5 days until we meet you - Monday August 31st - 35 weeks + 2 days

Dear Baby Ethan,

We had a bit of a lame morning.  I woke up at 3 for my nifedipine.  I did not sleep well all night.  It was a very light, un-restful sleep.  Then I could not get back to sleep.  So, we did your monitoring a bit early.  As soon as I got up to go to the bathroom after the monitoring I saw some blood! Thank the Lord, it was not a lot.  There was a bit of bleeding from 4 - 5 am, then it seemed to stop.

It has been an interesting afternoon.  Apparently the NICU at Methodist Women;s Hospital is full and they have had to transfer babies to other hospitals in Omaha, Lincoln, and even Kansas City.  The NICUs in other hospitals in Omaha are getting full also.  If you are born tomorrow (at 35 weeks and 3 days), the hospital standard of care requires you to be monitored in the NICU for at least two days.  No one is in favor of having to transfer you away from where I am, where I cannot see you for several days.  So, my doctors have decided to push our delivery back to Saturday September 5^th.  We will be 36 weeks at that point, and not have to deal with a NICU stay unless you have issues.  If I have any serious issues they would certainly deliver you sooner.

I got a surprise visit from your Aunt, Anna, Ummichi, and Rose.   We have decided that Rose and Ummichi can go to Lincoln for Tuesday, Wednesday, and come back on Thursday afternoon.  Your Aunt Daisy has to go back to work next week.

So far we have spent 47 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 1 day until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it 35 weeks and two days!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Monday September 7th.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 13th.  Please help me to be safe during the c-section.

Your birthday will likely be September 5th!  Just 5 days!

Love you,

Mommy

2 days until we meet you - Sunday August 30th - 35 weeks + 1 day

Dear Baby Ethan,

It's Sunday today! I had a bit of a hard time sleeping last night.  My back is a bit sore.  So, I slept in until 9:30.  I won't get to do that for quite awhile once you arrive!

Two of my friends (Andrew and Anneliese) came by this afternoon with their little one year old.  They even brought some flowers!  It was great to chat with them.

Then your daddy, Rose, and Ummichi came over.  We had some dinner and played outside for a bit.  I can't believe we are down to our last days as a family of three!

So far we have spent 46 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 2 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.  Today is Saint Rose of Lima's Feast Day!

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it 35 weeks and a day!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.  Please help me to be safe during the c-section.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 2 days!

Love you,

Mommy

3 days until we meet you - Saturday August 29th - 35 weeks

Dear Baby Ethan,

We made it to 35 weeks! I am so thankful that you have had this time to grow.  This morning I had a hard time getting to bed after I took nifedipine at 3 am.  So we ended up doing your monitoring a bit early from 4-5.  Then one of the high risk doctors came by, and a medical student.

Then, your daddy ended up being close by getting one of the cars worked on.  So we had some tasty french toast together.  I had a pretty low key day reading and watching some TV.  I started reading the biography of Saint Catherine of Sienna by Sigrid Undset.

Your daddy, Rose, and Ummichi made it to the hospital around 7:30.  We had some dinner and Ummichi and I played with Rose.  Your daddy took a shower.  He had a busy day working on the cars.

I ended up reading quite a bit about babies born at 35 weeks.  It is so variable how well they do and how long they need to stay in the hospital.  I have been continually praying that you are in great shape when you are born.

So far we have spent 45 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 3 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it 35 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 3 days!

Love you,

Mommy

4 days until we meet you - Friday August 28th

Dear Baby Ethan,

It's Friday! Just one more work day for me after today.  I am praying that you and I are both going home one week from today.

Unfortunately my new IV spot is still quite sore.  It was actually even painful when the nurse was flushing it last night.  I was really hoping the IV spot would calm down.  I'm not sure that is going to happen though.

Your Aunt Daisy, Uncle Kevin, and Anna Beth came by.  They brought your Ummichi from Lincoln to stay with us for a bit.  It was great to see Anna again.  She's holding her head up very well now.  I have to get used to having a wee bobble headed baby again!

Then your daddy and Rose came by.  We ate dinner, daddy took a shower, and we went outside for a few minutes.  But, then it started misting!

After everyone left, my nurse Jenny came by.  Unfortunately my IV had entirely stopped flushing! Jenny was able to get an IV in quickly.  But, the location is less than ideal, it is in my wrist.  So, it is a bit sensitive.

