Slight Change Of Plans....

So....the contractions definitely kept coming!

The 'real' ones...the ones that really hurt, are pretty frequent, and make my entire stomach tighten up like it's a rock-hard medicine ball.

Until I went to bed. Then they settled down some, didn't keep me up (in fact, only remember one through the night!) and were ok this morning...until we got to our appointment and I told Dr. Sweeney about them. At first, he seemed like he wasn't worried and then I told him how many I'd been having and he looked a bit more concerned. When I told him I had a few that I was glad I had bones in my fingers (the better to bite down on when one of the contractions HURT!), he immediately said, "Let's get you hooked up and see what's going on."

So...off to another NST we went. Oh, and after that, a cervix check. UGGGGGHH....

I was SO glad that one of the 'perks' of this whole scheduled, early c-section was NO need for those checks. Have I mentioned how much they hurt?

No?

Well, THEY HURT.

Anyway...at first the contractions were about 8 minutes apart. Then 6. Then 3. Time to check that cervix out! I should say that they didn't hurt much more than they'd been hurting yesterday, but I do remember from Matthew some of the nurses being pretty impressed that I wasn't as uncomfortable as I should have been based on the strength and length of some of my contractions...even before medicine! I think I just have a little better tolerance than I give myself credit for sometimes. The nurse who did the exam was SO gentle...all things considered. I was about 1 cm., and 50% effaced. With Matthew, I was 1 cm. for weeks, though I never got past 50% effaced, even with 24+ hours of induced labor! We asked Dr. Sweeney what we should do--he said he'd admit me, but that Luke was doing fine, and he really felt like I just needed to REALLY take it easy--nay, bed rest--and call if anything changed. We asked if we should stay in Annapolis to be closer and he looked conflicted. He asked where we'd stay/what we'd do and when I said, "We'll just stay in a hotel...no big deal!" he looked relieved and said that wasn't a bad idea!

Not to mention John didn't sleep a wink last night. He feels too far away as well. I've been in bed all afternoon, rotating sides. It helps, though the frequency is consistent, the pain isn't really and that's what they said was more important. We'll head into Annapolis no later than Saturday and hang out until Tuesday for the big birthday party. I think that will make all parties involved rest a bit easier.

Luke has been going bonkers still....definitely enjoying his last few days of stay and throwing quite the party! I can't even explain how grateful I am for every single movement. I wake up in the middle of the night and tell myself, "He's probably sleeping; it's not a big deal that he isn't moving right now," and then I'll feel a little wiggle or roll and nearly cry...I do a LOT of thanking God for those little movements through the night...and I have to say I never, ever, EVER even thought about them with Matthew. He moved SO much during the day, I just assumed he HAD to get some rest at night. He was such a good sleeper...and was pretty kind to me as well.

Not that Luke is not...but I admit, I would rather be woken up with movements. Much more reassuring to me since I am aware of all too much since Matthew died.

Still looking at Tuesday...don't think he's going to be earlier, but it's better to be close by just to be safe.

Quite the busy day!

A bit of this...

Let me tell you...so much on my mind. This may be long (or I may get sick of rambling and stop) and for that I apologize in advance. So, forgive the ADHD going on here....

First, Mom to 2 Anglels (who has THE CUTEST SHIRTS!) had a post about a Vera give-away on her site. I went to the site, Be Thou a Knight and not only loved the site, absolutely and positively identified with Lianna. Go there and you'll see why. Anyway, the cutest bag (which would replace the one some inconsiderate JERKS stole at DISNEY) is offered as a give away as part of a program to help build her IVF fund. I read a bit of her blog and saddened to see that she had gotten posts similar to some I've seen here (and immediately deleted) that trashed her for trying IVF, being selfish, etc. I don't know why people haven't figured out that if you don't like what you are reading, STOP READING. I guess it's just more fun to belittle and defame; hurt and hurl hate just because your life is miserable. Well, kudos to her for continuing her quest to be a mom, no matter WHAT path she chooses, and I totally entered the contest. Yes, I'd LOVE the bag, but I know every bit helps...we don't have much, but hey...if I don't eat at Taco Bell this weekend, and instead win a Vera bag? Yeah, worth it.

