My Delivery Story

It amazes me how every delivery story is different, not only from person to person, but from baby to baby.

I was secretly hoping the whole time that she would come a tad early.  We have family coming to visit, and the older she was when they came, the better.  Well apparently she had other plans.  On the day I turned 41 weeks we headed to the hospital for an induction.  I guess it was a bad day because they were so busy!  Since they had already told me it was ok to come in before they got bombarded they didn't send me home.

At about 8:30AM they started me on Pitocin and gave me a dissolvable pill that's supposed to soften the cervix.  I was at a 0 and very high (and this is even after getting my membranes stripped).  They also started me on Penicillin for Strep B.  No one told me that stuff burns!

As time went on I still didn't progress so they used this weird thing that had balloons to try to stretch my cervix enough to break my water.  That made my contractions worse on top of the Pitocin.  It also ended up being in about 2 hours longer than it was supposed to be because they were so busy.  After that they finally broke my water, expecting me to progress well after that.....I didn't.

Now, my goal was to go without an epidural if I could because I had done one each way, and the recovery without was nicer.  Plus when I had Brook things got going real fast, and I had heard that can be a trend so I figured I could muscle through it.  Little did I know what I was in for!

I would continue to progress VERY slowly.  After over 12 hours of laboring I gave in and decided to get an epidural because I was so tired (I didn't sleep much the night before) and I knew I wasn't going to get any rest with the contractions I was getting.
When I got the epidural, the guy took forever to get it in, stuck something that made my leg hurt and then after about 15 minutes my arm and face started to tingle and a softball sized spot on my ribs started hurting really bad and I started dry heaving.  Apparently my heart rate went up too because the nurse said mine and babies kept crossing.  Turns out the needle was in too far and needed to be readjusted.

I thought maybe once I got to relax I'd start progressing, since that is what happened with Hailey.  Nope.  I was stuck at a 5 then a 7 for forever.  I had to keep switching laying on my sides because baby's heart rate would dip, and then it kept dipping, so they decided she was under pressure from having my water broke, so they "pumped" me full of fluid again to relieve some stress.

In the morning I started to feel the contractions again even though my legs were still numb.

When I finally felt enough pressure for them to consider them to let me push, I was still high, plus baby was facing up instead of down.  They tried to turn her, which sucks, and they didn't have much luck.  They decided to have me push and work her down hoping she'd turn on her own as she got closer.  I also started pushing on my side in hopes of keeping baby happy.

Now my pushing actually went super fast.  She never really turned plus the cord was wrapped around her shoulders.  And, of course, I tore a bit.

What I wasn't expecting was for them to put this baby that seemed so huge on my chest!  She was 8lbs 12oz.  My biggest baby yet!

As they were putting in my iud, they noticed I had a slight hemorrhaging problem.  They gave me some meds in my iv and a shot in my thigh to help.  Plus they turned the Pitocin up to help my uterus contract and stop bleeding so much.
I pretty much passed out after she was born.  That has to be the hardest 24+ hours of my life! And the next 24 they would do these massages on my uterus to help it contract and oh my god does that hurt!

I guess that's what we get for going in with the thought things would progress fairly fast just because they did last time!  She sure showed us haha

 

On March 29th at 11:55am Penelope Jane was born

8lbs 12oz 21 inches

 

 

 

~hyuu!

 

March Already?!

Where did February go??
I remember being mid February wondering why this month was going so slow compared to how quickly January came and went.  And now, all of a sudden, it's mid March!

9 days till my due date!?!

What is this madness???!?

 

Hailey had her parent/teacher conference and she's doing really well.  They do this testing and she was well above average on all but one thing (something with numbers).  She still loves school, but has grown to hate getting up in the mornings.  She also seems to have quite a few friends.  There is defiantly a best friend, but when we show up in the mornings at least 3 kids will go "HAILEY!" hahah.  It's quite the scene to watch sometimes.  Kindergarteners make me giggle.

She'll also be going on her first field trip this week.  I wanted to volunteer to go so bad, but it's 4 days from my due date, so I thought it would be unwise.

