April showers bring May babies? If we're very lucky... :(

Soooooo.... um, yeah. I'm actually writing this from a hospital bed. I went to my OB appointment yesterday at 1:40 pm, waited for what seemed like hours on the table for my OB to see me, and finally had one of my shortest appointments on record. I was scheduled for another fFN test and my Group B strep test (lovely), and so my OB did those first. I told her how I've been wondering if the baby has dropped or majorly shifted or something, because I've noticed a lot more pressure whenever I am on my feet. She said the baby might have, but let's take a look. The verdict:

4 centimetres dilated --- WTF??? (or What the Faggioli/Farina/Fruitcake)

And with that, I was packed up and sent to L&D. My OB was convinced that I was going into labor. YIKES!

I get to the hospital and for the first time, my visit did not end in the triage area. They did my intake, vitals etc., strapped me to the monitors that showed I was contracting but with no consistency, but they also had me sign a delivery consent form and went through all the steps to admit me to labor and delivery. Then I got set up in an L&D room, and got an IV where they started me on fluids and then soon after magnesium sulfate. They gave me the first of two steroid shots, and I've had 3 doses of procardia so far.

So what is actually going on? It's anybody's guess. Actually my day nurse, who I just met a short while ago, had the smartest answer I've heard so far. It's probably my fibroids, which have been remarkably quiet and stable on the whole, having a passive aggressive hissy fit (my words, unfortunately; would have loved it if she'd said that herself, lol). The nurse called them "muscle hogs," and they obviously are feeling like they need some attention. No one's ever mentioned the fibroids as a cause before... they've only said, oh you've got an irritable ute... yah, but WHY??? Okay, the fibroids make sense. Granted they may not be the reason, but it's something I can wrap my head around, and also explains why it's all fuss but no action except the dilation.

In about an hour my MFM doctor will be making the rounds, so I'll know better what happens from here after then. But from the looks of it, I may be here for a little while. And yeah, that may mean through Saturday. My shower is Saturday... BOOO HISSS FRIGAFRACKAFOOOOOOO!

Okay, got that out.

Of COURSE, I'm not going anywhere if it will hurt baby's chances of hatching at full term (and at this point I don't think my doc will let me anyway; at this point I'm not even sure if she'll let me go home before I deliver)... but geez, really??? Now??? Well, I was the one who pushed for the weekly exam this week, and not a two-weeker as my OB had originally suggested, because I wanted to make sure I was okay to go to my shower, but I certainly didn't expect events to go as they have. And probably good that I did push for the visit, because then I might have gone another week (or not) and not known... eek!

Well, the nice thing is that I will have lots of visitors this weekend, as the family (and friends) are pouring in from all over the East Coast to celebrate. I think we will set up Skype or something for those who can't/don't come to the hospital.

They all do say that if I deliver even now, baby will be fine... passed all the major milestones (or just about to this weekend), so there is some comfort there, but just WOW.

Operation Keep Baby Cookin' continues...

NEWSFLASH: They'll be moving me to an antepartum rooms (much better bed they say) sometime today. Gertrude is just being super irritable I guess because there are five tenants (baby + four fibroids). And I'm off the magnesium sulfate drip (yay) AND I've been given clear liquids... jello, juice, ginger ale, tea... woo hoo!

Pitter Patter... THUMP

Pitter. Patter. Pitter. Patter. Pitter. Patter... THUMP. Pitter. Patter. Pitter. Patter. Pitter. Patter... THUMP. This is the sound (sort of) that greeted me as I checked my pulse while lying down trying to nap on Monday afternoon. Heart was beating (always a good thing), a little fast (that's all right, I suppose), but then would pause for a beat (uh oh), and then go BOOM with a really strong beat (um, WTF?). Needless to say, I didn't fall asleep that nap time (kind of afraid to, and was a bit uncomfortable anyway).

Called my OB, and talked with Dr. P., who said it sounds like palpitations and that they're not too unusual, but then:

- Oh wait, you've the one with WPW, right?

- Well, yes, I had WPW until I had it "fixed" about a decade ago, and my cardiologist says it no longer shows up in my EKG, but yeah that's me.

- Okay then, why don't you make an appointment with your cardiologist, and he can do an EKG and maybe a Holter monitor to check it all out.

So, on Friday morning I will go see Dr. F. and see what the deal is. Hopefully it's nothing, and was just the result of me starting to freak out about the price of day care in Northern New Jersey.

