It's a date!

Yesterday baby did good at the appointments. And the induction date was set! JULY 3rd is the day!!!

It will be nice to have baby and give her back to her parents! And see the joy it brings them. This will make all the sacrifices my family has had over the last several months worth it, when we see Q&A with their healthy baby girl.

It will also be nice to get back to normal life!

My family has sacrificed so much! Rich has picked up all the slack around the house. My girls haven't gotten to go out and do all the things we usually do (zoo,park, swimming, ect) since I've been on modified bedrest. I haven't worked in weeks, and miss it most days. I miss my friends, and my adult interaction.

I know some people have their opinions as to why we did this, but in reality no amount of money can replace the sacrifices that me, my children, and husband have had to endure. Even with the induction being scheduled, that means my girls will miss out on the things we would normally do for the 4th of July. the Pueblo West Water parade with their parents, fireworks with their mommy, and a fun day at the lake with their parents.

Hopefully baby stays put, and blood pressure behaves. And it is a quick and easy delivery!

34 week growth scan

Today was the growth scan. Baby is still growing at her own pace. She is up to 3lbs9oz. (One pound bigger than 3 weeks ago) she is still measuring <2nd percentile. She is constantly moving. She has been passing her BPP and NST weekly. Today mFM said we should be able to deliver at 38 weeks rather than 37 weeks (which his great tonhear since my Dr will be on vacation that week). I will still need to get steroids next week just in case the dopplers decide to change. So for right now the plan is to be induced the first week of July, unless this baby decides to come before that on her own. It is crazy to believe how fast this pregnancy has gone, and that we will soon see this baby's face in person versus black and white on the screen.

Ultrasounds galor

With 2 ultrasounds a week we sure do get to see this baby A lot. She sure does look like she has big lips and chubby cheeks! Here are some pictures

31weeks 3days growth

Again I continue to have twice a week appointments.  The past couple Tuesdays the Doppler have been good, but still show high blood flow resistance.  It is still much better with me not working so I'm still stuck out of work until she gets here.

Every Thursday I continue to have ultrasounds (BPP) which she passes with flying colors, NST, and visit with Dr Growney. Last week after the appointment I got home and started go habe lower belly cramping that would come and go and my belly would get hard. I did everything you should including take a nap and it continued. After talking to a friend who is an L&D nurse she told me to go make sure I wasn't feeling contractions. I went to the hospital and they checked my cervix which is still closed :) had a couple contractions upon arriving but they stopped quickly after. And haven't had any issues since.

GROWTH SCAN

Today I had my growth scan. Baby is still growing at her own pace (SLOW) but never the less she is growing. She currently weighs 2lbs 13oz (1264grams). And remains on her own curve. She is about 2 weeks behind still. The MFM Dr remains confident that we can keep her in the oven until 37 weeks.

I got to have a nice long conversation with Q&A today. They were happy to know she is growing. We talked about things we wanted during the birth ("A" will get baby after she is out for skin to skin assuming she is healthy", I will cuddle her once she is nice and clean, "Q" said he would be in waiting room, but I quickly corrected him and informed him there was no way in hell he wasn't going to be in the room for his daughter's birth) we all seem to be on the same page. Tomorrow I register at the hospital (it's getting real how close it is). Because Colorado is so surrogate friendly Q&A' s name will go on all the babies records and my name won't show.  We have a PBO (pre birth order stating they are the legal parents). I already talked to the director of L&D  and she is aware. Things are coming together for the final stages. I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has been. Considering I applied to be a surrogate almost 2 YEARS ago.

A huge thank you to Richie, his parents, my mom, and Sister, along with those friends who check on me and take care of me and the kids

Some awesome pictures of the Baby Girl

What do you tell a 3 year old?