So far we have spent 44 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 4 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to almost 35 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 4 days!

Love you,

Mommy

5 days until we meet you - Thursday August 27th

Dear Baby Ethan,

It's Thursday! Just one day until the weekend!  I decided to ask the Benedictines, Mary Queen of Apostles a group of nuns in Missouri to pray a novena for you starting on September 15th. I pray that you will be hope with us and doing great by then.  It might be a tougher time starting then because your Ummichi will be doing home to Liberal that day!

Mentally I am so ready to be out of this hospital.  But, I am starting to feel guilty about delivering you next week.  We have not had any bleeding issues since the 17th and 18th of August.  Even those were quite small.  I am hoping to talk to the high risk doctors about it.  It is Dr. Lovgren that is on today.  I spoke to Dr. Lovgren.  He feels strongly that the bleeding issues I had from weeks 28 to 35, when the lower part of the uterus was expanding, show that my placenta is a bit unstable.  He feels strongly 35 weeks should have been our due date for quite awhile because of my bleeding issues.  He understands that it would be good for you to have more days inside me.  But, you would be a health 35 weeks plus a few days.  If we wait too long and we have a bleed, and they have to cut through the placenta, you could lose a lot of blood.  A health younger baby is better off than a sick, anemic, older baby.  I spoke to your dad, we are going to leave the due date the same.  I definitely want this to be a planned calm delivery.  I would have rather you had all of the days possible.  But, I do not want either of us to have issues because we waited too long either.

Your daddy and Rose came by for a visit.  We had dinner, gave Rose a shower, and visited outside for a bit.

So far we have spent 43 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 5 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to almost 35 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 5 days!

Love you,

Mommy

6 days until we meet you - Wednesday August 26th

Dear Baby Ethan,

We have had a quiet few days.  Thank the Lord, we have not had any bleeding issues since last Tuesday.

It's hump day! Only three more work days after this.  I'm looking forward to getting to focus on you for awhile starting on Tuesday!

I met with one of the lactation nurses today as well as the nutritionist.  Apparently you will be fed every three hours.  I will be set up with a pumping kit to use in the hospital.  There will be some small vials that I am supposed to put my colostrum in.  I will be trying hand expression I'm sure to get that out.  If you are stable and going well, we can try feeding at the breast.

I found out you will likely have at least two bottles a day of Similac NeoSure for at least a month or two.  I have to call our insurance company tomorrow to find out how that works for us to buy it with the help of insurance.

The nutritionist indicated I would need to take DHA supplements (fish oil), because you will being born early.  You will be missing out on time in utero to develop your brain.  So you need a bit more DHA than most babies.

Your daddy and Rose came by for a bit. We had some dinner and went outside.

I had a rough evening after your daddy and Rose left. My IV looked a bit nasty so they took it out. They poked me FOUR times before they got a working one. It ended up taking several hours because the nurses had to leave and take care of other things. It's on the sensitive under side of my arm. Sleeping was rough trying not touch it. I'm hoping it calms down over the next couple days.  I had that IV from the 16th of August through the 26th, so just 10 days.  I am praying this last one will work

I do not want you to have to deal with being poked and prodded at the hospital.  I am feeling a bit guilty about delivering you next week given that we have not had any issues for the last week + now.

So far we have spent 42 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 8 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to 34 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 7 days!

Love you,

Mommy

7 days until we meet you - Tuesday August 25th

Dear Baby Ethan,

One week from now we get to meet you! I am so excited.  I am praying that you will be in good shape by then.  It is encouraging that you were doing a good job practicing breathing during our ultrasound yesterday.

I am down to my last four work days before maternity leave begins, and I get to focus on you for a bit.  Your daddy, Auntie Dainy, Uppuchen, and Rose came to spend a bit of time with me tonight.

So far we have spent 41 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 8 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to 34 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 8 days!

Love you,

Mommy

8 days until we meet you - Monday August 24th

Dear Baby Ethan,

They had to weigh me again today.  They do that every Monday here.  I am up to 163 :(.  I have gained 36 pounds so far.  I still think that is not too bad given that I have not been able to work out as I was last time.

Your growth scan showed that you are in the 58th percentile.  You weigh 5 pounds 8 ounces (2500 grams).  During the sonogram you were doing well practicing breathing movements.  You have lots of hair.  Your head is up and you are facing back.  The fluid is 13.6, no change.

