Week 39: Baby Gear Mania!

I am feeling better but still pretty tired from the virus and lack of sleep, so I'll try to keep this week's update short (yeah right, when does that ever happen? :P). I am officially one week away from my due date, but perhaps even more scary and exciting is the fact that I'm now no more than 10 days away from going into labor! That's right, at my appointment on Tuesday, my doctor set my induction date for Sunday, November 8th at 7:30 pm in order to accommodate my mom's and AC's schedules. If my cervix is ready, they may even start the Pitocin that night. If not, they'll give me a cervical ripening agent overnight and start Pitocin in the morning. Either way, Ziggy will most likely be born on November 9 (unless of course he decides to come early or on time, but I have a feeling he wont)! So next week I'll have my last OB appointment and non-stress test before the big day (by the way, this week's non-stress test was fine as usual). My MFM will be back from his vacation then and will check my cervix, so we'll see if there's any more progress.

There's been a lot more progress on the baby gear front, that's for sure! My mother suddenly panicked and decided we needed to buy a whole bunch of stuff for the baby, so we went to this nearby baby store and got some good advice on baby gear. We ended up buying a large brown Glamourmom Nursing Bra Long Tank for me to wear at the hospital and until after my milk comes in and I can get fitted for some nursing bras. The saleswoman who assisted us recommended tanks over bras, so if I like the tank option, I may just buy some more and forego the bra option. We also bought a 12 pack of Gerber prefold birdseye 3-ply cloth diapers for use as burp cloths, a Natursutten 100% Natural Rubber Pacifier for 3-6 Mos, a pack of 200 4 ply non woven sponges for use as disposable wipes, Grippees Wash Mitts That Grip! for bathing a slippery, squirmy baby, and a chocolate brown Halo swaddle sleep sack for newborns. We were going to buy a combo bassinet and stroller, but they were sold out of the color we wanted, so we ended up ordering them online. I'm now the proud owner of the super chic Orbit Baby Bassinet Cradle and Toddler Stroller in mocha (the bassinet clips onto the stroller for the early months and then you transition to using the toddler seat)! Apparently a lot of celebrities own this bassinet and stroller. So, yes, this was ridiculously expensive but my mom purchased it for me and hopefully it will work well and last a while (maybe even for kid number 2!).

I also ordered a Naturopedic Organic Cotton Contoured Changing Pad, which we placed on top of an old dresser of my mom's which happened to be the perfect height to use as a changing table. This week I also washed, dried, and folded all of baby's used, hand-me-down clothes and cloth diapers and inserts and put them away in the dresser drawers for easy diapering and changing access. I'm planning on holding off on washing some of the newer clothes items in case we end up not needing them. I also ordered some stuff from Diapers.com (my new favorite website), some of which I may end up returning (they offer free returns on unopened or defective merchandise for 30 days): Kushies Flushable Biodegradable Diaper Liners (for use with diaper rash cream, since otherwise the cream can stain the Fuzzi Bunz cloth diapers and affect their absorbency), bumGenius Microfiber Diaper Inserts (because you can never have too many inserts for your cloth diapers), Kushies Washable Diaper Liners, and bumGenius Reusable Baby Wipes (I may return these last two items since I just discovered that Fuzzi Bunz diapers shouldn't be washed with cotton wipes or liners, and it doesn't seem worth it to me to have to do a separate load for those things).

I also finally had the car seat installed by the car seat techs over at the hospital (they offer free car seat installation) and washed the infant bath tub and portable diaper changing pad from my cousin. I also ordered some other stuff online, which has yet to arrive, so I'll post about all of that later once it gets here. Right now I feel like I am trying to find a balance between being as ready as I can for baby (and having everything I need or that will make my life easier so that I can just focus on the baby when he comes) and not purchasing too many extraneous, unnecessary items that will go unused and just create clutter. It's a tough life I tell you! :)

The Highs and Lows of Week 38

On Monday I picked up my cousin's bassinet from the friend she lent it to and was so excited to finally have one more major thing checked off my to do list. Unfortunately it turns out the bassinet was recalled in 2001 (it was made in 1997 so it's pretty old, which in and of itself makes me nervous), so I've decided not to use it. It was a cheap, rather flimsy Fisher Price one that I had some misgivings about when I first laid eyes on it. So now it's back to square one with regard to the baby bed. I've been checking Craigslist, but now I'm not so sure I want to go with a used one after all. I have a feeling I'm going to end up ordering something brand new for my piece of mind. Right now the whole issue is stressing me out though since I know that Ziggy could technically come at any time, and I want to have everything more or less ready.

