Suspense

After the test results yesterday I was feeling pretty confident that I would be going home. Then last night when I was on the monitors I was contracting like crazy. They gave me a shot of terbutaline to stop the labor.

This morning I had an ultrasound. They got me up at 7:30 for it. What's up with that? Anyway, they measured the baby at 2 lbs 11 oz. Still a little on the small side for being born, but she's a good size for her age. They measured my cervix at 2.4 cm. That is 1 mm shorter than the minimum considered to be safe. I no longer felt confident that I would be going home.

My doctor came to see me at around 12:30, and said I can go home, but I have to go to the doctor's office every week. It's just as well, because that will be my only excursion out of my house for a while. Her words were "hard core bed rest." She said I can't even get up to make myself a sandwich. (I can get up to use the bathroom and take a 5 minute shower, but that's it.)

I am very glad to be able to go home and be with my family again. I have missed them a lot since I have been here.

My doctors have warned me that if I end up back in the hospital again, that's it. This is a one strike and you're out situation. I'll be back in for the duration. So I promised to be good. As time goes on they will probably remove a few restrictions, but for now I am on strict bed rest until 36 weeks. That is 8 more weeks from now. (Today I am 28 weeks - an important milestone.)

So that's my big news. I hope it all works out.

Come get your stuff!

Jeff here. Noelle's laptop is down again :(

In any case, Noelle is coming home today! YAY! However, she is still on strict bedrest. She can't even get up to make herself lunch. Which means I've got to take care of that in the morning. I doubt she'll have as good a lunch as at the hospital.

In any case, if you've left movies, books, anything that you want back, please come get it. Please do NOT go to the hospital to get it. She won't be there (unless you show up before 5:00 PM today, Monday).

We really do appreciate everything, all the time and dinners and things, that have been provided to us. We also really appreciate a continued diligence to help us as we're not out of the woods yet.

Failure is underrated

This morning I took the fetal fibronectin test. (I don't recommend it.) It's one of those tests where at this current time, a negative result is good. I took the test at about 10:00, and the results came back two hours later. Yay! I failed! That means that there is a 99% chance that the baby will not be born in the next week to 3 weeks. Tomorrow I am having an ultrasound, and if they like what they see there I will be able to go home. So I'll be back in my own comfortable bed.

If I do in fact get to go home, which I am starting to feel confident about, I will be under a lot of restrictions. I need to duplicate my hospital lifestyle, meaning that I still have to stay in bed all of the time. I can't pick up Rachel, I can't do laundry, I really can't do anything. When I get my discharge instructions I will ask in more detail about my restrictions, but everything I have heard so far, from both doctors and nurses, is stay in bed, don't do anything!

Stay tuned for more news tomorrow.

Friday was a good day.

Friday was a good day. Jeff went to the U of L/Arizona Sweet 16 game in Indianapolis. I was really glad that Jeff got that special treat, and to make it perfect U of L won. Make that they crushed Arizona. I know that some people like close games because they are more exciting, but I like games where my team wins easily. It is better on my heart. The downside is that he didn't get home until 3:00 a.m.

I had a good day on Friday too. A while back I discovered that I can have ice cream just by asking. The flavors are limited to chocolate and vanilla. The only way to get novelty flavors is by getting a visitor to go to the cafeteria and buy one for me. But yesterday the food and nutrition lady managed to get me an Andes Candies mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwich. She said that was likely a one-time-only thing, but I really enjoyed it.

Baby Gaby was pretty active yesterday. She was kicking up a storm! When they have me on the monitors, they keep me on for 30 to 60 minutes, but especially they like the last 5 minutes of the fetal heart monitor to show the baby's heart really well. That's difficult because over the course of 30 minutes to an hour she can move around quite a lot. Last night the nurse came in to take me off the monitor, but was going to just hold the fetal monitor in place to get the last few minutes to show the heart beat. Baby Gaby was not interested in holding still at all. The nurse finally just gave up because baby Gaby was swinging from the rafters (my ribs?) and she just could not locate the heartbeat for long enough for it to do any good. No worries, though, because we got plenty of heart beat monitoring earlier.

My doctor came in to see me today. She decided to move up the fetal fibronectin test to tomorrow. Then on Monday I will have an ultrasound. Then I might be able to go home either Monday or Tuesday. Or not. She felt fairly confident that I would be okay to go home next week, so we'll see.

