Baby: YAY! We've finally reached the point where we will make efforts to save the baby if she is born early. Before this point, we didn't feel that she would have a "life" if we attempted to saved her and were successful. Now, she may or may not be able to breath on her own, but would probably have difficulties and require oxygen as she is just starting to get surfactant in her lungs. She would probably be able to suck, meaning she could nurse rather than having a feeding tube. Because her liver is so under developed at this point, she would need to be under special lights to help her body process the Bilirubin (Jaundice) to prevent mental retardation. She has a minimum of 5 more weeks before she can make her entrance and most likely be OK. At this time, she weighs over 4lbs and measures about 18 inches.
Moving: Trevor got a new job in Hillsboro a couple of weeks ago. He gave over two weeks notice at his current job, and we gave our 30 days notice on our duplex. He has worked up there three days so far, and I hunted for a place for us to live. The first two days I had ZERO for luck. Everywhere was either full and only had 2 bedrooms for super expensive and required a 12 month lease, or had rather expensive 1 bedrooms and charged $50-100/month extra to do anything shorter than a 12 month lease. Yesterday, however, I widened my search radius to include Beaverton, and found two places with rent in the $600 range and 1 month free if we sign a 12 month lease! To break the lease, they charge 1.5 times one month's rent, so really, we'd only have to pay an extra $300 or so to move out if we couldn't find someone to take over the lease. Also, both of these places have pools! Sunday, I'll show Trevor and let him decide! We will be moving in the morning of the 7th because Trevor works the following three days in a row, but we dont have to be out of our duplex until the 12th, giving me plenty of time to put the non-essentials in a storage unit and clean so we get our deposit back.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Preparation for Baby
Carseat: The carseat will be here Monday! I'm sooo excited. This is the first big thing for the baby. My parents got it for her, so Monday I'll be heading to their house to await the UPS Truck! After much research, we decided on the Safety 1st onBoard 35 Air in McKenna. I actually liked the pink and gray one (one of the few girly items I actually like out there - hot pink just isn't my thing), but we dont know for sure we're having a girl...and what if the next baby is a boy... we'd like to be able to move this baby into a convertable and use the same bucket for the next kiddo (hopefully before the seat expires!). Originally we were going to just skip the bucket, and use a convertable, unfortunately, it wouldn't fit in my car rear facing at the angle needed for a newborn.
Diapers: My cloth diaper stash is nearly complete for the first 4-5 months or so. In the right hand column I've listed what is in it. I got all but one of the Nubunz for $3 EACH! Apparently, they got a bad batch of fabric and didn't know it until it was too late, so they're selling all the diapers made at that time at a huge discount. Customers have been reporting about a 25% failure rate, and some even luck out with all good diapers! Depending on how many are bad, I will probably have to get some more. Trevor's mom found a bunch of soakers (what goes inside the diaper) and a couple of used diapers that have been added too. The soakers were great because I ordered the Nubunz without them... the reviews on their soakers weren't all that great.
Diapers: My cloth diaper stash is nearly complete for the first 4-5 months or so. In the right hand column I've listed what is in it. I got all but one of the Nubunz for $3 EACH! Apparently, they got a bad batch of fabric and didn't know it until it was too late, so they're selling all the diapers made at that time at a huge discount. Customers have been reporting about a 25% failure rate, and some even luck out with all good diapers! Depending on how many are bad, I will probably have to get some more. Trevor's mom found a bunch of soakers (what goes inside the diaper) and a couple of used diapers that have been added too. The soakers were great because I ordered the Nubunz without them... the reviews on their soakers weren't all that great.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Update
Lets see....
N. Umpqua Fishing Trip
We went fishing up the North Umpqua. Trevor had never been fly fishing and got a bite on his very first cast. The second cast he caught this fish:
N. Umpqua Fishing Trip
We went fishing up the North Umpqua. Trevor had never been fly fishing and got a bite on his very first cast. The second cast he caught this fish:
And a few casts later he caught this fish:
He fished the remainder of the day, at three different spots along the river but didn't catch anything else.
