Early arrival

As most of you know, Quinn arrived on November 17 at 6:21 am, 7 weeks premature. He weighed 4 lbs, 7 oz and was 17" long. He is currently in the NICU, doing great! He needs to be able to self-regulate his temperature before he comes home. I cannot access the blog at the hospital, but someday I will post all the details. Please pray that our son can come home soon!

32-week bump

Time is going by very quickly, and there is still so much to do! I have been having a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions, so I have been trying to take it easy, which means things are not getting done as they should be. We still need to finish clearing out the second bedroom, and going through and getting rid of things to make room for the little one. Then there's the wonderfully mountainous pile of gifts from the baby shower...

I am going to the doctor tomorrow just to make sure that all of these contractions aren't causing things to happen prematurely! I'll keep you posted.

Passed!

I took the 3 hour glucose test on Friday. The test wasn't so bad. The glucola I had to drink was twice as sweet as the one I drank for the first test, but it still didn't taste as horrible as Pedialyte. I got a lot of reading done (about how to have an "easy labor") while I waited, so it was actually much more relaxing than going to work. I found out today that I passed! Praise the Lord! I celebrated with a Peppermint Chocolate Chip shake from Chik-fil-a. Don't worry, I had a salad for dinner. :)

This past Saturday was my baby shower. What a wonderful day! It was filled with family, friends, food, and fun! I am indebted to my awesome party-planners. While it was a great day, I was exhausted afterwards. It was great to have much of Sunday to lay on the couch, nap, and take a bath (thanks to the party favors: a bag filled with hot cocoa, chocolate, a bath fizzy, and a candle. I made use of all during my bath. Aaaahhhh...it was lovely).

Some photos to enjoy:

Failed

I went for a follow up appointment tonight, and the midwife that I saw told me I failed my glucose tolerance test by 1 point. She said the doctor was leaving it up to me whether or not I wanted to go ahead and do the 3 hour test to see if I have gestational diabetes. She went on to say that if I did have diabetes and it went unchecked, it could affect the baby's heart. So, in a "good Mommy" move, I told her I wanted to do the test. In a subsequent "bad Mommy" move, I went home and had a piece of pie.

Apparently, Quinn already has his head down. Of course he can still flip around plenty in there, but it sounds good to me that he's in the right position. I'm just glad I don't have to stand on my head for 10 weeks.

Quinn has also started having hiccups. I felt it for the first time late last week. He's had them 3 times since then, and they last about 10-15 minutes. Feeling him kick, move, and hiccup are incredible blessings that I feel privileged to experience. I know that there are many more blessings to come!

Braxton Hicks

I think I have begun to have Braxton Hicks contractions. My doctor asked me last month if I'd been having them. I learned that you begin having them 6 weeks into your pregnancy, but you don't usually notice them until later (if at all). I noticed quite by accident that I was having one (just happened to be feeling my belly at the time) and now I am a little more aware of having them. I've felt maybe one or two a day for the past few days. I feel a very slight uncomfortable feeling in my lower abdomen, and my uterus feels as hard as a rock. So I'm guessing that's the Braxton Hicks.

Sometimes I can feel Quinn when I put my hands on my belly. I can't distinguish body parts yet, but I do feel some hard lumps poking out at times. Last weekend, I was sitting with my hands over my belly, and I felt something move across my hand. And of course, he often lets me know he's in there with some swift kicks that make my whole belly visibly shake. The doctor said his movements will become less frequent as he loses space to move around in. This made me sad, because I thought I would just feel his movements more as he got bigger. I love feeling him move around in there!

I had my glucose tolerance test on Friday. The glucola wasn't too bad (it tasted a lot better than Pedialyte!) and I haven't heard anything from my doctor, so I'm thinking no news is good news. My next doctor's appointment is only a week away. I'll have to get used to going more frequently. Time is flying by so quickly. I can't believe he'll be here in 2 1/2 months!

Getting bigger...

28 weeks

Here's the first picture I tried to take...of course the cat walked right in front of the camera.

Graduation Day!

Today we visited the specialist. We don't have to return to him anymore, because everything looks great! Quinn weighs 2 lbs, 1 oz, and he is right on track for a birth weight of 7.5 lbs on his due date. Of course the doctor added his disclaimer that a lot can and probably will change between now and then regarding his birth weight and date. Here are some pictures of our cutie:

That's the placenta to the right of his face, and she couldn't get his whole head in the shot because she was coming at him from the side.

Next up: The glucose tolerance test. That takes place at the end of next week. After that visit, I'll need to see my OB every 2 weeks instead of every 4. During the month of December I'll have to go every week. It's hard to believe we'll get to meet Quinn in only about 3 months!