What can I say? I'm now a mother of four. Thursday, July 26th, Ada Leane made her appearance. Before I get into the gory details, here's the stats: W, 8lb 9oz; H, 21in; APGAR, 9 and 9; Time, 9:49 pm after about 5 hours at the hospital.
Like any birth story, there are some gross details. This is your warning. It's not my fault if you read something you didn't want to know past this point.
Let's start back on Monday, when I had my last checkup. At that point I was already dilated to 2cm and 70% effaced. Had I been further dilated my dr said he would have sent me right over to L&D. But alas, no such luck. He said that IF I made it to my next apt we were going to talk about induction but he doubted I would make it that far (my apt wouldn't have been until today, a week and a half later). Fast forward to Wednesday night. About 10:15 pm I had to pee. When I checked the toilet paper (as I'd gotten in the habit of doing), I noticed that the usual "pregnancy discharge" was streaked with blood. Since I hadn't had sex or an exam within the last 48 hours I started to get excited. I went into the bedroom and asked Doug how he felt about having a baby soon, and told him what had happened. I then called L&D and asked what they wanted me to do. I was told to hang out a bit longer, monitor my contractions, and come up when they were 5 minutes apart. We settled down to watch Sons of Anarchy and my contractions ranged 5-7 mins apart for the next hour but then died away, which was a trend the past several nights.
Thursday morning I got up, took a shower, and had some "grown up time" with the hubby, knowing it could be a while before we got the chance again. Shortly after, contractions started up again about 9:00. They were every 10 minutes or so for the next hour and slowly got closer. 6-10 for a few hours, and finally 4-5 for about an hour. I was still having the bloody discharge (which, surprisingly I had never experienced in any of my previous pregnancies) and was getting extremely irritated and tired. I tried to lay down for the last 45 minutes or so but by that point (about 3:15) the contractions were close enough together that we decided it was finally time to go. I called L&D to give them a heads up and we got to the hospital about 3:40 or so.
I was taken to a room for triage, where it was determined I was at about 3 cm and contractions were pretty steady at about 4 minutes apart. Since I was GBS+, as soon as I was admitted they got me started on the antibiotics (about 6:00), which needed to be in my system at least 4 hours before baby was born, and 3 before they could break my water, otherwise it would have been a much shorter process. My dr came in to say hi and let me know that he wasn't supposed to be on call that night, but since he had seen that I had come in, he would stay to deliver me. He did a check and I was at about 4 around the time we started the IV.
Since i had 3 hours to kill we watched Olympic soccer for a while and then I got in the hot tub. My contractions got really intense while in the water and when I got out they were about every minute and a half or so, and I was dilated to about 6. I got a shot of demerol/phenergan in my hip to help with the pain. 9:00 rolled around and I asked if they could break my water. Dr came in, checked me (7cm now) and broke my water, reminding me that it would probably go pretty fast at this point. Baby didn't do well with the increase in pressure and her heart rate dropped way low. They attached an internal monitor to her scalp, put me on oxygen, and had me roll onto my side, saying if her pulse didn't go back up we would have to do a c-section. Thankfully my changing position helped and her heart rate went back to normal.
It can't have been more than a few minutes when I felt like I was ready to push. The nurse checked me and said she thought she felt the cord. She had another nurse come in and check and they then called the dr. I held off on the first real "pushing" contraction while Dr was getting his gloves on to check me. Thankfully I did or this story would have a very different end. Dr did his check and turns out baby had a prolapsed cord. He called for a c-section and everything from that point went incredibly fast. The nurse got on my bed and had to hold the baby up so she wouldn't put pressure on the cord. They got me into the OR and were prepping my stomach while I was still awake. I won't lie, I was freaking out. My legs started shaking uncontrollably. Dr was yelling at everyone to move faster. I was crying as they strapped me to the table and put a mask on my face. A few seconds later I was out.
I'm told it was 5 minutes from the time they called the code until Ada was born, and less than a minute from the scalpel touching my skin to her birth. I woke up about an hour and a half after she was born. I can't even describe the amount of pain I was in. Two doses of morphine didn't even scratch the surface of the pain. Finally they gave me a different drug which made me really light headed and sleepy but took the pain away. The dr came in and told me that Ada's cord was prolapsed and wrapped twice around her neck. If my water had broken at home she would not have made it. I am so thankful that God answered that prayer with a "hell no".
