Introducing Miss Gabriella Jane

So I promised my birth story and this is the first chance I've really had to get to it. Things have been a little hectic around here these first few days, but anyway, here goes:

Thursday May 31st, I had my 39 week Dr's appointment, Dr. Skiles checked me and said I was 50% effaced and almost 3 centimeters dilated. So she said she could strip my membranes which will help move things along... (Stripping membranes is basically separating the baby/amniotic sac from the cervix.) I left the appointment with cramps and some minor contractions which stopped when I got home. We had a regular night, then went to bed, I woke up at 4 that morning having some minor contractions, but basically the same type of contractions I had been having pretty much every day for the last week. I thought about going into work, but decided against it since those contractions are slightly painful and very annoying and hard to breathe through.

I told AJ at about 7:30 that I was having regular contractions that were increasing in frequency and a little painful but they weren't too bad and he decided to stay home. Then we called up AJ's Mom and she brought the girls we all went to the mall and walked for about 2 hours. During the 2 hours, I could feel the contractions but they weren't really painful yet. AJ told me though that they helped because he could visibly see that I had dropped about 4 inches from when we started. After that we went home and I sat on the couch Buddha style to make sure Ella stayed down low. My contractions seemed to go away at first. But then they finally came back, a little stronger but still not too painful and they weren't very regular... then at about 4:00 I was just getting fed up and frustrated, so I told AJ that we would be going to the hospital in an hour whether things had changed or not. As soon as I said that my contractions evened out and started coming in five minute intervals, a little painful but nothing I couldn't function through. On the drive there though we were almost to the hospital when I felt the contractions really take off and change.

We walked into the birthing unit and got checked in and the nurse checked me, she said I was 3 1/2 cm dilated and that she was pretty sure they would be keeping me, but they usually won't admit til 4 cm, so they had me go walking. I hated them at that point because then I remember what true labor actually feels like, I can't believe I forgot that pain, but it is horrible. As soon as we started walking my contractions got 2 minutes apart... We walked for about 25 minutes, and that was all I could take. We went back to the room and waited for what felt like forever for the nurse to come back at check me... at 7 they finally checked me and I was 4 1/2 cm dilated. So they started the admit process. Which involves even MORE waiting. I was pretty grumpy by this point I was in so much pain. I'm sure they didn't appreciate me cussing up a storm there... I finally found a way to cope with it so I wouldn't have to cuss, but if they had taken any longer they would've heard it from me. Finally we got the IV in and they wheeled me to the delivery room. Once there the Anesthesiologist got me started on my epidural within like 5 minutes... While he was putting it in, I wanted to punch him for taking so damn long, but by the time it took effect I could have kissed him... (really I don't know how women go through natural labor... I really, really don't.)

After getting my epidural the Dr came in and checked me and said I was at 7 cm, but Ella needed to come down some more. So she broke my water and the fluid was clear (yay!) and then said to let them know when I started feeling pressure. This was at probably 8:00 pm. We sat around talking for a while, and I started feeling some pressure, but it wasn't too bad yet, so I didn't say anything. I felt about 100 times better after the epidural just was itching like crazy from the pain meds. At about 9:00 I told the nurse that I was feeling a lot of pressure and so they checked and said I was almost to 10 but they would check again in about 15 minutes. At 9:30 the Dr came in and I told her there was a TON of pressure and I felt like my catheter was coming out. So she checked and said we are ready to push! They broke down the bed in about 5 minutes and the nursery was there, then they wanted me to start pushing, I felt a contraction and pushed and that one push was really all it took, Ella's head came out pretty much immediately and then I had another half push and the rest of her was out too. She was born in about 30 seconds of pushing. They laid her on my tummy and I was able to say hi and love on her for a minute then they took her to the nursery bed and cleaned her and me up. Ella was 8lbs even and 20 inches long, her head was 13 1/2 inches around.

It was so different from last time, I didn't feel tired (even though I had been awake since 4 am) I was awake and happy and totally energized. I only had a minor tear that they stitched up but nothing like last time. I also got to meet my little lady right away and snuggle with her immediately and after she was born we all got to love on her for a while before AJ was able to take her to the nursery and give her the first bath and do all the fun daddy things. I don't look like I was hit by a train either like with Sam and I was able to get up and get moving as soon as my epidural wore off, I didn't feel bad at all. It was pretty great actually.


All in all this was a much better experience compared to when I had Sam, but then Sam paved the way for his little sister so if it weren't for him I'm sure it wouldn't have been this easy with her.

