Day 5

I am so thankful to have made it this far with no baby Jack born yet! Every day that we keep him in is a step closer to him being healthier when he does get here. I got to go for a wheelchair ride yesterday. I had a 10 minute limit. BUT we went outside and got locked out of the building. So by the time we made it back to the room, we had been gone 20 mintues. OOPS! They didn't take away my privilidges but I thought they might. :-)

Everything is still stable for now. I am still leaking amniotic fluid, but the body continues to make it, so as long as I stay hydrated, that shouldn't be an issue. I am taking antibiotics to ward off infection which will help me stay out of labor as well. My doctor is pleased that everything is pretty much staying the same. I am going to have another sonogram on Wednesday to check everything out.

As far as my spirits go, I'm pretty good most of the time. I have one emotional breakdown every day. I think that's pretty good! Callie is adjusting ok. She told me today that she misses me, I miss her too, but we're hanging in there. Please keep sending up your prayers that Jack will continue to hang out as long as possible.

Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers. I'll update again in a day or two.

Quick Update

Well, today is my 3rd full day in the hosptial, and Jack is still in my belly! I am still stable and the doctors and nurses are giving me no indications that there is an immediate threat that I will go into labor. The doc I saw this a.m. told me that I will probably be here for a long time. That eased my mind so much. I am still on an emotinal roller coaster. One minute I'm encouraged and the next I'm terrified. But I know that I am not in charge and that God will take care of both me and Jack.

The good news is that they took out my IV today! I am only on the fetal monitor for 2 hours each shift still. They put pressure cuffs on my legs to help ward off blood clots, but other than that I'm tube free. I can even go on a wheelchair ride outside if I want!! It's 100 degrees but the prospect of leaving this room makes me smile.

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. We still need them. I need them for peace of mind more than anything else. Love to you all!

27 Weeks is Too Early!

Well . . . this is not a fun post to write. I woke up yesterday morning (Wednesday) at 2 a.m. and my water had broken. I was scared to death. Tim was in Colorado with his dad and brother for a couple of days, so I called him immediately. He called his mom to see if she could meet me at the hospital and Katie to have her come over to sit with Callie. Dianne ended up coming to pick me up so I wouldn't drive myself.

When they got to the hospital, they started testing me to make sure that it was amniotic fluid and it was. After I got hooked up to the monitors, they noticed I was having several contractions but I had absolutely no pain. I didn't have a lot of pain when I was in labor with Callie, so I guess I could have been in labor for weeks and not even known it. Anyway, they gave me two injections of a medication to stop my labor and it worked.

I have gotten two injections of the steroid that helps the baby's lungs mature. This is a very good thing. I have not had consitent contractions since around 6:30 yesterday morning. I've had a few irritablity contractions but nothing they are worried about. I have seen my doctor and also a speicalist. The specialist did a sonogram to check everything out. Jack is doing great and has had no problems at all. The level of amniotic fluid is normal which is a very good thing.

Basically, they told me that I will be in the hospital unitl he is born. That could be tomorrow or 7 weeks from now. The biggest potential problem is infection, which I am on broad-spectrum IV anitibiotics to help ward that off. If I get an infection, they will not want Jack to stay in. The hosptial I'm in, Centennial Medical Center in McKinney, has a level 3 NICU. So, if I can hang on until next Tuesday (when I'm 28 weeks), I can deliver here and the baby can stay here until he is ready to come home.

As of now I am off the IV unless they are hanging my anitibiotics. I am only on the fetal monitor and contraction monitors for 2 hours a shift. So I have stabilized to the point that they just want me on bed rest and will monitor me off and on for contractions. I am still leaking fluid a little bit, but they think the rupture has mostly sealed off. That's really good news! I did get to get up and take a shower today and I can get out of bed to go to the bathroom. Otherwise, I need to stay in bed.

Callie has been up here a couple of times to see me. We are trying to make her comfortable with me being here for a while. My mom is here and is on vacation next week already, so she'll be with us through next week. Please pray for us that Jack will hang on and we will go one day at a time to make sure we make it as far as we can. We want him to be as healthy as possible when he makes his arrival! He will be in the NICU until he can breathe, take all feedings, keep his temperature up, and a couple of other things all on his own. The neonatologist told us that their goal is to send us home with a healthy baby.

I will keep you updated as well as I can.

New Pictures of Jack

Here are the latest pictures of little Jack. These pictures were taken at 26 weeks. He is weighing in at 2.11 pounds already! That's in the 70th percentile. Also, he's measuring a week early. That would make my estimated due date 9/8 instead of 9/15, but they aren't going to change my due date. He is laying with his feet right above his face. I hope you can see it from these pictures. I think the last one is the best one. I can't wait until he gets here!