I've got a new battle scar that doesn't require any stitches/staples/anything to be removed, and a beautiful tiny "Indian baby" who, with her black hair, brown eyes, and dark skin is so out of place with the rest of the kids. Thankfully Lili hasn't tried to squish her yet. We came home Monday afternoon and I'm not allowed to do anything for the next couple of weeks, as long as I'm on my pain pills. I have to keep reminding myself that I had major surgery less than a week ago so that I don't push it. My brain has reached capacity for the moment so if there's anything I forgot, I'll add it later.
Time for dinner and maybe a nap.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
32 weeks
I guess it's been a minute since I updated; the whole look of blogger is different. It's kind of throwing me off. Anyway, I thought I'd do a quick post about this whole baby thing. Today is 32 weeks. That means that in 56 days, give or take, I'll have 4 children. That thought is incredibly daunting. Most days I'm not sure why I thought this was a good idea. We are barely going to survive summer break with 3 kids, much less 4. Oh well. At least I have 2 months to figure out what the hell I'm going to do.
My last doctor apt was about a week ago, where they were starting to get concerned that I'm not gaining weight. By that I mean because of how sick I was a few months back (having the flu twice in one month isn't exactly good for putting on a few pounds) I have gained exactly 5 lbs total. That's right, 5. At a time when I should have gained at least 15 by now. Even with Lili, when I was throwing up twice a day and didn't gain until after 20 weeks, I didn't have any problem putting on the weight I needed.
Despite this lack of poundage, I am still measuring a good week ahead. Which I am taking to mean that the baby is gaining just fine, and I keep losing. I'm going to end up with a 12 lb baby. Even with this concern, this is the least eventful pregnancy I've had. By this point, with all 3 other kids, I'd been up to L&D at least a few times for preterm labor. While we have had a few scary times with contractions not going away for a few hours, I have not yet had to go to the hospital. Yay! I take that as an accomplishment. I don't plan on going up for at least 6 weeks. It's just too hard to get a babysitter with absolutely no notice for an undetermined amount of time. Especially in the middle of the night.
I'm at the point where I see my dr every 2 weeks, but because of some scheduling conflicts it will be 3 weeks from my last apt until I see him again, which puts me at 34 weeks before I go back. That should be a fun visit, I think they're doing the testing for Strep B and all that jazz. Woot..... As long as I'm doing ok the setback shouldn't be a problem. Hopefully I'll have gained at least a pound or 2 or we get really worried and I'm in trouble. It doesn't help that I've had a kind of morning sickness again. I didn't throw up today. It's very exciting.
I'm sure there was something else I wanted to say but the baby kills my brain cells and I have no idea what it was.
As for the rest of the family:
Kaety is on summer break now and I'm not sure how we are all going to live through the next 3 months. She's a bit more than a handful with her attitude. And I have no idea what to do about it. She got a fantastic report card for the end of the year, her reading in particular is off the charts. They had to be able to read at a lvl 3 and she tested at lvl 15. Basically meaning (as far as I can tell from what we saw on the report) She's reading above a second grade lvl. In kindergarten.
Logan has asthma and has horrible coughing fits if he gets too worked up. I really need to get him back into the dr but I haven't had time between everything else going on.
Lili had her first dentist visit a few weeks ago and while everything looks good, we need to break her of her binkie because it's shaping her mouth. So far it hasn't' been terrible, we're still letting her have it when she's sleeping. In another week or so though I'm going to have to take it during naps and only let her have it at night. She's not going to be a big fan of that idea.
Doug's been working at IBM for the last 2 months or so and he's so much happier. His school year is finished next week and then he'll finally have a break (and only 7 classes left before he graduates!) which we are looking forward to. I'm incredibly proud of him for how hard he's worked and what he's accomplished.
I finished my semester about a month ago and I get a bit of a break to focus on baby stuff before I have to worry about my nursing school application due in October. Once that's in (and if I get accepted) I don't start class again until next March. Which isn't to say I won't be busy with other stuff! lol.
