Birth Story

Writer’s note: I wanted this to be much better, but my editing skills seem to have left me. So it’s more of a brain dump of what happened. I just wanted to get it up because every day more and more stuff is happening that I want to write about, but I don’t feel like I can until this goes up.

We are home from the hospital now and things are just nuts. I hope to be able to get this post finished before I pass out from exhaustion or have to run and do something. Bear with me if I ramble.

Sunday morning, I woke up around 4 a.m or so having bad cramps. I got up and went to the bathroom and came back to bed for a bit, until 4:30. I was wide awake at that point and had had a couple of contractions, just a bit more severe than what I’ve been used to with the Braxton-Hicks contractions. So I got up and did all the tricks I know to make BH contractions go away, but none of them seemed to work. Around 6, I woke Jake up telling him that he might get to meet Curtainrod today. That got him out of bed pretty quickly!

We tooled around the house, doing a few tasks here and there, getting the bag packed, all the while my contractions getting stronger. I had asked the doctor on Thursday when it would be time to call her or go to the hospital. She had given me the standard, 5-1-1 answer - when the contractions are 5 minutes apart, lasting for 1 minute each, for 1 hour. The problem was that while my contractions were coming closer together, I was never getting one that lasted a full minute. I wasn’t sure what was more important - the distance apart or the length of the contraction. So I waited. Finally, around 9:45 or, I couldn’t take it anymore. I wanted to know for sure that something was happening and I wanted someone to check me and tell me. So I called the doctor’s office. The on-call doctor (not my doctor) called me back within minutes, and we discussed what was happening. She advised me to just go on in to Labor and Delivery to get checked. She didn’t sound too convinced, and really, neither was I, but I needed to know.

We called my parents to let them know we were going and would call them if there was any reason for them to come to the hospital later. We also called Jake’s parents who had arrived in town the night before, and got our stuff together, then headed out around 10 a.m.

At the hospital, we checked in (thank god for pre-registration) and were herded to triage, where a lovely nurse named Hermione got me on monitors and started asking me a ton of questions. After being very mysterious for a while, she checked my cervix and told me that my contractions were now about two minutes apart and that I was 4 cm dilated with a bulging bag of water. So it was official, I was in labor! We were moved to a Labor and Delivery room and right about then, I reached the conclusion that I could no longer do this without the aid of medication. It was just too hard. I could have maybe handled the pain OR the pressure, but not both. We got into the L&D room around 11 a.m. or so, and almost immediately, I had an IV going to get my fluids up for the epidural. The anesthesiologist came down pretty quickly and got me to sign forms and answer a bunch more questions, and fairly soon, I was on my way to bliss by way of a needle in my spine. I was very nervous about the whole process of an epidural, but my L&D nurse was so incredible. She held me up and held my hands and coached me to breathe through the contractions that were still coming. I had about three while he was doing the epidural but I managed to not move and very very soon, I was comfortably numb and in much better spirits.

Our parents arrived right around this time and we visited for a few minutes, before we encouraged them to go get lunch. I was only 4 cm dilated - they had plenty of time! Right after they left, I got checked again. It was about 1 p.m. or so I think. I was dilated to 8 cm and 80 % effaced! How the hell had that happened?? The nurse said that she expected my water to break any time now so she wasn’t going to do it herself. The minute she left the room to go eat lunch, I felt my water break. The other wonderful nurse checked me again and we all marveled at my progress - I was almost completely dilated. She said the doctor was about five minutes away and we laughed that we may not have five minutes at the rate I was going!

Baby Curtainrod was having a few “variables” in his heart rate, so they put me on oxygen and had me flip over from one side to the other until they got the heart rate they were looking for. At this point, I was freaking out a little bit. I mean, I had had zero time to prepare myself for this! Last I could recall, we were sure we were going to be told it wasn’t labor and sent home! And now I’m completely dilated? How is that possible?

The doctor did arrive very soon after that and we started doing some pushing. I have completely lost track of what time these things were happening. I remember that our parents got back from lunch sometime in here, and knocked on the door. Jake answered and told them that it was pushing time and he’d come see them when he had some news. I know they had to be shocked that so much had happened in such a short time.