On Tuesday I had my weekly appointment and non-stress test, and the good news is that everything looks great with baby. My blood pressure was slightly higher than usual at my appointment, but as I have no other symptoms of Pre-eclampsia at this time (other than some swelling, which is pretty normal at this stage of pregnancy), the doctor didn't seem too concerned. Plus, my blood pressure was normal when the nurse measured it after the non-stress test, so I'm hoping it was just a fluke. Apparently, women with IVF pregnancies do have a slightly higher risk of developing Pre-eclampsia, although I don't know the reason for this. I asked the doctor if it would be possible for me to get a private room at the hospital based on the fact that I'm colonized with pseudomonas and probably no one wants to share a room with someone who coughs and blows their nose as much as I do, especially when they have a newborn and it's flu season. She seemed to think that was a legitimate concern and said she'd look into it. It turns out that our family friend, who is a pediatrician and works as a liaison with the hospital, is also working on getting me a private room, which would be so nice!

By the way, the H1N1 flu vaccine still isn't available yet, but hopefully next week I can finally get it. I am really starting to get paranoid about going out in public, especially in large crowds, and am increasingly aware of everyone coughing and sniffling around me. I am sure there are people who must assume that I'm sick when they hear me coughing (in fact, the nurse who performed my non-stress test kept asking me about my cough), but in fact they are really more of a danger to me than I am to them (unless they're immunocompromised or something, but then pretty much anyone would be a danger to them).

After reading this story from the Science section of the New York Times this past Tuesday, I am even more apprehensive about the flu season ahead and also angry at people who insist that the flu vaccine is dangerous and should be avoided at all costs, especially when they have no medical expertise or training (yes, Bill Maher, I'm talking to you). I'm not saying there are absolutely no risks to the flu vaccine or any vaccine for that matter, but as with any medical treatment, the risk-benefit ratio needs to be considered, and I think it's pretty clear that for someone like me, who has not one but two risk factors for the swine flu (being pregnant and having Kartagener's Syndrome), the enormous benefits clearly outweigh any potential risks.

By the way, it turns out that my cousin, the one who lent me all the baby stuff and is a homeopath, is anti-vaccine (she didn't have her daughter vaccinated) and told my grandparents not to get either the regular flu vaccine or the H1N1 vaccine. She said she'll give them a homeopathic remedy against the flu instead. Riiiggghhhttt. Anyway, I don't appreciate her advice, especially since my grandparents are going to be around MY baby and not hers. Why can't people just keep their wacky views and beliefs to themselves? I don't go around insisting that others get vaccinated (I think people have the right to decide for themselves), but please extend me and others the same courtesy and let us make up our own minds. By the way I'm pleased to say that my grandmother, a doctor herself, didn't buy my cousin's talk about the homeopathic remedy, and even my grandfather, who is normally into alternative medicine, didn't want to try it but said that maybe my dad could use her remedy, since the vaccine isn't recommended for people like him who have had Guillaun-Barre Syndrome. Anyway, as you can probably tell, this issue pushes my buttons, so I should probably stop obsessing about it (after all, it can't be good for my blood pressure, right?). In general I've been feeling more irritable this week and more annoyed by certain things, like the constant construction work our neighbors are doing to their condo. It almost feels like PMS. I wonder if some hormonal shift is taking place inside me.

This past week I've also been stressing about when labor will begin, not because I'm so eager to have Ziggy arrive (I still feel like I could easily be pregnant for a little while longer and there's still so much left to do to get ready) but because I'm worried that AC wont make it in time since he has to fly here from Albuquerque. I asked the doctor when we would know for sure that I was in real labor and it was safe for AC to get on a plane (a false alarm probably wouldn't go down too well with the military folks), and she referred to the 5-1-1 rule. But she cautioned that if I had a speedy labor, there's a chance he might miss it altogether if he waits that long to hop on a flight. She did say that I could go into labor and delivery earlier than 511 to have them assess my progress and determine if I'm going into labor or will go into labor in the next day or two. But she added that the safest thing would be to have him fly here on or around the due date and stay with me during the week after so he'll already be here when it happens. Obviously that would be ideal, but I really don't see the Air Force giving him all that time off.