Fluid last time on August 3, was 13.8, weight last time was 1800 grams (just over 4 pounds), 40%.

They also took my blood yesterday, and my platelets are finally getting better.  They are up to 130 from 11.

Your daddy came by for some dinner.  He forgot his cell phone, so he had to make an extra trip back.  I felt bad! He has a presentation tomorrow.

Rose is in Lincoln with our family there.  It looks like she is having a good time.  I miss her though, I'm excited to see her tonight!

So far we have spent 40 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 8 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to 34 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 8 days!

Love you,

Mommy

9 days until we meet you - Sunday August 23rd

Dear Baby Ethan,

I got a good night of sleep.  Things were quiet, and I am thankful we had another night with no issues.  We have not had any bleeding since Tuesday morning August 18th.  I am a bit depressed today.  It is very quiet here.  Your dad and Rose are with the family in Lincoln for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  I'm so sad to miss it.  But, it would not be safe for me to make that drive and be far away from a hospital if a bleed started in the middle of the drive.  We are also concerned that insurance could reject payment for my stay if I left.

Here are some pictures!

I did some online shopping today! I've been pretty good about staying away from that, but I am starting to see the end of the tunnel on being pregnant and getting to a normal life with you.  I am certainly thankful for every day that you get to grow inside me.  But, it has been a long road.

Your sister Rose is also staying in Lincoln for a few days.  Your daddy is feeling sick, so it is good he is getting a rest.  Rose should be back in Omaha on Tuesday night.  So, just a couple of days until I get to see her.

I got to have dinner with your daddy.  We went outside for a bit.  It was nice to get to chat with him for a bit.  We were figuring out our plan for the last weekend before you are here! I'm hoping he will be able to put in the outlet we need next to the treadmill.  I hope to get back to it once

So far we have spent 39 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 9 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to 34 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Upcoming Events.

We will likely get to see how your growth is this week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 9 days!

Love you,

Mommy

10 days until we meet you - Saturday August 22nd

Dear Baby Ethan,

We had a quiet night for the most part.  Around 4:30 am I felt a trickle and thought I might be bleeding.  But, the fluid was totally clear.  The doctors told me to let them know if I felt any other fluids come out, and we could do an ultrasound check.  They took my blood to make sure that I have some "typed" blood in the blood bank in case I need a transfusion.

Apparently it is quite a busy day at the hospital, they had already delivered 13 babies by 10 am! I had a hard time getting my medications.

So far we have spent 38 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just 10 days until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, we made it to 34 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of us to get able to go to church together on September 6th.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy are in town!  Auntie Dainey and Uppuchen are leaving next Wednesday.  Ummichi will be here until September 15th.  I am praying that you have been home a week or two by then.  They came by for a bit in the evening we were outside for just a bit, then everyone but your daddy all went to Lincoln.

Rose got some exciting ankle bracelets that jingle. So now we will always know where she is!

Your daddy stayed and watched a cute movie called echo with me. He was feeling a bit sick, so he did not stay the night.

Upcoming Events.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going next week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 10 days!

Love you,

Mommy

11 days until we meet you - Friday August 21st

Dear Baby Ethan,

We had a good quiet night.  I was actually able to get to sleep after taking my nifedipine at 3 am.  I did not end up taking graham crackers, so I did not have to get up to brush my teeth.  I might have to try that again tonight.

I spent some time today watching videos, and reading resources on pumping and breastfeeding preemie babies.  There were some great videos, and log sheets here http://health.ucsd.edu/specialties/obgyn/maternity/newborn/nicu/spin/parents/Pages/default.aspx

I pray that you will have a great suck, swallow, and breathe skills! But if not, I will need to figure out pumping.

I got another visit from Deacon Michael from church.  I so appreciate still being able to have the body of Christ while I am here at the hospital.  I pray Lord that we will get to have my baby Ethan with us so we can go as a family of four for my first service in a month and a half on Sunday September 6th!

Your Ummichi, Uppachen, and Auntie Dainy came by.  We had some snacks with them, and went to play outside a bit and show them where we hang out every night.  I sent home some of your new clothes people have given you with them.  I wanted to be sure they were all washed and ready to go for you!

I found a good blog post on good period dramas that are streaming on Netflix.  I watched "Death Comes to Pemberly", it was quite good!  I saved one episode for tomorrow.

