What a difference a week makes!
Last Friday I was 3 days overdue and had an appointment to get an US to check out amniotic fluid levels, and get a non-stress test. So I had the US, everything seemed good (to me), even got another picture of her little profile. Then I went to the midwife part of the appointment and right away she said that there was a concern and I had something called Polyhydraminos, which meant too much amniotic fluid. Right away I asked her, "Should I be crying? Because I feel like crying." As I started to cry. She said that they actually see a case of it every week, earlier in pregnancy it can be bad as it can mean maybe baby isn't swallowing/excreting the fluid and something is wrong with baby's GI system, but they didn't see anything wrong on her earlier anatomy scan, so she didn't know really much more. So we got Doug on the phone and talked it over and she said that I would have to be induced that day. The fear was if my water broke at home the cord could come out in the extra fluid and then it could become a medical emergency, so I needed to be monitored more closely.
So I cried all the way home and we called Doug's parents to come watch August. I had wanted my parents to have him (Doug's had never done an overnight with him before), but my uncle passed a few days prior and my parents were headed to Iowa to be with my mom's sister, which of course I felt she should be there. We threw stuff in the car, and I snuck into August's room while he was napping to say goodbye to my first baby.
One last unflattering, swollen pregnancy photo, and we were off!
One nice thing about being induced is no mad dash to the hospital, no suffering with cramps and bumps on the way, and knowing that soon you will see your baby.
So we get there at 5pm and met with the oncoming shift midwife to discuss the plan. At the appointment they had checked that I was 1.5 - 2 cms dilated, but only 30% effaced (how soft the cervix is). The midwife thought the best route was to take a drug called Mistoprostol that softens the cervix. She thought that as it worked, since I had a baby before, my body would be like "oh I know what do to here" and kick into labor. The other option would be to jump right to Pitocin, which focuses more on dilation. But if your cervix is "unfavorable" aka not soft, we'd have to stop it and do the pill anyway. This was a tough choice for us as we'd read about that Miso drug causing uterine rupture, hemorrhage, death. And even the maker of the drug said they invented it for stomach ulcers, not inducing labor. But ultimately, after talking a lot with the midwife and nurse, we decided to try it and hope my body would take over. That plan is a pill every 4 hours and an hour of monitoring afterwards to make sure baby is "tolerating" the drug. So first pill down at 6pm.
For a while all I felt was just the tightening that still just felt like Braxton-Hicks and maybe very mild cramping. So Doug and I watched HGTV, chatted, ate dinner, walked the halls, ate several cups of hospital ice, and just hung out.
The next dose was at 10pm. At the second dose you are supposed to double it to 50mcg, but because we were so concerned with taking that drug at all, she let us have another check first. So I think there I was 4cm and 50% effaced, so she let us do another 25mcg as the first dose was slowly working. Another hour of monitoring and then around 11:30pm they took off the monitor and Doug and I decided to try to get some sleep until the 2am dose. I still wasn't really feeling anything at all.
About 15 minutes later I heard and felt a "pop" and I wiggled around a bit to see if that was my water breaking, and sure enough, fluid was coming out. So called the nurse who came and tested it with a little strip and said from that point no more drugs, just would watch and wait as if I came into the hospital in active labor.
So they went out and I thought I would try to go back to sleep. Now it was 11:45pm. Anyway, those mild cramps soon became bigger and it was obvious I was done sleeping. For the next hour I bounced and rocked on this big labor ball and kind of moaned, but towards the end I was yelling and finally told Doug I couldn't take it anymore and wanted drugs. At around 1am I pushed the nurse button that I wanted drugs. She came in and checked me and said I was at a 10 and 100% effaced. It was go time.
The next thing I knew the room was filling with people, although I couldn't see anyone as this time I was trying to push in hands and knees position kind of arms draped over the head of the bed vs laying on my back like last time. The books say you're letting gravity help baby descend.
Anyway, lets cut to the chase. It hurt bad. Everyone said natural labor hurts less than labor on Pitocin (which I had with August, and was no picnic believe me, but this seemed worse). And pushing. OW. It just felt like a huge ball was trying to come out and it stung and burn and hurt like heck. Worse than August.
