I realize that I said a little of how my doctor's appointment went in my 24 week update, but not all of it. So I thought I'd blog again this morning and give you all the stats, for those of you who are numbers people like me. ;)
My weight on the scale at the doctor's office is always different from home because I'm dressed there. I know that I'm up 9 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight at home. I don't think that's gone up too much since I saw the doctor a month ago. This was a pleasant surprise!! He also said my weight was "great", which made me happy. I feel like I'm gaining too much too fast, but I suppose every pregnancy is different, and I'm still in the healthy range, just gaining differently than I did in my pregnancy with Avery.
Sidenote: I'm glad that my babies are close together, so that I can still remember a few details from my pregnancy with Avery to compare things to this pregnancy. I also journaled and blogged when I was pregnant with Avery, so I've got a good written account of how things were going and what all happened. :)
My blood pressure was good 120/75 (I think that's the right order). I've never had any trouble with my blood pressure before. I think the one time I've seen it up kind of high was when I went to the Birthcare Center a week before Avery was born, thinking it was time. I think I was nervous and excited and that's what put my pressure higher. Other than that, my blood pressure has always been good and healthy.
Connor's heartrate was 135 bpm during the appointment. He was also kicking the doppler while the nurse was getting his heartrate. I'm not sure if she noticed, she didn't say anything, but I could definitely feel it! :P He's been so much more active lately! Or maybe it's not him being more active, it's him growing and me just feeling him better. :)
Speaking of Connor's activity, he LOVED Date Night and going to see a movie! I don't know what he liked most, the cheesy fries, the Pepsi, or the loud movie, but he bounced all throughout the movie! It was so fun! Michael has been feeling him move a lot lately, which is awesome! Beth and Alia have also felt him kick. They each only felt 1 or 2 kicks, so I'm sure there's more in store for them! ;) He's still got LOTS of growing to do!
Back to my doctor's appointment... My doctor finally arrived and we talked about a few things. I asked about my Rhogam shot and my glucose test. We scheduled both for my next appointment. My doctor is very happy with the way things are progressing. I'm measuring right on time and although originally we were thinking that Connor might come as late at the 16th of May (based on my ovulation dates), he's growing big and fast enough that I think he'll be here right around his due date (May 9th), give or take a few days. :)
For those who don't know, I get a Rhogam shot because my blood type is A-. Any woman with a negative blood type has to get 1 or 2 Rhogam shot during/after their pregnancy. This is because, if my baby has a positive blood type and our blood somehow mixed, my body could see the baby as some sort of virus or infection and fight off or ultimately kill the baby. You get one Rhogam shot while you're pregnant, then, depending on the baby's blood type, you might get another one after you deliver. I was fortunate the first time around (not that I really care about shots, they don't bother me) because Avery has A- blood too! So I didn't need a shot after delivery. If she had had a positive blood type, I would have gotten a second shot. This shot helps keep future pregnancies safe and keeps your body from fighting off the baby. Since we don't know Connor's blood type yet, I get my Rhogam shot at my next appointment in 3 weeks, and then after he's born I may get one more, depending on his blood type.
The glucose test checks for gestational diabetes. You drink this super sugary drink, then wait an hour, then have your blood drawn to see how you body processes the sugar. Some women get diabetes while they're pregnant, thus this test is done. I worried, but was not said to be at risk when I was pregnant with Avery. Diabetes runs in my dad's family, so it's something I imagine I'll be a little worried about this time around too, but everything else has been going well, so I'll continue to think positive thoughts and hope for the best. :)
That's about all that happened during our doctor's appointment. Fairly uneventful. Our next appointment is February 12th. We'll be in the 3rd trimest by then! :D Yay!!!!! I am sooo looking forward to meeting Connor!!!
Ok, onto my random thoughts, first, about labor and delivery. One thing I asked my doctor at our appointment was if I could go to the Birthcare Center for my delivery. Things went very well at the hospital, but I'd like to have one birth at the Birthcare Center if possible. My doctor said that my platelets would need to stay above 100,000 to go to there. During Avery's pregnancy they hovered low, but didn't drop below (and only by 2,000 when they did drop) until the very end. I'm hopeful that when my blood work comes back after my glucose test, that my platelets are higher or at least not dropping. 134,000 is my starting line for this pregnancy.
