adventures in bangkok

Well, I guess it's time to go from silly to serious. So, as most of you know, Sunday was a little bit scary for me. For the past couple of weeks I was having cramps, very similar to period cramps, low across my abdomen. I thought it was most likely stretching and would always take that as my cue to have a rest and drink more water. Until Sunday. I woke up with the cramps which intensified through the morning as we were getting ready to host group. Finally I laid down and they continued to grow more intense. I knew something wasn't right because it was so familiar to the little bit of labor I had with Kirby. We called a family friend, who happens to be a doctor and live in our city, and he came right over. At that point all I could do was lay on my left side and drink as much water as possible. I was nauseas and vomiting so he was worried we would have to head to the hospital for an IV if I couldn't keep liquids down. Our friend left with our boys so I could enjoy real rest and quiet and within an hour the cramping (later determined to be preterm labor contractions) stopped. I took it easy all day Sunday and felt much better. When I woke up on Monday I had some light cramping again I took that as a cue to call the OB that handles all the cases for our peeps living in China. She was concerned and said I need to get to Bangkok that day. If I couldn't get a flight to Bangkok I had to go to Hong Kong.

Stan and I immediately got on the phone making travel arrangements. I had to make the trip to Bangkok alone but I wanted Stan to travel with me to KM to meet my flight. We were already too late to take the bus to KM (it was 10:00 and I had a 3:20 flight) so we were scrambling to find someone with a car to drive us. I was trying to relax and trust Father. By 11:00 we were able to find a car and start on our crazy drive to KM. Stan joked that if NASCAR ever makes it to China he has a great candidate for a driver. The road on the first part of the journey is bumpy and since we are driving through the mountains, quite curvy. The guy was going between 150-160 kilometers per hour, no joke. We were sure if I could make it through the car ride without having the baby we would be fine. The second part of the drive, while still quite fast and curvy, was much smoother and we made it to KM right at 2:00. I said good bye to Stan, a little scared and uncertain, checked in to my flight--already getting questioned by the airline because they thought I was too far along to fly--and finally on my way to Bangkok.

I arrived by 4:30 BKK time (an hour behind us) and went straight to the hospital. The OB I met with in January was already gone for the day so I met with a random, Dr. Bozo will be his name. I tell him what had been happening and he feel my stomach to see if I was having contractions. After feeling my stomach for 5 minutes he determined that there were no contractions and the pain and vomiting from the day before was due to food poisoning. No checking the cervix, no ultra sound to check the baby or even listening to his heart beat...nothing. This did not set well with me and I basically demanded to be admitted and monitored for 24 hours. So after about 2 hours of waiting I was finally snug in hospital room. I knew my OB would be paying me a visit the next day so I just settled in for a night of rest. Early the next morning Dr. P, her name is very Thai and very hard to spell, came for a visit. I explained everything to her, including that the feeling I had Sunday morning felt very much like the labor I experienced in the past. She actually listened and took seriously that I knew my body well enough to know something was not right. She checked for dilatation--none..PTL!--and had me scheduled for an ultra sound and meeting with her afterward. Not long after she left I began to feel cramping again. This was sort of a relief cause I knew if something was going on they would be able to see it. I was taken to see the u/s specialist and he did a VERY thorough exam. Judah looked great and I got to see more than I have been able to in the past u/s I've had this pregnancy.

Dr. P didn't see any reason to be concerned about the baby (she said he look perfect :) but was concerned I was having cramping again. She checked me out and thought it best to start me on medication to prevent contractions and a hormone to strengthen my uterus--just in case the cramping is from stretching, especially along the scar tissue from my two previous c-sections. So with that she also wanted to see me in one week to make sure the medication is working and I am well enough to head back home. I ended up staying one more night cause of some stomach issues that they were not wanting to cause dehydration. But eventually yesterday I was released. I'm staying in a small company apartment that is just a minute walk from our good friend's house. So I'm not completely lonely but definitely missing my men.

I'll be checked out next Thursday by Dr. P and hopefully headed home by next Friday. While I've been gone Stan has almost completed the move and done double parent duty. We have great friends in our city that have been helping out in so many ways. I am so thankful for them and everyone that has been praying for us over the past 5ish days. I have felt the prayers. :) Sorry this ended up being such a long story. I'm looking forward to more good news to come in the future. For now Judah and I will be enjoying some good food, quiet and rest.