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Tuesday, Apr. 23, 2002 - 5:34 p.m. - 20 (AAAchooo) Weeks!!
Yup, I’m a sniffling, sneezing mess right now. I’ve been lucky to avoid getting sick up until this point in my pregnancy, but it finally caught up with me. Michael got sick first. A friend of Michael’s came over to help him dig up, move and replant some huge (we’re talking about 7 – 8 foot plants here) rhododendrons from our neighbor’s yard to ours. His friend had to bring along his 3 year old daughter, who happened to be sick. Michael got it first (probably because he was overworking himself and was completely run down) and then shared it with me. Wasn’t that nice of him? So for the last 4 – 5 days I’ve been laying low, drinking lots of tea, sleeping when I can and taking it easy. Fortunately I was able to do that. So many times during this pregnancy I’ve been glad to be out of work and able to take the time to rest when I needed to. If I’m fortunate enough to have more than one child, I’ll never have this luxury again. Chances are the next time I’ll be totally sick for the first 5 months of the pregnancy since I’ve sailed through the 1st trimester with out a single sick episode this time. My luck can’t last, I don’t’ think. Can you believe I’m already at 20 weeks??!!!! I can, and I can’t. I mean, I can believe it because unlike so many of you “observers” out there, this pregnancy is not flying by for me. I count down each day as one day closer to my dream and one more day of being “safe.” Perhaps that is a strange way to look at this wonderful experience, but while I am in wonder and I am thrilled to be pregnant, I’m still so very scared my dream might be taken away from me at any time. I just want to get to that point in the pregnancy that the baby is viable outside my uterus and then be grateful for each day, week and month that pass after that giving my baby a better chance. I know this may seem morbid, but I’ve gone through so much, I just want to make it through this too. Anyway, here I am at 20 weeks, what most people consider the half-way mark on their pregnancies. I must admit that I already considered 19 weeks my halfway mark. I have a strong suspicion that due to my autoimmune issues, that I will be induced early. Everyone I’ve talked with who is also doing heparin or has APA+ issues and has already delivered one child has been induced at around 36 – 37 weeks. Once I stop the heparin injections (around 35 weeks) the risk of my blood clotting and stopping blood flow in the placenta, or the placenta breaking down prematurely from the heparin, increases putting the baby at risk. I need to stop the heparin around that time, however, so that I don’t bleed too much during delivery. So you see there will be a fine balancing act to follow at the end of this whole pregnancy, should I get to that point (crossing fingers, toes, and everything else). So with that in mind, I’m halfway through my pregnancy!!!! I still can’t believe it. I remember looking at my calendar and looking forward to this week and attaining this goal. My next goal is to get safely to 24 weeks, at which time I will be receiving another ultrasound to check on the placenta and the baby. I’ll also be doing my glucose tolerance test at around that time. I’m hoping with all my heart that I pass. I already am poking myself with a needle 3 times a day, I don’t relish the thought of having to give myself insulin injections as well. Of course, I’ll do whatever I have to to have a healthy baby, but I’d prefer not to have that issue to deal with as well. Unfortunately, the odds are against me being that I have PCOS and am 36. I have a very high probability of testing positive on the glucose tolerance test. I’m going to try and not worry about that too terribly much right now though. I had my 20 week OB appointment yesterday and everything is checking out ok. I did gain weight, but no more than was expected for this time in my pregnancy, so I’m quite pleased about that. I was actually surprised that I gained as much as I did (even though it wasn’t that much) because my appetite has decreased significantly over the last month. I did the usual “pee-in-a-cup” test and there were some trace amounts of protein in my urine, but my blood pressure was good (116/80) so there was nothing to worry about. The baby’s heartbeat was all over the board from 160 to 137, but stayed mainly around 150, so that’s what they put in my chart and my uterus is measuring slightly larger for my gestational age (22 instead of 20), but then I was measuring a centimeter off right from the beginning. She said there isn’t anything to be concerned about if I’m 1 – 2 cm off. Besides, we’ll check the size of the baby when I go for my ultrasound in 4 weeks. I’m also going to be sure to have the ultrasound technician check one more time to confirm the sex of our Peep. I’d really prefer not to be surprised with a boy after getting my mind all ready for a girl (not to mention the wardrobe and room). So the Peep is doing well. I’m doing well. Life is going mostly well. Michael still hasn’t had any job leads recently and has started to apply in other states. This doesn’t make me happy, but he’s starting to feel desperate (I’m trying NOT to feel too desperate). In the meantime he’s been working in the yard, while what I really wish he would do is help me to get started on the baby room. Unfortunately I need his help with the wainscoting and such. I’m ready to paint, but need him to get a few things ready for me so I can do so. He’s balking because he is sick of painting (uggh, then he shouldn’t have bothered painting the kitchen a month ago if you ask me – ok, I’ll try not to complain here). The good thing is that my girl friends have set the date for my shower and it is going to be held at my house (more room), so we have a deadline for when the room should be done (so that we can show it off). I’m very glad about that! My husband NEEDS deadlines, though knowing him we’ll be rushing around at the last minute for this and for that. Uggh, I hate that, I’d rather get things done NOW and not rush around at the end. But in the end he does a marvelous and beautiful job, so I try not to nag or complain. Last Friday my mom and my SIL went up to the Tulip Fields again and this time they were in bloom. I’ll have to post some new pictures! But for now I’m going to go out and enjoy our nice weather while it lasts – it’s not warm, but it is sunny!
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