Today started off like pretty much any other day that I have off. I woke up incredibly hungry and had a cinnamon raison bagel with peanut butter and some grapes for breakfast around 6 am, watched the news, then went back to bed (tough life, I know). Then I got up at 10, and did stuff around the house until my doctor's appointment at 1. Most people who are pregnant probably look forward to their doctors appointments, but I think that going every week gets kind of old. Jordan has been to all of my appointments, but Scooby had a vet appointment today at 2 so I told him to just skip my appointment and take Scooby so we wouldn't have to reschedule. My trips at this point aren't very exciting, I wait 30 minutes to have them take my vital signs, urine, and listen to the heartbeat, and then I go home. I should have known that the one day I tell Jordan to miss my appointment is the one day that I would've given anything to have him there.
The first thing they do at every appointment is take your vital signs. All of mine looked just fine and then my blood pressure pops up on the screen as 150/110... which is high. A normal blood pressure is around 120/70, and anything over 140/90 is considered high. And when you are pregnant and in your third trimester, a high blood pressure is one of the red flags they look for in preeclampsia. Preeclampsia is a condition where your blood vessels constrict and it can limit blood flow to both vital organs and the baby and cause an assortment of other problems. Mild preeclampsia can normally be monitored closely, but in serious cases the treatment is immediate induction or cesearean delivery. My mom had severe preeclampsia with me, which is why I was delivered a month early, and after spending a semester in maternity class and on the labor and delivery unit at Rex I know that it is not a condition that is taken lightly. So, as soon as I saw the blood pressure I thought "Nope we need to take that again because that can not be right." They took it again, and again, and then again lying down, then after lying down for 20 minutes, and the lowest it got was 140/100. The other red flag of preeclampsia is protein in your urine, and mine came back with trace protein, which isn't bad, but it's not really good either. The doctor came in after my first blood pressure and lab tests were back, and told me that this was obviously concerning. She told me to do a 24 hour urine collection (which is where I dump all my pee in a big jug for an entire day) to get a better look at the protein in my urine, told me I am not allowed to go back to work, and that I would have to come back on Thursday and Friday for more appointments and labs. Then my blood pressures kept reading high despite changing positions and resting, so she came back again and said that I'd actually have to go to the hospital for at least two hours of monitoring, more labs, and possible induction. If they didn't induce me today, and my pressures were still high, they would probably induce me next week because high pressures can restrict blood flow to the placenta and cause problems and if the baby is term, it is better to get them out. Then she said she was calling the hospital to let them know I was coming and walked me to the door and told me to go straight there. So I walk out to my car, and sit in it, and I think "What the hell just happened in there? A baby? Today?"
I tried to call Jordan, but he didn't answer and hadn't responded to the texts I sent him in the office, so I just went home. I decided I needed to call work and let them know that I wouldn't be coming in again, which was probably a bad idea. I thought I was fine but as soon as Linnea asked if everything was ok I started crying and could barely talk and probably really scared her and Will, so if you guys are reading this, I am sorry, I should have had Jordan call or waited until I could talk properly. This uncontrollable outburst also led me to decide to not call my parents, because I don't think anything would have terrified them more than having me call them sobbing about how I am going to the hospital for rule out preeclampsia.
After calming myself down some, I started throwing together a bag for the hospital and thinking about getting induced. Induction is a really long process, even for someone who has reached their due date. When you get induced you are in the hospital and hooked up to monitors the entire time you are in labor, which is a loooong time from start to finish. The main drug they give you, Pitocin, causes really strong contractions that can come in unnatural rhythms and are harder to handle than normal contractions. In majority of inductions that I have seen, the women don't dilate at the rate that the doctors would like to see, and they end up having a ceserean. Cora hasn't dropped down yet, she is still pretty high up, I feel like getting induced at this point would be an extremely long and painful labor experience that would most likely end up in a ceserean delivery because my body isn't ready for it. Thinking of induction worried me, but it also reminded me that I needed to pack baby stuff as well as my own, and that was kind of surreal. I pulled down Cora's hospital clothes I have had hanging up for months now and one of her blankets and smiled for the first time all day.
Jordan finally walked in and I try to explain the situation to him, up until this point the only thing he has seen is our text conversation, which was as follows:
Me: "My blood pressure is 156/110. Not my best"
Me: "They are going to retake it a few times so I will let you know."
30 minutes later I walk out of the office and try to call him. No response, I decide it is better that I wait until I am more composed to try and call again so I don't terrify him.
