Baby update

Well today is 38 weeks and had an OB appt this morning...fabulous news...baby finally (after all this time) flipped and is head down!! This means no version (today anyway)! I was very relieved, however he did say I do have a lot of amniotic fluid and it is still a little high, so it is still possible it could move around again so we'll have to just monitor things. All in all it was a great appt and will see him again next Weds unless anything happens before then. He said he would think about induction at the 39 week mark - so that is next week but we'll have to see. Anyway, just cross our fingers this little stinker doesn't do any major movements and I guess it could be anytime!!

Kelly

Colton - and weekend events...

Colton - well, the wound on the back of his arm opened up again and I just got off the phone with Sheri (the wound nurse)...and explained how it has went the last 2 weeks (I only had his bandages off for a few days as it seemed to scratch open and start getting larger and is hypergranulating again...and she said 'crap. yeah, we'll have to see him again - probably a couple or a few more times). Damn. So, we'll start our Friday ritual again tomorrow of heading in to see her and then making a McDonald's lunch run before heading back to daycare:) The funny thing is - even though it's a big bummer we have to go back, they are all really excited to see him again and were asking for baby updates;)

Weekend - should be a fun filled weekend...Parents, Shelly, Lauren and Jess are all coming Fri-Sunday so the kids can play and they may end up swimming on Sat (probably not Colton now with his arm deal going on again) and then DEREK IS COMING HOME FROM KOSOVO SATURDAY NIGHT AT 11:30PM!!!!!! We are all super pumped to see him, even if only for 9 days - I remember from the last time he came home for his 2 weeks from Iraq that the anticipation was just a KILLER waiting to see him step off the plane, so maybe it will be a joyous occasion in 2 ways...we get to see him AND it will put me into labor! Will be great to have him home and he will be here to celebrate Jayla's 2nd birthday next Saturday:) We will also be filling him full of lots of good and fattening food at his request (starting with lunch on Sunday):)

Kelly

OB update

Ok - met with Dr. Dangerfield this morning. The baby is still very high due to the fact I have so much amniotic fluid - it is in an oblique position, meaning 'kittywampus' as he said...or a bit diagonal, but head down to the side. He didn't make that sound like that meant much because it's still floating around and has so much room to move (as he put it - it's floating around so much that it's in a different county from where I am). With that said, he can't really do a version this week since the baby isn't 'engaged' or moved down as it should be (whether that be with the head or the legs - it is just still up so high). He wanted to see me 1 week from now to re-check position and said we would schedule & do the version (on the baby floor) that day of my appt if the baby hasn't moved into position and engaged. However, he must not have realized he is out Mon and Tues and possibly Weds, so they tried to schedule me with his NP, which I put the kibosh on as I know I need to see an OB doc. I just talked to his nurse finally and she spoke to him and he apologized saying he hadn't realized he was out but that he WILL be in next Weds so they have me scheduled for next Weds at 9am and unless the baby is completely flipped and engaged the right way, he will do the version that day. He also let me know it's possible my water could break over the next week and due to the nature of the position, if that happened I would need to get to the hospital right away and make sure to let them know the position info. If it would happen (water breaks) and I go in, they would need to check position right away via ultrasound - if it wasn't fully head down, it would be a c-section. So, now...just a waiting game.

Kelly

Colton and baby update...

Colton - had his 2 year checkup today and all was great...on track growth-wise and developmentally. He had 2 shots which he didn't love, but no more shots now until he's 5! He does have to see an opthamalogist next week as he has a problem with a consistently blocked tear duct so they have to open it up and blow it out or something. Yuck. I'm sure he will love that. He's also seeing a dermatologist next week to check out one of his birthmarks and give final recomendations on sun care of his scars for the rest of the winter/spring/summer. He then saw the wound nurse right after. They are so great there - everyone from reception to the nurses just love him and are very excited to see the new baby - so they wanted to make sure I stop down after I have the baby so they can see the new addition. I laughed and told them all they have seen me more in my pregnancy than any of our family!! ;) The fantastic news is Sheri decided that was his last appt. She took the bandage off his wrist and it will stay off now. Nasty scar, but very little healing left and no bandage required. She had to do the nitrate stuff and scrape the back of his arm, which he hated, but she put a new heavy, duty bandage on that and said to leave it on for the next 4-5 days and it can then come off for good!! That is also a pretty nasty scar, but again, healing very well. I'd say he'll be all healed up in both spots within 2 weeks. Awesome!

Baby - was 35 weeks on Weds. Baby has been transverse (sideways) or breech (head up) for about 7 weeks so we did and ultrasounds and yep, still breech but everything else looks great and healthy. Crappy decision, but Dr said he wants me to decide on if I am willing to try an external version at 37 weeks if still in the wrong position. He said he is highly successful and I know he really wants me to try it. It's basically when they admit you to a room on the labor and delivery floor, give you meds to relax the uterus and try to turn the baby manually from the outside by lots of pushing and turning on your stomach. I have heard awful things about the procedure and horror stories on the pain, but it is successful 65% of the time and the other either they have to stop for pain or the baby flips back the wrong way within a couple days - in that case, that we couldn't finish it, it didn't work for some reason or the baby flipped back, it would then result in a scheduled c-section. There is always potential for complications and in that case, the baby is monitored before the procedure, during and then also after through the stress tests, they have anesthesia there and could do an emergency c-section quickly if need be. There's also the possibility it could put you into labor, but 37 weeks is full-term, so not a big deal. Anyway, I have my next dr appt not this coming week, but the Monday morning after (15th at 8:30) and they will check position again and we'll decide what to do if the baby hasn't turned. If it hasn't we'd schedule the version for probably Tues, Weds or Thurs of that same week.

