Baby Big Head (Real name Maximilian) is HERE!!!

Maximilian Vincent

Born at 10:05 PM, C-section. 

8 lbs, 4 oz and 20 inches long 

 At first he had trouble breathing on his own but only needed help for the first hour. Now he's doing really well but is still in the intermediate care nursery because he's taking antibiotics through an IV.  I discovered an hour before I had him I had a bad infection that gave me a high fever and really raised Max's heartbeat. That was when we decided it was unsafe and that I needed an emergency C-section. 

Mom, Dad, and Max are all doing great! I'm slowing getting back to walking but am still pretty sore and taking antibiotics as well even though the infections seems to be better!

Small update on my last update-37 wks.

I followed up with my doctor yesterday morning and I don't really have much news considering there was only one day between visits, but a few small things!

Well first off...37 weeks is considered FULL TERM!! Yay!! That means that if baby was born now, he wouldn't be "premature" and should be completely fine. :)

My doctor told me to not worry about needing a c-section. She says she only offers them to patients with macrosomia (a baby over 10 lbs at birth.)   She said he would probably fall into this category if I make it all the way to my due date. Luckily she says she would be "shocked" if I get close to my due date. So chances are..no c-section for me!

I also asked what the possibilities were of induction to avoid a c-section and she said until I make it to 39 weeks the risks outweigh the benefits of doing that. I don't really want to be induced either though, but it would be better than a c-section.

Every week I need to have a nonstress test to check on the baby. She says I have hydramnios (too much amniotic fluid) so they need to check on him more frequently. Don't look hydramnios up online, all kinds of scary stuff comes up about babies dying and all kinds of birth defects (In severe cases!!). I have what sounds like a very mild case that is simply caused by how big he is because there were no other complications found so it shouldn't be an issue. 

Maybe I'll have a birthday baby!! My birthday is next week and that is when my obgyn thinks he will most likely come. 

Pretty big update!! 36 weeks 6 days.

Well I posted my last update at 36 weeks so a lot has happened in only 6 days!
On Saturday my mucous plug came out. That was really gross! I thought about calling my doctor, but didn't because nothing more happened after that.

This morning I woke up to something weird. I noticed I had a decent amount of liquid come out. It wasn't a huge "gush" or anything like most women describe but it was definitely not anything I've had so far this pregnancy. I REALLY wasn't sure what to do at that point so I just called my doctor's office and they told me to come in to be safe and check what was going on.

The doctor's visit went great! First she checked to see if what was coming out was actually amniotic fluid and it wasn't. She said it was probably just extra fluid left over from the plug coming out. She checked to see if I was dilated and I was to 1 cm! Progress over last week. She also did a quick ultrasound to check the fluid levels around the baby. She said everything looked great and that he had a lot of fluid.

After that we talked about the results from the big ultrasound I had on Thursday. He's now OVER the 90th percentile!! She asked me my thoughts on a planned c-section and we made a plan that if I make it to 39 weeks we'd schedule one because if I make it to my due date he'll be way to big. Although, my doctor seems to think I should go into labor in the next week by how things are looking and probably have him around 38 weeks which if that's the case I should have no need for a c-section!

At the end of the visit, she put me on the monitor for half an hour to see how the baby was doing. I hadn't had time to eat breakfast so the baby was sleeping at first so she gave me a few squares of chocolate to wake him up (it worked!) She also used this weird black box that vibrated for a few seconds on my tummy to "stimulate" him to see if he responded (he did!). The monitor also tracks if you're having contractions and she said I was having mild ones (I couldn't even feel them!).

This is very exciting news! I go back to my doctor tomorrow for a follow up. We'll have to see what happens this week. :)

A Quick Ultrasound Update

Just got back from my official last ultrasound. I don't have any scans from it because the baby is so cramped in there you can barely see anything "cool" like on the earlier ones. His head's already so far down you can't see his face or profile anymore.

I guess most babies at 36 weeks weigh about 6 lbs right now...well ours weighs approximately....
7 lbs 7 oz already!!!!
They also said he has hair already. I have no idea how they could tell but they did. :) 

I only got freaked out about one thing...
At my doctor's office she has one ultrasound machine that's pretty basic. My doctor has me go to the Maternal Fetal Medicine clinic at the hospital in the same network as her for them because their machines are way better, especially for tracking growth. This was my third one at this clinic so I already knew the ultrasound tech and the doctor there who talks to me even though she has no say so about what ultimately happens. They are both very nice but...

Well, the ultrasound tech came in, did all the usual stuff, measures his head, stomach, legs, arms, checks heart beat (was 131 BPM), but then when she goes to check the baby's blood flow through the cord (which was fine) she finds these weird string like things by his cord. She says in this really worried voice "I have no idea what these could possibly be!! I've never seen anything like this before!! I better go get the doctor to look at this!!"

I'm just sitting there thinking "Oh great, my baby's probably got some weird tentacles or something." Not really, but I hate that she did that, I got really nervous. When the doctor checked she said everything was fine and it was just part of the amniotic sac that got bunched up funny. Hate worrying for nothing! She also said the baby would probably be at least 9 lbs at birth and by the looks of things my actual doctor would probably not let me get to my due date.

I have an appointment with my actual doctor this Tuesday and by then she should get the results from this ultrasound. I should find out a more definite plan then!!!

36 Week Update

Baby's room before: 

Baby's room AFTER:

Hand painted the M on the door. Saw one really similar at buybuybaby (ridiculously expensive baby store!) but I painted my own for $3.