The monitor kept losing the baby’s heartbeat and so things were getting a little scary. They ended up putting a scalp monitor on the baby’s head and kept me on the oxygen. I started pushing and in between pushes I was being flipped over on my right side. The contractions were very long and very strong - some of them lasting for two minutes or more. They made me rest through a couple of them just to give the baby a rest. I was thankfully able to feel the contractions, although they only felt like pressure - no pain at all. But that really helped me to be able to push effectively and to feel like I knew what was happening. Anyway to sum up, I pushed for a total of twenty minutes and then I felt her be born. It was the most amazing moment of my life. Well, maybe second most amazing, second only to hearing Jake say, “We have a girl!” We both started crying and they put her up on my tummy and started cleaning her off. I’m so glad they didn’t whisk her away, but I think that is due to our amazing nurse who knew I wanted her immediately. She did finally go to the warmer in the room and was given her apgar and bundled up. I had her back in my arms very quickly and she looked right at me. Bridget was a name we had considered for a girl, but since we were sure we weren’t having a girl, it was not a serious thought. But she just looks like a Bridget and we knew it was her name.

After they finished with me - delivering the placenta and stitching me up (second degree tearing, unfortunately) Jake went to tell the parents the news of our new daughter’s arrival. L&D nurse helped me try to get our girl to nurse for a bit, They came in a bit later and got to hold her. The L&D nurse helped me try to nurse after the parents left, but Bridget wasn’t going for it, so we bundled her up and took her up to the nursery to get a bath and get all babyfied, whatever the hell it is they do to them up there. They hefted me into a wheelchair and we went up to the Mother-Baby Unit by way of the nursery. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see her very well because I couldn’t stand and the window to the nursery was too high for me to see in from the wheelchair, but at that point, I just wanted to lay down.

The rest of the stay was kind of a blur - nothing too noteworthy. I loved the daytime nurse I had, but the two who were on at night were just sort of ok. The pain was about what I thought it would be as far as intensity goes, but it didn’t hurt exactly where I thought it would. But the drugs were good.

So that’s the long and short of it. We are home now and things are quite surreal. I can’t believe that this time last week, we had no child and all of a sudden we have one. It’s odd. She has certainly turned our lives and the house upside down. I have had a couple of days where I just went into a meltdown. I think that’s normal considering what just happened to my body and what is going on with my hormones. Jake just lets me cry it out and tells me all the right things and soon I feel better.

One thing I wanted to say that I totally didn’t anticipate was how much I have fallen in love with Jake all over again. It’s so amazing to watch this wonderful man, my husband, turn into a father almost instantly. It’s beyond my abilities to explain it. I knew he was amazing, but I had no idea he had this in him. I am truly thankful for him and for our daughter.

It’s a girl!

Hi all, Jake (the husband) here. Today at 2:42p, Bridget [no middle name yet] was born. Both mom and baby are doing wonderfully, no problems, happy and healthy. Donna is up walking around as I type this.

Bridget was 6 lbs 15 oz and 19.5 inches.

Labor went amazingly well, relatively speaking. Total time from triage to private room: 6.5 hours. Total time pushing: 20 minutes. We spent more time doing paperwork than anything else!

Donna says hi, and will be posting more as soon as she’s back home. She has been an absolute rock star. It was amazing to see how well she handled this. No complaining at all. She’s incredible.

Nesting Wrap Up

One of the last things we had to do was get the carpets cleaned. See, the mental giant who built our house decided that white carpet was a great idea. White carpet does not go well with everyday life and certainly not when you have two dogs and two cats. Two dogs and two cats who defile the carpet quite often with vomit, pee and hairballs. Gee, that makes our house sound so appealing. Don’t you all just want to come over and stay for a while? Anyway, we definitely plan to replace the carpet in the not too distant future, but right now it’s not in the budget. Until it is, carpet cleaning a few times a year is definitely in the budget. And since we are having guests tomorrow it seemed the perfect time. So right now, it’s very noisy in the house but it will all be worth it in about an hour or so, when they leave and we remember what our carpets look like clean.

I only wish that I had arranged to have the housekeeper come again this week. Actually since they don’t do laundry, it wouldn’t really help. I just need someone to put away all my friggin’ clothes. Maybe I should just throw them all out and start over. That seems easier than trying to wash, dry, fold, hang up and put away doesn’t it?

I also need to get under the sink in my bathroom and organize that cabinet. It’s crazy under there with travel bags, sample sizes, tampons boxes in various sizes, nail polish in various colors and assorted first aid items. It’s literally overflowing under there and it drives me crazy whenever I need to get something from under there or I need a place to stash something. That could be a task for tomorrow morning. After that, though, there’s just not a whole lot left to do other than basic stuff. We’ll vacuum a few times while people are around, and I do need to do a quick mop of the hardwoods downstairs thanks to some rain on Tuesday which led to muddy dog prints.

