It may seem odd to post baby things here on the Cushing's blog. However, we feel that we are blessed beyond measure with our little baby. Cushing's and pregnancy are thought to be mutually exclusive, meaning the medical community believes that a Cushing's patient's hormones are so messed up that the body cannot perform basic child-making functions. Luckily, I caught my Cushing's early and with the proper research and consultations, we decided to try for a baby before I have pituitary surgery.
We of course are thrilled, and we are super happy as we await the birth of our first little girl, now only 6 short Wednesdays away! We have a c-section scheduled for Wednesday, September 17th. I will be 38 weeks pregnant at that time. Because I had a 2 cm x 2 cm uterine fibroid removed in December 2007, my doctors feel that the contractions and pushing required to deliver naturally will put my weakened-from-fibroid-removal uterus under great distress. In fact, one said the uterus could 'rupture', the other said, 'explode.' I'm fine with the c-section!
In addition, sharing my pregnancy story here on this blog gives women with Cushing's a little hope about the possibility of having a child.
~Melissa
P.S. May I also proudly add that I have only gained 13 pounds with this pregnancy?! The baby is growing just fine. In fact, she is at the top of the growth charts at the 98 percentile when they measure her leg and arm bones. I have another ultrasound scheduled on WED August 3rd and nearly every WED until mid September. I'll have so much video and photos of this baby before she is even born! But each time we see her on that TV screen, we love her more and more!
P.S.2 Here's to the summer of the wild printed shirts! :)
Melissa, May 24, 2008 (21 weeks pregnant)
Melissa, May 24, 2008 (21 weeks pregnant)
Jonathan and Melissa, June 6, 2008 (22 weeks pregnant)
Melissa, June 15, 2008 on Father's Day (24 weeks pregnant)
Melissa, June 16, 2008 on the way to the ultrasound (24 weeks pregnant)
Melissa, June 16, 2008 on the way to the ultrasound (24 weeks pregnant)
Melissa, July 27, 2008 (30 weeks pregnant)
Melissa and Jonathan, July 27, 2008 (30 weeks pregnant)
Melissa and Jonathan, July 27, 2008 (30 weeks pregnant)
Melissa and Jonathan, July 27, 2008 (30 weeks pregnant)
Melissa, August 2, 2008 (31 weeks pregnant)
Melissa & Jonathan, August 2, 2008 (31 weeks pregnant)
Melissa & Jonathan, August 2, 2008 (31 weeks pregnant)
Artistic rendering of a baby at 32 weeks
Jonathan and Melissa share a love of geography and history. We want to raise a thoughtful and socially conscious child who is curious, giving, caring, loving, respectful and independent. We hope she will begin learning from her very first days in her nursery.
Baby Girl's nursery--view from the door
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view, moving left
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view, moving left
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view, moving left
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view, moving left
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view
Baby Girl's nursery--heritage maps. Countries where Jonathan and Melissa's families are from
Baby Girl's nursery--closet! Dresser was my great aunt's
Baby Girl's nursery--clothes hamper
Baby Girl's nursery--the French connection
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view
Baby Girl's nursery--toy chest. This was my cedar hope chest as a child. J & I added 3 inches of foam and recovered it, with help from my parents
Baby Girl's nursery--toy chest. See, it opens!
Baby Girl's nursery--shelves. Mixture of books, Filipino wood carvings, photos of the happy parents, and childhood memorabilia of Jonathan's
Baby Girl's nursery--the start of a great library
Baby Girl's nursery--the piggy bank. I made this and spent 15 hours plus on this one project. Silver money only, so we don't think we are rich on pennies!
Baby Girl's nursery--my mom made the drapes. Jonathan sanded and stained the rocking horse found at a resale baby store, and my niece added the finishing stains
Baby Girl's nursery--Jonathan sanded and stained the rocking horse found at a resale baby store, and my niece added the finishing stains
Baby Girl's nursery--general room view. This converts from a baby bed to a toddler bed to a day bed to a full size bed
Baby Girl's nursery--my niece Lisa painted these. She is so talented!
Baby Girl's nursery--the crib for our sassy little girl
Baby Girl's nursery--crib and changing table
Baby Girl's nursery--changing table and map of the world
Baby Girl's nursery--changing table. Thanks to Cassie for telling me I could find these cubbies for $5 each at Target!
Baby Girl's nursery--travel map. Why just learn ABCs when she can just as easily learn to spell Togo, Laos, Chad, Iran, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Ghana, Gabon, Kenya, Benin, Niger, Yemen, Syria, India, China, Japan, Sudan, Egypt, Korea, Congo, Uganda, and Guyana while getting her diaper changed! Especially Djibouti! This map is mounted on foam board, and it will be a place to record her travels with map pins.
ULTRASOUND VISIT, 32 WEEKS
Melissa at the ultrasound, August 6, 2008 (32 weeks pregnant)
Baby's face at the 32 week ultrasound, August 6, 2008. She already has hair!