Job Hunt
Trevor got the job with Metro West Ambulance in Hillsboro. He has decided he is not going to work both jobs, so I have been packing our house. We plan to put everything in storage except the essentials, and find something cheap to rent in Hillsboro or Beaverton until we can find something more permanant. Right now, there is only one house on the Good Neighbor Next Door Program list and it would take Trevor over 40 minutes to get to work.... So, we wait. So far, Trevor really likes the job, and LOVES getting EMERGENCY calls! He will continue his current job through the end of the month, then is on the schedule for August with Metro West.
Baby
The baby has been moving around a lot. Not many kicks but TONS of stretching and buldging. Her heart beat was 140bpm (138bpm last month), and she is still measuring about two weeks ahead. Her fingernails have reached the end of her fingers now, and it's possible for her to scratch herself... poor thing! We have one more week until she is developed enough that we will try to save her if she is born early, but she really, really, needs to wait annother month and a half to have no problems. She is about 17" long and weighs about 3.5lbs.
Here are some bump pictures:
30 Weeks
And I finally figured out how to set the self timmer on my camera, so these should be much clearer from now on!
31 Weeks
Here is the Belly Map from today:
And here is the interpretation of it:
If the interpretation is correct, she is Left Occiput Posterior. She has flipped, but is not in the best position for birth. There some exercises I will do to help her face backwards closer to birth.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Evidence-Based Medicine
Even before we became pregnant, we looked into pregnancy and birth. I've spent countless hours looking at real research surrounding birth, and Trevor spoke (on a professional level) with OBGYN's while he was in clinicals for Labor & Delivery. We have listened to other's opinions surrounding pregnancy and birth, mainly, those who came to the same conclusions we have. One of my favorite blogs on the topic is Stand and Deliver. I agree with alot of what Rixa has to say (but not all, of course). Her most recent post got me thinking.
Every parent has to decide what is best for their family. What I don't understand is how people can just go along with what "professionals" say without looking into it themselves, and then try to force their beliefs onto others. Many of these "professionals" don't practice Evidence-Based Medicine. They practice what I like to call Routine-Procedure-Based Medicine. They do this because somewhere along the line, a patient needed the procedure and it wasn't done. A policy was made to ensure that this wouldn't happen again, and it stuck. No one considered the side effects this now routine procedure would have on those patients who don't need it.
I realize that these professionals are very busy and don't have time to pour over all the research. I also realize that research is a never ending process, and the more technological advances we have the more the conclusions that came from that evidence can change, and we can even find new evidence. I even realize that change is a slow process!
The first book on birth I read was on the Bradly Method titled "Husband Coached Childbirth." It was originally written to advocate for fathers being in the delivery room at the time of their child's birth instead of pacing the halls of the waiting room. It also talks about how animals give birth and how we should try to replicate that...that Natural Childbirth has the best outcomes for all involved. It may Talk the Talk, but it does not Walk the Walk. It is laden with Routine-Procedures...Interventions of natural childbirth. Interventions that are sooooo routine and so accepted their not even considered interventions.
I am no longer shocked by the numbers of people who think birth is an emergency, and is dangerous, and is the "worst pain of your life," and needs to be managed by a doctor. I am beginning to become amused by the number of people who want to be "Kept in the dark" regarding birth and pregnancy. I've had numerous people tell me, upon hearing our pregnancy and birth preparation and plans, that it was so much easier when they had babies... they didn't have to do anything, the doctor just told them what to do. How can they have so much trust in a doctor to keep them and their baby healthy... someone they see once a month, and have zero trust in their body to grow a perfectly healthy baby? Women have grown babies and given birth since the beginning, then all of a sudden we have technology and doctors and medications available and they MUST be used! I find it hard to believe that God, as Awesome as He is, would design us incapable of growing and birthing healthy babies. I think it is much more likely our interference with His plans for us that renders (some of) us incapable of growing and birthing healthy babies.