And now we are ready for Curtainrod to arrive. Because babies can’t arrive until all cabinets are organized and carpets are clean. Maybe THAT is why the baby won’t drop!

Not What I Hoped to Post Today

Doctor appointment today did NOT make me happy. I was really hoping that I would be able to report more progress in the baby department. But no. I’m no more dilated - still 1 cm - and although my cervix is soft, it’s still thick. The baby does seem to have dropped some but not dramatically. We discussed induction. She said that if nothing happened on its own before then, she was scheduling me for an induction on December 1. She also mentioned c-section to me. I think it was more of a gentle way for her to say that if I wanted it, she’d do an elective c-section because the baby is still not engaged in my pelvis. I thought at first that was a bit premature of her to mention, but it does make a bit of sense. Especially after she said that a 36 hour labor was not in my best interests or in Curtainrod’s. So yes, if he does not engage, then we will have to do it. I let her know that my preference list went like this:

Let the baby come on its own time and with a vaginal birth

Induction of labor, but still a vaginal delivery

C-section

I told her that my top priority was a healthy baby and that if c-section is the best way to accomplish that, then I wouldn’t fight it, but I’m really not wild about the thought of recovery from surgery if I can avoid it. I think she knows where I’m coming from now. If we have to induce, then we have to, and if labor doesn’t progress how we want, then we can consider c-section. So blah. I guess she has to cover all the bases and prepare me. I’m just hoping that something happens before December 1.

On to brighter topics, the baby’s room is done as far as decorating goes. Well, as done as it’s going to get. I do still have some laundry to do and put away. Typical for me, though, to have laundry to do. My kitchen cabinets are reorganized and ready for someone else to come into my kitchen to cook. Jake’s mom will be here and will be doing the majority of Thanksgiving dinner plus some other cooking. I wanted it to be easy for her to open a cabinet and find what she needed, which would not have been possible just two short weeks ago. Yesterday I cleaned out the utensil drawers, which did not yield the results I had hoped for - I wasn’t able to throw much out, but I did discover that I have way too many corn on the cob holders and boxes of toothpicks (which I only use to test the doneness of baked goods, so why the hell do I have so many???)

As I was cleaning out the fridge, I finally decided to toss the Gonal-f pen that I used on my last IUI cycle. It still has medication in it, but its expiration date is in January, so I knew that even if I wanted to do another IUI, this would not be usable by then. No way in hell would I consider trying to get knocked up again THAT quickly. And I couldn’t donate it (like I did with the other unopened one) because it has been used. It was very hard to throw that away, but it also made no sense to keep it hanging around, either. I still haven’t tossed the two pregnancy tests I took, and I’m not sure when I’ll be able to do that.

And I keep thinking of things I need for this baby. I finally realized I needed sheets for the pack and play if I am going to use it as the baby’s bassinet for the first few weeks. So after meeting my friend for her birthday lunch today, I went to Babies R Us and got some sheets for that, a no-slip mat for under the car seat in Jake’s car, and some pants. It is finally getting cold here and I figured pants are a good idea for the very few occasions I intend to take the baby out soon after birth. I just bought two pairs, so I didn’t go hog wild or anything.

I guess that’s all there is to report. I’m going to lay down for a quick nap here in a minute and later make some banana bread and pumpkin bread for when Jake’s family is here. It’s easy to make and freezes really well, plus the recipes each make two loaves, so there is enough for a couple breakfasts and snacks out of not much work. Oh, and cornbread for Jake’s mom’s stuffing. She needs that to be made in advance so it can get stale. That sounds weird, but in the stuffing world, it makes sense. Other than that, I’ll be sitting here hoping for the onset of labor. But I won’t hold my breath.

Sometimes It Comes in Quite Handy

Like when you want to amuse your husband by seeing what all you can balance on it. This is a free sample of a Kashi granola bar.

Other items attempted but not successful included a can of tomato sauce. It stayed for a little bit, but then I laughed and it moved.

New Toy

I know I’ve been quiet for a while - sadly that does not mean I have had the baby. Just not had much exciting to write about. We are *this* close to being done with Curtainrod’s room. All that stands between us and completion is some double-sided tape so that we can install the paper fan shade in the window. We got the glider and ottoman yesterday. I’ll be posting some pictures of the room and also some funny belly shots here before too long.