Oh, about that WPW. It stands for Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome, and means that I was born with an extra conduction pathway for the electrical signal that starts the heartbeat. At times this pathway can get activated (sort of like my heart beat taking a shortcut) and start a rapid heartbeat or tachycardia. I first started having episodes when I was about 6, and they were pretty manageable until I started rowing freshman year in college (so I quit the team, had tests done, was put on medication, and then was able to row all of sophomore year). Medication worked for a while until an episode in grad school (working out at the gym) that sent me to the emergency room with a heartbeat of over 200 bpm. This prompted my doctor's urging that I finally did something surgical to fix the issue. So in 1997 I had a catheter ablation to get rid of the extra pathway. Since then I've been episode-free. I'm not sure if WPW can come back after that, but I certainly hope not, especially not now!

Is it catching? One thing that I will be interested in finding out is if I have passed on this wonderful cardiac quirk to my wee little babe. Though it doesn't look like I acquired the trait through heredity, it does have a genetic component and I could pass it on myself. Since our trisomy results at the NT screen were so good, we opted out of the CVS and amnio, and didn't feel the necessity to go through those tests just to find out whether the WPW gene was present. We can test for it after birth, which I think we will. And while I don't wish WPW on anyone, at least, if my baby has it, it's something Momma has spent her lifetime dealing with, so hopefully it won't freak me out too much to see it happening. LOL, yeah, not. It's one thing to go through something yourself, entirely another to watch someone else suffer (witness my anxiety over DH's hernia surgery Friday -- which went super well, by the way). Guess I should talk to my Momma, and see how she felt!

Thanksgiving success

Yesterday DH and I went to his father's for dinner. For me, it was no ordinary Thanksgiving, as DH's dad had invited my parents too... all four of them. The only other time my mother, father, stepmother and stepfather had ever successfully spent an extended time all together was at our wedding seven months ago, and while I'd been delighted then beyond belief, I never imagined there would be a repeat performance.

In all, we had a table set for 14: me and DH, DH's dad and stepmother, my mom and stepfather, my father and stepmother, DH's paternal grandparents, my two sisters, DH's sister, and DH's stepsister. Lost yet?

We ate lots, watched football (yay Pats!) and got along great. I'm so proud of my parents; they're finally all growed up!

And I have to say, there's something to be said for being pregnant when you're family is together and everyone's psyched about it. While I felt like one of the hosts, and wanted to make sure that my side of the family was comfortable and settled in well after they arrived, very soon it seemed that everyone was making sure I was comfortable. I didn't have to take a "No, thank you" helping if I didn't want one, and no one was offended if I didn't finish everything on my plate (or if later I wanted seconds, or thirds). I could sit on the couch, put my feet up, and people brought me pillows. Everyone kept asking if I was feeling okay. Yes, I'll admit, I basked in the attention. Looks like my Pregnancy Rewards card is starting to pay dividends.

I had been wary of how the day would go; it would be a really long day (3 hour drive each way) and I didn't know which foods my tummy would tolerate and which it wouldn't. So it was great, and very helpful, to be reminded to pace myself and rest, especially, since I was so excited to see everyone, I felt at times I wanted to be in several places or conversations at once.

Overall, I did pretty well yesterday. I think my first trimester "sickness" symptoms are starting to wear off. I had to eat something substantial every couple of hours (had oatmeal in the morning when we got up, then a BK Croissan'wich while on the way there, then hors d'oeuvres, dinner, dessert, a turkey-and-cranberry sauce-on-toast sandwich just before we left, and a granola bar on the way home). I was glad to have managed to slip two "pigs in blankets" past my pregnancy radar before remembering they were mini hot dogs and therefore contraband -- oops, but yumma! I started to feel tired and a little headachy on the way home, but I was amazed to not feel too ill even though it was way past my bedtime. A Thanksgiving well played!

The best thing of all was getting to spend the holiday with my family (all parts of it, old and new, and all at once -- well, almost; DH's mom was with his other sisters several states away), and to have something wonderful to be thankful for and celebrate with them. It was a truly joyful day, and I am beyond grateful for it.

My bump has a name

Yes, that's right. My sister texted me a few weeks ago and asked if I had a bump yet, but she typed "yet" as "yetttt" (in Textese) and it got auto-corrected on her iPhone as Gertrude (???), so the text read "Do you have a bump Gertrude"... so from then on that's what we started to call it.

