"You are worth it all"-29 weeks

How far along? 29 weeks
Weight gain/loss: Well...at the MRI last week (28 weeks) I had lost another 3 pounds from week 27. Since then, Jordan and my Mom have been constantly checking on my eating and forcing me to eat. As long as my doctor is not concerned and as long as Logan is gaining weight, I think it's ok. Some people gain a ton of weight on bedrest...I guess I do the opposite. No worries though, Jordan and my Mom have joined forces and are making sure I don't lose anymore.
Maternity clothes? mix of both...I pulled out a non-maternity shirt yesterday to wear to my doctor's appointment and thought for sure it would be too small. I was wrong. It's the shirt I'm wearing in my "bump" pic below.
Stretch marks? None yet
Sleep? I had 5 great nights of sleep while Jordan was home on vacation. I think it's because we stayed up late each night watching tv. However, I'm still getting up at least 5 times during the night.
Best moment this week? We paid off my car on Christmas Day!!!! We paid it off in 33 months instead of the original 60 I had signed up for. It is SUCH a relief to not have a $450 car payment anymore. Now that I'm out of work until April/May, it will be a big help.
Food cravings: Nada
Gender: BOY
Belly button in or out? In
Movement? All the time...Logan is getting so big that I'm feeling/seeing kicks on my right side of my stomach, almost around to my back. I really don't know how he is going to fit in there much longer, but he needs to find a way!
What I miss? Being able to go out to dinner with Jordan.
What I'm looking forward to: Our last New Year's as just the two of us! We have plans to stay home and ring in the year our son will be born by celebrating just the two of us.
Milestones: LAST WEEK IN THE 20's!!!!!! woohoo

Our Christmas:
My family has always celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve. We went to my parents' house and enjoyed delicious food and spending time with my family. My Mom's words to me when we started opening gifts were, "The days of you getting spoiled are over. From now on, it's about Logan." hehe. I wouldn't want it any other way. Jordan asked me what I wanted this year and I told him nothing...I just want a healthy baby and things for him. My parents spoiled him rotten...he got blankets, socks, gift cards, a crib mattress, a stuffed animal, outfits, and a baby monitor. My Mom had a blanket and onesie from the Disney store monogrammed with his name on it. CUTEST. THING. EVER. My Dad got him a very preppy Longhorn/polo onesie. Jordan was most excited about this! Jordan and I didn't get gifts for each other this year. We plan on purchasing a new video camera in the next few weeks so we can video every little thing this little boy does!

MRI/ultrasound:
My ultrasound at Texas Children's was at 7:30 am last Wednesday. It started off with the nurse taking 75 pictures of Logan....every bone and organ. Then, the radiologist came in and took 20 more pictures. I'm pretty sure we win the award for the most ultrasound pictures during a pregnancy. Right now, we're at close to 150. whoa. After the ultrasound, I went to another location for the MRI. Of course, there was another 30 minute wait. By this time it was close to 11am. They took me back , gave me earplugs, and began the MRI. Let me just say, small spaces don't bother me, however, I panicked during that MRI. The lady left the room and started the machine and Logan started going CRAZY. I just knew he was scared from the sounds. He was kicking and wiggling like never before. I tried to breathe normally and not panic because I didn't want him to feel me being nervous. About 30-40 minutes in, I was sweating so bad and felt like I was going to throw up so I pushed the button. The lady came back in, pulled me out, and gave me some juice. I didn't know how much more I could take in there. She assured me it was almost over so I sucked it up and told her to let's get it over with. We started again and I swear it felt like an eternity. Every time the loud bangs would stop, I would think, "Whew...it's over." Not so fast...it would start up again! Finally, it was over. She pulled me out, wheeled me back to my room, I got dressed, and went out to the waiting room to meet my Dad. Then I broke down. I started crying like a baby and I didn't care who was staring at me. I am so tired of feeling sick and being poked, prodded, and put through all of this. It also didn't help that Logan was scared. My poor baby.

