Happy Easter

Hope each of you had a happy Easter.  We made due with our current situation and enjoyed each others company today :)  The Easter bunny even made a visit to my hospital room, and left a basket of goodies for Ays (Thanks to my wonderful MIL for filling the basket)!

I really wanted Ays to be able to do an Easter egg hunt as well, so Aaron took him to one in Broken Arrow on Saturday with some of our friends.  It was so hard for me to miss out on it, but I was glad Ays got to go have some fun.  There were over 5,000 eggs to hunt and even an Easter Bunny helicopter flyover.  How cool!  Here are some pics...ENJOY!

 If you ask him to smile now...this is what you get!  Silly kiddo :)

 

 Easter Bunny flyover

 Ayson & Dominic

Love these two beyond words...

  And, the first ever smiling pic with any kind of fictional, costumed character.  I couldn't believe it!!  It's an Easter miracle ;)

Happy Friday!

Welp, its Friday...my favorite day of the week!  My boys are on their way over for the weekend. YAY!  It's kind of hard to believe that I've been here for 4 weeks already.  Time is not ticking by as slowly as I thought it might...thank goodness!  It helps to have a lot of super sweet people who come by to visit to help break up the days.  (Thanks Angela for a super fun week!!)  

I'm still feeling good and baby is growing, as you can clearly see ;)  Here's a 29 weeks pic!

Making Progress

Things are pretty boring around here, which is just the way we like them.  I am  28 weeks and 5 days today, which means we are inching closer to the benchmark milestone of 30 weeks!  As most of you know, Ayson was a 30 weeker and even though he had a long NICU stay, his outcome was fantastic.  With each day that passes, the number of problems caused by prematurity decreases.  The ultimate goal is still to get to 34 weeks, but at this point, we wouldn't be completely surprised if 32 weeks becomes the new date.  

Starting today I will see the our perinatologist (Dr. Blake) once a week, so the placenta, cervix, and cord can be closely monitored.  At our last appointment with her 3 weeks ago, the cord insertion was just to the left of the cervix.  We were hoping that it would stay where it was, or move away from the cervix.  Instead, we found out today that the cord is completely covering the cervix.  So, all in all, no real change, or any extra concerns that were not previously there...it just might make it a little more likely that delivery could happen sooner than 34 weeks.  It seems that we never get good news when we step in to her office, so it was refreshing to find out that things were basically the same, with no immediate need for delivery.

Other great news...baby Axton is still growing like a crazy man.  He is in the 97th percentile for gestational age, measuring about 2 weeks ahead of where he should be :)  They estimated his weight to be 3lbs 13oz already!  Here are some pics of the little cutie.  

Look at that sweet little face:)

He has his knee scrunched up by his nose in this one

We are so happy that we have made it this far, and are really hopeful that we can make it to at least 32 weeks!  Thanks to each of you who have been following the blog; thinking about us; asking about us; sending cards, goodies, movies, food, flowers, etc.  We are humbled by the outpouring of support, and just hope you know just how much it means to us!

Much love!!! 
  

March of Dimes 2013

We are excited to again be involved with the March of Dimes.  Ayson was chosen as this years Ambassador for the Ponca City March for Babies and Aaron is serving as the Honorary Chair for the event.  With Ayson's prematurity and the issues we are currently dealing with, we are no doubt a perfect poster family for the March of Dimes ;)

This is such a great organization that is working every day to ensure that all babies get a healthy start.  Ayson is one of those babies who benefited greatly from the research and work that has been done through the March of Dimes.

We invite you to walk with us, donate, or both!  The walk in Saturday, May 4th, at Warr Memorial Park in Ponca City.  If you would like to donate to our team or sign up to walk with us, you can simply click on the March of Dimes badge to the right.  Signing up and donating is easy...and all donations are tax deductible.  

We would love to have you there!!!  Here's our fantastic group of walkers for Ayson's Crew last year.  It's a fun event and we would love your support.

 

More Hats

Mom and I are starting to get the hang of this.  Our second hat making session turned out some pretty cute hats that don't look like they were made by a 3 yr old ;)  Our next project is to tackle a sock monkey hat.  Stay tuned for that one...no telling what that might end up looking like! 

 

 Just a quick update on mom and baby.  Things are quiet and uneventful for both of us, which is just the way we like it.  Axton continues to look great during his weekly biophysical profile ultrasounds, and during his daily fetal monitoring sessions.  And I'm doing great as well.  On Thursday I will be 28 weeks, which is a big milestone week developmentally for baby.  So, we will just keep grinding out the days.  I've already been here for 18...time flies when you are having fun;)

Food Adventures Continue

I'm obviously easily amused. Here's what showed up for my lunch on Friday.  Notice the presentation...very precisely placed in the center of the plate.  

I get to order what I want for each meal, so how my order turns in to these random things, is anyone's guess, because its always correct on the little receipt they leave on my tray.