But the most exciting news? Guess where I am typing this entry? Go on, guess! No clues? OK, well I’ll tell you. From my brand spankin’ new MacBook! With a baby on the way and my online job duties, being tied to the PC in the office was not very convenient, so Jake talked me into a laptop (not that I was protesting too much) and then took it one step further to get me moved to a Mac. Well, I’ve used Macs before and liked them, but it’s such a PC world that I hadn’t used one in forever. But I’m really digging it so far. I am really seeing the truth behind their statement “It just works” because it does! Everything is so much easier than a PC. I managed to set this up mostly by myself, with just a few questions for Jake. He’ll have to do the hard stuff, like get my email transferred over here and supposedly he can move all my Firefox bookmarks so I don’t have to do it all manually, but that is behind the scenes magic that I don’t concern myself with. One of the perks of being married to a computer guy.

So maybe in the not too distant future, I’ll pack up my new baby and Curtainrod and head out somewhere with WiFi and blog about our adventures out in the world. From my laptop! I am totally heading into the 20th century now. Look out! I’ll have a PDA and become a champion text messager before you know it.

Nothin’

Went to the doctor today. Nothing has happened since last week. Although I knew that before I went, I was at least hoping for another centimeter. Oh well. Plenty of time and plenty of things to do.

This and That

My life has taken a sudden turn for the quieter and I’m very pleased with that. I can honesly say that if I were still at work this week, I do not know what I would do. I am so enjoying the ability to work on MY tasks, then take a rest, then eat a snack, drink some water, then work on what I need to do some more. I think I’d be in the midst of a breakdown at this moment if I was still commuting to work and putting up with shit there.

I had my last baby shower last night. My group of girlfriends from my old job before moving to New York threw it for me at Maggiano’s. Total there are six girls, but one of us moved away to Maryland earlier this year so our gatherings have been just the five remaining Dallas-ites for a while. It was fun, as always to see everyone. I am the second to last in the group to have a baby. My friend Cyndi, who I guess you would say is my probably the friend in that group I’m closest with, is pregnant for the second time. She’ll be the first to have two kids and she’s kind of freaked that they will be less than two years apart. Oh, and everyone else has had girls so if Curtainrod really does end up being a boy, he’ll have his pick of all those older ladies when it’s time for him to start thinking about dating!

Election Day has come and gone again. I don’t really like to write about politics here because I know you don’t read this site for political commentary. But I’m sure no one will be surprised to hear that I am pleased with the overall national picture as far as the control of the House goes, but saddened by 1) the re-election of the Governor Fabulous (Rick Perry - if you want to know why I call him that, do a search and check out that hair of his) here in Texas; 2) the re-election of Satan Senator in a Bouffant Hairdo (Kay Bailey Hutchison) also here in Texas; and 3) the number of states that passed bans on gay marriage. I’m not surprised by any of those three things but that doesn’t mean I am pleased with them either.

I had Curtainrod’s carseat installed today. I know the damn thing comes with installation instructions, but then you hear the scary statistics that something like 85% of infant car seats are installed improperly. I don’t want to be in that 85%. I had searched around looking for a place that would do it and heard that fire stations across the country do installations. Not in Garland, Texas though. Apparently, there have to be certifications to do installs and sadly that doesn’t seem to be a priority of the City of Garland fire department. But someone at City Hall let me know that Rusty Wallis Volkswagen does car seat installations. I called and made an appointment with a very nice man named Craig, who assured me that it was ok that I do not drive a Volkswagen and that no, there really is no charge for it; they do it as a service to the community. I showed up about 15 minutes early today and he started right away. It took about 25 minutes, but when you are dealing with your baby’s car seat, you will wait however long you have to wait. He walked me through some tips for strapping the kid in and a few other safety things - like you should NOT put a towel down under the seat. I had brought a towel with me, but he said that the only thing you should use is something very thin with a no-slip back and that a towel will move around which is why you shouldn’t use them. Anyway, City of Garland? Can’t be bothered to get certified to install car seats. VW dealership? They can. If you live in Dallas and ever need car seat installation or know someone who does, I just can’t say enough good things about the process. We will be in the market to replace my car sometime in the next few months, and while I was already interested in a couple of Volkswagens, you can bet that my first stop will be to Rusty Wallis to look and test drive. That, my friends, is very smart business. I’m sure Jake will have a thing or two to say about this when we take his car in to them for the installation of the extra base in his car.

I have a doctor appointment tomorrow and hopefully I’ll hear news of further dilation. I’m not necessarily ready to evict the kid, but it would be nice if I started the labor process already dilated a few centimeters. I really don’t want to have the baby any earlier than the week of Thanksgiving, but I know I have zero control over that. Unless I beg for an induction, which I don’t feel the need to do just yet. Back pain and all, I’m happy to keep the kid inside me for a few more weeks.

