April 26th Update

I had my weekly check-in with my ob today. I gained 2 pounds in the last two weeks (now I'm +4.5 lbs from the start of the pregnancy). My blood pressure is creeping up again and is at 130/90 but I told my doctor that I am done with bed rest. It hasn't seemed to have been helping much and when I move more Aaron moves more so he was ok with that. Aaron's heart rate was 130 bpm and then he moved and it jumped to between 140-150 bpm so that is a good sign that his heart is still working to pump in what he needs. He confirmed that we have surpassed all the odds and all the textbook cases and so we just keep watching and praying that his heart makes it long enough to get those grams he needs to be delivered. Another week down, forward we go!

Another Great Day

With the kids on Spring Break and knowing we couldn't stray too far from home with Aaron's arrival so near we looked for things to do around our area. We started off with our normal Saturday chores with the promise that once things were done Mom and Dad had fun plans for the day. Chores and lunch were done by noon and we started in on the fun.

First we started off with a trip to the movies to see Hop. We loved it and the kids enjoyed jamming to the music. Then we came home, had a snack, colored a few dozen eggs, and adorned our Cougar Blue. We met up with a fun family in our old neighborhood and headed South for the Men's Volleyball Quarter Finals at the Y. We stopped at Fudrucker's for dinner and enjoyed yummy food and catching up with our friends. Then we headed to campus. On the way we were trying to describe to the kids how loud and crazy these games can get and that watching one of the volleyball matches is a totally different experience than going to a football or basketball game. With school letting out on campus this week the House wasn't as packed as it usually was but we were rocking all the same. During the break after the 3rd game they had a kid's dance off. Both Ben and Sam headed down. They were so funny! Ben was even picked as a finalist. It was then I was kicking myself that I had left the camera in the car. Ben was all over the place, both sides of the court, hanging on the net, and just dancing everywhere. The announcer asked him his name and asked him why he liked dancing so much, he said, "Because it starts with a D!" Typical Ben!

Ben was in his true form and charmed the socks off the poor young woman sitting in front of us. She was clearly on a date and Ben was making his move. Sorry to say that he made it farther than the guy she was with, managing to get a few hugs and even a kiss or two before Mom and Dad intervened. She was a good sport and laughed when Ben told her "I just love you so much!" Sadly the cougars went down in 4 to the Gauchos of Santa Barbara (the kids kept calling them the Grouchos" which fit as well) but we had so much fun non-the-less.

On the way home we noticed the Hot light was on at Krispy Cremes and headed in for a free donut and a potty break. We also decided to add to the next day's sugar craze and picked up a few for Easter Morning. We didn't get home until after 11 and headed straight to bed. I love these kinds of days. I'm all for wearing ourselves out while having fun with the family.

Temple Walk Pictures

This is the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. Its about 10 blocks or so from our house. The kids school is in the shadows of the Angel Moroni. We love living in the same neighborhood as the temple and seeing it everyday.

At first I felt a little awkward with all of us in our jeans and sweatshirts and then I looked around and discovered there were many others just like us enjoying the temple grounds in the spring time. I always want my kids to feel comfortable and respectful of the temple. As soon as we went through the gates the kids were very reverent even with the fountain and snacks we brought to enjoy. I love that they love being near the temple.

What a great view, the Temple with the mountains in the background. We live in a beautiful world!

Enough Lazy!

I've had it! I'm done being lazy! When I was pregnant with Joseph and my fluid levels were dropping I was told "take it easy, sit and be still, don't over exert yourself". I did that and his fluid levels continued to drop. I was so close to being full term and we had a move coming just a week after his due date so I decided it was time for him to be delivered. We were living in Provo at the time and each day when Ronny came home from school he and I and Charley would walk the loop around the Provo Temple pushing her in the stroller. After each one of these walks my fluid levels would rise frustrating my delivery plans.

