What a Day wait What a Week

Were did I leave off, well since WED we have been over on the Mommy and me siad of the birthing center, right across the room from the NICU. Maggie is doing amazing, she is a fighter. she had been on the c-pap since tues with her Oxygen levels bouncing around, and the cpap's level doing the same. She has also battled a severe case of consitpation in which she has overcame as well. Today our choice for our pediatrician took over Maggies case. Not that the other was doing anything wrong if fact I thank god that he was around he has great knowlege and talent and got Maggie to whee she is today. Trace and I both werr more comfortable changing over to the doctor who we initially were going to go with before this all happened. To make a long story short both grandparents have been here, my parents and I wee in Lindsborg for most of the afternoon. On our way up Trace calls me and says you need to hurry up there thinking something was wrong, I was kind of in a paninc well I find out that they have removed her from the c-pap and we wee going to get to hold her. The grandparents said good night to her and Trace and I went in to hold Maggie for the first time.

On a side note, our next prayer request will be handed out to Trace, thinking we might have gotten out Frday it did not happen. Her BP has been all over. High Low you name it it has happened. The doctors are tying to get it under control before we can break her out of here.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Well we moved to a new place, Trace parents came up last week. Overall Trace looked completly fine. A lot better then she had been. We left for our daily doctors appointment on Monday, thinking it would be status quo. Dr. Knox's nurse then her daily dip test in her urine. She had her back to Trace but I watched her do somewhat of a double take. So I asked if everything was ok. Well she said her protein was at a 2 plus, that started our concern because that was the point in which the doctor would start to worry. She said lets check your BP before we jumed to conclusions, she then checked it and her BP was 171 over 118. With in three minutes Doctor Knox was in and said I will see you in the Hospital.

Thinking that it was for observation and hoping to get her number stable, we would continue on bed rest. Well we then found out herr 24 urine test came back and had the protein levels had jumped up 200 mg. Then the amniotic fluid level had gone down, and to top that her blood pressures were still all over.

Then coms Tuesday, when I arrived at the hospital the nurse put her on a clear diet we knew what was comming next. Dr. Knox felt like it was time to go, to get Trace's health back to normal. The rest is kind of a whirl wind.

BUT AT 12:11 pm our life will never be the same, Maggie was born. Her lungs are still a little under developed but are getting better.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAGGIE

a few things

as noted on my recent facebook status: Maggie is crazy. every time a nurse tries to put the fetal monitor on my belly, she tries to run and hide (not as though she could get very far), or kicks the nurse. i love that.

we met the pediatrician today she was super nice and the office was a fun place, so this should be good. this may be typical of pediatrician offices, but how would i know?!?! each exam room had a theme; we were in the Princess Suite; there was also a cowboy room, a lion room, and (for my friend Lulu) a frog room.

there was the very strange point early in the visit when the nurse called us back for the initial tour, and said, "Margaret." It took me a long time to realize that was us. I am going to be a mom....YIKES! (oh also, they gave us this folder of information about the practice and in the introductory letter used the phrase "post haste." LOVE THAT. i suppose if i did anything post haste i would add that one to my vocabulary...well...post haste.)

after the pediatrician, we had the weekly sonogram, or, at least, we thought we did. evidently, once a patient is admitted to the hospital in-patient, all of his subsequent appointments are cancelled. inconvenient. especially when the patient is not informed of this. anyway, they were very nice about it all and got us in right away, as if nothing had ever happened. i really appreciated that!! so, sono was good. fluid was 13+ and Maggie (at 32.5ish weeks) weighs an astonishing FIVE-and-a-HALF pounds. YIKES! they say babies gain about 8 oz. per week during the last trimester; mine gained nearly an ENTIRE pound.

then we went to the ob, and all was fine there. same ole same ole

nick (with the help of some very nice members of the Bethany College Swede football team) is still working on getting us all moved over to the new place. i continue working on not going completely nuts lying here for as long as it takes; at least there will be new surroundings soon.

k.. as always...we will keep you posted

32 weeks + 3 days

well, after an uneventful 36 hour hospital stay, I am back home. nothing is new really. nick took me in Saturday, May 2 around 8 p.m., because my bp was really high -- even for me. when i went in for my friday appointment, it was high, so dr. knox said if it continued, worsened, or i felt the "yuck" to go straight to labor and delivery. we did.

as soon as i was there, my bp went down, but it did fluctuate some. they ordered the 24-hour urine, which i would have been doing at home anyway, and said i would be there until this morning.

all of the labs came back fine. protein at 295 (up slightly, but 300 is the diagnostic level, and OH-NO-really-scary is 5000, so there is a way to go).

so, for now we are home with all of the same requirements as before. my original due date was (and still is) june 28; however, the dr. says he will not let me go past 37 weeks. five more weeks seems like an eternity considering i have been laying around for four weeks already AND a six-week recovery will likely follow that (c-section). a long way to go.

the upside is the lifetime of fun and joy that will come from the waiting...

i am so thankful to have a terrific husband. nick is so committed to taking care of everything. (a little stressful for ocd-control freak trace); stressful but appreciated and loved more than i could ever say.

add to that--we are moving into a new apartment, and the stress multiplies slightly. my parents are coming this week to help out with that, and Nick's parents visited to check in and filled our fridge last weekend too, so we are very blessed.

more than anything the prayers help, so thank you for that. we love you guys and will continue to keep you posted.

GOD is so good.