5 Weeks

Jeff has some good news. His dad is taking him to Indianapolis to see the Louisville/Arizona game. Now Louisville just has to win and that will make his day even better. I'm really glad he gets to go. Jeff loves basketball, and he is a big U of L fan. He has really taken on a lot lately, and I am glad he is getting a well-deserved break.

Jeff was over last night without Rachel. He has been trying for a while now to feel baby Gaby kick, but it seems that whenever he is around she is sleeping, or at least she is not active. This morning I was on the monitor, and baby Gaby was extremely active. I really wanted Jeff to be here then, because there was no problem at all feeling her kick. She was going crazy. In fact the nurse had to keep coming back in to find her again with the monitor because she was swimming laps in there.

Today makes 5 weeks that I have been in the hospital uninterrupted. No news at this time, but stay tuned because on Monday I will have some tests, and then I'll have news. I don't know what it will be, but it will definitely be something.

Nothing new today

Nothing new to share today. I'll just tell a quick story about Rachel. Yesterday afternoon Rachel came to see me along with her Grandma. We went for a stroll. It was rainy outside, so we just walked around on this floor. As we were about done (especially Rachel) we stopped at the nurse's station so that I could ask a question of one of the nurses. While we were there Rachel chatted it up with the nurses. She is getting to be so talkative. It used to be that when she was on the phone with nobody she would talk a lot, but when there was actually a person on the line she would just smile and wave. That doesn't seem to be true anymore. Now she has a lot to say. Not that I understand any of it, but that doesn't stop her. I guess that is what they mean when kids say that their parents just don't understand them.

I'm doing well, baby Gaby is doing well.

More hospital adventures

So not much new going on here these days. Jeff and Rachel came by last night and we went for a walk. (Rachel and I went for a ride, Jeff went for a walk.) While we were outside Rachel enjoyed strolling around the little garden area. Suddenly she got down on her hands and knees and started crawling. Then she laid down on the sidewalk. It was just for a minute, but it was really funny. I have no idea why she did that. She got right back up and started walking around again. I really wish I had my camera with me at the time. But I didn't.

As we were coming back inside we saw a lady walking down the hallway. Rachel started waving to her. She was kind of a ways down the hall, but she saw Rachel wave. So she stopped and waved back. Rachel is really into waving these days. I think it is adorable.

My doctor just popped in. She said, "so I hear you might be heading home next week." I said, "yeah, that's what they're telling me." I asked her for some clarification on what my restrictions would be. She said "bed rest until 36 weeks, either the bed or the couch." I asked if I could go for car rides. Nope. My only opportunity to leave the four walls of the house will be a weekly trip to the doctor's office. I was going to ask her if I could go to church if I was able to get a wheelchair, but after she quickly nixed even going for a ride in the car I didn't even bother to ask.

Last Monday a lady came in to see me who is in charge of pre-natal classes. She told me to ask my doctor if I could attend the classes. I asked the doctor, and she said "yes." If I'm still here after next week it will be no problem, but my doctor today said that if I'm home I can't attend the classes until after 36 weeks. "But what if the baby comes before 36 weeks?" I asked. She responded "Don't worry, we'll get you through it."

She seemed rather confident that I might be able to go home. (More confident than the voters on my poll.) I'm thinking that if you have brought me something to keep me occupied in the hospital, you might want to come and pick it up so that I don't have to hire a U-Haul to go home. Of course if I stay here the books and movies might still be needed, but I'm thinking that this week is a good time for people to start retrieving their stuff. Thank you all very much for your generosity.

Read this, then change your vote.

My doctor came to see me today (of course). She gave me the run down of what's going on next week. 28 weeks is an important milestone for baby Gaby. It marks the time when the risk of serious long term medical problems is greatly reduced if she were born then. So there is a possibility that I will be able to go home.

Next Monday I will have a fetal fibronectin test. If it comes back negative, that means that I will not have the baby within the next week or two. I will have an ultrasound where they will check my cervical length and the size of the baby. If my cervix is in not in any worse shape than it was when I got here, and the fetal fibronectin test comes back negative, they will let me go home on Tuesday TO DO EXACTLY THE SAME THING I'M DOING HERE NOW. If I am able to go home, but have to come back she said I would be here for the duration. Her words were: "You may be let out on parole, but if you violate the terms of your parole, you are right back in the clink." (Okay, that was a slight paraphrase, but she did use the parole analogy.) She also made sure that I understood that I might not be able to go home next week, that I was mentally prepared for that possibility, which I am.

