IT'S A BOY!

Marcus Alexander
March 16, 2002
11:44 PM
5 lbs. 10 oz.
19 Inches

i've been very bad about keeping up with this.  in a nutshell,
marcus is doing extremely well.  he rolled over for the
first time on july 6, and hasn't done it since, but he's
still trying.  he laughed for the first time on july 23,
opa's birthday... and i missed it!  he hasn't done that again
either, but it's getting close.

the last time i took him to the doctor, he weighed almost
12 lbs and was 23 inches.  he's got to be well over 15 lbs
by now.  we go to the doctor again on aug 12.  he's on
rice now and growing like a weed.

i've uploaded tons of pictures in an online photo album
and i will continue to post new pics there as i get them,
so add this site to your favorites:

marcus' online photo album

just click on the "slideshow" link above the photos and
enjoy the show :)

weight:  9 lbs 5 oz
length:  21.5 in

my parents have been visiting for a while.
here are a few new pics

speaking of gaining:
weight:  7 lbs 8 oz
length:  19.25 in

new pic: marcus at home

weight: 6 lbs 13 oz
length: 19.25 in

i have to see a new doctor tomorrow at the birthing center
who specializes in high-risk pregnancies.  i'll be monitored
twice a week until this doctor can determine the right time
to induce, on top of keeping my regular prenatal visits
with my other doctors.

i'm at 35.5 weeks as of now.  they said that 36-37 weeks
is an ideal time to take the baby, so they'll try to allow the
baby to develop until that time.   to induce now would
be a little early since the lungs are still finishing their
development, and we obviously want to avoid any
respiratory problems by taking it too soon.

on the other hand, the longer i stay pregnant, the more
danger develops for myself and the baby.  the key is going
to be determining when the baby is far enough along to
avoid complications and when my body becomes too
hostile of an environment for it to develop properly.

my cankles did not change back into ankles thurs night.
friday when i woke up, they were still cankles... this was
very unusual, not to mention my hands were unusually
puffy too.  i decided to go to the grocery store on the way
to work to check my blood pressure on one of those
machines.  the readings were frightening... i did it 3 times
just to be sure.  172/114 is dangerous for anyone, let alone
a prego.

i called the doctor and they had me come in right away.
after laying in a dark room on my side and relaxing for 30
minutes, the readings were still ridiculously high.  i've been
placed on bedrest until my next appointment on wednesday.

they gave me this "gas can" looking container that i have to
pee in for 24 hours starting sunday at 7:00am.  monday i
have to drop it off at the lab.  on wednesday at my
appointment they will have the results.  they're looking for
protein deposits in my urine which will be bad if they
find it. they will be able to diagnose if anything's wrong by
this pee test, and one of the following will happen:

1.) if it's just hypertension/high blood pressure related to
pregnancy, they'll probably just put me on indefinite bedrest.
2.) if it's a mild case of preeclampsia (also called toxemia),
they'll induce in a couple of weeks and get the baby out
3.) worse case: if it's full blown preeclampsia, they'll need
to take the baby asap... end of next week at the latest.

if these 3 options are my only choices, i don't really
know which to hope for.  each situation isn't good and
puts the baby in danger.  i'd like to carry the baby as long
as possible so it can fully develop, but if it's not a safe
environment... is inducing this early better for it?

i've got about 5 weeks to go... by next week it will be 4.  i
guess that's not too far away from my due date if they have
to take the baby soon.

on another note:
bedrest sucks and
the thought of bean dip makes me want to puke.

i have to go back in 2 weeks... then it will be every week
until the baby comes.  after looking at a calendar, i realized
that there will probably be only 3-4 "every week" visits!

the time is starting to fly, but not fast enough. i'm having
a hard time getting any sort of quality sleep and the pressure
on my innards is getting pretty intense.  unfortunately, the
baby is only around 4 1/2 - 5 lbs and needs to put on some
more weight.  why does this take so long???