She also didn't seem to think it was necessary to induce me so early and said their usual policy is to wait until 41 weeks before deciding to induce. She did say that I could basically choose which day to induce if it comes to that, which makes me feel a little better. One problem is that my mom will be away at a conference from November 11-15. I'll be 41 weeks as of November 12, but I'd really like my mom to be here for the labor. I also really don't want to end up alone during those four days she's gone, either with or without the baby. AC may only get 7 days of paternity leave (originally it was 10-12 days, but now they're saying 7). So I've calculated that the ideal time for Ziggy to arrive is November 9 or 10--that way my mom will definitely be here for the birth and AC will definitely be with me while she's gone. Now if only there was some way to convince the little guy to come then. I know I'm probably obsessing about this way too much, but our unusual circumstances do make things a bit more complicated.

Now for the fun part: more baby gear! I found a great deal on Craigslist for more Fuzzi Bunz diapers--$200 for a lot of 38 diapers (36 small, 1 x-small, and 1 medium) that came with inserts and 2 wet bags (bags you carry with you to store the dirty diapers in when you're out and about and then wash with the diapers). Only three of them were obviously "girl colors" (pinky peach, lavender, and hot pink). They seem to be in really good condition overall. A few of the inserts have some urine stains, which I cam currently trying to sun out on the porch. Of the Fuzzi Bunz, I now have a total of 9 x-small diapers, 37 small, and 1 medium, not to mention the 3 AIO diapers. So I am practically swimming in cloth diapers now and really don't need to buy anymore until he outgrows the small size. But the great part is I wont have to do laundry as often, which will make my life a lot easier.

A family friend of AC's whom I've never met unexpectedly sent a box of baby items, which included a pillow, a cute bear hat, a pullover bib for 6-24 months, an adorable Classic Pooh two piece pants set for 0-3 months, and best of all, a hand-knit white and baby blue afghan and royal blue baby cape with hood. It is hard to believe she made them herself, they look so professionally done!

I also bought some 7th Generation Baby Natural Laundry Detergent, cotton swabs, cotton balls, cotton pads, 2 organic bamboo washcloths for baby, Earth Mama Angel Baby brand Angel Baby Shampoo & Body Wash and Angel Baby Lotion. So I am slowly and surely accumulating what I need. I plan to spend most of tomorrow doing some serious shopping, which is partly why I decided to post this week's summary early. Plus I plan on doing something a little different this week for my official 38 week post. Have I peaked anyone's interest (probably not, but that's ok--don't want anyone to get too excited in case I forget to post :) ? Until tomorrow, then...

Weekly Update

I promised to update more about this past week, so here goes...Before my appointment with my pulmonologist last Friday, I first had a short spirometry, which showed that my pulmonary function continues to improve! My doctor listened to my lungs and thought I sounded great. I left a sputum sample for culture, so we'll see if the MAC is still present, but either way he doesn't recommend treating it while breastfeeding. He looked in my ears and sinuses and agreed that they didn't look too good, especially the left side, so I made an appointment with my old ENT (the one who did my sinus surgery back in 2001 and who amazingly accepts my crappy military insurance even though he's kind of a big shot) for Thursday (yesterday).

At that appointment, first this other younger doctor looked at my ears and sinuses and suctioned out quite a bit from my nose, both for culture purposes and for my own relief! It felt great and I could actually smell for the first time in ages, although some of the smells that hit my nose later in the day were not so pleasant (chemical cleaning products in a public restroom, the garbage room at my mom's condominium complex). As for my ears, both tubes have fallen out of my right ear, but the hole remains open. My left ear still has two tubes, but they appeared blocked, so my doctor gave me some samples of Ciprodex. The neat thing about his office is that you get to wear these glasses that allow you to watch along with the doctor as he's looking at your nose and ears (gross but also very cool!). He also recommended increasing my nasal sprays (Astelin and Nasonex) from once to twice a day and using a couple of drops of baby shampoo in my saline rinse (sounds strange, but it's supposed to help thin really thick secretions like I have). But he said he didn't want to do anything more rigorous until after the baby's born, so I'll go back at the end of November for a follow-up, when hopefully things will have improved due to the decrease in hormones. I'm also seeing my pulmonologist again at the beginning of December. So basically the consensus is that pregnancy has been good for my lungs but not for my ears and sinuses, but hey, it would be a lot worse if it was the other way around!

