Hi Everyone!
Graham Louis Rodger is here! He was born 10/10/12, weighing 7lbs, 15oz, and measuring 20.5 inches long.
Only hours after I posted last week's update, our lives changed forever. How ironic that I was writing away about how I couldn't wait for something to happen, and as if the baby gods heard me loud and clear, into labor I went. A lot happened for us to meet our little man, so here is our story.
Last Tuesday night, 10/9/12, I was watching Dancing with the Stars while David fell asleep on the couch. Around 1030pm, all of a sudden I felt this ZING of a cramp. I thought to myself, "whoa, I haven't felt anything like that yet ..." but I didn't think too much of it.
Ten/fifteen minutes later, another ZING. Now, I wondered, "Oh, this must be what Braxton-Hicks actually feels like". They say that changing positions, or moving around will stop BH contractions, so I tried that, but it didn't seem to do anything to stop the cramping.
Another ten/fifteen minutes pass, and with it, another cramp. Now, I was starting to get nervous. I looked over at Dave, and he was completely passed out on the couch. I didn't want to tell him what was happening and get him all worked up if it wasn't real, so I figured I would make it through Dancing with the Stars, and would keep track of the time of these ZINGs, should they continue to happen.
The contractions continued, so around 1130pm, I woke Dave up and said, "lets go to bed". Then I said, "I don't want to freak you out, but for the past hour, I've been having some really bad cramping pains every 10 minutes or so." We agreed that if this was labor, that I should try to get some rest because I would need it if we ended up having to go to the hospital.
Dave and Charlie fell asleep in about two seconds, and for the next two hours, I continued to feel the cramping pains. The only problem, was that they were getting worse. At 1:30am, I woke Dave up and told him that I was still getting the pains, and that they'd gotten increasingly more painful. What happened next, solidified the idea for me, that these were real contractions, and that we were going to be having our baby.
All of a sudden, Charlie woke up and came over to me. He circled around, and laid down, and positioned his head EXACTLY next to my stomach, so that his ear and nose were right near Isabelly. I was like he could hear and feel what was going on, too.
For the next 4 hours, Dave stayed up with me. The contractions started to get more frequent, occurring every 5-8 minutes and lasting consistently one minute long. They were now much more intense. At one point, I had my back to Dave and he started rubbing my back to help ease the pain. Very sweet, right? Well, it was making me nauseous. Mid-contraction, however, all I could say was, "please ... stop ... touching me ... you're making me SICK!!!" .... to which, Dave just started cracking up laughing! Here I am, doubled over in pain, and he's laughing at me :)
At around 5:30am, Dave called the on-call doctor to see if we should go to the hospital. The doctor (not our actual doctor) said that she would normally tell us to wait a little longer, but if we were nervous about rush-hour traffic, that we could head over to the hospital. We decided that we would go and get in there so that they could at least monitor me and the baby.
We decided to leave, and thank god we did ... because at 6:15am, it took us an HOUR to get from Tewksbury to Winchester Hospital. On a typical day, there is traffic, but not this bad! Check this out!! GO FIGURE!!
Every stop-and-go, and every pot-hole seemed to trigger another contraction. Let me just say, having contractions in the Jeep was NOT easy. It was horrible, actually.
We got to the hospital just after 7am, and they took me right into my Labor and Delivery room. I changed into the wonderfully stylish hospital gown, and got into bed. Our nurse, Maureen, was fantastic. She measured me, and I was already about 5 centimeters dilated! She then said the worst thing she could have probably said to me ... she said, "I'd bet my money to say that you'd probably have this baby by noon time!" Haaaaaaaaaa ... little did she know, that the rest of our day would be quite the opposite!
At around 845/9pm, I received an epidural to help with the pain. Usually, they send the husband out of the room for this, because watching your wife get a HUGE needle in her spine can be, well, a little hard to watch. Not for Dave. This rock star asked if he could stay in the room, and they let him. He loved watching it! Maureen helped me get through the insertion of the needle with some holistic breathing techniques, but I will say, it really wasn't as bad as I had imagined!