I have mixed feelings about going home. On the one hand if I stay here I am monitored regularly, and if something were to happen, I'm right here where they can take care of things quickly. There is a certain comfort in that. On the other hand I miss Jeff (although he can come and see me whenever he wants to, more or less), I miss Rachel (although she can come and see me whenever Jeff wants (more or less), and I miss Scout (who never gets to come and see me). I hope that if I am home things will be a little easier on Jeff (although he doesn't really think so).

I am so grateful to all of my friends and family who have helped my family, especially taking care of Rachel. My worry if I come home is that the sense of urgency that people feel that cause them to volunteer to watch Rachel during the day will be reduced. I am going to need the exact same help when I'm home that I'm getting now that I am in the hospital. I only hope that I still have friends left when all this is over. I don't know how I can ever repay all of the kindness and generosity that I have received.

Change your vote. The only two options should be Tuesday March 31, and ha ha ha ha. You're not going home next week. I created the poll before the doctor came. The other six options should not be there after all.

Rachel is 18 months old (yesterday)

Wow! Who thought this day would ever come? Yesterday Rachel turned 18 months old. That is a significant milestone, as she is now a legal participant in nursery. (Jeff has taken her there before and stayed with her a couple of times in the past when she was still underage.)


Today she had a doctors appointment (thanks Grandma for taking her). Here are her vital statistics:

height: 32" (60th%)
weight: 25 lbs. 8 oz. (70th%)

The doctor also recommended taking a chewable vitamin every morning since Rachel is not exactly an enthusiastic consumer of vegetables. The doctor also recommended taking chewable claritin to help treat her allegies. Rachel got two shots, and with the help of a lollipop, she handled it pretty well.

In other news, today I hit 27 weeks. That makes this the first day of my third trimester. They say that the 2nd trimester is the easiest, so that begs the question, what is this next trimester going to be like? Next week (28 weeks) is the next important milestone in this pregnancy. At that point they will reevaluate me and maybe, possibly send me home.

Jeff wanted a new belly shot of me.


What's good for the goose is good for the gander.


Jeff also wanted a picture of my bare belly, but you will not find that one posted anywhere! And lest you are asking yourself "why is she standing up when she's supposed to be on bed rest?" I'll just say that I figured if I'm allowed to walk to the bathroom, I figured I was okay to stand up for a quick picture.

A little extra excitement

A toco transducer is the name of the thingy they use to monitor my uterus. (Toco is from the Greek prefix meaning childbirth.) They also use a fetal heart monitor. I am monitored twice a day for an hour (or so) at a time.

Last night I was on the monitor and at around 10:00 the nurse came in saying I was contracting. I asked how much, and she said about every 3 minutes. That's not really what we want, so she said she would call my doctor. I expressed concern calling her so late as I didn't want her mad at me. (I'm very sensitive.) The nurse assured me that the doctor wouldn't be mad at me, if anything she would be mad at the nurse. Then she comes back five minutes later with a syringe. (See? I knew she would retaliate against me for disturbing her evening.) Anyway, she gave me a shot of Terbutaline to stop the contractions. Today the same doctor came in to see me. She said, she wasn't mad for calling her so late. She doesn't get mad, she gets even. Anyway they are going to increase my procardia dosage from every 6 hours to every 4 hours. My problem is that I have a hyper-sensitive uterus. It is always getting irritated, and that stimulates contractions. I guess that's why I'm still here. They can stop them before they lead to full blown labor.

I learned something new today. If I ask for ice cream they will bring it to me. Isn't that a great discovery? Okay so the selection is rather limited, but still, ice cream! Yum!

Today Rachel turned 18 months old. It was her first official day in nursery. I gave Jeff the assignment to take some pictures, so hopefully I will have them posted in the next couple of days.

Not just another day.

Last night baby Rose came to visit me. She was accompanied by her housekeeper and her valet (I mean her Mom and Dad). I'm hoping that baby Gaby is paying attention to what a newborn baby is supposed to look like. Not too big, not too small.


During halftime of the Louisville/Morehead State basketball game we went for a walk. We went outside, but it was a little chilly, so we didn't stay out for long. Still, it was nice to get out for a while. As always Rachel enjoyed the ride.


On our way back in we got one of the nurses to take a family portrait. This picture is probably not worthy of framing and hanging over the fireplace, but it is certainly blog-worthy.


