We Have a Date!

Well - the wonderful news is that today, my doctor and I scheduled my induction for April 11th! I am hugely thankful that I actually have an end date to my bed rest, and Brian is excited that he might be able to share his 30th birthday with his baby son or daughter!

My non-stress test today was definitely interesting. It took about 10 minutes for the nurse to find the baby's heartbeat. It shouldn't be that hard to find the baby's heartbeat, especially since there isn't too much room for the baby to move around at this point. The nurse said that she couldn't say for sure, but she didn't think the baby was breach. She thought it was more likely that the baby was "sunny side up" as she described it. This basically means that instead of the baby's face looking at my back (as it should be), the baby's face is most likely looking at my stomach. Although there are exercises that women can do to help the baby turn, unfortunately, since I am on bedrest, I can't do any of these exercises. So, we would definitely appreciate any prayers that the baby would get into the "right" position soon - and stay there! Once we finally located the heartbeat, the baby had hiccups for the first 7 minutes of the test which again tends to skew the test. So, the non-stress test today was definitely interesting. But we finally got the baby to calm down, and the nurse was satisfied that the baby was doing fine!

When I saw my doctor, she told me that she wanted me to have blood work drawn again today and that I will complete another 24-hour urine analysis next Sunday. That should be my last 24-hour test until after the baby arrives. I told her that for my sanity, I was really just hoping to schedule a date for induction today. She completely understood, but she also wanted Brian and I to understand that there is a chance that the baby could spend a couple of days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) after the baby is born. This is essentially because babies lungs are considered to be completely developed at 39 weeks. However, because of my pre-eclampsia, she didn't want to wait to schedule my induction until 39 weeks.

Based on her schedule, we agreed on April 11th for the induction. I will most likely go into the hospital on the night of April 10th and then she will start the pitocin on the morning of April 11th. Again, if any of my blood work or protein levels change dramatically, then they will automaticaly move up my induction. But as long as everything continues to stay steady, we will be having a baby on April 11th! Obviously, another prayer request would be that my blood work and protein levels continue to stay steady. And finally, another prayer request would be that when the baby arrives, it's lungs would be fully developed and that it would not need to spend any time in the NICU.

Thank you all for your love and support throughout all of this! So many people have sacrificed so greatly for us, and we are eternally grateful! We are almost there! :)

Improvement Again!

I received my lab results today from my blood work and 24-hour urine analysis that I had on Monday. My protein level is 405 - still slightly above normal but lower than last week. Also, my liver enzyme that had been elevated is still holding steady at a normal level of 21 - what a huge blessing. So, it definitely appears that bedrest is having a very positive effect on my body (although there are times when I think I might go crazy). The best news is that my hemoglobin level is at 11.2 (which is a huge improvement from last week). Normal hemoglobin levels are 12 or above although most pregnant women have levels less than this. My doctor was hopeful that my hemoglobin would be at 10 or above at delivery so this is a very positive development. Apparently, all of those iron supplements are working! :)

I have another non-stress test scheduled for tomorrow morning and will then hopefully finalize a date to be induced with my doctor at my appointment next Monday. Thank you again for all of your thoughts and prayers - they are definitely working!

Week 35 Update

Just wanted to give all of you a quick update about my doctor's appointment yesterday. I started out the morning with my non-stress test. Apparently, I must have eaten something that drove the baby crazy because Mary, the nurse that actually does the non-stress test had to keep moving the monitor just to keep on top of the baby's heartbeat. It took almost the entire 20 minutes for the baby to finally settle down - Mary and I had a good laugh about what an active baby we have! :)

Next up was my ultrasound. I had my last ultrasound four weeks ago, and the baby was projected to weigh about 4 pounds 10 ounces. Since babies generally gain about 1/2 a pound per week, we were hoping that the baby was going to weigh about 6 1/2 pounds. And we were right - the ultrasound showed that the baby weighed 6 pounds 9 ounces. However, as the ultrasound technician reminded me, the weight can be up to a pound off. She predicted that the baby was closer to 6 pounds at this point since the baby's head and legs were measuring at 39 weeks (instead of 35 weeks which is what they should be) - she thought that those two measurements were skewing the weight prediction. She was also amazed at how long the baby's legs were - I guess we have a basketball star in the making (however, only if they inherit Brian's athletic ability - if the baby takes after me, it will just be tall and clumsy)! :)

But other than that, the ultrasound of the baby looked great. My amniotic fluid levels look wonderful. So, at this point, we are so thankful for a very healthy and active baby.