So it seems that Britney and K-Fed are divorcing. Big shocker there. I do have to give props to the paparazzi here, though. In general, when they start reporting something, no matter how much the celebs involved deny deny deny, we always find out a few months later that it was true all along. I don’t think what the paparazzi does is admirable in any way, but they’ve certainly got their intelligence together. Maybe some of them should have been recruited by the Bush administration a few years ago. I’m just saying.

Pacing Myself

Still doesn’t feel like I am gainfully unemployed, but it hasn’t even been one whole day yet. I have kept moderately but not crazy busy today.

I woke up a bit before 7. I know, you are thinking I am insane. I mean, nothing to do, nowhere to go-o (I wanna be sedated….) sorry about that brief musical interlude. Anyway, it seems with no clock to punch I would sleep in. But see, when you are used to getting up at 5:15 or so, 7 a.m. feels really fucking good. So I got up, ate breakfast, watched a little bit of Good Morning America then came upstairs to read blogs. So far the only difference between today and a work day is that I didn’t have to shower or drive 30 miles before reading the blogs. Then I put the pot roast on in the crock pot, took a shower, vacuumed my car from a weeks-ago spill of potting soil, and then rested a bit. I forget how easily I tire out now. It’s a bit annoying when you have the gumption to get shit done but have to sit down every 30 minutes or so. I made lunch - see, I’m saving money already - and ate while watching the Martha Stewart show. Talked to Jake’s mom on the phone for a minute and then headed out to meet the pediatrician.

Let me digress from regaling you with tales of my day of domestic godess-ness to tell you how much I loved the pediatrician. He was so nice. I just immediately felt comfortable with him. We talked a lot about breastfeeding because I am seriously becoming obsessed wtih the boobs and how I can make sure I am successful at breastfeeding. He was very reassuring and made me feel so much better. He also told me that all the planning I am doing is good but to remember that the baby needs only three things - to be fed, to be changed, and to be held. All the rest of it is fine but babies are simple and most of that other stuff I am concerning myself with, like curtains and gliders and rugs, is really just for me. The baby doesn’t need any of it. I really appreciated him saying that. So what if my massive to-do list isn’t completed before the baby arrives? I have diapers, I have boobs and I know how to hold a baby. In fact, they’ll probably have to pry the baby out of my arms. I guess I really am ready to go whenever Curtainrod is.

OK, so after the doctor, I went to get my oil changed and car inspected. I hate car errands. Blah. Is there anything more annoying than to spend a bunch of money on your car? But you do what you have to do. I came home and cleaned up the kitchen and now am about to do some laundry. I have lots of baby clothes and blankets to wash, but for some reason, I keep putting that off. Maybe I’ll just be lazy for the rest of today. Or maybe I’ll make some sort of dessert to welcome Jake home from his day trip to San Antonio. You never can tell with me. I’m living on the edge.

Oh, and in case you are wondering why I seem to be blogging so often lately, it’s because I am a wanna be NaBloPoMo participant. I really wanted to sign up and commit to a post a day in November, but I know that it will be next to impossible later in the month. Perhaps next year I can do it. For now, I am an unofficial participant. Well, there’s that, and the fact that I don’t have a J-O-B so I have much more time to think about blog posts. Not saying they are good blog posts, but they are posts.

I Could Feel the Chunks Begin to Rise in my Throat

I have to say that the single most disgusting thing that has happened to me since being pregnant is the waking up in the middle of the night, choking on stomach acid. It’s not gagging. No, no. It would actually be better if I had to bolt out of bed and go throw up. Then at least it would be over quickly. No, this is more disgusting and longer lasting. The stomach acid is actually sitting so high up in my throat that I can taste it. There’s not a lot you can do about it, except stand up, clear your throat a lot (which might lead one to gag I suppose), drink some water, and wait for gravity to do its job. This hasn’t happened in a while since I began to get smart and take T*ms before bed, but it’s now happened to me two nights in a row. Friday night I must have made a lot of noise while trying to remedy the situation, because when I came out of the bathroom, Jake was standing in the doorway of the bedroom, very concerned about me. Last night I was able to get up and start the cleansing process without waking him up. I just took my water to the office and played minesweeper from 2 to 2:45 a.m. while I waited. I might have to rig up some sort of pillow positioning to help me sleep upright for the next two and a half weeks, or go sleep downstairs in the recliner.

Don’t you wish you were me?