So, things are much worse with this pregnancy and I've been told to be lazy. "Lay in bed as much as possible". I've been doing that for the past 8 weeks and I can't stand it any longer! Things don't seem to be getting any better and certainly can't get any worse so I'm done with lazy! We are taking a walk today! We once again have a temple in our neighborhood so I think it only appropriate to walk to the temple. The kids are off for spring break and going crazy inside. The sun is out, its a little cold but nothing we can't handle, so today we walk! Anyone care to join us?

Ultrasound Update

Our latest ultrasound was this morning. When we were taken back the technician asked if we were Dr. Heuser's patient. We said yes and then she told us our Dr. had been hovering around their office all morning waiting to see me. We thought that was funny, we later found out that she thought for sure we would have delivered and canceled the appointment but wanted to be there just in case we were.

So mixed news today. Aaron's heart is beating at 130 bpm. Up until now his heart has been pushing the small amount of blood one way towards his brain and lungs. Now his heart is struggling and not able to push blood one way and so some of it is pushing backwards. This is causing swelling under his skin (edema) and pockets of fluid have formed around his heart, brain, and lungs. This is a sign that heart failure is nearing.

Aaron gained 1 oz and is now at 281 grams approximately. We were really hoping to be at 400+. My fluid hasn't changed much since last time, still hovering between 2 and 3 and my placenta is bad but hanging in there for the time being.

We met with Dr. Heuser who said she was really hoping to deliver me today and is really sad that we weren't ready yet. We talked about the results. She said we could deliver and he would most likely make it through an induction but would be here for only a short time or we could keep going and push for those grams. If and when he makes it over 400 grams she will deliver immediately. She said it doesn't look good but nothing has looked good and so far we have surpassed all the odds and she can't explain it. We told her as long as his heart was over 100+ bpm we will keep praying and keep moving forward. She was very concerned that we may loose him in the next 3 weeks but she also said she didn't think we would be here today so forward we go. (I honestly think she was hoping we would say that and is as anxious as the rest of us to see how things play out.)

We really like Dr. Heuser and feel like she is pulling for us as much as our regular OB Dr Monte. She wanted to know how we were holding up and we told her we are doing good under the circumstances. We told her we were concerned he hadn't gained more weight but we are used to bad news and we just keep going. We asked whether or not she would be the one to deliver if things turned dramatically again and she said she would assuming she wasn't out of town for something. We also asked if our other doctor could come if he was available and she thought that it would be a great thing if he were there too (Dr. Monte if you are reading this we want you there assuming it works out with your schedule!). We really feel like we now have 2 great doctors committed to seeing us through until the end. That is really comforting.

Many people have asked us what exactly to pray for, I feel awkward and somewhat overwhelmed when answering that question. As far as I'm concerned that is between you and the Lord but if you want to know what we pray for its this: we pray for those much needed grams, we pray for his heart and mine, we pray for the doctors who watch over us, we pray for peace, but most of all we pray for faith and strength to follow the Lord's will.

Split and Sick

Yesterday we arrived at church to find the entire stake presidency on the stand. They have come a few times and we have thought, finally we will be split today to then later find out that they were there for a missionary farewell. Yesterday however was different. Our ward was finally split. We were pushing the 800 member mark and it was becoming difficult to fit in the stake center chapel and overflow. Its good to see so many active members though in our area. Even better news was that the Stake President announced that our ward would move to the 9:00 am session time in 2 weeks as a result of the split. Hooray!!!!

This morning the kids were getting ready for school and Ben came down and sat on his self proclaimed bar stool. He then told us his belly hurt and laid his head back down. Ronny moved him over to the couch where he quickly fell back asleep. I was about to wake him up to get ready for preschool when he popped up ran to the kitchen for a drink and then puked all over the kitchen floor. Then he ran to the bathroom and finished his business. As soon as he was done he came out of the bathroom with a smile on his face and said, "Mom I feel so much better!" No preschool today, which means he is missing his Easter Egg hunt at school. He seems to have taken it in stride however and is now snuggled in a blanket on my bed watching cartoons with a bowl right beside him. I just hope that whatever bug he has stays with him and doesn't continue to the rest of us!