My next stop was my appointment with my doctor. She told me that the best thing for the baby would be to get to 38 weeks (which is April 14th). She told me that she was willing to schedule an induction for any point after 38 weeks so Brian and I have some decisions to make. She told me definitively that I will be on bedrest until I deliver the baby. I am assuming that we will finalize a date at my next appointment with her which is next Monday, March 31st. Of course, if anything changes with my blood pressure, blood work, protein levels, swelling, etc., the induction date will be out the window, and she will most likely deliver the baby immediately.

I should know my blood work and protein results on Wednesday and will post a new update then. Thank you again for all of your prayers and your words of encouragement. God is certainly looking out for this pregnancy and the baby and for that, we are so thankful!

Just a Quick Update

I wanted to give a quick update about my doctor's appointment today. My non-stress test went very well - the baby was very active as usual. Also, at all of my appointments, they also do a quick check for protein. Today, I had a protein level of +1 (which basically means that my protein level is most likely between 300 - 600). This is really no change over what it has been.

Next Monday will be the next crucial date in this process as I will have more lab work done, I will complete another 24-hour urine analysis to get a more accurate count of the amount of protein, I will have another non-stress test, I will have an ultrasound to see how the baby is growing, and I will have another appointment with my doctor. We would appreciate your prayers next Monday morning during all of those appointments that everything continues to stay stable with my body and that the baby is continuing to grow well.

Also, let's hope that my blood pressure stays low tonight during the K-State game! A first round win in the NCAA Tournament would definitely help lift my spirits! :) Go Cats!

Amazing News!

Just wanted to pass along my test results from today. I just got word from my doctor that my liver enzyme that has been high the entire time I have been on bedrest is actually within the normal range (for the first time in over three weeks). The ALT liver enzyme should be below 40, and mine was 21 today! Yeah! Just for comparison purposes, my ALT liver enzyme was 59. It is one of those things that can only be explained as God continuing to watch over this pregnancy and the baby!

Also, my hemoglobin count was 9.7 - a little lower than last week but still doing well. My pulse has also continued to decrease - my pulse rate was actually at 84 today during one of my readings! :)

Anyway - just wanted to give everyone a quick update! Thank you again for all of your thoughts and prayers - they are definitely working, and we so appreciate everyone's support and encouragement! More later...

We Made It!

First of all, I apologize that we have not done well at updating the blog. To give you a quick recap of last week, I received my protein results late in the day last Wednesday, and the number was 442 (basically stable from what it had been previously). So, the great news is that everything seems to be staying stable, and the baby continues to look great.

Today, I went back to the doctor for another non-stress test. The baby continues to be quite a wiggle worm during the tests but the heart rate looks great. We have another ultrasound scheduled for next Monday to get an update on how the baby is growing so that should be interested. Also, I had another round of blood work drawn today. I probably won't have those results back until Wednesday of this week. I actually got a week off from doing a 24-hour urine test so I won't have any more protein results until next week.

Also, my doctor was off today so I saw another doctor in the practice. Since we made it to our original goal of 34 weeks (which is today!), I was trying to determine our plan going forward. At this point, as far as we can tell, the goal is trying to get both the baby and I to 37 weeks and then they will schedule an induction from there. But as always, any small change in my blood work, protein levels, baby's growth, etc. can change the entire plan! The joys of being on bed rest!

Again, we are so thankful for all of our friends and family who have been so generous during this time. God is continuing to bless us, and we are so thankful for His provision. Hope that you all have a wonderful week!

