As of 11 am when I last spoke to Mandy everything was the same. Contractions still going. Mandy still at home. At this point, her plan is to wait until the appointment on Monday afternoon to see if anything is progressing. A nurse actually said, "maybe you are just one of those women who contract the whole time." That would not be fun for her so let' s hope that this is the start of something more. So until then, no news is no news. I promise to have someone log on and blog when things really start going if I can't do it myself.
In the mean time, the nursery is now painted white. Trim tomorrow, then dressers, then we are just waiting on the dots. Oh, and the windows...which Ken is now painting.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Mentally exhausted already
Happy Saturday to you all. I am waking up slowly today realizing that I do not like the kind of stresses we are under at the moment. Last night we were put "on call" for a couple of hours with a phone call from Deasree. She was taking Mandy to the hospital again with contractions that were 5 minutes apart for about an hour. Sounds like labor right? Two calls and 4 hours later they WERE going to give her a shot to stop them, and then WEREN'T going to give her a shot to stop them, and ultimately they didn't. I don't know what changed their minds, but the doctor had said that we wouldn't try to stop her after we made the 24 week mark yesterday. The challenge is that she hadn't dilated any more, so they sent her home, contractions and all. We went to bed, tired at 10 and expected a phone call in the night. Nothing doing. So, hopefully that means the contractions have abated some and that Mandy is able to rest. I will check in with her at a more appropriate time, but for now...I have to focus on other things. Yeah, right.
Amy is coming over today to help me paint the nursery ceiling, walls, and trim. The dots will come with the party in a couple of weeks. Ken will keep going on the windows in that room and the upstairs. I did just get smart and hired a man to come scrape, re-glaze, and repaint the rest of the windows in the house. We just don't have time to get to them this year, it is getting too hot and muggy, and they are looking REALLY BAD! This guy has done work for a couple of neighbors and their houses look great. Ahhhhh....help!
Amy is coming over today to help me paint the nursery ceiling, walls, and trim. The dots will come with the party in a couple of weeks. Ken will keep going on the windows in that room and the upstairs. I did just get smart and hired a man to come scrape, re-glaze, and repaint the rest of the windows in the house. We just don't have time to get to them this year, it is getting too hot and muggy, and they are looking REALLY BAD! This guy has done work for a couple of neighbors and their houses look great. Ahhhhh....help!
Friday, May 30, 2008
34 weeks today
We have made it to the mile stone of 34 weeks! This is good news for sure. We now can rest a little easier in terms of her development. Of course, by resting easy, I mean running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to get everything ready at home. We went out yesterday and picked up the basics we will need, so now we are at least a little bit ready. I set up the bassinet so she has a place to sleep until her room is fully ready. We also picked up the paints we need for the nursery and I made the plan for the polka dots. It should look amazing, if I do say so myself!
I checked in with Mandy last night and we had a long conversation that was pretty great. We both talked about expectations and desires and were really on the same page with everything. She let me know that her boys are pretty excited about the baby at this point and are hoping that they will get to see her from time to time. So we will definitely set up a plan for making that happen. She said that her sister is still having a hard time and doesn't think she wants to connect at this point with the baby. Hopefully she will loosen up once the baby is here and she sees how it all works. Mandy also said that she has a pair of vintage pooh bear socks that all of her kids have worn the first day. Ken and I have no objections to that, so we will be sure to take a lot of photos of that. She also said that her main hope is that we will be able to stay in the room with her for the first couple of days with the baby so that she can see us all interacting and then have a ceremony when we go home with the baby to include her in that. So I am thinking of things we can do and how we can make that special for her and us. We covered a lot of things and I hung up feeling really good about our situation.
Oh, and for those of you who were freaking me out about the mucus plug loss...yes it was at least part of the plug. My research has turned up a number of sites that say that women often lose all or part of the plug weeks before labor begins without any problems for the baby. Generally it comes out when dilation begins, which has happened. And it does suggest things are progressing. It just doesn't suggest when!
Off to set up the insurance change, get the car seat installed, and do a bunch of school work today. Here is a sneak peak at the polka dots. Wonky and kind of cellular. You get the idea.