Our first ultrasound, January 29, 2008, 4 weeks pregnant. We've come a long way, baby! Click on image to make it bigger.
Our 5 lb 11 oz Baby at the 32 week ultrasound, August 6, 2008. Click on image to make it bigger.
Our 5 lb 11 oz Baby at the 32 week ultrasound, August 6, 2008. Click on image to make it bigger.
Our 5 lb 11 oz Baby at the 32 week ultrasound, August 6, 2008. Click on image to make it bigger.
Our 5 lb 11 oz Baby at the 32 week ultrasound, August 6, 2008. Click on image to make it bigger.
I've only gained 13 pounds. Doc says it is all baby, and that she will be a big one!
5 lb 11 oz baby
1 lb placenta
+ 2-3 lbs amniotic fluid
10 lb of baby
+ 3 lb in my breasts (he mentioned this too!)
13 lb of weight gain
I'm 32 wks 0 days today, baby measures 35 wks 4 days, so nearly a month bigger.
According to the profile of her abdomen, they see very little fat on her. She is a lean baby! Measurements of baby's bones (thigh, arm, foot, and skull) are all in the 90th percentile or higher. Abdomen is also 90th percentile. Doc said since all of these numbers are high, it shows that she is genetically disposed to being a big baby. He asked me to get data from our births and our siblings' births to compare. From what I know, big babies run in our family.
• Jonathan was 8 lbs. His sister was 7 lb 10 oz but 2 weeks early. J is 6 foot 1 inches and his sister is 5 foot 11 inches. Their maternal grandfather was 6 foot 4 inches tall.
• My oldest sister was 10 lb 5 oz but 3 weeks late. Her children weighed 7 lb 10 oz, 7 lb 10 oz, and 7 lb 10 oz. My sister is 5 foot 10 inches.
• My middle sister was 9 lb 6 oz. Her children weighed 8 lb 11 oz, and 8 lb 14 oz. Both were 11 days early. My sister is 5 foot 11 inches.
• I was 8 lb 6 oz. I am 5 foot 7 inches.
Based on data from the past visits and today’s visit, the OB projects that our baby will be 9 pounds 4 to 8 ounces by week 38 (c-section date) and 10 pounds 4 to 8 ounces by 40 weeks (full term!).
I was a bit shocked to think that I am carrying a baby that is already nearly 9 months big. The weight on my bladder is already so much… and she will gain another 3.5 pounds before delivery!
Baby was lying head down with her spine on my right side and facing my left side. She moving all around during the scan. It was the 1 hour after breakfast so she was doing her usual kallistinics!
She was chewing on her fingers and blocking her face with her forearms at various times of the ultrasound. They can see she has hair already.
Her internal organs continue to function as they should. Her stomach and bladder are full, so she is eating well. Her heart and brain look good, too.
The placenta is uniform and healthy, so she is getting the nourishment she needs. The amniotic fluid is normal. This is something to watch with a fast growing baby and a mother who may develop gestational diabetes. If the amniotic fluid were to rise while the baby continued to grow, it would indicate that the baby was becoming a little diabetic, too. Fortunately, that is not the case with us. See above where I detail our large family.
As for the big two that we are watching for me: gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia. All looks good. He read my 3 hour glucose tolerance test as normal. I took myself off the diabetic diet, but we all agreed it would be good for me to moderate my intake of carbs in the last 6 weeks. I agreed… what a mom does for her baby!! As for pre-eclampsia, I have not experienced much swelling, I am not spilling protein into my urine. So this appears to be good for now. My doctors will continue to monitor me closely on a weekly basis.
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Now we start on my weekly visits with both my high risk OB and my regular OB.
At my OB’s office last week, I had the first of the non-stress tests, or NSTs. This involved placing a fetal heart monitor on me and recording how the baby’s heart rate is affected when she moves or when I am having contractions. The nurse asked me if I was feeling contractions yet. I said no. I did enjoy this part a great deal. I was told to relax in the reclining chair for 25-30 minutes and hold the buzzer in my hand. After the nurse placed the fetal heart monitor on my exposed belly, I was instructed to press the button each time I felt the baby move. I felt like I was on a game show with a buzzer in my hand, or less glamorously like a kid in elementary school wearing Davy Jones-sized head phones during the hearing test. We had to push a button whenever we heard the different tones coming through the left and right sides. Does anyone else remember that besides me?! I digress. Anyway, the nurse confirmed that indeed the baby was fine and that I wasn’t experiencing contractions. They will do this test weekly at every OB visit.
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I am relieved to have this much attention. I have gotten to the point where I worry about the baby. I made it through the hard part of the monthly appointments. Getting from weekly appointment to weekly appointment will be much easier. I am grateful for the relief I will feel as we move through these next six weeks!
~MELISSA
