1 Month Already

I can't believe my little baby is already 1 month old and wearing 3 month clothes already. He is growing so fast and has changed so much already. He is practicing his smiles and giggles and even will laugh in his sleep. He loves his pacifier, his swing and his bouncing chair. He is not a big fan of swaddling but will tolerate it when he is tired and needs to sleep. He is starting to make more noises and even talks to his food before he eats. He still loves to lie on my chest with his hands under his chin and fall asleep. He is starting to track everything and is making great eye contact. He is a great sleeper sleeping 4 hours at a time throughout the night, even sleeping in his crib at times. He is still a good eater and is doing great with breast feeding and the bottle. His next doctor appt is not until the end of April, but I am sure he is over 10 pounds already.

I am loving motherhood so far. It is better than any of my expectations and so far it is easier as well. I expected to be absolutely exhausted with a crying baby that couldn't be consoled at times. Instead I have tired moments, but otherwise feel so much more rested than I did my third trimester. I have a baby that will cry occasionally, but only if he is hungry and that is easily fixed. He is such a happy baby, just wanting to watch and analyze everything he sees. I am so excited to watch him grow and develop!

Conner Walker

Conner was born at 12:40am on 2/28/2009. He was 8lbs 12oz and was 21.25 inches long. He received apgar scores of 7 and 9. His first score was lower because of some labored breathing, but he bounced right back and had not other problems with breathing. He received his first bath that evening given by his labor nurse.

That first evening Andrew and I took turns holding him as we tried to get some sleep. Conner was not a fan of the hospital basinet and preferred to sleep on either his mom or dad's chest.

While in the hospital Conner had several tests and passed everything with flying colors. The first unofficial test was breastfeeding and he was a great latcher right from the beginning. His hearing was tested on Saturday and both ears passed the test. He also passed both of his jaundice tests while he was in the hospital with flying colors. At his 24 hr check his weight was 8lbs 1oz, which was a really good weight (all babies lose weight after birth).

Finally we were released on March 1st in the afternoon and we were able to take baby Conner home for the first time.

Labor and Birth Continued

Once we were in the triage area I changed into a gown and was hooked up to the monitors. One would watch the baby's heart rate and anther would track my contractions. The nurse started asking all sorts of questions about my pregnancy and medical history and entering them into the computer. The monitors in the triage area are connected with wires to the system, versus the wireless versions that are in the actual labor and delivery rooms. Because I was connected by wires I had to lay on the bed most of the time I was in triage. My contractions were continuing to get more and more intense and laying down was extremely painful and uncomfortable. Finally the nurse was done with her questions and had a chance to check my dilation. During this time I heard both of the patients on either side of the curtain be sent home because they were not far enough along. I was hoping that I was at least 3cm because I did not want to go home. At my last dr's appt I was only 1 cm and 60% effaced. When the nurse checked me at triage I was 5cm and almost completely effaced. The baby's head was very low as well. The nurse was completely surprised and said that they would get me to my room right away.

We got to our room and Andrew went out to the car to bring in the bags. At this point I was seriously considering an epidural and I knew that I would need at least 2 bags of fluid before that could happen so I decided to have the IV started just in case I decided to move forward with the pain medication later. The nurse also hooked me up to the wireless monitors (baby's heart rate and contractions) but I was still able to move around the room as much as I wanted. At this point I was either leaning against the counter or sitting on the birth ball during contractions. I was not able to talk or move while having a contraction. Once I was hooked up to all of the monitors the nurse checked me again and I was already 8-9cm. I also started shaking due to the pain. It looked like I was freezing, but I wasn't cold at all. I just couldn't control the shakes. I told the nurse that I wanted an epidural at that point. I was in so much pain I couldn't see the end. The doctor finally came in and she checked me and I was 9, almost 10 cm. She asked if I really wanted to epidural at that point, and she tried to convince me that I could do it on my own. She offered that getting in the tub would help with the contractions and help get me to the pushing point if I wanted to try and go natural. I decided that I would try that, if I could go natural I wanted to try everything I could.

