. I have some round ligament pain that at times is very uncomfortable and my hips give me quite a bit of trouble, but I'll take it all and more for the sake of my little boy. When Evan feels very low and I'm concerned about the pressure on my cervix I sleep with a pillow under my hips. At my last appointment I had gained a total of 14 pounds so far. My blood pressure was around 110/70.

Belly Button/Stretch Marks: Normally it's an innie, but it's more like a "flatty". Stretch marks--I don't know which ones are new.

Food Cravings: I could eat a big giant salad loaded with veggies every day, 2 or 3 times a day, but I'm at the mercy of everyone else to provide meals. I have very little say in what I eat. My favorite place to eat right now is SouperSalad.

Sleep: Most nights I sleep great with 3 or 4 interruptions to visit the potty. Some nights I have trouble getting/staying comfortable and I either toss-and-turn or move to the couch.

Projects: I try to stay busy everyday without just vegetating in front of the TV. I tend to manage better if I keep my mind busy. I'm working (crocheting) on a new blanket for Evan as well as pacifier clips/holders. I've been reading Beth Moore's newest book.

Coming Up: I have a doctor's appointment with the Perinatologist this coming Wednesday. He is hoping to do a complete ECHO on Evan to rule out any heart problems. I sure do hope he is in a great position for this ultrasound because it's apt to be very uncomfortable for me if he's not.

Medications/Doctor's Orders: I'm still on bedrest and from the way it sounds I'll remain so until I reach 36 weeks. I'm taking prenatal vitamins, fiber supplements, and prune juice. I get a shot of progesterone in the hip each week.

Contractions: I'm averaging 1-2 an hour every day.

Project:

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Brandy Danielle

Brandy is our firstborn, our precious angel baby girl. Her entry into this world wasn't without excitement. At 26 weeks I started preterm labor with contractions 5 minutes apart. With 10 weeks of strict bedrest, most of which were in the hospital, she made it to 36 weeks.
Brandy was diagnosed with "possible/probable" heart defect around 28-30 weeks gestation. After her birth she was whisked away to the NICU for monitoring and after a few days her defect was formally diagnosed and labeled...atrial septal defect and a cleft mitral valve.
Brandy, upon indications of failure to thrive and pulmonary hypertension, underwent her first of 2 open-heart surgeries at 4 months of age. A week after her surgery on the day of her anticipated discharge home Brandy coded for 13 minutes...a stoke.
From that point on Brandy's life was full of doctor's visits, endless crying, pain and suffering. She underwent another heart surgery, fundoplication and g-tube surgery, treatment for infantile spasms, and a mountain of tests and procedures. Her brain damage was extensive.
Upon counseling of our wonderful, most amazing heart surgeon, Dr. Christopher Knott-Craig, and many hours of prayer, we finally called in hospice and called off all of the extensive medical interventions and surgery needs that would prolong her suffering while possibly prolonging her life. Brandy, our precious baby girl...our angel...passed out of our arms and into the arms of her Saviour, Jesus at the tender age of 17 months.

Ryan Andrew

Ryan, our micro-preemie miracle, is a ball of life. After nearly a year of trying to conceive imagine our delight when we finally knew he was on the way. My pregnancy with Ryan was uneventful at first. It seemed perfect and with all of the precautions for preterm labor being taken and monitored we entered this pregnancy with cautious anticipation covered over by a whole love of naive excitement.
At 20 weeks we discovered our "Baby Peanut" was going to be a little boy. We began to make plans and began dreaming about the day we would meet our son.
Almost 2 weeks later everything changed in our lives. It wa a whirlwind of fear and emtions as I began to bleed, was sent for monitoring in L&D and eventually had an appointment with my OB only to find out that it was serious. I had incompetent cervix with hourglassing membranes. The doctor admitted me to the hospital immediately and an emergency cerclage was placed. The statistics were grim, but the hope was to keep our son inside for at least 10 more weeks. We only made it 10 more days.
Early in the evening of February 11, 2007 our son, Ryan, came into this world in emergency fashion at only 23 weeks 5 days gestation. He weighed 1 pound 8 ounces and was 12 ½ inches long. He was so tiny. All I could think of was “oh my goodness is he really that tiny? And is there any way he could actually make it?” I tried to hold on to hope, but in all honesty I had never met anyone with a baby born that early and that small that ever made it.
Ryan did make it! It was a long, hard road, but in the end he spent 90 days in the NICU. He was on a ventilator for 2 months. Finally on one fine glorious day in May we bundled up our 4 pound 4 ounce baby boy and went home...May 11, 2007.
Ryan is now a spunky, lively, strong-willed little boy. His laughter is contagious and his spirit is compelling. He is our miracle. There are no words strong enough to share our delight and joy that God has blessed us with this little boy.

Evan Alexander