Informal Grad Check-In - 05/25

[spring78]

Thank you for the check-in! I can't speak for any other grads, but I am still here!! I think I have made my position clear concerning all the goings-on of the last week. I am happy to stay here, but will follow wherever you ladies go if/when you decide to relocate. My biggest concern is a culture change in a different forum -- I love the knowledgeable, supportive, caring vibe we have going here and few internet forums I have ever seen have managed to successfully pull that off, let alone doing so for over 2 years!

So... Updates on us. The twins are doing great. Isla continues to be my little rock star. People don't believe me when I say she was 8 weeks premature. She is picking up lots of words, so she is starting to be able to tell me what she wants when she wants it, which is so refreshing. She has reached the "helper" stage and always wants to help out. She "helps" me push her brother's stroller in and out of daycare. She loves throwing things in the trash for us. She brings her brother toys when he is upset. It really is too cute.

Ciaran is doing well, too. He is starting to eat more and more. Daycare told me he are a whole Graham cracker the other day! Mostly for us he eats yogurt (he loves yogurt!) and some purees. He chews on solids, but usually spits them out before swallowing. Still a long way off doing away with The Gtube, but we are making progress. The most exciting news on the Ciaran front is the results from his latest blood work. His kidney function calculated at 73%!! Not bad at all for one dysplastic little kidney! His nephrologist is stunned -- she expected him to be on dialysis a year ago and on the transplant wait list by now. Here he is at only stage 2 chronic kidney disease and with a very real possibility of avoiding a childhood transplant all together! We have 5 more months to wait for the magical 2 years old and a reliable long term prognosis, but for now things are looking really, really good. Go, little kidney, go!

[DrHooch]

I am here, too! Thanks for the check in, @underdog25, I hope work calms down for you soon.

spring78, So happy to hear your little ones are doing well. Sounds like our little ones are right around the same age, but your road has been more difficult - I'm sorry. I hope they both continue to improve and flourish!

My little man, Nathan, turned 19 months yesterday. He is full-on toddler. Tantrums and mood swings and loving saying no. But he is the sweetest kid, and we feel so lucky to have him. He loves hugs and cuddles sometimes. He blows kisses and loves saying "Hi!" and "Bubye!" He picked up a few signs we taught him (more and all done) and is now adding words to the signs, too. So much fun!

Is it ok to post pictures?

[ProfessorChaos]

Am I a grad? I feel like I'm in purgatory, not like I've graduated. Also, with everything going on around here, I'm even more reluctant to leave, as you are the peeps I care about. But for anyone who wants to know, here's my sitch.

*****Warnings******
I'm 8+1 but with a large-ish subchorionic hematoma that puts me at high risk of another loss. My last ultrasound seemed especially worrying to me, although the nurse said it wasn't a big change. The scariest part was that the heart rate went down slightly, which could indicate a problem with the placenta. The heart rate should be steadily increasing these days, so even with normal fluctuations and measurement error it worries me. In the meantime I'm trying to do as much bed rest as I can in the hopes that it will go away. Not sure I could keep trying if we had a sixth loss. Next scan on Tuesday.

[ProfessorChaos]

May 25, 2017 12:09:37 GMT -5 DrHooch said:

Is it ok to post pictures?

I don't know the official answer, but I've seen pictures posted in spoilers here before.

[DrHooch]

May 27, 2017 12:47:06 GMT -5 ProfessorChaos said:

Am I a grad? I feel like I'm in purgatory, not like I've graduated. Also, with everything going on around here, I'm even more reluctant to leave, as you are the peeps I care about. But for anyone who wants to know, here's my sitch.

*****Warnings******
I'm 8+1 but with a large-ish subchorionic hematoma that puts me at high risk of another loss. My last ultrasound seemed especially worrying to me, although the nurse said it wasn't a big change. The scariest part was that the heart rate went down slightly, which could indicate a problem with the placenta. The heart rate should be steadily increasing these days, so even with normal fluctuations and measurement error it worries me. In the meantime I'm trying to do as much bed rest as I can in the hopes that it will go away. Not sure I could keep trying if we had a sixth loss. Next scan on Tuesday.

Oh no, I am so sorry to hear this. I have everything crossed for you.

[bootsorhearts]

Hey ladies!

I'm 19+6 today, anatomy scan tomorrow. Eek! FX everything looks ok. We already know we are team pink so no surprises as far as sex goes. Speaking of sex! DH read an article that says having a lot of intercourse can help prevent pre-eclampsia (which I had with DS). Hmmmm. Convenient right? Anyway, it's hard to find time for such activities between work and chasing a pre-schooler but we're trying!

ProfessorChaos, hugs to you, I hope the hematoma goes away soon and that the rest of your pregnancy is uneventful.