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Now that we are home things are going okay. She got a little jaundiced and is on photo therapy right now, hopefully today is the last day of this. She is already a better sleeper then Sam ever was and sleeps at night for 4-5 hour stretches at a time. I'm hoping she will continue this pattern. We are still working on Breastfeeding, but I don't think I'm going to do it for very long, only because I'll be going back to work in two months. The best part about it is that I don't have the postpartum anxiety like I did when I had Sam. Of course I am still very watchful of her but with Sam I was very anxious all the time because of the oxygen and all that, not to mention I had a long recovery myself. I find I am enjoying myself about 100 times more with her and I am much more relaxed about everything.  Sam isn't sure what to think about his sister and ignores her about 90% of the time. Sometimes he will interact with her, but thankfully he is not jealous or crazy or throwing fits or anything (at least not more than a normal 2 year old.) We are just settling in now and enjoying ourselves!

Prodromal Labor

So, I've spent most of the morning googling trying to figure out what is going on with me and why my labor keeps stalling out. From what I've gathered, I'm experiencing something called Prodromal labor, which is not the same thing as Braxton Hicks contractions, nor is it considered false labor. Everything I've seen says that prodromal labor is a very early stage of labor. Contractions are typically 5-10 minutes apart and may or may not hurt. (If they do hurt they don't get progressively stronger like actual labor contractions.) That it can last for hours, or even days before active labor. Good news is that there is usually some sort of progression, but at a slower pace than actual labor. All the sites I went to said that this kind of labor can be caused by baby's position in the pelvis, and that a lot of the time it is the body's way of trying to re-position the baby better in the pelvis for actual labor. (So like how Sam was sunny side up and I had terrible back labor, trying to move the baby to a different position to avoid that... I'm kind of thinking she might be in a similar position Sam was in because when I've had contractions they have hurt in my back like they did with Sam.) Unfortunately this kind of labor also exhausts the mother and the uterus so that when actual labor comes around it makes it a more difficult experience....

I did find some tips on how to deal with it, so I have a plan in place for tonight so I can get some sleep and go to work in the morning. Hopefully it will help these contractions either stay away or I'll be relaxed enough that true labor will happen. They say that the key is to not focus on the contractions... which I'll admit I have focused way too much on them the last few nights hoping that I was actually in labor. It's funny cause I didn't time Sam's contractions at all, I just went to the hospital. So I'm thinking maybe part of it is that I'm obsessing about it. Another thing they suggested is to take a sleep aid, like Tylenol PM, if it's true labor I won't be able to sleep through it even with Tylenol PM, if it's not then I should be able to sleep through them. And right now, getting a good nights sleep is like the top on my list of necessities. So here's hoping I can actually sleep tonight!

38 weeks...

How far along?: 38 Weeks 
How big is baby?: 19.75 Inches, 6.8 lbs (though it is my feeling that she is more like 20+ inches and 8+ lbs right now... I say this because her movements actually hurt now. And I can feel her feet up in my ribs at the same time I feel her head in my crotch... not very comfortable.) 
Food cravings?: not really craving any food right now. 
What I'm looking forward to: Being done being pregnant, getting to meet this little girl finally. 
Milestone: Not really much milestones happening anymore. She's all developed and ready to come out. 
Sleep?: Ha ha ha, what sleep? 
Best moment this week?: Hearing at my Dr's appointment that I am 2 cm dilated already. 
Feelings this week?: Frustration like I have never felt before. I look back at my blog entries with Sam and how frustrated I was about the whole thing, but that is NOTHING compared to this time. I thank God that I'm done having babies. Don't get me wrong, I love the whole pregnancy experience, except for the second and last months. With Sam I had to deal with some braxton hicks contractions and not dilating until the last minute. Contractions were a good 15 minutes apart though with no pain. With this little girl, I know I am dilated to 2 already, and for the last 3 nights I have been up anywhere from 2-5 hours with consistent contractions happening every 3-5 minutes and painful enough that I can't sleep through them. I really thought last night was it, since they were getting progressively closer together... but then it's like it bottomed out at 3 minutes in between and stuck there with no change for an hour until 5 when it decided it was time to stop. You know I wouldn't mind being pregnant for the next 2 weeks until my due date, but this is so frustrating I just can't handle it. I had a mini breakdown this morning when they stopped again. It's very emotionally draining to sit there thinking that this might be time, only for it NOT to be time. (At 5 am after I had been up since 1 am.) The most frustrating thing about this, is there's really nothing I can do. We've tried all the wives tales about what's supposed to induce labor from home, hasn't worked really. The Dr stripped my membranes, that didn't do anything. (OR I don't know, maybe that is the cause of all this false labor crap.) I just need one of two things to happen here: One: my obvious preference would be to go into labor officially and have Ella like today... or Two: This false labor needs to stop so I can continue working until she is born and if that means I have to be pregnant for another 2 weeks, whatever, I would much rather stay pregnant then have to deal with these nightly incursions into my sleep. 

Dr. Appointment and Nursery!

