I was admitted to the hospital

I was going to write a “Dear Santa” letter, but didn’t get time.  I was going to write about all the things I wanted.. like, not to have a blue toilet (see funny story below), to finish all my to do list that I prepared for Christmas break with items like finish the babies room (although I’m close), update the registry, mail lagging Christmas packages, etc.  However, at the drop of a dime life brings on situations that become much MORE important. Its funny how one moment you can be singing and playing background dancer while you and your family karoeke together and the next moment you are sitting at the dreary hospital admitting desk getting ready to go in. It teaches you even more to treasure every moment, the good is good, the better is better, but the worst can always be worse, so ALWAYS count your blessings for every moment placed upon you.

Lots happened today at my second sonogram (12/28/11)- 31 weeks and 5 days, 167.5 lbs.

I found out that I have low amniotic sac fluid (known as oligohydramnios), the baby is currently breeched, and the current weight is 4lbs, 2 ounces. They also could not reconfirm the sex of the baby or tell the current length, because he was folded in half?

I have a follow up appointment tomorrow 12-29 at 150pm to see my doctor and get her recommendations on what to do.  I’m worried of course, my fluid is currently measuring 1.5cm and normal but still considered low is 5cm-20cm. Since Christmas Eve I had been feeling a little weak, the mountain cedar kicked in here in town. Prior to my 2:30pm ultrasound, I slept all morning…woke up briefly to eat, but silly me felt so weak, I only ate one piece of cake and drank one mini bottle of water, because I wanted to go back and rest before I needed to be ready for the appointment. This behavior is very unlikely for me, only drinking a small bit of water, not eating, and not being active in the morning? I’m not sure this has much to do with the low fluids, but it could have to do with me becoming dehydrated.

At my appointment, Dr. Gutierrez decided it was best to admit me into the hospital to help rehydrate myself and give some strength to our baby boy. She said most likely the baby will be delivered early as well. And, he may not be able to turn from being breeched if he doesn’t gain enough fluids.

So, to the hospital I went. Went home packed a quick bag, and we were off. It was packing like usual for a one day outing, but sure did not feel like a vacation, I felt dreary and really scared to be going. But, I knew I had to do what was best for our little boy. I've been taught to bring out the positive in every situation; but when it comes to your unborn baby being in distress and me feeling/knowing I am the cause, there is really not much positive to find in the situation. I just want him to have everything, and I obviously am lacking. But I kept my head up and with the support and strength of my family and friends and most of all my loving husband, I managed to make it into the hospital, get dressed in the gown, get my IV plugged in and start the 24 hour wait. Chris had his first day at his new job the day to follow, and that still did not stop him from staying the night and being there for me as long as he could. He also enjoyed the double meat/ double cheese burgers that the cafeteria had to offer. I must of traveled to the bathroom over eight times throughout the course of the night, and even though I think I perfected the art of rolling the IV tree in and out of the bathroom, Chris was right behind me every time. I love him! And, thanks Delia, Jacob and Tina for making it out to the hospital, it was very encouraging to see familiar faces. And, of course my mom and dad, stayed for about three hours on Wednesday and my mom came back to spend a long lunch with me on Thursday. She brought in- my favorite sweet tea from Chick Fil A- gotta love them!

So, At 2am, Steven, the not so talkative, tall, thin, gray haired ultrasound tech came it to administer the oh so awaited ultrasound. Did not expect to see him so early, but was glad to get an answer sooner rather than later. So, his questions began, when was your last menstrual period? Me: thinking, really, its 2am! But, they must follow procedure. Then came the cold liquid jelly squirt on the tummy, and the pushing of the wand in different areas of the tummy. Mind you, Steven remind mute throughout the procedure. Until, I finally started to ask, WELL, what does it look like? He then said well its 1.8 and I’m thinking what? Then, he said its 4.3? And, I’m like what? 1.8 or 4.3. He continued, its 4.3. Me, is he breeched, Steven, “yes, very breeched”. Gee thanks what the heck does that mean? Steven exited the room, then the nurse came in to adjust the baby heart rate monitor (which stayed strapped to me about 15 of my 24 hour visit. She then gave me a recap of Steven’s visit. She said, did you understand what he said, me: well partially considering it felt like he only said five words. She continues, the rate is up, however it could be that the fluid was there all along and it wasn’t found in the earlier ultrasound because of the babies position. Interesting, I thought, but the best thing was that at least it did not go down from the 1.5, I’ll take the 4.3! So, I feel back to sleep.