So I finished my dinner at around 6:00 last night, and thus began my 12 hour fast before taking the 3 hour glucose tolerance test. I took advantage of my three day carb load before the test by eating some girl scout cookies (thin mints and do-si-dos), and drinking the rest of my chocolate milk that Holly brought me. I figured I might as well indulge while I had permission. The blood-letting, I mean the test, began at 6:00 this morning. They took a blood sample of my "fasting blood," then gave me another large and delicious cup of orange glucola. (How is it possible that that glucola has not gained the same popularity as other soft drinks?) They then took blood samples every hour for three hours. And guess what. I passed. (Woo hoo!) With flying colors. In fact my blood sugar was too low with the third hour test. (It's not supposed to be below 70 and mine was 59.) You are actually allowed to fail one of the blood sugar tests, but I passed all four easily. So bring on the Wendy's Frosties, bring on the Dairy Queen Blizzards, bring on the girl scout cookies. I am now eating for two without guilt. Actually I'm kind of kidding. I still want to eat healthy, but it's nice to know I can indulge in the occasional unhealthy snack. (I wasn't kidding about the Frosty, the Blizzard or the cookies. They are welcome - occasionally.)

So the lesson learned here is if you are supposed to take the three hour glucose tolerance test, definitely carb load for three days beforehand.

I can't believe I missed posting two days in a row. My deepest apologies to my loyal readers. But it has worked to my advantage - I got more comments on my most recent post. (I like comments.)

On Tuesday evening Jeff and Rachel came by, and we went for a walk in my wheelchair. Actually Rachel and I rode and Jeff went for a walk. It made Rachel's visit better because she really liked the wheelchair. When we are limited to my room her patience wears thin pretty fast, and she soon turns to destruction and mayhem for her entertainment. Riding in the wheelchair she just chilled and enjoyed the ride. She also really liked pushing the button to call the elevator. On Wednesday I went for another wheelchair ride courtesy of another visitor. Both Tuesday and Wednesday were so beautiful, I really liked going outside.


Yesterday was the first day since I have been here that I didn't have any visitors (unless you count my doctor, my nurses and their assistants). As a result I didn't get to go for a walk. I could have asked a staff member to take me, but I didn't.

Tomorrow is my re-test for glucose tolerance. I have been carb loading since Wednesday, and that should make the test result more accurate (according to my doctor). Frankly I think it will have the same result, but who knows? Maybe. I'm not holding my breath. I'll let you know the result tomorrow.

Incidentally today is my 4 week anniversary of my current hospital stay. Happy anniversary to me.

I have some news today after all.

I almost deliberately chose to not write anything today because seriously, nothing new was happening. I could write the same old stuff, but I wasn't really in the mood. My doctor came however, and I now do have something to write about. (She came pretty late, almost 5:30, which means that unlike me her day was very busy. Lots and lots of babies today I guess.)

In order to tell this, I have to make a confession. I don't like telling this part because I have really tried to keep a positive attitude all of the time, but I admit that these past few days have been kind of tough. I don't think it is because of the diagnosis of gestational diabetes, but maybe I'm wrong. Who knows? Anyway I think the nurses thought that was why, and they told my doctor that I have been kind of down. My doctor wants me to retake the glucose tolerance test after a full three days of carb loading. (I just carb loaded for just one day last time, and that could possibly affect the outcome of the test.) I doubt that I will have a different result because, let's face it, my diet is a little heavy on the carbs anyway. So I'm going to retake the test on Saturday, and in the meantime, no more finger sticking. It's a good thing my snacks are still here. I'm going to have a cookie tonight. And some chocolate milk.

My doctor also told me that I can take a wheelchair ride every day. I have not seen the outside of this room in over two weeks. The last time I left this room was two weeks ago last Friday when I had my last ultrasound. She said there is a pavilion somewhere, and I will be able to enjoy a little fresh air and blue sky.

26 Weeks Today

I'm sorry I missed posting yesterday. I was just so busy. Seriously, I had visitors from 1:00 to 11:00 p.m. with only a couple hours break, during which I ate my dinner. Who knew that lying around doing nothing could take so much time?

One of the nurse's aides suggested a plan for my finger sticks. Since I am right handed, she suggested leaving my right index finger, and both of my thumbs alone, since those are the most used fingers, and then following this pattern:

Sunday - right middle finger
Monday - right ring finger
Tuesday - right pinkie
Wednesday - left index finger
Thursday - left middle finger
Friday - left ring finger
Saturday - left pinkie

That gives each finger a week off. Of course each finger also has to tolerate four sticks per day. They are not that bad, but I still don't have to guts to stick my own finger. Do you think I ever will?

