30 Weeks!

We are officially at 30 weeks gestation in this pregnancy!  I have already been pregnant longer than I was with James; every day/week after this is a blessing.  This is what the next few weeks will probably look like: 

1) an appointment on Monday with my OB and a detailed ultrasound to get the baby’s measurements, weight, etc.;

2) continued bedrest until I begin to dilate (if I haven’t dilated before Monday’s appointment, they may allow me a little more leeway on the bedrest and light housekeeping);

3) once I dilate, I’ll most likely be hospitalized to reduce the risk of infection and to keep me close to labor and delivery;

4)  if I’m contracting when I’m admitted, they might put me on stronger beta-blockers to try to stop labor (after 30 weeks, though, they might just put me on those long enough to get her a second round of steroids and then let me deliver);

5) I deliver (probably not a C-section; they try to avoid those with premature moms unless it’s a matter of maternal safety), most likely without an epidural because I will already have been dilated for an extended period of time (sigh.  I’d still like to see what delivery is like with one of those);

6) and Lia gets a NICU stay.  We hope her stay won’t be as long as Jamie’s (he was in for 60 days, which is pretty amazing for a 29 weeker); he had an infection and some respiratory issues that needed to be dealt with before we got to bring him home.  Ideally, her stay would be less than a month long.  If she is born old enough to breathe on her own and doesn’t show any signs of infection, we might be able to bring her home within a week!

Those are the practical, “realistic” expectations for the rest of my pregnancy, but we know that with God, nothing is impossible.  If we make it to 35 or 36 weeks (mid-December), she could come home after only one night of observation. 🙂  Either way, it is in God’s hands.  Everything is pretty much set up.  My mother washed hand-me-down clothes and baby bedding for me (we’re still a little short on gowns and sleepers, but that’s okay).  Hope the ultrasounds keep showing that she’s a girl, though!  We’ve got too much pink to deal with an unexpected boy (not that we wouldn’t love a little Caleb just as much). 🙂  I’m just excited for my holiday season baby. 🙂  I had a newborn through the summer last time (ugh!) and I’d like this one to be a little older and less prone to heat rash.  Okay, let’s face it, I also want an excuse to get one of those little red velvet Christmas dresses and some black patent leather shoes. 😀  (Never had these cravings with Jamie!)

Ecclesiastes 3:11 — “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”