Anyway, for now I need to go get the kids fed their lunch, find something that I can stomach, and then get some laundry folded (and maybe even get a shower!). Hopefully I'll have time to update this again before baby gets here.
Over and out.
My last doctor apt was about a week ago, where they were starting to get concerned that I'm not gaining weight. By that I mean because of how sick I was a few months back (having the flu twice in one month isn't exactly good for putting on a few pounds) I have gained exactly 5 lbs total. That's right, 5. At a time when I should have gained at least 15 by now. Even with Lili, when I was throwing up twice a day and didn't gain until after 20 weeks, I didn't have any problem putting on the weight I needed.
Despite this lack of poundage, I am still measuring a good week ahead. Which I am taking to mean that the baby is gaining just fine, and I keep losing. I'm going to end up with a 12 lb baby. Even with this concern, this is the least eventful pregnancy I've had. By this point, with all 3 other kids, I'd been up to L&D at least a few times for preterm labor. While we have had a few scary times with contractions not going away for a few hours, I have not yet had to go to the hospital. Yay! I take that as an accomplishment. I don't plan on going up for at least 6 weeks. It's just too hard to get a babysitter with absolutely no notice for an undetermined amount of time. Especially in the middle of the night.
I'm at the point where I see my dr every 2 weeks, but because of some scheduling conflicts it will be 3 weeks from my last apt until I see him again, which puts me at 34 weeks before I go back. That should be a fun visit, I think they're doing the testing for Strep B and all that jazz. Woot..... As long as I'm doing ok the setback shouldn't be a problem. Hopefully I'll have gained at least a pound or 2 or we get really worried and I'm in trouble. It doesn't help that I've had a kind of morning sickness again. I didn't throw up today. It's very exciting.
I'm sure there was something else I wanted to say but the baby kills my brain cells and I have no idea what it was.
As for the rest of the family:
Kaety is on summer break now and I'm not sure how we are all going to live through the next 3 months. She's a bit more than a handful with her attitude. And I have no idea what to do about it. She got a fantastic report card for the end of the year, her reading in particular is off the charts. They had to be able to read at a lvl 3 and she tested at lvl 15. Basically meaning (as far as I can tell from what we saw on the report) She's reading above a second grade lvl. In kindergarten.
Logan has asthma and has horrible coughing fits if he gets too worked up. I really need to get him back into the dr but I haven't had time between everything else going on.
Lili had her first dentist visit a few weeks ago and while everything looks good, we need to break her of her binkie because it's shaping her mouth. So far it hasn't' been terrible, we're still letting her have it when she's sleeping. In another week or so though I'm going to have to take it during naps and only let her have it at night. She's not going to be a big fan of that idea.
Doug's been working at IBM for the last 2 months or so and he's so much happier. His school year is finished next week and then he'll finally have a break (and only 7 classes left before he graduates!) which we are looking forward to. I'm incredibly proud of him for how hard he's worked and what he's accomplished.
I finished my semester about a month ago and I get a bit of a break to focus on baby stuff before I have to worry about my nursing school application due in October. Once that's in (and if I get accepted) I don't start class again until next March. Which isn't to say I won't be busy with other stuff! lol.
Anyway, for now I need to go get the kids fed their lunch, find something that I can stomach, and then get some laundry folded (and maybe even get a shower!). Hopefully I'll have time to update this again before baby gets here.
Over and out.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Announcing for probably the last time...
I've decided that though I'm not posting this on facebook yet, I wanted to add this bit of news to my blog. This then, I guess, is my announcement into the ranks of the the pregnant multitudes due this summer/fall. I think at last count I knew something like 13 or 14 people due this year, including myself. Baby #4 is due August 8th, the day after Lili turns 2. That puts me today at 19w4d.
We had an ultrasound last Friday which revealed the baby is...drum roll please....undisclosed. That's right, baby wouldn't spread its' legs for anything. We tried for an hour. Best guess is a girl, simply because we couldn't find anything else. But the lack of spreadage guarantees nothing. I was going to start on baby's blanket after we found out what it was, so I could do appropriate colors. But alas, neutral colors will have to do. We didn't want to know what Lili was, and this time, baby didn't want _us_ to know.
