38 weeks and counting

Been a bit of a rough week here at the Imran house. My check-up on Monday was uneventful - still no change since the 2 previous weeks. But then what I thought was a cold began to get worse. I called my OB to see about getting an antibiotic and he sent me to an ENT. I've got sinus pain/pressure, feels like my ears are stuffed with cotton, nose is running something awful, and I'm coughing up not-so-lovely green gunk. The ENT said he wasn't sure if it was a sinus infection or not, but obviously at the least a bad cold. He was more concerned about my productive cough though...but since he's an ENT, that's not his area. He suggested I see my internist. But he did prescribe an antibiotic and give me a regimen of Robitussin and Sudafed, along with a nasal wash (like a neti pot but from a squeeze bottle).

I wouldn't say that all gave me instant relief, but I guess it wasn't expected to. My sinuses are much better than they were Thursday when I saw the doctor and my cough is less productive although still a bit painful and causing me sleeplessness. In any case, the antibiotic and other meds are certainly helping. Maybe I can actually be in decent health by the time the baby comes.

Meanwhile, Leah started getting crusty/gunky eyes on Friday afternoon and we took her in to the pediatrician Saturday morning. She's also been up quite a bit at night, but we've been unsure whether it's bad dreams or teething or something more. Indeed, she has mild conjunctivitis (i.e. pink eye). Her eyes are not actually pink but they are oozing quite a lot of yellow gunk. And she has an infection in her left ear. We were just in a few days ago checking her ears, so we were a bit surprised. The pediatrician thought this might be the beginning of an ear infection and might be related to the eye infection.

So Leah has been given antibiotic eye drops to take 3 times a day for 5 days. Luckily they said she wouldn't be contagious once she has been on them for 24 hours, so we're not quarantined for too long. And she's actually been really good about letting me put the drops in her eyes. I think they must be bothering her enough that she really wants the medicine to work. She is also taking a liquid antibiotic twice a day for 10 days for the ear infection. Unfortunately this medicine isn't going so well. She really hates it. I'm supposed to give her 4 ml using a syringe dropper. I can get about half of it into her before she pushes it away. Then she shudders and gags and is very unhappy to be only halfway through. For dose #2 I bribed her with juice - she got a little in the middle and the got to finish it after. But even with the bribe she fought the 2nd half and ended up spitting much of it out...and then proceeded to cry. It smells like bubble gum, which most kids her age apparently love - so we're not sure if it's the bubble gum taste or if there's a more medicine-like taste with it that is bothering her. Might be a bit rough getting this into her for 9 more days! The pediatrician said usually they would schedule a follow up after the 10 days of antibiotics but that we can just plan to bring Leah along for our newborn checkup, which will most likely be in approximately that timeframe anyway.

Other than the woes of taking medication, though, she is in pretty good spirits - you wouldn't even know she is sick. And thankfully I seem to be on the mend, although I may have some lingering symptoms for quite awhile (the ENT said these coughs can linger for a month or so). Hopefully we're all on the mend and Shafi won't join our infirmary.

On a brighter note, we have been getting some great weather and have been enjoying the great outdoors.

Asher and Leah had a great time walking home together after Tot Shabbat:
Leah decided she was ready to ride her scooter to the playground - note the look of intensity on her face - she ended up pushing it there and riding it a little once we were safely within the playground gates:
We spent some family time enjoying the newly opened lawns at Pier 1:
Cooper and Leah had a blast exploring the Pier 1 lawn - I even let Leah go barefoot in the lush grass:
We didn't feel too quarantined on this gorgeous Saturday - our first real chance to enjoy the new deck furniture - we spent the afternoon out under the umbrellas and Shafi grilled dinner - Leah seemed to enjoy imitating our lounging poses almost as much as exploring her outdoor kitchen:

37 week check-up

I had my 37 week check-up yesterday - although technically I will not be 37 weeks until Thursday. It was completely uneventful. No change since last week. Baby's heartbeat sounded good. Measuring fine. Blood pressure fine. Got the good news that the previous week's Strep B test was negative. Now I have paperwork to bring with me to the hospital to show that and also that my HIV test was negative.