3AM Friends

Strange title, but the concept has great meaning to us lately. The message at church last weekend examined the friendship between Jonathan and David and a biblical model of friendship. So often life gets so fast paced (living with no margin) that its hard to really develop deep friendships. So the question that was posed was who would you call in an hour of need (3AM)? While it has not been 3AM phone calls, there have been many to friends and family over the last couple of weeks. Thank you again for all the help. We've had many calls, notes, and so much assistance. Not sure I could blog on that enough...so maybe I'll move on...

Emily's appointment went fairly well today. Mostly status quo as the liver enzyme is steady (but high) at 59. We won't get the protein test results back until Wednesday. She has quite a cough she's developed which I think really wears her out. Dr. W also thinks she is really dehydrated...the message was to drink lots more water. Other praises are that her hemoglobin level has increased from the last bloodwork so the extra iron seems to be working and that it appears that the baby has turned to be head down. More later...

Go Cats!

Okay - so the highlight of my Saturday is hopefully going to be a Wildcat victory at Iowa State today so I thought I would title today's blog accordingly! :) Yesterday was fairly uneventful - it was nice to hear Lydia playing downstairs during the day, but we quickly learned that it didn't work too well if I was lying on the couch in the living room because she thought that Mommy was fair game. So, I spent most of the day in our bedroom. I can't believe that this is already my 13th day on bed rest - each day brings us closer to a healthy baby! A friend of ours is coming over today to help finish hanging everything up in Lydia's new room so I think that Brian and I are feeling more and more prepared for the new baby. And thanks to everyone that has been so generous about offering to bring meals, hang out with me, calling on the phone, etc. It has definitely made a difference! You all mean so much to us!

Update for Thursday

Well - I successfully drove myself to my doctor's appointment for my non-stress test today. And while it about wore me out, everything went very well. The baby passed the non-stress test within the first five minutes, but I still had to stay on the monitor for twenty minutes total. Just for those of you that are interested, the non-stress test establishes the baby's baseline heartbeat (which today was about 130). Then, they have to have at least two accelerations that go above the baseline. Since our baby is apparently a wiggle worm, that was no problem to meet! By the end of the twenty minutes, the baby had nearly 12 accelerations above baseline.

They also checked my blood pressure which was great. I will go back on Monday for another non-stress test and an appointment with my doctor. I will also have more bloodwork and a 24-hour urine analysis done on Monday (but the results won't be back until Wednesday).

I have been sleeping better at night which has definitely helped as well. I continue to read my books, work on Sudoku and crossword puzzles, and just hang out on the couch in general. It will be nice to have Lydia around the house tomorrow with Grandma Ruppe just to have some human interaction during the day. :) More later - hope that everyone has a wonderful day!

Time at Home

Well - I thought I would post a new blog today. I am very grateful to be home and to have familiar surroundings, but I have also come to realize that there were certain things that were easier about being in the hospital. It was nice to see a human face (even if it was a nurse coming to draw my blood) every few hours, and I have learned that being at home but not being able to actually "do" anything at home can drive me crazy! But I am trying to keep up a positive attitude. I am going to try to figure out how to complete Sudoku puzzles this afternoon - this is one arena I have never entered into before, but I have heard it can be addictive.

Lydia continues to do well - my favorite time is in the evenings from about 5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. when I get to hang out with her! She always helps to brighten my day! I will have my first non-stress test (essentially fetal monitoring) and blood pressure check at my doctor's office tomorrow morning. I will continue to have these twice per week until the baby arrives. More later...

Bye SMMC...Home for now

Emily was finally discharged around 3:30 pm (Monday) and we made it home for the early evening. I went to pick up Lydia and brought her home to see mom. We are grateful for being home, but want to thank the nurses and doctors at Shawnee Mission. They have been wonderful as usual. We know we will be back at some point to welcome this baby to the world! Also a big thanks for all of the help we have received so far. Family and friends have stepped up to offer help and support during this time. We actually feel sorry for the next person in "293" as their phone might ring off the hook tonight. "293" is nurses lingo for the room Emily was in. I think we (actually the insurance company) put a good down payment on it the last seven days.

