Monday, June 20, 2011
Bump at 29 weeks
The end is near. 29+5
Well i have finally come to some decisions. Deciding when to leave work has proven pretty tough for me. I've decided to just do what everyone's telling me to and call it a day. I'm at the hospital for another scan tomorrow, so wont be getting to work until between 12:30-1:30, then I've got two full days, Wednesday and Friday, then two hours on Saturday, then I'm done!
Iv got my three weeks holiday starting on Monday, then my maternity following straight on from the 19th July. I will be 34 weeks pregnant when my maternity starts, so using 6 weeks before my due date, which is a lot more than I'd originally hoped. Two main things I'm trying to focus on though:
1) There is a very high chance that the baby is going to be early, so i might not end up using 6 weeks before the birth anyway.
2) This is the most important time for me to be looking after Button. As nice as it would be to have lots of time with together after he/she is born, its more important that i take care of us now.
I have been looking forward to this time for ages, finally coming to the point where i can finish work for potentially a year, and have lots of exciting time getting things ready, and spending time with my little person. Now its coming down to it, i actual feel quite sad about leaving work. I really do love my job and the people i work with, and I'm just realising I'm going to be spending a lot of time alone over the next few weeks. I'm really going to miss all my friends from work, and i know that some of them aren't going to be there when i get back, which is hard.
I've been thinking a lot over the past few days though, and I've decided that I'm going to try and spend a lot of the time before the baby arrives, visiting friends and seeing people i haven't seen for a long time. I'd like to try and rebuild relationships that have fizzled slightly over the past few years. It would be nice to have plenty of people to spend time with while I'm off, especially as i have a few friends who have babies too. I want to aim to try and get out of the house at least once a day with Button, even if its just for a walk round the village. I plan to do lots of little trips, into town, swimming, to the library and parks etc. It'll be good exercise, and good to socialise and teach Button lots. I don't want to be just stuck at home whenever i can help it.
Iv got my three weeks holiday starting on Monday, then my maternity following straight on from the 19th July. I will be 34 weeks pregnant when my maternity starts, so using 6 weeks before my due date, which is a lot more than I'd originally hoped. Two main things I'm trying to focus on though:
1) There is a very high chance that the baby is going to be early, so i might not end up using 6 weeks before the birth anyway.
2) This is the most important time for me to be looking after Button. As nice as it would be to have lots of time with together after he/she is born, its more important that i take care of us now.
I have been looking forward to this time for ages, finally coming to the point where i can finish work for potentially a year, and have lots of exciting time getting things ready, and spending time with my little person. Now its coming down to it, i actual feel quite sad about leaving work. I really do love my job and the people i work with, and I'm just realising I'm going to be spending a lot of time alone over the next few weeks. I'm really going to miss all my friends from work, and i know that some of them aren't going to be there when i get back, which is hard.
I've been thinking a lot over the past few days though, and I've decided that I'm going to try and spend a lot of the time before the baby arrives, visiting friends and seeing people i haven't seen for a long time. I'd like to try and rebuild relationships that have fizzled slightly over the past few years. It would be nice to have plenty of people to spend time with while I'm off, especially as i have a few friends who have babies too. I want to aim to try and get out of the house at least once a day with Button, even if its just for a walk round the village. I plan to do lots of little trips, into town, swimming, to the library and parks etc. It'll be good exercise, and good to socialise and teach Button lots. I don't want to be just stuck at home whenever i can help it.
So, approximately 21 hours of working left, before i officially become a full time mummy :) Exciting/Scary/Amazing times ahead :) xxx
Friday, June 17, 2011
Drama at 29 weeks
I am now 29 + 2 and we haven't heard anything about my tests as of yet, which i can only assume is a positive sign.
We've had a bit of bad news today though, Adam had a phone call from the furniture company, and apparently our set is out of stock. They are getting it back in, but we might not receive it until the end of August! I'm really disappointed because I'm almost 100% sure that Button will now be here before we have any of the stuff. I was looking forward to spending my early weeks of maternity leave getting the nursery perfect, with everything ironed and hung up, and everything in place ready. I hate the thought that the nursery could still be pretty much empty when we bring the baby home.
