Updates!!

We've been very busy these past few weeks! June 16th was Ryan's first home game. The Oakdale Outlaws tested out their new home field for the first time ever! Their home games used to take place in Oakdale, MN; now they are in New Brighton, MN. It's a longer drive for us, but a much nicer field for the boys to play on. There was a fairly good show of fans. Especially when you took into consideration that the stands had no shade, there were no clouds or wind, and the temp was in the high 90's!! We had some pleasant surprises in Ryan's fan section this game...my dad (Frank) and my sister (Molly) came to support Ryan. As well as Ryan's best friend Jesse, and his brother Joe. And of course we cannot forget Joe & Cindy (Ry's parents). The Outlaws did a great job battling the heat and managed to pull off another WIN!!! And even though I did not work half as hard as the boys did I was exhausted, sweaty and sunburned after the game. I could not wait to get home and relax...thank goodness for air conditioning!!

June 17th was Father's Day and a major milestone for our pregnancy, 24 weeks...viability!! Reaching viability means Ethan would have a chance at living in the outside world if for whatever reason he was born early. He would obviously face lots of challenges and it wouldn't be an easy road, but he would have a chance thanks to all of the technology and staff of the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). I had a little talk with Ethan to let him know he is to stay in for at least another 14 weeks!!

My sister, Molly, came to visit over Father's Day weekend and stayed with Ryan and I. It was really great to see her and catch up on sisterly stuff, especially since we hadn't seen each other since I've been pregnant. She was finally able to feel her little nephew kicking and moving around, exciting stuff! Auntie Mimi left us with lots of goodies for Ethan....diapers, wipes, baby wash, baby lotion, disposable scented washcloths, bibs with cute sayings on them, a scrapbook complete with stickers, and a super soft baby blanket. Her generosity was greatly appreciated!

We celebrated Ryan's 27th birthday on June 21st...the first official day of summer! Joe & Cindy treated Ryan to a delicious birthday dinner. Afterwards we went back to his parent's house, watched a movie and had ice cream cake...yuuum!

The following day I had a prenatal appointment with my OB. Everything is still looking excellent!! When we were listening to Ethan's heart rate he decided to kick at the ultrasound probe just as my OB was inquiring about his movements. Recently I've noticed that he is way more active at night than he is during the day. Which is fine if its a night I'm at work, but has proven to be a challenge when I'm actually trying to sleep! I almost forgot...I had the one hour glucose challenge and I technically failed. Well, it was borderline...so I'm hoping that when I go for the three hour glucose tolerance test I will pass!

Friday night (June 22nd) I had not been feeling so hot, but went into work anyway. After about an hour of being at work I felt like I was getting worse. So the girls I work with sprung into action, taking wonderful care of me. I didn't know if I was contracting, all I knew for sure was that something did not feel right. So they put me on the monitor and I went from working in the birth center to being a patient in a matter of seconds. Thankfully I was not contracting, and Ethan's heart tones looked fantastic. It was said that he looked more like a 28 weeker, rather than the 24 5/7weeks that he was. I had a few test done and everything came back fine, aside from two infections. I also had a cervical check. I am no longer completely closed; my outer os is dilated to 1cm. My OB will check me again at my next prenatal visit. Thank you Heidi Sue and Ginelle for taking such wonderful care of Ethan and I, we truly appreciated it!!

I went in for the GTT on Wednesday June 27th and had quite the time. I drank the "delicious" orange soda and asked if I could go sit outside until it was time to get my blood drawn. They said yes, but were pretty hesitant. So I headed out to enjoy the nice sunny weather from a bench in a flower garden located in front of the clinic. I'm there for maybe five minutes and I start thinking 'wow this sun is really getting to me.' I felt hot....then came the nausea...then I felt like I was going to pass out. Obviously I headed back inside where the girls in the lab took care of me. I later found out that my one hour glucose was 240, extremely high!! My fasting glucose, two hour, and three hour were all low. So thankfully I passed the three hour GTT, no gestational diabetes for me!

Today I am 25 5/7wks and feeling much better than last week!!