Things I've learned after a second pregnancy

1. Having a second baby is 100 times easier than having a first baby. If I'd known this, I would have had the 2nd one first.

2. Weighing 23 lbs less than you did when you got pregnant at 1 week post partum makes for a great weight loss motivator. I'm seeing numbers on the scale I haven't seen in years. It's exciting and addictive.

3. Never believe someone when they diagnose you as a Type II diabetic while pregnant.

A bit of a scary afternoon with a happy ending

Yesterday proceeded as planned - another few hours of contractions, a bit of dilation and then an epidural (happy day). Evan was tolerating labor really, really well. But after a few hours his heart rate started to dip a bit during the contractions. This was the same thing that happened with Will and I wasn't too alarmed.

They turned off the pitocin and I spent the next several hours laying on my side in the bed with the oxygen mask strapped to my face. Evan would do well for a while and then he'd get angry again. So, they'd come in and roll me over to the other side. Since the pitocin was off, my contractions weren't as strong or quite as frequent. So we waited for my body to do the work and dilate my cervix more slowly than originally anticipated. At 5 pm I was told I could finally sit up again. I was able to sit upright and surf the net for a bit. The plan was for Evan's weight and gravity to rest on my cervix and dilate it that last 1-2 cm. A few minutes before 6 pm the doctor came to check on me. He made the joke that I was enjoying myself way too much.

Not for long.

He checked my dilation and something about my being checked set Evan off. His heart rate plummeted and things got a bit scary. Several nurses up front didn't realize the doctor was with me and they all came running into our room. It was tense for several minutes as everyone watched the monitors. I started praying that everything was going to be okay. I was afraid for the first time. At 6:02 my doctor started giving me instructions on what to expect - because if things didn't change 180 degrees in 60 seconds, we were going in for an emergency c-section. He was explaining to me that he'd have Evan out in under 5 minutes and that the rest of my surgery would take about 30 minutes total.

I was stuck on my side, frozen, not allowed to move. Barely breathing, listening to Evan's heart rate on the monitor. Everything stabilized quickly and the tension released. Every time a contraction came I prayed and listened to that heart rate. He was still having dips during my contractions, but not like he had been.

At 6:40 I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to start pushing - I wanted my baby out. I was too scared having him inside me at this point. Todd went and got a nurse and told them I wanted to push. I still had a rim of cervix left, but they told me that I could go ahead and start pushing.

They called the doc and told him I wanted to push. Ordinarily, I would have started without him, but they wanted him there. At 6:45 I pushed for the first time. I don't know what it was, but it was so much more difficult this time. I think I was working SO hard because I wanted him out SO badly. I was afraid for him and for me and I wanted him in my arms where he was safe. The nurses told me he was "right there", so it'd only take a few minutes.

At 7:02 pm, March 20th, 2009, Evan Parker entered the world. As he came out the doctor said "cord once, cord twice, cord three times." Evan's cord was wrapped around his neck and torso three times. Then as he slipped the rest of the way out we discovered the very scary reason for his heart rate issues. A knot in his cord. Thanks be to God that the knot was loose. The doctor slipped a finger through it to loosen it a bit. The reaction in the room was one of total shock.

He was big, a bit blue and really limp. Looking at his limp form was terrifying. The doctor was rubbing him as hard as he could and jostling him trying to get him moving. Thankfully he was crying within a few seconds and everything was okay. I think we all breathed a sigh of relief. He perked up really quickly. He ended up not even needing oxygen or anything.

We found out on Saturday that every member of the staff was watching the monitors at the nursing station while I was pushing - every time I pushed his heart rate was dropping down into the 30 beats per minute range. Everyone that's come in to see us/check on us - peds, OBs, nurses, etc have mentioned the knot to us. Word's gotten around about it.

Thankfully I'm sitting here watching a perfectly healthy, beautiful baby boy sleeping in his hospital bassinett. It was a whole lot of fright, but couldn't have turned out better.

Birthin' and bloggin'

Oh, how I love technology. :)

It's a few minutes before 10 am on Friday the 20th. Evan's birthday - it's official this time.

We arrived a few minutes after 7 and were taken to our room. Paperwork was filled out and my IV was hooked up. In regular fashion for me, the vein blew the first time and it took two tries to get the IV in. And as always for me, my blood pressure bottomed out and I almost blacked out immediately afterwards. The nurse said my pressure was 68/32. Then they informed me that I'm GBS positive, so they added a bag of antibiotics to my IV. And once again, I almost passed out.

