Well you are 5 months old today! I can't believe it, you are getting so big. Today is as good of day as any to "relive" your birth story!
I had my first internal check on Thursday and was so excited to learn I was 3 cm
dialted. Dr
Figge was very impressed and said that was great for a first time mom, and she thought for sure you would arrive by the next Thursday. I went and had ice cream with Audrey on cloud nine! Around 4am Friday morning I awoke to some pains, I tried to "ignore" it and go back to sleep but that wasn't happening. Finally around 530 I crawled out of bed and went and watched TV, Dad came out and asked if I was
ok. I told him I was having cramping but I was fine, he asked if I was sure it was just cramping, I laughed and told him I wasn't sure of anything! :0) I got ready for work, did my hair, my makeup, and finished packing my hospital bag. The cramps (which I now realize are contractions) are still coming but pretty far apart. I tell Dad I will call the Dr as soon as they open at 8, and call him with an update. I head to work, not far from home I realize, this is it, I am in labor, so I call Grandma Rita and tell her to be ready. I also call my boss and tell her I might be a little late as I am taking back roads, just in case.
On my drive to work, I start to time my contractions, about 5 miles from work they are about 6 minutes apart. I get to work and of course everyone tells me I am in labor. By now the contractions are taking my breath away, so I start to get my stuff finished at work. At 8 on the dot, I call the Doctors office, of course Dr
Figge is off, so they have to call her and call me back. I get a call back and am told to pack my bag and head to the hospital! (Thankfully I thought ahead and put my bag in the car.) I call Dad and tell him to head to the hospital, we are going to have a baby today!! I called Grandma Rita who worked across the street from the hospital and told her I was on my way and to meet me at the main entrance. I then proceed to drive myself to the hospital, contractions are
definitly taking my breath away and are getting intense. This was a tricky 30
ish miles ( I even went over railroad tracks, which was not fun). I get to the hospital and my mom is waiting for me. We go up to Labor & Delivery and I walk into Triage and tell her I think I am in labor. She tells me I look to happy to be in labor, but she will hook me up and see. I change into a gown and she hooks me up, comes back a few minutes later and she proclaims that I am the happiest mommy in labor she has ever seen, my contractions are now 2-3 minutes apart! Dad arrives and we are checked into a room. The labor part is all kind of a blur, I had every intention of using the birthing ball, and the whirlpool tub and everything else, BESIDES drugs. I end up sitting on the bed the entire time, holding Dad's hand. When the contractions would come I would cram Dad's hand into the bed and breathe through it. Grandma Rita and Dad were AWESOME coaches. They kept telling me I was doing great, and reminded me to breathe.
Before I knew it it was time to push! The nurses let me push once before the Dr came in, then Dr Amy Johnson came in and told me to push. I griped the arm of the bed and pushed with all my might, Dr Johnson
immediatly said, "we need to get this baby out". I remember thinking, what exactly do you think I am trying to do lady?! Then the Dr left, the nurses helped me push again, then Dr Johnson came back, and had me push one more time. She then said again "we need to get this baby out now". I remember them starting to push me toward the door, and Dr Johnson looked at me and said "This is your verbal consent to have a C-section". The nurse looked at Dad and told him he needed scrubs and he could come in, Dr Johnson said no, because I hadn't had an epidural I needed to go under General
Anesthia for the C section, and that meant Dad couldn't be there. I remember getting wheeled through the Labor & Delivery floor to the "operating room", I remember the nurses rubbing my arms telling me it would all be
ok. (I later found out that your heart rate dropped and you were hung up on my pelvis and not coming down. They couldn't reach you with the
vaccum or the forceps and you needed to come out
immediatly)
The next thing I remember I woke up staring at the ceiling of the recovery room. I asked the nurses if my baby was
ok, and what I had, they told me I had a little girl. I cried. I was so happy, I couldn't wait to meet you. Finally I got to be taken to my room, they wheeled me in and I was greeted by Grandma Rita, Grandpa Tom, Grandma DJ, Grandpa John, of course your Dad and the most amazing little girl! They brought you
immediatly to my chest so we could be skin to skin, and I could hardly see you I was crying so much. You were so teeny tiny, and perfect. I had missed your first feeding, Dad gave you your first bottle, and watched as you got your first bath and were weighed and measured. He was so proud.
I don't remember much about the first few nights, the affects of the General were still wearing off, and I had a morphine drip for the pain. But Sunday night you had to spend the night in the
NICU, because you had jaundice, so they put you under the lights. Dad and I went and
visted you, we didn't bring the camera but you had to funniest eye
sheilds on, you looked like a mini super hero! Monday was the day that we were to be discharged and come home. You were still in the
NICU and they weren't sure if the jaundice was going away enough for you to come home that day, I was very sad. Dad and I had to go to a discharge class before we could go home, during the class I started to get very cold. After the class we went to the
NICU to visit you, and I was so cold I was shivering, the nurse brought me a warm blanket, and when that didn't warm me up, she told me to go back to my room and she would come take my temperature. She did and it was 103 (?), she had to call the DR and the DR said I couldn't go home. So I stayed, I found out that I had to go 24 hours without a fever in order to be released to go home, and that a fever meant I had an infection. Well I ended up with another fever, and another and another and another. After 6 days in the hospital I was finally able to be released to go home.
After coming home, Dad was to inspect my incision to make sure it was healing
ok, as that was where my infection was. He noticed within a few days of being home it wasn't looking good, so back to the DR I went. I ended up with a major infection in my incision and had to have a nurse come daily for almost 10 weeks to clean and pack my wound. It wasn't any fun, but you were 110% worth it!
Well, after that lengthy story (I didn't want to leave anything out) I think I will close with... Happy 5 month Birthday my beautiful precious perfect baby girl. I adore you more than you will ever know. Every day you amaze me and make me smile, and I know this will never stop.
I love you.
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