I also had my weekly OB appointment with the MFM fellow since my doctor is out of town. Nothing much to report there other than that my Group B strep test came back negative and everything else continues to look good. I asked her a few questions about what to do when I go into labor and what to expect if I need to be induced. This is what she told me. I should call or go directly to labor and delivery when my contractions are coming every 5 minutes, lasting for 1 minute, and this pattern continues for an hour (the 511 rule I learned about in my prenatal classes). Other reasons to call would be if my water breaks or I think it's broken, if I have severe abdominal pain that doesn't go away, if I have any bleeding, or if there's anything else I'm concerned about or that seems out of the ordinary. They will only check my cervix if I have any symptoms of labor, if I ask to have it checked, or once I reach 40 weeks. If I have not gone into labor by 40 weeks and especially if I show no signs of going into labor, they will start talking about induction, which it turns out can take place at any time, day or night, weekday or weekend, although they usually prefer to do them in the morning on a weekday. If my cervix is not ready, they will admit me to the hospital the night before the induction and administer a cervical ripening agent. Then in the morning they would start the pitocin. I also asked her when it would be safe to try some natural methods of stimulating labor, such as acupressure points, and she recommended no earlier than 39 weeks. I had my NST after the appointment, which showed that baby is doing very well and I'm not having any contractions. I also submitted my preadmission paperwork at the hospital, so that's one less thing to take care of.

In more exciting news, the accumulation of baby gear continues. My mother's psychiatrist gave/lent me the following baby books: What to Expect the First Year, Your Baby & Child From Birth to Age Five, and The Baby Book: Everything You Need to Know About Your Baby -- From Birth to Age Two. I think I'm pretty set on reading material for the hospital and for these first few months, if I even have time to read anything once Ziggy arrives!

Then on Wednesday I went over to my cousin's house for dinner and, after she put her daughter to bed, we went down to the garage and rummaged around for some baby items. This is the haul I ended up with: a diaper changing pad, 3 receiving blankets, a pair of baby socks, 5 warmer all-in-one suits for baby for colder weather (luckily almost all of her daughter's clothes are gender-neutral or even "boy-colored"), baby Avalon Organics Soothing Zinc Diaper Balm and Protective A, D, & E Ointment, Lansinoh Brand Lanolin For Breastfeeding Mothers, 3 sets of used cloth breast pads and a bunch of disposable ones as well, a Medela Harmony Breastpump (a manual breast pump for occasional use), a book entitled Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, and a Diaper Genie diaper pail. The main thing she couldn't find was the bassinet, so she's planning on contacting a friend whom she thinks she lent it to.

Anyway, that's all for now. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Week 27: Welcome to the Third Trimester!