I checked in with Mandy last night and we had a long conversation that was pretty great. We both talked about expectations and desires and were really on the same page with everything. She let me know that her boys are pretty excited about the baby at this point and are hoping that they will get to see her from time to time. So we will definitely set up a plan for making that happen. She said that her sister is still having a hard time and doesn't think she wants to connect at this point with the baby. Hopefully she will loosen up once the baby is here and she sees how it all works. Mandy also said that she has a pair of vintage pooh bear socks that all of her kids have worn the first day. Ken and I have no objections to that, so we will be sure to take a lot of photos of that. She also said that her main hope is that we will be able to stay in the room with her for the first couple of days with the baby so that she can see us all interacting and then have a ceremony when we go home with the baby to include her in that. So I am thinking of things we can do and how we can make that special for her and us. We covered a lot of things and I hung up feeling really good about our situation.
Oh, and for those of you who were freaking me out about the mucus plug loss...yes it was at least part of the plug. My research has turned up a number of sites that say that women often lose all or part of the plug weeks before labor begins without any problems for the baby. Generally it comes out when dilation begins, which has happened. And it does suggest things are progressing. It just doesn't suggest when!
Off to set up the insurance change, get the car seat installed, and do a bunch of school work today. Here is a sneak peak at the polka dots. Wonky and kind of cellular. You get the idea.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Papa doesn't get to name babies...
Dear Dad-
Thank you for the baby name book you sent us with your suggestions for names. I know that you are counting on Ken and I using your suggestions since Scott and Jess have nixed Otis Walter for their son. I also saw that you had highlighted Elvis and Eric the Red...frankly, I don't see why they are resisting.
We were skeptical at first, but have warmed to some of your better choices. I thought it would be good to let our friends know what we are considering so they can chime in. Remember to read them with Rowe at the end to get the full effect and let us know what you think!
Tatyana Tempestt (Two great 80's sitcom star references)
Willona Yvonne
Felicity Olivia
Tammy Winona (How very Nashvillian that would be)
Esmerelda Perle (crazy as it is, the longer I look at this one, the more I like it)
Fifi Trixibelle or Peaches Honeyblossom (or any combination of the above he says)
Florence Picabo or Florence Lucretia
Aurelia Ecaterina (I can't even pronounce the second name)
Svetlana Tatiana
Annika Rosie
Norma Polaris
Kiona Olympia (I am sure Keona would love it if we named the baby after her)
Amethyst Coral
Lucille Belle
Athena Flora
Cassandra Guinevere
Madison Melba (a strong standard with a toasty finish)
Bunny Leandra (my personal favorite!)
Thank you for the baby name book you sent us with your suggestions for names. I know that you are counting on Ken and I using your suggestions since Scott and Jess have nixed Otis Walter for their son. I also saw that you had highlighted Elvis and Eric the Red...frankly, I don't see why they are resisting.
We were skeptical at first, but have warmed to some of your better choices. I thought it would be good to let our friends know what we are considering so they can chime in. Remember to read them with Rowe at the end to get the full effect and let us know what you think!
Tatyana Tempestt (Two great 80's sitcom star references)
Willona Yvonne
Felicity Olivia
Tammy Winona (How very Nashvillian that would be)
Esmerelda Perle (crazy as it is, the longer I look at this one, the more I like it)
Fifi Trixibelle or Peaches Honeyblossom (or any combination of the above he says)
Florence Picabo or Florence Lucretia
Aurelia Ecaterina (I can't even pronounce the second name)
Svetlana Tatiana
Annika Rosie
Norma Polaris
Kiona Olympia (I am sure Keona would love it if we named the baby after her)
Amethyst Coral
Lucille Belle
Athena Flora
Cassandra Guinevere
Madison Melba (a strong standard with a toasty finish)
Bunny Leandra (my personal favorite!)
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!
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!
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
The waiting game...or the end of normalcy
Here we are...waiting.