Getting the trend, here? I love needles. LOL

My doctor came and checked me a few minutes before 9 am and pronounced I was 3-4cm, 80% effaced and Evan was +2 station. He told the nurses to go ahead and roll with the pitocin and we'd get this party started.

I've been on the pitocin for about an hour and having regular contractions. Still nothing too strong or painful, so we're just hanging out. I currently have a blood pressure cuff, 2 ID bracelets, 2 fetal monitors strapped to my belly (one for contractions and one to monitor Evan's heart rate) and an IV with saline, antibiotics and pitocin dripping.

So much for that idea

I'm still pregnant. VERY pregnant.

I was up early on Tuesday morning (no surprise there). I got ready and woke Todd up about 15 minutes before we needed to leave. He got ready and we took our bags downstairs. My dad had gotten up to meet us and helped me load the car while Todd ate a quick bowl of cereal. We waved goodbye and made the trip in the early morning darkness to the hospital.

Todd dropped me off at the door and I rode the elevator up to the labor and delivery ward. I gave my name and info and she checked me off her list and took me to a room. We walked past the room I delivered Will in and I felt a stab of nostalgia as I saw it was occupied by someone else.

Todd found me a minute later and joined me in the room. I changed into my hospital gown and Todd snapped a few final "belly pictures". I sat on the bed and we waited. And waited.

I got up to pee and our nurse stopped in - she said she'd come back. My doctor stopped by at 8:00 and talked to us for a few minutes and then left again. We were still alone when he came back at 9:00. By this point, I was starting to wonder what the holdup was. We'd been there 2 hours. By this point last time my IV was dripping and my water had been broken.

And that was when my doctor informed me the last words I could even imagine "I hate to be the bearer or bad news. But we had a few nurses call in, we're just too short staffed.". Todd said "you're sending us home, aren't you??" And he repliled "yes".

Punch me in the gut and take the breath out of me. I wanted to cry.

The doctor said I could come back the next day (today) and they'd induce me. We ended up agreeing that we'd wait until Friday since that's when he's on call again. I've been with him for over 3 1/2 years and he delivered Will. I really, really want him to deliver Evan, as well. So, I'm throwing myself under the bus and holding out until Friday.

I thought the constant phone calls, texts, emails and facebook notifications BEFORE going to the hospital were bad. But oh my goodness - the number of calls, emails, text messages, voice mails, notifications, etc after giving the news that we WEREN'T having a baby was unbelievable. I had 4 people call me on my phone just between 9 and 10 am. I just wanted to be left alone. I switched it to "silent" and dropped it to the bottom of my purse, not to be touched again until today. Telling the story over and over and over was the last possible thing I wanted to do yesterday. I answered the phone for the first time today about 4 pm.

So for everyone that hasn't heard back from me, please don't take it personally. I've reached the "I'm done" point in this pregnancy and rehashing any of it is the last thing I'm interested in doing right now. I'm not calling people until I'm calling with the news of his birth, so please be patient.

On the upside, my doctor blessed me with a fresh prescription for Ambien. I took one and slept like a ROCK last night for about 9 1/2 hours. It was blessed relief. I'm looking forward to another good night's sleep tonight.

So, stay tuned as the saga continues. Hopefully Friday we'll actually see the fabulous labor and delivery of Evan Parker come to fruition.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I guess I'll never look at today again as just a day for beer and Irish music. I'm having a baby today. It's a little after 6 in the morning and I decided to take a few minutes to get online before needing to get dressed and load the car for the hospital.

Will decided to remind me he's still my #1 priority, at least for a few more minutes by waking up at 5:30 when my alarm was set for 6:20. It took a bit to get him resettled, but now he's sleeping soundly in his bed. I'm actually glad he woke up. I managed to get in one more snuggle and kiss from my first baby boy.

It seems completely surreal to me that in little more than an hour I'm going to be hooked to an IV and have my water broken to put me into labor. I think it'll seem much more real by lunch time when I'm begging for an epidural. ha ha

So, in the meantime, please say a prayer for a safe and healthy delivery of this new little love in my life. I cannot wait to meet him today and find out who has been in there and what he's like. I'm so excited to know we are completing our family today.

A trip to labor and delivery

The last few days have been building in excitement and intensity. I've started having some signs of early labor. They resulted in a climax of several hours of contractions on Thursday evening - to the point that I called labor and delivery. I had been contracting every 5-6 minutes for about an hour and a half. This was the first time I've ever had contractions where I felt like I might actually be in labor. I was hopeful they'd at least tell me I was 4-5 cm and could stay to see if I'd progress.