St. John's cafeteria people, thank you for making me laugh.  This seems like a great lunch for a pregnant lady ;)

Ays's 2nd Year Book

My Mother-in-law sent me a sweet email the other day encouraging me to keep smiling and to try to find seven positive things about being in the hospital to think about each day.  The negatives about being here are obvious and not worth dwelling on, so why not give it a shot?!  So, I started thinking...hmmmm.

1.  I have a lovely 6th floor view of the roof of the building next to me, that I definitely wouldn't have if I were at home. 
2. It's super convenient to not have to eat at the table.  Eating every meal in bed is much more fun and not gross at all! 
3. I'm now educated on what all the hospital codes (code blue, code purple, etc) mean, because after hearing them all the time, I was forced to look them up!

Then, I realized that my defense mechanism of being sarcastic had already kicked in to high gear, so I tried again...

1. I have unlimited access to the most amazing ice ever.  Seriously, it's better than Sonic ice.
2. I have a great excuse for wearing comfy clothes EVERY DAY!
3. Bed rest = no exercise, which = me not feeling bad about skipping my run
4. Baby Axton gets monitored twice a day, so we know he is healthy & thriving
5. I'm reminded daily about how amazing & supportive our friends and family are!
6. I've learned how strong my little family unit is...all 3 of us, each in our own way.
7. And finally, since being here I've had time to catch up on things that just get lost in the shuffle of our busy daily lives.

Not a bad list...and definitely worth putting together.  When you are faced with tough situations, its so easy to think about every single reason why it sucks. And believe me, I've done my fair share of crying and complaining, which is ok for a few days, but if you do that every day, all the time, soon it will take its toll.  I'm not claiming to be Suzy Sunshine, by any means, but it can never hurt to mix in a little positive thinking to get you through the day.

So, with that, I leave you with an example of "one of those things that I've been able to catch up on."  Most of you know that I turned Ayson's first year of blog posts into a book.  However, I have not kept up with it because its one of those things that once you get behind on, its daunting to get caught back up!  But, I was able to knockout his second year :)  

Here's the digital version...the real copy should be here by the end of the month :)

Ayson's 2nd Year

Hungry Anyone?

This is what showed up at 4:30 pm (yes, people they serve dinner at 4:30 round these parts). It's my dinner. What's on the menu, you ask? That would be one piece of yellow cake with chocolate frosting and an iced tea. Oh, and lets not forget about the salt, pepper & lemon juice packets.

I want whatever the food service person who made this tray is having...they are obviously on something good;) Sometimes all you can do is laugh!

Don't worry about me...I'm not starving tonite. They were very nice and made me a hamburger to go along with my tea & cake ;)

Happy Monday!

Sunday's are not my favorite...

I have quickly learned that even in the hospital, weekends go by way too fast!  You would they would creep by like any other day of the week, but of course not.  So needless to say, time with my family went by way to fast.  But on the flip side, I'm thankful for two days that seem to be over in the blink of an eye ;)

We had a great weekend!  I'm so amazed by how good Ayson is while he is here.  Hospital policy will not allow him to stay the night with Aaron and I, but he spends a good majority of the day with us, and is as good as you could ask a 3 year old to be.  They have given me permission to take one 30 minute wheelchair ride a day (as sad as it sounds, I was super excited about this...any chance to get out of this room!), so of course, Ays thinks that is super fun!  He loves sitting with me and giving directions on which way we will go next ;)

One definite highlight of our weekend was getting to meet baby Dexter.  This sweet little nugget was born on Wednesday, and I just couldn't wait to get my hands on him.  So, as soon as they were discharged from the hospital Heather, Jeff & proud big brother Dominic came by for a visit.  He really is the sweetest!  

Then, all of the sudden, the weekend was over, and it was time for my boys to head home for the week.  Blee Blah to Sundays!  But, this sweet little cutie did snuggle up for a nap with me before they left...I soaked up every minute.  There is nothing sweeter than a child who is sleeping.  For all the chaos in his life right now, he is adjusting so well and handling it like a champ.  So as Asy says, only five more sleeps until I see you again...Love you to the moon!   

26 Weeks

We have made it to 26 weeks...and everyone is doing great.  Hopefully we can just keep clicking away at these weeks!  I am missing this little dude like crazy...especially at bed time.  Lucky for me, tomorrow is Friday and my two favorite boys will be coming over for the weekend :)
 

Good Reads

In my constant quest to not lose my mind, I am shuffling between crafts, Photoshop projects, watching TV and Movies (shoot me now, this hospital won't let me have access to Hulu or Netflix) and of course, reading!  While normally, I am not nearly the avid reader I would like to be, I have found it to be pretty therapeutic while sitting in this lovely room.

I just finished "The Roundhouse" by Lousie Erdrich.  I won't attempt to give you my review on it, but will say, I enjoyed it.  I think I would have liked it a lot more if I would have read it straight through.  I started it after Christmas, and didn't really pick it back up until getting here.  So, it took me a bit to remember who all the characters were and and their place in the story.  Even though it felt a bit slow to me at times, it is worth reading!  If you are interested in knowing more about it, check it out here.