At this point in labor all modesty goes out the window. I took off the gown and got right into the tub with just a bra on and not caring who was in the room at that point. The water did feel better and helped dull down the pain. I was feeling extreme pressure to push at this point and the nurse checked me again. She said that I was at 10 cm and that I could start pushing if I felt the need. Pushing felt so much better. The pain of the contractions was all concentrated into pushing and there was actually a sense of relief when I was able to push. About 10 minutes later the dr came in and checked me again while I was in the tub. She said that I actually still had a small cervical lip left and that I should not push yet as I might cause swelling that would impede the progress. It was at that point that I decided that I wanted the epidural. The pain of the contractions was so unbearable and I just could not hold off on pushing. They got me out of the tub and the anesthesiologist was there. I had to sit on the edge of the bed and round my back. Andrew was standing right in front of me and I was holding onto him and apparently his shirt for support. I had to sit still even throughout contractions. I was in so much pain that I guess I was twisting the handful of shirt that I had in my hands - I later learned that Andrew had to toss that shirt as I had stretched it completely out. The anesthesiologist had a hard time getting the epidural catheter into my back and had to insert the needle about 7 times. Finally the epidural was in.

After the epidural was in the pain of the contractions was dulled, but the pressure was definitely still there. But I was able to lay in the bed (there was no other option) without too much pain and actually rest for a little while. I was so exhausted at this point I took some time just to relax. The nurse said that I could try pushing whenever I was ready. Finally I wanted to push and she put up a bar over the bed that I was able to put my feet on. A sheet was tied to the bar and I was able to pull against it to provide leverage to push. That system really helped me feel like I was making progress when I pushed. At this point the baby's heart rate was falling every time I pushed and the nurse suspected that his cord might be around his neck or being squished every time I pushed. The dr and nurse decided to use an internal fetal monitor to watch the baby a little closer. I continued pushing for a little less than an hour and I was making a lot of progress. The baby's head was getting close and the nurse went to call the doctor to let her know that it was time. Apparently there was another woman right next door that was ready for the doctor as well. This was her second child so the dr thought that she would go quicker and went to her room. At this point the baby started crowning and I was told not to push. This was this most painful experience of my life. My baby's head was basically at the point that is referred to as the "ring of fire" and I was being told not to do the one thing that would relieve my pain - push. I was in so much pain that I started crying for the first time throughout the whole labor, as I had to continue holding off on pushing I started screaming (I was told later that I was screaming as I was in so much pain that I can't remember much besides the pain). Finally (about 15 minutes later) the doctor arrived and I had already started pushing as I could not hold it anymore. The doctor had not even sat down and the baby's head was out. The doctor told me not to do anything at that point as the cord was wrapped really tightly around his neck. I could not see anything, but the cord was so tight that the doctor could not even get her finger in between the cord and the neck. She had to squeeze the scissors in there and cut the cord. Finally I was able to push the baby the rest of the way out and he was brought right up to my chest.

Conner's Labor and Birth

So I started timing contractions around 11am on Friday the 27th. They were definitely consistent and not going anywhere at that point. Andrew had to make a quick stop at work so my mom came over to help me make cookies. I wanted something to focus on so I wouldn't think too much about my possible impending labor and if this was really time or not. We were able to put the cookies together pretty quickly and put the dough in the fridge until they were ready to bake. While we waited my mom and I took Dizzo on a walk. I wanted to make sure that everything kept going, and thought the walk may speed things up as movement is supposed to help the baby move down and into the right position. We ended up walking about 2 miles to my mom's friend's house and then got a ride back as I didn't think I could make it back on my own. The contractions were getting closer together at this point. Walking sped up the contractions but they didn't seem to be as strong. As soon as we got back home and we weren't walking anymore the contractions were a little farther apart but definitely stronger. They were painful at this point, but I was able to deal with them by sitting and laying on the birth ball (exercise ball) that I had. I definitely was not able to sit or lay down while having contractions as they seemed a lot more painful in those positions. I don't know how people just sit in bed while in labor as being able to move around was my saving grace.

