Nora Louise: The Birth Day

WARNING:  Long post.  Contains tasteful photos of Nora being born.

After 42 weeks of pregnancy, Jon and I welcomed a beautiful baby girl into our family on August 31, 2013 at 6:37pm.  Nora Louise Fries was born and weighed in at a hefty 8lbs 10 oz and 21 inches long.

I patiently waited for her birth, hoping my body would figure out what to do in the medically allotted time of 42 weeks before having to be induced.  No such luck though.  So at about 10:45pm on 8/30, Jon and I headed to the hospital for induction.

After being checked at about 11:30pm, there was no change to my cervix from the last two weeks.  I was 3cm dialated, 50% effaced, long, and baby was at a -2 station.  In other words, not in any type of hurry to come out and meet us.  The good news was that I was in some type of labor.  I was contracting about every 6-8 minutes, so at least my body was trying to do something.  I was given a dose of Misoprostal, which is a cervical softening agent, and attempted to go to sleep.  I was way to anxious to sleep, and my contractions started to get stronger and closer together around 2:30am.  Jon was fast asleep, and the contractions weren't strong enough to warrant waking him.  Plus, I would have had to throw something, like a water bottle, across the room to actually wake him up.  I found myself clinging to the side of the hospital bed and saying a Hail Mary through each contraction.  The nurse checked me again at 4am.  Good news: 3.5cm!  Still 50% effaced, long, and baby was at a -2 station, but some change.  I got another dose of the Miso at 5am, and continued my Hail Mary's.

I was able to shower in the morning, and around 8:30 my nurse said that the L&D rooms were completely full, and they were only supposed to have one C-Section that morning and now they had 5.  They had to call in an extra anesthesiologist who was only going to be available for an epidural until 10am, so if I wanted an epidural, it was now or probably never.  I was leaning toward the epidural, but wanted to get checked again to see if maybe my body had labored enough to at least be able to break my water.  A check again at 9AM showed NO CHANGE.  Ugh.  Ok, Uterus, let's get the show on the road.  Epidural was placed by 9:30, and Pitocin started right after that.

This is the part of my labor I call spa relaxation labor.  It was the most relaxing day I've had in a long time.  I took a nap, played my stupid game on the iPad, conversed with my husband, took a nap, you get the idea.  My midwife came in at 2:30 to check me again and I had finally progressed enough to have my water broken.  I was 5cm dilated, and the most important part was that baby had dropped enough to make it safe.  She broke my water and I was immediately nauseated and threw up.  My contractions increased instantly and went from about 4 minutes apart to 2-3 minutes apart.  I couldn't feel any of this, of course, but the monitor showed it.  My parents and grandparents were notified of my progress and arrived at the hospital around 4pm.  We also had a surprise visit from our friends Emily and Shawn, who I have not seen since I visited them in Houston in February.  They have since moved back, and are expecting their own little bundle!  Life has been busy, and I am so glad that we did get a "belly" picture of Emily and I, even though I don't look my best.

I started to feel really weird around 4:30.  The shakes had started, I was light headed and just not right.  The monitor was no longer showing the nice rhythm of contractions, instead it was all over the place.  The midwives shift at 5pm, so Wendy left, and Jules came on.  Jules checked me at about 5:20, and said I was at 9cm!  YAY!  It was at this moment that it all felt real.  Finally!  I really was going to have this baby.  I really was not going to be pregnant forever.

At about 6:20pm I started to feel a lot of pressure, and knew it was time.  The room flooded with nurses. Jon gloved up to catch.  My legs were hoisted, and pushing began.  I think I pushed through three contractions.  I remember saying after one set of pushes and starting to feel really uncomfortable with baby's position "I want you out!!"  At 6:37pm, Tater Tot was born!  Jon caught her, and scrambled to see if we had a baby boy or a baby girl.  That moment felt like 10 minutes to me.  He announced "I think we have a girl."  I was in total shock!  "WHAT!?!?"

-----Ok, ok, I have a side story here.  It is kind of important.----

So, at my 34 week appointment, I had both girls with me.  We were waiting in the exam room when midwife Patti came in and the conversation went like this:

Patti: Your girls are so cute, and now your having a boy!
Me:  I am?!?!?
Patti: You didn't know?
Me:  No, but I guess now I do.
Patti: Oh my gosh, I can't believe I just said that!
Me:  How do you know?  Are you sure??
Patti: (flipping through my chart, and then burying her head in her arms) Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!  I can't believe I said that!

