Thursday, October 12, 2017

I'm BEHIND! William Robert 6/2/17

Let me start off by saying 3 kids is no joke.  I'm a little late BUT William Robert was born on 6/2/17 via VBAC!  Vaginal birth after C-Section.  Here is what I remember...

Thursday 6/1/17 - A normal day at work... I had been stripped at the OB the week before and other than light cramping nothing was really happening.  I had an OB appointment at 8:30 AM and no changes had really occurred. I  think I was still around 1-2cm, not really effaced and things didn't appear to be doing much.  I was stripped again and headed off to work.  Had a normal work day and again had slight cramping but nothing major.  After a routine evening I headed to bed and kissed my hubby good night and said..."See you later when we are headed to the hospital!"  LOL...I was totally joking, only it didn't turn out to be a joke at all.  10:30 PM I am awoken with a feeling like...oh no!  I peed my pants!  I was extremely lucky this pregnancy and was typically sleeping through the night without even getting up so it was really odd.  I stood up and felt a little funny and realized it maybe wasn't pee.  I got to the bathroom, sat down...stood up and realized...it wasn't pee my water broke!!!

Since there wasn't much for contractions I wasn't too worried yet.  I called my Mom and told her what was going on and she headed over to watch R & L while Dick and I packed up for the hospital.  It was a calm ride over about 30 minutes to the hospital.  Nothing but mild cramping at this point and they got me up and settled in my room.  Other than my water being broken there was no changes from the morning.  Unfortunately due to my VBAC attempt I was shackled to the bed...okay not really but I was told I needed to be monitored at all times.  I tried my best to rest, but being checked on every little bit wasn't the most relaxing.

Friday 6/2/17 - About 4 hours after arriving at the hospital they began Pitocin to see if we could get things moving and they started a little at a time.  Finally things got started and I opted for the epidural.  I can't remember all the timing on everything but as things got moving along and I was still feeling contractions to a certain point but I was definitely still uncomfortable and not really making any progress.  Dick left to go grab some food and shortly after a nurse was in to check.  I told her I was uncomfortable around my c-section scar and she told me I had just had a really, really long contraction (not good).  Next thing I knew there were a few nurses and my OB around me and I started to panic.  One of the main risks with VBAC is that the uterine scar could rupture and at that moment was a real threat.  I was still freaking out and Dick was gone and they told me I needed to relax.  I went into meditation mode and started breathing exercises.  I was still feeling so much pain.  The doctor checked again and I was maybe at a 3 but pain was gone from my C-section area and we had to start the drip all over again.  I continued to focus on breathing and relaxing and soon I was starting to feel some downward movement.  Things were finally starting to move along.  When it came time to push I was ready and after 2 long pushes he was out!  I'm terrible and can't remember the exact time, but it was something like 6:47PM, 8 pounds 6oz and 22.5" long!  Dark brown hair!

The next day my Mom brought Richie and Leela to visit their new brother lovingly they call him "Baby WILLMAN" and after the visit Dick took them back home and my Mom stayed to get caught up on all the details.  Auntie Gina (Godmother) stopped in on her way home from Oshkosh and I spent most of the day relaxing with my new little man.  I was feeling great!  When it was time to go home I had a lot of family waiting for us and William got to meet his Aunt, Uncles and cousins on the Suhr side.  They cooked (and cleaned) for us and it was amazing because I was completely exhausted and going through a major hormone crash.

Fast forward... we had an amazing summer including a 4th of July party we hosted at our house.  Maternity leave I had the kids home with me on Tues/Thur/Fri and the older 2 went to daycare M/W so I could spend time with the new baby.  Time flew by and before I knew it I was back to work starting on August 28th.

Recently we finalized the paperwork to donate our 7 remaining embryos to the clinic we used for our IVF and life really feels full circle.  I've had a lot of emotions come up going through the legal paperwork but overall I know in my heart it is the right choice.  Our family is complete and our hearts are full.  I'm thankful every day for this.  Anyways... I hope to find more time to keep my blog updated.  It has been a blessing to have everything written down because one thing is for sure...it is easy to forget where you came from...easy to push aside the pain and pretend it never happened.   I don't want to forget...I want to remember exactly where this journey started and one day I want to be able to share it with our kids.

Julie

Attempting VBAC

Just noticed I never finished this post... from 5/18/17

We are getting very close!  Almost 37 weeks and I can't remember if I mentioned that I will be attempting a VBAC (vaginal birth after c-section).  It's actually turning out to be more of an ordeal than you would think.  At 20 weeks I made the decision to change OBs and hospital who would allow the attempted VBAC birth.  I've done a bit of reading, I know the risks but also know if all goes well I am the perfect candidate.  I've had a vaginal birth before, the reason for my C was position of the baby and I have a great support team!

I was checked at my last appointment and still high but maybe 1cm.  We are definitely getting started but not there yet.  That's okay!  I have little bursts of energy here and there but am very sleepy by around 7:30-8.

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