Tyler - Ty finished his 2nd round of swim lessons last night! I guess really the 1st as the 1st time was parent child and that doesn't totally count...but over the past 5 weeks he has learned to swim on his own!! He will start them again, along with another round of basketball camp - for 5 weeks each, next Saturday the 13th. Bball at the Fargo Basketball Academy from 9:30-10:45 every Sat morning, then swimming at the Y from 11:30 to 11:55 - both run for 5 weeks. Busy Saturday mornings for Ty - and the crazy thing...he's not even 5 yet!

Corey - has is last day of his GPS job today (after about 6 years) and will start a new job as a Premier National Technical Account Manager on Monday! Premier is our highest level managed Customer support option, so he will have like 6-8 Customers he 'owns' and will manage their support needs, incidents, support cases to make sure they are going smoothly and getting resolved in a timely manner...etc. Basically these Customers pay the big bucks to have their technical/support needs managed from the Microsoft side. Some of these Customers are like Walmart, Best Buy, MGM Hotels in Vegas, NASCAR, a huge variety of pro sports teams...pretty much 'the big dogs'. He will have Customers so far in Ohio and Michigan...Pizza Hut will be one of his Customers...they are in Ann Arbor so like he said, would be a blast to catch a football or bball game out there sometime! He shouldn't have to travel nearly as much as his current job which is VERY welcome on my side! He does have to goto Redmond for 3 nights in late March and then again in August for a conference, but other than that, may have Customer visits every so often.

Kelly - well, no update on me...I count as 'the baby' update:) - other than that, I'm just really big;)

Kelly

Colton and Baby Updates -

Colt had a wound nurse appt on Tuesday and all went well - he had more hyper granulation occurring on each wound so she had to put zinc oxide or something on each of them which he did not like at all, but she thinks he's healing well and figured about 10 more days, however I think that could be true for his wrist but maybe a tish longer for the back of his arm. We also got his nose stitches out last Friday as they were starting to either get infected or he was having a reaction to them (which can happen on the face), that wasn't so fun but he has kept his steri-strips on pretty good until Tuesday when he has started to consistently pull them off. We only needed them on until yesterday, but I'm keeping on a couple days longer since he keeps pulling them off. He'll have a decent scar but at least the gash has closed up fairly well.

I am 34 weeks this week and had an appt Tuesday - they said the baby is totally transverse (and has been since my last ultrasound at 28 weeks). This is the worst position it could be in, typically they can't flip transverse baby like they can breech (doing an external version - which is them basically numbing you up and doing lots of pushing around your belly to move the baby manually) and I have heard that version's can be very painful and in the case of transverse babies - they usually just go right back into that position because they are most comfortable that way. Basically the head is laying on my left hip and butt on my right - legs and arms up, and spine curled down at the bottom. Only about 1 in 2000 babies are still in this position when you go into labor, however since it has been in this same position for 6 weeks, there is a chance it won't turn and we could have to do a csection. They are starting my weekly appts 1 week early, next Tuesday, and will also ultrasound to check weight and position. I am measuring 3 weeks ahead (37 weeks) as of this week, so they want to make sure the baby isn't getting too big, but I'm sure it's just because it's in such an odd position. They will probably make a call in the next couple weeks if we would do a csection early. Typically they can wait till you go into labor to see if the baby will flip and if not, you are looking at a last minute csection, however, with the fact it has stayed in position so long and it probably won't and that I'm measuring ahead and that I typically have babies early - there will be lots to talk about next week after the ultrasound. I am obviously 100% hoping no csection, so we'll just have to see. More to come next week...definitely ready to wind this pregnancy down and SO IS Corey. I have been much more testy this pregnancy and let me tell you, if someone could capture all my thoughts, I'd have an international comedic best seller! Corey doesn't know this - but it's very funny. Sometime in the last week he and I were a bit crabby and I yelled something down to him and he said he couldn't hear what I was saying and I got totally annoyed because if he answered, obviously he heard me and in a fairly loud tone I responded back 'BITE ME! ...DID YOU HEAR THAT?!' ;) oh, I'm so lady-like sometimes it kills me!! :)

Kelly

Stitches out...

We just got back from getting Colton's stitches out - again we got to have Corey hold him down, a nurse hold his head, I held his feet and a childcare specialist came in to make noises and blow bubbles - quite the production:). Corey laughed and asked everyone in the room if 'childcare specialist was another name for social services? - and they all got a kick out of that. The dr. thought he was on the verge of infection from them, so she said they had to come out - but regardless, she (as the other PED told us) told us that facial stitches come out within 3-5 days anyway. It broke open a bit when she took them out but she said the cut was so deep that she put a steri-strip down them and we'll have to leave the strips on (and replace them if they come off) until next Weds - which is when we see the wound nurse anyway for his arm so she can make sure he's healing up Ok. She said no baths until next weds (just sponge baths) and we have to really watch him - obviously for any signs of infection being he was already seeming to be started down that path (she said it takes out a lot of the room for infection by taking all the stitches out that have 2 infection points each), but also because it's so deep and could break back open if he isn't careful - wouldn't that be just fabulous?! >:(

So, we'll just be hanging low, watching meatballs and keeping him away from all chairs, sharp corners, dangerous objects, couch jumping...etc...for the next 5 days:) She said he's fine to goto daycare, but it's good he's home the next few days anyway to give some extra healing time - even though we agree he seems to get himself in less trouble there than with us.

Ok - talk to you later,

Kelly