Reality Check – Leaving the hospital with a newborn….

Nothing slaps you in the face harder than the first couple of nights at home after giving birth to a new baby.  I know that most women block that out of their memory (otherwise they may not have more babies) but since I know that no more babies are in my future, I am going to document that “wonderful” time. 

Of course everyone is anxious to get home from the hospital (since nurses come in on the hour every hour usually to check vitals etc..) because it is always more comfortable to rest at home.  While it is nice to be at home and in your own bed, you find out quickly that you don’t get to spend too much time there (in your cozy bed) once you are home.  That first night home from the hospital was like a bad dream.  I kept the notebook where we logged her feeding times and her wet and dirty diapers since you have to keep track of all that for the first several days and going back and looking at it is funny because I really don’t think I slept at all that first night at home.  I was nursing so if she actually did sleep, I would have to wake her about every 2-3 hours to nurse (I followed doctor’s orders).  Speaking of nursing, what an experience that was.  Thankfully the lactation consultant at the hospital had helped us while we were there but once we came home, I was on my own and wasn’t doing so well at it.  Thankfully my sister stepped in and helped me at times when I was about to throw in the towel.  It does take a lot of patience and there were lots of tears but we made it through and she ended up nursing until she was 9 ½ months old!  That is an amazing experience that I would encourage everyone to at least try.  It takes crazy dedication and is a MAJOR PAIN to pump when you go back to work but it is so worth it, in my opinion.  And as far as convenience, you can’t beat it—especially in the middle of the night when you are too tired to mix a bottle.

We came home from the hospital on a Thursday (May 6^th) and had an appointment with her pediatrician (Dr. Michael McKinney) on Friday morning just to make sure she was doing good and gaining weight.  She was indeed gaining weight but they wanted to check her bilirubin levels because they thought she looked a little jaundice.  Sure enough, her level was higher than what it should have been so they told us to go home and hold her in the window allowing sunlight to get to her.  They also said to supplement some formula into her feedings which would help some too.  They told us that we needed to go back to the hospital the next morning (Saturday) and have the level checked again to make sure that it was going down.  I was very upset that we were going to have to go back and have this done again the next morning because I hated to see her little heels get pricked and it was obviously painful for her because she would scream when they pricked her.  Saturday morning we went to the hospital lab to have the levels checked again and the levels were even higher.  The doctor told us that if they got any higher, they would have to admit her to the hospital and do phototherapy on her.  So we went home that day and spent most of the day sitting in the sunlight and feeding her formula bottles.  As instructed, we headed back to the hospital Sunday morning to have the levels checked again (her poor little heels).  FINALLY good news—the levels were on the decline and they told us that once they start to go down, they would continue to go down and that we wouldn’t have to have them re-checked again.  From the pictures, you can see that our sweet pea was pretty yellow! 



Sunbathing in the window



As the days went by, we continued to get better with the whole nursing thing and adjusted to the lack of sleep.  It was nice to be off work but I can’t say that the time off was restful.  Taking a shower was, many days, my big accomplishment for the day.  Prior to my delivery when I would dream about my 8 weeks of maternity leave, I envisioned a perfectly clean house and having time to cook meals every night for my family while my perfect new baby slept in her bassinet!  What a JOKE that was.  I’m sure most new mothers dream about those things but quickly get that same wake-up call that I received!  It was definitely an experience but I wouldn’t change a thing!

The long, awaited arrival....

As I wrote about before, my pregnancy was absolutely wonderful and I really wasn’t ready for it to be over but I was definitely excited about meeting my sweet little girl for the first time.  So many thoughts went through my mind….  “Who would she look like, would she have lots of hair, how much would she weigh…”  But most importantly, “Would she be healthy..”  I guess that is the major concern of most mothers—just wanting their baby to be healthy and normal. 

My due date was May 1^st which also happens to be Craig’s birthday and in 2010, the KY Derby fell on May 1^st.  We thought it would be cool if she came on that day but in a way, I also wanted her to have her very own birthday!  Well she didn’t arrive that day and so my doctor scheduled an induction for me on Monday, May 3^rd.  That Sunday night was so hard to sleep—I’d never done this before and really didn’t know what to expect.  I wasn’t nervous though or scared.  I knew that God would take good care of us. 

We had to be at the hospital at 5:30 AM Monday morning so I think I got up at around 4:30 so that I had time to take a shower and pack some last minute things.  Austin had spent the night with Craig’s parents and would be staying with them until we came home from the hospital.  My baby was coming today (or so I thought) and I was so excited. 