After the epidural, everything was puppies and flowers! I took a nap here and there, I finished reading the 3rd Hunger Games book, all the while having contractions that I couldn't feel.
Noon came and went ... 1pm came and went ... 2pm, 3pm, came and went, and we were wondering what was taking so long. I ended up getting some Pitocin to help move the labor along, and my doctor broke my water. Once my water was broken, I began to start feeling the contractions, again. They weren't painful (yet), but I felt some tightening.
At around 430/5pm, I was 10cm and they wanted me to start pushing. It was hard to know how to push, however, because I didn't have total feeling due to the epidural ... so I wasn't sure if what I was doing was actually working.
Without going into the gory details, feelings began coming back, and soon, I could feel the intense contractions every minute or so. He had dropped quickly, but seemed stuck and wasn't progressing with each push. Apparently, his head hadn't turned as he made the decent down the birth canal the way it should have ... so we literally had a square peg/round hole situation going on. Because of how he was positioned, after each contraction, the pain didn't subside. I had incredible pain in my right hip/butt, due to the pressure.
For two hours, I fought, with the help of Dave, my doctor, my nurse, and a nursing student who asked to watch her first birth (poor thing is probably traumatized!!!). I fought with each contraction, to the point where they had to put me on oxygen. I don't know if it was for me, or for the baby, but I assume it was for both of us. It was scary, but i didn't have any time to worry too much, because the minute I began to think about anything, another contraction came and I had to push.
After being up for about 32 hours, and not having anything to eat, I was completely out of fight. I had no energy, and I felt like my pushes were not resulting in anything. The competitive side of me said, "keep going, everyone does this", but I knew it wasn't working. We all decided that it was time to head in for a C-Section.
Of course, Dave wanted to watch the C-Section (crazy person). Luckily, the medication they gave me kicked in, and I didn't feel anything other than pushing/pulling pressure as they worked. He was so lodged in my pelvis from the pushing, however, that they couldn't pull him out easily. They spent a few minutes working to push him back up into my stomach to dislodge him before they could bring him into our world.
When they got him out, I was being worked on, and they worked to clean him up and check his vitals. What they noticed was that he had fluid stuck in his lungs. This is apparently common for C-Section babies, but it meant that he had to spend the night in the Special Care Nursery. It did allow us to get some rest, though, which was very needed. Here he is in the Special Care Nursery, all wired up:
The next day, he had coughed up the fluid, and he was doing much better. For the next few days, with the help from the nursing staff, and Dave, we learned so much about our guy. We did run into another hiccup, however.
After a couple of days, we noticed his color changing. He became jaundiced, and had to spend another night away from us. They put him in a tanning-bed-looking thing, and brought him into me only for feedings. Luckily, however, it was only another night-long event. The next day, he was looking much better, and we haven't had any issues since! Here he is getting a little sun tan:
On Sunday afternoon, we brought Graham home to meet his brother, Charlie. Charlie is AWESOME with him. He is so interested in our little addition, and is constantly giving him kisses and laying next to him. Our family is together and happier than ever!!
Since we've been home, things have been great. I was really nervous to leave the hospital and be home without my staff of nurses there to help. Dave and I have been managing through the long nights, and we are learning how Graham sleeps best.
Through everything, I think this has brought Dave and I closer together, as well. We are so amazed at this little guy, and can't stop looking at him, and feeling grateful for one other. If possible, I think Graham has brought us a new found respect for the other, and we are being more considerate than ever before. For now, we are spending our time together as a family, and I'm excited for what this new chapter will bring.
Thanks to all of you for coming along for the ride ... this last 9+ months had some highs and lows, and I knowing you were all there to read about it, helped me get through it ... and helped me to keep my sanity, in many ways! So thank you ... and here are some more pictures to enjoy!!