Dr. Gutierrez came in at 9am to give us her diagnosis. She said it was good news that the fluids are up rather than down. She will start to see me twice a week, next appointment on Tuesday. And, I could be released after my second dose of steroids at 6pm that evening (which they are giving me in order to make the baby stronger in case I have to deliver early. She said they want to keep him in as long as they can, but her goal is to get us to 37 weeks, because then it will be a non premature birth, but they are going to continue to monitor and it could be as early as 34-35 weeks. She said at this point, anything can happen. Its’ all up to how much fluid is gained. So, I will continue to follow orders and pray that fluids increase! She also said I need to monitor the baby movements if they become less than usual, I need to call.  However, I did tell her my more recent visits, that he really hadn’t had much movement throughout the pregnancy. I still have not had huge jabs or flips. I feel the little butterfly flutters and mini punches, but nothing too crazy. I’m still bummed that the fluids are so low, but I have to think about the positive. The low fluids were caught before they were non-existent, the amount of fluids is increasing, the heartbeat is strong, I'm in my 32nd week (could have been much earlier), and he weighs 4.2lbs.

I learned a lot through my very first overnight hospital visit. I learned that steriod shots hurt (there not quite the same as the ones you get when your sick), having an IV stuck to me made me feel very sick and immobile though I really was not that bad. They need to invent something for the wheels on the IV trees, I mean I've been to the bathroom easily over 25 times in my stay here. Maybe they should make remote control wheels. Honestly, the TV has a remote the bed has a remote, the nurse has a remote call button, now we just need another gadget to add to the bed, An IV remote. Kind of like a remote control car, but a remote control IV tree! I also enjoyed the flexi straws and yes, I'm taking some home with me. It was very nice to be catered to by the nurses makes me get a feel of what to expect for the actual birth.

I also learned to pack a bag as early as 29 weeks, and apparently sleeping on your side this far in pregnancy is recommended, if I had been reading the weekly updates I would know this.  I also learned that its EXTREMELY important to remain hydrated throughout your entire pregnancy, no matter how much you have to pee or how tired you are to fill up that water bottle! Especially before ultrasounds and OB visits, but always always is key!

On some more positive, funnier notes:
Interesting thing I also discovered, last week (12.23.11) that my pregnancy hormones are causing the toilet seat to turn blue! Yes, blue! My pregnancy hormones are so wacked out, that my skin does not react well to porcelain (like toilet seats!)- my skin plus porcelain = blue. So, coincidentallly our toilet seats are dyed blue.. and I was blaming it on Chris, but it was me! (I know TMI, but it is actually pretty hilarious) So now I'm on restriction and cannot use the guest bathroom because then it will turn blue and look odd!
We had a great Christmas this year, Lincoln received LOTS of presents and he is not even here yet! He now has a Cubs bib from Grandma and Grandpa Herrberg, another pair of knitted shoes and even the matching gloves from Tia Mary Alice, some cool looking plaid shoes and outfit from Erika, Pepper, and Emme, a Rudolph plush doll and two polo outfits from Evette and David, and some cool new books from Grandpa Jesse and Grandma Helen.  He is one happy kid and he’s not even here yet.

And, last but not least this Runcrazedpreggo is retired for now, until next birth will the runcrazedpreggo moments continue.  I am grateful to have lots of run moments to report and to have made it as far as I did with running. But most important always is the health of my boy. Your thoughts, encouragement, and prayers are encouraged and we thank you for all the support.

