I have a feeling I am being punished for being so glib about how well my pregnancy was going.

Oh, I did not get sick in the first trimester.
I only had a few crazy emotional days
I am 30 weeks and I have only gained 7 pounds.

Yeah, right.

This weekend was MISERABLE. I did not sleep at all Saturday night–went downstairs and watched Cosby show reruns until 5 am. I decided that clawing my skin off would feel better than what I was going through, it was so painful, it felt like I had fallen asleep in the Hawaiian sun for 12 hours–2 days straight!

I called the dermatologist AT HOME on Sunday. I was in so much pain. With the permission of the OB and derm, I went on an oral steroid and the miracle lotion Sarna. That stuff is amazing (doesn’t smell so great though). That has seemed to do the trick so far.

I went to the dermatologist this morning. After finally finding the place (they moved since the last time I was there-unbeknownst to me!) they took me in very quickly. When they saw the rash, they could not believe I did not come in on Friday and managed to make it through the weekend. She was pretty certain it was an allergic reaction to the meds, but the location of it seemed to indicate PUPPPS (the pregnancy rash). That being said:

-If it is an allergic reaction, then the steroids should cure it but my medical records need to show I had an allergy to it for future prevention
-If it is PUPPPS, it will come back after the steroids are done and will last until 2-3 weeks after the pregnancy

In order to make the proper diagnosis, they did a skin graft. They numbed the area and then sliced and diced. I now have 3 stitches and will wait 10 days to get the results and stitches removed. I did not feel it except for the tugging of the stitches. Was this a precursor to the C-Section???

The good news, the itching and burning have subsided, at least for now.

The 2 trees in front of our house have always looked rather sad. One was dwarfed by the other, although they seemed to be the same kind of tree and planted around the same time. The exterminator always pays a visit to us during the change of season, so while he was here last month, we asked him to look at the trees—it appeared something was eating them—to see if there was something he could do. His observating found something eating the trees alright–TERMITES! He pulled one daintly and clear little critter out to show me, too. The trees live not 25 feet from the house and while we do not have termites (yet!) we were not taking any chances–THEY MUST COME DOWN.

While Terry and Joann were in town, I went to Publix for some groceries. While pulling out of the parking, lo and behold I spot a Tree Truck (yes, even the girl from NYC knows what a tree truck when she sees one!). Unfortunately, he is on his cell phone. Fortunately, I am not shy, and I circle him in my car like a shark circling his prey. Once off the phone, he and I chat (did I mention how good looking he was) and get his card. He thinks it will be easy AND inexpensive. When he comes out for a quote, we learn it will only be $195 to take down both trees and grind the stumps. Since Jay was thinking $500, we jumped at it.

Jay stayed home from work and took the following pics. This was before my bedrest. We are really pleased actually with how the house looks now without the mondo tree in the front yard. We think that when we do replace them (when the weather truly gets “warm”) we will replace it with one Japanese Maple on the side, instead of blocking the house with another tall tree. Much improved curb appeal, I think.

It is hard for me to write about how great my appointment was yesterday when I am so uncomfortable today but I can’t leave everyone hanging…

I arrived at the doctor’s early, about 20 minutes early which is unheard of for me. I sat in the waiting room for the ultrasound to begin and saw a couple exit the room I was waiting on. I overheard the tech say, “Congrats on your babies!” Wow, twins. I cannot even begin to imagine.

Below are the results of my ultrasound along with the normals and the last results:

Cervix: Normal (30+) 4/23/07 (16) 4/27/07 (28)
Fluid: Normal (5-20) 4/23/07 (16) 4/27/07 (11)

I am up in the air about the cervix measurement. I apparently have what is called a “dynamic cervix” (I knew I was extraordinary) so sometimes it reads longer than others. The tech and the doctor were confident in the measurement, so I have no reason not to be as well.

I left the U/S pod happier about where I have progressed but still reserved. I saw Dr. Norman getting her blood drawn and caught her on her way out (based on that I am predicting she is pregnant, too). I showed her the rash on my arms and she thought it looked like an allergic reaction to the meds, not the pregnancy rash the nurse told me over the phone.

I waited and waited again to go into the exam room. I got up 3 times to ask when I would be next. I finally was let back in and met with the doctor. She did not check my cervix but the results of the u/s were telling enough. She said that the medicine was working great and myh levels were ideal. She then looked at my belly to see my rash and agreed it looked like a sunburn (feels like one too). She even called the nurse in to look at it. Always great when medical staff is called in to observe how odd you look. The prognosis was for me to see my dermatologist about the rash, get off the Indocin because it looks like I am having a reaction to it and I was on the verge of not being able to take it anyway, and to go from complete to moderate bedrest. Moderate meaning that I can move around slightly more than just from bed to bathroom and back again.

I asked Dr. Norman if she thought I would be having a baby this week, and she said she would be highly surprised. Yay! Looks like we reversed it as Dr. Fortunado said we could. We will see how me going off the Indocin works. Oh, I also asked if I had “dropped” and she said no, it was just the lower amount of fluid that made me look smaller and lower.

I made an appointment to see the dermatologist for that day. I ended up rescheduling for Monday because I had some big work meetings. Lying here now, I am really regretting that decision. I am itchy all over, 2 showers have not helped at all. My body is literally eminating heat. I also feel like my belly is bigger today, a sure sign in my mind that my fluid level is up again, Jay thinks I am imagining it. I have taken 2 Procardia over the last 2 days, when the contractions seem strong. Not so bad.

We are so happy–although I know my tone does not prove it. It looks like I will go full term!!!