I had an epidural with Avery, and have every intention of having one again. ;) The contractions hurt waaaaaaay too much for me to have any desire to have a natural birth. Call me a wimp is you want, but you don't get a trophy for doing in naturally, and I'd rather not put myself through that if I don't have to. That part of my birth plan will not change. Apparently some anesthesiologists won't give you an epidural if your platelets are below 100,000. Pretty sure mine were lower than that with Avery. So INCREDIBLY thankful that they went ahead and gave me one!!
Who knows if we'll be in labor during the day or night, so I'll pack like I'm going to be awake. I think I want a season of Big Bang and Gilmore Girls, along with a couple of movies (including the Rocky Horror Picture Show, because they music is so fun!). :) I'll also bring games like Settlers and a deck of cards (to play Pitch if we end up with a couple more people there at the Birthcare Center with us). Then, of course, we'll bring music. I prefered fast stuff when I was giving birth to Avery and she was born to Aerosmith's "Love in an Elevator", which made the doctors and nurses laugh. I'll update my playlist again for this time around. We'll see what I'm in the mood for this time around. ;)
When we were in the hospital with Avery, I rushed us out, eager to get home and watch the KU-KSU football game. I won't rush us out this time around. I didn't let myself enjoy being cared for by nurses and given time to recover. I was anxious to get home and then it was left to Michael to care for me. This time, we'll spend more time in the Birthcare Center being waited on and getting to know Connor before we head home and do everything ourselves. :)
I would love to have many friends and family at the Birthcare Center with us to meet Connor the day he's born. We loved having visitors and showing off Avery when she arrived. Also, whoever is there when Connor arrives, will probably be in the pictures that Courtney takes, which will be wonderful! :) After he's born and we're ready to have visitors, the first person who will get to come see him will be Avery. Michael will go out to the waiting room and tell everyone that he's here, grab Avery, and bring her back to the room. Then, after we've had a few minutes to introduce the two of them, we'll let the rest of the family come and meet our little guy. :) I hope we'll have lots of people there with us! Like I said, we really enjoyed our visitors last time!
Before Connor gets here, I'll make plans for how to feed our family when he gets here. I haven't wanted to cook much since I've been pregnant, but ocassionally I do. I'll have to capitalize on those moments and get together my freezer meals. Between freezer meals and meals from friends and family, we survived a good long time after Avery's birth without either of us having to do much to prepare food. That was a huge blessing! So if you have some favorit freezer recipes, please pass them on! I will need them! I'm so thankful that my parents bought us a deep freeze for Christmas!! I will make storing food sooooo much easier!! Our freezer in the kitchen is kind of small, so the deep freeze will be perfect for stocking up on freezer food!
So I've always heard the etiquette says that you are only supposed to have a baby shower for the first baby. If you do have a party for subsequent pregnancies they are supposed to be low key, informal affairs, without gifts, or with only diapers. As many of you know, we use cloth diapers, so we don't really need a diaper shower. ;) The two reasons I've seen for having a second big blowout shower are if you're having the other gender or if there is a big age gap between your children and you've gotten rid of your baby gear. Obviously, the later does not apply to us. When Connor gets here, Avery will only be 19 months old, so we'll have plenty of baby stuff still for him to use. However, we are having a little boy this time around... And while I did a LOT of gender neutral stuff when we were pregnant with Avery (for this exact reason) there are a few things that I need for a little boy. :)
Alia, my assistant manager at work, wants to throw me a baby shower for Connor. :) She wasn't at our store when Avery was born, so she wants to be a part of a shower and to play baby shower games. :) I feel so special that she and the other girls at work want to do this for me. They are all so sweet! I work with a great group of girls! No word yet on any actual plans for the shower (I'm still not due for 4 more months!), but I'm looking forward to an opportunity to celebrate Connor's upcoming arrival! :)
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