So I grabbed my purse and away I went to the hospital. Todd stayed home with Will and our packed suitcases, awaiting word from me to call our babysitter and join me at the hospital. I was giddy at the thought that we could be ready to have a baby.

I get to the hospital a few minutes before 11 pm and get hooked to the monitors. In the about 45-50 minutes I was on the monitor, I had 1 contraction. ONE. Sigh. The nurse checked me for dilation and there was nothing new to report since Tuesday.

I changed back out of my gown and into my clothes and headed back home - without a baby.

I swear, he's NEVER coming out. LOL

38 week appt

Today I was worried about being in a hurry. My appointment was at 12:45 and I pick Will up at 2:00. Thankfully, the timing worked out and I made it to school at 1:45.

My blood pressure was still on the low side, which is typical as of late. Everything else looked good.

Evan cooperated for his NST and I didn't have to spend an hour on the monitor. Then it was off to my ultrasound. Evan scored another 10/10 on his BPP. It took a while for Brooke to convince him to breathe - he was being a bit uncooperative. I ended up feeling really light headed and she had me move onto my left side to relieve the pressure on my arteries. While giving me a minute to recoup, Brooke switched into 4D so we could see Evan's sweet face. I started to cry. That's the first time I've ever cried during any ultrasound. He was just so sweet and fat. I can't wait to kiss his fat little cheeks.

So, she finished up the ultrasound and pronounced him to be 8 lbs 5 oz. Exactly what she estimated his big brother to weigh the day before he was born. Hmm..........

Then it was in to see the doctor. I was finally going to get an internal. I told him I was hopeful he'd tell me I was 3-4 cm dilated. He checked and then had a huge grin on his face. He said "yep, you're 3". WOO HOO!! Even his nurse laughed with excitement.

Then we went into his office to schedule my induction officially. He checked his schedule and declared Monday to be a madhouse, so we booked Tuesday morning at 7 am. So, unless he decides to dislodge himself between now and then, Evan will be a St. Patrick's Day baby. Which was actually a secret hope of mine. :) Although I'm still holding out that he'll come before next Tuesday.

Less than a week to go

Well, it's officially Tuesday the 10th - so we're at a week or less. A week from right now I'll be in the hospital, holding our sweet boy in my arms. I'm overjoyed and scared to death all at the same time. I can't wait to see his face and to finally meet him - to memorize every detail of his face, to count his fingers and his toes. To learn the smell of him.

On a slightly lighter note - I'm just looking forward to him getting out of my belly. The combination of a nearly 9 lb baby (we'll find out how big he's gotten tomorrow) and a lot of amniotic fluid leads to being VERY uncomfortable. Not only is he large, but because of all the extra fluid, he still has a lot of room to move. And a very large baby packs quite a punch. And kick. And elbow. His movements are unbelievable and they hurt. A lot. I'm looking forward to him punching someone else for a little while.

Babyproofing

I'm borrowing a page out of a light book I'm reading called "The Diaper Diaries". It's too funny not to post.

Babyproofing

The widely accepted concept of babyproofing is all wrong. The goal should be to protect the HOUSE from the BABY, not vice versa. Here's what may happen if you don't protect your house:

1. Baby will take graham cracker and jam it into DVD player, thus rendering DVD player unusable.

2. Baby will flush all magnetic alphabet letters other than Q, Z, V and J down the toilet, making it impossible to spell anything meaningful as well as causing the toilet to overflow.

3. Baby will stuff cat into hapmper where freaked-out kitty will throw up on fine washables.

4. Baby will fill tub with water and drop the following items to see if they float: your husband's 1896 pocket watch (will not float), photos of your grandmother as a baby (will float initially), your BlackBerry (nope), one of your diamond earrings (uh-uh), and a paper cup (yes!).

5. Baby will play with TV remote, resulting in the selction of 47 Pay-Per-View movies.

6. Baby will take your nine bottles of perfume, pour them into your husband's cowboy hat from his boyhood in Montana, and then dump it all into your sweater drawer.

7. Baby will remove diaper in front of fridge, then proceed to poop in a saucepan, on the leather recliner and under your authentic oriental rug. Where it will remain undiscovered for 3 days.

8. Baby will take your car keys and scratch a mark on the antique walnut coffee table before tossing them in air, after which they'll land in the garbage disposal.

9. Baby will tear pages out of book of Impressionist Art and use vaseline from diaper bag to stick them to living room wall.

He's becoming so independent

Last night we ate dinner a bit late - it was 7:00 before Todd came in from working on his car and we all sat down to dinner together.