Had my Dr's appointment today. Good news is the contractions I've been having the last week are actually doing something, I'm dilated to 2 cm already. Makes me happy since when I was pregnant with Sam I was barely 1 cm when I went into labor. My Dr also stripped my membranes, so I could go into labor at any time now. Of course I know that stripping the membranes and having contractions and even being dilated doesn't mean that I'll go into labor anytime soon. But at least I feel like something is happening. I'm really hoping it will happen in the next few days. We'll see of course, but cross your fingers for us!

We also finally finished the nursery! Sorry it has taken so long, but with Sam running around, it just isn't as easy to get this kind of stuff done as it is when it's just the two of you. Here are the pictures!

37 weeks and counting.

How far along?: 37 Weeks
How big is baby?: 19.25 Inches, 6.3 lbs
Food cravings?: cereal, dr pepper
What I'm looking forward to: Meeting my little girl.
Milestone: We are officially full term right now. So we are good to go anytime she decides to make an appearance.
Sleep?: Not good. I didn't have trouble sleeping with Sam really, but I am having a really hard time sleeping right now. My pelvis aches and I have round ligament pain time every time I move, I have to pee all the time and my hips feel like they are coming apart!
Best moment this week?: Really not much happening this week. Sam is talking a lot more now and I love to try and have conversations with him. His vocabulary just amazes me sometimes. We have started a new game, whenever I pick him up for the day on the drive home we work on his words. I will say a word and have him repeat it. He does a pretty good job too!
Feelings this week?: Lately I have this fantasy that I will stand up and my water will break and it will be go time, pretty much every time I stand up this goes through my mind. As anyone who knows me knows, I am so done being pregnant... this is the worst part of pregnancy, these last few weeks... I'm ready to have my body back and feel like a normal human being again. I know having two babies isn't going to be a picnic, and it will be hard at first. But I'm ready to start on this new adventure... (And I'm also ready to get over being in so much pain all the time too.) We've started the whole braxton hicks contractions let me fool you into thinking we're going into labor then not be thing... but at least this time around I know better than to think I'm in labor... When they tell me to call if I've had more than 4 contractions in an hour, I just laugh. I typically have between 2 and 6 in a hour regularly. But they don't hurt and my water hasn't broken or anything so I know I'm not in labor yet... no need to get myself all hyped up for nothing. At least it will be easier this time around knowing what real labor feels like versus false labor.

36 weeks

How far along?: 36 Weeks
How big is baby?: 18.75 inches, 5.75 lbs
Food cravings?: Nothing in particular
What I'm looking forward to: I'm looking forward to having her already. I love the little booger, but she is really hurting my pelvis right now, my hips and back are killing me too... I'm actually pretty positive she dropped. 
Milestone: We're just gaining weight at this point. 
Best moment this week?: I had a wonderful birthday! 
Feelings this week?: Tired... I'm ready to have her. I wasn't even close to being this achy when I was pregnant with Sam. I'm hoping that she makes her appearance in the next week or two at the latest... If not I at least hope I get some good news at my next dr appointment. 

The real countdown has begun! Only 30 days left!

We are 30 days out from my due date! Yes ladies and gentlemen, 30 days. We have been prepping like crazy for the arrival of this little one all the last few weeks. We got all the clothes washed, all the carpets cleaned and vacuumed, some last minute things for her room. Bags are packed and in the car, we are ready. Now is just going to be the waiting game, probably the frustration of constant braxton hicks contractions and pelvic pain and the not knowing when this baby will be born. I'm hoping she comes early and I feel like she will come in May, but we will find out when the day comes. (Must be so easy for those of you who get to be induced since you know when Baby is coming!)

I've been freaking out a little bit about what we're going to do with two babies, I'm worried that Sam will be sad or frustrated when I can't get up and do everything he needs right away because I'm feeding Ella... I'm thankful that AJ will be home for that first week so he can help me with Sam while I handle Ella (or vice versa.) I try and at least talk to Sam about it every day, how there's going to be a little sister soon. He kind of understands, he knows that Ella is in my tummy at least, lol.

My next Dr's appointment isn't till I'm 37.5 weeks. I was a little concerned that it was so far out, but they couldn't reschedule it. My Dr is going to be on vacation my regular office visit week and they are completely booked that week so they couldn't get me in with someone else. I'm mostly concerned that they haven't ran the group b strep test, but when I called and asked about what if I go into labor before that appointment, they told me that if I do go into labor, let the L&D triage department know I haven't been tested and they will run the test right then. If my water has broken they may just give me antibiotics right away in case I do have it until they get the test results. I don't think I will go that early though. So I'm not too worried, plus I'm hoping that since I will be farther along that there will be some good news at my appointment about dilation, etc.

We'll have to see, it's all a bunch of waiting now!