We arrived at Central Baptist at 5:20 AM and filled out some paperwork (most of it had been done on-line because I had pre-registered).  They hooked me up to the monitors and at around 6:10 AM they started the Pitocin.  Side note:  getting that IV in my hand was so awful—that is NOT a good place for an IV.  I received the Pitocin all day long and nothing was happening—I had dilated ZERO.  Not sure if my body was refusing or if the little strong-willed girl inside of me wasn’t ready to make her grand appearance, but we did not have a baby that day.  They stopped the IV of Pitocin at 5:30 PM and brought me dinner which was wonderful because I was starving!  My doctor came in and told me that we could do one of two things:  try again tomorrow morning or send me home and let her come on her own.  Now if I could go back in time and change things, I would have chosen the 2^nd option but so many arrangements had been made in preparation for her arrival this week (Craig was off work the whole week, my maternity leave had started and I was going to be off for 8 weeks and wanted to spend that 8 weeks WITH my baby not WAITING for my baby to be born, etc…), that I decided to try another induction the next morning. 

Craig of course spent the night with me at the hospital and we went to sleep around 10 PM Monday night.  At midnight the nurse came in and checked me (cervix still closed) and gave me a pill in my cervix that was supposed to help open it up.  At 2 AM, I woke up as I started having contractions—they were tolerable though and I was able to breathe through them without waking Craig up.  I knew he was exhausted.  At 4 AM, the nurse came back in and checked me (cervix still closed) and gave me a 2^nd pill into my cervix.  Almost immediately the contractions got worse—way worse.  I got very upset and started crying.  Craig called the nurse and she came in and at 4:30 AM, she gave me Stadol in my IV.  Within minutes of receiving that, I began laughing uncontrollably.  Everything was funny and I was saying CRAZY, insane things!  I told Craig that I needed to go to the bathroom but I was laughing so hard that I actually peed a little bit in the bed.  I asked Craig to help me to the bathroom so that I could finish what I started (ha) but I was so loopy that he couldn’t get me and my IV pole over to the bathroom so he told me to just finish peeing in the bed, which reluctantly I did.  We had to call the nurse and get new sheets, gown, everything.  I was so embarrassed—how old was I?  Craig assured me that the nurses had seen a lot worse than that and I agreed that he was surely right.  We got cleaned up and settled and the Stadol really did help me—it took the edge off but by 6:30 AM, the contractions were unbearable again so they gave me another dose of Stadol.  They checked me and this time I was dilated to 1, 90% effaced and -1 station (not sure what all of that meant but HOORAY, it meant PROGRESS to me).  I was still feeling very loopy but was feeling strong contractions and squeezing the bed rails and Craig’s hand when he would let me!

At 8 AM on Tuesday morning, Dr. Cunningham came in and broke my water and they started the Pitocin again.  By 8:30 AM, I was in SEVERE pain and asked for the epidural (I have a new respect for women who do this au natural).  The nurse called Dr. Cunningham to ask if I could have the epidural and she said that I could—by this time I was dilated to a 3.  The anesthesiologist didn’t get to me until an hour later and his bedside manner was non-existent.  I know that he was busy as the labor and delivery floor was hopping that morning, but it isn’t easy trying to bend over while battling contractions and he didn’t seem sympathetic in the least.  Once the epidural kicked in, I felt wonderful but had no control whatsoever over my legs which was a very strange feeling. 

Two hours later, at 11:30 AM, the nurse checked me again and to my disbelief and hers, I was 9 cms dilated.  They told me it was almost time and that I would probably start pushing soon!  Let me backtrack…  the day before, everyone was at the hospital anxiously awaiting Addison’s arrival but on Tuesday, we told everyone not to be in any hurry to get there because it would probably be an all-day affair.  We weren’t even sure if she would be born on Tuesday after the experience from the day before.  So I was dilated 9 cms and it was just me and Craig at the hospital!  We frantically got on the phone and started making phone calls.  Craig’s mom was already on her way with Austin but everyone else was still at home or work!  Craig’s mom arrived just in time for me to throw up everywhere.  She helped get me cleaned up which I later found out was a miracle because stuff like that usually makes her sick herself! 

Everyone arrived and all was good.  They came in and checked me again at 1:15 PM and I was told I was ready to go.  The nurses started prepping me for delivery and they called Dr. Cunningham and told her it was time.  I started pushing at 1:30 with the help of several nurses.  I also had a strong support team in the delivery room with me—Craig, Mom, Lyndi, Ruth, Lisa, and Ann were all in there with me.  (Dad, Austin, Brad, Randy, Katie Belle, Mamaw & Papaw Pogue, Aunt Shelly, Lucy, and Kylee were in the hospital waiting room.)  The nurse would watch the monitor and then tell me to push for 10 seconds while she counted for me.  That was hard work—especially when you can’t feel your legs at all.  Dr. Cunningham arrived at 2 PM and said we were very close, but she got called out at 2:15 for another delivery for someone who was apparently closer than I was.  While she was gone I got very nauseous again and threw up several more times—unfortunately I threw up on Lyndi who was pregnant with Connor which, in turn made her sick.  Dr. Cunningham was back in the room at 2:30 and Addison was born at 2:40—what a miracle!  I was completely exhausted but overwhelmed with happiness.  She was perfect—she weighed 7 lbs 12 ozs and was 19.5 inches long.  They laid her on my chest and I cried tears of joy for the gift I had waited so long to receive—the greatest gift on Earth and totally worth the wait.

