Definitely My Son!

(Warning - contains some icky birth stuff!)

 

Well, a very stressful and disappointing Tuesday ended, at least, with a good Christmas program. We got up Wednesday morning and headed towards Albuquerque (as someone else pointed out, very pregnant lady on the road to a distant land, not knowing where she would spend the night, at Christmas time - nothing holy about this group, though!) We had a consult with a doctor at Presbyterian right after lunch, and one at UNM shortly after that. Liked the first guy, second one lost our appointment. Pres it is! Not that there was really any question by this time, after all their other screw-ups.

 

Of course, this meant a lot of scurrying for Pres staff, but they managed to have the NICU and cardio teams ready for me to have my C-section at 11:30 the next day (Thursday). Mike and I got checked into a room and found a place to eat. I had to force myself to chew and swallow, because I knew I should at least get my iron up, but I really just wanted to curl up on the booth and go to sleep! I was in a lot of pain after the 4 hour car ride, my blood pressure was high for the first time in my life (can't imagine why), and I was just plain exhausted. The doctor had tried to talk me into staying in ABQ for a week and having the baby after Christmas, and I could barely hold back the tears. I was DONE!

 

Quick phone call with the kids, then into bed. Where I listened to the lady in the next room talk on the phone. All. Night. Long.

 

So, not really rested, but excited, we got out of there the next morning as soon as possible - way before our scheduled arrival - and stopped at a Walmart for a few things we needed. The cashier asked me when the baby was due, and I don't think she quite believed me when I said "In 3 hours". In due time, however, I was on a bed in Labor and Delivery, chatting with the nice nurses who knew off the top of their heads that S. was 8 pounds 10 ounces at birth, and who were generally more on the ball than anyone we had talked to at UNM.

 

About 30 minutes from C-section time, the nurse and I both noticed a change in one of the beeping monitors. This was the one that checked for cord compressions, and for a few seconds, it registered one. She frowned, but then smiled again when it stopped. "You could have had a contraction, or he could have grabbed the cord himself."

 

"It did just feel like he was rolling over," I said.

"That could have been it."

"Right. It couldn't have been a contraction, because I'm not actually due until...ow!"

 

Yes, folks, within the next few minutes, it became obvious that I WAS IN LABOR. Not Braxton Hicks, the real deal. That didn't change the C-section any, just reminded us once again that this baby is going to do things his own way, and in his own time - not to mention reinforcing my decision not to wait a week!

 

Of course, being my son, he decided to make the C-section a little more difficult by wedging his big old head behind my pelvic bones. I couldn't see past the drop cloth, but the solution seemed to be placing a very heavy baby elephant on my sternum and having him jump up and down. OW! He finally popped out, though, I got a quick flash of dark hair, and the baby (mine, not the elephant's) was whisked off to the NICU (I have no idea where the elephant's baby was taken - don't care, just so long as he was off my sternum!)

 

Then I started throwing up. And throwing up. And throwing up. I always throw up right after, but then I'm fine. Not so, this time. I got to see him briefly, on the way to my room:

See how I'm holding his sweet little hand? He immediately yanked it away and wedged it behind his head, so I couldn't take it back. Definitely my son.

What a chunker! 7 lbs 13 oz at two weeks early.

Initial reports from the NICU were good, and Daddy got to see and hold him, but I literally could not move without throwing up. It was a pretty miserable night. Finally, after 5 doses of Zofran did nothing, they switched to something else. Relief! And now I was dying to see and feed my baby. But first I had to wait through my check-up. And then the NICU closed for rounds. I was waiting at the door when they reopened, and finally...

Bliss! He refused to nurse, so we just got lots of bonding time in, before I HAD to go get something to eat. 36 hours without food can make you a mite hungry, and I think I scared the guy who delivered it with how fast I inhaled the bacon (sorry about your hand, dude, but don't move so slowly next time. I think they can reattach that finger.)

As I said, initial reports are much better than we expected. UNM was leaning heavily towards him needing surgery, but the initial echo here is indicating very minor constriction. We have to wait until the ductus arteriosis closes in order to know for sure, but hopefully that will happen over the next few days. We still have hope we will all be home for Christmas! Thank-you so much to all those who have been praying, I know that has made the difference.