This Technology, Medication and information the Doctors have are gifts from Him, and have their place. However, because doctors don't do the research, and don't have time to review the research, they practice Routine-Procedure Based Medicine entirely too much. Especially in birth. Birth is not an emergency (there are some things than can become an emergency, but birth in itself is not an emergency), it is not inherently dangerous (driving a car is more dangerous), it is not "the worst pain of your life" (this is the media and general stigma surrounding birth - rent the movie "Orgasmic Childbirth" if you don't believe me), and it does not need to be managed (did Eve deliver her babies in a hospital with a doctor telling her what to do? I THINK NOT! Also, in other countries - Britain for one - you do not go to the hospital to give birth, babies are born at home).
I will not subject myself or my baby to Routine-Procedure-Based Medicine just because that is the view of our culture. We will not have a managed birth. We will not go to the hospital unless there is an emergency. We will not be induced leading to an epidural leading to difficulties in breast feeding and infection needing treated with antibiotics which leads to allergies in the baby which leads to feeding formula which leads to more allergies and food intolerance. I will not have a c-section if there are more than 12 hours between the water breaking and birth - this is necessary in a hospital because of risk of infection (my opinion - but a land fill probably has less antibiotic-resistant strains of germs). There will be no cervical checks to give me permission to push - again the germ thing, and I will push if and when I feel the need to assist my body. I will not be hooked up to an IV to keep me hydrated so I don't eat or dring anything in case of c-section. I will not be forced to lay on my back to give birth - which leads to tearing or an episiotomy and often a "stuck" baby requiring removal by forceps, suction and even c-section. The umbilical cord will not be cut or handled until it has stopped pulsing on its own - early cord cutting cause Rh sensitization in mothers if the baby and mother don't have the same blood factor, which leads to a managed pregnancy for the next baby, which leads to a multitude of other interventions. It also deprives the baby of its own blood which leads to an anemic infant and stresses its body in more ways than I care to list right now. She will not be suctioned, baby is capable of clearing her own passages given that the cord is not cut early. The baby will not be given painful stimuli to make her cry (many babies born in water don't cry and it does not effect their apgars). There will be no cord traction or uterine massage which can lead to turning the uterus inside out, partial release of the uterus, hemorrhage and maternal death. The placenta will come out when it is ready. There will be no Vitamin K injection - causes problems in getting a blood sample to check for the PKU test, nor will she be vaccinated for Hepatitis B - her body cannot process the other stuff in the vaccine and she is not at risk at this time in her life.
After we've had a chance to get to know our baby a little, get some food in all of us, bathe and get everything picked up, and rest a little, we will call our parents to come celebrate with some Birth Day Ice Cream Cake. :)
This is what is best for our family. To those of you who roll your eyes at me and give me speeches on what is best for my baby, you add humor to my day. You did what was best for your family given the information you had at that time. Do not tell me what is best for my family using the information you had at the time you decided what was best for your family. I'm choosing not to be stuck in the past, to live in the present, and have faith in the future.
Every parent has to decide what is best for their family. What I don't understand is how people can just go along with what "professionals" say without looking into it themselves, and then try to force their beliefs onto others. Many of these "professionals" don't practice Evidence-Based Medicine. They practice what I like to call Routine-Procedure-Based Medicine. They do this because somewhere along the line, a patient needed the procedure and it wasn't done. A policy was made to ensure that this wouldn't happen again, and it stuck. No one considered the side effects this now routine procedure would have on those patients who don't need it.
I realize that these professionals are very busy and don't have time to pour over all the research. I also realize that research is a never ending process, and the more technological advances we have the more the conclusions that came from that evidence can change, and we can even find new evidence. I even realize that change is a slow process!
The first book on birth I read was on the Bradly Method titled "Husband Coached Childbirth." It was originally written to advocate for fathers being in the delivery room at the time of their child's birth instead of pacing the halls of the waiting room. It also talks about how animals give birth and how we should try to replicate that...that Natural Childbirth has the best outcomes for all involved. It may Talk the Talk, but it does not Walk the Walk. It is laden with Routine-Procedures...Interventions of natural childbirth. Interventions that are sooooo routine and so accepted their not even considered interventions.