 

Brooklyn has been doing much better in eating.  She still won't eat breakfast though.  But now, when she finishes a meal she'll come over and go "Are you proud of me for eating my food?!" and when you say yes she'll follow you around for the rest of the day "I'm so happy that your proud of me" haha

She has also become like the 'class pet' of Hailey's friends.  They all come over and hug on her and think "she is just so cute"
We can now sign her up for pre-school and I am so torn over it!  But I need to make my mind up soon because the spots will fill.



 

I am....feeling really big.  I'm defiantly in that "don't you dare make a comment" phase haha.

Nesting has mixed with spring cleaning fever and it's driving me insane!  We actually got a lot done this weekend now that the snow has vanished for a while.  Hoping it stays gone so I can put our boot tray away.  I'm also in that I don't want to be pregnant anymore but I don't want baby yet phase.  It's very emotional I swear!  I go to the doctor on Tuesday and we'll see what the plan is from there.

 

Matt is still working away.  This place is just so weird that I cannot wait till he can possibly find a better job.  They just seem so...not put together for a big company.  He made a new friend he's been hanging out with, and that makes me happy.  But it does take away from his awake hours from me and I don't like to share! haha

 

Lots of changes are happening and it's exciting and scary!  I am one who hates change and this is a lot all at once.  Just sold Hailey's bed, which is kind of sad.  Ordered a tiny dresser for her clothes (until we move and get her a real one) and the new bed for them.  Brook has quickly outgrown the crib, even if we weren't about to have another baby, she would of needed a bed anyway.

We've gotten so much done, but it feels like we still have so much to do!

Stress stress stress!

 

 

~hyuu!

 

 

January

I can't believe that January is already over.  It feels like Christmas was just yesterday!

There is part of me that wants time to slow down, and another part that is like "can it be the end of March yet?!"

 

 

Hailey lost both her front teeth by time Christmas was here.  But they have already almost grown back in! Both teeth next to her front teeth are loose, but she won't let us pull them out.  We may have to because her front teeth are pushing on them.  I think she is going to have an over crowded teeth problem eventually.

She still likes school, but has gotten to the point of waking up being hard.  Mainly because of Christmas vacation where she could sleep as she liked. "I like school, I just hate waking up." she tells me.  She's doing really well with reading too.  Sometimes I hate reading with her, because I realize how stupid a lot of the rules are and how nothing even follows said rules!

We also got her her first haircut.  Nothing crazy, but I do wish I had done it a little shorter.  But it does help with brushing it.

 

 

Brooklyn is just as crazy as ever.  She gets upset when Hailey has school and claims she has a baby in her belly too.  Speaking of which, sometimes she really loves to rub my belly.  It's sweet, but also a little weird to me haha.

Other then that, nothing really to report.  I did learn, however, that she's going to be a sweatpants kind of gal.  She prefers to be in her 'home pants' and a sweater because it's "more comfy"

 

 

 

Mathew and I don't have much else to report either.  We're in this limbo right now and it's stressful.  We had plans, and it was working out.  But when places, like your job, don't keep promises or leave out information it messes up those plans and puts you in a tight spot.  We need to be out of our apartment by the end of February because it's expensive here.  We had the means, and now we don't.  But the loan officer we are working with takes his sweet time and leaves us hanging.  Half the questions they ask make no sense to me either.  It's such an odd and frustrating process.

But we'll figure something out.  We always do.

 

It'll be interesting to see how things go, but also a little scary.
I guess we'll see!

Best part of January being over....one month closer to spring!  We're starting to get cabin fever!

 

~hyuu!



Pregnancy Update

As hard as it is, to believe I am 31 weeks along!

Third trimester, and single digit week countdown....crazy

 

I really don't have too much to report.  Things have been going pretty well.

I still get sick if I don't take a nausea pill for 2-3 days in a row.  I try not to take them unless I feel sick, but that still leaves me taking them 80% of the time.

