5.05.2015

Mason's Story Keeps Getting Better


We are one week away from meeting our Mason!

The little tiny clothes have been washed. The crib and play pen pulled together. The car seats loaded in the cars. The bottles have been washed.

All we need is our little Mason to arrive.

In one week we'll head back to the hospital. After a few days we'll come home a family of four.

The last two weeks at home have been the biggest gift from God. We have gotten to enjoy quality time as a family of three. I've gotten to watch my Ethan play and giggle. I've had the chance to snuggle him after he takes his bath. And gotten to kiss him good night. In the morning we greet the morning together.  

I've gotten to kiss my husband good night. And greet him when he comes home from work. I've gotten to hear the "how was your day" stories right in our living room. And been able to be supportive, even if it is from the couch.

A chance to enjoy these slow days before we all dive into the newborn transition phase. You know the one. The days that seem like they will never end. Then all of a sudden you are two months down the road and life is a tiny bit easier. But all the while, there are loads of love, laughs, and snuggles.

I. Can't. Wait.


Before we take the plunge though I want to share the love gift we got from God.

Let's go back to April 16th. We were scheduled for a sonogram. The main purpose: to check Mason's growth and check the placenta placement.

In the 31 days since we arrived at the hospital my body had gone from very irritable and at the verge of going into labor (at 30 weeks!) to calm, calm, calm. blessing #1

There was a magic pill that kept the contractions at bay most of the time. When they were persistent, a magic shot instantly made everything calm again. I'm told sometimes multiple magic doses are needed but one worked for us every single time. 

Mason's heartbeat and movement were monitored daily and he always passed with flying colors. During the entire stay, not once was he ever in danger. Now my body going into labor would have put him in danger. But all along his growth was right on target. blessing #2

The placenta - well it has been the star of the show since December. That's when we found out it had decided to settle in at the very bottom of my belly (aka my uterus). This little discovery kicked our pregnancy up a notch on the risk factor. At the time I was told to just take it easy. It was early in the pregnancy and the placenta could still move. If it didn't then ... 

Best case scenario we would deliver Mason at 38 weeks via C-Section. 

Worst-case scenario my body would try to go into labor and I would have to finish the pregnancy at the hospital. 

So there were lots of sonograms to check on Mason's growth and check the placenta placement. But every time it was checked it was in the same place.... way at the bottom. We kept hoping it would move but it never did. 

Fast forward to April 16th and we expected to see Mason growing beautifully, verify that my body was not in full term labor, and the placenta was way at the bottom. At this point in the pregnancy, the doctor said the chances that the placenta had moved were pretty much zero. If everything checked out as we expected, then we would deliver Mason at 37 weeks where he may need a little oxygen in the NICU but probably not require a long stay.

So that morning in walked the same perinatal doctor that had done the sono 31 days before when we were first admitted.  (They have a huge team and you don't always get the same doctor.)  It was nice to see a familiar face that knew all about our case. blessing #3

In the room, they began to measure Mason.  He checked out beautifully. blessing #4

My body was not in full term labor. blessing #5

Next up - that stubborn placenta. There were three students in the room with us. Which means the doctor was walking them through everything on the screen. Before we got started he said if this baby was born today he would be fine.  A few days in the NICU to wait on his lungs and then home he'll go.  He went on to share our high risk case and what he had seen before. Then the teaching moved on to the placenta. It was mostly doctor speak but I thought I heard that it wasn't where we had seen it last. I tried to hide the shacky-ness I was feeling because immediately I knew - God moved it. But I had to tell myself "Girl get it together! You can not be the crazy crying pregnant girl in front of these students."  

Then the doctor showed us all on my belly where everything was:  Mason was laying horizontally. His head on my right side and his feet to my left. 

The placenta had completely moved to my right side! It now started right below my ribs and carried downward. Just the tail end of it was at the bottom of my belly. Thank you Lord!!! blessing #6

I'll have you know I waited until I was back in my room to ugly cry. Travis said he thought I was joking at first. Not only was this unexpected. It was highly unlikely at this stage in the pregnancy. Only God could do something like this.

So the rest of the day went crazy fast. My doctor immediately got word of the miracle. She called me right away to say I could go home. Still on bed rest but I could go home. blessing #7

Even after learning we were out of the  placenta danger zone, I still didn't think we would be sent home. And honestly that was ok. The important thing was that delivery would now be a lot less tricky!! I just kept thanking God with the biggest smile you have ever seen.

We quickly made plans to move Mason and I home. I was sitting on my couch by 4 pm that afternoon when my sweet Ethan came running through the door. I will never forget the look on his face. It matched every emotion I was feeling.

Now, here we are at home sharing some much needed family time as a family of 3 for one more week. Mason will be delivered at 38 weeks via a scheduled normal c-section on May 12th.


For now we will continue to thank God for each passing day and enjoy just being together in one room - doing life.  


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