So far all of my readings have been just fine. Most of them have actually been easily within the guidelines. The guidelines are after fasting, my blood sugar should be 95 or less. Two hours after meals my blood sugar should be 120 or less. My readings have mostly been in the 90s, but yesterday after lunch it was 120 exactly. That didn't make me very happy. That's barely passing, like getting a D-. Who wants that? Turns out the food people gave me more carbs than they should have. I'm still learning, so I ate more carbs than I should have. The nurse was not as bugged by my reading as I was.

Okay, here's a funny story. Holly was here last night, and she excused herself to use the bathroom. We heard her laugh in the bathroom. Now when somebody laughs when they are in the bathroom, it makes you wonder what on earth is going on in there. When she came out she told us what happened. On the bathroom door is a sign talking about hand washing and the use of hand-sanitizing gel. Holly started reading it from the bottom to the top. The last thing it talks about is asking your child's health-care provider if they used gel before touching the child. Holly immediately thought of hair gel, and worried, "I've used gel a thousand times with my kids. Did I cause any permanent damage?" Well, then she read the rest of the sign and realized that it was hand-sanitizing gel, and it was a good thing to use. We laughed so hard I almost went into labor. But don't worry, I didn't.

Today I achieved the milestone of 26 weeks. That's good. I could get to go home in 2 more weeks. Of course I would still be on strict bed rest. They have made it clear to me that I would need to duplicate my hospital lifestyle at home. So we'll see what happens.

A Three Hour Tour, I mean test.

Today was my three-hour glucose tolerance test. I thought it was going to be on Monday because I was supposed to carb load for a few days first, but I guess they decided one day of carb loading was enough. So last night at 7:00 my nurse told me I needed to fast for 12 hours prior to the test. I had finished eating supper at 6:00, so that meant I could start the test at 6:00 the next morning. Something to look forward to.

At 6:00 the nurse came in and took a blood sample (after a 12 hour fast), then she gave me a drink called glucola. It is a very sweet orange drink. Not delicious, but not awful. The only problem was that I had to drink so much more than I had for the 1 hour test. It kind of made me feel yucky. That much sugar on an empty stomach is not a good thing. She took another blood sample at 7:00, at 8:00, and at 9:00, at which point I got to eat breakfast. The test was over.

They tested my blood sugar with each of the samples. The nurse told me that it's okay to fail one of them, but no more. I did fine with the fasting sample, but the 1 hour sample was way too high. The 2 hour sample was just too high by 1, and the 3 hour sample was too high by 4. So I failed my test. (I know, I should have studied harder.) I failed it by so little that I'm certain I would have passed if I were able to get up and chase Rachel around, but such is not the case.

My doctor came to see me, and broke the bad news, but she said that they were going to control it with a restricted diet, then prick my finger 4 times a day (2 hours after meals) to monitor my blood sugar. A nutritionist came in to talk to me about my dietary restrictions. It's actually not a big difference from what I was doing before, and one difference is actually a good thing in my opinion. Basically my breakfast will be a lot smaller, but I need to have a mid morning snack. My lunch and dinner are essentially the same, but I get a night-time snack too. She said I could split the morning snack and have a little in the afternoon too if I want.

They pricked my finger after lunch today. The nurse told me that anything under 120 is good, and mine was 90, so that's good. The doctor said that if everything looks fine after 4 or 5 days they will reduce the finger pricks to twice a day.

So nobody can bring me anymore snacks/food.

I don't usually mention my visitors by name because I'm afraid of inadvertantly leaving somebody out. I'm going to make an exception today. Holly Casós traveled nearly 2,000 miles to see me. She came in the morning and spent a few hours here. She got to be present when the doctor broke the news, and when the nutritionist came. She also cleared out all of the snacks that I had lying around. I guess Jeff and Rachel will enjoy them.

Jeff and Rachel came to see me too this afternoon. Rachel helped me eat my lunch. She drank my orange juice, some of my roll, a little bit of grilled chicken, and a strawberry. Since I'm not around Rachel's normal wardrobe has changed a lot. I don't know who got her this outfit, but I suspect it might have been her grandma. She even got new (matching) sneakers. She is looking so grown up. It kind of breaks my heart seeing her grow up so fast, and I am missing it.


Rachel is waving bye-bye to me when it's time to go home.

Lots of Excitement

Remember how yesterday was uneventful? Yeah, not today. And it started early.

