Bedrest Begins!!

After leaving the hospital on Saturday, September 1, I was officially on bedrest. It stunk. Being on bedrest with a 2 year old is much different than being on bedrest without one. I can't stop being a mom and taking care of my son. I just don't know how to do that. Luckily, the first day home was already a bit late in the day. The second day, however, was when Dennis wanted to take his sister into Chicago for the Chicago Jazz Festival. We had discussed it before any thoughts of preterm labor, and even thinking of myself as a healthy, pregnant woman, I wasn't going to go in. Too much walking. My mom and dad said that they didn't have any plans, so Dennis dropped off me and Andrew for the day at their house. Andrew and I spent lots of time there this past summer, since temperatures were commonly in the 90s or 100s, and it wasn't any fun being outside. He loves it there, so that also made it nice. My mom is a good mom and took care of us. I was able to rest when I needed to, also.

I felt bad at times being on bedrest, though. Dennis' sister came all this way, and I had to stay in bed or on the couch the whole time. We did take her out on Tuesday night to a Mexican restaurant, but that was the extent of me going out with her. Dennis and Andrew took her a few places on Monday, so she could get a few, last-minute purchases before leaving us on Wednesday afternoon. After taking her to the bus stop, Dennis dropped Andrew and I off at my parents' house again. We were being babysat again by my mom! :) By Friday, it was just too hard for me to sit and do nothing while my mom played with Andrew and cleaned/cooked, so I actually made lunch and dinner that day. I didn't feel too horrible, so I didn't think it was a big deal.

I had a doctor's appointment on Tuesday and Friday. I was being watched by my doctor to see if there were any changes. Luckily, there weren't any changes with my cervix and baby's position, but I was still on the Procardia and still on bedrest. Dr. M just changed it from every 6 hours t every 8. On Friday, Dr. M was delivering someone's baby, so I had to see Dr. H. She confirmed that things were staying put, but she didn't want me to stop bedrest or the Procardia. Dr. M hinted that she would stop me today, but since she wasn't here to talk with me herself, I still have to take it. At least, my body seems to be making more of a adjustment to the medication, and I don't have such bad heartburn feelings or rapid heartrate. A part of me was also hoping to get off of bedrest. I don't know why she would have stopped that, since I'm only 34 weeks, but I was hopeful. During my ultrasound, the tech measured the baby's size. He measured at 6 pounds 7 ounces, which was more than Andrew measured at the same time. This, of course, freaked me out a bit, because it just proved to me that this guy was going to be big. The tech also said that his head was in the 75% for size. Andrew had and still has a little bean, which I have appreciated so much. Delivery was hard enough with his little head, and I wasn't looking forward to how things would go with a 75% head with Edmund. Hopefully, all would work out. Dr. H checked me and said that I was 1 cm still. I was also 80% effaced, and the baby was at a minus 2 station.

On Saturday, we went back to the hospital, but this time, we were taking a prenatal class that lasted all day. That was a bit difficult. 9am-5pm, sitting in a wheelchair was hard. I was so uncomfortable. I don't want to say that we learned a lot during the class, but lots of information came back to us. That was nice. We really needed to be refreshed on the lamaze breathing and a bunch of other things. We were both glad we went. After leaving, we called my sister, who took Andrew to soccer with my two nephews. I guess he was in 7th Heaven all day being with his two buddies. She told us to go ahead and get some supper out, since we might not get another chance before the baby comes. Though I was exhausted, it was a good idea, and besides, we didn't have any groceries in the house to feed us or Andrew. We got a bite at Chili's, which was great. It was nice to spend some QT with Dennis. We never do that anymore. When we picked up Andrew, he, of course, didn't pay any attention to us. Would you if you had a million toys to play with and two playmates? We finally got him to leave, and it didn't take him long to pass out. We also were in bed and asleep by 9pm. What a day!!! It really proved to me that I can't and shouldn't sit that long without laying down for part of the day.

I had some pains from time to time, but it was so hard to know what it was. Braxton Hicks? Uterine irritability? Contractions? Nothing seemed regular, so I didn't think anything of it. I thought more of the fact that I had to cancel a bunch of playdates for me and Andrew with my Mom's Group. I really looked forward to those events at the coffee shop or park, and I really felt bad that Andrew was missing out on playing with other kids. He is so shy, and I love to have as many opportunities for him to mingle as possible. All I hoped was that I would get some good news at the doctor on Tuesday during my visit, but since I have to meet with Dr. H instead of Dr. M, I just have a feeling that bedrest is going to continue until the baby is born. We'll see what she says and how long bedrest and this pregnancy last. When I saw Dr. H on Tuesday, Sept. 11, the baby moved a lot on the monitor, but I wasn't having any contrations. Though I thought this to be a good sign that I would be taken off of bedrest, that wasn't the case, since Dr. H wanted to still be cautious. Being cautious is good, I guess. I am just feeling so uncomfortable all the time. I thought it would still be a good idea to discuss my birth plan with Dr. H, in case she would be the one delivering me. She was pretty much fine with everything, which was a great relief. The baby's heartrate was 144, and the fluid was still on the high side, 24. I weighed at 156.