Will was obviously starved by then. In the length of time it took me to prepare Todd's plate and mine, Will consumed almost his entire dinner and was asking for more. So, I stopped and refilled his plate - more bbq chicken, corn, baked beans. I sliced a couple more strawberries for him and also microwaved some leftover green beans and threw them on his plate. He ate ALL of this food, too.

He's excused to go watch Diego while Todd and I finish eating. Afterwards, Todd took the car for a test drive to confirm that the brakes were finished and said that he'd be back when Diego went off and he and Will would take a shower together and he'd get him in bed for me.

Will knows he gets a snack after dinner if he eats really well. I'll usually let him have a popsicle or ice cream if he ate REALLY well. He actually asked for a banana (aka a bana) and he ate all of that, too.

Diego went off about 3 minutes before Todd returned home. In that length of time, Will announced "I'm ready to go to bed now" and headed upstairs. I helped him brush his teeth and he got into bed on his own. He was just about asleep when Todd got home at 8:02. Todd was so disappointed because he was looking forward to spending 15 minutes with Will before bed and he couldn't talk Will into getting out of bed and taking a shower.

My sweet boy is growing up. Eating great dinners (he's a good eater, anyway), choosing healthy snacks and putting himself to bed at 8:00.

I love that little boy.

This week's Will-ism

Will said a few things this week that cracked me up - let me see what I can remember.

The other night he and I were taking a bath together. Todd was flying and most evenings that Todd's at work and I'm on bath duty, I cheat and we get in the tub together. I don't do too well bending over the tub to bathe him.

So, Will looks at my huge belly sitting between us. And here's the conversation that follows:

Will: Mommy, my want baby brother Evan to come out of your tummy.

Me: He's going to, buddy. And really soon, too.

Will: I want him to come out so I can go back in your tummy.

Me: (gulp) Well, you're too big to go back in my tummy buddy. You'd never fit.

Will: My will become a baby again and get really small and fit back in your tummy.

Me: Okay, but I want to warn you - it's really, really dark in there. There's no light in my tummy at all. Evan is sitting in there in the dark, all by himself.

Will: (who hates the dark these days) It's dark in there?

Me: Yes, very dark. Evan can't see ANYthing in there at all.

Will: Mommy, are there bats in your tummy????

It's a good thing we were already in the bathtub, otherwise I would have peed in my pants.

The compulsion to nest is overwhelming

I spent hours and hours compulsively cleaning everything yesterday. I couldn't stop myself and just sit down to rest. And it did nothing to put me into labor - just beat the tar out of me. Here's what I accomplished yesterday:

Helped Todd bleed the brakes on his car
Sweep kitchen
Load, run, unload, reload dishwasher
Clean fronts of all kitchen appliances
Scrub down kitchen sink and all countertops, walls and cabinets
Cooked dinner
Cleaned powder room floor
Cleaned Will's potty chair
Scrubbed powder room toilet
Wiped down and polished sink in powder room
Cleaned mirrors and glass - inside and out
Vacuumed the whole house
Washed and put away 2 loads of clothes
Washed and changed sheets on our bed
Scrubbed toilet and both sinks, countertop and mirror in Will's bathroom
Scrubbed toilet, both sinks, countertop and mirror in our bathroom
Cleaned up entire play room and all the mess in Will's bedroom, too.
Straightened up guest room

As of yet to be accomplished today:

Re-sweep and mop kitchen floors - must restrain myself from getting the scrub brush out and getting on my knees to scrub it
Sweep and mop wood floors
Dust office, dining room, entertainment center and our bedroom furniture
Clean our bedroom mirror

Dust the hallway railing - esp. the part on the floor
Wash my car (really??? This is getting really compulsive if I actually wash my own car, too)

Wondering if I can restrain myself from sanding the drywall mud in the bathroom. Think Todd would care if I started priming and painting in there myself? Yeah, probably.

38 weeks today

There's not much to say except that I'm miserable.

The Ambien is all gone. I didn't sleep more than 30 minutes last night and it was awful.

My whole body hurts like I've been beaten with a baseball bat.

Sigh.

This stubborn little devil isn't going to budge until the 16th. And he's going to do that to torture me on purpose. He's going to be nearly 10 lbs just to spite me. LOL

Final details

We're coming down to the wire. I'm working on getting together the last few things to be ready. Today I bought a nursing cami (wanted to buy a bra, too, but no luck) and baby Tylenol. I didn't have any baby meds in the house. I bought thank you notes

I picked up snacks to pack for Todd for the hospital - lucky devil gets to eat while I'm in labor.

I'm charging my iPod and loading a few new things on it to keep me entertained while in the hospital.