Another hand-me-down from Mommy. My dad made these bunny book ends for me when I was born. The paint was super faded so I repainted it.

 I had these hanging photo frames from Ikea. They are horrible to take apart to get the pictures in and out but I loved how they turned out!

and finally.....the finished product!!!

 

Baby Update:
Two nights ago I couldn't sleep because I started to have a few Braxton Hick's contractions. They're a little stronger but still nothing to be concerned about.

I went for my 36 week check up today. The baby's heart rate was good at 151 BPM. My doctor also started checking for dilation this week. I wasn't dilated at all yet which I guess is okay at this point.

My doctor says I should be full term next week and the baby can come anytime after that with no issues. She says a lot depends on the ultrasound I have Thursday though. If the baby is too big on this ultrasound I will have a c-section. It's hard waiting!

Productive Day

I definitely took on too many projects when I was newly pregnant, because they all got pushed off until now.

I FINALLY dug my sewing machine out of my closet today and spent the whole day working on all my projects I bought fabric for but never got around to. The main one being....Redoing MY cradle!

When I was a baby my mom used this same cradle for me! Since I'm an only child it's still in good shape and was only used once. Just needed some dusting off and a quick clean. There was no pad/mattress in the bottom so I made my own today. Chris help me cut a large piece of 4 inch thick memory foam down to fit snug inside. Then I just sewed the cute fabric into the covering and sewed velcro on the bottom to leave an opening so we can wash it. :)

Also made the "big sister" a blanket just for her. By the looks of this she loved it!

In terms of "baby updates" I can't really say I have any. :( 
A lot of women who are this far along are having regular Braxton Hick's contractions (I rarely have any), their baby drops (mine seems to be in the same spot), or they lose their mucus plug (gross but still no cigar)...
Guess we just gotta wait and it'll come with due time!

Intro Post

My name is Laura. I decided to set up this blog to share with family and friends important moments with our new baby-to-be and then more once the baby is born! I currently live in a small suburb of Chicago. It's pretty boring for the most part but there is a lot to do in the area.
A few random facts...

• I was a vegetarian for many years and may continue after pregnancy. 
• I'm left handed! Maybe the baby will be too. 
• I love animals more than most people and would love to work more with them one day.

My husband's name is Chris. We met in high school through mutual friends. After high school he enlisted in the US Marine Corps. He was stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. He went on two deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. We've been married a little over a year. After we got married we got an apartment in North Carolina and lived there until he got out of the military last fall. I can't talk for him, but the military life was NOT for me. I also disliked the weather in NC.

 

This is our dog Roxie. She is my best friend. We adopted her from the shelter in April of 2009. We think she is a black lab/border collie mix. She is three years old and definitely the most friendly, playful, but naughty dog I've ever had. It will be interesting preparing her for our new arrival. 

And last but not least...the new baby!!! Well this was the new baby last July. He was just a little jelly bean then! For the first 16 weeks of the pregnancy I had to go to the Naval Hospital on the Marine Corps Base. The staff was nice there, but I'm not going to give the military kudos for quality service. I am MUCH happier with my new OBGYN.

To be honest the first 16 weeks were the most stressful probably. My husband was very stressed out from working long hours, military training, personal issues, and money was tight. I was stressed out partly from seeing him stressed out but I had many of my own issues. For the past four years I've dealt with mental health issues such as depression (I got the formal diagnosis of Bipolar I). I have been on a large variety of medications to try to manage it, but I have not had any luck with any of them. When I got pregnant for some reason my body got extra sensitive to the medications. I started having severe reactions to some of them so my doctor took me off them. I'm glad because that is probably safer for the baby. I'm starting intensive TMS therapy after I deliver since I have been immune to medications. So far it looks promising and I hope it will help me be able to take care of myself and new baby better and ward off postpartum depression.

In the fall we moved back to Chicago. I started with my new OBGYN who I instantly loved. I was very lucky to find her because it was totally by chance. I am so happy she will be delivering our baby! At my first appointment with her (I was 18 weeks) she did an ultrasound in her office. She told me by looking at the baby that she was 98% sure we were having a BOY!! 

At 22 weeks I went for my level 2 ultrasound at the hospital. It was an awesome experience! Much better than any doctor's office. You got to watch the entire ultrasound on a big flat screen TV!! The baby measured at the 50th percentile (so perfectly average for 22 weeks) and it was confirmed we were having a boy.

At 32 weeks my OBGYN sent me back to the hospital the check the baby's growth. We got a big surprise (literally!). It turns out in the last 10 weeks the baby grew from the 50th percentile to the 90th percentile! I was really surprised and so was my doctor because I hadn't gained a whole ton of weight or was massively huge or anything. My doctor said it is all genetics since my glucose testing (I failed the first and had to take the three hour tolerance test yuck!) came back fine. My mom was there and mentioned I was over 9lbs myself at birth and my doctor said that was probably why this baby is big.  When we first found out I was pregnant we both joked that this baby would be a "baby big head" because Chris has an unnaturally large head. It turns out...we were right! When the lady doing the ultrasound told me he was measuring so big I said "Well maybe he's just really tall." She said "No, this looks like this baby is mostly head!" It was pretty funny. Thanks a lot Chris...

Well for now we are pretty much just waiting. I am 35 weeks right now and next week I go back for a repeat growth ultrasound so my doctor can get a better idea of exactly HOW big he's going to be! I will keep this updated when I know more. :)