Catching up...

As promised - here is a link to pictures that we took while in the hospital. Of course we still have some from since we have been home, but this is just a start.

Enjoy!

http://www2.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=527167009/a=40662473_40662473/t_=40662473

I Love Luci!

Luciana "Luci" was born on April 23, 2009 at 9:02 am.

7 pounds, 4 ounces

20 1/2 inches

She is named after my father, Luciano (who both John and I adore). It's the name that I always wanted to use for a daughter since I was younger, and when I mentioned it to John, he never suggested another name. My Dad's reaction when we told everyone her name was absolutely priceless - I wish we had it on video. Totally worth keep it a secret for the entire pregnancy!

We are home now, and Luci is doing great!

Daddy's little girl (already wrapped around her tiny finger!):

Mama's angel (don't you just love my tan lines?):More pictures coming soon!

READY!

Next post will include pictures of the new addition!

Getting ready for sleep deprivation!

For the past few nights, I have been having a lot of problems sleeping through the night. And for those who know me well, know that I typically sleep like a log and never budge until my alarm goes off.

I have been waking up quite frequently throughout the night - and not even to pee. Just now, I was lying in bed for the past half hour or so, just waiting for my alarm to go off. However, my alarm clock is 10 minutes fast and is set 20 minutes early (I am a big fan of the snooze button!), so I am usually not even physically out of bed just yet.

But here I am - blogging at 4:00am! I needed something to pass the time until I should to get into the shower. I guess that my body is just preparing me for what is in store for me very soon!

Lucky me!

Thursday is THE DAY!

We just got home from our last doctor's appointment. Unfortunately, we couldn't schedule the C-Section for Friday - they are already booked for that day. I asked the doctor what she recommended in terms of scheduling, and she thought that Thursday was the best bet. She said that they don't like to make their patients who know that they are having C-Sections to go through labor unnecessarily. The longer we wait - the higher the chance that I could go into labor.

So - Thursday, April 23 9:00am - C-Section - Baby Maz will finally make his/her debut. Can't wait to see if we have a little stubborn boy or a little stubborn girl!

All worked up for nothing!

I have obeyed the doctors' orders and did not go to work over the past 2 days, rested, hydrated, and put my feet up. I'll admit that I wasn't happy about it, but I did it.

Today's appointments were great. The nonstress test was perfect, as it was on Wednesday. My doctor cleared me to return to work on Monday (yeah!), and she answered all of our tedious questions. The main one was what do we do today if the ultrasound shows a lower AFI? Because the ultrasound wasn't scheduled until 2 hours after the doctor's appointment, I wanted to know the exact protocol. She informed us that if the level was lower than what it was on Wednesday then the ultrasound office was to page the doctor on-call, and more than likely we were going to be sent to Magee for a C-Section. I was all prepared for that - bag in the car, and I hadn't eaten since 10am just in case.

So then we went for the ultrasound. She did the weight estimation first - the Little One is exactly that right now - about 6 lbs, 5 ounces, which doesn't surprise me since all 3 of us were in the 6 pound range, as were Dani's 3 girls. I know that this is just an estimate, so I am not expecting exactly that weight.

Then she measured the AFI - 15.8! Seriously? Can we try the version now? I couldn't believe it. John was so jacked off because when the residents were doing the AFI measurement on Wednesday, the fellow had to continuously correct them on how they were using the probe and which buttons to push. So John is convinced that they didn't do it correctly on Wednesday. I calmed him down and just said that what is meant to be will be and obviously I am meant to have a C-Section, and I am fine with that now.

We have another appointment on Monday afternoon, and we will be scheduling the C-Section at that time. We were told last week that the soonest we can do it would be April 23rd (exactly 39 weeks). Like I stated earlier, we are going to shoot for April 24th so that John's birthday will be extra special!

The only cool thing about possibly have the baby today was that today is the twins' 2nd birthday. So my parents would have had 3 out of 4 grandchildren with the same birthday! How crazy would that have been?!?

Disappointed...

!!!WARNING: PREGNANT WOMAN RANT AHEAD!!!

So we went in for the version this morning. I was all settled: on the monitor, IV in, and ready to rock. Then we were informed that the attending was in an emergency and probably wasn't going to be there for 2 hours. Fine, I am in this field - I totally understand.

Then the parade of various residents and fellows started. They decided to start scanning me to check the positioning and the amniotic fluid level - it was determined that my amniotic fluid level was too low to attempt the procedure. A safe AFI (fluid level) for the procedure is 10, and mine was 6.8 this morning (but it was 16 last week, critical level is 5). In my opinion, that is a significant change, and I do feel kinda damp "down there" and have felt that way for about a week now. Plus I drank SO MUCH over the past 2 days, so I thought that I did a good job at hydrating myself for the procedure. But this morning, I had a feeling that something was wrong, because I didn't feel as "full." At first, the fellow seemed to indicate that a C-Section today was not out of the question, but she got a hold of one of my doctors who relayed the message that she wanted me to have a non-stress test and an ultrasound on Friday. So I was discharged.