Flash forward to yesterday, we had our follow up with the high-risk doctor. After waiting in the waiting room for well over an hour, we finally were taken back. The nurse did an ultrasound first to get some measurements. I am 29 weeks today, but all of Logan's measurements were over 30 weeks. His overall gestational age is 30 weeks 5 days! This doctor was calculating a due date of March 3rd, instead of the 15th. He now weighs about 3lbs 6 oz!!!! HOLY COW. He has gained 1 lb 1 oz in 12 days. No wonder I've been getting more and more uncomfortable this past week...baby is getting BIG. After getting the measurements, the doctor came in and went over the MRI results. She said that the radiologist said the small spot in Logan's tummy is located on the liver and is a "vascular origin." It is not any form of tissue and is not harming him in any way. They took multiple pictures of the liver and it looks perfect and healthy. The radiologist recommends leaving it alone and NOT having anyone operate on our baby after delivery. We will probably have an ultrasound done when he is a month old to check to see if it has grown and then have the same thing done periodically in the future. The high risk doctor then remeasured my cervix and said it was the same length as my doctor has been getting for 3 weeks now...woohoo!!! She was VERY pleased with how well I've been doing and how big Logan is getting. She thinks I can definitely make it to 36 weeks...we shall see.

"You are worth it all"
Last week, I received a gift in the mail from my parents' dear friend, Dee. She went to college with them and they have stayed friends all these years. Dee is one of the sweetest women I have ever met and she is always doing nice things for our family. Anyway, I opened the package and there was a sweet note and necklace inside. The necklace made me cry. It's a round pendant with baby footprints on it and below them it says, "You are worth it all." It immediately made me remember why I am doing all of this. I have wanted to be a mother for as long as I can remember and I already have never felt so much love for someone I have not even met yet. I am already wearing the necklace and won't take it off until after he is born. When he comes home, I plan on putting it in a small shadow box and hanging it in his room.

Dear Logan,
You are worth it all. You are worth the year long wait I went through until Daddy was ready to have a baby. You are worth the 14 weeks of all day morning sickness. You are worth the 30+ doctor's appointments I will have been to by the time you arrive. You are worth the surgery I went through to keep you safe. You are worth the nasty medicines I had to take that made me so sick. You are worth a 10 day hospital stay. You are worth the 6 1/2 weeks of bedrest I have already completed and the 6-7 weeks I still have to go. You are worth not being able to work. You are worth the pump I have to wear in my leg and the monitoring I have to do twice a day. YOU ARE WORTH IT ALL.

I have never felt a love like I already feel for you. You are my most prized possession and I'm so proud to be your Mommy. You are one tough little guy and I can't wait to see your sweet face. All that I have been through, that WE have been through, is worth it....I would do it all again. I would do ANYTHING to make sure you get here safely. Monkey, YOU are worth it.

I love you,
Mommy

28 weeks!

How far along? 28 weeks
Weight gain/loss: I'm guessing at least +10 pounds from pre-pregnancy. We don't have a scale at home so the only time I get weighed is when I see the doctor. I won't get weighed again until Jan 4th...that should be interesting!
Maternity clothes? mix of both
Stretch marks? None yet
Sleep? I had 2 great nights of sleep this week. HOORAY. However, my body seems to think it's the first trimester again and I wake up to pee about 4958392048958 times during the night.
Best moment this week? Finding out I will get $8000 based on my students/team's TAKS scores from April. It couldn't have come at a better time! Oh, and getting Logan's furniture...I will add pictures once we are finished decorating!
Food cravings: Nada
Gender: BOY
Belly button in or out? In
Movement? All the time...it still freaks Jordan out to see the baby rolling around and punching on my tummy.
What I miss? Target. hehe
What I'm looking forward to: Spending Christmas Eve at my parents' house and Christmas Day at my brother and sister-in-law's.
Milestones: We're at a point in the pregnancy where the survivability rate is over 90% if Logan were to make an early appearance. I can breathe a sigh of relief!