The kids are all very excited. Lili likes to lay her head on my belly and kiss the baby. Logan rubs my stomach, and he wants little brother so bad. Kaetlynn, I think, just wants someone else to boss around. Doug is building a loft for Kaety so we can put Logan in the girls' room for a while and let the baby have the little room to itself. Ecstatic isn't even the right word for the excitement about the new beds.
As for me, I was really sick for the first 15 weeks or so. I knew right away when I got pregnant. I had been temp charting in anticipation of when we were going to try again, but this baby decided to come sooner than we had planned. Still, I know exactly what day I got pregnant. Even so, I was in slight denial when it came time to take the test. I was 3 days or so late before I took one, even though I knew what the result would be. I took a second test a few days later to confirm, but the second line showed up pretty much instantly. I was showing by the time I was 8 weeks. And now at almost 20, I have one pair of pants that fit without any kind of help. Most shirts are too short. I bought some belly bands that help with both of the above issues. I wear pj pants most of the time when I'm at home not going anywhere.
I've been sick the past week with the cold the kids have been passing back and forth, but the past 2 days I've had something resembling the flu. As a result I couldn't keep any food down for a good 24 hours and the baby was NOT happy with me. I was seriously dehydrated and so miserable. Now on day 3 I still don't feel great, but I'm much more functional and I can eat some actual food again, more than soup and jello.
I've been having a lot of braxton-hicks contractions over the past month and with my history of pre-term labor the doctor is concerned. I really have to make sure I drink enough water. Being sick and throwing up everything has made that hard.
Doug got to feel the baby move for the first time last night. That was really cool. We were in bed watching the remake of Fright Night with Collin Ferrell and David Tennant and baby was going nuts. Even though I've done this before and it's nothing new, feeling the baby like that is still pretty much the coolest thing ever.
Anyway I guess that's all for now, I need to go eat something and open some windows, since it's so nice outside. If anyone reads this, please don't say anything on facebook just yet. I'll announce it there eventually. I've just had some negative comments on the idea of having another baby, when frankly if my husband and I decide that we're ready for another one, it's no one else's business. I won't say the idea of 4 children doesn't terrify me at times. But that doesn't mean anyone else has the right to tell me that that I shouldn't.
On that note, I will post another update later, when there's more to tell. Half way done already, it's going faster than I remember!
We had an ultrasound last Friday which revealed the baby is...drum roll please....undisclosed. That's right, baby wouldn't spread its' legs for anything. We tried for an hour. Best guess is a girl, simply because we couldn't find anything else. But the lack of spreadage guarantees nothing. I was going to start on baby's blanket after we found out what it was, so I could do appropriate colors. But alas, neutral colors will have to do. We didn't want to know what Lili was, and this time, baby didn't want _us_ to know.
The kids are all very excited. Lili likes to lay her head on my belly and kiss the baby. Logan rubs my stomach, and he wants little brother so bad. Kaetlynn, I think, just wants someone else to boss around. Doug is building a loft for Kaety so we can put Logan in the girls' room for a while and let the baby have the little room to itself. Ecstatic isn't even the right word for the excitement about the new beds.
As for me, I was really sick for the first 15 weeks or so. I knew right away when I got pregnant. I had been temp charting in anticipation of when we were going to try again, but this baby decided to come sooner than we had planned. Still, I know exactly what day I got pregnant. Even so, I was in slight denial when it came time to take the test. I was 3 days or so late before I took one, even though I knew what the result would be. I took a second test a few days later to confirm, but the second line showed up pretty much instantly. I was showing by the time I was 8 weeks. And now at almost 20, I have one pair of pants that fit without any kind of help. Most shirts are too short. I bought some belly bands that help with both of the above issues. I wear pj pants most of the time when I'm at home not going anywhere.
I've been sick the past week with the cold the kids have been passing back and forth, but the past 2 days I've had something resembling the flu. As a result I couldn't keep any food down for a good 24 hours and the baby was NOT happy with me. I was seriously dehydrated and so miserable. Now on day 3 I still don't feel great, but I'm much more functional and I can eat some actual food again, more than soup and jello.