After talking with a very drugged up Mandy around 3 during our picnic in Central Park, Julie encouraged me to pack up and head home. My split loyalties between job and home were clouding my thoughts and she finally put the right words together to snap me out of it! Fortunately, she was able to take me back to my room to pack my stuff up while I made flight arrangements and was able to catch a flight at 7:45. So I flew home from NYC cutting the class I was teaching short...well...short for me, Mel headed back this morning to take over for me. And you know me, now I am working through some major guilt for not finishing the class and for taking him away from his family again. (Though when we stopped by his place to do a hand off of class stuff, he said all the right supporting things and was laughing at me, so I know it is ok now! Yea Mel!) The emotion I am feeling more than guilt for making Mel go back is one of being completely paralyzed.
Today, we went to meet Mandy for the second steroid shot. She is pretty miserable at this point. During the day yesterday, a nurse told her that at the beginning, when Mandy checked in at the hospital, she could poke the baby's head and she would float back up into the belly. By the time they checked her out last night, no amount of poking would dislodge her from the birth canal. So, Mandy is walking very slowly, cringing a lot, and is still contracting at a rate of 3 per hour. If she gets back up to 4 an hour, she is supposed to go back into the hospital. At that point we are not sure if they will continue to try to stop them or if they will let her go. The nurse who gave her the shot couldn't really answer our question about how quickly the shot was effective in making the baby's lungs stronger. She kind of said it would be pretty fast, but wasn't really convincing or specific. Mandy just called a bit ago to let me know that she has made a doctor's appointment for tomorrow at 2:20 to get checked out. With the baby engaged I believe she is wondering about the progress of her cervix. So we will head back up there tomorrow.
When we came back after eating breakfast, I was so tired I took a nap (not normal for me at all!) and slept for 4 hours. Since waking up I have checked on Ken's progress, looked through a little mail, though I didn't do anything with it, and have pet the dogs. The list of things I need to be doing is endless and daunting and just too much for me this afternoon! The phone call from Mandy about her progress and the doctor's appointment is nudging me enough to update all of you and then to get the babies room cleaned so that we can paint the base coat and trim before the polka party...which may need to be moved up!
Next I will make lists...what to do...what to get...what to completely freak out about...
hopefully that one is short!
After talking with a very drugged up Mandy around 3 during our picnic in Central Park, Julie encouraged me to pack up and head home. My split loyalties between job and home were clouding my thoughts and she finally put the right words together to snap me out of it! Fortunately, she was able to take me back to my room to pack my stuff up while I made flight arrangements and was able to catch a flight at 7:45. So I flew home from NYC cutting the class I was teaching short...well...short for me, Mel headed back this morning to take over for me. And you know me, now I am working through some major guilt for not finishing the class and for taking him away from his family again. (Though when we stopped by his place to do a hand off of class stuff, he said all the right supporting things and was laughing at me, so I know it is ok now! Yea Mel!) The emotion I am feeling more than guilt for making Mel go back is one of being completely paralyzed.
Today, we went to meet Mandy for the second steroid shot. She is pretty miserable at this point. During the day yesterday, a nurse told her that at the beginning, when Mandy checked in at the hospital, she could poke the baby's head and she would float back up into the belly. By the time they checked her out last night, no amount of poking would dislodge her from the birth canal. So, Mandy is walking very slowly, cringing a lot, and is still contracting at a rate of 3 per hour. If she gets back up to 4 an hour, she is supposed to go back into the hospital. At that point we are not sure if they will continue to try to stop them or if they will let her go. The nurse who gave her the shot couldn't really answer our question about how quickly the shot was effective in making the baby's lungs stronger. She kind of said it would be pretty fast, but wasn't really convincing or specific. Mandy just called a bit ago to let me know that she has made a doctor's appointment for tomorrow at 2:20 to get checked out. With the baby engaged I believe she is wondering about the progress of her cervix. So we will head back up there tomorrow.
When we came back after eating breakfast, I was so tired I took a nap (not normal for me at all!) and slept for 4 hours. Since waking up I have checked on Ken's progress, looked through a little mail, though I didn't do anything with it, and have pet the dogs. The list of things I need to be doing is endless and daunting and just too much for me this afternoon! The phone call from Mandy about her progress and the doctor's appointment is nudging me enough to update all of you and then to get the babies room cleaned so that we can paint the base coat and trim before the polka party...which may need to be moved up!
Next I will make lists...what to do...what to get...what to completely freak out about...
hopefully that one is short!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Coney Island
I am behind...