 

Now that I'm in my third trimester, my doctors appointments are every 2 weeks.  At my last appointment I had my whooping cough vaccine shot, man did that hurt for a long time!  I also had my iron levels tested and, surprise surprise, I need to take an iron supplement.  I knew I would.  I had to with both my other two pregnancies.  I guess I should of just started taking one on my own anyway.  Oh well.

 

I know I feel a lot bigger than I am.  Looking down from the top makes me feel so huge!  But when I take a bump photo, I'm surprised at how tiny it looks.  I was measuring a centimeter bigger than I should, but I think this last appointment I was back on normal size.  I've only gained about 5lbs this pregnancy so I'm pretty happy about that.  I'm hoping to take advantage of the extra calorie burn from breastfeeding to help lose some.

 

This baby moves like a sugar rushed monkey!  Most of the time the doctor has to chase it down to hear the heartbeat.  I also can't sit up in my computer chair for too long or it freaks out and I have to sit back.  Sometimes I wonder what the heck it is doing in there.

 

From what I can remember, I don't remember being this tired or in pain with my other two pregnancies, but I am doing a lot more running around.  With the others, I didn't go anywhere without Matt because we only had the one car that he took to work, and I couldn't drive it anyway.  We didn't get my car until Brook was born.  Now, I take Hailey to school, go shopping, take Mia up and down the stairs all day, and man does it make a difference!  I usually like to get all my 'chores' done first thing, but now I have to take breaks in between or I wear myself out.

 

We have finally picked a hospital to deliver at (my doctor only goes to 2 different ones).  The main reason we picked the one we did was because of the birth control options.  I really want an IUD.  I was going to get one after Brook, but they were too expensive.  Here I have some more options.  At my hospital, they can put one in right after you give birth, instead of waiting the 6 weeks after.

 

The countdown is officially on!

 

 

~hyuu

Is My Heart Big Enough?

Let's talk about another subject that can sometimes be controversial.

Mom Guilt

Now, that can mean a lot of things, but in this instance I'm talking about the guilt moms sometimes feel when they get pregnant with another child.

 

Have I ruined my other child/ren's lives?

Will they resent me?

Is my heart big enough for everyone?

Those are just some of the questions that run though our heads....at least mine.

 

Adding a new member to a family, planned or unplanned, is always scary.  Mainly because it's such a mystery as to how it will turn out.  You can plan, talk, and strategize all you want...it never turns out how you think.  Uncertainty is scary.

 

I remember when I got pregnant with Brook, I remember trying to convince myself that I wanted this, that Hailey needed a sibling and she'd thank me for it one day.  But I also felt horrible.  I had always wanted more kids, but when I'd look at pictures of the three of us, or how she fit perfect between Matt and I my brain started going nuts.  What had I done?!  Our family was perfect the way it was and now I'm throwing it up into chaos!  What if they don't get along?? etc. etc.

 

After Brook was born, I'll admit, I had a hard time bonding.  I don't know if that's from the fact that I didn't really get to hold her much among delivery (I had a pain shot that knocked me out, plus she was jaundice a tad so she was in something for that) or postpartum, which I struggled with.
But once things settled down and I saw my girls together things worked out.

Yes, things changed, but we figured it out and made it work together.  Turns out, as a mother, your heart grows....

 

Now, here I sit, pregnant for the third time and BAM mom guilt.

You'd think I wouldn't feel like this after the first time. But oh yes, I do.  I have those same questions, same fears, and same "what have I done?" feelings.

 

I know once the baby is here and things start to make sense again everything will fall into place, but right now it's kind of a scary feeling.

I have to just remind myself that I've done this before and it will all work out.

 

 Have you ever experience "mom guilt"?

 

 

 

 

~hyuu 

December

It's December!

Where has the time gone?  Time for a good ol' fashioned family update!  Though it hasn't been that long since the last one, so there isn't much to report.

 

 

Hailey will be turning 6 in four days!  I can't handle my little baby growing up so fast.