John went to work and my Mom and I decided to go out for breakfast. While driving, we were passing my doctor's office, so I thought that it would be a good idea to stop in and schedule the tests then. Well, that turned into a 2-hour visit. I saw one of the other doctors, who did an exam. She doesn't think that I am leaking enough to be concerning, I am not dilated, and only 50% effaced. They did do a non-stress test today while I was there, and everything seemed to be good. But she indicated that I am NOT to work tomorrow or Friday - to lay on my left side and stay hydrated in hopes that the fluid level will pick back up.

I am so bummed because I don't want to use time off before the baby comes. Seriously, what difference is a couple days going to make at this point? Maybe some of my fellow PA's who specialize in Ob/Gyn can enlighten me. If I am told that I have to take off all of next week and then schedule a section later next week, I am not going to be happy - why make me waste my days off without the baby? I would prefer to work if I have to wait another week. Am I being unreasonable? Sorry if I am, I am just a little sad about this. Everything has been so great up until this point and now I am on bed rest and playing the waiting game - not fun.

I am going to try to convince John to "help" me with breaking my water to move things along...hee, hee!

I will keep you posted on the progress of everything!

It's a Go!

We went to see the specialist this morning. Everything looks good to go ahead with the version, so we are going to give it a try. It is scheduled for Wednesday morning.

The doctor at Magee was very reassuring that this is a good decision. Of course, there are risks, and they sound bad when they are said aloud, but being in the medical field I review potential risks with patients when obtaining consent for surgery daily - so it was nothing that I wasn't expecting. John, on the other hand, was a little freaked out for a short while.

The only thing that I have to focus on is staying very hydrated from now to Wednesday. When we went for the ultrasound last week, the amniotic fluid level was good, however, today it didn't seem as abundant. Then I realized why that might be - I assisted on two 5-hour cases on Thursday and Friday - which meant nothing to eat or drink during those cases and by the end my feet were HUGE! Then on Saturday, John and I were on a mission to get the house in order. He focused on cleaning out the garage and washed the cars while I dusted, mopped, vacuumed, and did the laundry. Again a day where I know that I didn't get adequate fluid intake. When I reported this to the doctor, he agreed that those 3 days definitely contributed to the change in the the amniotic fluid level. So I will constantly have a glass of water with me at all times from now till midnight on Tuesday night.

We also had a regular OB appointment this afternoon, and she continued the reassurance of our decision (which was great for John). If the version is not successful, then we are to call the office immediately to schedule the C-Section, which can be as early as April 23. Since John's birthday is the 24th - we might just have to pick that day...we'll see.

So that is where we are right now. I will definitely post the results on Wednesday. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts, prayers, and support - it really means alot!

Decisions...

So we have known for about 5 weeks now that the Little One is breech, but we have been optimistic that he/she would turn in time for delivery --- WRONGO!!!!!

We had an appointment this past Monday and my doctor was a little suspicious about the positioning of the baby - definitely breech, but maybe frank breech. What's the difference, you ask? Well here's a little OB lesson for you all -

We went for an ultrasound on Wednesday, and it was confirmed that the baby is in the frank breech position. So our little bugger is suck - head up, butt down, and feet in the the air - all set to be a diver and to specialize in dives in the pike position!

The doctor presented our options - wait to see if the baby will turn (unlikely now that I am almost 38 weeks), schedule a C-Section at term, or try an external cephalic version. Now I know that I am quoted in the past saying that I could totally comply with a C-Section if the baby was breech, and I still stand by that comment. However, if I can avoid it - I would like to try. My doctor was very pro-version, which made the decision much easier.

Therefore, we are going to see specialists at Magee on Monday morning. This is just a consultation so that they can review my history and we can talk and such. If I am a good candidate for the procedure (which my doctor thinks that I am), we will be trying the version later in the week.

It doesn't sound like the most comfortable procedure and I am preparing myself for it to hurt - A LOT. That way, if it doesn't, then I will be pleasantly surprised. Here are the potential outcomes:

• Successful version - baby in vertex position and will await labor naturally
• Unsuccessful version - baby still breech and schedule a C-Section in a few weeks
• Complicated version - emergency C-Section next week

Pretty much the outcome is the same - the baby will be here, and that is all that matters to me. If I can have a vaginal delivery - that would be optimal, if not - that's fine too.

I will be updating the blog about the details of this process.

I am so mean

Most of you know that today is my birthday. I have always had tricks played on me throughout the years as a result. One year, my friends in high school even convinced one of the hardest English teachers at our school to play a trick on me by giving me a D- on a paper that we got back on April 1st (I really got an A-).

Anyway, I typically don't play tricks on people mainly because I can't keep a straight face. But today I had a brilliant idea. I had my boss call my sister Dani in a panic to tell her that my water broke while in the operating room, that we couldn't get John on the phone, and that she was the next person who I could think to call....how mean am I?

Dani must have immediately sounded scared, because my boss's eyes widened and she handed me the phone so that I could say "APRIL FOOLS!," which was then followed my a series of "I HATE YOU"'s from my sister...totally justified!

I called her again later in the afternoon to make sure that she had recovered from the shock of the joke. She is fine, but she informed me of all the plans that ran through her head in those short seconds. It's good to know that if something emergent does happen that she will be able think fast.