doc appt update II

well i'm back. and no baby jordan yet. my blood test was ok, so was the other one...so we are still in waiting mode. we left kinda disappointed, but knowing that he just isn't quite ready yet and grateful that i am healthy. my white blood cell count was high so i'm already on antibiotics as a precaution.
other than that it is lots of rest for me until he gets here.
we got the carseats installed and looking in the backseat with a carseat in it is surreal. we are so ready!
i'm heading to the store tonight for the rest of the stuff for our hospital bags, etc. either way it's any day now so we may as well be prepared.

jenny, thanks for asking about the meanings of pre-eclampsia and GBS in the previous post...i'm sure everyone doesnt know and because i've been reading up for 9 months and watching a Baby Story on TLC every day i feel like those are just common terms.

GBS= group beta strep. you're either a carrier or not...no harm to the mother but could cause breathing problems, etc in baby if not detected early. the solution is to give antibiotics during labor so when the baby comes thru the birth canal it isn't affected. the baby also must stay 48 hrs after delivery to ensure he's okay.

Pre-eclampsia/toxemia-combo of high blood pressure, swelling, protein in urine. not a good thing..can cause seizures in mother, etc.

okay, now that the terms are properly defined and everyone is updated, i'm going to try and get some work done so i can go home and put my swollen feet up awhile.

we will keep ya'll posted! sorry to get everyone excited...but either way tomorrow is APRIL and Jordan is coming!

love to all,
the hudgins

jordan-week 37

Congratulations! Your pregnancy is now considered full term — meaning your baby is developmentally ready to handle life outside the womb. Your baby probably weighs a little over 6 pounds at this point and measures between 19 and 20 inches, head to heel.

Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children are born blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

jordan is measuring about 7 lbs at the moment. we find out tomorrow the results of the tests for pre-eclampsia. if i'm still showing signs an induction will be scheduled...either way it could be soon...i've been having a few "real" contractions.
we're getting so excited!

tara and baby j

very eventful Dr's appt

well, jordan may be making his appearance sooner than later. went to the dr's this morning with a lot of swelling and they checked my blood pressure...it was high. checked it again 2 more times on both arms and it remained up there. i had a blood test and will be doing a 24 hr urine test. if results are positive for pre-eclampsia i'll be induced sometime next week!!!!! wow.
also found out i tested positive as a carrier for GBS (group B strep). not harmful to me but could be to the baby unless i get antibiotics during labor...so i'll be getting more antibiotics as well as we'll have to stay in the hospital a little longer than usual.

anyway, send some prayers our way. we're rushing around getting things ready just in case. i should have results by friday, monday at the latest :)

it is exciting knowing that we're getting closer to meeting our little man. i have also made progress....2 cm!!! only 8 more to go!!

have a great day,

tara

what we've been up to

i thought i'd take a sec and post some of the pictures i've taken over the past few days. the first ones are the most recent, from this afternoon in fact! asah was going to do a paper but didn't have access to the sources he needed, so we decided to play golf instead, well, he decided to play golf...and i went along for the golf cart ride. i also got a snowball, so i was happy. i had no idea how BIG i was until i looked at these pictures. jordan is definitely making his mommy large. i look forward to being able to get outside and golf, run, and frolic in this wonderful spring weather! soon enough....



asah tees off


putt putt


this is where i stayed for the outing


we have a very stubborn cat, and these next two pictures prove that. we were doing laundry the other day and she didn't want to move from her "spot" on the bed so asah dumped the laundry on top of her. she didn't budge so we thought it was hilarious and i took a couple pics.


"could you hurry up??"


"i'm just gonna sit right here"

here's a picture of my foot trying to fit into my tennis shoes for our walk the other night. nice!

jordan's update

Your baby is still putting on the pounds — about an ounce a day. He now weighs about 6 pounds and is a little less than 19 inches long. He's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered his body as well as the vernix caseosa, the creamy substance that covered and protected his skin during its submersion in amniotic fluid. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, which will stay in his bowels until birth. This blackish mixture, called meconium, will become his first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. Most likely he's in a head-down position by now, which is optimal for a smooth delivery, but if he isn't in the next week, your provider may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying he'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position manually, by manipulating him from the outside of your belly.

Jordan is head down and I don't think he's going anywhere soon :)
Asah and I took a walk around Southeastern University last night and began to talk to Jordan about getting into position!!! We're getting ready to meet our boy!

have a good day,

tara

almost 36 weeks!

which is what my doc considers full term! wow!
getting bigger, and bigger, and bigger!


and here are my cool new "dressy" shoes. notice the feet already swelling out of them at 7 am this morning! sweet!


all in all i feel just fine, just large and uncomfortable. who knows when this little man will come. the waiting game has definitely begun and we are so very excited!

tara

doc appt

just wanted to update everyone on the doc appt today. Jordan is doin' great! He's about 5.5 lbs and did not enjoy the doctor trying estimate his size. he moved around like crazy after that was over with! She guessed that he'd be in the "high 7's" at birth. that is a-ok with me. i was getting frightened about having a 10 lb baby...but he's actually quite normal size which is good news. i haven't made a lot of progress...but she said i was slightly effaced. any change is good as far as i'm concerned. SO looks like he won't be here anytime in the near future...but 4 or 5 weeks is ok. i think i can manage that long. swelling is still very much there but no high blood pressure so that's ok.
WELL, just wanted to post a little update.

th

35 weeks...

