So... As Marc already posted, Lucas' surgery seemed to be a success. We had a bit of a rough Monday evening; I think a combination of coming out of anesthesia, off the numbing sensation of the lower half of his body, and the lack of food for almost 24 hours weighed in at least as much as any discomfort he might have had. After he got some food in him (a giant bowl of oatmeal!) he seemed to be feeling much better and went to sleep well. Marc and I were exhausted. I had slept terribly the night before his surgery, but thankfully, we all got great sleep that Monday night.
Tuesday began pretty normally aside from no potty time for Lucas and the addition of pain killers to his medication regimen. He was in a good mood and feeling pretty well as long as no pressure was put on his boy parts. :)
Around 1 o'clock I began to notice that I was having regular contractions. They were about 3-3 1/2 minutes apart but still ignorable as I continued with regular tasks like lunch and laundry. By about 2:30, they were not ignorable and a steady 3 minutes apart. I called our Bradley (birthing class) instructor to ask her opinion about the possible seriousness of the labor. It was around 3:00 that we spoke and by that point, I was having to stop and focus on the contractions and my breathing. She was actually able to time my contractions over the phone because I would go silent every time they came. She convinced me that I should probably call Marc and let him know this might be something real. I called him around 3:30 and he got home a bit after 4:00.
My dear, long-time friend Katie was planning to come over that day to learn the ropes of Lucas care so that she could help when I went into labor. It was a good thing she was free, because we needed her for sure. :) I also had called my mom earlier in the day and then again after I called Marc. By 4:30, everyone was at the house. I took a shower and then the fun of everyone trying to time contractions, figure what still needs to be thrown into the hospital bags and giving instructions for Lucas' care began. It might well have been sitcom worthy.
My contractions had progressed to about 2 minutes apart, but still were not lasting a super long time. I wasn't really great at identifying their exact beginning, but I could certainly identify when they would begin to ebb away. By 6:00 I was moaning through every contraction and was fairly easily convinced that it was time to get moving toward the hospital.
We arrived at the hospital around 7:00 and it was a horrible car ride there. The car did not allow me the position I preferred for contractions and every bump on the road was super annoying. They got me into the triage room to check me out as soon as we arrived. When they checked me for dilation, I was only 1cm. (10 cm is when it's time to push.) I could tell that the baby was not engaged in my pelvis the way she needed to be and had been concerned that she had flipped to breech (head up) again (she had been that way around 34 weeks) just the week before. The house OB felt around on my belly and decided to have a look with the ultrasound machine. Sure enough, head up and tush down and the c-section call was made.
I was heart broken. I immediately began to cry, which I highly recommend against in the midst of labor. It makes it much more difficult to relax and breathe through contractions. :) We walked back to the operating room just before 9:00 and my OB met me there. He said to me, "It's okay. God has His plan." Through tears I responded, "I know; it's just really not what I wanted."
When they got into my uterus, the amniotic fluid was stained with meconium (the first poop) and the umbilical cord was wrapped around her throat twice. My doctor also said that the uterine wall did not seem likely strong enough along the incision line from my first section to have safely continued through full natural labor and delivery. In full knowledge of these things, I can see that it was better to get her out quickly, but I also can't help but wonder that things might have been fine if she had just been head down. My labor was moving super fast and she was so little. Doesn't matter now, I guess. Now that I have her in my arms.
She weighed in at 5 lbs 15 oz. That's what they told us and what was documented. Though Marc photographed her on the scale and it looks like she was just a tenth of an ounce shy of 6 pounds. They also measured her at 19 1/2 inches long, but six days later at the pediatrician, she was 19 inches flat. We measured twice. She must have thrown in a last minute squirm to make herself appear taller on her birth day. :) Her apgar scores (based on color, breathing, ectera) were 3 and then five minutes later, 9 out of a possible 10.
She was a little gaspy for the first couple of hours, but was never taken away to the nursery or put on supplemental oxygen. She took to nursing right away and is proving to be all together beautifully healthy. At her first pediatrician visit, she weighed in at 6lbs, 2oz. She is beginning to fill out through a second chin already too. :) Pretty soon, she will be able to fit into the cloth diapers and newborn sized clothes too. (Currently she's in preemies though I just keep her in gowns with the sleeves cuffed.) We will take her in for an ultrasound of her hips next month to make sure there is no hip dysplasia. There is no sign that there is, but it is a regular inspection for a breech baby
We were discharged just 37 hours after she was born and glad to get home. It really is my favorite place, I think, with my husband and kids, sporting sweats and a tank. :)I am healing pretty well. I think I over did things a bit and have moved in ways I shouldn't have in the night with out thinking several times, but if I tore any stitches in muscle tissue, I am confident they will heal up fine. All that I did after Lucas was born, I have to believe I will be fine again this time :)
She has a lovely temperament, is strong and alert (when awake) and Lucas has been wonderful with her. He will hold her and snuggle her. We just have to watch out for his sweet head smashing snuggles. She's not quite ready for those. :)
I need to get some lunch in her big brother now. Hope I didn't bore you with details or leave too much out of the story. Thanks for reading and caring. More pictures are soon to be coming!
Love and thanks!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Video clip from last August
Lucas is looking so much like a big boy these days, it's hard to imagine how much he's changed over the past year. I was looking through some pics and videos that I took on my phone last night and came across this video that I thought was cute. His cheeks were so much chubbier back then...
Sunday, June 20, 2010
One busy week
Lucas' surgery started around 7:30am on Monday, which meant that we had to be there at 5:45am. The surgery was done in two parts, with urology going first and ophthalmology second. Everything went very well, and the surgery was over by around 11am.
The ophthalmologist said that there is a 50% chance that Lucas will need a follow up eye surgery, and that it will take around 3 months for his brain to learn how to use the new eye muscles correctly. Even now, we see an improvement - with his eye not drifting to the outside, but still occasionally drifting inwards. Our hope is that Lucas will learn to use his eyes more and more, and his development will speed because of it.
In the last few months, Lucas has been getting much better control over his body. He can hold his cup and drink from it on his own, and is beginning to be braver about taking steps (while somebody holds him up by the arms).
So far, he's been very sweet towards his sister - and it's amazing for us to watch her and see the things that she is able to do within days of birth that Lucas is still working on. But as she grows bigger and it becomes safer for her to spend more time dodging Lucas' headbutts - we hope that her development will encourage Lucas all the more.
I'll let Esther give an update of Eliana's birthday. I posted some more pics and a video of her from the night she was born:
The ophthalmologist said that there is a 50% chance that Lucas will need a follow up eye surgery, and that it will take around 3 months for his brain to learn how to use the new eye muscles correctly. Even now, we see an improvement - with his eye not drifting to the outside, but still occasionally drifting inwards. Our hope is that Lucas will learn to use his eyes more and more, and his development will speed because of it.
In the last few months, Lucas has been getting much better control over his body. He can hold his cup and drink from it on his own, and is beginning to be braver about taking steps (while somebody holds him up by the arms).
So far, he's been very sweet towards his sister - and it's amazing for us to watch her and see the things that she is able to do within days of birth that Lucas is still working on. But as she grows bigger and it becomes safer for her to spend more time dodging Lucas' headbutts - we hope that her development will encourage Lucas all the more.
I'll let Esther give an update of Eliana's birthday. I posted some more pics and a video of her from the night she was born:
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Wednesday, June 16, 2010
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