Evening Update

Thanks so much to everyone who has called, emailed, stopped by, and other stuff. It's such a wonderful blessing to feel so supported and loved by everyone around us. As I've explained to several people, this is likely going to be a relatively long ordeal: either Rachel will spend an extended amount of time on bedrest, or this baby will come soon and will spend a very long time in the NICU, or a little bit of both. Either way, we're talking about weeks, if not months, of having some type of a situation, and we appreciate so many people committing to helping us. That being said, I'll probably end up spacing out specific requests over the next several weeks, so don't feel left out if I haven't asked you for something specific yet...only a matter of time and I probably will!

News: as the saying goes, right now, no news is good news. Rachel continues to be doing well while laying prone on her left side and staying still. Contractions go down to about once or twice an hour when she's like that. However, if she gets up, goes to the bathroom, sits up, or does anything else (like lay on her right side even!), the contractions strengthen immediately and go up to several within 10 minutes. We believe this is because the baby is so far down the uterus, and is exerting pressure on everything. The doctor wants to minimize checking on her cervix unless contractions pick up, so our next update on dilation, etc., will be some time tomorrow. This could go one of two ways, but it's the same pattern we experienced with Christopher so that's always in the back of our minds (he stayed in for 40 hours after we got the steroid shots).

It is great having Mom, Jenny, Megan, and Stephanie drive down to see us today. The trip had been planned for literally several months as just a weekend to come down and have fun, but the timing couldn't be better for everything that is going on. Here's a picture of how much Christopher appreciates their being here (read: he LOVES the attention!):















Playing in the "linen storage" area of the labor and delivery room with Auntie Meg:
















It's pretty cool to be able to give updates on the blog on from our hospital room. I guess it's kind of weird, too, but it's so nice to let everyone know what's going on without having to rely on just the phone.

Feel free to call or stop by. Our spirits are pretty good right now and we are putting all of this in the hands of the Lord. As much as is in our power, we're trying not to be afraid of what "could" happen, or at least not dwell on it. We're busying ourselves with friends and family, and picking out names and sleeping in between. We love you all and deeply appreciate you support. One of us will update again tomorrow.

--Andy