Since Ken two weeks ago today, I am realizing I have been quite neglectful about updating you all about our fun trip. I have just put up three slide shows from NYC. Ken was here with me for the first 5 days. We staying in Brooklyn with our friends, the Zubradt's, Julie, Dave, Gabriel, and Julian (crud, did I spell that wrong again??? Jules, tell me and I will fix it.)
It was a great weekend. The first day was rainy, Ken and I went to a sculpture store he orders from and got some tools for him and some silver solder from a metal store that he needed to fix a piece when he got home. We also went to the Whitney to see the Biennial. It was good for the most part. There was a lot of work and a lot to go through. Well worth it. We ran into my colleague, Mel, on the way out and I was brought up to date on the first week of class. It was all going well.
Over the next few days, we hung out in Brooklyn, visited Dumbo park and had lunch (Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass), went to Coney Island, and just had a grand time as we always do with the Z's.
Ken headed back on Monday and I came to the Y...to my white cubicle. I feel like a monk.
Since Ken two weeks ago today, I am realizing I have been quite neglectful about updating you all about our fun trip. I have just put up three slide shows from NYC. Ken was here with me for the first 5 days. We staying in Brooklyn with our friends, the Zubradt's, Julie, Dave, Gabriel, and Julian (crud, did I spell that wrong again??? Jules, tell me and I will fix it.)
It was a great weekend. The first day was rainy, Ken and I went to a sculpture store he orders from and got some tools for him and some silver solder from a metal store that he needed to fix a piece when he got home. We also went to the Whitney to see the Biennial. It was good for the most part. There was a lot of work and a lot to go through. Well worth it. We ran into my colleague, Mel, on the way out and I was brought up to date on the first week of class. It was all going well.
Over the next few days, we hung out in Brooklyn, visited Dumbo park and had lunch (Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass), went to Coney Island, and just had a grand time as we always do with the Z's.
Ken headed back on Monday and I came to the Y...to my white cubicle. I feel like a monk.
Freaking out a bit
The news this memorial day has us in a frenzy. This morning while I was in the shower preparing to head to Brooklyn for a picnic with the Z's, I got a call from Deasree telling me that Mandy was admitted into the labor and delivery area of the hospital. She was having contractions and was being given shots to stop them and other shots to help the baby's lungs develop in case they weren't able to stop the contractions. I immediately called Mandy who was pretty doped up on Morphine (crazy, but this shows how hard they were working to get her to relax her muscles). She said that she had been given all of the Tribulalane (can't spell- first step in stopping contractions) that she could be given and it hadn't worked. She had been given morphine, and it wasn't working and had just been put on an IV of magnesium (which I guess feels like they were piping fire into her veins). They came in to check her cervix, which had been showing signs of changing toward birthing status. So I had to let her go. 2 hours later, I called back because she hadn't called me (long distance) and she said they had just left her room and they had stopped the magnesium because the contractions seemed to have stopped. Whew!!! I will talk to her later this afternoon to find out if they are staying stopped or not. I am still in NYC, so this is really freaking me out. I don't want her to be born at 33.5 weeks. It is too early...though the only thing they are worried about are her lungs and they have given Mandy a shot of steroids to help them along. Fortunately, her new Dr. is on call today, so she feels good about that.
I am going mad waiting this out. And I thought I had found a calm waiting place. Sigh. I am about to call my boss to put him on call in case she starts up again and I have to hop the first flight back to N'ville.
So, send out your positive energy to C'ville and Mandy and help her keep that baby inside for another week or two. Fortunately, my pals in Brooklyn know I need a distraction and are bringing the picnic up to me and Central Park. They are very good to me!
Watch for more New York updates later today...it has been a crazy week!
I am going mad waiting this out. And I thought I had found a calm waiting place. Sigh. I am about to call my boss to put him on call in case she starts up again and I have to hop the first flight back to N'ville.
So, send out your positive energy to C'ville and Mandy and help her keep that baby inside for another week or two. Fortunately, my pals in Brooklyn know I need a distraction and are bringing the picnic up to me and Central Park. They are very good to me!
Watch for more New York updates later today...it has been a crazy week!