The rest of the appointment was basically her apologizing to me over and over again.  I left feeling a wave of emotions.  I didn't want to know this.  I didn't want this information, and the worst part was that I was the only person that knew now.  I called Jon and told him what had happened, but not what the gender was.  He said he didn't want to know.  GREAT!  I called a girlfriend and told her, and thankfully was able to tell her the whole story, including the "boy" part.  It felt good to get that off my chest.  Jon did let me tell him that night.  I called the midwives office the next morning and asked how she knew it was a boy, and if there was any proof via ultrasound pictures in my file.  They said it was written in the ultrasound report, but the two pictures from the ultrasound marked "gender" were inconclusive.  So, at this point, we were 85% convinced it was a boy.  But we opted not to tell anyone because we didn't see anything and there was a possibility it was a typo.  Usually when you don't want to know the gender, they mark your chart "deferred".  This sent me into a tailspin of mental gymnastics.  I thought from day one of this pregnancy that baby was a girl.  So, to hear that we were having a boy was a shock.  We had hardly discussed boy names, the thought of raising a son caused some anxiety for me, for some reason.  All the "boy" things like, boy sounds, smells, toys, clothes, etc. caused me to really think about the change that would happen in our house.  This mistake made by Patti caused a huge stir in the office too.  I guess there was some kind of a meeting at the practice I go to even.  Patti did feel so bad.  Bad enough that she sent me a $50 spa gift certificate.

-----End Important Side Story-----

SHOCK!  Total shock!  Jules, Jon, and I were in complete shock!  A GIRL!  What?!?!?  Patti said we were having a BOY!  Ok, end mental gymnastics about a boy, now I had to do a different type of mental flipping because we had a girl.  THREE girls!  I was so ready and excited to have son at this point.  It did take a few hours (maybe even a whole day) to really get it through my head that I have another beautiful girl.

Never the less, she was beautiful and perfect.  So much dark hair on her head!  Her fingernails were insanely long too.  I guess thats what an extra two weeks will do.  She also waited to relieve her bowels until she was out (unlike her sisters), so I was able to hold her and wait for the cord to stop pulsing before they took her over to the warming table to check her out and clean her off.  Her cord was very short though.  Amazing she was able to even flip so much with such a short cord.  She was perfect!

The next shock was when they put her on the scale.  8lbs, 10oz!  I think my words were "Are you sure your scale is calibrated correctly, and are you sure she is a she?!?!" Lilly Jeanne was 8lbs 7oz, so I've carried an 8.5lb baby before.  This baby did not feel that big.  Even all of the midwives thought she would have been in the mid to high sevens.

As Nora was getting checked out, I was hemorrhaging, like I do.  Only this time, I only lost 800ml of blood.  That is really good compared to the 2000ml I lost with Cecilia, and the 1600ml I lost with Lilly Jeanne.  I chalk this up to the "spa labor".  The midwife and the nurses were so prepared for my bleeding shenanigans and they were able to get it under control very quickly.

My big girls were at home with my sister-in-law, Aunt Megan, waiting for the news.  They arrived at the hospital shortly after Nora was born to meet their new sister.  They were so cute and so excited.  I was so glad to have them with us.  They wanted to see her tiny legs and tiny arms.  Lilly Jeanne asked if I had diapers for her.  Cecilia kept saying "I like her!"  They both wished her a Happy Birthday too.

I have to say, I am not disappointed in myself or my body for not being able to birth a baby naturally.  Rather, I am proud of myself for recognizing that my body needs some extra guidance and help to safely bring children into this world.  This labor and delivery was so easy compared to my first two experiences, and it was much safer for me and the baby.  Nora was not stressed in womb, hence, no meconium.  My blood loss was much much less because I did not let my body labor for 40+ hours.  Not to mention, there was no vision loss and emergency MRI like with Lilly Jeanne.  Instead I opted to let my body labor and let my mind rest and not fight it.  I am so so thankful for medical technology and the ability to use it.  I'm pretty certain that 100 years ago, or even in a part of the world today where these technologies are not available, I would not have survived childbirth, and my baby may not have either.  So, should we be blessed to have more children, I will probably opt for spa labor again.  And I'm really ok with that.