Had a growth scan yesterday... baby is still growing at her own rate. She is measuring almost 2 weeks small but is following her own curve.  She now weighs around 2lb 1oz. Dr did say we will deliver between 34-37 weeks, but is hopeful we will make it to 37 weeks.
I met with Dr Growney today for my regular appointment. That went well. Uterus is measuring same a baby 26 weeks, I'm 28 right now. I've already gained 11lbs since the start of pregnancy. I feel great, but starting to get tired again.  Baby moves all the time. From here on out I will be busy with appointmets. Every Tuesday I go to Springs for a Doppler with high risk Dr. And starting next Thursday I will go to my Dr for BPP scans (watches babies breathing, movement, fluid levels, ect) along with an NST (watches heartbeat for 20 min) followed with a quick visit from the Dr.

Lately Averi has been talking about "a baby in mommies tummy coming soon".usually we just ignore her. We haven't told the girls anything so not sure where this came from. She is very smart for her age. So we told her tonight that mommy has a baby in her tummy that is a special present for our special friends Q&A. We continued to tell her that not all mommies tummies work and some are broken.  So her mommy (Me) has a baby in her tummy to give to Q&A since A' s tummy is broken. Not sure how much she grasped and understood. We don't plan on talking about it unless they ask more.

Bed rest update

I'm still in bed rest. But the good news is it is working. Today I had a follow-up Doppler to look at blood flow to baby. The ultrasound tech actually called another tech in to repeat the scan just to double ckeck. They both agreed that the blood flow had improved a good amount. They talked to the DR and she was happy with the change.
Next week I have another ultrasound to check the size of the baby and a doppler. I will have weekly blood flow studies, and this week I start NST on Thursdays.  So 2 days a week are spent at Dr offices.

Today I also got an awesome care package from my best friend to keep my entertained for the next few weeks.

It is crazy to think this baby will be here in less than 10 weeks.

Fetal Echo/Growth scan

Well where do I start....

The good: The baby's heart looks wonderful, no abnormalities were detected. Heart rate was normal range and chugging along perfect. Baby is moving around like crazy. Fluid level is wonderful. Cervix is still nice and long.

The not so good:  The baby is measuring small still. I am currently 25 weeks 4 days, and she is measuring 24 weeks. This puts her around the 3rd-4th percentile on the growth chart. They consider anything under 10% restricted. Right now she weighs around 1lb 7oz.

The why: After a close look at the baby, the umbilical cord, and the placenta...  It was determined that there is decreased blood flow through one of the vessels in the cord. The cord does have 3 vessels (normal) but one of the vessels going to the baby isn't flowing as good as it should be. The placenta still looks healthy and has good blood flow, the baby looks good (other then size), and the cord is the one causing the trouble.

The now what: Well this is the part that is going to be tough..... I am now on modified bed rest (again). And am out of work until this baby is born. It is thought that if I decrease my activity, it will help the blood flow to the baby. (this means no more walking 10+ miles 3 days a week at work) I will be spending a lot of time laying around watching tv, maybe I will learn a new skill. So if you want to send me some goodies, or crafts go right ahead ;)

The game plan: The Dr is shooting to deliver her between 35-37 weeks. This will only be the case if she continues to grow.  If she slows her growing down anymore it was brought up that I could be put on hospital bed rest. I am staying very positive and know we will get to at least 35 weeks. Eventually they will probably give steroids to help baby's lungs. I will now be getting weekly ultrasounds on Tuesdays. This may increase this as time goes on.

We were able to talk to Q&A via phone at the appointment and they got to ask questions.  I was also able to have a great conversation with each of them after the appointment. I think we are all on the same page, they feel so bad that I'm having to be on bed rest. But we all know it is what is best for this little girl. Rich and I knew when we signed up for this adventure there would be curve balls, and knew this was a thing that could come up, but didn't think it would happen. We will take everything one step at a time. Rich has been awesome, and understands he will have to do even more with kids and around the house. But we all have the same goal and will do what ever it takes to get a happy healthy baby here.

Thank you again to those of you who have been so positive and supportive!