Name Game Clue 8 - Week 36

No one on either side of her family has had her name, as far as we know.

This week's sarcasm, I mean, ticker! 36 Weeks!

October 26th: NST, AFI, appointment, & hiccups

Well, we have a little entertainer here folks!

We went for our weekly round of screenings and tests yesterday, and all is well. We had a non-stress test that took significantly longer than usual, due to our little one's overactive lungs & diaphragm. Now, she gets the hiccups almost daily, but it's usually a very quiet affair that only Meg is aware of, and baby is usually pretty, well, subtle about it. Ha! You've never heard hiccups until you've heard them through a fetal heart monitor. At first we thought she was kicking the exact spot where the monitor was. Nope, hic-hic-hic-ing away, for almost 15 minutes, she made quite a racket. It was so funny, hearing her HIC like that, so loudly! You could hear it echo through the monitor if you listened outside the room!

You can't really monitor baby's heart's reaction to movement when she's constantly hic-ing, so the nurse who runs the NST's tried several things to get her to stop. Baby didn't cooperate much (when does she?). Eventually things settled down, and we go the rest of the test finished.

The nurse said hiccups are a good sign; baby's practicing breathing, drinking, and they actually strengthen her lungs and diaphragm, so she can take a nice big breath and belt out a good strong cry in a few weeks. On the other hand, they were pretty annoying to the nurse. We just found them hilarious - they were so loud, and for some reason, this time they were VERY visible!

Everything else still looks good. We got some good answers to our questions, and even got a LOVELY screening for group B Strep...not for the faint of heart, this one. OH so pleasant.

We have the usual set of appointments next week as well, and another growth scan - our last - on November 10th.

Meg's last day at school is November 3rd. 5 more days, 5 more days, 5 more days...

Anyway, we're doing quite well, and were quite entertained by our little girl's little hiccup show.

Name Game Clue 7 - Week 35

A math word problem for you all...

Last Week, Meg stopped by a craft store and purchased some items to make a wall decoration for Baby D. This decoration will include her name, spelled out in wooden letters, strung up with ribbon.

Meg walked up to the check-out counter with two rolls of ribbon, a can of glossy spray urethane, and the letters required to spell out Baby D's name. Including NJ sales tax, the total cost of these items was $23.10. How many letters are in Baby D's name?

Here is some algebra to get you started:

a = the cost of a letter
b = the cost of a roll of ribbon
c = the cost of the urethane spray
x = the quantity of letters purchased

((x * a) + 2b + c)*1.07 = 23.10

Solve for x

Get out those calculators and start guessing!!

This Week's Sarcasm - I Mean, Ticker! 35 Weeks!

Update on Baby D. & Her Many Tests

Ok, back from our 2nd round of tests in less than 24 hours. :-)
We're busy peeps over here.

We had a growth scan yesterday, at 34 weeks, 5 days. Baby D. is looking great.

Her tummy was measuring a little ahead, and her head was actually a little small. Well, "narrower" was what the tech said, to which she added "here's hoping it stays nice and narrow for your sake!" (Hey, Gram, can you believe it? She's actually small-headed!) (I had a huge head at birth, so I'm told.) Legs were right on.

Total weight: She's measuring 5 pounds 4 ounces, which, although it's still in normal range, is actually a little small. They were expecting her to be larger, based on her previous growth, so they want to see me in 3 weeks instead of 4, just to make sure her growth is still on track. So we went from being concerned that she would get too big to now needing to check that she's not too small. It never stops with this kid. At least we know we're doing a good job with the GD and it isn't getting the better of us.

Today (Thursday) we had our weekly NST, AFI, and Dr. appointment. Everything's cool. Baby D. was very active and "very reactive" today, which is a good sign. "Reactive" means that her heart speeds up and recovers well in relation to her movement. Everything else they check was good, too.

We got to take home 3 pictures, but they're not very clear. It gets harder to get recognizable pictures as you get farther along, they say, because of baby's size.

So we're 5 pounds, 4 ounces. And this week the ultrasound technician kept commenting on her chubby cheeks. Awwwwwww!

Yesterday we finished our Prepared Childbirth Series, and got a tour of the hospital. It looks great, and we've heard nothing but good things about Virtua's Labor & Delivery ward. Cool birthing rooms, and we got to see a newborn in the nursery.

We still have a loooooooong list of things that we'd like to get done before Baby D. arrives, which we're slowly picking away at. And if you have an hour free, ask us about the Malvern Mess or the Changing Table Challenge... *sigh* But it's all getting done.

Meg's still feeling pretty good. She's feeling a little more tired every week, and the usual preggy complaints, but nothing to truly complain about, and we're happy and grateful for that.
11 more school days left. Oh, yes, there's a countdown going on. And no, they still don't have a substitute. How fun. Just have to refuse to worry about it, though. That's the district's job.

(*psssst!* anybody know anybody who wants to be a long-term sub for K-5 music & a 65 kid chorus? )

Name Game Clue 6 - Week 34

Here's the Name Game clue for week 34:

Her name is a 'literary' one...and her genre is your guess, too.

...thanks for the proofreading, Brendy and Nana. Typing late at night is not a good idea.

This week's sarcasm, I mean, ticker! 34 Weeks!

Um...Mommy was never dancing to Brittany, trust me.

Week 33 Dr. Appointment, NST, & AFI

33rd week appointment, 2nd NST (Non-Stress Test), and AFI (Amniotic Fluid Inspection) today, and all's well.

Baby D was very active and reacted well during the non-stress test. She kicked the monitor off a couple of times, actually. But her heart reacted well during the test.

The AFI looked normal, too. She's still head-down. Yay! And still a girl, btw (they checked).

Everything else that was tested looked good too - sugar, protein, blood pressure, etc.

So we're healthy, kicky, still a girl, and getting bigger by the day.

Babies tend to gain about an ounce a day at this stage, we're told. And moms, about a pound a week.

Grrrreeeeeaaaat...

Name Clue 5 - Week 33

What a coincidence! An actress from a favorite movie named her daughter the same thing.

Well, she has good taste in roles, why not names?

This Week's Sarcasm - I mean, ticker! 33 weeks!

NST's & AFI's

We now start going in weekly for Non-Stress Tests and Amniotic Fluid Inspections. I think that's what AFI stands for, anyway. :-)

It means Meg taking a few half-days off of work, which we are NOT thrilled about, but what can you do?

They strap you up with these lovely elastic bands, and attached are a heart monitor and another monitor that measures contractions. They monitor baby's heart rate while you push a button every time you feel baby move. They're looking for an increase in her heart rate every time she moves. Then you get an ultrasound that measures the amount of fluid around the baby's body, making sure that's all ok.

Well, so far, so good!!! Everybody's measuring fine, with everything that's measurable. We have weekly doctor appointments after these tests. We're all scheduled up to our due date.

So that's the latest on Baby D. All good. And lots of movement.

OH! And she decided to turn head-down! YAY! *Stay there, kid, ok?*

Name Game Clue 5 - 32 Weeks

Here's your Name Game clue for week 32 - hey that rhymed!

She could appear a dark-haired bambina, or have little blonde ringlets (think Gretel Von Trapp) - or be bald as a cue ball! BUT:

Her name will NOT reflect her ethnicity in any particular way.

So you can put away your Francesa Antonia's and your Hilda Briggita's right now, sorry.