Still Pregnant

Just an update.  Yes, I'm still pregnant.  Tater is still in the fryer, and seems to be quite cozy.  Eviction Induction is scheduled to start on Friday night at 11pm.  They will give me a cervical softening drug to help get things started, and then hopefully I'll get some rest and they will check me in the morning and either break my water and/or start the devil drug, pitocin, my favorite (NOT!).   Baby has approximately 36 hours to at least start the moving out process on their own.  Either way, I will have a baby to hold by Sunday (maybe I should say Monday, knowing my track record).

In other news,  Jon and I are both fighting a cold that Lilly Jeanne brought home from school.  I can't wait to go through labor while congested and with my coach feeling just as good.  Should be fun.  Pray for us, yes??

Reflections at 40 Weeks 5 days

Still waiting.  My gut tells me this baby is going to arrive on the 24th.  It is the date that keeps popping into my head.  We shall see.  I am so ready and anxious, but I feel pretty peaceful about the decision to wait and not be induced quite yet.  I'm not totally uncomfortable, just somewhat uncomfortable.  I don't feel huge, not like I did with Lilly Jeanne.  Although, in my dream last night, it was 3 weeks from now, and I was still pregnant and I looked like this:

It probably has to do with the fact that the girls and I read this story for nap time yesterday, and Cecilia pointed out that Cookie Monster's tummy looked like mine.  Great!  I guess she gets bonus points for comparing.

I think the girls are starting to think that we are full of it, and they will never have a baby sibling.  On Tuesday, Cecilia told Ma, "Tater Tot not coming".  I don't blame them.  We've been talking about this event for weeks now.  We've even had the dinner discussion about, "Mommy and Daddy might not be here in the morning because we might go to the hospital in the middle of the night".  Only to wake up with everything normal.  This has happened at least twice in the past week.

When I wake up in the morning, and realize that those contractions that were so strong when I went to bed didn't wake me up in the middle of the night, I do feel disappointed.  And then I realize that it was one more night to sleep next to Jon and not be interrupted by a nursing baby.

However, I am so looking forward to the middle of the night feedings with this baby.  I am actually really excited about the parts of labor, delivery, hospital stays, and newborn demands, that are usually painted in a bad light.  I am excited to see if I can embrace each and every contraction this time and let my body do what God intended it to do.  I know that might not be in the cards for me, and I'm ok with that too.  I'm excited to snuggle my new baby in the hospital for a few days and let other people take care of me and my girls.  I'm giddy about picking up my new baby in the middle of the night and nursing when it is just the two of us, and maybe snuggling back in bed with Jon and our new little one.
I had a midwife appointment this morning, along with an ultrasound and non-stress test.  Everything is good.  My fluid levels were at 9cm, which is good, and lower than last week.  Last week they were at 13cm.  Lower is good, because baby has less room to float, which is how baby was on Monday- "floating".  Today, baby was low and pushing down.  I was also 3cm dilated!  YAY!  My body is making progress, slowly by surely.  All of those contractions I've been having are doing something.  My midwife stripped my membranes in hopes of speeding things up a bit too.  They will let me go until 42 weeks if I want.  So, at the latest, I will be induced on the 31st of August.  I've said since the beginning that "I will have the baby by September".  Good thing I told myself this, because there is a chance I will use every day of August for this pregnancy.

The baby hunch pool, is very, VERY, shallow at this point.  Only two people are in the running, and unless things happen really quickly today, it looks like we will be down to just one guess.  So, I thank all the people who guessed I would have this baby early, or even on time, that was so kind of you.  Obviously, this baby will come to meet us when they are ready, and they cannot be swayed by a majority vote.  The majority vote would have been for a boy on 8/18.

So, for now, we wait.  Life goes on as usual.  Although, the girls started school on Tuesday, and I'm not quite sure what to do with myself when they are not here.  Soon enough, I will be recovering and tending to my new little one full time.

We are ready to meet you Tater Tot!!!

First Day of School 2013

This year is special because both of my girls are in preschool.  Cecilia is in Jr. Kindergarten three mornings a week and Lilly Jeanne is in the Toddler room two mornings a week.  They both started school on the 20th.

Cecilia did great, as expected.  She did have a marker eating incident, but her teacher was all over it.  She is in the same classroom, but a different teacher and a much more structured and academic curriculum this year.  