My nurse came in at 1:00 a.m. to find out when I had last eaten, because today was to be my follow-up glucose tolerance test. I questioned her about it because I had been told that I was supposed to carb load for a few days prior, and I couldn't tell that my food had been any different than before. She followed up, and sure enough, the order for my carb load had been lost in translation, so my test has been postponed for a few days while I eat junk food for a few days (with my doctor's blessing). So at 1:00 a.m. I turned in ESPN to see who won the Syracuse/UConn game. Much to my surprise I saw that they were wrapping up the 5th overtime. Syracuse finally took complete control in the 6th overtime, and won by 10. Not exactly conducive to my getting straight back to sleep! But I did my best.

I had requested Rice Krispies for breakfast, but instead I got oatmeal. I mean, come on, oatmeal? Seriously? I ate oatmeal nearly every day of my life when I was a kid, and I had vowed to not eat oatmeal anymore. I have recently conceded, and I'll eat the instant oatmeal that has the flavors, like apple and cinnamon, and stuff like that, but this wasn't that.

I was sitting on the big chair while the nurse's assistant made my bed. I noticed that a nut (like nuts and bolts) had fallen from the bed. Hopefully the bed won't collapse while I'm here, but at least if it does it will give me something new to blog about.

Okay, as far as excitement goes, this stuff might be kind of lame, but I get thrills where I can.

Today makes three weeks of uninterrupted hospital stay.

Uneventful

So not much happened today. I thought about making something up for my blog, but I can't think of anything funny, so I'll just tell the truth. I'm glad to say that the shot discomfort ended in a timely manner. I think I've figured out the trick - heating pad. My doctor says I'm looking fine, and I'm trying to keep my stay here as boring as possible.

Feeling Better

Jeff is feeling better, Rachel is feeling better, and I am feeling better. All that is good stuff! It was a big load off my mind to know that back home things were better.

So Jeff and Rachel came by this evening. A friend had come earlier today and brought a couple of books for Rachel. They were her favorite kind, the kind where you push buttons and songs play. Rachel loved them. She sat in bed next to me pushing the buttons, and swaying her head back and forth to the music. We also finished putting the bear together, meaning we put her dress on. She (the bear) even has little pink shoes and little pink bows to put around her ears.


While Jeff and Rachel were here the nurse came in. She immediately apologized for interrupting, and said she could "take care if it later." Take care of what? Oh yeah. Today's Wednesday. (OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!) Wednesday is a special day, it's the day I get a really painful shot in my "hip." So after a very enjoyable visit with Rachel and Jeff, I bravely called the nurse back in, and she gave me my shot. She did a good job. The injection itself didn't hurt, but the aftermath . . . OWWW! But I'm using my heating pad. Last week it really did hurt a lot that night, but the next day wasn't too bad, so I'm hoping that tomorrow won't be too bad either.

A Challenging Day

I am definitely on the upswing from my cold, but unfortunately Rachel and Jeff are both pretty sick. So I feel pretty helpless. However, as is normal, I have had quite a few rescuers.

After quite a few phone calls, we determined that Rachel needed some cough medicine, as well as some Tylenol for her fever. My mother-in-law took care of that. During the middle of the phone calls my doctor came in to see me, and observing my distress, the result of my inability to take care of my sick family, she wrote a prescription for Jeff. A visitor just happened to pop in during the middle of all this, and she volunteered to get the prescription filled and delivered to my poor suffering husband.

So long story short, while today is NOT a good day, I am reminded once again of how wonderful everyone is in helping my family through this challenge.

I need to give a shout out to the wonderful people of the Crestwood 1st Ward, as well as the women of the Pride of Kentucky Chorus for their kindness and generosity. You all have been such a blessing to me and my family during this teeny tiny little trial that we are going through.

My Glucose Tolerance Test

This morning my nurse woke me up at 6:00 to give me my glucose tolerance test. It consisted of drinking some very orange, very sweet syrupy stuff. It wasn't delicious, but I was definitely prepared for something much worse. I asked her if maybe I could just eat some sugary snacks instead, but she was adamant that I drink the orange stuff. An hour later she came back with a needle to take a blood sample, which would then be sent to the lab for analysis, to see how well I convert glucose, to see if I have gestational diabetes. I then proceeded to sleep for the rest of the morning. (I did wake up enough to eat breakfast.) I have been sleeping a lot lately, but I think it might be the combined effects of the sleeping pill and the Flexeril I have been taking every night. The Flexeril is a muscle relaxer that I have been taking to relieve the muscle pain in my rib cage from coughing. I think my cough is gone enough that I can stop the Flexeril now.