Next, on to my beef with Kodak. And Kodak, don't go getting crazy on me. I'm still a customer, I still root for the home team and won't even consider Fuji. I'm just frustrated with your Lab. And website. And service. But other than that, I'm great. Last week I got an email that said if I didn't order $19.99 worth of products, all 4 gig of my pictures stored for the last few years would be gone. Not all that fond of the change in service, but no biggie...I truly do think Kodak has the best quality out there and prefer it to Fuji. I'll use the service, I have lots before. So, I ordered two mini books, some prints and a card. Amy, if you are reading this, one of the books was for your birthday and now won't even come close to getting there on time, so sorry. Blame Kodak. Anyway, today I get an email that says the books were cancelled. No explanation, just due to service terms. I called Kodak and a lovely young gentleman named Ignacius tells me that the lab cancelled the books for "Unexplained Reasons" and I need to recreate and resubmit. (Apparently it is the day for incompetence. See Mala for more...) I told him that was unacceptable; I needed more than unexplained reasons. After much more wait, he tells me that the lab said there was a brand name in one of the images and they cancelled it. WHAT? So stand in front of a Gap store naked and you can't print that picture because you can see the GAP sign? The poor guy was obviously getting some line from the lab, but said that was Kodak's policy--they don't print images with brand names or logos in them. WHATEVER. Supervisor, please.

I told the supervisor that I wanted an explanation and NOT that there was a brand name issue because I was looking at a KODAK printed book that had picture on top of picture of my family from last summer with brand names ALL OVER THE PLACE. He puts me on hold forever and then says, "Only one book didn't ship. The one that didn't print didn't print because there was an image error uploading." So where the HECK did that first guy's story come from? For clarification, Kodak WILL print a picture of me naked standing in front of GAP because there is NO policy about brand names or logos, just copyright for the pictures. Sounds reasonable, right?
(For the record, actually, Kodak will NOT print a picture of me naked standing in front of GAP because NO SUCH PICTURE opportunity will exist!)
Long story short--after an hour--I still have to create the other book and resubmit. Uh-huh...I'll get right on that. For the record, there is NO LOVE LOST with Kodak. I still will use them, still find them better than most photo companies (even with the price because of the quality) and all is well. Just AGGRAVATING.

And not a good day for it. My uncle passed away, suddenly, last night. Now, it should be stated that though my mom's family (my dad's for that matter) is pretty large, it is safe to say that there's a lot of ... disconnect, for lack of a better word. I have oodles and oodles of cousins that I couldn't name if you gave me Hawaii as the prize for it, and am not really that close to my numerous aunts and uncles. Or, I guess as close as I'd like to be. In any event, close or not, there were a couple of brothers that I know my mom felt particularly close to and with whom they shared some rough days as children. This uncle was one of those brothers. I actually was just really reconnecting with him after a bit with Facebook, and my cousin was going to go visit him in two weeks with his new granddaughter. It's just sad, and makes me think of my mom as well. So, rest in peace, Uncle Dewitt.

Last, we saw the famous Dr. Polko yesterday. Around these parts, she is THE OB-GYN. We liked her. In truth, she was pretty laid back (not like me) and different than Dr. Davis (notes, white board, type A, the works) but just as fabulous. SO far, I cannot imagine us being anywhere else. Even though they were running late (an HOUR!) it was worth it. Dr. Polko gave me a prescription for PT 2-3 times a week because of the pelvic/sciatic pain. She said she totally knew it hurt and wanted to help. Loved that. She looked at pictures of baby from last week, and said they were adorable. Loved that. She told me she was fine with my caloric intake (though I think I need to up it a bit, but not too bad) and that all the labs looked fine. Loved that. She listened to baby with the fetal heart monitor and said she was "Wiggly" and "Ornery" (she kept moving all over the place every time Dr. Polko got a heartbeat. VERY MUCH my and John's child!) Loved that! Best of all, she said I could have a C-section if I wanted to! LOVED THAT! She told me I'd pay now or I'd pay later, but either way, I'd pay. I'm fine with that, and think I'm going to take the route that will let me pay as I IMMEDIATELY sit down after birth. I'll be glad to pay as I tinkle or poo with no pain or stitches tear. On that note, I'll pay as I poop IN PRIVATE instead of spread eagle for all to see on the table. Yep...Operation Air-Lift Baby M will now commence.

Okay. Seriously, enough rambling. If you read this, please continue to keep the families of Kyrgyz (and all adoptive parents and children everywhere) in your prayers. Please pray for my uncle's family and their heartache. Pray for Lianna and her IVF success, as well as the success of all those who desperately wish to become pregnant. Pray for the poor puppies and kitties (and all the stray animals of the world) because that darned commercial KILLS me. Pray for people all over the world who are persecuted for their beliefs and their desire to help the hurt. Pray for the hurt and suffering. Heck...just pray. I'm thinking there's lots of us who could use it.