Graham Louis Rodger is here! He was born 10/10/12, weighing 7lbs, 15oz, and measuring 20.5 inches long.
Only hours after I posted last week's update, our lives changed forever. How ironic that I was writing away about how I couldn't wait for something to happen, and as if the baby gods heard me loud and clear, into labor I went. A lot happened for us to meet our little man, so here is our story.
Last Tuesday night, 10/9/12, I was watching Dancing with the Stars while David fell asleep on the couch. Around 1030pm, all of a sudden I felt this ZING of a cramp. I thought to myself, "whoa, I haven't felt anything like that yet ..." but I didn't think too much of it.
Ten/fifteen minutes later, another ZING. Now, I wondered, "Oh, this must be what Braxton-Hicks actually feels like". They say that changing positions, or moving around will stop BH contractions, so I tried that, but it didn't seem to do anything to stop the cramping.
Another ten/fifteen minutes pass, and with it, another cramp. Now, I was starting to get nervous. I looked over at Dave, and he was completely passed out on the couch. I didn't want to tell him what was happening and get him all worked up if it wasn't real, so I figured I would make it through Dancing with the Stars, and would keep track of the time of these ZINGs, should they continue to happen.
The contractions continued, so around 1130pm, I woke Dave up and said, "lets go to bed". Then I said, "I don't want to freak you out, but for the past hour, I've been having some really bad cramping pains every 10 minutes or so." We agreed that if this was labor, that I should try to get some rest because I would need it if we ended up having to go to the hospital.
Dave and Charlie fell asleep in about two seconds, and for the next two hours, I continued to feel the cramping pains. The only problem, was that they were getting worse. At 1:30am, I woke Dave up and told him that I was still getting the pains, and that they'd gotten increasingly more painful. What happened next, solidified the idea for me, that these were real contractions, and that we were going to be having our baby.
All of a sudden, Charlie woke up and came over to me. He circled around, and laid down, and positioned his head EXACTLY next to my stomach, so that his ear and nose were right near Isabelly. I was like he could hear and feel what was going on, too.
For the next 4 hours, Dave stayed up with me. The contractions started to get more frequent, occurring every 5-8 minutes and lasting consistently one minute long. They were now much more intense. At one point, I had my back to Dave and he started rubbing my back to help ease the pain. Very sweet, right? Well, it was making me nauseous. Mid-contraction, however, all I could say was, "please ... stop ... touching me ... you're making me SICK!!!" .... to which, Dave just started cracking up laughing! Here I am, doubled over in pain, and he's laughing at me :)
At around 5:30am, Dave called the on-call doctor to see if we should go to the hospital. The doctor (not our actual doctor) said that she would normally tell us to wait a little longer, but if we were nervous about rush-hour traffic, that we could head over to the hospital. We decided that we would go and get in there so that they could at least monitor me and the baby.
We decided to leave, and thank god we did ... because at 6:15am, it took us an HOUR to get from Tewksbury to Winchester Hospital. On a typical day, there is traffic, but not this bad! Check this out!! GO FIGURE!!
Every stop-and-go, and every pot-hole seemed to trigger another contraction. Let me just say, having contractions in the Jeep was NOT easy. It was horrible, actually.
We got to the hospital just after 7am, and they took me right into my Labor and Delivery room. I changed into the wonderfully stylish hospital gown, and got into bed. Our nurse, Maureen, was fantastic. She measured me, and I was already about 5 centimeters dilated! She then said the worst thing she could have probably said to me ... she said, "I'd bet my money to say that you'd probably have this baby by noon time!" Haaaaaaaaaa ... little did she know, that the rest of our day would be quite the opposite!
At around 845/9pm, I received an epidural to help with the pain. Usually, they send the husband out of the room for this, because watching your wife get a HUGE needle in her spine can be, well, a little hard to watch. Not for Dave. This rock star asked if he could stay in the room, and they let him. He loved watching it! Maureen helped me get through the insertion of the needle with some holistic breathing techniques, but I will say, it really wasn't as bad as I had imagined!