So I didn't pass my glucose tolerance test, but I didn't fail it miserably either. I need to retake it, but of course it will be more difficult the second time around. That will be in a few days. I guess I should have studied harder.

I also found out that it is the high risk pregnancy specialist who wanted me discharged from the hospital when I reached 25 weeks, but my regular doctors do not want me going home until at least 28 weeks. Their concern is if I will be able to adhere to strict bed rest at home with Rachel and other temptations enticing me to do more than I should.

A day off

My regular readers (all 2 of them) may have noticed that I did not blog yesterday. I hope that I can be forgiven for this breach of protocol. Do you want to hear my excuse? I was sick.

I woke up Thursday morning with a cold. It was mostly in my chest, with a bad cough. I've been taking Robitussin, Sudafed, Mucinex and Tylenol. Had I been at home I probably would not have taken anything. I would have just gutted it out, complaining the whole time.

By yesterday I was feeling pretty rotten. My biggest complaint was how much coughing hurts. The muscles around my rib cage hurt so much when I coughed. I mostly slept all day long, only waking long enough to put on a happy face when I had visitors. I don't think I faked them out much, though. One of my visitors was Rachel (with Jeff). She was kind of tired herself when she came over, so she didn't stay for too long. Later that evening I found out that Rachel is sick too. She reportedly had a fever of 103°. That makes me kind of worried. Jeff called me this morning and said that he too is feeling pretty bad. So it is a rough time for the Gosnell family.

My doctor came to see me this morning, and unhinted that I might go home next week. I didn't even say anything, but she said that everything is looking pretty good, and the next "safe date" is 28 weeks, at which point they would reevaluate and I might be able to go home. That means that it is the next milestone that we are aiming for, when more risks are in the past. I'm not disappointed because I didn't really believe that I would go home next week. If their goal is to keep me guessing, it's working like a charm. My doctor also told me that tomorrow I would have the glucose tolerance test. From what I understand it involves drinking some really sweet stuff and then taking some blood. They told me not to fast, but to not eat anything sweet either, so I'm planning on eating eggs for breakfast tomorrow. I will give a more complete report of the test after I have taken it.

I am happy to report that as of this morning I am feeling better. I still have a cough, that still hurts, but it is better, so I fully expect to be my old cheerful healthy self in no time. (Emphasis on the "cheerful" and "healthy" not the "old".)

Is that a light I see?

There may be a light at the end of the tunnel. Actually there is definitely a light at the end of the tunnel. The only question is how far away is it. My doctor hinted that I might be able to go home next week. They are going to reevaluate me (specifically my cervix). Things have been pretty stable. The meds they have given me seem to have stopped the preterm labor. I do not have high hopes, but there is a possibility. The contingency is that I am able to duplicate my hospital lifestyle at home. In other words, I would still be on strict bed rest and I would still not be able to be home alone with Rachel.

I knew it was coming

Last night was Wednesday. I knew it was coming - the progesterone shot. I kind of hoped they might have forgotten about it. They didn't. The nurse came it with the needle and said, "wow, I see why you don't like it. As I filled the syringe I could see how thick it is." Oh goodie.

So I got the shot at around 9:10. At 9:30 I started thinking that maybe I had remembered incorrectly how much the shot hurt. It wasn't too bad. Then at 9:45 I suddenly remembered that I was right all along. It hurt. A lot. I planned for it this time. I asked for a heating pad to help the content diffuse faster. I guess it worked. But the good news is that I don't have to get the shot again. Until next Wednesday. I'll probably mention it every time. It is very memorable.

This morning I woke up with a pretty bad cough. I guess I have acquired a cold since I have been here. That's the price you pay for so many visitors. Somebody is likely to be sick. My doctor, who has already come to see me, is going to set me up with some stuff that will hopefully make me all better.

After being monitored this morning, everything is looking good. No news is good news.

Rachel's Fun Surprise

A couple of days ago a friend came to see me, and brought Rachel a present. It was a big bear that Rachel gets to "make" herself. Actually she just gets to stuff it and dress it. When Jeff and Rachel came last night we started working on our project. Rachel figured it out right away. There were two bags of stuffing, and Rachel pulled it out a little at a time. (When I say "a little" I mean a very little.) She handed it to Jeff who poked it into the bear's arms and legs.
Then we closed up the back with Velcro.

Then she hugged and kissed it and loved it.
There is still a little more work to do before her bear is complete. In the kit there is a pink dress for the bear, so we still need to save here from being bear naked (I know it's supposed to be spelled "bare" but I was making a play on words. Does explaining myself kind of ruin it?), but we decided to spread the joy over a couple of days.

