37 Weeks

-I had my 37 week check up today and all I heard was good news. My blood pressure was slightly elevated but not too high, there was only a trace of protein (normal) and I was not sent to L&D. The most exciting part of the appointment is when Dr. B asked me if I was ready to have this baby (of course) and he said let's set a date. The plan is for me to go for one last NST on Thursday (10/1) and if all goes well Isaac Benjamin will arrive on Tuesday (10/6).

Daniel's 1st Day of Preschool

(talking about carrying his backpack to school)

-Daniel was up and ready to start his BIG day by 6:45. We were afraid that we would have to wake him up and he would not be a happy boy, he thankfully woke up on his own and we did not have any fussing or crying. He enjoyed a yummy breakfast of blueberry pancakes, scrambled eggs and chocolate milk. He took his medicine, brushed his teeth and got dressed (all with help). He was ready to go. We had spent the morning talking about going to school and carrying a backpack and his teachers (the head teacher is part of our church family). Daniel was very excited about going to school and REALLY excited about carrying a backpack. I am currently on bed rest but I was not going to let bed rest keep me from missing my big boy's first day of school. I rode to Benny Bills with Richard, Daniel and Caden. I sat in the car with Caden while Richard walked Daniel to the door. Daniel looked around and was kind of puzzled about what was going on but he did not cry or seem upset when Richard said goodbye and left. (I would have been cried, infact I teared up setting in the van.) It was quieter in the house without Daniel. Caden seemed to miss having his big brother to play with and he stayed glued to Richard or I the whole day (except nap time). I spent the whole day wondering if Daniel was okay, wondering if he was missing us, worrying that he would not eat lunch, etc. ("the mommy wondering and worrying"). I again HAD to ride with Richard to pick Daniel up. Ms. Linda said that Daniel had a great first day. His daily report (a sheet that is sent home daily) stated that he ate very little lunch (not surprising), he did not use the potty (not surprising), he sat in his chair, did his work independently and followed instructions. He made a hat with an apple on it (Johnny Appleseed) and wore it proudly as he walked to the van. We celebrated Daniel's GREAT first day of school by going to the donut store and getting donut holes and chocolate milk.

(walking to his classroom)

36 Weeks

-I had my 36 week check up today. Wow, 36 weeks! (I am miserable and loving it!) My blood pressure was elevated (not surprising) and my protein was slightly elevated (+1). ""Baby Isaac's" heart rate was good. The doctor and I discussed a scheduled c-section. A "elective c-section" can not be scheduled before 38/39 weeks and the doctor is very doubtful that I will make it to 38/39 weeks. He did promise that if I was still pregnant at my next appointment (Tuesday 9/29) that we would set a date for the c-section. He said that he was not going to let me go past 39 weeks. After our brief chat I was sent to L&D for testing and monitoring, after an hour and a half of testing and monitoring and no signs of pre-eclampsia or stress I was sent home (weekly routine). I am to go back to L&D on Monday for a non-stress test (NST) and I will see the doctor on Tuesday (probably followed by another trip to L&D). I will be 37 weeks on Friday - full term and I am ready for ""Baby Isaac" to arrive.

Daniel's Going to Preschool

-Daniel "graduated" from Tennessee Early Intervention in June (when he turned 3). In August he started attending speech therapy at Union Elementary 2 days a week (30 minutes each day). We have been praying that he would be approved for a "peer class" as we have felt that being around other kids would really help with his development. Ms. Lisa (speech therapist @ Union) ............that Daniel would greatly benefit from the "peer class" and recommended him for the classroom setting after working with him for a couple of weeks. We were excited to hear her recommendation and patiently waited to get the call about scheduling his IEP and finding out which school he would be attending. (We had our fingers crossed for Benny Bills because we knew the teacher there was AWESOME.) We were so excited when we got the call and found out that Daniel would be attending Benny Bills and Ms. Linda would be his teacher. (Ms. Linda is part of our church family is wonderful with kids.)
-We attended the IEP meeting today. Daniel will attend Benny Bills 2 days a week (Tuesday and Friday) for 6 hours (7:40 - 1:40), he will get one-on-one speech therapy for 30 minutes each day. Daniel will be evaluated for other possible delays and the days he attends may increase if other delays are discovered and other therapies are needed. We met the vice prinicpal, the speech therapist, the school nurse, one of the teacher's assistants and the teacher (we already knew her) today. We toured the school and spent some time in the classroom. Daniel was so excited to be there and really did not want to leave. He set in the chairs, checked out the bathroom, played with a few toys and looked at a few books while we were there. His first day of school will be this Friday (9/25).