Good update this week!

Today's Appointment: Aaron's heart rate is still very good and its pitch is lower. The doctor said that is a good indication that his heart is getting bigger. Hooray! My blood pressure was lower today 140/80 which is a significant improvement of last week's 160/90. So good there too. I lost 1 pound but 2 out of 3 good things is not bad! My next ultrasound is next Wednesday.

One More Item On the "To Do" List

Yesterday we started our day with Saturday chores and were finished before noon. (I love those days when we get up get things done and have lots of time to play!) We met some friends for lunch by the mall and then brought a couple back to hang out until they could get to their final destination. Ben was soooo excited to see our friends from Las Vegas that he jumped up and down swinging his arms whooping in glee. It was so funny.

After our friends left I had Joseph run out and get the mail. He came in with quite the stash and one bright green form addressed to me was in the mix. I glanced at it thinking it was junk at first and then realized it was from the county court. Can you guess what it was??? Notice to appear for Jury Duty! Really? Now? I groaned and Ronny came over asking what the matter was. Then he said surely they will let you out. I read through the notice and saw that I would need to have my doctor write a letter to get me dismissed for medical purposes. Good thing I see him on Wednesday. Surely I qualify right???

April 6: Update

I had an appointment today to check my blood pressure and Aaron's heart rate. Aarron's heart rate is still in the 140's and he is still active. I also gained 2 pounds and grew another centimeter, yahoo! (Big sigh of relief there!) My blood pressure though is a different story. Today I reached a new "High" so to speak. I also showed a small trace of protein in my urine. We waited 15 minutes and retook my blood pressure and it came down so that is good. I told my doctor that just thinking about coming in for a visit shoots my blood pressure up as every time I come I seem to have something else wrong. He laughed and said that is perfectly understandable. He also said that I am borderline high but that he is comfortable sending me home and rechecking next week. Although he told me to take it easy (already am) and to come in if my vision changes or if I start getting headaches. I just need my heart to chill for a few more weeks. Otherwise we are progressing.

Miracle

We had a miracle today! What more can I say, the Lord is hearing our prayers. Yesterday we had another ultrasound with the specialist at the University of Utah. We saw that Aaron's heartbeat was averaging in the 70's. We knew this was bad news. We then saw the specialist who was so kind. She said that she consulted all the doctors on our case and they as a team decided that they would not do a c-section until the baby had a chance at life in the NICU. She said he needed to be between 400-500 grams for this to happen. She said we had two choices now, to let things play out and let him pass or we could choose to be induced and see if his heart would make it through delivery. She didn't think it would. She then stepped out and we decided to deliver, we had made the decision that if we ever came to this point that would be our decision. We told her our decision and she said that we would have to wait 24 hours because the Law in Utah considered this a termination in pregnancy. We left frustrated not knowing if he would make it that long.

We came home and called in the cavalry for today's induction. My mom took the day off to come and Stephanie caught the next flight with available seats into town. As we drove to the hospital today we were quiet and somber knowing this would be a tough day. We were admitted and shown to our room. The nurse came in to get things hooked up and started. Just before she was about to put the IV in I asked her if we could hear the heartbeat just one more time. She called the resident on the floor and she came with the ultrasound machine. They hooked things up and the heart looked good, they then put the doppler on and the heartbeat was measuring 145 bpm. The resident left to call the specialist who came running. She came into the room with a shocked look on her face and said she needed to see for herself. The ultrasound was brought back in and she took a look and said I can't believe it, the heart usually doesn't rebound like this. I told her he had been active all night and I could still feel him moving. She then turned to us and said this changes a few things. She felt she needed to tell us the situation was still very grave but we could keep fighting. She wanted to run a few more tests and wanted to see the results before we left but she said we could go home and she would see us in 3 weeks at another ultrasound and that my regular ob could continue to care for me until then.

We are thrilled! The Lord knows of our battle and is watching over us. Keep those prayers coming, they are working!