Going Home?

Apparently so. Emily gets to ride this out at home as long as she stays "compliant" to bed rest and has no other symptoms. Seems like the perinatologist thinks it would be best to get to 37 weeks if at all possible. There will also be non-stress tests twice per week which will include urine and blood pressure checks. At this point, these will take place at my doctor's office. I will also have to have blood work done as well as a 24-hour urine analysis done once each week. I can drive to each doctor's appointment assuming that I continue to feel well. To see how our prayers have been answered, see below:

- That my liver enzyme level would continue to decrease - my liver enzyme has stayed steady over the past few days - still above normal but not increasing.
- That my hemoglobin level would show an increase (even if it is a small increase)- my hemoglobin has increased ever so slightly, and they expect it to continue to do so over the next few days.
- That the protein level in my urine would remain steady or only increase slightly - the protein level actually decreased slightly which is a huge miracle.
- That the baby would work on switching from being breech to being head down (it would probably make me more comfortable as well) - this we don't know anything about yet, but your continued prayers would be appreciated.

Although I am happy to be going home, it has been a frustrating day since I feel as though I had gotten used to the thought of staying here for the duration. But as I am learning, it is not my plan but God's plan. More to come later!

Big Monday

Well - I thought I would post a blog tonight with a few specific prayer requests for tomorrow.

- That my liver enzyme level would continue to decrease
- That my hemoglobin level would show an increase (even if it is a small increase)
- That the protein level in my urine would remain steady or only increase slightly
- That the baby would work on switching from being breech to being head down (it would probably make me more comfortable as well)

Any and all prayers would be much appreciated! Also, I did get to take a 30-minute wheelchair ride today, and Lydia got to ride in her stroller as well. I think that we both enjoyed being outside before the weather turned cold! It has yet to be determined which is faster - a wheelchair or a stroller!

My memory verse during this entire ordeal has been Philippians 4:6: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. We will post an update tomorrow once we know more! We love all of you!

Update on Baby Howell (Sunday)

Well - I thought I would update you on the situation this morning. I am really just in a waiting pattern until tomorrow (Monday) morning to see what my revised labs and urine analysis shows. The doctor is concerned that I continue to be anemic, and I get to take two doses of iron supplements per day to try to increase my hemoglobin. Also, my pulse rate tends to be high, but they think this is a side effect of my low hemoglobin counts so hopefully all of this will start to normalize as my hemoglobin increases. Other than that, everything remains steady. My blood pressue continues to be low, and the nurses keep telling me that I am their "easy" patient. We will see if they still say that after I have been here for three weeks! :)

Oh, and since I forgot to include this in yesterday's blog, there were four babies born at SMMC on February 29th - they said that it was a relatively quiet day! The biggest highlight of my day is that I get to take a 30-minute wheelchair ride outside which I am very much looking forward to. I am also looking forward to spending more quality time with Lydia today. Again, we so appreciate all of your phone calls, kind words, and prayers. Let's hope we can hold on two more weeks - it is my doctor's goal to not deliver until March 17th if at all possible (the baby will be 34 weeks at that point)! Have a great Sunday!

Lydia's Saturday with Mom

Lydia and Mom got to spend lots of quality time together today. I personally think it was good for both of them. The visit included lunch and time to just hang out...while Emily hated to see her go, she was able to spend about four hours with her.

I decided to finish where Brian left off from the earlier post. Yesterday was definitely one of my more emotional days - not due to anything from a medical perspective. Everything on that front continues to be fine. I think it just started to sink in that this small room is my home for a while. But I also realized how thankful I should be as a couple of women are on bedrest in the unit and can't even get up to take a shower. So, I am thankful for the small joys in life.

I had many visitors yesterday which definitely helped the day to go by more quickly. And Brian was able to come up to the hospital last night to watch the KU vs. K-State game with me and then was able to spend the night here (on the wonderful twin bed couch)! :) We again appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers and will keep you all updated! More later!