5 Days Old!

What a 5 days it has been!! We brought Rachel home on Wednesday, and we have been trying to figure out this whole parenting thing ever since! I won't lie to you -- it isn't easy. I think I have gotten a combined 20 hours of sleep in the last 5 days, and two of those were at the hospital when I was able to send Rachel to the nursery! Rachel doesn't like to sleep at night. During the day, she generally sleeps well, but at night, she just wants to play and nurse.
She nurses every 2-3 hours, and each nursing session lasts about an hour, so I have about an hour for myself in between. That's when I have to decide whether to sleep, eat, shower, or do something else that requires my attention. It is a battle to get her to sleep after nursing, because she doesn't like being put down anywhere. On top of all of that, my stitches and backside are still really painful, and my milk has come in -- so I am either leaking or in pain at certain points throughout the day.
All of that being said, I wouldn't trade this feeling for anything. Look at that face! When I am nursing Rachel, she will look up at me with those beautiful eyes, and it is like I am her whole world! When I watch Duane with her, it warms my heart, because he is so gentle and loving. I can tell he is absolutely in love with her.
Yesterday was Rachel's first pediatrician appointment. She did not enjoy being put in the carseat (see aforementioned blurb about how she does not like to be put down) , and she has been having digestive issues from my milk coming in. But she checked out well, although she has lost another half-ounce since being discharged from the hospital, so I have to take her back next week for a follow-up to make sure she is starting to gain weight back. But she wailed so hard that it broke my heart to hear her. She really did not enjoy the visit whatsoever, and she didn't even have to get shots this time! The doctor said to be patient about her nighttime issues, and he seemed to think I was doing a good job, which is nice to hear, because I am new at this!

Murdock has adjusted okay to having a baby sister. He gets very curious when she makes noises, and sometimes he tries to get too close to her face. But we are still trying to give him lots of attention and teach him to associate her with positive things. Here is his reaction to her so far...

Birth Story!!

I am pleased to announce the arrival of our beautiful baby daughter, Rachel Louise Wood!
On Sunday, June 22nd, Duane and I were laying down for the night. We were talking about how there was still no progress with my dialation, and we pretty much resolved ourselves to having the induction on Tuesday. Duane pointed at my stomach and said "You better get out here little lady!"
As he fell sleep, I laid there and thought about how I couldn't sleep again. Next thing you know, around 11:45 p.m., I felt my mucous plug come out!! As I realized what was happening, I felt a gush so I ran to the bathroom. Sure enough -- my water broke! Duane started running around, trying to figure out what he should do, and I called the doctor, who told me to head to the hospital. No matter what I tried, the water kept coming, so I leaked all the way to the hospital. As a matter of fact, when we were taken to triage to determine whether we should be admitted, the nurse took one look at me, and she said "We don't even need to worry about these tests. Your water definitely broke! Let's go!"
My wish was to hold off on epidural for as long as possible. I was still only 2 centimeters in the beginning, so they started me on pitocin to induce contractions. I wanted to feel some labor pains, so I waited a while and breathed my way through the pain. I got a local anesthetic, and when I asked for the second dose at 4 centimeters, the nurse recommended I get my epidural because the anesthesiologist was on the floor helping someone else. I declined, and 5 minutes later, she basically told me I needed to get it. I believe she just wanted to make her job easier, but I was in no mood to argue any further, so I agreed.
Luckily, the next nurse was much more helpful. She constantly flipped me back and forth and let me know what each beep and click on the monitors meant. Once I made it to 5 centimeters, things went quickly. I went to 7 centimeters, 8 centimeters, and then 9+ centimeters within a couple of hours!
My doctor showed up just in time for delivery. Pushing was soooo hard. I didn't feel any pain, but it was difficult to hold my breath and push down hard. I asked how long pushing could take, and they told me it varied from 1-3 hours with a first child. We started pushing at 12:15 p.m. Rachel Louise was born at 12:46 p.m., almost exactly 13 hours after my water broke! She came out face up, which is not the way she is supposed to come out (I learned later that this is why the nurse kept flipping me). She weighed 7 lbs 10 oz (perfect size!) and she was about 19.5 inches long.
Because she was facing wrong, they had to suction her out and I ended up having a 3rd degree tear and a vaginal wall laceration. Needless to say, this is a bit painful! I am on several different medications to help with the pain and swelling, but I am recovering daily and having my healthy baby girl here definitely helps!! I will post more pictures later. I just wanted to share our story and thank everyone who visited and helped us through these last several days!