How far along? 27 weeks!
Total weight gain/loss: As of week 25, up about 3.5 lbs since last 20 week OB visit, up about 6 lbs since 16 week OB visit, up about 14 lbs since 11 week OB visit, up about 18 lbs since November pre-pregnancy weight.
Maternity clothes? Yes, although I'm starting to outgrow some of them already (the fact that they used to belong to a 5 foot tall Asian woman makes me feel a little better about it though).
Stretch marks? No new ones yet.
Sleep: Overall, restless and unsatisfying. I sleep quite a bit (except for those occasional nights when I don't!) but can't seem to ever feel rested enough. I flip over from side to side all night long because if I lie on one side for too long, my hip starts to hurt, I get up to pee frequently, and I continue to have lots of really vivid and frequently disturbing dreams. I am tired most of the time, but still grateful that I can sleep at all.
Best moment this week: Feeling and seeing movement at around the level of my belly button, the highest up yet!
Movement: Yes, and lots of it, at least on some days. On other days, he's strangely quiet. There seem to be more rolls, turns, and subtle movements and fewer definite kicks and jabs. I guess it's starting to get cramped in there. The movement is sometimes still really low, but other times it's as high as my belly button area. There are also occasional bouts of hiccups.
Food cravings: None really. These days I just crave any food that wont give me a stomach ache and gas!
Gender: Still a boy, as far as I know :)
Labor Signs: No, don't think so, although sometimes my belly does get harder, so I think I may have experienced a few Braxton Hicks contractions.
Belly Button in or out? Top part is definitely out, while the bottom part is still sort of halfway in, although it really depends on the time of day (later in the day, it tends to stick out more).
What I miss: Not having such frequent stomach aches and gas, sleeping soundly and feeling well-rested, being able to do certain yoga poses.
What I am looking forward to: The next ultrasound (whenever that will be), meeting my new MFM in California, prenatal classes (first one is tonight!), having my mom and friends in California see me in my pregnant state, taking prenatal yoga classes and walking outside in the beautiful California weather, Ziggy's arrival!
Weekly Wisdom: Don't stress about pregnancy weight gain, eat small frequent meals, practice your Kegel exercises, get as much rest as you can, begin monitoring fetal movement through daily kick counts.
Milestones: This week marks the end of the second trimester and the beginning of the third! Ziggy's eyes will open this week or next, and by now he can supposedly start to identify my voice...awwwww. Ziggy's testicles are hopefully descending too. If Ziggy were born now, he would have an 85% chance of survival. Oh yeah, and my breasts started to leak colostrum!

Ahh, the joys of baby boys!

A mysterious package arrived in the mail yesterday from uncommon goods. AC and I were confused for a moment because neither of us had ordered anything online. But then I remembered that SH had sent me a stewardess tampon case once from uncommon goods, so I figured this must be from her. And it was! You'll never guess what was inside--two sets of Pee-pee Teepees (5 in each set)!

What are Pee-pee Teepees, you may very well ask? Well, they look like little elf hats, except they're not worn by elves; you put them on a baby boy's wee-wee (as uncommon goods calls it :) while you're changing him to prevent him from peeing on you! Cute, huh? I especially like the blue airplane print. By the way, they are machine washable and even come with their own miniature laundry bag so you don't end up losing the tiny things in the wash.

So, Ziggy's collection of baby paraphernalia continues to grow. Luckily so far all of it has been quite small so I should be able to easily take it with me to California. I'm planning on saving the shopping for bigger ticket items (like a car seat, some sort of bed for Ziggy, etc.) until I'm in California--no need to lug them with me across the country. In general, we are probably only going to buy the bare minimum for Ziggy until we're in Japan. With all the moving we're going to be doing (Little Rock to Palo Alto to Albuquerque to Okinawa), it just doesn't make sense to shop for an entire nursery right now. In general, I think our approach will be minimal. I honestly don't want to buy a ton of baby gear, and from what I've heard from other parents, it's not really necessary.

Ziggy's First Clothes and Other Free Baby Stuff

Last week I attended this program on base called "Bundles for Babies," which turned out be a great idea, since I came away with a ton of free stuff. Not only did I receive some useful information on pregnancy and childcare, but I also got a copy of "What to Expect When You're Expecting," two CD-ROMs on pregnancy, a DVD on infant care, a bunch of Gerber stuff (a 2 pack bootie set, 3 burp cloths, 2 bibs, 5 onesies, a 3 pack of zip-front tagless "sleep 'n plays" for 3-6 months, a 2 piece bath set consisting of a hooded towel and washcloth, a thermal receiving blanket, and 2 single pack fitted knit crib sheets) and a pair of adorable hand-knit booties made by a woman who asks for nothing in return but a picture of your baby when it's born (presumably wearing the booties I would think!). There were a lot of pink and blue booties to choose from, so I grabbed a green pair to be safe:



The free stuff doesn't end there! Last week AC's step-mother (who has been nothing but warm and generous towards me) sent a care package from Taiwan stuffed with maternity clothes, a baby carrier, jujubes/Chinese dates (I'm supposed to eat 5 a day), sun cakes and pineapple cakes for AC, and two adorable newborn outfits for 3 months (pink) and 6 months (blue). It's hard to believe Ziggy will be small enough to fit in either of these when s/he's born!



I realize we still have a lot of stuff to buy, but I am feeling a bit better knowing we have a reasonable start. Plus I am loving the maternity clothes--no more trying to squeeze myself into too small pants!