So finally I get the head out and then the nurse was pushing on my legs and telling me to roll over right away, and I couldn't move, so people just flipped me. And there was a hand pushing on my stomach super hard and someone reaching inside and pulling. I looked at my nurse's face and she just had this desperate look on her face and I remember yelling "What is happening?!?" and looked to Doug who told me everything was fine. BS. But finally all that pressure was gone and baby was plopped on my chest while someone cut the cord and then she was quickly whisked off to the warmer. At that point I think someone finally told me her shoulder had gotten stuck so they were pressing on my abdomen to push her down and the midwife was reaching inside to pull her out by her hand. Thankfully, everything was indeed fine. (Sometimes baby gets a broken clavicle when that happens), and I remembered seeing her body and she was pink when she came out, not blue, so I wasn't too worried about her being without oxygen. We could all hear her crying loudly so that was such a relief.
Unfortunately I ripped again, the midwife had to call in the doctor to do a repair and once again I could hear a discussion about what piece came from where and how it was "like a starburst" ouch. But they stitched me up and soon I got to hold my girl. I think I was in shock for a while that just 2 hours after my water broke, she was here!
(this is what real labor looks like, being a sweaty mess and wearing glasses because you took your contacts out earlier thinking you were going to sleep)
I had planned on my friend Liz coming to be a labor support during this birth, but I was thinking nothing was really happening and that more would happen starting at 6am the next day. Later I see these texts, Doug had sent her a couple one-liners after I sent the ones about nothing happening, and now they make me laugh:
Anyway, too quick for a support buddy, but Doug did awesome.
So they cleaned me up and wheeled us to our room in mother/baby where we tried to settle in for the night and finally sleep.
Visitors the next day, including my favorite visitor, big brother!:
We had to stay for a full 48 hours since I was a GBS carrier (1 in 4 women are) and the labor happened too quick to get the required 2 doses of pre-antibiotics, so we had to make sure baby was monitored and didn't become infected. We had several visitors and I mostly lazed around. This time I made sure to have ice down there for a full 48 hours as I think it really hindered my healing last time not having that.
The next day, I don't think any visitors, and Doug even went home a couple hours to relieve his parents and put August to sleep himself before coming back to stay with me. This night was rough as I was pretty much a "human pacifier" and nursed from like 6 to 11am and then again from 6pm to 1am. It was crazy. The second you'd take her off she'd start crying, but she wasn't really nursing. Finally the nurse took her for an hour so we could sleep and she did her heart and hearing and jaundice tests (all passed!). I saw the lactation consultants a couple times and we worked on the latch and trying to help her nurse more effectively.
And finally we could go home!
We praise God for our sweet little Jeanie Marie.
This week at home she already saw her pediatrician, and the chiropractor (our doctor wanted her seen as soon as possible due to the shoulder dystocia issue and that possibly affecting her nursing) and lots of resting and nursing and being held. Big brother has been pretty good for the most part. Asking where baby sister is and what she's doing, knowing she cries because she has no words, and he's enjoying all the extra time and attention from daddy since he's been home all week.
Snuggles during skin-to-skin time with baby
Two little sweet faces in my rearview mirror, my heart is full.
We are so blessed.
First bath!
First Easter!
This little hat I got in Peru back in 2009, and just saved away for a little wanted baby someday.
I'm pretty sure this was his first ice-cream cone all to himself!
Big brother turned 2.5, so fast!!!
Her little onesie was the one we bought for the gender reveal for ourselves, when we found out she was a girl <3
Like big brother, she also has a heart murmur. Had to go to a cardiologist to get an EKG and 2D echo, thankfully all normal findings. Praise God!
I made this sunbonnet for my neighbor's little girl and she gave it back to me :)
Baby Jeanie meets her namesake, my college friend Jeannie.
August's room got a little updating, I bought and framed this super sweet Etsy print about treasuring your children. Makes me tear up. And we hung his banner of him from birth to 11 months.
I love his room, we are still planning on the kids sharing several months from now, but he still has his own for now.
My matching jammies photo shoot didn't turn out as I planned, and both kids are almost too big for them!
My cousin got married last weekend, a couple family shots:
4 generations! Spanning 1 month to 98 years old!
our family (minus my siblings)
Big brother playing in her swing.
Ok, got to go, kids needing attention :)
