An update before she comes!!

Things have been pretty interesting since the last post. We had to adjust my medication a couple of times until we found the right dose with minimal side effects. They were able to slow down the contractions but not stop them. So I started to work less hours in the office and more hours at home. That actually end up being more productive at times because I would work later than I would at the office. Last week we went to our weekly appointment and made a plan for what would happen after I stopped taking the medication. Dr K. knows me so well that I didn't even have to ask about a plan but instead he had one already in mind. The plan was to come off the medication at 36 weeks (last Thursday) and then let the contractions start their process. He also decided that we would schedule an amnio at 37 weeks to see if her lungs were developed. If the amnio number comes back 55 or higher we would induce. I have been going to the doctor's office twice a week for NST (Non-Stress Test) to monitor me and Alivia for activity and contractions while I was on the meds and having contractions. Thursday (36 weeks) I went in for my second weekly appointment having taking my last dose of medication early that morning and my contractions were already at 5 minutes apart with mild mini contractions halfway in between. SO we decided to stay on the meds for a few more days. There was a chance we could progress a little quicker than we expected. I had more reasons to continue the meds than to stop before the end of the weekend. Most importantly I wanted Livi to get as close to 37 weeks as possible. We did a few last minute "to-do's" that needed to be done and a few that we wanted to do. I worked lots of extra hours Thursday, Friday and Saturday to meet a deadline, Tom and I had date night on Friday night, we went to Beaver Lake with Tom's family on the 4th, watched the fireworks at Boy's Town that night, and finished up a few odds and ends on Sunday. We are scheduled to check into the hospital Thursday night for the amnio and induction. I have hesitated slightly to post that because typically 37 weeks is early for an induction however we are not asking for this, it is because of how our pregnancy has gone up until this point. Dr. K. feels that because of the contractions that I have been having since 24 weeks, the fact that Livi is measuring 1.5-2 weeks ahead, and the physical discomfort I have had because of the contractions, her position and her size, this is the way we should proceed. I have had a lot of mixed emotions about this in that I am so very excited to meet our little miracle but I also want what is in her best interest in staying where she is as long as she/I can. Since I went off the meds the contractions picked up at 8 minutes apart and progressed to 5 minutes apart last night but they have plateaued there since. I have an appointment tomorrow to see if I have progressed any further and to monitor the contractions. I am hoping that the contractions are doing something but know that we are on God's time and she will come when he has her arrival planned. My mom is currently in Firth with Beth and Randy waiting until we call or Wednesday to come to Omaha. We are all excited and ready to meet Miss Alivia Miyoko. SO...............the next post will more than likely be about her arrival!!! Stay tuned!!

Until then here is my last bullet list.......
Cravings.........Watermelon, Water, Popsicles, salad
Aversions............I think I am over aversions
How I feel...........round as a ball
How I look.............
What I love............knowing that we will meet our sweet little girl in the matter of days!!Interesting fact.............the car seat and our bags are packed and in the car!!
What I love............knowing that we will meet our sweet little girl in the matter of days!!
Interesting fact.............the car seat and our bags are in the car!!
Next Appointment.........July 7, 2009 at 36 weeks 5 days

Showers, Tears, and Lots Cheers!!

The last few days have been quite a whirl wind of emotions and outcomes. We entered into week 33 this week and with that came a few unexpected and expected things. I had been having quite a few uncomfortable contractions than I had in the past but I had attributed some of them to the fact that I had been a little more active and Alivia is a little bit bigger making the contractions more noticeable. I had a pretty tough night on Wednesday night so I decided to work from home on Thursday and call the doctor. The doctor's office asked that I come in an be monitored and examined to make sure that I wasn't going into pre-term labor. After spending about 2.5 hours at the doctor's office I walked away waiting for the results from the same test that they ran during weeks 24 and 25 and a prescription to stop the contractions. I had wanted to stay away from any meds but they will help ensure that I don't go into labor early and Alivia stays safely where she belongs for the time being. I will stay on these meds until 36 weeks at which time we leave it up to Alivia. We would love to make it to 38 weeks but Alivia could safely arrive anytime after 36 weeks. Later that evening I got a call back from the Dr. K telling me that the test was still negative!! This was definitely an answer to my prayers. If it had come back positive I would have spent 48 hours in the hospital to stop labor. I still end up spending Friday in the hospital but it was because I was scheduled to go in for an Iron Infusion to help increase my iron level. It was a most interesting day. The infusion was supposed to be a 4 hour process but my veins decided to be a little difficult so I was there for almost 7. All in all I am glad to be done with this last Thursday and Friday and that Alivia is still right where she belongs. Luckily I started the weekend off with a Fabulous baby shower!!
My sister-in-law Jamie, and three of my good friends Sarah, Shannon, and Alice hosted an amazing shower for me and Baby Livi!! I always knew that we had great friends and family but it was so overwhelmingly apparent during the shower. The hosts thought it would be fun to start filing Alivia's piggy bank but not with lots of money but with hopes and dreams for her. So each guest was given a quarter and asked to introduce themselves and express a wish for Livi. This was such an amazing thing to hear. There were a lot of laughter, tears and fun. Everything that was said continued to remind me how amazing life was and is for us!! We have been blessed with amazing family and friends that have walked with us on a journey full of challenges, good and hard times, happy and sad times. Each of them played a key roll along the way and for that I can not be more grateful!! I can only pray and wish that Alivia be blessed with the same. She is already so spoiled by our friends and family and I can't wait to see who she becomes and the friends she will develop.
Here are some pictures from the shower!!

