Bean - 28/29 weeks

We are officially into the third trimester and things are going well (minus the whole gd thing). Last week was the first of the every two week appointments. Dr was very pleased with my ability (so far) to keep my gd under control with diet and exercise. Hopefully I can keep it up until she gets here, but odds are not in my favor for that. Exciting news now that we've hit our third trimester, Bean has a name! She'll be Ada Claire, but she'll always be our little bean.

Last week we had our first of six child birth classes. I have to say, it's odd taking classes at a hospital that's not where you are delivering. In general, things are the same; however, the specifics are not. Hopefully we can get a tour set up with UTMB in the near future so we can see exactly where we will be going in December.

At the end of week 28

Now that I have been diagnosed with gd, I have to go in for routine growth check ultrasounds. This to keep track of Ada's growth and make sure she's not growing too fast. Today she measure at about 30 weeks in size, which is right about a week ahead. She's a little over 3 pounds and was a bit of a punk (again). At least this time she was head down, although that hindered some of the picture taking.

 Ada's face with her hand at her chin

The tech also tried to get a 3d pic for me, but Ada decided she didn't want her picture taken. Her hand was covering her face during that process. She's nothing if not beau and my's child!

Gestational Diabetes

Well, the results came in from my 3 hour test yesterday. I passed the first two rounds of the test, but failed the second two. Rather than my blood glucose levels dropping after the initial spike, they continued to rise. Consequently I have gestational diabetes.

What exactly does this mean? My body can't keep up with insulin production now that I'm pregnant. To start, I get to check my blood glucose levels 4 times a day. Along with that, I'm going to start adjusting my diet and getting in a bit more exercise. Hopefully that will be enough to get me through to the end of my pregnancy.

The person I spoke with said that since I was diagnosed this late in my pregnancy that Bean is most likely not going to be affected by it. The goal is to keep her from getting too big. I will also probably have to go see the doctor more frequently as the weeks go.

Needless to say, getting set up today has been a bit crazy. The pharmacy didn't have my updated information since getting married. When I came back, I found out that the insurance only covers certain test strips (which neither CVS on the island had). Beau is picking them up for me from Texas City on his way home. I get home to start reading over about the meter and realize that they gave me the wrong lancets for the lancing device that came with the meter. A crazy Friday to say the least.

Glucose Tolerance Test

Well I got to spend my morning hanging out at the doctor's office while doing a 3 hour glucose tolerance test. As I'm sure you can imagine, I was not overly thrilled.

See my happy face? This was just after 8 am, having had my initial blood draw and getting to drink the bottle of glucose stuff. This time I got to hang out in their back room, which had a recliner (which I'm in in the picture), a sofa and a tv. It made the process slightly better.

Tomorrow I will know the results of today's test. My nurse was nice enough to look up my level from Tuesday. I had a blood glucose level of 166 mg/dL, which was about 25 mg/dL over what it should have been. Hopefully when I hear tomorrow I'll have passed.

Bean - 26 weeks

We've made it to week 26, towards the end of the second trimester. Today I had my glucose tolerance test. It wasn't terrible, a little boring but not terrible. The drink definitely left an after taste that I couldn't get rid of until after they drew my blood. However, it was my favorite flavor (lemon-lime) which made it much more tolerable.

We're at the point where I get to go see the doc every 2 weeks as opposed to 4. Woo-hoo.... It was also time to get registered for our child birth classes. The ones at UTMB didn't fit with our work schedules, so we will be going to Christus St John for their 6 week session. Hopefully this week I'll also be getting some info about a possible pediatrician. I've had one come highly recommended by 2 friends, so that's our starting point. So much to do to get ready for this little girl's arrival!

Week 25, finally a noticeable bump :)

Bean - 24 weeks

We are into week 24 and things are going pretty well. Yesterday was our follow up anatomy appointment. I think Bean might have been even less cooperative than the last appointment. Thankfully we only had a few pictures that were needed of Bean.

Profile of face and her hand 

Face and hands

In order to get some of the pics, the tech had to press down pretty hard. I definitely found it uncomfortable. I guess Bean didn't like it much either because at one point she punched out. We also got a video of her opening and closing her mouth. At the very end she stuck out her tongue at us, already sassy like her folks ;)

Currently, little girl is breech. She's got plenty of time to get her act together and get turned though. This is probably the last of the pictures we'll get before she makes her big debut in December.

Bean - Halfway there!

We are past the half way point with little Bean! This week we had another appointment. She was really moving Tuesday morning, making fun sounds through the doppler. I met my new doctor and she's very nice. She complemented me on my pregnancy so far, including my minimal weight gain. It definitely made me feel pretty good. She also cleared me for travel in October. I'm excited to be going to the west side of Michigan for my friend's wedding.

Our next appointment is in another 12 days, the follow up ultrasound. Hopefully we'll get a few more pictures then to share. So far everything is going as well as can be expected or hoped for pregnancy wise.

Me at 20 weeks

In other news, my folks came to visit back at the beginning of August. Bean has a nice stock to diapers started, and I'm sure there will be more to follow from her loving grandparents. We spent the afternoon over at Moody Gardens touring the "new" rain forest pyramid and the Bodies exhibit in the discovery pyramid. Next weekend we are headed up to Wisconsin to visit with Beau's family. By the end of this pregnancy, Bean will be pretty well traveled (Vegas, Wisconsin and Michigan). Busy times ahead!

Bean - week 18

At week 18 we had our anatomy ultrasound. This is where we got a comprehensive look at our growing bean, including finding out gender. It was an earlier morning than we are used to. As the tech started getting shots of Bean's profile, we could see her yawning (tired like her momma). 

Here's her profile shot. Everything looked well during this appointment, nothing that tipped the tech or doctor off to any potential problems. However, due to her position, we will have to make a return trip at the end of the month. Hopefully we'll get a few more pictures of her. In case you haven't caught on from all the pronouns - yes, we are having a girl!