20 minutes later I get home and try to call again. Still no answer.
Jordan: "Sorry, I am at the vet, call you in a minute."
Me: "You should probably call me now."
This was followed by a brief phone conversation where I told him he needed to get home because we had to go to the hospital. He acted calm but I think he was pretty freaked out. I told him he should pack some stuff and he put deodorant, a toothbrush, and a contact case in a Food Lion bag like that was an adequate amount of supplies for what could turn into couple days in the hospital. Then we get in the car and he starts going to the hospital in a way that I have never been. I mention this, thinking he has found some new, fast route to get there, and after a minute he tells me that he has no idea where he is. Luckily we weren't too far off track, and eventually we made it to the hospital. They admitted me and hooked me up to the monitors and tried to start an IV on me. I say tried because I got stuck three different times by two nurses who proclaimed themselves the IV masters, yet they could not get an IV in me. Finally they gave up and just drew blood on me, which took forever to come back. In the meantime I laid in bed and watched my blood pressure, which took every 15 minutes. Sitting up upon admission it was 150/100, but after laying down on my side for a while it gradually started to come down, and eventually was at 110/64, which is good. Cora's heart rate was also good, and she was really active so the doctors were pleased with that as well. Every time I go to the doctor she gets super active and bounces around and punches at the doppler, I think she knows when all the attention is on her. After my blood tests came back normal and about 5 hours of waiting, they told me I wouldn't have to get induced and that I could go home on bedrest. Depending on how my 24 hour urine results, labs, and blood pressure look later this week they will decide whether or not they think I need to be induced next week or if I can go until my due date. I am really hoping and praying that I can go to my due date, and that Cora will come on her own by then. I don't want to be induced, but I'll obviously do whatever I need to do to have the safest delivery possible.
So today was a crazy day, but at least I learned a few things. First of all, not to take a healthy pregnancy for granted, because things can go wrong quickly and it is important to be mentally prepared. Secondly, there is a reason why they make me go to the doctor every week now and it isn't a complete waste of time. Also, that Jordan should come to all of these appointments because being by myself and getting that kind of news was hard to handle. Lastly, that we might be parents sooner than we thought! How Cora gets here is just means to an end and as long as she arrives safe and healthy I will be thankful.
Links to info about preeclampsia:
http://www.preeclampsia.org/
http://www.babycenter.com/0_preeclampsia_257.bc
Days until due date: 16
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
Baby Shower!
 |
| Decorations |
 |
| Party favors |
 |
| Diaper game! The key to winning is putting your nose all the way into the diaper and closing your eyes so you can really focus. |
 |
| Kasey, Sarah, Heather, Sarah |
 |
| The 35lb cake which was absolutely delicious |
 |
| Hannah and Jordan playing the Mad Lib game |
 |
| A picture that captures several of the beautifully wrapped gifts we received |
 |
| Gift card from Jordan's mom and step-dad that we used to purchase our glider! |
 |
| My mom... aka Grandma Poole. |
 |
| Hannah, Jordan, Casey, Brenna |
 |
| One of my favorite gifts, a hand-knitted blanket, cardigan, booties and hedgehog from Allison! |
 |
| All of my high school friends that were able to make it to the party minus Kaylan! Sarah, Noelle, Heather, Brittni, Amanda, and Jordan! |
 |
| They are hard to see in this picture, but baby jeggings from Jenna! Too cute! |
 |
| Cute clothes from Mariah! Jordan looks truly delighted in this picture. |
 |
| Welcome banner that my mom had made :) |
 |
| Yummy food! Thanks to everyone who helped contribute! |
 |
| I found out I was pregnant 2 days before I was supposed to leave for Christy's bachelorette party in Vegas so I wasn't able to go. Now Cora has a Vegas t-shirt from Allison and stuff dog from Brenna to commemorate the trip :) |
 |
| The wonderful hosts! Sarah, Molly, Emilie, and Casey |
 |
| Brenna, Mariah, Allison, and Stephanie |
 |
| Jenna, Mariah, Brenna, preggo, Stephanie, Allison, Christy |
 |
| The "How big is Amy's belly?" game. Obviously Brenna over-estimated my size. My cousin Dianne won, but I couldn't find any pictures of her guessing. |
 |
| Brenna and I with my "sand dollars". |
 |
| Ladybug Boppy from Christy |
 |
| A shot of the storage shelves and cubes that Emilie, Molly, and Casey got for me. The storage has already come in really handy with all of our gifts and looks great in Cora's room! |
 |
| The amazing gift basket from my Aunt Joyce and cousins, Kasey and Sarah. This basket was stocked full of baby gear and supplies! |
 |
| Graco high chair that my grandma got for us :) |
Overall it was a really fun day, and Jordan and I left talking about how blessed we are to be surrounded by so many people who love us. We are truly grateful for everyone who came, and for everyone else who has taken the time to send us gifts and cards in the mail.