I was a little nervous about how my Lilly Jeanne would do.  She has been talking about going to school since last spring, but she is definitely my Mama's girl.  She surprised the heck out of me and did so well.  She went right into her classroom, gave her new teacher a hug, sat down at her place and made friends with the little girl across the table.  No tears at all.  The week before school started I asked her what she was excited about doing at school and she told me "learn my letters".  So, on the first day of school when I asked her how it was, she was very concerned and told me "I no learn my letters".  Oh, Lilly Jeanne, my little academic.  

Of course, my girls were being extra silly the morning of the first day of school.  These are the best photos they would give me.  Silly Sisters!!

Breech at 39 weeks and 4 days

I was at mass on Wednesday night, by myself (which was such a treat for me), and I felt baby move.  Not usually something to worry about, but this was not a normal movement.  This was the gymnastics that was reminiscent of the 36 week movements baby was doing.  I felt baby flip and I knew I had a baby head in my right ribs and a butt in my left hip.  Keep in mind I was 39 weeks and 4 days at this point.  I got home, and told Jon, and tried not to freak out.  I did some stretches and went to bed, hoping the baby would flip back on their own overnight.  Thursday morning I woke up in a still very uncomfortable state, and I knew baby was not in the right spot for delivery.  

I somewhat impatiently waited to call my midwives office to see what needed to be done.  They patched me through to the nurse who told me to "wait it out, and do some cat stretches."  YA RIGHT!!!  Hello!  I'm due on SATURDAY, not in three weeks!  I called back and made an appointment to see a midwife ASAP, and I am so glad I did.  A basic exam and an ultrasound confirmed my suspicion and intuition,  baby was in fact breech.  I still had plenty fluid to do a version, and Jon and I headed to the hospital at 3:30 in the afternoon, fully prepared to have a C- section or be induced if needed. 

The version was fairly painful.  The drug they gave me felt like taking a hit of an inhaler times five, or drinking about 6 cups of coffee and running 4 miles.  It lasted about three hours, even though they said it would wear off in about 20-30 mins.  The doctor was great, she flipped baby in about 30 seconds, but it was not fun for me at all.  She basically dug her fingers into my belly like claws and turned the baby.  

After some discussion with the midwife on call, we decided not to induce.  The risk of induction did not out weigh any benefit to the baby currently being head down.  Especially since I was only dilated to a 1.5 on Monday and haven't really had any contractions this week.  Now, if baby flips again, before I go into labor, we might have a different story.  Most likely, I'll go immediately for a version again, and if that is successful, they will induce me right away.

So, now we wait, and pray that baby stays head down.  I know the baby will come out, and it is not my timing.  I hope it is soon, but I know I am not in charge of this process.  If I am still pregnant this time next week, I might have a different song to sing.  But, for now, I am being patient and letting baby grow as much as they need to.  

Cecilia Age 4 Pictures and Stats

Cecilia's age 4 wellness exam was good.  She is growing like a champ.  At age 4 Cecilia is in the 75th percentile for both height and weight:
Height:  39.75 inches
Weight: 35.2 lbs

Last weekend, Cecilia "cooperated" and let me capture her four year old pictures.  So, here are some favorites of my pretty girl.

39 Weeks (But Who's Counting?!)

How Far Along: 39 Weeks

Size of Baby: Baby size!  Perhaps in the 7lb and 20 inch range.  Think: small watermelon (oh, my!)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 22 lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nothing new.  I ordered and received all of my nursing bras.  Why can't they make the comfortable ones pretty???  Really, is it too much to ask??  I mean, I'm going to wear the same 4 bras for the next year of my life, and they only come in black and nude.  (Sorry if this is too much info...)

Baby Movement: Baby's movements have drastically changed.  Once baby stuck to a head down position, the movements have been much calmer, and less bouncy.  More pushing and stretching with some spinning like a top movements.

Sleep:  The same love/hate relationship exists.  At least when I am up in the middle of the night when I'm tending to a baby, there will be a purpose to it.

What I miss: Regular jeans.  Feet that don't resemble water balloons.  Wearing my wedding ring.

Cravings:  Not a lot.  I haven't been all that hungry recently.

Aversions:  Not too much.  I guess it depends on the day, or time of day.  

Symptoms:  Swollen feet and hands.  Heartburn.  Also, baby has dropped in the last week, and I definitely feel it.  Contractions have started, but nothing regular enough to get excited about.  I'm just practicing for the real deal.

Best Moment:  Not really a moment, but all the anticipation of the baby's arrival is really exciting right now.  The girls are getting so excited and they talk about it all the time.