Andrew got home around 3pm, but I wanted to make sure that he had enough rest before going to the hospital. I also let him know that he probably needed to let his work know that he wouldn't be in that night. At this point I was almost positive that we would be having a baby in the next 24 hours or so (I was hoping sooner than that, but I didn't want to get my hopes up too much). Andrew went to lay down for a bit and my mom and I put the cookies in the oven and started to watch a movie. I was not able to concentrate much on anything, but the time still seemed to pass pretty quickly. I was able to concentrate on timing the contractions (I had downloaded a very useful application to my iPhone that would time them and graph the intervals and length of each contraction) and that seemed to be what I needed to keep focused. By 5pm I knew that we needed to head to the hospital soon. I wanted to wait as long as possible at home, but the contractions were about 4 minutes apart lasting about 1 minute at this point and I wasn't sure if I could wait too much longer. We loaded up the car with everything that we needed and were off to the hospital around 6pm

When we arrived, I didn't want to be dropped off up front, but wanted to walk from the parking lot with Andrew and my mom. In my mind walking would help me progress as far as possible and I was afraid that I would be sent home because I was not far enough along. I wanted to make sure that I was as far as I could be. It took me a few extra minutes to make it from the parking garage to the admin desk at labor and delivery as I had 2 contractions on the way and I was not able to continue walking through the pain at that point. When we got to the desk I let them know who I was (I was already preregistered) and they brought a nurse up to take me back to the triage area.

To be continued - baby calls!

The Weeks Before Conner's Birth

Conner was officially born on Feb. 28th 2009. The weeks before he was born I was very excited for him to come, and was hoping he would make his appearance sooner rather than later. For one thing I wanted to go into labor naturally and not to be induced, and especially not to have a c-section. Second, I wanted to make the most of my maternity leave and wanted as much time as possible with my little guy. For the 2 weeks before he actually came I would have contractions every evening, sometimes to the point where I would wonder if it was actually time or not. But every time they would stop and I would wake up the next morning minus contractions. It got to the point where I would try to ignore them, even if they were painful as I did not want to get my hopes up. My last day of work before my maternity leave was Feb. 20th and I was very excited to be done with work. Not only was I exhausted and uncomfortable everyday, with the economy the way it is everything was a lot more stressful and the pressure from management was not something that I wanted to deal with - I had a lot of other things on my mind. The evening of the 20th I went on a walk with my parents and the dogs as Andrew was at work. My plan for the next few days was to walk and keep moving as much as possible to try and encourage labor. On the 21st I went to water aerobics with my mom and then a long walk down to the store with Andrew and the dogs. On Sunday Andrew and I went over to my parent’s house for dinner and went on another walk down the trail. Every evening I continued to have contractions, but nothing that went anywhere. The next few days I continued the routine of water aerobics and walking as well as trying to get as much sleep as I could.

On Wednesday evening (Feb. 25th) I had pretty painful contractions but again I did not get my hopes up. This time they lasted until about 2am and kept me up part of the night. But by morning they had disappeared for the most part and I went about my day as usual. They started up again Thursday evening and continued throughout the night this time. Waking me up sometimes, but allowing me to get some extended periods of sleep. I was woken up at 7:30am by another contraction and I was up for the day. I continued to have some contractions throughout the morning and that started me thinking that maybe this time was different. They were uncomfortable contractions, but nothing too painful yet. I called my mom around 10am to let her know that I might be in labor as they were somewhat consistent. I also let Andrew know and asked him if he could drive me to the store to gather supplies to make cookies and to get a couple of movies to watch throughout the day.

More to come later as Conner is awake and asking to be fed!