Work Shower!
I went the whole month of September without updating my blog (oops), but our wonderful co-workers on the ISCU threw a really fun shower back in the middle of September for the three ISCU babies due in October and November. We received a lot of cute gifts and a very generous Target gift card which has already gone towards diapers, bottles, and other necessities. Here are a few of the pictures I managed to steal from Amanda!
 |
| Talking dog toy from Angela, we checked him for fleas per Amanda's advice :) |
 |
| Group shot of the men |
 |
| Group shot of the ladies with all the preggos in the middle :) |
 |
| Julie, Kristen, and I |
 |
| Hosts/Planners: Amanda, Shelley, Lindsay, and Shannon |
 |
| Lindsay and Amanda |
 |
| Will and Kristen (due 10/27), Jordan and I, and Julie and Reid, who just had their baby boy Isaac on 10/5!! |
We can't wait for baby Cora to meet all of our friends, family and co-workers... only a month to go!!! Here are a few belly/nursery updates...
 |
| 35 weeks. Cora is about 5 1/2 pounds and 20 inches long. She is already positioned head down and her favorite activity is kicking mom in the ribs. |
 |
 |
| Nursery is still in progress, but it's coming together. |
 |
| My new favorite seat in the house. Scooby is ready for a bedtime story. |
 |
| My boys :) |
Buying Diapers
One of the main things I have been contemplating since I got pregnant is cloth diapering. After doing a lot of research, Jordan and I decided that we want to give it a try. Most people I mention this to laugh in my face, and I can kind of see why. Originally I thought cloth diapering would be really inconvenient and a lot of extra work. But after doing some research, I am convinced that cloth diapering is not as hard as I thought, and that cloth diapers today are just as easy to work with as disposables. So I have come here to share some of the cloth diapering wisdom I have gathered from research and blogs.
Cost Effectiveness:
On the other hand, you can buy cloth diapers when your baby is born, and use the same cloth diapers until they are potty trained. And there are such a wide range of cloth diapers available, that you can really spend as little or as much money as you want to on them. On average, most people spend between $150 and $300 down on cloth diapers, and then they are basically done. So far I think Jordan and I have spent around $200 on diapering supplies. Our collection is not yet complete, but so far we have a bunch of soft washcloths to use for wipes, 6 GroVia diapers with shells, 4 extra inserts for the shells, and 6 Thirsties diaper shells. We also now have two PixieFluff pocket diapers that my Aunt Lori gave us at the shower. We still need to purchase some prefolds for the Thristies and possibly some more GroVias, but I think our grand total will be below $300. Yes, some additional money does get spent on detergent and washing the diapers, but this water and electricity usage is pretty minimal. I know we will probably use disposables some, mainly when Cora is a newborn and then when we travel, but I still think we will save a ton by trying to stick to a cloth diapering plan.
Other Reasons to Cloth Diaper
Saving money is not the only advantage to using cloth diapers. Every website I have looked at says that cloth diapering is actually better for your baby's skin than using disposables. Disposables are full of chemicals and other things to help wick away moisture, while cloth diapers use natural materials that wick away but still allow children to feel that they are wet. This leads to more frequent diaper changes, which obviously helps to cut down on diaper rash and keeps kids from wearing a dirty diaper for an extended period of time. Without all the added chemicals, cloth diapers also are a much more natural option to have against a babies skin, and allows their bottoms to breathe a little bit better. We aren't allowed to use diapers on adults at the hospital because studies have shown that it causes increased skin breakdown. Adults can go a while without realizing they need to be changed, and an hour or two of sitting in a soggy diaper is not good on the skin. We use giant cloth pads on the beds because this is better for their skin and it is really easy to tell when they are wet or need to be changed.
Most moms that cloth diaper also claim that they have much less blowouts than they did with using disposables. I don't know if this is because they get their babies changed faster or if the cloth diapers hold it in better, but I am all for having to only change a diaper instead of doing a bath and changing an entire poop-covered outfit.
What Happens to the Poop?