I've been having a lot of braxton-hicks contractions over the past month and with my history of pre-term labor the doctor is concerned. I really have to make sure I drink enough water. Being sick and throwing up everything has made that hard.
Doug got to feel the baby move for the first time last night. That was really cool. We were in bed watching the remake of Fright Night with Collin Ferrell and David Tennant and baby was going nuts. Even though I've done this before and it's nothing new, feeling the baby like that is still pretty much the coolest thing ever.
Anyway I guess that's all for now, I need to go eat something and open some windows, since it's so nice outside. If anyone reads this, please don't say anything on facebook just yet. I'll announce it there eventually. I've just had some negative comments on the idea of having another baby, when frankly if my husband and I decide that we're ready for another one, it's no one else's business. I won't say the idea of 4 children doesn't terrify me at times. But that doesn't mean anyone else has the right to tell me that that I shouldn't.
On that note, I will post another update later, when there's more to tell. Half way done already, it's going faster than I remember!
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Happy Valentine's Day!
Today isn't just the least favorite holiday of singles everywhere, it's also the birthday of my first born, growing up so fast. As of 2:47 this afternoon, I will have been a mother for 6 years already. Kaetlynn got to celebrate at school today during her class's Valentine party. She wore a pretty purple dress with her pink heart tights. Her class sang to her and she got to open the first valentine. Like any other kid, she's been excited about this for weeks. I think she started counting down after Christmas.
We got her a pretty awesome "big girl" present this year, it's a silver heart pendant necklace with pink earrings - real ones. She's been asking for months to get her ears pierced. She's not quite ready for the responsibility but if she can show us that she can take care of this gift, we are going to take her once the school year is out to get her ears pierced. She doesn't know this yet, she will get her gift at dinner tonight. We thought about giving it to her at her party last Saturday but knew it would be nice for her to get something on her real birthday.
Unfortunately her party was a lot smaller than we had planned on, because he weather took a nasty turn and the coldest day of the year decided to happen. People got sick or couldn't travel and as a result probably only half her guests were able to come. Thankfully her brand new cousin was able to come. Brand new in that he was only 5 days old at the party. Not a lot of fun to play with yet but all the kids were really excited to get to meet him. And Doug and I of course were thrilled to get our first nephew! That kid is gonna get more love than he knows what to do with. Lili could barely keep her hands off him. She kept trying to kiss him and pat his head. It was adorable.
Lili is 18 months now. Again the day passed me by without so much as a "how do you do". She has a cold right now which hasn't really been fun for anyone (and keeps me up at night) but still she stays in a great mood. It sounds like she needs to go down for her nap now. Maybe all the sugar she's ingested is finally starting to crash her out.
I guess that's all for this post. Until next time...
We got her a pretty awesome "big girl" present this year, it's a silver heart pendant necklace with pink earrings - real ones. She's been asking for months to get her ears pierced. She's not quite ready for the responsibility but if she can show us that she can take care of this gift, we are going to take her once the school year is out to get her ears pierced. She doesn't know this yet, she will get her gift at dinner tonight. We thought about giving it to her at her party last Saturday but knew it would be nice for her to get something on her real birthday.
Unfortunately her party was a lot smaller than we had planned on, because he weather took a nasty turn and the coldest day of the year decided to happen. People got sick or couldn't travel and as a result probably only half her guests were able to come. Thankfully her brand new cousin was able to come. Brand new in that he was only 5 days old at the party. Not a lot of fun to play with yet but all the kids were really excited to get to meet him. And Doug and I of course were thrilled to get our first nephew! That kid is gonna get more love than he knows what to do with. Lili could barely keep her hands off him. She kept trying to kiss him and pat his head. It was adorable.
Lili is 18 months now. Again the day passed me by without so much as a "how do you do". She has a cold right now which hasn't really been fun for anyone (and keeps me up at night) but still she stays in a great mood. It sounds like she needs to go down for her nap now. Maybe all the sugar she's ingested is finally starting to crash her out.
I guess that's all for this post. Until next time...
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Where has the time gone?
