28 Weeks

28 Weeks! 28 Weeks! 28 Weeks!

It's time to celebrate. I'm 28 weeks! Why so excited?...because 28 weeks is a HUGE milestone. We've moved from out of those weeks of "extreme premature" to "very premature"...no longer a *micro-preemie*. So here we are...28 weeks...safer, but not satisfied. We want more! More weeks! More weeks! More weeks!

Consider these numbers
Weeks Pregnant: 28
Current Survival Statistics: 90-95%
Days Hospitalized: 25
Days on Bedrest: 101
Days Until Full Term (37 weeks): 63
Days Until Goal #1 (30wks): 13
May 1: 30 weeks
June 1-18: If early delivery is imminent, days I would be satisfied to deliver
June 19: Full term! (37wks)
July 1: The date Dr. G is planning to deliver if I'm still pregnant then. All I have to say about that is he and I are going to have to have a long talk about that. After all I've been through I'm thinking 37 weeks is good enough.

Weeks Pregnant: 28 weeks!

Weeks to Go: 2 weeks till 30 weeks, 4 weeks till 32, 6 weeks till 34, 8 weeks till 36

Gender: Boy...Evan Alexander Stanfill

Baby Statistics: Nearly two weeks ago we went to the perinatologist and our little guy weighed 1 pound 12 ounces. I'm expecting/hoping he will be at least 2 pounds at our next ultrasound on Tuesday.

Movement: Busy, busy, busy!

Momma's Ever-Changing Body: I feel huge. It feels like I've grown so much over the last week or so. I showed no weight gain at my last weight-check this past Monday. I'm laying flat most of the time with short times of incline so I can eat. Many hours of the day I spend with my bottom end up and head down to keep as much pressure off the cervix as possible. My back hurts sometimes and positioning is becoming increasingly difficult. I've been given wheelchair privileges and so far I've been taking advantage of the "freedom" about 3 days a week. I take a quick shower every other day. (And here's my whine: my legs are in desperate need of a razor, my hair looks and feels like it's in a constant state of bed-head...bedrest doesn't feel beautiful...which is one reason why I hope to make it far enough along to be released from bedrest so I can have a day of pampering...a girl has to look good for the birth of her baby doesn't she?)

Belly Button/Stretch Marks: Flatty, Yes

Food Cravings: No cravings. In fact eating has been a challenge for me (too bad that doesn't happen more often). After getting sick earlier this week with what could have been food poisoning I'm extremely leery about everything I eat/how it tastes/etc. Being sick like that was awful and scary. I eat as much as I can hoping to "beef" up this baby a little. The menu at the hospital is pretty good. I have a choice between 3 main dishes and their complementary sides. One is usually very good, one is so so, and one is for the desperate. The desserts are always good though.

Sleep: I have good nights and bad nights. Getting and staying comfortable is usually the biggest problem with noise from either side of my room or the hall being the second problem. I'm (somewhat reluctantly) taking ambien each evening and it seems to make a huge difference in how much sleep I get. The doctor wants me to rest well, so I view the medical help as a necessity. I take it. I sleep. I don't take it. I don't

Projects: I'm still working on the blanket for Evan. I'm trying to finish at least 1 or 2 rows each day. I just hope I can finish it before he gets here. I've been reading some too and have almost finished Beth Moore's book, So Long Insecurity. I play scrabble on the computer and spend too much time on the internet.

Coming Up: Peri appointment on Tuesday afternoon.

Medications/Doctor's Orders: Strict bedrest. Procardia-2x/day, pepsid, prenatal vitamin, colace, P17/weekly, ambien, synthroid, miralax when needed, terbutaline (shot) as needed, NST (non-stres test) once each shift unless I start having regular contractions, vital signs at least once or twice per shift.

Contractions: I have started averaging 1-2 an hour with my most irritable days being Mon.-Wed. The other days are hit-and-miss...some days with 1-2/hr and some with very few all day long. Dr. isn't concerned.