Baby Shower, Coming Up!

It's 7:00 pm. and I had to take a break.  I've been working for about 12 hours now, cleaning my house and setting the tables to get ready for tomorrow's baby shower.  It's been fun.  I just still don't feel well with this killer of a sinus/allergy/cold/whatever it is.  I'm taking decongestants and antihistamines, which helps to dry me up, but it makes my head so foggy.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing except when you have a lot to do and have to think a little. 
I've got the pink and brown chocolate teddy bear lollipops done and the chocolate dipped strawberries are finished.  The floral centerpieces are on the tables, the tablecloths are on, the plates, cups, napkins, and forks are set out.  I have to organize the activities now and wrap the little knit hat and booties.   DIL Melissa is coming early in the morning to help make up our door prize basket and help with any final touches.  I'm having the rest of the food catered, which I gave second thought to figuring I could save money doing it myself.  With the way I feel, though, I'm glad I stuck with the caterer.  It'll be a lunch of egg salad and chicken salad croissant sandwiches, spring salad, and vegetable tray with dip.  Cupcakes are being done by the bakery and balloon bunches are being made by the party store.  Mom is picking up the cupcakes and balloons in the morning for me. 
I'm excited for tomorrow.  I'll take pictures and hope to tell all about it on Sunday.
BTW, DIL Diana called me this morning.  She is back in Spokane with Brandon and she had her follow up testing this morning with a specialist to check on the possible spina bifida with their unborn son due in September.  She and Brandon were told everything looked fine and good, but they will do sonograms once a month now just to keep an eye.  They were much relieved and I felt pretty sure of this result after talking to many people about it, but just to have them relieved makes me feel much better. 
So all baby news is good again. 
OK, break over.  Going to finish up today's list, then take a hot bath with a glass of wine.  I know, I probably shouldn't drink wine with the allergy pills, but at this point how can it hurt? 

Spina Bifida - Please Don't Let It Be

My DIL Diana called us the other day from Spokane to give us the exciting news that their baby due in September is going to be a boy.  We couldn't be more thrilled.  My wish has already been granted that I have a granddaughter, two of them no less. I wanted Brandon to have a son.  Their daughter, Riley, will be a year old on May 30 and now he'll have his boy. 

Brandon and Dee with newborn Riley about 10 months ago.

Oh, and their dog, Layla

I'm glad that both my sons will experience the thrill, fun and excitement of boys like Bob and I did with them.  And I also want them to experience the trials and tribulations of teenage sons that we also went through with them.  You know, pay backs.  Just kidding!  Kinda (not really).
When Dee told us the news we didn't want to tell anyone except immediate family at the time because Brandon was out on a Survival Training mission and he wouldn't know he was expecting a son until he got home yesterday.
Last night Brandon called us to share his excitement both about his recent training mission and about his new baby.  Along with his excitement, though, was a piece of worrisome news that they just received from the doctor yesterday.
Dee's blood work just came back and it shows elevated levels of AFP - a protein produced by the fetus. This COULD indicate spina bifida. You can read more about this here:


http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/spina-bifida/DS00417

This is rare and does not mean that the baby definitely has spina bifida, but it's an indication that they like to check on further. They don't have Dee scheduled to see a specialist until May 7. Needless to say they are very worried, as now we all are.

I called a very good girlfriend of mine, Cheryl, right away last night.  Cheryl used to be a nurse and worked with her husband, Michael,  when he had his own private OB/GYN practice. He now works for a large hospital out of town and is now a perinatologist (specialist in problem and high risk pregnancies).  Cheryl said it is probably nothing. They get false positive readings on this type of thing all the time.  Dee and Riley are going to be coming home here on the 22nd for two weeks and Michael will be glad to talk to Dee and look at her sonogram DVD while she's here to see if he can determine anything further from it.  Dee's doctor told her she saw nothing indicating on the sonogram at all. Cheryl said that if they were really concerned they would have had her into the specialist immediately instead of setting it for May 7

Brandon said he wished they hadn't even said anything to them, but as Cheryl explained to me, it is much better to know these things ahead of time for a couple of reasons.  When the baby is born the hospital and doctors are well prepared for any immediate action that needs to be taken.  And secondly, it gives the parents and family 4 or 5 months to physically and mentally prepare themselves. 

I think everything is fine, but we will all be concerned until her May 7 appointment.  Regardless of the outcome, one thing is for sure.  This will be a very lucky little baby boy to have the parents he's going to get.