Baby #3 Pregnancy details...

Due date for baby #3 is February 12, 2013. Here is a recap of how pregnancy is going the second time around...

5 weeks - There are 2 babies, my blood work is 6000. one of the sacs is measuring a week behind the other so a follow up ultrasound is scheduled. I am very tired and not hungry at all.

7 weeks - One healthy gummy bear looking baby! Round ligament pain starts and takes my breath away, if I sneeze, move "fast" or roll over.

10 weeks - Baby's heartbeat is 160 BPM. I am nauseous all day long and my reflux is pretty bad already. I buy maternity pants, I think I'm getting big faster this time!

12 weeks - We have the NT scan and everything looks good, they couldn't quite get the right measurement because the baby was laying like he/she was in a hammock and not straight for the spine fluid measurement. We tried everything to get the little baby to move including bending down and turning on my side, but she/he was too comfy! I will go back for a blood draw to confirm (all comes back normal). The tech thinks the baby is a boy, but doesn't write it in the report.

14 weeks - I meet a midwife at the practice, but find out they don't do deliveries of babies. Heartbeat was 150 BPM, and everything is on track. I feel the baby move a lot at night. The doctors say it's totally normal to feel babies move earlier the second time around.

18 weeks - (so far 10 pound weight gain). Baby's heartbeat is 150 BPM and picked up right away on the monitor which probably means my placenta is posterior (and not between the doppler and baby on the outside of my tummy). Baby moves a lot and it feels like kicks now, not just flutters. I have stomach cramping and back pain but the doctor things how I explain it that is really GI related. I start 'nesting' and make Christian set up the crib and help rearrange the furniture for baby's room.

19 weeks - I go in for an extra check before getting on an airplane for Connie and Jason's wedding in Vegas, everything checks out and I'm cleared to fly! Heartbeat is 143 BPM and the baby is definitely a BOY! My cervix looks great at 3.14 and they aren't worried about preterm labor at this point but are keeping an eye out for it since I was preterm last time. They say even though I had twins, they don't know if I delivered premature because of that or because of my body in general. I'm also more likely to deliver a premature baby this time around anyway because I've had one premature birth.

20 weeks - We have our growth scan and everything looks normal. Baby is measuring with a due date of February 7 though the doctors are still tracking my original due date of 2/12. Lots of baby movement and strong kicks can be felt on the outside of my belly now. My stretch marks are getting stretch marks, no food cravings at all yet.

22 weeks - (gained 12 pounds so far, 4 pounds less than with the twins). Baby is measuring on track and mommy is healthy. Heartbeat is 140 BPM. I'm having contractions but the doctor says they sound normal. I learn that OB's are on call for 24 hour shifts, so "my OB" my not deliver me. They suggest meeting with all of the OB's now, and my last few appointments have with the same one since most of the questions come up then anyway. It sounds like a good plan to me!

25 weeks - Halloween I go in for a cervical check and to talk about the contractions I've been feeling at night. Every night the past few weeks I've felt super strong, regular contractions. Dr doesn't think I'm just having them at night, and during a check finds that I am 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced already, which means she sends me over to labor and delivery to be monitored. I panic a bit thinking I could have this baby super early. They hook me up to the monitor and find that I am having contractions during the day also, and more than they would like so I was given "indocine" to calm them down. The medicine stops the contractions so I am sent home on strict bed rest and schedule a follow up with the OB in a week.

26 weeks - (So far I've gained 17 pounds). I am sent to L&D for more contractions and this time I am given nifedipine to stop them and sent home with the same medicine to control them at home so  I don't have to run in every time this occurs. The doctors don't seem very concerned but want me to be able to stop the contractions so they don't progress labor. The next day I check in with the OB who says I'm having preterm contractions that will occur the rest of this pregnancy. She says I am not in preterm labor (yet). They decide to monitor my cervix and do an FFN every two weeks. I am not on full bed rest at this point but I am allowed light activity. I find that I basically need to lay down every 30 min or I wear myself out and contractions start up, but bed rest is really starting to get to me. It is really tough with twin 3.5 year olds at home who don't understand why mommy can't help or play. I also learn that the contractions themselves are not to worry about, but if the medicine doesn't stop them within 1-2 hours after taking it, I am to go in to check my cervical length to make sure labor isn't progressing.

27 weeks - Quick check in for cervical length and FFN and diabetes screen. Everything looked good with the baby, and when we were doing the ultrasound baby's eyes were open, we saw him blinking and it was very cool! The glucose for the diabetes screen made me feel very sick all day and baby was not liking it and kept punching and kicking in protest of all of that sugar.