decisions, decisions - week 36!

Hard to believe that as I write this blog post we are only 10 days away from meeting baby Murphy! This is also one of my last posts before he gets here - time sure does fly. It has been a struggle to try and sort out all of my emotions because I really just don't even know what to think or how to feel. I, of course, am extremely excited to meet our little man, but that is coupled with the natural fear that having a baby brings along with all of our fear of the unknown. As the days countdown the fear and excitement are growing and it is a strange combination of both! This past week was pretty relaxing and I was able to spend some time getting things done and preparing for baby Murphy! Here is the run-down of what happened over the last week:

Saturday, April 20 - Baby Shower #3!

This past Saturday we were blessed with yet another baby shower for baby Murphy :) The theme was "safari" (how fitting)! Here are some pictures from the day:

check out the GIANT giraffe in the back :)

Heather & Laura (Josh's Sisters)

Josh's Mom, Marla!

My Mom!

Tuesday, April 23 - NST Appointment with Dr. Pohl
   Baby Murphy decided to take a little nap during the monitoring of the NST so he had to be buzzed a few times to try and wake him up! Not sure where he gets his sleeping habits from ;) Luckily he woke up and started moving around and we were able to continue on with our appointment. Dr. Pohl came in and measured my fundal height - which is now 46 (10 WEEKS AHEAD....), and then he sat down to discuss delivery options. He had the report on how much baby M weighed from last Friday and he also had the most recent reports from Dr. V. His main concern is that a vaginal delivery may stress the baby out too much and with the already existing heart condition that really worries him so he somewhat recommended we consider a cesarean delivery, but the decision is up to us. I am definitely torn because I want to do what is best for my baby and I have two different recommendations from two different doctors. Dr. V (the cardiologist) says vaginal, and it really seems like Dr. Pohl is pushing for a c-section. I left the appointment VERY confused on what to do....
    Luckily, Dr. V's office is right across the hall from Dr. Pohl's office so my mom and I headed there after our appointment to get the reasoning from him on why a vaginal delivery would be better or what his recommendation is for me. He did confirm that the thinks this would be best and it mainly has to do with the fact that the fluid will be squeezed out of baby Murphy's lungs in a vaginal delivery and that won't really happen with a c-section. Right now we are leaning towards the vaginal delivery, but I really hate that I have two different doctors recommending two different things and the decision is in our hands. I am hoping that the MRI next week will give us a clearer answer of what we should do, but I doubt that will happen. I do know that I will be CLOSELY monitored during labor and if the baby shows any signs of stress they will do an emergency c-section. Please pray that Josh and I have some peace about the decision we have to make regarding delivery.

Friday - April 26 - BPP with Maternal-Fetal
   Friday was my 22nd birthday, and luckily I got to spend it at the doctor! I did, however, take the staff some Krispy Kreme doughnuts :) The BPP went great and my amniotic fluid levels were about the same as last week. Normally they do two measurements and take the average to be a little bit more accurate, but this week she only took one. She also gave us LOTS of 3D pictures partly because it was my birthday but also because since I have so much fluid they are able to get really good pictures so they can't resist... LOL. We met with Dr. Read after the ultrasound tech was done with the BPP and I asked his opinion on the delivery. I should have know he would say something like "Well, I don't have a recommendation either way...", and that is exactly what he said! I was kind of hoping he would be the tie breaker. We also asked about the MRI and when they would expect the results (he said Thursday) and also what the verdict would be based on the results. He said that they don't think it will show anything that requires me to go to the hospital immediately for delivery, but they are just trying to get a better picture of if the airways are affected and they will make more decisions based on what the findings show. 

The fetal MRI is scheduled for next Tuesday, the 29th and we have to be at Egleston at 6 AM.  We also have another NST and BPP (our last two appointments before baby M gets here)! Please pray that the results of the MRI are clear and there are no red flags. Also be in prayer that Josh and I feel peace about the decision we make for delivery. Time is getting so close and we are excited to introduce baby M to the world, and also share his name :)

Love,
Ashlyn