Tomorrow is the MRI. Please pray everything is okay with the little one and that he won't have to have surgery at delivery...or at any time for that matter. We won't get the results until we see the high-risk doctor next Monday. I'm spending the night at my parents' house tonight since my appointment is at 7 am at Texas Children's in the Med Center. My Dad will be taking me since Jordan isn't off work until Thursday.

I will update more next week about our Christmas and our visit with the high-risk doctor. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!!! I can't believe this is our last Christmas without a baby...we get to be "Santa" next year and I.CAN'T.WAIT!!!!

Here's my 28 week bump...I cut off my head because I have no make up on and look gross. Also, I think Logan has finally moved up in my tummy a little bit. :)

27 weeks!

How far along? 27 weeks, 1 day
Weight gain/loss: +9 pounds from pre-pregnancy...I gained 2 pounds since last week
Maternity clothes? yes...but I can still wear most of my pre-pregnancy pants/jeans if I rubberband them to hold them up.
Stretch marks? None yet
Sleep? It's taking me longer to fall asleep now that I'm on bedrest.
Best moment this week? Finding out my cervix has not changed since last week!
Food cravings: No real cravings
Gender: BOY
Belly button in or out? In
Movement? All the time. Sometimes I wonder if he's having a dance party in there. hehe
What I miss? Driving my car
What I'm looking forward to: Having Logan's furniture be delivered and set up on Saturday! My boy is going to have the cutest nursery!
Milestones: We're in the 3rd trimester, baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today was my weekly doctor visit. The nurses are so sweet and all come up to ask how I'm doing every week. I'm so excited to report SOOOO much good news today!

1. I PASSED the glucose test! Thank God. I told my Dad in the waiting room that I was going to cry if I had failed it because I don't think I could handle the 3 hr test. So glad I don't have to drink that nasty drink again...well, until baby #2 that is! hehe

2. Logan, overall, is measuring 28 weeks, 1 day. He weighs about 2 lbs 5 oz and is still growing like a champ. He is in the 52nd percentile. His head...well, that's another story. His head is measuring 30 weeks. GOOD-NESS. I guess it was inevitable since both Jordan and I have huge noggins.

3. We got to see Logan drinking the amniotic fluid. Baby boy's tongue kept going in and out of his mouth. That was by far one of the neatest things I've ever seen.

4. My cervix last week was 1.4cm and today it was 1.5cm!!! I think the increase is due to some margin of error, but regardless, it didn't get shorter!!!

5. My doctor said I can wait 3 weeks to see him next...woohoo. He said things are looking good and that I can wait until the first week of January to come back.

Good things...all good things. I asked him when the stitch would be removed. Typically, doctors will remove it at 37 weeks, which is considered full term. However, based on my situation, my contractions, my cervix, and the fact that Logan is measuring ahead, he said he might remove it between 33-34 weeks, but we will play it by ear. HOLY COW. That makes me VERY excited.

My Dad asked about the possibility of me sitting in a wheel chair and going to the store just to get out of the house for a bit. He said that was not an option right now since things are looking so good. However, when I go back the first week of January, I will be 30 weeks and he said it could definitely be an option once we get to that point. WOOHOO!!!

Lastly, I got my second Rhogam shot. I have O- blood and Logan has O+ blood. Therefore, my body would eventually try to build up antibodies that would attack his blood if I didn't get the shot. We found out about this when I had that huge scare back in August and had to go to the emergency room for the bleeding. I got my first shot there. I will get the last shot as soon as Logan is born. I will have to get the shots with all of my future pregnancies.

We are having a fetal MRI done next Wednesday at Texas Children's to get a better idea of what the "cyst" is in Logan's tummy. I will have a follow up appointment with the high risk doctor the following week. We're hoping we can get a definite answer as to what it is and how we will go about treating it.

