Today's news

We went to C'ville again today to meet Mandy for a Doctor's appointment.

Mandy is still having some contractions, but said that they seemed to be letting up some and that she had been able to sleep finally. So that is good news. The doctor measured her belly and checked the heart rate, both looked good. Mandy mostly wanted to know what he thought about things (he hadn't been on call while she was in the hospital) and he said the following...
1) It is best if the baby isn't born before 34 weeks (we will be there on Friday) for the lung development, but that the two steroid shots will have helped her develop by as early as today so if she is born we shouldn't worry.
2) We are hoping that she will stay in utero until 37 weeks. That is considered full term.
If she is born earlier than that, she will likely have to stay in the NICU for a while to make sure she is breathing well and that she is gaining weight. Often babies born before 37 weeks don't yet know how to suckle (she has already shown us that she knows how to do so by sucking on her wrist during the last ultra sound, so hopefully that won't be the case for us). We will be checking into hospital rooms for adoptive parents and area hotels that might have hospital rates (thanks Mary for that bit of brilliant advice!)
3) Mandy is to stay on bed rest for the next few days. If she goes into labor before Friday, they will try to stop the contractions. After Friday, labor=delivery. Yikes and Yea!

Our doctor is great and when he answered questions about lung development and what will happen after the baby was born he addressed those answers to me, so it is nice that he gets what is going on with the adoption process.

The other AMAZING thing that happened is that Mandy introduced me to the Doctor and nurse as "The Mom". I held it together when she said it, but inside I was doing cartwheels and screaming! Sitting her typing it makes me teary eyed. I'm going to be a mom! And Mandy saying it makes the adoption look all the more likely to go through. We watched Juno, the movie, last night and I think if anyone wants to know how awkward adoptive parents feel when around their birthmom, that movie shows it pretty well. It also made me start thinking about what Mandy will be going through after the birth. It was also just a funny and well done film. I give it a thumbs up. Somehow, I don't think Baby Mama will be as insightful.

We will head to C'ville again on Monday for the Doc to check out her cervix and whatnot...that is unless she goes in before then...if she is staying consistent at 1 centimeter and the contractions have stopped, she has told me to go to Louisville for the AP reading thing. I think she figures she is sitting around waiting so I should keep busy. I am playing it by ear and waiting to see what we learn and how I feel at that point. If we get the house together by then and get all of the basics (that we realize we don't yet have now that things are looking more real) I will consider it. It is only 2 3/4 hours drive from C'ville and I can just pick up and leave if I need to. We shall see...probably I will be even less sure of things, so likely I will stay close and keep preparing for the new kid.

That is what we know right now!