the thing that was pretty high tech was that they put these
ankle devices on the all the babies to monitor where they
are within the facility by computers.  if a baby gets near an
exit door, the whole building goes into *lock down*... all
the exit doors lock, alarms go off, elevators automatically
go to the top floor and the doors open... no one can enter
or leave until the baby is returned to where it is supposed
to be.  sounds a little extreme, but on the news the other
night, some woman in Jacksonville posed as a social worker
and walked off with a baby girl right out of a hospital.

baby's progress: at 32/33 weeks, the baby is about 4 1/4 lbs
and 19 inches long.  its expected to gain a third to a half of
its birth weight in the next 7 weeks.  it's moving around like
crazy, but squirming more now because it's running out of
room.  i've completely popped out and my stomach looks
really round now.  the swelling is becoming more frequent
and i'm pooped.  it's getting harder to get around, but not too
miserable yet.  i'm sure that's just around the corner...

at least not in MY womb.  the trip over to the convention
in new orleans this week should probably have been
avoided. this kid freaked out the entire way over there on
wednesday and back last night. i was so sore by the time
the plane landed i had a hard time standing up straight.

when i got there i just wanted to go up to my room
and rest for a few hours before my first class, but as luck
would have it, my room would not be ready for three
more hours... i lugged my suitcase around and found a
nice quiet area to kick back for a while before the
training began.  a few minutes into my mini-bliss of
relaxation and this lady plops down on the chair next to my
sofa and stares at me. this was kind of odd, so i said "hi"...
she said "HI!!!" and kept staring at me until she whipped out
a cigarette and started puffing away right next to me.  of all
the empty seats in this lobby area... ugh!
i had to leave...

the *cankle* i had on feb 7 was a micro-cankle compared
to the elephant sized ankles i noticed protruding from the
ends of my legs during the class. and if the sore innards,
swelling and exhaustion weren't enough... i experienced my
first bout of braxton hicks contractions  which weren't
painful, just uncomfortable with everything else going on.

by the 2nd night i was finally feeling somewhat normal...
just in time to hop on a plane again the next day and
do it all over again.  once again my poor little spazoid
freaked out on the planes kicking the living daylights out
of me, the contractions were popping up again, and
my ankles resembled those of a rhino.

on a positive note:  i didn't need the extendo-seatbelt
attachment on the planes!   :D

next appointment is in 2 weeks.  by then we have to have
picked our pediatrician and registered at the hospital.  the
hospital tour should be fun. i'm looking forward to that.
we will be delivering at st. luke's family birth place which
has just been completely rennovated.  its one of those places
where the rooms are more like nice hotels.  I'll be able
to go through labor, delivery & recovery all in the same
room... the baby stays in the room with us at all times, and
there's a pull out sofa for brian, tv, vcr, lots of amenities.
i've heard nothing but good things about their hospital
and staff which is comforting.

aches & pains:  i've had an extreme soreness in my left
wrist over the past couple weeks.  after some investigating,
it appears that i have carpal tunnel, which is common
during pregnancy evidently because of swelling fluid
filling the tunnels that my nerves run through in my wrist.

baby movements:  still kicking stronger and stronger.  i
can actually see my shirt jump a bit when i get a good one.
it's starting to get pretty crowded in there.

theme:  blue jean teddy
colors:  burgandy & denim

13 week sono pic

baby's movements have been changing
over the last couple weeks... much more concentrated and
intense, not so sporadic and random.  it actually feels like
a little arm or leg moving slowly across my tummy.
it's a trip.  now if i could just get it a little more
UNinterested in bouncing off my bladder...

my glucose test from last week came back a little high...
144, (normal is 140).  when i told my doctor how the
lovely lab technicians administered the test (not properly
timed) she agreed that the abnormal reading came from
poor testing procedures.  initial glucose testing came back
just fine in october, so she's not recommending further
blood work on this issue.  finally, a doctor with some
common sense!

i see 5 different doctors on a rotating basis.  one of
them is always on call... that way, when it's time to go
to the hospital, someone i know and who knows me
will deliver the baby... not a substitute *on call* doctor.
i really like all the doctors i've seen except for the
doctor with an attitude... dr. llata ("yata").  with my luck,
she'll be the one on call when it's time!
yata yata yata! ugh.

there's GOT to be another way to get this kid out!  eek.