Well, here we are post-Christmas and pre-2011 and we're up to week six and passing milestone after milestone.
Maggie had the usual ultrasound today and Wyatt weighs in at 3lbs and 14oz! That puts him bigger than 92% of babies at his stage right now and we're so thankful for his continued growth. I'm sure at some point his mother will be ready for him to stop growing and join us on the outside. The possibility exists that she could go home before he is delivered, but right now we're just continuing to go day to day. 30 weeks down and a few more to go!
I've had several people ask about my job status since my last gig ended sooner than expected. I've been presented with a couple of consulting opportunities and am awaiting a couple of other meetings next week - all hopefully in direction of my next job.
In the meantime I've taken to doing some home projects and getting things ready for Wyatt's arrival! Finally painting the office and setting things up there - hopefully I have the chance to work some from home.
Other than that just thankful for God's hand in our lives and the lives of our family. We're so thankful for a healthy albeit early baby boy for my cousin Lindsey and their family.
On to Tuesday Night Football!!!! Then a big wild new year's eve party in the high-risk ward. A big game Sunday and then we'll be at 31 weeks!
Chris
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Christmas from the fifth floor...
As I sit here today, there are lots of things I am thinking about. As Christmas is a few short days away, I do find myself getting a little bit sad. Spending our last Christmas as just Chris and I in Community Hospital was not exactly what I had in mind. Christmas is my favorite holiday and I love to spend it with the people that I love. Traditionally that would be spending it with Chris' family, my family, friends and of course our church family at Crosspoint. People ask me what the hardest thing is a bout being in here at the Holidays, and honestly, I think it will be missing the Christmas Eve Service at church. As a child and as an adult, we were always at church for Christmas Eve. Sometimes it wouldn't be our home church, but we spent it somewhere. This is the first Christmas Eve where I will not be at a service. That makes me sad and it is one of those things that I think people take for granted. This year, our church is doing their first true Christmas Eve service. I was so excited to be a part of it, be there when it happened, and be there for the beginning of an exciting thing, but obviously, God has a different plan for me for right now. Keeping Wyatt inside is what I need to be doing, and that is okay. I would rather have him inside me than up in NICU-- although I know he would be in great hands there as well.
Monday will mark being here for a whole 6 weeks. At least I know that I am halfway there, even if I have to stay until 36 weeks. Doctors are thinking that I should be able to come home at 34 weeks, stay on bed-rest for a couple more weeks and stay on the terbutaline pump, an ]d then at 36 weeks I will be good to do what I have to until the baby comes. It has been a long almost 6 weeks, but all in all the days just kinda blend together, I sleep when I can, and sometimes get my days and my nights confused, and enjoy the visitors that I have. My biggest complaint I have right now is that my hips and things are KILLING me! I am sure sitting in bed for hours on end and not doing anything at all will contribute to it. It makes i t hard to get to sleep at night and even harder to stay asleep. My only other complaint is the pressure he is putting on my cervix. I told the doctor, sometimes I think that his arm is just gonna pop out the amount he pushes, pokes, and prods on me1!
On the medical end of things, I am still on the terbutaline pump, still contracting, and still hanging in there. I tend to have more contractions in the evening, and thankfully, they are just contractions and not changing anything, so that is good. Some are pretty painful, but most are just a little painful and a lot annoying! I never thought I would sit in bed and contract for weeks on end before even having the baby! But that is part of it and what I have to do!
So in a nutshell, we are all just hanging in here. Christmas brings out a lot of many happy memories and in the future, this will be one of those. Chris' family is coming tonight to celebrate Christmas, and my family is coming on Christmas night for dinner and presents. The presents are wrapped and in my room sitting under the "tree"' and I cannot wait to see the excitement in my nieces and nephews when they open their goodies. Chris will be here Christmas Eve and then we will spend Christmas together here on the Labor and Delivery Unit :) Not how we envisioned it going this year, but we are definitely making the best of it. I am receiving incredible care (even getting m y favorite nurses most days.... I look forward to when my favorites work... it helps to pass the time), my doctors are incredible and doing everything they can to make me comfortable and keep Wyatt where he belongs, and we have an incredible group of friends that visit, bring things to help pass the time, or even just send little notes that make me chuckle. Chris and I are truly blessed and we wish you all a Very Merry Christmas! (Consider this the Christmas Card... this year, that wasn't going to happen)...
Maggie
Monday will mark being here for a whole 6 weeks. At least I know that I am halfway there, even if I have to stay until 36 weeks. Doctors are thinking that I should be able to come home at 34 weeks, stay on bed-rest for a couple more weeks and stay on the terbutaline pump, an ]d then at 36 weeks I will be good to do what I have to until the baby comes. It has been a long almost 6 weeks, but all in all the days just kinda blend together, I sleep when I can, and sometimes get my days and my nights confused, and enjoy the visitors that I have. My biggest complaint I have right now is that my hips and things are KILLING me! I am sure sitting in bed for hours on end and not doing anything at all will contribute to it. It makes i t hard to get to sleep at night and even harder to stay asleep. My only other complaint is the pressure he is putting on my cervix. I told the doctor, sometimes I think that his arm is just gonna pop out the amount he pushes, pokes, and prods on me1!