10 week wait begins

30 weeks today- its quite actually, very frightening. I decided not to say "10 weeks to go", instead I am saying 2 and a half months. It makes it sound so much easier in that sense.. I'm not scared of having and caring for Lincoln, more importantly I'm scared of the whole birth process itself. Crap, in the next 2 and a half months, I need to learn how to breathe, what contractions really are, how the heck do I know if I'm dialted. So much more vocab for me to learn! Then, I heard that if your pregnancy is completely normal, you should prepare for a hard birth! Gee thanks, advice givers!

A ton has happened in the last 30 weeks that I've failed to include in this blog, because, well life must go on, and I've realized I can't blog every moment. Although I really wish I could.

We had our first baby shower thrown by friends and it was quite the success. It was baseball themed and the cake, company and baseball style food (frito pie, burgers, hot dogs, cracker jacks) were phenomenal! We had our second shower thrown by our Ft. Wayne, IN family. It too was super fun! Sister in law Jodi, made these grilled ham sandwiches that literally melted in your mouth. Even, five sandwiches later! We are truly blessed to have such awesome family and friends, both near and far. Thirty-five thank you cards later, I am still standing!

I also did my very first pre-natal yoga class.. .. and I went back to Zumba after a full month off. (training for the half was taking up my time and energy, and I realized I couldn't do both).. Zumba is definitely  a class that comes natural to me. Unlike YOGA! I attended my first prenatal YOGA class on Saturday (about two weeks ago). They host them for free at Destination Maternity close by- so I figured may as well "try". I was scared going into it for sure- as I am SOOOO not the yoga type. Heck all I really know about yoga is what I see on movies. But I read its a great baby/ Mommy bonding activity and I always wanted to be like "those pregnant ladies" on TV shows that go to yoga classes while PREGGO! I was the first person there, so the nerves began. I brought my own mat and water trying to "fit in". I didn't use my mat. They provided mats laid neatly in two rows, 5 on each side, a water, and a waiver form. How neat I thought. I sat down, signed my waiver form and by that time another mommy walked in so I figured I would follow her lead. She sat down in indian style and stared at the mirror, so I did too.

About 5 more moms came in, we did introductions: "Hi my name is Cathy I'm 28 weeks and having a boy. I'm a runner and still running at this point and am hoping that yoga will help me to get all the aches and pains out due to running. And, I'm so excited because as of the last few weeks I can finally feel him move, I was a little worried. And, no I haven't felt the clinching pain above my stomach that all of you described..?" I sounded weird but of well.

Class began. First there was the "3 'oommms'- inhale on the oomm and exhale after." And so I began, "ooommmm"...I have not been back since.

I also purchased a new vehicle at last! No fighting with the dealer, just a clean, clear transaction and paid 1K less than I expected, and even got a free 32" Toshiba HD TV. I decided on a 2012 White Dodge Journey. Perfect transition between mom and sporty car. It has tons of storage and looks super cool. You do not need a key to open the door, its touchscreen radio and much more! It was fate- as I was sitting down about to tell the dealer, "lets make a deal" I recieved an email from another dealer offering the car for $300 less. I hesitated but Chris said go for it, so I showed her the email. She said, let me check on this, and she came back offering the car for 1K less if I bought that evening! So I did! Perfect! As we were getting into the car about to drive out of the dealer, I heard a male voice saying "you stole my car" I looked.. and the dealer said he was waiting for our transaction to finalized because he really wanted the car. The car I purchased was the LAST one for the lower price. She said, too bad he waited too long, and so he did! I love when things happen for a reason, makes me feel like they are so meant to be.  A phenomenal price was the only reason I bought brand new, heck the used ones were not even that cheap! I was able to my NEW for my used car budget so I went for it.

I know there is so much more to write, but I have to go get ready for two parties tonight. One sweet sixteen and another quincenera. I really don't see how people say the last ten weeks go by the slowest, they are literally flying by, I feel like I have one thing after another, and it never stops!

