Ender's All Over the Place, and So Are We

I had two appointments this week. One was my regular OB appointment, the other was an extra ultrasound I decided to get for free from Argosy University to see if the placenta has moved at all.

Tuesday was my OB appointment. Adam stayed home with a napping Nora and got ready for one of his interviews, so it was just me. I met the new RN, Justine Politz. I really liked her. I guess she works at Woodwinds also, and used to work at Abbott, but said that the "abnormal was becoming normal," and she didn't like that. It's kind of funny, because even though this is "normal baby #2" for me, the normal routine of appointments still seems somewhat strange to me, as the abnormal with Danni was my normal. (Maybe that's another reason I wanted another ultrasound... that's my "normal.") She measured my tummy, and felt my tummy to find that the baby was in a transverse position (laying across my tummy instead of in a head-down position). She said that was actually good, since I have placenta previa. Then he's not putting as much pressure on the placenta and my cervix. Then she pulled out the doppler, and found is heart rate to be in the 140's again. She mentioned that at my next appointment they would do the Group B Strep culture, but I asked if that was necessary if I am having a scheduled c-section, and I never had one done with Danielle. She said that since she's new there, she would ask Dr. Mahan. So as she walked me out, we stopped and asked. Dr. Mahan said they still do it, just in case my water breaks or something.

Then, on Thursday, we had our free ultrasound at Argosy University. When you sign up for one you have to have already had your 20-week anatomy scan, and you have to bring proof (a picture from it works fine). So we grabbed our ultrasound pictures and off we went! One of the students (whose name was also Sarah) came down to get us, just like if you were going into a clinic. (At the end, we were asked to fill out a survey about how professional they were, and she did great!) When we got up there, I laid down on their table, and she asked if we knew what we were having. We told them we were having a boy, but wanted to know if my placenta had moved at all. She looked right away, and said it was still covering my cervix. I asked her if she could measure to see how far it would have to move yet, but she said her professor, Heidi, would have to do that at the end. Sarah had about 15 minutes to take some anatomy pictures that she needed off her list. She found that he was breech that day... moving all of the place, I guess! She did ended up getting a really great picture of his little boy parts! Since Krista couldn't get him to sit still long enough to get a good picture, I was kind of excited to see that he is indeed a boy! Then two other students had their turn to scan and take pictures off of their lists as well. They gave us a CD with all of the pictures, but they are mostly boring pictures of arm or leg bones, the spine, or a couple of the heart (alright, so I think the heart ones are still pretty neat, with all 4 little chambers!). After each student had their turn, Heidi, the professor had her turn to take some fun pictures. She took some profile pictures and checked how far the placenta would have to move. She said about 3 cm. :( That means in ten weeks, it has moved about 1 cm, and now has another 10 weeks to move 3cm... I don't think that's going to happen anymore, so it looks like I'll be sliced and diced again.

Ender's profile

Looking right at us

He's gonna be chubby! :)

Must be flexible!

He's got hair, just like his sisters did!

How far along?: 31 weeks 2 days
Total weight gain/loss: About 19 pounds... 1 1/2 pounds of which are just in the last day... I think I might need to check my scale again.
The Bump: Well, there's definitely no denying that I'm pregnant... It's funny that it changes shape from day to day (or sometimes hour to hour), because he still isn't sure if he's more comfortable transverse, breech, or head down.

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: I think at this point, just getting to see Nora meet him and interact with the "bebe." She's kind of jealous when Adam or I hold another baby, but if someone else is, or if the baby is laying on the floor, she very fascinated by them.
Maternity Clothes: Yep. I'm so glad I've had 2 wonderful people lend me some of their maternity clothes. I feel way more fashionable this time around than with either of the girls! (Thanks, Jacque & Theresa!)
Symptoms: Not sleeping through the night, and sciatic nerve pain... that's about it, I guess.
Belly Button in or out?: Out. With both girls I remember people telling me how back in the day when they were pregnant women would put band-aides over their belly buttons so people wouldn't see them sticking out. No one has said that this time around.
Food Cravings/Aversions: Milk. Hot chocolate sometimes, but the past few days if my tummy's not happy, I drink some warm milk with vanilla & nutmeg (like my mom would make us when we were kids), and my tummy is happy again.
What I miss: The hope of having another VBAC.
Milestones: He's about 11.4 inches long and weights about 4 pounds at this point, and gaining weight more rapidly... maybe that's why I gain 1 1/2 pounds in a day!