My bag is mostly packed - I'll just need to throw in my toiletries when it's time to go. My pj's, slippers and robe are already in there.

Now we just wait. And wait. And wait.

And just one more picture

She's mine - I just can't for it to come in. And for the weather to improve. Finally, my OWN wake board. Bring it on, baby.

Because I love him so much....

Just a cute picture of my little guy and I from yesterday. I love him.

Ode to Ambien

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways......

Sleep, blessed sleep.

Sure it involves a bit of stumbling around to go to the bathroom and a few drunk dialed phone calls to my husband on his way home from work.............but totally worth it.

In the insanity of not being able to sleep in weeks and weeks, I'm finally getting a little rest before Evan gets here.

Granted, it'll all be snatched away again shortly (12 days or LESS), but I'm considering myself to be a sleep camel - I'm storing it up right now to use as reserves after he arrives.

Now, if only we can guarantee my water won't break in bed, it'll all be good. LOL

This week's appointment

Nothing exciting to report - it was pretty run of the mill. Evan looked great (as always) on his NST and BPP. My blood pressure, urine and weight were all good.

I met with the doctor and he officially scheduled me for the 16th to come in a 7 am to be induced. However, I'm holding out to not make it 13 more days with this baby inside my belly. Maybe 4-5 days. I'd like to go to my Mom's Group on Friday - then after that, bring him on. :)

Todd's flying right now and scheduled to fly 3 more times between now and the 13th. It's making me a bit nervous, but I'm trying to keep the paranoia in check. Worst case scenerio, I end up calling Command Post and they'll radio the jet and let Todd know to come back asap. Here's hoping they don't have to do that.

This week's accomplishments

It occurred to me last week that Evan is arriving - soon! In fact, he'll be here 2 weeks from today - or less. Todd's standing firm that Evan won't arrive before our induction date. I'm tending to agree, but the nesting instinct is too strong for the logical part of my brain. So, the flurry of activity that occurred in this house last week was pretty amazing.

It started on Monday with a trip to Babies R Us and Target for last minute items. Socks, undershirts, nipples for bottles, baby wash and lotion, and a stroller blanket. A friend and I got together child free (minus the babies in our bellies) and made the necessary purchases to ensure I'm ready for Evan's arrival.

The nursery was mostly put together - we never took it apart after we moved Will. But I spent a lot of time in there last week. I washed everything - 2 loads of blankets, sheets, burp cloths, boppy covers, etc. Two loads of clothes and all of my newborn and small sized diapers and wipes. Five loads of baby laundry. Everything is now put away and carefully organized.

I dragged most of the rest of the "baby support equipment" down from the attic. The pack and plays are both set up - one next to my side of the bed and one in the office downstairs. I washed the covers for and assembled the baby gym and bouncy seat. I even installed the infant carrier in the car.

The diaper bag is packed and ready to go. Evan's hospital bag and coming home outfit are ready. Even my bathtime organizer is loaded and ready with wash, lotion, wash cloths, etc.

This week my only real project is to pack my bags and triple check everything is ready to go.

Officially Full Term

This baby boy is officially fully baked. I turned 37 weeks yesterday, making him full term. So now, in (almost) the words of Mike Myers - baby, get outta my belly! LOL

I don't remember feeling like this with Will (although Todd says I did, I just don't remember), I am DONE being pregnant. D.O.N.E. I won't lie, I'm apprehensive about his arrival - physically getting him here, being in the hospital and the sleepless nights. But it's got to be better than his still being inside of me. Oh my goodness, I am just so FULL of baby. I have to tinkle every 10-15 minutes, I can hardly walk, I can't breathe and the swelling has set in. My ankles are swelling over my ankle socks and I had to wrestle my rings off this morning. I know the swelling is what caused my fingers to get fat because my wedding ring fit better 3 days ago than it has in 4-5 years. Every time I move, he kicks the living tar out of me. I'm starting to worry he's going to crack one of my ribs before he makes his great escape.

In spite of my complaining, I have always loved being pregnant - with both boys. It is such a miracle and a blessing. I am so fortunate that God has chosen me to be their mother. I know there are plenty of people who would give anything to be in my shoes. And for that, I am blessed. I consider every moment sacred and thank God for giving them to me and allowing me to carry two healthy babies to term.

But I now know in my heart of hearts that I have NO desire to ever be pregnant again. This little man is officially completing our family. It makes me happy to know who our family is and I know Todd's relieved to never have to figure out what to do with a daughter. LOL

So, stand by. The laptop is obviously coming to the hospital with us and announcements and information regarding Evan's upcoming labor and delivery will be posted. :)