A lot of people that I tell I am cloth diapering to immediately ask me what happens to the poop. Well, breast milk poo is completely water soluble and technically does not even need to be rinsed before being thrown in the washing machine. However, I will probably still rinse the poop diapers off with a sprayer that we have installed in the bathroom beside Cora's room. When babies get older and start eating solids then you can shake a lot of the poop out and give it a quick rinse. From there it can go to a wet bag, a diaper pail, or straight into the washer. After cleaning up 100 to 400 pound adults at work for the past 4 years, it takes a lot to gross me out, and I don't think baby poo will be an issue with either me or Jordan. Our diapers can be washed and dried, and they don't need to be folded or hung up, just thrown back in the diaper drawer when they come out.
Cloth Diaper Resources:
There are a TON of online resources to cloth diapering, so if cloth diapering intrigues you or you still have more questions, here are a few links from websites/blogs. There are several different types of cloth diapers available, and these websites are a great way to learn about all the options.
http://allaboutclothdiapers.com/
http://www.diaperpin.com/clothdiapers/cloth_diapering.asp
http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/
http://www.diaperjunction.com/
Fuzzibunz and Bumgenius are probably the most popular cloth diapers, but after a lot of online research and playing with the options at the store Jordan and I opted for GroVias as our main system. Finding somewhere that actually stocks cloth diapers was hard to do, but the Doula that taught our birthing class told us that the Women's Wellness Center in Chapel Hill sells them. And man, that place is awesome! It is a birthing center run by midwives (the largest in the state), and they also have a baby boutique that sells a lot of hard to find and natural/organic supplies. We were actually able to see the different types of diapers and feel the material they were made out of. They also had a knowledgeable staff, which is not something you will find at Babies R Us or Target (they know nothing about cloth diapering and don't stock any in-store other than Gerber pre-folds which make much better burp/cleaning cloths than they do diapers). We also got some Thirsties, which have great reviews and are slightly cheaper than some of the other cloth diaper options.
Cost Effectiveness:
I originally looked into cloth diapering because disposables are expensive. A lot of websites have their own costs listed for what diapers cost, but I wanted something accurate and non-biased so I did the math for myself. Babies go through several diapers a day, normally around 8-12. Newborns often use more than this, as they normally get changed at least every 2 hours. Say you are in the middle and use about 10 diapers a day. At Target, a pack of 92 diapers costs $30.00. For around 9 days worth of diapers, you are spending $30, and each diaper costs about 32 cents each. This adds up to at least $90.00 a month, and that is not including wipes, diaper genie refills, and all the trash bags you use. You can save some money buy buying in bulk quantities and hitting the store with coupons, but overall it is still very expensive. Most websites that I have looked at estimate that people normally spend about $2000 on diapers by the time their kids are potty trained. That is a LOT of money that is literally getting thrown away.
On the other hand, you can buy cloth diapers when your baby is born, and use the same cloth diapers until they are potty trained. And there are such a wide range of cloth diapers available, that you can really spend as little or as much money as you want to on them. On average, most people spend between $150 and $300 down on cloth diapers, and then they are basically done. So far I think Jordan and I have spent around $200 on diapering supplies. Our collection is not yet complete, but so far we have a bunch of soft washcloths to use for wipes, 6 GroVia diapers with shells, 4 extra inserts for the shells, and 6 Thirsties diaper shells. We also now have two PixieFluff pocket diapers that my Aunt Lori gave us at the shower. We still need to purchase some prefolds for the Thristies and possibly some more GroVias, but I think our grand total will be below $300. Yes, some additional money does get spent on detergent and washing the diapers, but this water and electricity usage is pretty minimal. I know we will probably use disposables some, mainly when Cora is a newborn and then when we travel, but I still think we will save a ton by trying to stick to a cloth diapering plan.
Other Reasons to Cloth Diaper
Saving money is not the only advantage to using cloth diapers. Every website I have looked at says that cloth diapering is actually better for your baby's skin than using disposables. Disposables are full of chemicals and other things to help wick away moisture, while cloth diapers use natural materials that wick away but still allow children to feel that they are wet. This leads to more frequent diaper changes, which obviously helps to cut down on diaper rash and keeps kids from wearing a dirty diaper for an extended period of time. Without all the added chemicals, cloth diapers also are a much more natural option to have against a babies skin, and allows their bottoms to breathe a little bit better. We aren't allowed to use diapers on adults at the hospital because studies have shown that it causes increased skin breakdown. Adults can go a while without realizing they need to be changed, and an hour or two of sitting in a soggy diaper is not good on the skin. We use giant cloth pads on the beds because this is better for their skin and it is really easy to tell when they are wet or need to be changed.
