34 Week Update

8 1/2 months pregnant and trucking along.....

We had a great 34 week appointment with Dr Loh. The best news is that after finally finding and making an appointment with a Webster trained chiropractor and then trying some inversion exercises on Spinning Babies, tuesday night Smudge flipped! We now have a head down, LOA baby!! I know at 34 weeks, anything can still happen - but I'm just so happy right now. I made Dr Loh pull out the u/s to prove to me that the baby was head down. It was awesome. We didn't get more than a peak at Smudge's skull - but it was in the right spot and that's all that matters.

Mr DB keeps laughing at me now... especially when Smudge has a foot in my ribs, which has pretty much been consistent since s/he flipped. My favorites are when I have a foot in my rib and a hand on my cervix at the same time. SO comfortable. He says that Smudge is saying, "how do you like me, NOW, Momma?" Eh - i wanted the flip - so I'm not going to complain. I am, however, going to keep trying to move this foot!

Other good news from the OB's office... at 34 weeks I've gained a total of 17 pounds. At 32 weeks, it was 16. If I can keep this up - i might actually be able to stay at my goal of 20-25 pounds for the pregnancy, which would make me VERY happy.


Mr DB has been doing a great job in the nursery. He built a closet organizer last weekend:

ready for doors!

and hopefully after this weekend, the room will be done and ready for furniture (which is coming next monday). We just ordered some decals for the walls, and I can't wait to start decorating. We have 3 pictures that match the bedding, decals that match the bedding and I found a dandelion decal that I just got permission to order as well - and we're going to get it in a light green called "celadon". At first Mr DB was anti-dandelion decal, saying it's too girly and what if Smudge is a boy. But I think he figured out pretty quickly that I really wanted it! Yay! We're going to put it up in the space to the right of the closet above the wainscoting and have the seeds blowing out up and over the closet to the left (you can order the decal with the seeds blowing in either direction).

we'll have the dandelion facing the other direction and the seeds blowing the other way

So - that's it for now... our next appointment is with the perinatologist next friday. Hopefully we'll get a good look at Smudge then. I can't wait to get a weight estimate.

I can't believe it's almost time to meet this baby that it took us so long to make!

34 weeks and counting down!

I think in my last post, Baby Hopeful Bud and I had been referred to a specialist because a sonogram had detected some fluid on her kidneys. Well we went to the specialist and the first thing he says after walking into the room is "looks like you are here because of fluid on the kidney and fluid on the right ventricle (brain)." WHAT?!!! Nothing was ever mentioned to me about fluid on the brain so of course I start crying. Mr. Hopeful Bud was so good and immediately grabbed my hand and told me everything would be okay. I laid down on the table and he started the sonogram. Luckily he went straight to the brain and we quickly ruled out any fluid build-up on the brain. I was over the moon! I don't know how I would have handled finding out that there was fluid there. I was all prepared for fluid on the kidneys, what that meant, what we could do after she was born, etc. Because I knew nothing of this new possibility, I was not prepared at all. Then he looked at the kidneys. The right one measured 5 mm - PERFECT. The left one measured 7 mm -- ABNORMAL. 7mm and above is considered abnormal, so she still has a little bit of fluid build-up in one kidney. The good news is, that her amniotic fluid level is great, so we know that her right kidney is functioning properly. The doctor said that fluid on the kidney is a slight indicator of Downs Syndrome, which I knew because I was prepared. However, he did all the measurements and checked all the markers such as an enlarged heart and unproportional shoulders and Baby HB had not markers for Downs. The doctor said the only 100% way of knowing would be to have an amniocentesis, which I very quickly denied. Now we just have to wait until week 36 for a follow-up Phase 2 sonogram. If her kidney is still enlarged then we will contact her pediatrician so that he can be made aware of her condition at birth. My hope and prayer is that the issue works it's self out, either between now and the next sonogram or while she is squeezing through the birth canal. Worst case scenario, and since it's only slightly abnormal I don't think this is the case, is that she has one functioning kidney. People live with one kidney every day.

Other happenings in the life of Baby HB -- we have had all of our showers, so I think we might be getting closer to being ready for her arrival. Tonight we have a BabyCare Basics class. Not sure what it all entails, but I'm sure Mr. HB and I will learn a lot. She is moving so much now that I am starting to get very uncomfortable. At one point last week I was like "get this baby out of me I'm in so much pain", but I quickly took that back since she needs to "bake" a few more weeks. My EDD is in 6 weeks, but I have a feeling she will not be waiting that long. My Braxton Hicks contractions are getting more frequent and uncomfortable. Baby HB has to be running out of room as every time she moves even slightly it hurts me. She has started either punching with her fist or head my cervix, which let me tell you doesn't feel so wonderfully. Oh and she gets the hiccups at least five times a day.

As much as I complain, I love being pregnant and I know I will miss her being in my belly after she is born. Plus after she is born, I won't be able to use getting an ice cream cone from DQ as an excuse to cure my terrible heartburn.

I hope this post finds you all well and happy.
Stay hopeful!

The 2WW with AVATAR...

So our first IUI was last Saturday and we are currently in the 2WW. I have gotten through the first half of this wait with no problem at all. On Wednesday I discussed my RPL results with my RE Dr. B and in addition to the small amount of Annexin V antibodies I have, I also have one copy (Heterozygous) of MTHFR C677T (Women with this gene mutation have difficulty absorbing folic acid). Dr. B informed me that I have the less serious gene mutation of MTHFR because I only have one copy as opposed to 2, and he currently has me on metformin, baby aspirin and predisone. Nevertheless I met with Dr. W, a Perinatologist this past Thursday to discuss Dr. B's RPL findings and he agreed to see me once I get a BFP because of my PCOS, Heterozygous MTHFR and Annexin V antibodies. So while PG I would see Dr. W and my OB/GYN Dr. R. I am going to ask Dr. W and/or Dr. R to put me on Neevo, a pre-natal vitamin for women with MTHFR, older OB patients and women with high risk pregnancies.

Last night Mr. Blessed Bud and I had a great time! We went to see James Cameron's AVATAR in 3-D and it was truly amazing. I loved the story and the special effects/digital animation were insane! Mr. Blessed Bud and I were still talking about the film this morning and hoping James Cameron will make a sequel.

Photography Credit

Our beta is December 28 so God willing we will have a happy belated Christmas gift...