Bed Rest and a New Toy

Long post ahead.  I guess I have a lot to say after being cooped up for a week!

Last weekend was such a perfect weekend.  I spent Friday night out shopping with my mom for some last-minute nursery items.  We had dinner at Quaker Steak, and dessert at Menchies.  It was a fun girls' night.  I spent the entirety of the rest of the weekend out at the pool with my sister.  And just a week ago on Sunday night I was sitting outside at a friend's house on a beautiful summer evening, chatting with four friends.  Three of us happen to be pregnant, and the other two have babies, so you can guess what the topics of conversation for the evening were.

At one point I mentioned how my doctor keeps telling me what a boring pregnancy I'm having, and that as far as pregnancy goes, the more boring, the better.  I told them about how happy about this I was because after having so much trouble getting pregnant, and so many hormonal problems, I was so worried that it would be a hard pregnancy.  

Well, I guess I jinxed myself that night. 

The following morning I had a weekly doctor's appointment.  My sister, who was still in town, came with me because we were going to take a little shopping trip to the farmer's market afterwards.  It was supposed to be a normal doctor's appointment, except that my doctor was out of town, so I was seeing a nurse practitioner I'd never seen before.  

Things were going along as smoothly as normal until she measured my stomach.  At every single appointment before this one, my doctor has smiled at me after measuring and says, "right on the money!"  as she helps my now gigantic body sit back upright.  But at this appointment, the nurse practitioner got a puzzled look on her face, and then proceeded to measure me about 3-4 more times.  She finally explained that I was measuring the same or smaller than I had last week.  Then she ordered an ultrasound, just to be safe. 

The ultrasound was the best part of the appointment, because obviously it's always fun to get to see my baby unexpectedly.  And since my sister was in the waiting room, we were able to call her back so that she could see the baby too.  

You can sort of see half of her face in this picture...

Afterwards, Julie and I nervously sat in the little waiting area outside the ultrasound room to speak with the doctor.  I was freaking out.  They had mentioned that I could be losing fluid, which of course had me totally afraid they would have to induce me soon, when I haven't even started progressing or early labor at all.  I was afraid something was wrong with Scarlett.  I'm glad Julie was there to distract me and talk me off of the ledge.  

The CNP finally came back, and this is exactly what she said: "Well, I'm afraid we're going to have to end your [PAUSE] social life for awhile."  Way to give me a heart attack, lady!  I thought you were going to say "pregnancy!"  Meaning that you were going to send me to the hospital to be induced.  Anyway, she went on to explain that Scarlett's abdomen was measuring a little smaller than they'd like to see, so I was being put on bed rest as a preventative measure.  I would also be receiving weekly or twice weekly non stress tests.  

Although bed rest was not something I was excited about, I was glad it was purely preventative, and it really didn't sound too serious to me. I was just thankful nothing major was wrong.  

Fast forward to today, and I have been on bed rest for almost a week...possibly the longest week of my life!  

I will admit, it has had its perks.  I've had an excuse to be lazy and catch up on some of my favorite shows that I was too busy to watch during the fall and spring semesters.  I've read a lot of baby books, and feel a little more ready.  Luke has done more around the house than in 5 years of marriage, and I'm so thankful for him right now.  My mom has also helped out a lot around the house, and Luke's mom and a family friend have made delicious meals for us since I was told specifically, "no cooking."  

I've been trying to be positive about it, and look at it as the last really relaxing time I'll have for many, many years.  And mostly it hasn't been all bad.  I just keep thinking of all the women who have high risk pregnancies and have to be on bed rest for months at a time!  I don't know how they do it, and I'm so thankful that my pregnancy hasn't been that way. 

However, yesterday I cracked, just a bit.  I'd say the worst part of bed rest is the loneliness and lack of outside human contact.  And since Luke works basically around the clock in the summer, it has been a lonely 7 days.  I laid down in the afternoon and could feel those hormones bubbling up, making me feel about to explode.  And I just couldn't hold it in.  I thought of how I had people I wanted to visit and things I wanted to do before Scarlett gets here.  And for heaven sake, I just want to be able to get up and load the dishwasher or sweep the carpet!  

I cracked after 6 days of bed rest, so I guess that shows you how much of a wuss I am.  But really, it is kind of a bummer during the last few weeks before everything in life is about to change. 

I had my first non stress test on Thursday, and Scarlett did great.  My instincts tell me that absolutely nothing is wrong, and that Scarlett is just petite.  I barely weighed above 5 lbs when I was born at 38 weeks, so I'm not surprised that Scarlett is teeny tiny as well.  I also think that the CNP and my regular doctor probably don't measure exactly the same way, and that maybe Scarlett's position has something to do with the measurement being off.  I don't even see how being on bed rest has anything to do with Scarlett measuring small.  It even makes me annoyed at how sue-happy this country is, and how doctor's have to be so careful that they take every preventative measure so as not to get sued if something goes wrong.

But mostly, I just want Scarlett to be strong and healthy when she's born.  So as unnecessary as this all feels, I would never want to do anything that could hurt her.  So I'll go along with this, just in case.  Better safe than sorry. 

I have an appointment tomorrow at 11, and I absolutely can't wait to see my regular OB and see what she has to say about all of this.  I'm hoping everything will measure right on, and that my non stress test will go perfectly like the one on Thursday.  And I'm hoping she clears me from bed rest.  Luke and I have a lot of fun 4th of July plans, and then our anniversary the week after that, and I was really hoping it would be a couple of weeks to cherish before life changes forever.  If I do not get cleared, then I guess I will be hanging out at a lot of picnics this week in a lawn chair with my feet elevated!  Because staying in this couch is starting to feel a little claustrophobic!  

Gosh, I sound like a whiner!  I really am so thankful that it's been such a smooth pregnancy so far, and that even now, this is such a minor issue in the grand scheme of things.

I snuck out of my prison last night and had a little "bed rest cheat" with Luke and JC, because we decided that a nice camera would be a good investment now that Scarlett is almost here!  (I stayed in the car most of the time, and was only on my feet for a little while, so I didn't feel too guilty). JC helped us pick out the perfect camera, a Nikon D3100, and I am so excited!  A trip to Menchies followed, and after a week spent on the couch, it felt like the most exciting outing ever!  

So hopefully I will get cleared from bed rest tomorrow! But in the meantime, I've been having fun experimenting with our new "toy."  Here is the vast array of interesting subjects that can be seen from the couch:

Our obese cat who has lately taken up residence in this little basket filled with a soft blanket under the coffee table.  (She has been on a "diet" forever, and I'm starting to think genetics are just against her.)

 This not-so-fat cat, who perches herself on top of the couch all day, every day lately.

My midnight snack of choice (before pregnancy I would practically gag at the thought of Fruit Loops)

And the girly touch I put on the hat that Luke bought for Scarlett.  

I am dying...DYING...to take this thing out into the world and get some real pictures of fun things.  But for now I guess I'm stuck with pictures of cats, food, and random inanimate objects.  

Oh well, it won't be long before Scarlett is the main subject of our photos!  I'll be full term tomorrow, and I've had a few painful contractions today.  So hopefully I'm slowly but surely making progress. I wouldn't mind if she decided to come a little early now that I'm full term, especially if I find out I'll still have to be on bed rest after tomorrow!