So, now it is my pleasure to introduce to you Gertrude the Bump, making her internet debut at 13 weeks!

PS. I can pretty much hide my bump under baggy sweaters, and can still button my coat, so it will be a while before I can really use it as a Pregnancy Rewards card.

Aunt Wars (or, the SciFi post)

I spilled the news to my sisters last weekend. They'd insisted (long ago) that whenever I got pregnant I had to tell them both at the same time. So, considering they are currently living on opposite sides of the country, the best I could do was see one in person and get the other on speakerphone. I'm surprised that I managed to pull it off without either getting a clue ahead of time. I haz mad skillz. :D

But within minutes of having absorbed the news (that is, after the screaming and general pandemonium died down - my ear drums are still recovering), they were already at it, competing with each other over who would be "The Coolest Aunt." It was fun to witness. And the sister I was visiting last weekend became instantly over-protective of me, getting chairs for me while waiting in line, holding me back from crossing the street before she checked for oncoming cars. While unnecessary (I've got a while before I start showing, I think, and I haven't been feeling too tired... yet), it was truly heartwarming to see my baby sister looking out for me.

As for the Aunt Wars, I say, bring 'em on. I figure I won't have to worry about spoiling this kid* (I think there's only one in here)... what with six aunts and seven grandparents (and don't get me started trying to count the numerous "greats"-- -aunts, -uncles, and -grandparents, etc.), they'll all probably have it covered.

But I did ask that they hold off a little bit before they start going crazy. Let's make sure this little one is in there first! 8-week ultrasound is still two and a half weeks away (October 18). Can't wait!

*At this point, though (5w4d), this "kid" supposedly looks more like a sentient jelly fish, so if my sisters want to war over this wee alien life form inside of me, more power to them. Call me Ripley.

A Cycle of Life

So, I had been all excited to come back from the trip to MIL's with a report of our success in the "taking advantage of my fertile window this cycle" department, but that's not the only (and by far the lesser) news of this past week.

As I mentioned in a previous post, DH and I went to visit his mom and his grandparents over the long holiday weekend. Officially, we'd gone down to celebrate Papa's Labor Day birthday, like we had last year. Unofficially, or rather, unbeknownst to Grandma, we were coming down to spend some special time with her, because she'd not been doing well at all. Her lung cancer had resurfaced, and she had entered a Hospice program, which signaled to us that time was short. Ever the stalwart, Grandma didn't want anybody to know, but Papa told us anyway.

We arrived late Friday night, and on Saturday and Sunday nights, DH, MIL, SIL (who made the trip down as well) and I went over to Grandma and Papa's for dinner. We brought everything for the meal: main course, salads, drinks, even down to the paper plates and cups that Papa refused to let us use. On Sunday night we added cake to the mix, and had an early birthday celebration for Papa, since SIL had to leave the next morning. It was a fun time, we chatted all evening and took pictures with Grandma in all possible familial combinations. We also helped her wrap her gift for Papa, a handsome green patterned tie, which she hadn't had a chance to wrap (since he was pretty much always with her). Then we said our good nights and went home. We left feeling somewhat relieved, as we grandkids had all expected Grandma to look like she was on death's door. Instead, she'd been pretty much her chipper, fiesty (and somewhat flirty) self.

So we were shocked when Papa called early the next morning saying that Grandma had died in her sleep.

The saddest thing is that she died on Papa's birthday, and they were due to celebrate their 66th wedding anniversary three days later. We made sure Papa opened the present we helped Grandma wrap the night before. It was a heart-wrenching moment when he realized who the present was from.

Luckily DH and I were able to switch our return flights, so we stayed an extra couple of days to help with the arrangements and to attend the funeral service on Wednesday.

DH and I have been together 8 years, though only married for four months now, so I've gotten to know his Grandma a bit. It was hard to see Grandma go, not the least because she is the fourth grandmother I have buried (my parents' parents are all deceased, and we lost one of my step-grandmothers earlier this year). It also was hard to see Papa look so lost without his life mate, which made me appreciate DH's presence in my life all the more. Amazing how the major events in the cycle of life reflect on each other; being born, growing up, finding a life mate, trying to conceive, raising a family, dying. They're all integral parts of one big whole.

R.I.P. Grandma S., we'll miss you.