Guess who's here?
Rowan Steven
Born 11/1/2012
7 pounds, 3 ounces
19 3/4 inches long
19 3/4 inches long
at 5:54 PM on November 1, via C-Section
Going home on 11/5/12. Bundled up...a little too much.
At his first pediatrician appointment on 11/7. After going down to 6 pounds, 10 ounces, he was back up to 7 pounds, 4 ounces!
Having a little nap with Peanut. The dogs are just as tired as we are.
We're in love. Obviously. Who wouldn't be?
But this kid made his entrance very difficult. Here's the story.
I went in for a sonogram at 39 weeks, 6 days preggo on 10/31. Just routine, checking everything out and my fluid levels. At 3:00, the sonographer told me that my amniotic fluid was low and she needed to call the doctor to see what he wanted to do (since by now, my regular OB was on vacation.)
So, they sent me over to labor and delivery to be checked. Next thing I knew, I'm sporting a gown and being checked in and told that I would not be leaving that hospital without a baby. Needless to say, I wasn't expecting that. My fluid was very low and it wasn't safe for him to hang around. So hubs was called in, mom, dad and my sister were called in from PA. I got hooked up to an IV for fluid around 4:30 PM. The doc told me that they were going to pump me full of fluid overnight and then start me on Pitocin at 5AM. HOLY SHIT. I was going to have a baby.
After a night of 45 minutes of sleep, they started me on Pitocin at 5AM exactly. And at around 9AM, I was told that I had the best chance of having a vaginal delivery by getting a foley bulb catheter to try and dilate my cervix. Because, oh by the way, I was neither effaced nor dilated at all. Nice. But I really, really wanted to give birth vaginally and I was going to make every effort to make that happen.
If you don't know what a foley bulb is, it's a catheter with a balloon attached to the end of it. They insert it into your cervix and blow it up, then throw the bag of saline over the end of your bed so it pulls and forces your cervix open. It's as pleasant as you'd think. The insertion? Painful. The contractions after? Most pain I've ever felt. Most people feel contractions in waves, but with the foley bulb and the pitocin, they were coming with no breaks in between. It was pure misery.
Since I wasn't really dilated, it wasn't an option for the epidural yet, so I got some narcotics, which took the edge off and made me VERY loopy, but didn't take away all the pain. It did, however, increase my ability to be a beyotch. Demanding ice chips, kicking off blankets, swearing up a storm. But hey, I feel like I had an excuse.
I went for 12 hours with this misery until around 5PM when the doc came in and told me that there was no way this kid was coming out on his own. I had dilated to 3CM, the max for the foley bulb, then stopped. So, c-section it was. And I was terrified. I was going to be cut open while I was AWAKE. I couldn't even imagine. Hubs calmed me down. My mom calmed me down. Both came in the OR with me. At 5:54, Rowan let out his first wail. And it was the most incredible feeling in the world that he was actually here.
I had a nice 5 day stay in the hospital. Little man started breastfeeding right in the recovery room and things have been going well since...fingers crossed it stays that way. He's already back up over his birth weight at his pediatrician's appointment on Wednesday!
More details about everything else to come. Right now? It's nap time. Sleep when the baby sleeps, right?