On the medical end of things, I am still on the terbutaline pump, still contracting, and still hanging in there. I tend to have more contractions in the evening, and thankfully, they are just contractions and not changing anything, so that is good. Some are pretty painful, but most are just a little painful and a lot annoying! I never thought I would sit in bed and contract for weeks on end before even having the baby! But that is part of it and what I have to do!
So in a nutshell, we are all just hanging in here. Christmas brings out a lot of many happy memories and in the future, this will be one of those. Chris' family is coming tonight to celebrate Christmas, and my family is coming on Christmas night for dinner and presents. The presents are wrapped and in my room sitting under the "tree"' and I cannot wait to see the excitement in my nieces and nephews when they open their goodies. Chris will be here Christmas Eve and then we will spend Christmas together here on the Labor and Delivery Unit :) Not how we envisioned it going this year, but we are definitely making the best of it. I am receiving incredible care (even getting m y favorite nurses most days.... I look forward to when my favorites work... it helps to pass the time), my doctors are incredible and doing everything they can to make me comfortable and keep Wyatt where he belongs, and we have an incredible group of friends that visit, bring things to help pass the time, or even just send little notes that make me chuckle. Chris and I are truly blessed and we wish you all a Very Merry Christmas! (Consider this the Christmas Card... this year, that wasn't going to happen)...
Maggie
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Spread Some Cheer 2010
So, I confess the camera guy needs some training but the hosting and editing is pretty good! Here is a little of the Spread Some Cheer food drive our church does every year...it's really one of my favorite days!
Seriously, come join us on 12/24 at either 5:30 or 7:00 pm it'll be well worth it! I may even dress as Buddy the elf.
Have a great day!
Chris
Seriously, come join us on 12/24 at either 5:30 or 7:00 pm it'll be well worth it! I may even dress as Buddy the elf.
Have a great day!
Chris
Saturday, December 11, 2010
One of my favorite days!
December 11th, 2010...it will go down as one of my favorite days of the year and the event is one of my favorite every Holiday Season! I'll explain why there's a picture of the back of our SUV in a minute.
First the update - Maggie is doing fine and rapidly approaching 28 weeks. She had an ultrasound on Tuesday and Wyatt is measuring 2lbs 11oz, which is bigger than the average size or at least that the 'mom to be application' on my ipod touch says! According to that application as well I'll start to see some more changes in my body this month!! (haha) I digress...
It's still looking like we'll be here for a long time, so a special thank you again to all who are praying, have prayed, will continue to pray, stopped by, called, emailed, texted, cooked, sent cards, or just reached out to show your support.
Now, on to today... There's nothing relevant about this date in our family history but, the event that occurs around this time each year means more this year than others.
Our church, Crosspoint (shameless plug http://www.xptweb.org where yours truly will be rocking 2 Christmas Eve Services), does a "Spread Some Cheer Drive" each year. It's a great opportunity to provide a meal for some less fortunate families during the holidays. It's really great because they give you a shopping list with a moving box and you get to assemble this "meal in a box" for a local family.
I set out today to do the shopping on my own... I really missed being with Maggie during this time because for the last 3 years we've made this a tradition. Still a little bummed I headed into the store to start shopping early. It didn't take long to cross everything off the list. Cramming it into our vehicle proved to be a little tough around 2 guitars, an amp, and my effects case, but I managed. The attendant at the checkout picked up that I had 2 of everything and asked why...she thought it was a great idea! I went home to start assembling the boxes and getting our meals ready to go minus the frozen birds that will reside in the freezer until 12/19 when we turn these in. I'm playing on the 19th and to watch all the boxes come in to feed over 1,000 people is pretty moving.
The thought that just kept running through my mind while missing Maggie was how much more fun this will be in 3 or 4 years when we can start to teach Wyatt why we do this. When we can let him pick out some cookies and other food to give back in a very special way. I'm thankful that Maggie and I were both raised with a desire to give out of what we've been blessed with. We'll both enjoy the thought on Christmas Day while we're (hopefully) watching it snow from the hospital that another family is enjoying a great meal!
Many people have asked how to help...and again the overwhelming thought in our minds is to continue to pray and find an opportunity to "spread some cheer" of your own!
Chris, Maggie, (and Wyatt)
p.s. I think I may start referring to him as "Wyatt in the Womb" - kind of has a nice ring to it!
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Maggie's Three Week Recap...
