Sitting in the morning sun...I'll be sitting when the day is done

Thanks for all of your good wishes and comments following last week's post. The good news is that we are still pregnant AND the fNt test is negative! Yahoo! The more challenging news is that I'm on bedrest until this child comes out or week 36.

Saturday night, after a day of sleeping and resting, we went out to celebrate Sam's 35 birthday. I had a feeling that it would be the last of my public days for a while. During dinner, my back started aching. Just like it did with Seren. I knew something wasn't right. We put her to bed and by 9, I was having some contractions. They were getting stronger. I had about 6 in an hour. I called my doctor who told me to leave for the hospital.

Leaving was sad and scary. Sad because I worried that I'd be there for a long time or that I'd give birth at 28 weeks. I snuck into Seren's room, kissed her and cried big tears. But we had to leave.

I continued to have contractions all the way to the hospital. Due to insurance reasons, I can't deliver in my state of PA, we had to get to NJ. It was a long 30 minutes. All the way there, I kept saying, "We are NOT having this baby tonight. We are NOT having this baby tonight."

I was hoooked up to the non stress test and felt better at the hospital. I felt much safer there then at home. The contractions didn't stop so I was placed on 12 hours of magnesium sulfate. I reacted better to this dose then I did with Seren. (Laura S can attest to my state of mind last time) It slows down all of your muscles -including your uterus. So you feel really tired, groggy and almost drunk. I did start humming some hymns kinda loudly. Thank Goodness, the contractions stopped. It was a long night of monitoring and poking, blood being drawn, etc. And the whole time, I can hear women laboring in the rooms next door. Excited husbands were pacing on cell phones sending updates to friends and family. It was odd trying so hard to keep our son IN when everyone else wanted the babies OUT.

I had a few more painful contractions while there but they would stop. I am now at home. Sitting and taking anti-contraction medication every 6 hours. I am grateful for every day. And I'm grateful to be with my family at home. So much better than at the hospital. And I can shower and go up and down stairs two times a day. As my doctor said, "You aren't walking on eggshells...but you shouldn't be walking."

The most challenging part, right now, is explaining to Seren what is going on. The biggest blessing was the fact that my in-laws were visiting from MI this past weekend. They were able to care for Seren (and me) when we were in the hospital. But it was still scary to wake up- mom and dad weren't there! And they didn't say goodbye! The poor thing became a bit unglued. Where were we? Why was mom in the hospital? She looked very nervous when she arrived at the hospital. "Do you have boo-boos, Mom? What is wrong? Are you upset, Mom?"

So for now, I have to get used to staying pregnant laying down and not really being able to be an active Mom. But the longer I can sit here, the better the outcome for our son.

I am working from home and we are all juggling and managing. But man, we need a NAME, quick! And what the heck do we do about circumcision? And where did we put those blue clothes?