Welcome to Nine Months. I will be blogging here for
the next nine months about what it is like to be pregnant and take care of a young child!
I have one daughter who was born in January of 2002. Now I am expecting our
second (and final!) child the first week in December 2003.
Everything has been going great so far! I'm really surprised that it seems so much easier the second time around. I guess it's different when you know what to expect! I had a chance to write down the list of events for the day Carson was born. Since my nine months is over, I will probably not blog here often. When I do blog, it will be at my other site, Sharon's Random Thoughts.
Here's how the day unfolded:
November 21, 2003
6:00 AM – I wake up after a terrible night’s sleep. The day before, I was checked at the doctor’s and was told that I was 4 centimeters dilated. I wasn’t having any signs of labor until I tried to go to sleep that night. I was having contractions when I tried to go to sleep, but my husband convinced me to try to get some rest. I managed to sleep off and on until 6:00.
6:30 AM – I decide to call my mom before she heads off to work. I still wasn’t sure if I was in labor so I didn’t want her to waste a vacation day and come out. After talking to her for a bit, the contractions started coming every 5 minutes apart. She insists on coming out and getting my husband's parents on her way. My mom is thrilled because she has predicted since the day we announced the pregnancy that the baby would be born on her mother’s birthday, November 21.
7:45 AM – The grandparents arrive and I am still having regular contractions, so we wake our daughter up and give her breakfast. Everyone gets to witness me have many painful contractions.
8:45 AM – The contractions are coming 3 minutes apart so we start loading the car and call the doctors. They tell me it’s okay to go to the hospital.
9:19 AM – We arrive at the hospital and I am wheeled to the maternity ward. The contractions are almost unbearable at this point. Luckily, I remembered the Lamaze breathing technique. It doesn’t take the pain away but it helps distract me from the pain. I get checked and I am 5 centimeters and about 90% effaced. Everyone heads for the waiting room.
10:10 AM - They start the IV, after poking at my rolling veins many times. I have to wait an hour before I can get the epidural. I am in terrible pain for this hour.
11:00 AM – I am now 6 centimeters and the anesthesiologist arrives to give me my epidural!
12:10 PM – I am still at 6 centimeters. My contractions slowed down and weakened from the epidural, so they broke my water and started a small dose of Pitosin.
12:26 PM – Made it to 8 centimeters!
12:31 PM – I feel this intense urge to push! The nurse called for the doctor, who was on her was to take care of another patient. I didn’t expect her to stay and get ready to deliver since it took an hour and 18 minutes of pushing to deliver my daughter. My husband calls the waiting room to have my mom come in for the birth. Even though I had the epidural, I can still feel intense pain. I screamed through the entire pushing process. I was almost wishing for an episotomiy, but luckily she didn’t give me one. At one point, I gained enough composure to take a peek and see if I could see the baby’s head. To my amazement, there it was! I just needed a few good pushes and this would be all over! So, I push with all of my might and out comes the head! I cannot explain the relief that I felt at that moment!
12:42 PM – It’s a beautiful baby boy!!! We have Carson! (A name that my husband came up with before we were pregnant with our first. He came up with it by using 3 letters of his name and three letters of my name) What an exciting moment! We now have a little boy and a little girl! And now we have someone to carry on our last name!
After that, my husband cuts the cord and they clean Carson and measure him. After spending a few moments with him, my husband and my mom head for the waiting room to tell everyone that we had a boy. Carson's cousin was also able to make it to the hospital to be one of the first to see him.
I went to the doctor's today only to find out that I am 4 centimeters dilated and 50% effaced! I could hardly believe it. The doctor seemed surprised that I haven't had any cramps or anything. Just the regular old braxton-hicks. I'm not complaining though! Only 6 more to go and I push the baby out! OMG!! I can't believe this is going to happen soon... :)
Monday, November 17, 2003 Duplicating History (36 Weeks 6 Days)
The photo that you see as part of my logo was taken 6 days before my daughter was born. We decided to dress me up in the same dress and take another picture of my pregnant belly. I had some issues with my new camera, so I didn't get it exactly the same. I also didn't think about the fact that I was facing the other way! But for the most part, I think I look similar.
I had my daughter 18 days before my expected due date. If that history were to repeat itself, I have about 3 hours left to have this baby! I don't think it's going to happen! I get examined at my doctor's appointment this Thursday, so I am very curious to see if there is any indication of labor soon!
My prenatal exercise class was cancelled due to lack of enrollment. Luckily, I hit if off with one of the girls in the class and we are still meeting to exercise together. It's so much more fun to exercise with someone , especially when they are going through exactly what you are.
