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Notepad's OB information

Post 81

AlsoRan80

Very dear amy,
Both K and I have diabetes, and we both have to take medication for it.

We take a sweetener called Canderal. We do not eat Jams or sugars or marmalades. I think if you are going to have a sugar, have one teaspoon of honey a day - that at least is a natural sugar. We try to be sensible about fruit - like twelve grapes have an enormous amount of sugar in tnem, and yet we both used to eat pounds of them.

It really is jolly bad luck. but check everything you eat and see what amount of "hidden" sugar there is in it.

We have porridge every morning because there is sugar in every cereal.I have also read that eating porridge is a good way to counteract the effect of diabetes. I might add that I have lost 10 kilos over the last year.so it does work. If I do have bread I put the slightest whiff of pure butter onit. I do not have a butter substitute because once again I read that all the goodness in milk is in the cream and when we have skimmed milk it means that we take out the vitamins and the minerals.
Incidentally I have also started having a goats milk soft cheese every day. I know every doctor would laugh themselves silly, about it, but it truly does help my health.
Have courage mky dear sweet friend.

with much affection to you all.

Christiane.
Alsoran80


Notepad's OB information

Post 82

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Thanks dearsmiley - smiley I do know what I'm supposed to be eating, but thank you for the suggestionssmiley - hug That's part of the frustration--what I'm allowed, and how much of it I'm allowed, don't go well at all with gaining weightsmiley - laugh Normally, I'd be perfectly happy to have lost 9 pounds in 4 weeks! And, if you take into account that Notepad is growing and gaining, as are the various "support systems" the bit that's just me has likely lost more than that. Makes the new maternity jeans I got for Christmas a bit loose,though...


Notepad's OB information

Post 83

paulh, vaccinated against the Omigod Variant

Just figuring out how to not eat in the evening will go a long way toward helping with my weight. Plus, I have stopped drinking the orange juice and cranberry juice that I had hoped would boost my HDLs. If they are pushing up my blood sugar, it's not worth it.

AT80, I didn't know there was so much sugar in grapes. I had been eating some every night because of the French Paradox effect (resveratrol). I'll see if I can gradually withdraw from them.


Notepad's OB information

Post 84

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Pregnancy is at 34 weeks.

Weight-- 184. Uterus is now at 32 cm.

Blood pressure-- 116 over 68.

Heard the baby's heartbeat-- 140ish beats per minute.

Notepad is head down.

I did better with my blood sugars, so no insulin needed. I do need to remember to call in my test strip refill, though--I'm down to my last vial, which will last me a week. Lancets I have coming out my ears, but I figure sharp sterile things are always handy to have.

Next appointment is January 26, and then we switch to once a week. 36 weeks is an important milestone 'round these parts--being in a small area, the maternity department is rather small. It was made abundantly clear, at the first childbirth class last week (taking the classes again because not only has it been 5.5 years since I've done this, but last time I didn't pay much attention to techniques and such, because I wasn't going to *do* natural, I was going to have an epidural. Faith had different ideassmiley - winkeye) that if anything happens before 36 weeks, mama gets flown to Medford. If mama is at 4 cm or more, baby gets delivered, stabilized, and flown to Medford, and mama follows by car once mama is released from the hospital. I don't want Notepad to be over 2 hours away...


Notepad's OB information

Post 85

AlsoRan80

Very dear Amy. Tom and Faith,

I do hope that you had a good and blessed Christmas.

We have missed your news so thank you for giving it to us. glad to know that events are hapenning as they should.

Gosh they certainly are organised as to the date of delivery with regards to mother and child.

Has it been very cold and snowy where you are

With much affection

Christiane and K.
Also Ran80


Notepad's OB information

Post 86

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

It had been quite cold for awhile--cold enough that the ministry that Tom works with has been running an emergency shelter (a woman died of exposure the weekend before it opened) but it's gotten warmer again. It doesn't get cold enough to snow here (well, there was some snow, but it only snowed for about an hour, and the ground was wet, so it didn't stick to anything) because the ocean is just a few blocks away.

The whole accurate-date-thing is mostly because I started noting on the calendar when my menstrual cycle started right before I got pregnant, so we know exactly when Notepad startedsmiley - laugh (Similar thing with Faith, actually--I'd had a plan, because Tom had been out of town, but things got messy the day he was due back...) I'm just hoping Notepad holds on for at least 2 more weeks, though longer would be nice (not a lot longer) so I have a chance to get things ready for her without working, as well--my last day of work will be January 30.


Notepad's OB information

Post 87

paulh, vaccinated against the Omigod Variant

36 weeks is almost 9 months. Notepad would probably be all right any time he/she decided to come out. smiley - smiley


Notepad's OB information

Post 88

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Yep--anything past 36 weeks is considered early but full-termsmiley - ok

Faith decided we needed to measure my belly last night, and it's 42 inchessmiley - laugh


Notepad's OB information

Post 89

paulh, vaccinated against the Omigod Variant

That's even bigger than mine--but then, there are two of you to acocunt for it. smiley - winkeye


Notepad's OB information

Post 90

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

The sad thing is, that's what my waist was before I got pregnant (distributed just a *bit* differentlysmiley - winkeye)--proof, as if the numbers on here and the size of my legs aren't enough, that I've lost weight!


Notepad's OB information

Post 91

paulh, vaccinated against the Omigod Variant

I'm having trouble understanding this point, Amy. How is it sad to lose weight, giving that every doctor on the planet is part of the conspiracy to make us all reed-thin? smiley - sadface They are not succeeding, of course, but carrying a few less pounds around is hardly a bad thing. Keeping them off is much harder, though. smiley - sadface


Notepad's OB information

Post 92

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

It's bad because, by the end of a pregnancy, there's an average of 20 pounds gained--baby, placenta, amniotic fluid, uterine growth, and greater blood volume, most of which, of course, leaves with the baby. There should also be reserves built up for breastfeeding (yeah, reserves=fat...). If I *weren't* pregnant, I'd be more than happy to have lost this weight, especially if you figure that Notepad and her support systems, at this point, are about 15 pounds, which would mean I've lost 20 pounds in 8 months (if I weren't pregnant), a nice sustainable loss rate. Though most of the weight loss has been in the last month...


Notepad's OB information

Post 93

minichessemouse - Ahoy there me barnacle!

Amy, would the weight loss have anything to do with the diabeties?

hope Notepad is ok in there.

minismiley - mouse


Notepad's OB information

Post 94

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Oh, the weightloss is directly related to the diabetes diet--I'm not exactly allowed fattening thingssmiley - laugh Though I did realize last night that I'll probably gain weight a bit easier once I'm off work after the 30th of this month, because on school days, my lunch is generally 2 cups of either raw spinach or a lettuce mix, a tablespoon of salad dressing, and a basic sandwich--the salad doesn't give me a whole ot of calories, but I only work 3.5 hours a day, so I get all of 10 minutes to eat (though, since I've 10 minutes to fill before I have students to work with after my break, I generally finish my food in the classroom, unless the main student I have in the afternoon is absent, in which case I continue hanging out in the teacher's lounge until I'm donesmiley - winkeye)

Speaks volumes as to my eating habits before, thoughsmiley - erm And at least the weightloss had slowed down by the last appointment--1 pound in 2 weeks instead of a pound a week.


Notepad's OB information

Post 95

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Oh, and Notepad's doing great--it's just me that's losing the weight!


Notepad's OB information

Post 96

paulh, vaccinated against the Omigod Variant

I find it necessary to spread food out over the course of the day, since I have to take medication with food four times between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. That means that all meals are fairly light, and I hate not being able to get full, but at least I don't have to wait more than two or three hours until the next snack or meal.


Notepad's OB information

Post 97

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

I'm required to eat 6 times a day--breakfast, morning snack, lunch (that 10 minutes most of the week), afternoon snack, dinner, bedtime snack--and need to eat every 2-3 hours (like I tell Tom, think of me as a nursing baby, 'cause you time from starting to eatsmiley - winkeye) to keep my blood sugar as level as possible. I also have to eat protein every time I eat--you'd think, with all the cheese and eggs I've been eating, as the cheapest source (on the diabetes food pyramid, beans/pulses are starches, not protein, so the picking out of beans by folks on low-carb diets finally makes sense to me) that I'd not be losing... What's really annoying is when I'm not hungry, but the clock insists I eat.


Notepad's OB information--1/26/08

Post 98

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Why didn't I notice that the last one had no datesmiley - huh

Anyway...

Pregnancy is at 36 weeks--no more worries about having to go 2 hours awaysmiley - magic

Weight-- 184. (Well, actually, last time was 184.4, and this time was 183.9--only half a pound lost in 2 weeks, which is at least better than the pound-a-week I had been losing...) Uterus is now at 33 cm.

Blood pressure-- 135 over 75.

Heard the baby's heartbeat-- 130ish beats per minute.

Notepad is head down.I think. M didn't say, and I forgot to ask.

Last week's childbirth class was about interventions and also the hospital tour. Nice rooms, and they are labor/delivery/recovery/stay-in rooms, so once I'm in, I don't have to change rooms until I'm released. There's a roll-away bed for Tom, too--and the room is private, not shared (well, except for Notepad, but that's differentsmiley - winkeye) Last time, Faith and I shared a room with another lady and baby, and the stay-in room was a different room than the labor/delivery room (which I didn't notice much of, since I wasn't in there very long!) Plus fathers could only stay overnight if the other bed was unoccupied--we ended up evicting a father... And the bed has inflatable lumbar supportsmiley - bigeyes (All the moms-to-be in the class got to get on the bed and be hooked up to the monitor, and get a printout of baby's heartrate.) There'll be another mattress put on top once the baby's delivered, though, so the lumbar support probably will be moot once all 3 stages of labor are over. Because of some of the info in the interventions part of the class (and because I remember how much ahead of the curve kelli's latest was) I asked M, my midwife, how Notepad's been measuring, and if she thought I'd have to be induced early because of the diabetes and so forth. Notepad's been measuring about a week behind, consistently, (which is probably why both ultrasounds gave a duedate 5 days later than my last menstrual period does, which was noted on the calendar and not just pulled from memory, so that's the date M's been working with) which, since Faith was dainty, just seems to be how I grow babies. Anyway, the upshot is that, unless I'm late, I shouldn't need inducingsmiley - smiley

I've pre-registered at the hospital, so all I need to do is hand over a little yellow card instead of trying to fill out paperwork when I'm a wee bit distracted (or have Tom do it when he's a bit less distracted, but still pre-occupied)smiley - winkeye

Next appointment is 2/3/09--I'm now at the point where I'll be going in every week. I'll be meeting the OB for the county, in case he's the one on call when I go into labor. There's supposed to be another OB coming in before my duedate, so I may be meeting him, as well. (Yes, then the county I live in will only have 2 OBs and 2 certified nurse midwives that I'm aware of once the other doctor arrives--M is the only one that takes MediCal, however, and I'm not entirely certain the other *is* a CNM...)


Notepad's OB information--1/26/08

Post 99

Amy Pawloski, aka 'paper lady'--'Mufflewhump'?!? click here to find out... (ACE)

Hm, looks like the ladies were right...

When I walked into the teacher's lounge yesterday for lunch, the almost unanimous consensus was that I looked like Notepad (not known as that offline, of coursesmiley - winkeye) had dropped. I didn't see it, though I didn't with Faith, either. But this morning, while getting dressed, I noticed that the flat-spot-that-used-to-be-a-bellybutton is no longer at the peak of the bump--it's just a little above.

I know that, with a first pregnancy, you can drop up to 4 weeks before childbirth, which would be about right. But subsequent births (which this is, of course) are closer to the birthdate. So I guess I'll be stepping up the following of the to-do list I made myself this past weekend--especially the get-the-carseat item, and the wash-the-baby-clothes one.

*sees newspaper as Tom sits with it* Octuplets?!? smiley - yikes


Notepad's OB information--1/26/08

Post 100

AlsoRan80

Very dear Amy, Tom, Faith and Notepad!!

Great to hear your news. our thoughts will be with you all the time and I hope that the birth will be as painless as possible and that Notepad will be all you desire.

A very happy and blessed New year to you all.

Very much affection

~Christiane and Keith. Ar80


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Notepad's OB information

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