I am no longer shocked by the numbers of people who think birth is an emergency, and is dangerous, and is the "worst pain of your life," and needs to be managed by a doctor. I am beginning to become amused by the number of people who want to be "Kept in the dark" regarding birth and pregnancy. I've had numerous people tell me, upon hearing our pregnancy and birth preparation and plans, that it was so much easier when they had babies... they didn't have to do anything, the doctor just told them what to do. How can they have so much trust in a doctor to keep them and their baby healthy... someone they see once a month, and have zero trust in their body to grow a perfectly healthy baby? Women have grown babies and given birth since the beginning, then all of a sudden we have technology and doctors and medications available and they MUST be used! I find it hard to believe that God, as Awesome as He is, would design us incapable of growing and birthing healthy babies. I think it is much more likely our interference with His plans for us that renders (some of) us incapable of growing and birthing healthy babies.
This Technology, Medication and information the Doctors have are gifts from Him, and have their place. However, because doctors don't do the research, and don't have time to review the research, they practice Routine-Procedure Based Medicine entirely too much. Especially in birth. Birth is not an emergency (there are some things than can become an emergency, but birth in itself is not an emergency), it is not inherently dangerous (driving a car is more dangerous), it is not "the worst pain of your life" (this is the media and general stigma surrounding birth - rent the movie "Orgasmic Childbirth" if you don't believe me), and it does not need to be managed (did Eve deliver her babies in a hospital with a doctor telling her what to do? I THINK NOT! Also, in other countries - Britain for one - you do not go to the hospital to give birth, babies are born at home).
I will not subject myself or my baby to Routine-Procedure-Based Medicine just because that is the view of our culture. We will not have a managed birth. We will not go to the hospital unless there is an emergency. We will not be induced leading to an epidural leading to difficulties in breast feeding and infection needing treated with antibiotics which leads to allergies in the baby which leads to feeding formula which leads to more allergies and food intolerance. I will not have a c-section if there are more than 12 hours between the water breaking and birth - this is necessary in a hospital because of risk of infection (my opinion - but a land fill probably has less antibiotic-resistant strains of germs). There will be no cervical checks to give me permission to push - again the germ thing, and I will push if and when I feel the need to assist my body. I will not be hooked up to an IV to keep me hydrated so I don't eat or dring anything in case of c-section. I will not be forced to lay on my back to give birth - which leads to tearing or an episiotomy and often a "stuck" baby requiring removal by forceps, suction and even c-section. The umbilical cord will not be cut or handled until it has stopped pulsing on its own - early cord cutting cause Rh sensitization in mothers if the baby and mother don't have the same blood factor, which leads to a managed pregnancy for the next baby, which leads to a multitude of other interventions. It also deprives the baby of its own blood which leads to an anemic infant and stresses its body in more ways than I care to list right now. She will not be suctioned, baby is capable of clearing her own passages given that the cord is not cut early. The baby will not be given painful stimuli to make her cry (many babies born in water don't cry and it does not effect their apgars). There will be no cord traction or uterine massage which can lead to turning the uterus inside out, partial release of the uterus, hemorrhage and maternal death. The placenta will come out when it is ready. There will be no Vitamin K injection - causes problems in getting a blood sample to check for the PKU test, nor will she be vaccinated for Hepatitis B - her body cannot process the other stuff in the vaccine and she is not at risk at this time in her life.
After we've had a chance to get to know our baby a little, get some food in all of us, bathe and get everything picked up, and rest a little, we will call our parents to come celebrate with some Birth Day Ice Cream Cake. :)
This is what is best for our family. To those of you who roll your eyes at me and give me speeches on what is best for my baby, you add humor to my day. You did what was best for your family given the information you had at that time. Do not tell me what is best for my family using the information you had at the time you decided what was best for your family. I'm choosing not to be stuck in the past, to live in the present, and have faith in the future.
3 WEEKS!!!!!!!
WOW! I cannot beleive it has been three weeks since I posted on here! Time sure does fly when stuff's a happen'.
Lets see....
Briana's Graduation party went well, we had pizza and of course cake (dont worry I didn't eat the frosting...it had High Fructose Corn Syrup - why does everything have to have that stuff in it?). She got her quilt finally. :) which she was pretty happy over...unfortunately, I forgot my camer and dont have any pictures of it finished to post. Today is my Mom's Birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!) so I'll be going over and will take a picture then.