She also just lost another tooth, her top front.  She has two other teeth that are loose also and not far behind.  Every time I see her it throws me off.  I hope her new tooth grows in fast!  She really needs a haircut, but that's one more thing that will make her look different!  My poor heart

 

 

Brooklyn is pretty much the same.  Though she is slowly growing sassier and sassier.  Man sometimes she drives me nuts!  She also reminds me a lot of her cousin Evie.  Just the way she talks and things like that.  It's trippy!

With Hailey's birthday and Christmas, she has had a real hard time keeping her mouth shut on presents haha.  She doesn't do it on purpose, she just talks and talks and it flows out.

 

 

Matt doesn't really have much to report.  His new route is finally starting to even out I believe.  The working at 4am thing still sucks.  Too bad the stores he delivers for don't open earlier.  His first training route he went in at midnight and was home by 7 or so.  That was quite nice....at least compared to this.

 

I'm surviving.  Life is kind of stressful and I hate pregnancy hahaha.  Don't get me wrong, I love my children, and it was totally planned, knowing I would hate it, but man do I hate it!

24 weeks now.  Still feeling sick.  I still take a pill everyday, though it is down from two a day.  The mornings are the worst.  I feel so sick I can never eat breakfast.  Also less and less food sounds good to me.  The few foods I would eat have turned on me and now taste like crap! Not to mention the constant dancing this baby does doesn't help.  I may end up losing weight this time around.

On the bright side, I'm almost done with Christmas shopping!

 (pic from 20 weeks)

 

 

I attempted to take some family photos, but with the snow and my paranoia of my camera getting ruined they didn't turn out too well.  I think I'm going to try to redo them in front of our Christmas tree, once it's up (I wait till after Hailey's birthday)

So, with some stresses gone, and new ones to replace them, we soldier on!

 

 

~hyuu



Baby Name Drama

Let me start this out with, YES I know that it's my choice and I shouldn't care what anyone else thinks....but sometimes (especially for me) you can't help it.

 

So, I have always had a thing about sharing my baby names.  People can be cruel, and also some people just run their mouths without thinking things through.

I will admit that I can be too sensitive to what other people say....but it's also my baby's name! haha

 

First of all, I'm not one of those people who think that a name is like...your IDENTITY hard core like I've seen some people say.  It's a name.

BUT I also don't like to have names that are really hard to spell (they are going to have a hard enough time with their last name), or that a million people have.

In 4th grade, I had three Matthews and at least two Brittanys in my class.  And man did it get confusing.  I, however, never had that problem.  The only other Vickie I ever saw was a teacher's first name.  And, as silly as it is, I loved that fact.  So I always try to pick a name that isn't super popular.

I also try really hard to find a name I don't associate anyone with.  I know that's not 100% possible, but if it's an immediate reminder of someone I hated that sorry but it's out!

 

Now the drama really starts when you tell other people your name.  If it's a name that you really love, then you hear the people in your life saying they hate it....it hurts.

Once upon a time, Hailey was going to be named Hannah.  But I had someone close to me ruin it.  "Every Hannah I know is a bitch....just an FYI"

I know I shouldn't of let it bother me, but it did....a lot.

Luckily we found the name Hailey and it suits her.

With Brooklyn, we never really had this issue.  Some people looked at us like "really?" but that's about it.

But this time around.  I'm a little more into old fashioned names or just unique without being weird names, if that makes sense.

And well, a lot of people I know don't seem to agree.  The names are all a little different then what's going around now, so they give me grief.  I don't think anyone has been like "Oh I love that name!" with any of our names yet.  Well, besides Matt and Hailey.

So I've hesitated to tell anyone else what names I'm thinking of.  I've had people point out teasing possibilities, but honestly, kids are dicks and if they want to tease someone they can think of any reason, they don't need a name.  Plus aren't there just too many weird and unique names out there now for anyone to make fun of anyone? bahaha

 

We're still trying to decide fully, but Matt has a name that he really likes and, unlike me, he could care less what anyone says.  So I may have to tap into his attitude and just go with it.  But we'll see.

Once she is named I'll let you know!

 

Have you had any baby name drama?

 

 

 

~Hyuu