I mentioned to Dr. Markoff that he told me last time he thought I'd be early - and he was wrong. He said, "Ah, what do I know?" Not his fault of course - but it does seem to be quite true - no one knows how to predict when a baby will come. Maybe the strong (slightly painful) Braxton Hicks contractions I am getting will actually cause my water to break. Maybe this baby will decide he's ready and I'll go into labor. Maybe I've got about 3.5 more weeks to go until my due date and I'll just have to wait.

Obviously after 9 months another 3 weeks doesn't seem so terrible. But I'm definitely getting more discomfort daily in pretty much every part of my body. Back is sore. Feet are sore. Varicose veins are causing sore groin/legs. Pelvic joints are sore. Not sleeping well. Fortunately I don't have any really major complaints. I'm just feeling uncomfortable and ready to meet this little guy!

36 week check-up

I'll actually be 36 weeks pregnant tomorrow - but today was the check-up. I had my strep-B test and will get the results next week. I'm 1.5 cm dilated and 50% effaced. Dr. Markoff seemed to think that meant I would go early - maybe 2 weeks. So I was feeling all good about that - until I looked back at my blog post from my 36 week check-up last pregnancy - 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced and he thought I'd go early...so no indication of anything really.

He did mention that since my labor progressed so fast last time and since I have a wide pelvis - he thinks I'll go really fast. He said if my water breaks I need to pretty much run in - and if I go into labor I should come in when the contractions are 8 to 9 minutes apart. And if I wait much longer then I may not have time for an epidural.

Unrelated to all of this, we're having beautiful weather and have been having lots of fun playground days. Since my last post we have taken Leah to the circus (Ringling Brothers) and the Prospect Park Zoo, Leah had her first haircut and her first solo ice cream cone (chocolate with rainbow sprinkles, of course), we have painted at home (dot paints and watercolors) and made princess hats. She's very excited to be a big sister soon - but I fear she may be in for a rude awakening when she finds that we won't quite have the time to dedicate to all these things.

Leah helping me make dinner - she loves standing on the chair at the end of the counter and will help in any way I'll let her - which usually just involves stirring:
The beginning of the ice cream adventure:
Nearing the end of the ice cream adventure:David bravely cutting Leah's hair:Hair has been cut - time for some styling:
Feeding the goat at the zoo:
Sporting freshly made princess hats with Malia:
Working on a real masterpiece - dot painting:
Posing with a clown at the circus pre-show:

17 Teeth and Counting...

Leah has had a few middle of the night wake-ups lately. And this morning she was up at 6:45 (a bit earlier than normal for her) and complaining that her tongue hurt. I figured maybe she bit it - either this morning or before her midnight or 4 a.m. wake-ups last night. But then when we were out and about this morning she had a finger in her mouth and was whining. I took a look and saw a bulging spot on her lower right gums - a molar on it's way in.

Then this afternoon she woke up from her nap just screaming and holding her mouth. She took an hour and a half nap, so I don't think the teething woke her up, but obviously she did wake up in pain. I got her some ice water...and asked her if I could take a look in her mouth. She obliged - and sure enough the first of her 2-year molars had emerged. It's actually about 2/3 visible - so I imagine the remainder of the top of it will break through fairly soon. Once it's all broken through it shouldn't be painful anymore. So now we'll just wait to see when her remaining 3 baby teeth decide to make their appearances - no sign of them so far.

But a little teething pain did not dampen her spirits most of the morning. We had a very fun trip to the Transit Museum with lots of friends.

