Welcome to the World, Baby!

So, on Thursday when I went back to the hospickle to get my BP checked, they also checked to see if my water had broken. I tested positive, so they checked to see if I was dilating. I was dilated to a 5 but still had bulging waters; I'd only been a 3-4 the day before. The on-call doc from my office decided to admit me because I'd apparently been in labor, but none of my contractions were very painful to that point. They were more of a pressure feeling and while some were intense, it really wasn't that big of a deal, so I didn't think I was in labor.

Because I was only 36 weeks' pregnant and GBS positive, he didn't want to intervene but wanted to make sure hubby didn't have to do an emergency catch. So they started an IV and gave me antibiotics for the GBS around 7:15 p.m. and wanted it to run for at least 4 hours before baby was born.

Around 7 cm, the contractions *started* hurting, but they still weren't bad. At 11:30 p.m., he checked me and I was dilated to an 8, still with a bulging bag, so he decided to go ahead and break it since baby was coming any time and we wanted it to be in a more controlled environment, again not wanting an emergency catch.

To this point, I was still a pretty happy person. Not much pain, just cracking jokes with hubby and smiling whenever I wasn't having a contraction.

By about an hour later, I was hurting really bad and felt a lot of pressure. A different nurse checked me and said I was complete, but she had short fingers and couldn't really tell because my cervix is always very high, which MY nurse knew (but she was assisting a different patient right that minute). So they called the doc for delivery and, after about 8 different people came in the room because we were having a premie, he had me push once and said, "um, you're not complete yet." He told the nurse to put the bed back together and let me labor a little longer.

At this point, things started hurting more. I stood up, walked around, leaned on my husband, and ew, did I just drip on the floor??? She checked me again about 30 minutes later and said I still was at an 8. I started crying and asked for drugs because there was no way I was going to be able to be in that much pain very much longer. My husband was very loving and supportive through all of this and kept telling me just to breathe, massaged my back (had a lot of back labor), and that I could do it, but I was too distraught to listen at that point. Apparently, he asked Junior to please come now because mommy needed a break, and I told my sweet husband to shut up, the baby to stay inside, and the nurse to call the damn anesthesiologist. She already had, but he hadn't come yet. I went to use the restroom, and after I voided, the contractions picked up a LOT. I started screaming, the nurse asked during a contraction if she could please just check me one more time before the anesthesiologist (who just barely showed up) placed the epidural because I was acting like the baby was coming NOW. I screamed "NOOOOO!" and she said, "how about after this contraction?" About this point I wanted to slap her silly. DUH, after the contraction. I let her, she told the anesthesiologist he'd come to late, and called the doctor.

The same bunch of people filed in the room, the bed was torn apart again, and the doc asked me to start pushing. Apparently, about this time, I nearly broke my husband's fingers by trying to pull them apart. He shouldn't have given me his index finger for one hand and pinkie for the other, but he fixed that on the next contraction by giving me one hand for each of mine, then moved to my legs to help me push. Given that I haven't had a baby in 9 years and that birth was Pitocin-induced and epidural numbed, I think I did fairly well. I only pushed about 10 minutes, but screamed the entire time, said some bad words, and told them I couldn't do it. They just kept telling me to quit wasting my breath by talking, take a little break if I needed to, but Junior was almost here. I took a small break, panted a bit, then pushed really, really hard ... and baby was born at 1:56 a.m.

We were all expecting a fairly small baby because he was 4 weeks early, but he weighed 7 lbs 11 ounces, was 17-1/2 inches long. His Apgars were 8 and 9, and he has the cutest chubby cheeks and double chin ... They watched him for an hour and he was breathing fine and not having any problems, so they brought him to me after his bath, and everything went fine for the next 30 hours, until they checked him in his car seat. It's a standard protocol for premies and babies under a certain weight -- they put the baby in the car seat and checked his oxygen sats, respirations, heart, and lungs while on monitors for 1-1/2 hours. He did fine for about 45-50 minutes, then dropped his sats. Happened 3 times. So, he came home with an oxygen tank for any time spent in his car seat and is home with us now, doing just fine, and we won't be putting him in his car seat except when we have to go somewhere. Oh, and his bilirubin is a tad elevated, so we do have to get that checked again in the a.m. and I've been nursing on demand, which has been a LOT since we got home, but he's only getting colostrum. Hopefully my milk comes in soon, poor bug.

Hubby and I are thrilled to pieces, and kiddo is very much infatuated with her brother. She came to see us yesterday at the hospital and nearly cried when she had to leave. She's happy to be home, as are hubby and I. We both feel like we've spent the entire week at the hospital and were really ready to be home with the baby.

He's crying now -- keeps kicking his swaddled blankies off him and then he gets cold, silly boy. I'd better go snuggle and warm him up. 'night.