Just Saying Hi

I fully intended to do a blog post as soon as I woke up this morning, but it has been a constant hustle and bustle in my room since about 8 a.m. Love it! Honestly, there is not much to report and I am extremely happy to say that. The baby and I were just hooked up to the monitor for over an hour and he or she is doing great. His or her heart rate was a little higher than normal (base line in the 130's instead of 120's), but it is nothing to worry about. He or she just may have been a little more active during this monitoring than others. It could also have something to do with the fact that I was extremely warm during the hour I was on the monitor.

Ok, so I started writing this post around 10 a.m. this morning and am just now getting back onto the blog. I have had several visitors today, which I am extremely grateful for. It made my afternoon go by extremely fast and it was so good to see everyone that stopped by today. Thank you for all the gifts, lunch, and just the chance to catch up. I have to make mention of the cutest IU hand knitted sweater we received today from the Livermore's. Baby Hunt is going to be ready to tailgate next fall and cheer on the Hoosiers. Thank you so much for the darling gift.

I also had a great visit with Lindsay Smith today. Just a quick background on how we know Lindsay.....Lindsay and I know each other from Crystal Lake, but she is also friends with Jaime and Mike so I get to see her from time to time at showers, etc. Well, Lindsay and Pat just had twin girls 5 weeks ago and have spent a lot of time here at Prentice as Addison and Abigail were born at 33 weeks and 2 days. It was so reassuring to see Lindsay and hear all about their experience and their day to day routine with 2 daughters in NICU. She answered a ton of questions that I had and made me feel 100% better about the experience we are going through. Her visit really meant alot and I am looking forward to another one.....I also got to meet Addison, who is absolutely adorable and look forward to meeting Abigail sometime in the next couple of days. She is still in NICU and Lindsay promised me a visit, which I am so excited about. Both girls are doing great and I truly appreciate the surprise visit, all the advice, and just hearing about all they went through.

There are two questions that I often get asked when people call or visit so I thought I would just write about them. The first, and not necessarily in this order, is "how is the food?" Actually, it is pretty good. Now, not every meal I have eaten has been hospital food, but those that I have had are more than decent. Breakfast is breakfast, not much to report, especially when I am eating oatmeal or cereal. I have ordered lunch one day....turkey sandwich and a bowl of vegetable soup, which was so good. One night I had chicken and cheese quesadillas with guac and they were delicious. All in all, the food is not bad and I think I could eat it everyday actually. They have a ton on the menu so it would be easy to eat a variety throughout my stay here. I only have 2 complaints...one, it takes an hour to arrive and two, they give you your totally calorie intake with each meal. It is really unbelievable how many calories you can eat and not realize it. I would rather not know!

The second question, on a more serious note, is "why will the doctors induce me after 34 weeks and not let me go into labor naturally, even past 34 weeks?" At 34 weeks the risk of infection outweighs the risks associated with premature babies. Hence, the baby will develop better outside the womb than inside. Also, a baby at 34 weeks is mostly likely as developed as a full term baby, with the exception of the ability to suck, swallow, and breathe all at the same time. With that said, there is a pretty good chance that the baby will spend time in the NICU until he or she can feed on its own.

Since it has taken me all day to write this post, I am going to sign off now. I will try and be better tomorrow about getting a post out there in the morning. Again, thank you to everyone for their constant support and love. My room is getting brighter by the minute with all the flowers I have received, which makes it feel less like a hospital and more like "home." Love to everyone!