I'm starting to feel like a human time bomb, not knowing when exactly when this baby is going to come. With my last pregnancy, I just expected to go to my due date. From that experience, I have learned that due dates pretty much mean nothing. I have actually been feeling pretty good the past few days. I only have minor complaints, like a sore back and not being able to sleep comfortably. We are trying to cover all of our grounds and make sure we have a plan for when I do go into labor. The last time was fairly simple, but this time we have a little one who needs to be watched. I think we have it all worked out as long as a scenario that we didn't think of arises.
So, is it going to be one more week or four more? Tick, tock.....
Wednesday, November 05, 2003 Epidural Class (35 Weeks 1 Day)
The hospital that I am delivering at requires that you attend an epidural class. That's what I did today. What you do is watch a 20 minute video all about your drug choices for pain relief, then an anesthesiologist answers questions and then you sign a waiver saying that they aren't responsible for anything horrible that happens to you. Including death! Yikes! I had to attend this same class when I was pregnant with my daughter, but I didn't feel the anxiety then that I did today. The video shows a mom in labor getting her epidural. It also explained how they will first inject something between your spine to numb the area then a catheter is inserted into the spine in a place called the epidural space. It's located right in front of the area where the spinal fluid is located. If the anesthesiologist is just a little bit off and hits the area where the spinal fluid is, it will cause a severe headache that could last a week. Ouch! But he says not to worry, it only happens to 1 in 100 to 200 women or so. Then in the video, we get to witness a birth. To see that mom pushing with all of her might to get that baby out just freaked me out for a minute. It's all coming back to me now. What am I doing?! I have to go through all of this all over again! Oh my goodness, I must be crazy! My palms where so sweaty being in that hospital knowing that in a few short weeks, I will be there in labor!
Ok, time to calm down... The epidural isn't really what I am stressing about. Really, you cannot even feel much of what they are doing because the contractions hurt so much more. But just the thought of what they are doing back there kind of freaks me out. But, the relief is wonderful. It doesn't take all of the pain away, it just takes a lot of the edge off. So, I more than likely will have one again. I'm just not looking forward to the whole labor and delivery process. And being in the hospital. I have to stop dwelling on it right now...
Anyway, I know everything will be fine and that I will survive and all. And the best part of all is, I AM NEVER GOING TO DO THIS AGAIN! :)
Tuesday, November 04, 2003 My Daughter's Birth Story (35 Weeks - 2nd Post)
I thought it would be fun to post the story that wrote about the day my daughter was born since I am so close to having another birth story to share!
January 26, 2002
4:30 AM – I wake up with one of the most painful contractions that I have ever felt during the entire pregnancy. I found it kind of strange that it woke me up. I tried to go back to sleep and as soon as I would start to drift, I would be awakened by another uncomfortable contraction. After a while of laying there trying to go back to sleep, I decided to go to the couch and watch television, since I couldn’t sleep. I noticed that I kept getting contractions and they felt like they were happening regularly, so I decided to write the time down every time I got one. That’s when I realized they were coming about every ten minutes. I didn’t think anything of it since the pain was tolerable.
7:45 AM – My husband wakes up to find me not in bed. When he finds me on the couch, he is puzzled as to why I am not in bed. I explain that I have been having contractions and I wrote the times down. He looks at the sheet of paper and gets a funny look on his face. He says, “We’re going to have a baby today!” I, in total denial, said “Oh, no. This is just false labor. Read the ‘What To Expect When You Are Expecting’ book.” He reads the description and agrees. It sounds like false labor.
8:30 AM – We are on our way to Lamaze class. I am still having regular contractions.
9:00 AM – The teacher asks us if we have anything new to report. We tell her about losing my mucus plug on Thursday and the doctor telling us that I am 2-1/2 centimeters dilated on Friday. We also mentioned the contractions. She laughs and says that maybe we will have show and tell in class today!
2:00 PM – My husband has been writing down every contraction that I have had. They are coming closer and closer. By the time class is over, they are about every three minutes. We decide that maybe we should ask the teacher what she thinks. She says that it could be false labor, but since they were taking a tour of the maternity ward, we should go along. She offered to talk to the nurses about it.
3:00 PM – We take the tour first. I am hit by one of the most painful contractions yet. Terri, the Lamaze instructor, talks to one of the nurses. They told me to get into a hospital gown and they would hook me up to the monitors and give me an exam. I am now 3-4 centimeters dilated and the contractions are still coming regularly. We still think that I am going to go back home. Nobody has told me yet that I am staying. I am also very hungry. All I had to eat the entire day was a bowl of cereal and a banana. They tell me that I cannot eat incase I would need a c-section.