We took a trip to Roseburg for Trevor's Job Hunt. Eighty-one people were invited to take the Physical Agility Test, 60 showed up for it and only 30 passed. Those 30, including Trevor, then went and took the Written Test, which Trevor did awesome on and now has an interview! We also stopped at the Umpqua Dam. Trevor had never been there and enjoyed seeing the fish!
We went to the lake this past weekend, and I ended up sewing a swim suit top because all the "Tankini" style ones are waaaaaay to short to cover the bump. It worked well, but I think it will be too tight across my belly in about 3 weeks, so I'll have to make annother, or break down and pay $35 for a "Maternity" swim suit top. Old Navy has them a little cheaper than that online, but I like to try things on and they're conveiniently NOT available in the store! Ugh. To the left is a picture of the ONLY fish Trevor has caught this summer. Mom was also the first person to ski, but I only have a video and cant figure out how to put that on here (which I"m sure she doesn't mind!).We went fishing the other day to Cottage Grove Lake. Trevor caught Nothing. He wasn't a very happy fisherman. Plus the wind came up and blew the boat into shore after each cast. Next time we think we'll go in the evening. We know there are fish in there because we saw a huge dead bass. It was huge. And just floating there with its eyeballs all puffed out. Yuck! We finally left the lake, and got some very late lunch at Arby's where I had a Ruben (YUM), and we lucked out with the DMV being right across the parkinglot (Trevor needed a copy of his driving record for a job he's applying for). Never again will I go to a Eugene or Springfield DMV. I'll spend less time driving down to Cottage Grove, having our number called before we even have a chance to sit down, and driving back home, than I would if I just went to the DMV up here! WOW!
Yesterday, we went to Hillsboro for an interview with an Ambulance Company. They're hiring 1-6 of the six they interviewed...depending on who they like. Trevor HATES Portland, and would be getting paid less if he takes the job, so I'm not sure what will happen with that. However, it is EMERGENCY, which is the issue with where he's at now (not emergency), and he really wants emergency, so the draw to it is pretty strong. He thinks he can continue to work where he is and drive up there to work that job too. I dont want that because he already works 48 or 72 hours every week, add to that annother 40 hours in Hillsboro and 12-16 of driving every week and we will literally NEVER see each other. I told him we could put everything in storage and get a studio apt. or something and just "stay" up there rather than "live" up there.... The traffic was pretty bad (I thought the closer you got to California the worse they drove, apparently, Portland is the exception), and the rodes are so close together we turned several times where the GPS told us to turn then it ended up being the wrong rode and had to "Recalculate" us with it's attitude it gets (both Trevor and I think it has an attitude with it says "Recalculating!"), didn't help that we ended up getting on the high way instead of taking the rode NEXT to the highway, where we proceeded to sit while we waited for the all the cars in front of us to get the green light to get off the on ramp and onto the high way... I really dont like those things, but I think maybe River Road and Delta Highway in Eugene need them! Might keep Beltline flowing a little better!
Baby Update:
And here's what you've all been waiting for! :)
Our baby will start to vary now from the average as the average is just that. A computation of all babies' statistics at this point in pregnancy, some weight less and/or are shorter, and some more and/or longer. But, she now weighs about a little under 3lbs, and is nearly 17" long! She'll continue to put on the pounds for about 7 more weeks (when she is more than welcome to come out), then she'll slow down considerably (and we try to wait with patience for her to come out).
She blinks her eyes, and can see lightness and darkness (I put my tummy in the sun while we were fishing and she squirmed all over the place!). She knows my voice and most likely knows Trevor's voice. Funny thing is, when we're (baby and I) are around other people, she hardly moves at all... maybe she is listening?!!??! She is still giving Trevor a hard time. Everytime I tell him she is moving so he can feel, she stops moving when he has his hand on my stomach, then as soon as he gives up, she starts moving again. However, if he lays his head on my stomach, she has no problem kicking him in the face! Poor Daddy! He says it's ok, she wont be able to avoid him much longer, but I still feel bad for him.
Found the cord to connect my camer to the computer...it was in my camera case... so here's the bumb @ 29 Weeks!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)