Ultrasound & Check Up (31 Weeks Pregnant)

Last Friday I decided to go on an adventure. I was overdue for glucose testing and a blood draw from the lab. Glucose testing is a test that takes an hour and it's to see if I have gestational diabetes. If anyone knows about toddlers that are a year-and-a-half, you know they are busy, busy, busy! I decided to bring my busy toddler with me anyways. 

I was given a super sweet orange drink to drink within 5 minutes and the lab technician gave me a chair to sit in. There was a t.v. monitor hooked up to it. I put my son on my lap and watched Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. He ate his snacks and drank his juice and was surprisingly very well behaved. Those moments bring joy to this mother's heart.

Here is my son Tres and I at the lab.

I was able to have two of my friends watch Tres yesterday for me while I had an ultrasound and regular OB appointment. My husband was busy at our church where it was opening day for our second hand household store, grill and coffee shop.

During the ultrasound, I asked if the tech could see a cyst in Aaron Matthew's brain. She said she couldn't find one, which means, it cleared up. Praise God! And I asked her if she could see the NT thickness on the back of his neck and she said no because hard bone has formed. She could not tell if Aaron Matthew has a nasal bone or not because he was not in an ideal position. She also had a hard time looking at his heart as did the high risk doctor that came in. I do have a 4D picture of his face with his arm and fist up. The tech told me Aaron Matthew is in the 61st percentile for his weight at 4 pounds and 3 ounces which is a healthy weight, and if I carry him to full term and he keeps putting on weight, his projected birth weight will be over 8 pounds! Praise God! That's good news. That puts me at less of a risk for a cesarean.

I saw my OB doctor afterward. He said the glucose testing came back good. But the blood draw showed I have a low iron count. That explains why I am utterly exhausted almost all of the time! He put me on an iron supplement along side my prenatal vitamins. I hope to get some energy back and not feel like I ran a marathon all of the time.

He is also going to start with fetal monitoring once a week and another ultrasound in about 3 to 4 weeks. He said that Aaron Matthew looks good except for his AV canal heart defect.

Fear not, for I am with you;

be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,

yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10

Ten Weeks to my Due Date (30 Weeks Pregnant)

Thirty weeks pregnant and ten more to go until my due date. At times I forget I am pregnant. And at times, I am super uncomfortable. Aaron Matthew is feeling more like an alien in my belly these days. I can feel his foot or heal as well as where his bum is. Flutters have been replaced by big bodily movements. It seems like when I lay down or rest is when he is more active. Or I can say, that's when I feel him move the most. He has hiccups pretty regularly which is good because that means his lungs are forming.

I had an OB visit a week ago. My doctor discussed the possibility of a cesarean (c-section). He said the reasons to do it would be fetal distress in labor and delivery. He explained that some babies with chromosomal abnormalities tend to be a bit smaller at birth and they don't tolerate labor well as it puts stress on them and some end up being stillborn in the process. He said AaronMatthew is measuring right on he is doing an ultrasound on Monday to check his growth. He will also look for tell-tale signs that could potentially cause stress. My doctor told me then he would want me to avoid labor all together. I really don't want a cesarean. I've had an operation similar to that in August of 2007 when I had a cyst the size of a grapefruit removed along with my left ovary and fallopian tube. It took a long time to recover from that. I remember the extreme stabbing pain I felt when I laughed, sneezed or let gas out. I would not be looking forward to that surgery if that is what is needed and chasing around my busy toddler who likes to climb all over me and my pregnant belly. I told my doctor that we stuck with him because we trust his judgement. And we do. I told him if that is best for Aaron Matthew, we will do it, but that is not my preference. We will have to wait and see.

God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 1:9