Well, here we are, three weeks into our long term stay at Community Hospital. I can't believe another week has gone by! People are asking me all the time if I am losing my mind yet... and surprisingly, no! Thanks to visits from friends and family, Lifetime Movies, Law and Order marathons, my iPad, Facebook, and variety puzzle books (word search, crossword, and my new favorite, Code Crosswords) I am keeping very busy. It is somewhat amazing to me that an entire three weeks have gone by... I know, it sounds crazy :) My normal schedule is changing quite a bit. Before my stay, I would go to bed around 10:00 but since staying here, my bedtime has definitely changed! This is for a variety of reasons including that I get monitored with different things throughout the night and am woken up several times if I go to bed too early, but also just the fact that time doesn't seem to matter here since I have nothing else to do! Most nights I get my last fetal heart monitor from 12:00-1:00am and will watch TV until 2:00 or so and then sleep until 9 or 10. My schedule will go back to normal once I get out of here... but then again, what is normal when there is a newborn in the equation?
This week, I was taken off of the magnesium sulfate and put back on the terbutaline pump. This is like an insulin pump that is giving me medicine throughout the day. It doesn't make me feel quite as "drugged" as the magnesium sulfate does, but causes a lot of jittery-ness, headaches, increases blood pressure, and causes heart palpitations, so that makes for interesting time! But it is nice to not be on an IV since the only time I can spend out of my bed is going to the bathroom and my shower every other day.. I no longer have to shower with my arm out of the curtain and take the IV pole with me into the bathroom every time I get up! So that is a definite plus!
Also this week, I had a visit from a Physical Therapist. I had expressed concern to my doctor that sitting in a bed all day and not moving I was worrying about my muscles having atrophy. Within the day, a physical therapist was here with stretches and things to do while in bed to keep my muscles moving. I figure, a few stretches is better than nothing!
Another great thing about being at Community as opposed to other hospitals is that Riley, our beagle, can come visit! Chris brought her on Saturday and she stayed for about 4 hours... it was so nice! She slept on the bed with me and also on the couch for a little bit!
Coming up this week, I will probably have a visit/tour to the NICU. Hopefully, we wont need to use the NICU for any extended time, but it will be nice to go up there and see everything before the baby comes. Also, I should have another ultrasound at some point. I tell ya, having these ultrasounds every week is really spoiling me! Never again will I be able to see my baby every week and see how much he changes week to week... I am continually amazed that there is so much changing and I am growing this little boy inside of me!
I am starting to get to know the stories of some of the other women on the floor. There are about 15 of us "long-termers" on the floor here and we all have our own story. Some of the information I learn about from the nurses on the floor but also, we have a Wednesday Morning "Bed-rest Support Group". We all get wheeled down in our wheel chairs to the atrium outside by the waiting room. We all just get together, drink tea and coffee, and talk about our stay here. This past week, we complained about our lack of bowel movements and the timeliness of the food service. There are people here from all walks of life, all different numbers of babies, and all different professions. And besides getting to know these other women, I GET OUT OF THE ROOM!!! It is so nice to get out every once and awhile!!
All in all, this week has been relatively uneventful! And we like uneventful! I will hope that this continues for many weeks to come!!
Maggie
This week, I was taken off of the magnesium sulfate and put back on the terbutaline pump. This is like an insulin pump that is giving me medicine throughout the day. It doesn't make me feel quite as "drugged" as the magnesium sulfate does, but causes a lot of jittery-ness, headaches, increases blood pressure, and causes heart palpitations, so that makes for interesting time! But it is nice to not be on an IV since the only time I can spend out of my bed is going to the bathroom and my shower every other day.. I no longer have to shower with my arm out of the curtain and take the IV pole with me into the bathroom every time I get up! So that is a definite plus!
Also this week, I had a visit from a Physical Therapist. I had expressed concern to my doctor that sitting in a bed all day and not moving I was worrying about my muscles having atrophy. Within the day, a physical therapist was here with stretches and things to do while in bed to keep my muscles moving. I figure, a few stretches is better than nothing!
Another great thing about being at Community as opposed to other hospitals is that Riley, our beagle, can come visit! Chris brought her on Saturday and she stayed for about 4 hours... it was so nice! She slept on the bed with me and also on the couch for a little bit!
Coming up this week, I will probably have a visit/tour to the NICU. Hopefully, we wont need to use the NICU for any extended time, but it will be nice to go up there and see everything before the baby comes. Also, I should have another ultrasound at some point. I tell ya, having these ultrasounds every week is really spoiling me! Never again will I be able to see my baby every week and see how much he changes week to week... I am continually amazed that there is so much changing and I am growing this little boy inside of me!
I am starting to get to know the stories of some of the other women on the floor. There are about 15 of us "long-termers" on the floor here and we all have our own story. Some of the information I learn about from the nurses on the floor but also, we have a Wednesday Morning "Bed-rest Support Group". We all get wheeled down in our wheel chairs to the atrium outside by the waiting room. We all just get together, drink tea and coffee, and talk about our stay here. This past week, we complained about our lack of bowel movements and the timeliness of the food service. There are people here from all walks of life, all different numbers of babies, and all different professions. And besides getting to know these other women, I GET OUT OF THE ROOM!!! It is so nice to get out every once and awhile!!
All in all, this week has been relatively uneventful! And we like uneventful! I will hope that this continues for many weeks to come!!
Maggie
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