33 1/2 weeks

The Hosts and Mama-to-be

Shannon Hite, Sarah Freeland, Me, Alice Spence, Jamie Splonskowski
My Niece Ayla Rose dressed Fancy for Bean Bean and Alivia's Party

Grandma Sue sharing her wish for Alivia

three generations of Wilsons

four generations of Gegzna/Aherns

the girls of Leo A Daly

My countdown has begun.........

We have entered into the third trimester and started to count down the weeks and days until we meet our beautiful little princess. We are just past 32 weeks and since the last week update I have entered into the uncomfortable stage. I am still having contractions, they still are not consistent but they are starting to be a more painful. I am feeling larger by the day and have become increasingly short of breath making it somewhat difficult to do about anything that exerts much energy. We had our regular two week appointment which was really informative in how we proceed from here. I have instructions about the number and severity of contractions I can have before I have to go in to be monitored. If (or when) the contractions do start to put me in labor Dr. K will let me go any time after 35 weeks and medicate up until that point. (Yikes that is less that 3 weeks away!!) If the contractions continue to be unchanging then we may talk about induction at one of the next couple appointments. The chance of induction is also due to the fact that I am or Livi is measuring 2 weeks ahead of schedule. At 30 weeks she was right on schedule and at 32 weeks she is measuring at 34 weeks. She went on a major growth spurt. If she remains ahead of schedule at 34 weeks we will have an ultrasound to determine if there is a reason she is measuring big. Although we would love to see a little glimpse, I don't like that we would be doing this to determine if there are any issues. We pray that she is still healthy and just growing fast!!

After the appointment I walked away in a slight bit of a panic. We have a couple of important loose ends to tie up such as choosing a pediatrician. It has been on my list but I wasn't super concerned when I thought we had 8 weeks. Now that Dr K has stated that there is a chance that it could be less I figured we had better get cracking, not to mention at our first Prepared Child Birth Class this week the question of whether or not we had one was one of the first the instructor asked. We now have 3 appointments scheduled with pediatricians recommended by friends. The first class was pretty basic but still informative non the less. Our next one is a Saturday all day class that we will go over the details of our big day!!

We have also started to do a few odds and ends around the house to prepare. My mom came into town this weekend and we are organized the kitchen cabinets to make room for bottles and other baby things. One of the next things I have planned is to get a bag packed. I am sure that it will change over the course of the next few weeks but if for some reason Alivia decides to grace us with her presence sooner than she is scheduled Tom won't have to guess what to bring or figure out what I will want. I know........I do have time but then again I have been ahead on almost everything else so why not this as well.

So this is where we stand at 32 weeks 4days and I will leave you with this........

Cravings.........Crushed Ice, Red Beets (so weird), potato oles, Coke, watermelon

Aversions............can't think of too many things

How I feel...........Large and In Charge, full of anticipation for Livi to be here!!

How I look.............

What I love............seeing her move all the time and my long natural nails (most of you know I don't usually have long natural nails)

Interesting fact.............4 of our family members have Holiday birthdays....Livi could be a 4th of July baby, making it 5

Something fun.........We have a couple of baby shower coming up in the next few weeks!!

Next Appointment.........June 16, 2009 at 34 weeks

Who will she be……..

I read a number of blogs each day that range from people I know really well to those that have the most inspirational stories and journeys. Earlier this week one of the blogger I follow posted about the upcoming arrival of their son. She got me thinking and soon I was asking myself many of the same questions.
I start thinking……
Who will she look like? Will she have a lot of hair? Will her eyes show her heritage? Will she love the girly things or be a tom boy? Will she love to sleep as much as her mama or will she only sleep the amount she needs? Will she be artistic or will she be all about books? Will she want to be a doctor or teacher, a scientists or a lawyer, a missionary or a politician, a firefighter or a veterinarian, an architect or a landscape designer? It will be some time before we find out some of those things but I do know that she is a child of God and will be raised knowing His love. He knows her more than we do. He knows every piece of her and everything that she will feel and experience. We have the honor to be her parents and I thank God each and every day for the opportunity. I just can't wait to see what God has planned for Alivia and our family!!