I can hardly believe that Liliana's 15 month mark happened without me even realizing it. She's been through a lot lately, two very busy with school parents, a double ear infection that got worse instead of better that we've been battling for almost a month now, and teething for -I kid you not- 8 months straight. We're up to 12 teeth now. And still nursing on occasion. Longest I've gone with any of the 3 kids. At least she doesn't bite lol.
With Halloween just past, Thanksgiving right around the corner, and Christmas only 6 weeks away, and finals for both Doug and I somewhere in there, I don't see the stress level lowering at all in the house any time soon. Lili's happy little face though, and incoherent chattering, remind me how blessed I am. Don't get me wrong, I love the other kids just as much. But as they grow up and get more independent, they want less cuddle time with their mom.
So for Christmas this year we've decided to some big group presents for the kids in addition to a few smaller individual things. They constantly want to play on either Doug's computer or mine but usually at an inconvenient time. With all the spare components laying around the house, we are building them their own system. Just enough to play their little games or go on the Disney website or whatnot. Nothing fancy but enough to keep them happy.
The other major gift we've decided on is setting up the fish tank we have and getting the kids each their own hermit crab. They seem to be pretty easy pets to have, as long as you maintain their humid environment. We'll set up the tank and give that to the kids Christmas morning, and then take them to the pet store and let them each pick out their own crab. It won't be a very big Christmas this year, but I think it will be a happy one:) I'm making my presents for Doug, and I'm really excited about what I've come up with so far. Just hope I get it all done in time!
Well looks like Lili just got into a black ink pad and got it all over herself so I guess my time here is done for now. Ciao!
With Halloween just past, Thanksgiving right around the corner, and Christmas only 6 weeks away, and finals for both Doug and I somewhere in there, I don't see the stress level lowering at all in the house any time soon. Lili's happy little face though, and incoherent chattering, remind me how blessed I am. Don't get me wrong, I love the other kids just as much. But as they grow up and get more independent, they want less cuddle time with their mom.
So for Christmas this year we've decided to some big group presents for the kids in addition to a few smaller individual things. They constantly want to play on either Doug's computer or mine but usually at an inconvenient time. With all the spare components laying around the house, we are building them their own system. Just enough to play their little games or go on the Disney website or whatnot. Nothing fancy but enough to keep them happy.
The other major gift we've decided on is setting up the fish tank we have and getting the kids each their own hermit crab. They seem to be pretty easy pets to have, as long as you maintain their humid environment. We'll set up the tank and give that to the kids Christmas morning, and then take them to the pet store and let them each pick out their own crab. It won't be a very big Christmas this year, but I think it will be a happy one:) I'm making my presents for Doug, and I'm really excited about what I've come up with so far. Just hope I get it all done in time!
Well looks like Lili just got into a black ink pad and got it all over herself so I guess my time here is done for now. Ciao!
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Old blog, renewed
"Smile at each other, smile at your wife, smile at your husband, smile at your children, smile at each other - it doesn't matter who it is and that will help you to grow up in greater love for each other." - Mother Teresa
Today I made the decision to revamp this blog; import old pregnancy entries from my other blog back to here, change the title, look, etc. My dearest love is also a contributor now and has promised to post from time to time. Basically this spot will be dedicated to posting things about the kids, both for others to read and for them, when they are older. As I write this, the faerie is playing computer games, the pirate in training is watching the original Batman movie, and the monkey is playing with a peacock feather and whining for dinner. So go cook I shall.
Over and out.
Today I made the decision to revamp this blog; import old pregnancy entries from my other blog back to here, change the title, look, etc. My dearest love is also a contributor now and has promised to post from time to time. Basically this spot will be dedicated to posting things about the kids, both for others to read and for them, when they are older. As I write this, the faerie is playing computer games, the pirate in training is watching the original Batman movie, and the monkey is playing with a peacock feather and whining for dinner. So go cook I shall.
Over and out.
Aug 31, 3 weeks 3 days post baby
Well it’s been a few weeks now and I thought I should take a minute and post the events of Liliana’s birthday:)
We decided to induce a week early, as you already know. So the morning of Aug 7 we went to the hospital and were admitted just a little after 7am. I was started on IV fluids and had to lay on my side while they asked me a ton of questions about my medical history and whatnot because the baby’s heart rate was really high (as in around 200 bpm) and that’s not necessarily a good thing. Thankfully after a little bit it went back down, it was so high due to the little bit of caffine I’d had that morning before we got to the hospital. Once we knew she was ok, my pitocin was started around 9am. Contractions took a little while to show up and when they did thankfully they weren’t too painful.