Then Rachel reverted to her favorite past time, playing on the computer. I would blame her daddy for that, but let's be honest, I'm afraid she sees her mommy on the computer a lot too.

My doctor came to see me this morning. We talked about expectations of how long I would be A) in the hospital, and B) how long I would be on bed rest. She said that they would probably check baby Gaby's size (weight) next week. Last time they checked she weighed an estimated 1 lb. I'll probably stay in the hospital until I reach at least 28 weeks, but could be here until 32 weeks. Each two weeks is a major milestone, and she encouraged me to not look to far ahead. She also told me that once I get to go home, I'll still be on bed rest until I get to 36 weeks or until baby Gaby is born, whichever comes first. I wonder if I'll have any friends left by then.

My computer (mis)adventures

I must be dangerous around power cords. After my last power cord mishap a friend came to my rescue with a replacement, but last night it broke too. Like really broke. Not fixable. So I put Jeff's old one back on, and yay! it worked. For an hour. Then it died again.

But during that hour I loaded Skype and Google Video Chat on the laptop. I told Jeff of my very sad situation, and being the awesome and wonderful guy that he is, he bought a new power cord and brought it to me at lunch time. Before lunch two friends came and brought me nachos from Denny's, so when my lunch arrived, I wasn't hungry. I let Jeff eat it as a reward for his chivalrous behavior. Okay, it was just hospital food, but it was pretty good.

So now I have Skype and Google Video Chat. If you don't already have one or the other, you should get it. Both are free services. All you need are a computer (which if you are reading this, you already have), a web cam and a microphone. Some laptops already have the web cam installed. So now if you want to visit me without making the trip (like if you live in Utah or Idaho or Texas or Colorado or New York) we can video chat. Of course if you live here in Kentucky you can't use the video chat as an alternative to a hospital visit, but it can be an additional visit.

My doctor came to see me this morning. We talked about how long I should stay here. She said that the MFM doctors (the high risk specialists) tend to be a little cavelier about people like me. They are happy if I get to 25 weeks. My own doctors, on the other hand, because they are more invested in me, feel strongly that I should stay longer. For every day I carry baby Gaby, it's like 3 days fewer in the NICU. While this may be a little boring, it is a sacrifice I am very happy to make for the welfare of my little precious baby.

I am put on the tocotransducer twice a day. (Don't I sound smart throwing words like that around? It is the contraction monitor.) I always ask how it looks, and almost every time they tell me I show signs of uterine irritablility, but I am also stable. I really feel good about how everything is going.

I cannot express strongly enough how grateful I am to all the people who have been there for my family during this time. Rachel is being cared for, and she seems to be happy. You guys are all wonderful and I love you.

From the Shores of Lake Noelle

I have changed the name of my placental lake from Noelle Lake to Lake Noelle. It's a small difference, but I think Lake Noelle sounds a little better. Am I a little egotistical to name it after myself?

Jeff told me that yesterday Rachel went to nursery. That's a little early since she doesn't turn 18 months until March 22, but I guess he figured he could hang out in the hallway with her, or he could hang out in nursery with her. He chose nursery. I'm kind of sad I missed Rachel's first day of nursery, but I suspect that even if she had waited until March 22 I would have missed it anyway.

Rachel and Jeff came by to visit yesterday after Rachel's nap, and before going to Grandma and Grandpa's house. Rachel was so sweet. She always greets me with a kiss and a hug, and she says "mama" to me now.

Sounds like I was having some more uterine irritability again yesterday. My nurse was speculating a possible cause, that baby Gaby is pretty active. She's not really any more active than any normal baby, but that my uterus is sensitive to it. She said that while I was on the monitor it seemed that when baby Gaby kicked, my uterus reacted. This is mere speculation, but hey, speculation is my favorite sport.

So here's some exciting news. Today I'm 24 weeks. Yeah!

While I was on the monitors this morning I could hear that baby Gaby has hiccups. Actually the nurse pointed it out to me, but then I could totally hear it.

Well, my doctor has come and gone, and all is well. She says that I am very stable, so it looks like bed rest is serving its purpose. And I don't just mean getting me out of housework.

Nothing new

Today has been kind of boring. Nothing new to report. My doctor came to see me, and said basically the same as yesterday. We're just hanging on day by day. It seems so backwards to me that I am doing such an important job by lying around doing nothing.