Most moms that cloth diaper also claim that they have much less blowouts than they did with using disposables. I don't know if this is because they get their babies changed faster or if the cloth diapers hold it in better, but I am all for having to only change a diaper instead of doing a bath and changing an entire poop-covered outfit.
This ability to easily tell when they need a diaper change also leads to kids potty training sooner. Children that cloth diaper generally potty train quicker and easier than the ones that use disposables. It makes sense, as I think I would be much more likely to use a toilet if I could easily feel a mess in my pants instead of having it sink down to the bottom of a disposable diaper.
What Happens to the Poop?
A lot of people that I tell I am cloth diapering to immediately ask me what happens to the poop. Well, breast milk poo is completely water soluble and technically does not even need to be rinsed before being thrown in the washing machine. However, I will probably still rinse the poop diapers off with a sprayer that we have installed in the bathroom beside Cora's room. When babies get older and start eating solids then you can shake a lot of the poop out and give it a quick rinse. From there it can go to a wet bag, a diaper pail, or straight into the washer. After cleaning up 100 to 400 pound adults at work for the past 4 years, it takes a lot to gross me out, and I don't think baby poo will be an issue with either me or Jordan. Our diapers can be washed and dried, and they don't need to be folded or hung up, just thrown back in the diaper drawer when they come out.
Cloth Diaper Resources:
There are a TON of online resources to cloth diapering, so if cloth diapering intrigues you or you still have more questions, here are a few links from websites/blogs. There are several different types of cloth diapers available, and these websites are a great way to learn about all the options.
http://allaboutclothdiapers.com/
http://www.diaperpin.com/clothdiapers/cloth_diapering.asp
http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/
http://www.diaperjunction.com/
Fuzzibunz and Bumgenius are probably the most popular cloth diapers, but after a lot of online research and playing with the options at the store Jordan and I opted for GroVias as our main system. Finding somewhere that actually stocks cloth diapers was hard to do, but the Doula that taught our birthing class told us that the Women's Wellness Center in Chapel Hill sells them. And man, that place is awesome! It is a birthing center run by midwives (the largest in the state), and they also have a baby boutique that sells a lot of hard to find and natural/organic supplies. We were actually able to see the different types of diapers and feel the material they were made out of. They also had a knowledgeable staff, which is not something you will find at Babies R Us or Target (they know nothing about cloth diapering and don't stock any in-store other than Gerber pre-folds which make much better burp/cleaning cloths than they do diapers). We also got some Thirsties, which have great reviews and are slightly cheaper than some of the other cloth diaper options.
Links to GroVia and Thirsties websites:
http://www.thirstiesbaby.com/
http://gro-via.com/
Women's Wellness Center: http://www.ncbirthcenter.com/
Our Cloth Diaper Purchases:
 |
| The GroVia Collection |
 |
| They velcro shut at the top, so taking it on and off is just like a disposable. The white buttons are how you can adjust the size of the diaper, so that the diaper can grow with your baby. This diaper is completely unsnapped, so it is as large as it goes. |
 |
| Snapped to the smallest fit, for newborns and small babies :) |
 |
| The diaper taken apart. The shell and the insert. We ended up picking these over pocket diapers because the insert to GroVias snaps into place. If the shell doesn't get dirty, then you can just unsnap the insert and snap a fresh one in it's place. With pocket diapers, you normally have to wash the diaper and the insert every time. Not really a big deal, but we figure we might as well cut down on laundry where we can. Plus, snapping the inserts is quicker than tucking. |
 |
| The snaps |
 |
| Snapped into place and ready for action |
 |
| The Thirsties covers are the ones to the left in the photo, and the one to the right is one of the ones my Aunt Lori got us at the shower. She got two really cute ones that are PixieFluff brand. They also adjust sizes to grow with your baby and are super soft, I can't wait to try them out! |
 |
| The inside of the PixieFluff diaper. These diapers are pocket diapers, which means there is an insert that you tuck into a pocket in the diaper that absorbs and wicks moisture away from the baby. In this picture I have the insert pulled halfway out so you can see where it tucks in. Most Fuzzibunz and Bumgenius diapers are pocket style like this. |
 |
| Bunny demonstrating the excellent fit and cuteness. How could you not want to use cloth diapers? |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)