After the epidural, everything was puppies and flowers! I took a nap here and there, I finished reading the 3rd Hunger Games book, all the while having contractions that I couldn't feel.
Noon came and went ... 1pm came and went ... 2pm, 3pm, came and went, and we were wondering what was taking so long. I ended up getting some Pitocin to help move the labor along, and my doctor broke my water. Once my water was broken, I began to start feeling the contractions, again. They weren't painful (yet), but I felt some tightening.
At around 430/5pm, I was 10cm and they wanted me to start pushing. It was hard to know how to push, however, because I didn't have total feeling due to the epidural ... so I wasn't sure if what I was doing was actually working.
Without going into the gory details, feelings began coming back, and soon, I could feel the intense contractions every minute or so. He had dropped quickly, but seemed stuck and wasn't progressing with each push. Apparently, his head hadn't turned as he made the decent down the birth canal the way it should have ... so we literally had a square peg/round hole situation going on. Because of how he was positioned, after each contraction, the pain didn't subside. I had incredible pain in my right hip/butt, due to the pressure.
For two hours, I fought, with the help of Dave, my doctor, my nurse, and a nursing student who asked to watch her first birth (poor thing is probably traumatized!!!). I fought with each contraction, to the point where they had to put me on oxygen. I don't know if it was for me, or for the baby, but I assume it was for both of us. It was scary, but i didn't have any time to worry too much, because the minute I began to think about anything, another contraction came and I had to push.
After being up for about 32 hours, and not having anything to eat, I was completely out of fight. I had no energy, and I felt like my pushes were not resulting in anything. The competitive side of me said, "keep going, everyone does this", but I knew it wasn't working. We all decided that it was time to head in for a C-Section.
Of course, Dave wanted to watch the C-Section (crazy person). Luckily, the medication they gave me kicked in, and I didn't feel anything other than pushing/pulling pressure as they worked. He was so lodged in my pelvis from the pushing, however, that they couldn't pull him out easily. They spent a few minutes working to push him back up into my stomach to dislodge him before they could bring him into our world.
When they got him out, I was being worked on, and they worked to clean him up and check his vitals. What they noticed was that he had fluid stuck in his lungs. This is apparently common for C-Section babies, but it meant that he had to spend the night in the Special Care Nursery. It did allow us to get some rest, though, which was very needed. Here he is in the Special Care Nursery, all wired up:
The next day, he had coughed up the fluid, and he was doing much better. For the next few days, with the help from the nursing staff, and Dave, we learned so much about our guy. We did run into another hiccup, however.
After a couple of days, we noticed his color changing. He became jaundiced, and had to spend another night away from us. They put him in a tanning-bed-looking thing, and brought him into me only for feedings. Luckily, however, it was only another night-long event. The next day, he was looking much better, and we haven't had any issues since! Here he is getting a little sun tan:
On Sunday afternoon, we brought Graham home to meet his brother, Charlie. Charlie is AWESOME with him. He is so interested in our little addition, and is constantly giving him kisses and laying next to him. Our family is together and happier than ever!!
Since we've been home, things have been great. I was really nervous to leave the hospital and be home without my staff of nurses there to help. Dave and I have been managing through the long nights, and we are learning how Graham sleeps best.
Through everything, I think this has brought Dave and I closer together, as well. We are so amazed at this little guy, and can't stop looking at him, and feeling grateful for one other. If possible, I think Graham has brought us a new found respect for the other, and we are being more considerate than ever before. For now, we are spending our time together as a family, and I'm excited for what this new chapter will bring.
Thanks to all of you for coming along for the ride ... this last 9+ months had some highs and lows, and I knowing you were all there to read about it, helped me get through it ... and helped me to keep my sanity, in many ways! So thank you ... and here are some more pictures to enjoy!!