One big happy family!

Best big brother a girl could have!







GOING HOME!!!

Showers of Family and Friends…

Just wanted to post a few pictures from the showers that I was given while I was pregnant with Addison.  Everyone was so sweet and generous and the showers were so much fun.  We are very blessed to have such amazing family and friends.  It was always so fun to go home after the showers and go back through everything and hang her little clothes up in her closet and decorate her room!

I had my first shower in Louisville on Sunday March 14^th—it was given by my Aunt Lois, Aunt Sharon, and Cousin Monica and was held at my Grandma Pogue’s house.  It was for all of my family who live out of town.  We had a wonderful time but missed my grandmother who was still in Florida for the winter!  Here are some pictures from the shower:



Addi's 1st bathing suit!



My second shower was on Sunday March 21^st in Nicholasville at the Corman Building—it was given by my sister, my sister-in-law and friends Ann Cissell and Lucy Griffith.  It was for all of my close friends from the Nicholasville/Lexington area.  We had a great turnout and got lots of wonderful stuff:

My last shower was a surprise and was thrown by my co-workers at LFUCG on Wednesday, March 24^th in the Accounting conference room.  I was totally shocked—they definitely got me good and it was such a nice and thoughtful surprise.  It was given by Winona Embry, Renee Wallingford, and Tracy Sweat.  Thankfully, some co-workers supplied me with pictures since I didn't have my camera!

SURPRISE!!!

OH the Joys of Pregnancy (SERIOUSLY)….

I wanted to go back in time a little bit and write about my experiences with pregnancy so that I don’t forget (beware this is long)…   I am probably in the minority when I say that, for the most part, I LOVED being pregnant!  Once I got past the nauseous-ness and EXTREME exhaustion of the first trimester, it was truly an amazing time in my life.

I took a pregnancy test at home on Wednesday, 8/27/09, just a few days after our first wedding anniversary.  I was nervous, anxious and a crazy mess waiting on the results (which were only a couple of minutes but seemed like decades).  When the timer went off and we ran to look at the stick to see the outcome, I think I nearly fainted.  I couldn’t believe it—it was POSITIVE.  I was going to have a baby after ALL these years of dreaming about this.  To say that I cried tears of joy wouldn’t be accurate—the salty floodgates poured!  I think Craig shed a tear or two also.  Austin wasn’t home and we wanted to tell him first so we went and picked him up from Craig’s parents and we actually told him in the truck.  To be honest, I was a little worried at how he might take the news since he has always been the center of attention but he blew me away (as he did through my entire pregnancy).  Craig said something to the effect of, “How do you feel about being a big brother?”  He understood right away and was extremely excited.  His first response was, “I hope I have a little sister!”  He was extremely positive and very involved throughout everything—the name picking, the decorating, shopping, etc…  He has even started his own blog dedicated to his baby sister.  It is called, Dear Addi.  Check it out at http://dearaddisonclaire.blogspot.com.

I want to start out talking about the first trimester:  My husband, who was working 3^rd shift (10 pm to 7 am) was also finishing up his last two semesters of college while I was pregnant.  His typical day went something like this:  get off work at 7am, come home to take a shower, get Austin up for school, drop Austin off, go to class until 11, get home around noon and go to bed until about 6, have dinner with us, and then go to work at 10pm.  This was his schedule 4 days a week!  Every day when he got out of class at 11am, he would call me to see how I was feeling.  During the first trimester of my pregnancy, I felt nauseous most of the time.  My sweet hubby would ask me if I wanted him to run to KFC and get me some mashed potatoes and gravy and bring them to me at work before he went home to go to sleep.  Knowing that he needed sleep, I wanted to tell him to go on home and get some rest (I REALLY wanted to tell him that) but I usually agreed that KFC mashed potatoes was of dire need as it was the food that I seemed to CRAVE that first trimester and didn’t make me sick to eat (I ate a lot of Honeycomb cereal the first trimester too)!  So…he brought me that several days per week—he is so good to me!  (We gave Addi KFC mashed potatoes and gravy for the first time when she was 9-months old and she LOVED them and we know why!!) 