A lot of people think that being induced means a more painful labor but really, I guess it depends on who is administering your medication. My nurse started the drip really slowly so that I wouldn’t be hit all at once and the drugs would simulate more natural labor. It’s a lot easier on your body that way. So when my dr came in to check on me around 10am, I was still doing really good. I was about 3cm at that point and 70% or so effaced and the decision was made to break my water and let that help the contractions, rather than up the meds.
I had to stay on the monitor for a while longer to make sure that the combination of the meds and my water being broken wasn’t too hard on the baby, and then they let me get up and walk around for a while. Doug and my mom walked the L&D hallways with me for probably about an hour when I decided I needed to sit down because the pressure on my hips was just getting too much. Back in the room I sat on one of the birthing balls that were available and tried to relax. Gravity is a wonderful thing and sitting on the ball really helped, because my contractions in that position were much stronger than when I was laying in the bed or even walking around.
I think I was on the ball for about an hour or so when we decided to move me into the tub in the bathroom. Standing up off the ball was about the grossest thing ever, since my water had been broken there was a huge gush when I got up and I left a nice big puddle on the floor and a trail from there to the bathroom. It just looked like water but it felt like I was peeing everywhere lol. Anyway I got in the tub, turned on the jets, and put a cold washcloth on my head. The water really helped me back, though the contractions slowed down again. 4 cm now.
After about 45 minutes or so I got out of the tub and back into bed and back on the monitors. 5 cm. At this point we decided to get some kind of pain relief because contractions were now about 3 minutes apart, lasting 1.5-2 mins each. I was checked again when the meds were started (no epidural, I had half Demerol and half something else. Half of this was administered through my IV, the other half went into my hip via shot) and was at 7cm. I was told to pay attention to my contractions and when my body started to push without me controlling it, we were probably ready to go.
Not 10 minutes later (without the medication kicking in at all, I might add) we were calling the dr to come deliver me. 3 minutes, 1 contraction, and 3 pushes later and Liliana was here. Most of the last hour was really fuzzy to me, I remember being on my left side, gripping the side of the bed, closing my eyes and trying not to cry. I remember yelling at Doug not to touch my hip or lower back because it made the pain worse. I remember asking what the baby was since no one had told me. Doug cut the cord before they put her on my stomach, but I missed that. I had to ask later. It was kind of like I was in this really painful dream and when I woke up I had another hospital bracelet on (which I do not remember being put on me) and a crying baby on my chest. They had to sew me up while Lili had her checks done (8 & 9 APGAR scores) because I ended up tearing a bit since she came out so fast.
Liliana Grace was born at 4:15pm, 8lb, 20.75 inches after about 7hours of labor. She had a little scratch on her forehead from when they broke my water, but her head was barely coned at all and she has a tiny red birthmark on the very top of her head. She also has the same birthmark that Kaetlynn has, a red patch in the middle of her forehead that only shows up when she’s really mad, and my same crooked toe that both of the other kids have as well. She is absolutely perfect, only crying if she’s hungry or gets ignored for too long. She sleeps pretty good at night too, though we have had our share of nights that she wants to be up all night. Not to cry, just to hang out. Still means we don’t get to sleep. Doug has been amazing helping in the middle of the night if I just can’t handle it anymore. Logan loves his “baby stister” and kisses her all the time. Kaety says that Lili is the number 2 princess, she is still number 1. I see some sister-rivalry happening later on in life… I have lost about 20 lbs already (which is more than I gained during the pregnancy, so so far I’m coming out ahead) and did my first workout yesterday to get my abs/core back into shape and I’m sore as hell because of it, but in a good way :) .
As I write this Lili is reminding me that she wants attention so I need to get back to the chair where I spend 90% of my day feeding my newest little pig.