So far we have spent 37 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, less than two weeks until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, almost 34 weeks!  Please be with my baby Ethan and help him to be strong and healthy.  Please help him to be able to go home with us on Friday September 4th.  I know he will have to be in the NICU for at least two days for monitoring.  Please help all of his

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here today!  Auntie Dainey and Uppuchen are leaving next Wednesday.  Ummichi will be here until September 15th.  I am praying that you have been hope a week or two by then.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going next week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 11 days!

Love you,

Mommy

12 days until we meet you - Thursday August 20th

Dear Baby Ethan,

We had another quiet night.  I had a tough time getting back to sleep after taking my nifedipine at 3 am.  I ended up staying up to read for a few hours.  Your sister Rose is a little heavy for her age. I have a bit of guilt about that.  I was reading a book about children and it talked about how babies that it is an indication that a baby is overfed if they spit alot.  Rose has always drooled a lot.  It is tough to not feed a baby that is crying though.  Perhaps I should have tried other things to calm her down rather than feeding.

I got to have a nice dinner with your daddy and Rose.  Rose and I then read some books while your daddy took a shower.  Rose played in the sink and got quite wet, as always.  Then we changed her and went outside for a bit around 8.  It was getting dark by then.  I can't believe it is fall!

Sad frownie face as Rose got tired!

So far we have spent 36 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, less than two weeks until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Thank you Lord that we have made it this far, almost 34 weeks!

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  Your Ummichi will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just TOMORROW, when you will be almost 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going next week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 12 days!

Love you,

Mommy

13 days until we meet you - Wednesday August 19th

Dear Baby Ethan,

Thank goodness we had a quiet night and morning.  No bleeding issues so far today.  The high risk doctor came by and said we really would push for the 9-1 delivery date, even if we happened to have another few small bleeds.

I had dinner with your daddy and Rose.

Then we went outside for a bit. We even saw an SUV we thought about buying. It was in rough shape though!

So far we have spent 35 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, less than two weeks until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma and help pumping and breast feeding to go well.  Saint Blaise, Saint Rose of Lima, Saint Antony please pray for my baby Ethan that he would stay inside until September 1st.

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  Your Ummichi will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just 1 day from today, when you will be almost 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going next week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 13 days!

Love you,

Mommy

14 days until we meet you - Tuesday August 18th

Dear Baby Ethan,

We had more bleeding issues this morning from 3:20 to about 5:20.  At 5:20 I went to the bathroom and a clot came out.  We have just had some spotting since then.  I am hoping this will not change any of our plans for you to be inside me at least until you are 35 weeks and 3 days.  Dr. Satpathy said we might even be able to push past our new delivery date if I don't have any more bleeds.  That seems unlikely that I won't have any more though.

I had my second steroid shot to help your lungs!  It sounds like this should help reduce chances of bowel issues and brain bleeds also according to this site.  Optimal benefit begins 24 hours after initiation of therapy and lasts 7 days.  However, it sounds like benefits go past the 7 day mark also.

I found out my neighbor Laura had her baby yesterday at 36 weeks, her baby still had some respiratory distress.  So, the baby had to go to the NICU.

It's a rainy day here in Omaha.  I am praying that our basement stays dry.  Apparently the basement had backups a few times due to tree roots.  We had the tree roots roto rootered before we bought the house.  We probably need to to it again next spring.

I spent an hour or so with your daddy and Rose.  We had a nice time having dinner, and then went outside for a bit.  It was chilly though! All of the train cooled things down.

So far we have spent 34 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just two weeks until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.   Dear Lord, please help Ethan's lungs, digestive tract, GI tract, bowels, eyes, ears, and all systems to be in great working order.  Please help him to not have asthma.

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  Your Ummichi will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just 2 days from today, when you will be almost 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going next week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 14 days!

Love you,

Mommy

15 days until we meet you - Monday August 17th

Dear Baby Ethan,

Unfortunately we had more bleeding issues this morning.  About 6 am when I got up to be weighed there was a trickle of blood.  That happened periodically for an hour or so.  I got up to go to the bathroom at 7:20 and a clot came out. There was just spotting by lunch time.

The doctors are concerned a big bleed is more likely now, so they want to deliver you at 35 weeks.  They are also going to give me the second round of steroid shots to help your lungs mature.  We are now scheduled to deliver you at 7 am on September 1st.

I enjoyed having a dance party with Rose and your dad. Rose also showed me her art from daycare.