This weekend is going to be so much fun! We are having all of Logan's furniture delivered and set up on Saturday. I can't wait to see it in his room...it will make everything more real. I'm sure some tears will be shed once it is all in its place. Once it gets set up, the decorating can begin!

I will leave you with some pictures of my bump and a picture of Logan!

I got lots of compliments on my shirt today! Not sure it will fit me next week, so I had to be sure to wear it at least once this season.

And here is our handsome little guy:

26 weeks, 1 day and our BOUNCING baby boy!

How far along? 26 weeks, 1 day
Weight gain/loss: +7 pounds from pre-pregnancy. At my appointment last week, I had lost 3 pounds since being on bedrest. At my appointment today, I was the same as last Friday.
Maternity clothes? yes...but I can still wear most of my pre-pregnancy pants/jeans if I rubberband them to hold them up. Right now, the only days I wear maternity clothes are when I go to the doctor. The rest of the time I wear one of Jordan's t-shirts.
Stretch marks? None yet
Sleep? It's taking me longer to fall asleep now that I'm on bedrest.
Best moment this week? Finding out that Logan is now over 2lbs! Oh yeah, and being able to leave the house again today to go to the doctor!
Food cravings: Still haven't had any "cravings." However, I could always go for some Chick-fil-a and anything with jalapenos...so strange.
Gender: BOY...Logan Scott!
Belly button in or out? In
Movement? All the time
What I miss? My students
What I'm looking forward to: Getting my house cleaned by my parents' maid!
Milestones: I've almost completed my 2nd trimester! 6 days to go...

Today was my weekly doctor's appointment. My awesome sister-in-law, Amber, picked me up and droped me off at the doctor around 9 so I could do my 1 hr glucose test before my appointment. I had 5 minutes to drink that NASTY fruit punch. About 10 minutes into the one hour, my doctor's nurse called and said my doctor wanted to see me on Friday morning instead of today. I told her I was already downstairs in the lab and that I would not have anyone to pick me up until 11 so Friday really wasn't going to work. She was very nice and told me to go ahead and come on upstairs as soon as I was done with the glucose test and they would see me right away. Thank goodness. I had an ultrasound and then met with my doctor. We didn't get any of Logan's measurements since they had just done that on Friday. They were only checking my cervix length. Bad news...it's gotten even shorter. It was 1.8cm on Friday and 1.4cm today. UGH. WHAT is wrong with my body???? After the ultrasound, I met with my doctor and he did another pelvic exam. I'm still not dialated, there was no bleeding, and my water still has not broken. All good things. My doctor says that the shortening is not worrying him until one of the things I just listed occurs. Also, as long as I'm not having contractions, the cerclage(stitch) will not be coming out any time soon. He said we're all doing everything we can do and each day is "goal" to getting Logan here safely. Even though he is optimistic, it's hard to not get down on myself. I've literally been in bed for more than 23 hours a day and my cervix is still changing...I wish I had answers as to why. All I can do is keep praying Logan stays put. Logan, you are SUCH a good boy already. Mommy and Daddy are SOOOOOO proud of you!

On the way home from the doctor, my dad drove me through Taco Cabana...yummmm. He then had to pull over 5 min later so I could get out of the car and throw up. I really think it was that nasty drink I had to drink for the glucose test...it just didn't sit well in my stomach. We then got home and I threw up a lot more. I got in the bed and started feeling better and then felt even better after eating my lunch. That tells me it was definitely the drink...and maybe some nerves from seeing the doctor.

As I mentioned above, my parents are sending their maid over on Friday afternoon. My Mom called me last week and said they wanted to do that for us and I couldn't be more excited! My sweet Husband has done a FABULOUS job of picking up and taking care of things, but let's face it...he doesn't "clean." Like, mop, sweep, scrub...I used to take care of that part. Soooo...my house is getting a good scrub down on Friday and I could not be more ecstatic and grateful for my parents for setting this up! Jordan started cleaning out Logan's room last weekend and has a few more items to move out of there before Friday. My biggest thing is having the maid scrub down his room in preparation for his furniture being delivered. Yes, ALL of his furniture is in and ready to be delivered and set up. I can't wait! My child is getting all the best and his room will certainly be the cutest/preppiest nursery ever.