The kids were very into holding hands today - here are Malia and Avery with Leah - all squealing - but at least it was a big open area to run around - not a traditional museum:
Leah was very amused as she tickled Theo:
Leah and Theo were quite happy together today...maybe she's got a new boyfriend:
She wasn't really the only girl today - just the only one in the attempt at a group shot - Piper and Malia were off and running - pictured here are Cooper, Avery, Leah, Theo, and Asher:
But at the end of the day, Leah's heart still belongs to Avery:

Early contractions

I had an eventful morning today. I woke up at 4:30 in the morning with contractions. I got up and had some water. I tried walking around a bit. I am exactly 32 weeks today - too early to have a baby! So I tried what I could to calm down and see if the contractions would stop. After about an hour and a half, I called my OB. The on-call doctor called me back about 3 minutes after I left a message with the answering service. She told me to come right to the hospital.

I woke Shafi to tell him what was going on but that he should stay home with Leah. I brushed my teeth and washed my face, got dressed, put a book and other necessities in a tote bag and headed out to get a cab. I was at NYU hospital before 6:30. The doctor called ahead so that they knew to expect me.

They put me in a Labor & Delivery Triage Room and hooked me up to a monitor for the baby's heartbeat and for my contractions. The baby's heartbeat was pretty steady around 150, which is normal. My contractions were irregular but between 1.5 and 5 minutes apart.

They checked my cervix and it was long and closed - so the contractions are not having any effect - definitely a good thing. They checked my urine - not dehydrated and no UTIs. They did a test called the FFN, which tests for a protein present before labor starts. Luckily it was negative, which means there is a 95% likelihood that I will not go in to labor in the next 2 weeks.

After ruling out the easy known causes and my contractions continuing they decided to give me terbutaline. They can give up to 3 injections, 20 minutes apart. The first one seemed to slow things down and they decided to give me a second. That one did successfully stop my contractions. But I had an unpleasant reaction to it. My heart raced and blood pressure dropped and I felt generally miserable. It was a common reaction and it went away after a few minutes on oxygen.

After monitoring me for another hour or so, they decided I could go home. These contractions could continue but still not really be labor - or they could stop. I was able to nap for about an hour and a half when I got home, but I woke up with contractions around 1 p.m. I've been having periodic contractions all afternoon, but not with the frequency I was having this morning. The contractions are fairly mild - uncomfortable but not painful.

So we're crossing our fingers that my uterus calms down. In the meantime I am taking it easy. Shafi stayed home to take care of Leah today, but if all is well, I can take her to the playground and such tomorrow. I'll just try to lift her as little as possible and stay fairly close to home.

Everybody Poops!

If you haven't been following my Facebook posts then you may not be aware that Leah had her first poop in the potty on March 6. It was more about the timing than the intent. We've been putting her on the potty in the morning. Usually she pees if we sit there long enough - and we read her books to keep her there. But that day she said she needed to poop - and she did! We made a big deal about it, clapping and praising. And we started a star chart. Leah still gets a butterfly tattoo when she pees on the potty. And now she gets a star on the chart when she poops on the potty. After 10 stars she will get to pick out a toy at the toy store.

She seems to be excited about the prospect of peeing and pooping in the potty regularly - so for additional incentive we also bought "big girl panties." We had an exciting trip to K-Mart on Monday - where we bought some training pants, some waterproof pants, and some Elmo and Dora undies. I also picked up some Pull-Ups today. Lots of carrots to dangle now - and it seems to be working.

As she was finishing lunch today, Leah made a bit of a grunting sound - I asked her what she was doing - and it seemed to strike a chord - she said, "Mommy, I want to poop on the potty." I quickly wiped her hands and face and rushed her to the bathroom. We pulled the pants down and the diaper off and got her onto the toilet - as she likes to call it, "the big potty" - using a seat that fits on top of the regular seat. She asked me to read a book and I read "Have you seen my potty?" - twice. Turns out we didn't need to rush. It took a few minutes to get things moving, but she was right - she needed to poop. And while she was there she peed too.