We decided to induce a week early, as you already know. So the morning of Aug 7 we went to the hospital and were admitted just a little after 7am. I was started on IV fluids and had to lay on my side while they asked me a ton of questions about my medical history and whatnot because the baby’s heart rate was really high (as in around 200 bpm) and that’s not necessarily a good thing. Thankfully after a little bit it went back down, it was so high due to the little bit of caffine I’d had that morning before we got to the hospital. Once we knew she was ok, my pitocin was started around 9am. Contractions took a little while to show up and when they did thankfully they weren’t too painful.
A lot of people think that being induced means a more painful labor but really, I guess it depends on who is administering your medication. My nurse started the drip really slowly so that I wouldn’t be hit all at once and the drugs would simulate more natural labor. It’s a lot easier on your body that way. So when my dr came in to check on me around 10am, I was still doing really good. I was about 3cm at that point and 70% or so effaced and the decision was made to break my water and let that help the contractions, rather than up the meds.
I had to stay on the monitor for a while longer to make sure that the combination of the meds and my water being broken wasn’t too hard on the baby, and then they let me get up and walk around for a while. Doug and my mom walked the L&D hallways with me for probably about an hour when I decided I needed to sit down because the pressure on my hips was just getting too much. Back in the room I sat on one of the birthing balls that were available and tried to relax. Gravity is a wonderful thing and sitting on the ball really helped, because my contractions in that position were much stronger than when I was laying in the bed or even walking around.
I think I was on the ball for about an hour or so when we decided to move me into the tub in the bathroom. Standing up off the ball was about the grossest thing ever, since my water had been broken there was a huge gush when I got up and I left a nice big puddle on the floor and a trail from there to the bathroom. It just looked like water but it felt like I was peeing everywhere lol. Anyway I got in the tub, turned on the jets, and put a cold washcloth on my head. The water really helped me back, though the contractions slowed down again. 4 cm now.
After about 45 minutes or so I got out of the tub and back into bed and back on the monitors. 5 cm. At this point we decided to get some kind of pain relief because contractions were now about 3 minutes apart, lasting 1.5-2 mins each. I was checked again when the meds were started (no epidural, I had half Demerol and half something else. Half of this was administered through my IV, the other half went into my hip via shot) and was at 7cm. I was told to pay attention to my contractions and when my body started to push without me controlling it, we were probably ready to go.
Not 10 minutes later (without the medication kicking in at all, I might add) we were calling the dr to come deliver me. 3 minutes, 1 contraction, and 3 pushes later and Liliana was here. Most of the last hour was really fuzzy to me, I remember being on my left side, gripping the side of the bed, closing my eyes and trying not to cry. I remember yelling at Doug not to touch my hip or lower back because it made the pain worse. I remember asking what the baby was since no one had told me. Doug cut the cord before they put her on my stomach, but I missed that. I had to ask later. It was kind of like I was in this really painful dream and when I woke up I had another hospital bracelet on (which I do not remember being put on me) and a crying baby on my chest. They had to sew me up while Lili had her checks done (8 & 9 APGAR scores) because I ended up tearing a bit since she came out so fast.
Liliana Grace was born at 4:15pm, 8lb, 20.75 inches after about 7hours of labor. She had a little scratch on her forehead from when they broke my water, but her head was barely coned at all and she has a tiny red birthmark on the very top of her head. She also has the same birthmark that Kaetlynn has, a red patch in the middle of her forehead that only shows up when she’s really mad, and my same crooked toe that both of the other kids have as well. She is absolutely perfect, only crying if she’s hungry or gets ignored for too long. She sleeps pretty good at night too, though we have had our share of nights that she wants to be up all night. Not to cry, just to hang out. Still means we don’t get to sleep. Doug has been amazing helping in the middle of the night if I just can’t handle it anymore. Logan loves his “baby stister” and kisses her all the time. Kaety says that Lili is the number 2 princess, she is still number 1. I see some sister-rivalry happening later on in life… I have lost about 20 lbs already (which is more than I gained during the pregnancy, so so far I’m coming out ahead) and did my first workout yesterday to get my abs/core back into shape and I’m sore as hell because of it, but in a good way :) .
As I write this Lili is reminding me that she wants attention so I need to get back to the chair where I spend 90% of my day feeding my newest little pig.
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