I will leave you all with a short video of our bouncing baby boy! I've told you before about how active this kid is and I wanted to prove it with a video of my tummy jumping around. This was "calm" for him. I'll try to get a better video another day when he is REALLY wiggling up a storm. I can't wait to meet this little guy!!!

BIG baby!

So today was my follow-up with the doctor. I started by having an ultrasound done to check my cervix and Logan's measurements. We'll start with Logan. We have a BIG boy on our hands! His head is measuring 28 weeks and his overall measurements are 27 weeks. We should have known he would have a huge head since Mommy and Daddy both have a huge noggin. I guess we know he'll be very smart. hehe. As for the rest of his body, he's always measured ahead, however, the doctor never wanted to change my due date. He weighs 2lbs 1oz and had a heart rate of 161bpm. They also measured his precious feet. I wanted to say, "little feet," but like I said in a previous post, he's going to take after his Daddy's size 14/15. His feet are already 5cm long. Awwwww.



The "cyst" in his tummy has not grown...hooray!!! My doctor said he will talk to the high risk doctor to see if we can postpone the MRI for a while longer. There's nothing we can do about it until Logan is born anyway, so my doctor doesn't seem to want to rush the MRI while I'm having all these other issues. I also got weighed today. I've lost 3 pounds since going on bedrest. How does that happen? Especially when I'm not getting any exercise by walking...and all I do is eat and lay around like a bum. I'm not complaining...as long as Logan gains more, I don't mind going backward a little bit. hehe. My doctor didn't seem concerned...same thing, as long as the baby is growing, all is well! So...that puts me at +7lbs from pre-pregnancy. Again, my dear child, THANK YOU!

Now for my cervix. In a previous post I mentioned that the high risk doctor measured it as 2.17cm. Then I had the cerclage and haven't been checked since. My doctor didn't want to check me in the hospital because he didn't want to irritate or make anything worse when it came to my uterus. Soo...today it was between 1.6-1,9cm. There were about 3 different measurements...I guess they take an average. After the ultrasound, the doctor did a pelvic exam and said he could tell it was shorter, however, he is not worried. He said it probably changed when my uterus was going crazy those first 3 days after the cerclage was done. He also said that the funneling (when the amniotic sac starts to push through the cervix for delivery) is pretty normal for this stage in my pregnancy. My doctor is not worried about the small change. He said what matters now is what happens between today and Logan's delivery. Fingers crossed it stays the same!


My bedrest restrictions and home monitoring sessions will not change for at least 6 more weeks. After that, my doctor said we will discuss some modifications. I haven't had any contractions since Wednesday morning and the ones I had then were VERY small...only 2 in an hour. I guess that means the pump and medicine are working. I will have weekly ultrasounds and visits with the doctor from here on out. My next appointment is Wednesday, Dec 8th. I will also be doing my glucose test that day...oh joy. The nurse did say that women on bedrest get to sit in recliners for the one hour glucose test...woohoo. I deserve come kind of "perk" for going through all of this! All in all, my doctor said he is pleased with where things are at right now. We are in a much "safer" stage in the pregnancy, even though I still have a long way to go. Please keep praying for things to stay the same, if not better!!!

When I got home, the nurses from the home health services came to the house to watch me change the pump site in my leg. I did it all by myself! I will have to change it every 5 days. They were also sweet enough to give me my weekly progesterone shot because Jordan is still too scared to give it to me. He's terrified of hurting me. I keep telling him that I'm the best patient because needles don't bother me...he won't listen. That's about all that happened while they were here. They were pleased with how my monitoring sessions have been going and said I'm doing everything right.

I will leave you with the belly pictures I promised! It felt so good to put on make-up, wear normal clothes, and leave the house today!