Once again I made a really big deal about it. She got a butterfly tattoo on her hand and a star on the chart. Next time we're going to be home for a little while without plans to rush off to a class or meet friends or something - we're going to try out some training pants - we'll see if the wetness will help Leah pay more attention to when she needs to pee too. And for my sake we'll be putting the waterproof pants on top of them!

My baby girl is 2!

I have once again been bad about posting. Leah turned 2 on February 7. We celebrated with a big party (18 kids) at the NY Kids Club. A good time was had by all - along with plenty of pizza, cake and apple juice. And Leah blew out her candles quite well all by herself.

Leah got lots of fun presents....some toys, some clothes. My parents came in for the big day. Leah enjoyed spending some extra time with them.

Since my last post we also had Valentine's Day. Leah got some cute shirts, some chocolates, and other little goodies from various relatives. And she enjoyed making Valentine's to send to Grandma and GG.

The move to the big girl bed has remained successful. After about 2.5 weeks she did figure out (this past Wednesday) that she could get out of bed on her own. When she got up in the morning she stood at her bedroom door calling for us to come get her. I knew that we were in trouble after that. Sure enough at naptime she kept getting out of bed. She would just stand at the door saying, "Mommy Mommy Mommy" - it seemed she would go on indefinitely. Several times I would go in and get her back in to bed - sometimes even just telling her to get back in bed. Finally after 45 minutes of that game she stayed in bed and took a normal hour and a half or so nap. Wednesday night we had a big talk with her over dinner that big girls stay in their big girl beds. Babies sleep in cribs because they're not ready for that. She agreed that she's a big girl and not a baby - and since then she has been staying in bed.

We also had her 2 year check up just after her birthday. We talked about it on the way there - the doctor would check her eyes and head and tummy - and it wouldn't hurt. And we brought her little baby doll, Penny, with us. I told her she could hold Penny if she felt scared. She asked for Penny pretty much right away. But she was very good for the doctor - sat in my lap and let the doctor examine her - didn't fuss or squirm at all. She didn't have to have any shots this time but she did have a blood test. The doctor thought the vein in her hand would be the best. And poor Leah's vein kept rolling - so it took a little while of digging around before she hit the vein - and then it took a little while for the 2 vials to fill. But I had the lollipop unwrapped and ready so as soon as the blood test started, Leah got a lollipop. She sat very patiently and hardly fussed for the whole thing - thanks to the lollipop. And this time Leah got to stand on the big girl scale and get measured standing up. She's 36 1/4 inches tall (yes, that is just over 3 feet!) - which is still off the charts in height. And she's 27 1/2 pounds - 60th percentile in weight. She's taller and skinnier than at her last appointment - having gained 1.5 inches and 3/4 of a pound.

Leah also had fun this month playing briefly in the snow, taking a trip to Toys R Us, decorating cookies with Grandma, taking a trip to the American Museum of Natural History, baking brownies with Mommy, playing with lots of friends and attending some other birthday parties.

Helping Mommy make brownies:
Looking a bit too guilty playing in her bedroom with Avery:
Sledding in Dumbo (this lasted approximately 1 minute...too cold!):
Checking out the dinosaurs while perched on Baba's shoulders at the Museum of Natural History:
Having fun playing with Evelyn, who came to visit all the way from Philly:
With all her Valentine's Day loot:
A rare group shot at playgroup (Malia, Cooper, Sebastian, Avery, Leah, James, and Noah):
Leah's first snowball:
Playing with her new dollhouse:
Reading Grandpa's favorite book, Madeline, with Grandpa:
Decorating Valentine's cookies with Grandma:
Very excited about her new Brobee, a gift from Uncle Alan and Aunt Rachel:
Having a blast with Tyler at their birthday party - thanks Coach Jeremy!:
Learning to ride her new scooter (thanks Grandma & Grandpa):
And always a favorite - bathtime!: