Today Chad and I went to have another ultrasound. The purpose was 1) to get an idea of Gabriel's size because of my gestational diabetes and 2) to try to see if the palate is impacted by the bilateral clefts.
So, item number 1. I will be 34 weeks pregnant on Friday. According to my Baby Center updates, the baby should weigh 4 3/4 pounds. The ultrasound today declared that Gabriel is measuring 37 weeks and weighs over 6 1/2 pounds!!! Big baby!! Probably a good thing I am going to have a scheduled C-Section because our doc told us I should plan on carrying Gabriel until 39 or the full 40 weeks. I have a feeling I am not going to be able to walk soon!!! By the way, we had an ultrasound the day I was induced to have Ethan and it declared Ethan to weigh 9 1/2 pounds. As stated in a previous post, he came out around 11 pounds - so I don't hold much stock in what the ultrasound declares!!
That brings us to item number 2 - the reason you are probably reading this right now. Well, let me start by stating that everything else about our son is still as perfect as can be - so we are extremely happy about that. Since we found out at 20 weeks that Gabriel will be born with bilateral cleft lip, we have been hoping for the best while preparing for the worst. Turns out, the worst is pretty much what we are up against.
The two clefts in the lip are complete, meaning they go all the way up and into the nose. It appears that the premaxilla (the part of the upper jawline directly below the nose) is protruding and in line with the end of his nose. This is not terribly uncommon in BLCLP babies, but does make the reconstruction more challenging. It was also determined today that there are two wide openings in the palate. This will present more unique challenges where feeding is concerned.
There are still unknowns though. For instance, the nostrils appear to be well formed, so hopefully nose reconstruction will not be necessary. We still don't know how much of the palate is missing. It could be just the hard palate. It could be the hard and soft palate with a small part still intact down the middle. It could be the entire palate all together. These are things that we will just have to wait until he is born to know for sure.
What I personally know for sure, however, is that our son will have quite a challenging first year, and possibly years beyond that. But more importantly, when I saw him today in the ultrasound, the only thing I could see was love. He is so incredibly beautiful and we are so blessed to have been given him as a gift. I will always wish my Gabriel didn't have to go through all this, but I would never wish him any other way. He is ours. The life and the light inside of me and I can't wait to meet him!
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Quite the predicament indeed.
Because there hasn't been enough drama in this pregnancy (enter sarcasm here), I am so not happy to announce that about a month ago I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. But before I go on about that, let me give you a little background first.
I make big babies. I weighed 8 pounds 10 ounces when I was born. My husband weighed in at a whopping 11 pounds 12 ounces (kudos to my mother-in-law for having him naturally)!!! So, when Ethan came into this world around 11 pounds, I don't suppose I was really surprised. I say around 11 pounds because after 23 hours of labor, when my doctor decided he wasn't coming out the natural way, I had a C-Section. Chad saw the nurses put E on the scale and it read 11 pounds 2 ounces. They said, "that can't be right", messed with some buttons, put him back on and declared him to weigh 10 pounds 10 ounces. The next morning when the pediatrician came to visit me, he indicated that one of the scales must be wrong because he had E weighing 11 pounds 5 ounces that morning!!! So, around 11 pounds.
Because of that, I was supposed to have Gabriel a couple weeks early in a scheduled C-Section the week of Thanksgiving. Then we found out about the clefts. My doc told me at that time that our best chance of keeping him out of the NICU and having him be able to eat without much issue was to not deliver him until he was full term (40 weeks). Well, I went 41 weeks with E, so I figured why not? If it meant less chance for the NICU and possibly not having to worry about my son not coming home the same time as me - I was all for it.
Then came the gestational diabetes. I had my first appointment with my doc since being diagnosed today. While I have been doing exceptionally well at keeping my blood sugar under control, there are still many risks that can impact the child of a mother with diabetes. Some include, respiratory distress, excessive birth weight with larger than average heads and shoulders, hypoglycemia, jaundice, type 2 diabetes later in life, and those we do not speak of. Because of these risks, my doc would normally deliver these babies at 37 - 40 weeks and not a day over.
So do you see the predicament here? Either we wait the full 40 weeks for the clefts or we deliver early to reduce the possible risks as a result of the diabetes. I am putting my trust into a man who I believe will do the best thing for my child, but I do have to wonder what the 'best thing' is. Either way, I now have to see my doc once a week to keep close tabs on the diabetes, how big Gabriel is getting, and any additional drama that might be thrown our way.
By the way, when I was pregnant with E, he always measured one week ahead of where he was supposed to. Gabriel today measures three weeks ahead!!!! Big baby coming!!!! I just wish I knew when...
I make big babies. I weighed 8 pounds 10 ounces when I was born. My husband weighed in at a whopping 11 pounds 12 ounces (kudos to my mother-in-law for having him naturally)!!! So, when Ethan came into this world around 11 pounds, I don't suppose I was really surprised. I say around 11 pounds because after 23 hours of labor, when my doctor decided he wasn't coming out the natural way, I had a C-Section. Chad saw the nurses put E on the scale and it read 11 pounds 2 ounces. They said, "that can't be right", messed with some buttons, put him back on and declared him to weigh 10 pounds 10 ounces. The next morning when the pediatrician came to visit me, he indicated that one of the scales must be wrong because he had E weighing 11 pounds 5 ounces that morning!!! So, around 11 pounds.
Because of that, I was supposed to have Gabriel a couple weeks early in a scheduled C-Section the week of Thanksgiving. Then we found out about the clefts. My doc told me at that time that our best chance of keeping him out of the NICU and having him be able to eat without much issue was to not deliver him until he was full term (40 weeks). Well, I went 41 weeks with E, so I figured why not? If it meant less chance for the NICU and possibly not having to worry about my son not coming home the same time as me - I was all for it.
Then came the gestational diabetes. I had my first appointment with my doc since being diagnosed today. While I have been doing exceptionally well at keeping my blood sugar under control, there are still many risks that can impact the child of a mother with diabetes. Some include, respiratory distress, excessive birth weight with larger than average heads and shoulders, hypoglycemia, jaundice, type 2 diabetes later in life, and those we do not speak of. Because of these risks, my doc would normally deliver these babies at 37 - 40 weeks and not a day over.
So do you see the predicament here? Either we wait the full 40 weeks for the clefts or we deliver early to reduce the possible risks as a result of the diabetes. I am putting my trust into a man who I believe will do the best thing for my child, but I do have to wonder what the 'best thing' is. Either way, I now have to see my doc once a week to keep close tabs on the diabetes, how big Gabriel is getting, and any additional drama that might be thrown our way.
By the way, when I was pregnant with E, he always measured one week ahead of where he was supposed to. Gabriel today measures three weeks ahead!!!! Big baby coming!!!! I just wish I knew when...
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