So far we have spent 33 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, just a few weeks until we meet you! I am praying you stay in me that long, so you can be healthy and strong.

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  Your Ummichi will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just 3 days from today, when you will be almost 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going next week.  They will consider doing a scan of you next week, perhaps on Monday the 24th, to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 1st!  Just 15 days!

Love you,

Mommy

23 days until we meet you - Sunday August 16th

Dear Baby Ethan,

It's Sunday over here.  I was not able to watch Mass on EWTN today at 7 because I slept in a bit, and our EWTN channel is messed up.  I could hear part of it though.

I'm so glad that you are healthy, safe, and doing well.  It has now been over a week since we had an active bleed.  Although, the brown discharge only stopped yesterday.

I had to get a new iv today. My first one lasted 17 days, the second lasted for 9 days (from July 7 to July 16). This one is in a good location like my first, so I am hoping this one lasts awhile. I will probably have to get at least one more iv before you're born.

Your aunt daisy, uncle Kevin, and cousin Anna Beth came by. They found some clothes for Rose at garage sales.

Then I had some time with your daddy and Rose.

So far we have spent 32 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, less than a month until we meet you!

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  Your Ummichi will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just 4 days from today, when you will be almost 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going on August 31st, and potentially sooner to see if the placenta is still in the way.  I am going to ask this week if we can do a growth scan on Monday the 24th to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 8th!  Just 23 days!

Love you,

Mommy

25 days until we meet you - Friday August 14th

Dear Baby Ethan,

Yay, it's Friday! Tomorrow is your daddy and I's 6th anniversary.  Deacon Michael came by from St. Robert Bellarmine.  I found out that St. Robert's televises their 8:30 masses every week day.  I will have to check it out.

I'm a bit depressed that I am going to have to miss baby Anna Beth's baptism on the 23rd.  I finished up the show I was watching on Netflix, called Grace and Frankie. It was so funny.  Too bad there was only one season on there.  It has been renewed for a Season 2 that will be available in 2016.

It was nice to get to spend time with your daddy and Rose tonight though!

Rose got a bit cranky and the only thing that would make her happy was a chocolate shake!

So far we have spent 30 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, less than a month until we meet you!

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  She will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just 4 weeks from today, when you will be 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going on August 31st, and potentially sooner to see if the placenta is still in the way.

Your birthday will likely be September 8th!  Just 26 days!

Love you,

Mommy

24 days until we meet you - Saturday August 15th - 33 weeks

Dear Baby Ethan,

We made it to 33 weeks today! After reading a bit about how things would likely go for you if you are born this week, it is quite encouraging that you are getting stronger and bigger.  You might even be able to breathe on your own.

My IV leaked a bit tonight when they flushed it.  So, I will have to get a new one.  I have not been a huge fan of this location anyway.  This IV made it almost 10 days, I got it on the 7th. 

Today was also your daddy and I's 6th anniversary! It has been a great 6 six years.  I cannot believe it has been that long.  Your daddy is such a good man.  I appreciate how hard he has been working to keep things together at home and take care of Rose while I have been here.  He is such a calm guy who can handle difficulties with ease.  He also keep things fun by always finding the silly things in life to appreciate.

Unfortunately he was quite busy today.  We are getting siding put on our house right now.  The siding company had taken off our shutters, and he was going to paint them.  He determined it would take quite awhile to paint them, so he decided to just buy new black ones because they are quite affordable.  But, he also was finishing up our condo that is being rented out.  So he did not make it to the hospital until 8:30 :(.  We enjoyed the time that we did have though.

We had some fancy Chipolte to celebrate our anniversary.  Your daddy's was as big as his head!

So far we have spent 31 days in the hospital.  I'm so excited that we are on the home stretch, less than a month until we meet you!

Upcoming Events.

Your Ummichi, Uppuchen, and Auntie Dainy will be here Friday August  21st for baby Anna Beth's baptism.  Your Ummichi will be here for a bit to help take care of Anna and Rose.  That is just 4 days from today, when you will be almost 34 weeks along and in even better shape to be born.

We will likely get to see how your growth is going on August 31st, and potentially sooner to see if the placenta is still in the way.  I am going to ask this week if we can do a growth scan on Monday the 24th to be sure your growth is going well.

Your birthday will likely be September 8th!  Just 26 days!

Love you,

Mommy