35 weeks

-My 35 week check up included a trip to the hospital and some time spent in labor and delivery. My blood pressure at the doctor's office was 212/90 which had to be wrong because I felt great. (I think there BP monitor does not like me.) I asked the doctor (during my brief visit) if we could schedule a date for delivery (c-section). There is a part of me that would love to have a final "goal date". He said that we could but that he was very doubtful that I would make it to a scheduled c-section date. (Dr. Pessimistic). I completed (signed) the form that will allow the doctor to do a tubal when Isaac is delivered. (Isaac will be the baby of the family.) I scheduled my 36 week check up, ran by Hardee's for some breakfast and headed to the hospital. My blood pressure at the hospital was great and remained that way for 2 hours (was checked every 15 minutes). My lab work came back negative for any signs of preeclampsia and there was no protein in my urine. I was sent home to continue bedrest for another week. We are excited to be just 2 weeks away from "full term". I am miserable and loving it. We are praying and ask that you pray with us for a safe and healthy delivery and recovery.

250 Days

-I am 250 days pregnant today and I am celebrating. I have never been pregnant for this long. I was pregnant with Noah for 224 days (32 weeks), Daniel for 203 days (28 weeks) and Caden for 231 days (33 weeks). I will be 40 weeks pregnant in 30 days. Wow! I never imagined I would make it this far. One I first found out that I was pregnant (SURPRISE!), I decided that I would make "goals" with my first goal being 29 weeks. When I sailed through 29 weeks and wasn't even on bed rest, I celebrated. My next goal was 32 weeks and then 33 weeks. My goal now is just one more day. If you count by weeks and not days, I am 35 weeks and 5 days pregnant (2 days shy of 36 weeks). It is exciting to think about having a full term, healthy, "take home" baby (unless Isaac arrives within the next week). I know that there is not a 100% guarantee that Isaac will not require some time in the NICU, some full term, healthy newborns require some help getting their breathing going when delivered by c-section. I can handle a couple of hours in the NICU.....I lived with 14 days, 72 days and 21 day. My prayer is that Isaac is born healthy and requires no NICU time and I am able to carry my baby boy out of the hospital the day that I am discharged. I ask that you pray with us for a safe and healthy arrival and recovery.

34 Weeks

-I went in for my 34 week check-up today not feeling too good. I was feeling light headed and yucky. I was not surprised when the nurse said that my blood pressure was elevated. They had me lie on my left side for about 30 minutes and then rechecked my blood pressure and it was lower but still high. They had me set up for a few minutes and rechecked my blood pressure and it was elevated. The doctor and I agreed that it would be best to head to labor and delivery to be monitored and checked for pre-eclampsia. After a quick trip through Hardee's drive-thru for a milkshake, I arrived at the hospital, registered and headed up to labor and delivery. I was monitored for a couple of hours and my blood pressure was great, all the lab results came back negative for any signs of pre-eclampsia and I was sent home. I am to continue on bed rest and go back to the hospital on Friday (9/11) and Tuesday (9/15) for monitoring and I will see the doctor for my 35 week check-up on Thursday (9/17).

Celebrating 4 Wonderful Years

-We have been married for 4 wonderful, crazy and happy years as of today. Wow! The past 4 years have been an adventure of learning and growing together. We have endured many struggles and hard times and survived them together and we have celebrated many happy, life changing experiences together. The struggles have made us stronger - unemployment, 3 high risk pregnancies, 2 premature births, watching Daniel fight for his life in the NICU and caring for a preemie in the NICU and a toddler at home. We have celebrated together the happy times - the births of Daniel and Caden, bringing Daniel and Caden home from the hospital, moving into our dream house, watching our boys grow, seeing Richard putting on Christ through baptism, the list could go on and on. We have supported each other through the good and the bad. We are best friends and great life partners. We have enjoyed creating many memories together and are looking forward to creating many more memories (hopefully more happy then sad). We are celebrating with a nice romantic dinner (Papa John's pizza) at home since Jenny is on bed rest for the 3rd time in 4 years. (Year 5 will be celebrated with a romantic dinner out of the house while the boys are with a babysitter.)