And, the nursery is not evne ready.. when people ask and I tell them that - they secretly freak out, but really I'm not worried, I know it will be put together, I have all the gear, just haven't made the effort to get it all in one place. Crib is at my friend Erikas, Basinet is at my parents house, Playpen is in the box waiting to be put together.. Soon.. soon, it will happen until then I will cherish my last ten weeks of my very first pregnancy. Doctors appointment on Monday. Stay Tuned!

"I ran a marathon while pregnant.." You?

Plenty to report since my last blog post.  It took me a while for this post on my first half plus one, because I needed time to remember and do a true report, so here it goes…

November 13, 2011- I wasn’t exactly cleared by my doctor to run the half marathon, however she didn’t say “no” either- she just didn’t say anything at all. So, exactly one week before the half I decided I felt well enough to run and went ahead and signed up. I waited to make sure me and baby were progressing well, and we were!

The race was a blur, but in a good way! Surprisingly, the miles went very very quickly.  My brother in law Craig and Chelsea (aka my running angels) were with me almost every step of the way (Chelsea took of at mile 12).   I wore a descriptive preggo shirt with a “Caution- Baby on Board- Slow” sign on the back. And: “Running for Two, First Time Mom, Fifth Time Marathon, Pace be with us” on front.

I was worried and a tad scared pre-race week. I was worried I would have to go potty often, I didn’t go once. I was worried I would be super slow, I wasn’t- I ran much faster than I trained at. I was worried, I would fall, I didn’t. I was worried there wouldn’t be enough water- there wasn’t. Well at least between miles 8-10! But no worries, my parents and brother Forrest were at Mile 9 with water to pull me through. I was worried I would get ugly looks and comments from anti-pregnant people doing anything other than sleeping. It was the opposite, the race was filled with motivators.  I received several pats on the back and probably at minimum three positive comments per mile! My little Lincoln is quite the STAR! : )

I had an absolute blast on the race route. It felt great to go out there without worrying about pace!  Of course I had a secret goal of 2:45 and a realistic sharable goal of under 3 hours. Every runner usually has those two goals!  But I knew there was no way in heck I would met my secret goal, but I did! I came out quite ahead with a time of 2:38!  I probably only walked a total of 10 minutes max, which is way less than I was training at. I think that was a great unplanned strategy on my part. Train slower and use the strength for race day.   

The race was a “big party” for me.. . I was surrounded by great music, I cumbia’d through one of the water stops because the music was so motivating. I found myself singing out loud to several of the bands, not worrying or caring what any one around me thought!  I was surrounded by great friends, I think I saw a familiar run group face at least every two miles. I would try my best to catch them, say “Hello, good job, looking great, keep it up.” And they smiled and I’m sure were thinking .. hell I’m being passed by a pregnant person (but in a good way).  There was even an array of food on the course. Does a small boy carrying a dozen of Shipley’s donuts count? Craig grabbed one for us three to share. They ran out of beer by the time we reached it, but that was fine this year.

That was my party in a nutshell.  I truly am thankful to be surrounded by great friends and family that pushed me through to gain the confidence that I did to finish the 13.1 miles, even with a 25 week old fetus in the tummy. Of course, there were those that didn’t think it was the best thing for me, but once I made them realize that running was in my blood- I think they simmered down a bit!

Crossing the finish line was phenomenal- truly! Its’ difficult to place words on what it feels like to finish something that you have dreamed of doing for so long. Its’ one thing to complete a half, but its’ another to finish with something so precious inside you- my first son. I once made fun of avid runners who ran marathons and called them crazy people who liked to brag about themselves and didn’t have anything better to do so they ran to occupy there time. The truth is- I was just jealous. It took a while for me to get over myself and realize that I could do it too! So, here I am five half marathons later- Not only am I an avid runner, I’m a runner who had the courage and the training to finish a half marathon with 23 extra pounds of true “baby” fat! I am now in the “I ran a marathon while pregnant” group and it’s the best feeling ever!