4:00 PM – My husband starts calling the family. He first calls our friends since we are supposed to be at their house at 4:30. Looks like we aren’t going to make it! The nurses want to hook me up to an IV incase I get the epidural. I don’t want to be hooked up to anything yet since I want to walk and take a shower. I never did get one that morning. After showering, we go for a walk up and down the hall several times. The contractions are getting extremely painful. When I get one, I stop and put my head on the wall while my husband rubs my belly. When the contraction is over, I’m joking and laughing, I can’t believe how much of a difference I feel when the contraction is over. The intensity of the contractions is making me sure that I want an epidural. Even in all of my pain, I am still hungry. The only thing that I am allowed to eat is ice chips.
5:00 PM – We get back to the room and they do another check. They say that I am now 5-1/2 centimeters dilated. The pain of the contractions is getting hard to bear. I tell the nurse that I am sure that I want an epidural as soon as possible. They have to run an IV for an hour before I can get it. Our friends that we were supposed to go out with arrive and they get to witness me having a contraction. (not a pretty sight, I’m sure!)
6:45 PM – The doctor does another check and I am up to 7 centimeters. They finally track down the anesthesiologist. Finally, I am going to get the epidural! They make my husband leave the room. I sit on the edge of the bed while the two nurses hold me and instruct me to breathe. The anesthesiologist tells me that I will feel a little bee sting when he places the needle between two vertebrae in my lower back. I feel the pinch but the contractions are much more painful. After several minutes, I feel like a new person. The contractions aren’t coming as often and when they do, I can barely feel them.
My mother is the next to arrive at the hospital. She is amazed at how relaxed I am for being in labor. She never had the pleasure of an epidural when she had me! Mom signs some papers and is okayed by the hospital to stay for the birth.
7:45 PM – I am now 9 centimeters dilated, only one more to go! The doctor attempts to break my water a second before it broke on it’s own. My in-laws are the next to arrive.
8:10 PM – After another check, I am told it is now time to push! I cannot believe how fast this is all happening. Not too long ago, I thought that I was going home, now I am ready to push a baby out! Pushing was one of the hardest parts of labor and delivery for me. Since the epidural started to wear off, I started to feel a lot of pain. They had to bring the anesthesiologist back to administer more medication. The nurses had me lay on my side to do some pushing, which was extremely uncomfortable. At this point, I am not even thinking about whether the baby is going to be a boy or a girl. I’m so caught up in the moment, I cannot think about anything other than the discomfort. My husband and my mom keep telling me that the baby is right there. They bring me a mirror and I expect to see a head ready to come out. Instead, I can barely see a thing! The baby is so far inside, I can’t believe that they are telling me that it’s right there! I continue pushing as each contraction comes. Finally, the baby really is right there. My mom informs me that the doctor has his episiotomy tools out. I originally wanted to avoid it if possible, and this particular doctor told me at one of my appointments that he only had to perform three episiotomies on the past year. Looks like I’m going to be the first one of this year. At this point, I don’t even care. He could chop my right arm off, if it meant that I could no longer feel this pain!
9:29 PM – What seemed like seconds after the incision, the baby was here! I couldn’t believe the relief that I felt. I have never felt anything like it in my life. That’s all I could think about until I heard the Dr. say, “It’s a girl!” We couldn’t believe it! My mom says, “You got Maleena!” Now it’s all coming back to me, all of this pain was for the baby! Oh yeah, that’s right I just had a baby! And the pain is gone!
Next, my husband cut the umbilical cord. They put Maleena on my tummy while we wiped her off with a towel. I couldn’t believe how beautiful she was and that she was really here! And that she was a girl!! We were convinced that we were going to have a boy, for some reason. But we couldn’t be happier! We have a perfect, beautiful baby girl.
10:15 PM – Everyone comes in to see the new addition and take pictures.
10:30 PM – The nurses told everyone that it was time to leave, since I had to breastfeed Maleena for the first time.
12:00 AM – My husband and I finally get to eat dinner.
The baby finally has a room! The turtles are now in their mansion of an aquarium out in the family room. It's strange walking past the baby's room and thinking that there will be another human residing in our home. I can't believe how fast our family is growing! Two years ago, it was just the two of us! Now, in a couple of weeks it will be the four of us! But this is as big as it gets. I'm not as brave as a lot of women out there who want four or more. I think two children, two cats and two turtles is challenging enough!
My braxton-hicks contractions have been picking up. I have had them for so long, but I have been noticing that they come more often and last a little longer. I can hardly believe that I am now 35 weeks along. If I go when I did with my daughter, I will have a baby in 2 and 1/2 weeks!