Progress!

We are officially 6 days from Delivery Day, if Rachel were to arrive exactly on her due date. I went to the doctor yesterday, and I am pleased to report that I am finally making at least SOME progress. I am dialated 1 centimeter and 50% effaced. Her head is still down, which is good. For those of you who don't speak labor speak -- I have to be 10 centimeters dialated and 100% effaced to give birth. I am considered to be in active labor somewhere around 3-4 centimeters. The more effaced I am, the sooner I can be expected to have the baby. However, some women are 60% effaced well before they deliver, and they stay that way for several weeks. You can be dialated for a month before you deliver, as long as you don't progress into active labor.
So, although I am happy to be making progress, it isn't a tell-tale sign that I will be going into labor anytime soon either. As you can see, the belly is still about the same size it was at 37 weeks. All told, I have gained 45 lbs since my first appointment, which isn't awful, but it is about 20 more than I would have liked. :)
The other news from the doctor is that if Rachel does decide to bake in the belly for a bit longer, we have scheduled an induction for Tuesday, June 24th. That doesn't mean she will come out on the 24th, but at least we have an end date in sight. The doctor likes to give her about a week to come on her own, and after that she worries about the baby getting too big or the fluid starting to decrease. So, Duane and I will be parents in less than 2 weeks now! Hopefully Rachel will come on her own before the induction -- I haven't heard good things about being induced.


The other big news is that Wednesday was officially my last day of work for the summer. I have 5 carryover vacation days that I need to use, so I tried to schedule them so they worked right up to my due date. As you can see, I am thrilled on my last day of work, whereas Kim is less than thrilled to see me go. After I have used those days, I will start my official maternity leave, whether Rachel has arrived or not. I get 6 weeks of paid leave through my work, then I am using a combination of vacation time, floating holidays, and COMP time (remember when I was working 60+ hours a week?...NOW I can cash in!) to take the first few weeks in August off. I am excited to spend the summer learning how to be a mommy and bonding with my daughter (not to mention trying to knock off some baby weight!).
Each day, I wonder what she will look like and my heart fills with love. I am starting to drive more defensively too -- I keep getting angry at people who drive too fast or too unpredictably, thinking "HEY! MY DAUGHTER IS IN THE CAR HERE BUDDY!" Duane and I are so excited to finally meet this little miracle we created together. :)

37 Weeks!

Almost 38 weeks as I sit down to type this. No progress as far as dialation goes. I saw the nurse practicioner last Friday and she said that I am actually only measuring at 34 weeks. I asked her how big she thinks Rachel is now and she estimated somewhere in the 6's. She predicted that if I carry to 40 weeks, Rachel will be about 7.5 - 8 pounds. That would be the perfect size, as far as I am concerned!!

She also recommended that I get out and walk around more to stimulate my cervix. So Duane has decided I need to bounce on his exercise ball to get things moving. My last day at work is next Wednesday (June 11th), because I have some carryover vacation that I need to use before the end of June. While Duane has been nesting at home, cleaning out every room and throwing things away, I have been nesting at work, trying to get everything organized before I leave.

I don't know what I am going to do while I sit around and wait for this baby to show up. I need to work on the baby book that my sister-in-law Jen bought me, so I can focus on that I suppose. And of course, there is always the bouncy ball!