Now, I'm on to the next one..."The Friday Night Knitting Club," by Kate Jacobs.  (Thanks Karie!)  I can't wait to get started on it!

If you have any other recommendations for me, I would love to hear them!!!

Hospital Craftyness

Since I've got more time on my hands than I ever want to have, EVER again...what better way to spend it than trying something new.  We know little man will be spending some time in the NICU, and we also know from our previous NICU experience that those little babers must wear hats to help maintain their body temperature.  So, it was a no brainer...I must try to make some hats :)

I've heard that using a knitting loom to make these hats is pretty easy (apparently 7 yr olds can do it), so why not give it a try?  My mom came up for the afternoon, so we decided to tackle this baby hat project together.

I did a little research while I was still on "the outside" and picked up supplies for this project before I was admitted.  You can get everything you need (minus the yarn) for under $15 at Hobby Lobby or Walmart.  The set looks like this...

Now all you need is some yarn.  The brand I chose was Caron Simply Soft.  I read on several blogs, that this was the best type of yarn to use for baby hats because it is super soft and non-irritating.  

Then we just looked up a tutorial on YouTube and got started.  It was actually really easy once we got the hang of it.  It took us most of the afternoon, but I can see how you could whip out one of these in about an hour once you know what you are doing.

Anyways, here are our finished products...not too bad huh?!  Turned out pretty cute for our first try.  Can't wait to make some more...if only I had enough time ;) HA! 

It's a New Week!

Good news...WE all survived my first few days in the hospital.  I say WE, because this is totally going to be a WE effort.  We had a pretty good idea I was going to wind up in the hospital this early (I'm 25 weeks along), and tried to mentally prepare ourselves, but quickly learned that isn't possible until you are right in the middle of it.  So, as WE get adjusted to our new reality for the next few months, let me catch you up on why WE are here.

First off...let's have a look at this sweet little guy! Isn't he the cutest already? ;)  This was taken last Friday at the appointment before I was admitted.  One good thing about being a high risk pregnancy is you get tons of looks at your growing little one.  We have so many pictures of him already, that we are sure he'll be ready for the camera when he arrives.

The best news in this whole situation is that little man is healthy and growing like crazy.  On Friday, they estimated his weight at 2lbs 4oz already!  His weight combined with all of his other measurements put him in the above 97 percentile for gestational age, which is great news!  

Now, on to the reason I am sitting in a hospital bed.  I have been diagnosed with vasa previa and a velamentous cord.  Do yourself a favor and don't consult Dr. Google on this one...its not pretty.  Let me try to spin a positive light on it :)
Basically what it all that means, is the umbilical cord vessels, which are the life line for the baby are exposed and unsupported (velamentous cord).  This is bad for obvious reasons, mainly because it makes them vulnerable to rupture.  To complicate matters, the exposed vessels run right over my cervix (vasa previa).  Thus, giving us a recipe for disaster.  

While not trying to be dramatic, the reality of the situation is, if one of those vessels rupture, they will have less than 5 minutes to get the baby out and and give it the best possible chance for survival.  So, that is why I'm here.  I'm here, because being anywhere else is too risky for me or the baby.  I'm here because if I start having contractions, they can do a c-section to prevent rupture of the vessels.  I'm here because bed rest and constant monitoring gives me the best chance of staying pregnant for as long as possible. 

The game plan is to try and get to 34 weeks.  Even if everything is still looking great (no contractions, bleeding, etc) they will still do a c-section at that time.  The reason being that the further you get along in the pregnancy, the more likely a rupture is to happen.  And as my Dr. has said several times, "In this situation, taking the baby a week early, is better than a day late."

As far as I understand it, this is a tricky condition to manage, because you just don't know what is going to happen.  So, we are putting our faith in our Dr.'s and relying on their experience and knowledge as to when is the right time to bring this little guy in to the world.  Hopefully baby W will let it be on our terms, which would mean 34 weeks, which would mean less time for him in the NICU.

There's the long and the short of it.  Is this scary; you have no idea.  Do we want to be in this situation; no.  Is this going to be the hardest thing we've ever been through; definitely yes.  But, we are so lucky and have the most amazing support system of family and friends that anyone could ask for.  We couldn't survive this without all of your love and support.  So, together WE will get through this!

I promise to keep you updated...but hopefully my life stays pretty boring and there isn't much to report ;)  And I also promise this will hopefully be last of my Debbie Downer posts...positive thinking and humor will be the key to my mental health:)  I'm off to eat a yummy hospital lunch...ha!

 

 

Day 1

Well, today went just about how we expected. I have been admitted to the hospital, and will be here for the remainder of this pregnancy.
Will tell you all more later, but for now it's been a long day.
Here we are at the beginning of this journey; smiling through it! Together, we can do this:)