Once the first trimester passed, things were truly uphill…  All of my doctor visits were positive—weight gain good, blood pressure very good, ultrasounds good.  I was overly anxious about finding out the sex of this baby though so we went to a maternity specialty shop that was new to Lexington, called Baby Belly, and purchased a kit that was supposed to be 90% accurate at determining the sex of the baby as early as like 16 weeks I think.  Since I wasn’t going to have the “sex-determining ultrasound” until my 20-week appointment, I knew I had to try this kit, which was around $40.  We came home and I precisely followed the directions of getting the urine sample.  The results—IT’S a BOY—without a doubt, the results were a definitive BOY!!  I must admit, I have dreamed my whole life of having a little girl but when the results came back as boy, that didn’t matter at all.  I was super excited to have a son—especially having been told that boys are cuddlers and love their mommas so much!  We came up with a name, Aiden Michael, and I even bought a few cute boy outfits (though the selection of cute boy outfits was slim compared to the selection of ADORABLE girl outfits as I’m sure most mothers know)….

The 20 week appointment came with my OB doctor and I was looking forward to getting confirmation of what I thought I already knew and was hoping to get some cute pictures of my little boy.  This was an important doctor visit so we took Austin out of school for it and had quite an entourage at the doctor’s office—Craig, Austin, Mom, Dad, Lisa, Lyndi, and Katie Belle were all there.  We went into the ultrasound room and the tech started looking at the heart and telling us about the chambers and that everything developmentally looked great, etc…  All of a sudden, Lyndi goes, “Oh my goodness, it’s a girl!”  I looked at her like she was crazy because I saw nothing on that screen that resembled a girl (or a boy for that matter).  The words that followed will never be forgotten.  The ultrasound tech echoed Lyndi’s observation, “Yep, it is definitely a girl.” WHAT???  This can’t be.  I asked the nurse how sure she was to which her reply was, “well, if it isn’t a girl, there are going to be some issues” or something to that effect.  That was good enough for me.  The tears were streaming—not a dry eye in the room.  My dream had come true—I was going to have a little girl.  (Either way, my dream would have come true because I had just always wanted to have a baby but a little girl—WOW).  I was walking on air.  I had to go back to work that day after the appointment but I don’t think I accomplished a thing—my head was in the clouds.

As my little girl grew, I was able to feel movement and that is when the real fun began.  That is an indescribable feeling.  I LOVED it and it was so encouraging to know that she was active and full of life.  And ACTIVE she was.  The fact that she is a very active baby now should be no surprise to me since she was a mini Mary Lou Retton in utero!  Sometimes I would be sitting at work, trying to focus, and she would be moving so much that I would just sit there and watch the extortions of my ever-growing belly!  It was so comical—it definitely broke up the monotony or the workday!  Craig and Austin were also entertained by her—sometimes our entertainment for the evening would be watching my belly!  She was even active at night when I was trying to sleep which was frustrating sometimes but I also found a lot of humor in it because I do believe she was preparing me for the sleepless nights in my near future! 

Even 33 lbs heavier which is the amount I gained with her, I still never felt as if I couldn’t get around.  I worked out up until 30 weeks of pregnancy but had to discontinue my workouts after having a few early contractions (which I was told were due to dehydration when they hooked me up in the hospital and made me drink a gallon of water).  I was only at the hospital for a few hours though and was sent home after being told to drink more water and to discontinue my workouts.  In the last month, the basketball under my shirt made it difficult to do things such as tie my shoes or get up from a horizontal position but Craig and Austin always helped me out in those areas.

To wrap this up, I have to say that there are days when I miss being pregnant and am a little sad that I won’t have this experience again (Craig was “fixed” back in November).  On the other hand, I am so blessed and thankful to have been able to go through this as I was starting to believe that I would never have a child of my very own (I was 36 when I delivered Addison).  It was so much fun to take her with me to work every day while I was pregnant with her—I got to have her with me everywhere I went and when I went to sleep, she was right there with me too.  I got to be her sole protector and care-giver and that was truly an honor.  Thank you God for blessing me with this wonderful, miraculous experience!

Starting at the Beginning....

I am very excited to start this blog as I have been wanting to do this for a very long time! Being a mommy for the very first time is an even greater experience than I had dreamed of.  I am so thankful for my "teen and todd" and hope to document some of our wonderful times together so that they can look back on this some day and hopefully recall some of the fond memories of childhood.  It definitely goes by too fast so I hope that they enjoy it as much as they can--it is my job to make sure that happens! 

Past experiences that I plan to blog about:
*Pregnancy
*Labor/Delivery
*The first night home from the hospital (what an experience)
*8/11-8/13 - hospital visit to UK
*Vacation 2010
*Christmas 2010

Wow, I'm so far behind already and with working full-time, I'm not sure how I'm ever going to get caught up but I'm going to do my best!  I'm going to try and blog my heart out at night after I get sleeping beauty to bed!