Your baby's getting big. He weighs over 5 pounds and is just over 18 inches long. Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

i agree..he's getting big! i got a glimpse in the dressing room yesterday and i really didn't recognize myself. (was buying last minute stuff...and some comfy clothes for these last few weeks)

i'm down to no shoes now. bought two pair of house slippers. one i call my "dressy" pair....they're just black and not as noticeable. the others are bright blue and they're my casual pair. i'm seriously going to be wearing them from here on out. kinda sad. i'll hafta post some pics.

doc appt today...will keep everyone posted. will be nice to see if we're progressing any!

happy thursday,
tara and big ole baby jordan!

weekend...

we had a good but busy weekend. on friday we went to target and got carseats for my car and asah's truck....so now we can officially transport jordan safely! yay. those things are hard to figure out but the hospital installs them so we're going to go get them properly "installed" in the next couple weeks (just in case j decides to come early!)
saturday was a leadership retreat for crossroads. asah kind of headed that up. it was incredible! so many of our leaders turned out and the speaker was really good. it was at solomon episcopal retreat center about 25 min from hammond. at lunch the rest of the day was open for all church members to come out and enjoy fishing, volleyball, food, basketball, etc. we stayed out there until around six! a great time of fellowship.
today's worship service was awesome...we had so many new visitors. that has been the "norm" lately though. it is so exciting to be a part of a church that consistenly has visitors and is growing! so refreshing.....
this afternoon we kind of crashed. well, i did. asah had another paper to type for school.
WELL, we're down to about 40 days. 12 until full term! woah.
have a good week everybody!

a&t

34 week update

Your baby now weighs about 5 pounds and is probably almost 18 inches long. His fat layers — which he'll need to regulate his body temperature once he's born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His central nervous system is still maturing and his lungs are well developed by now. If you've been nervous about going into preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that 99 percent of babies this age can survive outside the womb — and most have no major long-term problems related to prematurity.

nice feet

i took a pic of my feet the other day. this was actually a good day. they look like marshmallow feet most of the time. i'm down to my tennis shoes (practically unlaced) and another pair of slip on shoes 2 sizes bigger than i normally wear. wow.
my doc says it's totally normal so i'm not worried. its just so darn funny looking.




i used to have ankles, i promise!

shower @ Crossroads!

okay i'm attempting this post again. yesterdays got eaten.
i had a wonderful time at the shower last sunday! jordan really racked up and i'll hafta post some pics of the gifts....incredible!
anyway, here are some pics.


mom and i


food line. see the tree in the middle? it was really cute and hanging on it were pacifiers, rattles, etc. neat idea!


we played the game where you "guess how big tara's belly is". one girl got it dead on!


measuring the ribbon for tara's belly!


opening gifts!

wk 33 update!

Starting at about week 26, your baby has slept and awoken at regular intervals. He closes his eyes when he sleeps, and he'll even dream during the last month before birth. No one knows what babies dream about in the womb, but they show reactions ranging from frowns and smiles to crying and kicking. Asleep or awake, you may feel the kicks in a new place around now--in your rib cage-as he moves into the head-down position where he'll probably stay until birth.

sweet. we have dreams now! i wonder what a baby whos only known 8 months of being inside mommy dreams about? crazy!

happy weekend!

tara

ash wednesday and a surprise shower!

so yesterday was different in several ways....first of all i guess i did not realize it was ash wednesday....Catholicism is HUGE here and i should have known. my first clue was at the doc's office..one of the nurses had the ashes on her forehead and i thought it was a bruise or she burned herself with the curling iron. i almost asked what happened and i'm so glad i didn't!!! then i kept seeing people all over town with the ashes...out to lunch, at the coffee shop, etc. it was just really really different for me.

so last night asah kept asking if i was going to small group. i really really didn't feel up to it and staying home on the couch sounded MUCH better, but he kept insisting i go. i was getting a little irritated because i thought to myself, doesn't he understand how tired i am after working all day and can't i just skip tonight??? WELL, i'm glad i didn't because our middle school girls small group had planned a surprise shower for us! so cute! they had blue and white streamers everywhere and lots of yummy snacks. jordan got some nice things and i was very surprised! then i felt bad for being upset at asah for making me go...oh, well!

well it's time for me to get to work...just wanted to update on yesterday's eventful day,

tara

due NEXT month!!

so, its officially march. yikes! i guess we're getting really close now....in fact, i know it. Doc's appt today, he can come anywhere from 3-7 weeks from now. wow. to hear it put that way makes it seem so close! we are so ready to meet jordan but want it to be on his timing...so whenever he decides to appear is just fine with us!
the doctor said he is lookin great...i like these every 2 week visits, very reassuring. we'll move to one week visits after the next one and they'll start checking my progress to see how close to labor i am. wow wow wow!
WELL, happy wednesday and MARCH to all!

love,
a&t