More bad news I'm afraid. We have just found out that my Auntie is seriously ill. She lives in Norfolk and we only saw here a couple of weeks ago. She was full of life and so excited about Button, and my sisters upcoming wedding. We found out a couple of days ago that she was bed ridden at home and not good at all. Today we have found out that she is in hospital and her heart is failing. The thought that there is even a possibility that she might not be here for the wedding, and Buttons birth has hit us hard. It all seems so sudden. Its made me feel like i now almost want to find out whether Buttons a boy or a girl just so i can make sure she knows.
My Grandma has been really poorly too, and has been rushed to hospital in the early hours of the morning twice in a week, and kept in for a couple of nights each time. They don't even take her to the local hospital either, she has to go to the main City hospital. She's out again now, and has been round for tea with my Grandad tonight, and they both seem their usual chirpy selves, but it certainly has been a worrying time.
I got to work this morning and was instantly red hot. The bands i now have to wear round my stomach really don't help with the heat, and they are giving me a nasty rash. Also, over the past couple of weeks i have been getting really breathless, and the tightness of the bands doesn't help with this either.
I was instantly finding the heat a struggle when i got to work this morning, i kept sipping water, and tried to sit in front of a fan whenever possible, but i was literally sweating! At about 10:15 i had quite bad Braxton Hicks, and had to stop what i was doing and sit on my own for a minute and take deep breaths until it eased off.
About an hour later i suddenly seemed to get an extra rush of heat and went to sit down for a minute. I started to get really breathless and my vision went all dark, then i got pins and needles in my hands and my tongue and the next thing i remember is opening my eyes, panting for breath and seeing Amber hovering over me and putting my legs up on a chair. I think i was laying on the floor for a few minutes, and another couple of first aiders arrived and Laura phones and Ambulance. I got a really painful tight feeling in my tummy and i remember wondering if this was the start of labour. I suddenly became desperate to get the bands off from around me as it felt so tight. So they cut them off and the pain eased. A few minutes later the paramedics arrived and put me up on a stretcher trolley. They fetched me more water and we phoned Adam to let him know i was being taken to hospital. He phoned Abi and she set off to meet us at the hospital. They wheeled me out and put me in the back of the ambulance. They asked me loads of questions, stuck wires all over me, a clip on my finger and a blood pressure band round my arm and a thermometer in my ear. They pricked my finger and tested my blood sugar and then headed off to the hospital. When we got there i had two nurses checking everything again, they stuck more wires to me and took my temperature and blood pressure again and then fetched a Doctor. The doctor asked more questions and felt the baby etc, they tested me wee and found Protein yet again. After a couple of hours we set off home. They told me to try and take it steady and to keep as cool as possible to prevent me from overheating. I felt exhausted by the time we got back and headed straight to bed.
Its left me feeling a bit unsure about my maternity leave again. I still would absolutely hate to have to leave really early, because i want as much time as possible with the baby, but its starting to feel more and more like my body is screaming at me to slow down now. I have still got three weeks of holiday to take, but even if i started now, id still only be 33 weeks when my maternity would start. This would be fine if i knew for sure Button would be early, but in the unlikely event that Button was 2 weeks late, i would have been off for 9 weeks before he/she arrives! I really don't know what to do for the best. I'm having a meeting at work on Tuesday, after my hospital appointment to discuss what the best option might be, so hopefully this will help. So things are quite stressful at the moment, but at least we get to see our little one again on Tuesday!
Love love love xx
We've had a bit of bad news today though, Adam had a phone call from the furniture company, and apparently our set is out of stock. They are getting it back in, but we might not receive it until the end of August! I'm really disappointed because I'm almost 100% sure that Button will now be here before we have any of the stuff. I was looking forward to spending my early weeks of maternity leave getting the nursery perfect, with everything ironed and hung up, and everything in place ready. I hate the thought that the nursery could still be pretty much empty when we bring the baby home.
More bad news I'm afraid. We have just found out that my Auntie is seriously ill. She lives in Norfolk and we only saw here a couple of weeks ago. She was full of life and so excited about Button, and my sisters upcoming wedding. We found out a couple of days ago that she was bed ridden at home and not good at all. Today we have found out that she is in hospital and her heart is failing. The thought that there is even a possibility that she might not be here for the wedding, and Buttons birth has hit us hard. It all seems so sudden. Its made me feel like i now almost want to find out whether Buttons a boy or a girl just so i can make sure she knows.
My Grandma has been really poorly too, and has been rushed to hospital in the early hours of the morning twice in a week, and kept in for a couple of nights each time. They don't even take her to the local hospital either, she has to go to the main City hospital. She's out again now, and has been round for tea with my Grandad tonight, and they both seem their usual chirpy selves, but it certainly has been a worrying time.
I got to work this morning and was instantly red hot. The bands i now have to wear round my stomach really don't help with the heat, and they are giving me a nasty rash. Also, over the past couple of weeks i have been getting really breathless, and the tightness of the bands doesn't help with this either.
I was instantly finding the heat a struggle when i got to work this morning, i kept sipping water, and tried to sit in front of a fan whenever possible, but i was literally sweating! At about 10:15 i had quite bad Braxton Hicks, and had to stop what i was doing and sit on my own for a minute and take deep breaths until it eased off.
About an hour later i suddenly seemed to get an extra rush of heat and went to sit down for a minute. I started to get really breathless and my vision went all dark, then i got pins and needles in my hands and my tongue and the next thing i remember is opening my eyes, panting for breath and seeing Amber hovering over me and putting my legs up on a chair. I think i was laying on the floor for a few minutes, and another couple of first aiders arrived and Laura phones and Ambulance. I got a really painful tight feeling in my tummy and i remember wondering if this was the start of labour. I suddenly became desperate to get the bands off from around me as it felt so tight. So they cut them off and the pain eased. A few minutes later the paramedics arrived and put me up on a stretcher trolley. They fetched me more water and we phoned Adam to let him know i was being taken to hospital. He phoned Abi and she set off to meet us at the hospital. They wheeled me out and put me in the back of the ambulance. They asked me loads of questions, stuck wires all over me, a clip on my finger and a blood pressure band round my arm and a thermometer in my ear. They pricked my finger and tested my blood sugar and then headed off to the hospital. When we got there i had two nurses checking everything again, they stuck more wires to me and took my temperature and blood pressure again and then fetched a Doctor. The doctor asked more questions and felt the baby etc, they tested me wee and found Protein yet again. After a couple of hours we set off home. They told me to try and take it steady and to keep as cool as possible to prevent me from overheating. I felt exhausted by the time we got back and headed straight to bed.
Its left me feeling a bit unsure about my maternity leave again. I still would absolutely hate to have to leave really early, because i want as much time as possible with the baby, but its starting to feel more and more like my body is screaming at me to slow down now. I have still got three weeks of holiday to take, but even if i started now, id still only be 33 weeks when my maternity would start. This would be fine if i knew for sure Button would be early, but in the unlikely event that Button was 2 weeks late, i would have been off for 9 weeks before he/she arrives! I really don't know what to do for the best. I'm having a meeting at work on Tuesday, after my hospital appointment to discuss what the best option might be, so hopefully this will help. So things are quite stressful at the moment, but at least we get to see our little one again on Tuesday!
Love love love xx
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Just so you know...
A mega short blog post just to inform everyone.. We've ordered our furniture today!!! I'm so excited i could literally explode! Its only going to take 2-4 weeks to be delivered too, so with a bit of luck it might arrive on my week off! That would make it the best week ever, i could properly get everything sorted.
Just incase you cant remember how utterly beautiful it is, here are the pictures again.
Eeeek! Things are seriously starting to seem real now!
Monday, June 13, 2011
28+6
Its 4:40am and yet again i have been up for well over an hour. I'm at work today though so going to try and get a bit more rest before i go. I do find that when I'm struggling this much to sleep, often i am better to get up for a while and potter about or get something to eat rather than just laying there in bed.
I am nearly 29 weeks pregnant and so much has happened in the past week. I went from work to my usual antenatal appointment with heather on Wednesday at 11am. When i got there i discovered that Heather was off sick, so i had another midwife instead.
I got in, and did the usual blood pressure and urine tests etc. There was still protein in my wee, so it has been sent off to the lab yet again. The midwife listened to the baby and took my blood, then spent a while looking at my growth charts. She was quite concerned and said that i needed to be seen for my growth scan, and to be monitored more closely by the hospital.
I booked another appointment with Heather for three weeks time, and went outside to find out how i was going to get to the hospital. I phoned Adam and my mum to let them know what was happening, mum was going to be at work for a while longer, so Adam came and fetched me. We got to the hospital and headed straight for the scan department. It was lovely to see Button again, we saw all his her tiny little fingers and toes, it was magic!
When we first went into the room the Sonographer asked us if we knew the sex, and we told her we didn't. After a few minutes of scanning she said 'I just need to get a measurement of her legs'. My heart stopped, i looked straight at Adam, wondering if he'd noticed. I waited a few minutes to see if she said anything else, and then i asked her so say (without giving it away) whether she had been able to tell the sex. She said she hadn't looked, so that she wouldn't give anything away, so i assume it was just a passing comment.
She took all measurements and baby seems to be the perfect size, apart from having a slightly tubby little tummy, but nothing above average, and more to the point the head circumference is perfect :D (sigh of relief!)
We came out of the scan, and the sonographer disappeared for a few minutes to make a phone call. She came back and told us that we needed to head down to the Pregnancy Assessment unit.
When we got there, they asked me to lie on the bed, and they strapped two monitors around my bump, they then put a little button in my hand and told me to press it every time i felt the baby move. She left me there for a while, and we could hear Buttons heartbeat and all the kicks and wriggles which was lovely.
We could here Lois, the midwife on the phone just outside our curtain. She made me panic a bit because she was talking about me, and using lots of medical terms that i didn't understand. We then heard her say 'i need a doctor to come and explain everything to the lady and explain why we've got to do it'.
I looked straight at Adam, panic stricken. I had no idea what they were going to do to me and now felt petrified.
Lois came over to us, she sat down at my bedside and put her hand on my leg. She explained that the scan had showed that iv now got a lot of fluid again, and that there were a few tests they had got to do to make sure everything was OK. She said that the doctor was coming to talk to us, and warned me that some of the things that the doctor was going to say to us would sound quite scary, but we should try not to get too worried.
The doctor had a very strong accent, and spoke very quickly, and i was trying so hard to concentrate on everything she said, but really struggled to get my head around a lot of it.
She basically said that because i am measuring at 7 weeks ahead of what i should be, and because my 'fluid levels' were at the limit i am now at risk of premature delivery, as the membranes could just give, so basically my waters could break at any time. At this point, i was trying to digest all of this, but the doctor went on to say there are other risks, such as my cord could drop low down and i could end up having to have an emergency cesarean. (Which has always been one of my biggest fears). I was told that I'm going to be very closely monitored from now on, with extra consultations and scans every couple of weeks.
I had to go back on Friday for a series of other tests. They have tested for gestational diabetes, TB, Toxomaplosis, Rubella, Common colds and some other bits and bobs, and general infections. I had to do a 14 hour starve, and have a further two blood tests! So i am now awaiting all of these results, as well as my urine ones too!
I now have another scan booked in for next Tuesday to monitor how things are going.
After speaking to several people, we have come to the decision that it would be in mine and babies best interests to bring my maternity leave forwards. Which i really didn't want to do, as id rather have more time with the baby at the end, but i have been rightly reminded that now is the most important time for me, and the baby, to make sure we are both as healthy as possible, and its more important for me to ensure that every things going right now. So i am meeting with Shawna today, and possibly making my last day 15th July, instead of 3rd August. Two weeks of that is holiday so its still not massively early, just more than i had originally planned.
Its 5:35 now and I'm going to try and get another hour and a half sleep before work. I'm hoping its going to be a calmer Tuesday than usual though, as we have only got one clinic running, compared with the usual three.
They are really looking after me at work now, and making sure i spend the majority of time sitting down to take the pressure off my bump.
So in conclusion, I'm feeling very strange after the weeks events, i cant believe that the baby could literally make an appearance at any time! When i think of it like that i feel so unprepared. I'm going to make a start on getting my hospital bag ready now just in case. We went to the hospital last night for an antenatal class (which wasn't on!) and were given a tour round the birthing suites. They are lovely and have made me feel more excited about the big day.
I'll make sure i keep you all up to date with any news!
Love love love xxx
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