. : Preterm Labor : .

So yes, I have technically been in labor since last sunday th 2nd of december! I woke up and had an unusual amount of bleeding so I called the aanswering service to page my doctor and kept preparing my primary lesson. He called a half hour later and said he was delivering a baby and that we should meet him down there at the hospital :/ So I got my primary class covered and we went down to labor and delivery.

When we got there the nurses put us in a small temporary room and got us settled in to wait for the doctor. I had a heart rate monitor on for the baby and one for contractions. The doc came in and explained the many things the bleeding could have been caused by and asked some other questions and then said that everything the monitoring had shown so far was good and that the babies heart rate was spiking really well and that I was having no contractions and the last thing he was going to do was check me to see if I was dilating.... and I was already at a two. So he kept me awhile longer to monitor and make sure I wasn't having contractions and to give me a betamethasone steroid shot for the babies lung development incase she decided to come early. (Assuming she's definatley coming early.) he let me go home but wanted to see me in the morning for the second betamethasone shot and to check me again. He said he has seen where some women will dilate early to a two and will stay like that and go full term! (Or they will at least only deliver a week or two early and I was so down with that idea:))

The next morning Kacen was getting ready for work and I was getting ready for my appointment. Kace had oxygen tanks to deliver and wasn't planning on coming to the appointment, but I thought I'd be funny and joke with him by saying " Oh but Kacen... what if I'm dilated to a 4 or 5 and having contractions and giong to have the baby and you HAVE to come." Little did I know I had jusst predicted part of the future... haha :/

We had gotten to the appointment and had all the monitors hooked up to me for the babies heart rate and for contractions. Kacen and I sat and watched half of Ice age before they unhooked me. When we first got into the room with the doctor he explained that I was having contractions every 11 minutes and he wanted to check me. . . I was dilated to a 4 and 100% Effaced. haha... what??? I couldn't feel any contractions... I had such an easy pregnancy so far... this just wasn't supposed to happen. He said he wanted us to go straight to labor and delivery and he'd meet us over there... He left the room and I broke down.

At this stage we were at 32 1/2 weeks. Not far along enough for me to be comfortable with having a baby yet! She still has a lot of growing to do:( So we checked into the hospital that morning. We were in a labor and delivery room and the nurses helped us get set up to an iv, gave me my second betamethasone steroid shot and helped us set goals for the rest of this pregnancy:) She showed me the window they would pass baby girl through incase we had her in that room. They would have had the whole NICU team in that room to start working on her as soon as she was born. I was so sad to think i wouldn't just be able to hold her right away:( but I was glad to know she was in good hands!

1. Stop the Labor
2. Move to a longterm room
3. Stay Pregnant another 3-4 weeks!

1. We never completely stopped the labor but we slowed it down so that now I'm contracting every hour or two instead of every 11 minutes:) 

2. Then on Tuesday afternoon I got to be moved to  a long term room instead of a delivery room 

3. Wednesday I was still at a 4 and since we live close to the hspital our doctor said he would let me go home on bedrest till baby comes:) I was glad to hear that because it seemed whenever I asked the nurses they were so sure I was going to have to stay in there till the baby arrived. It's been a week since then so we're hoping to make it a little longer.

That Friday My doc had set up another appointment to see him in the office so we went and was hooked up to the monitors once more. I wasn't feeling her as much as usual and was really nervous. It was a horrible visit:( The monitors weren't showing her heart rate spike like it should so we did an ultrasound to watch her movements and to measure her little body... She was measuring 32 weeks instead of almost 34 like we thought! and she didn't have any breathing motions yet like we thought she would. So now our goal is to DEFINATLEY keep her in for another 3 weeks!

PLUS... My doctor is on a cruise this week so we are praying that she doesn't come till he's back...

I am just so thankful she's stayed in there another week and we're hoping for at least another one! Who knows, we might even have a Christmas baby:)!!!