June 14, 2009 at 12:11 pm (Baby Stuff, cheesedoodle, pregnancy)
Tags: birth, labor and delivery
As I sat down to write this post and fill you all in on my handsome cheesedoodle’s arrival into the world, I received word that my friend Melinda, who was due the same day I was, gave birth at home at 2:55 in the morning. This makes me a) praise the Lord for her safety and her new son’s, b) curious for more details, because you KNOW that’s a story and c) praise the Lord for my two very ordinary, routine deliveries.
It’s very hard not to compare two similar experiences, especially when they are less than two years apart, so when I arrived at the hospital on Wednesday morning and walked comfortably to Labor and Delivery I couldn’t help but think “this is much more comfortable than the last time.” Every thing went very smoothly. By 7:30 I had answered all the check-in questions (some twice) and been prepped, and the drip had been started. At 8:30 I was having strong contractions. My doctor broke my water, they gave me an epidural and I settled in for the boring part that had taken so long (this being a relative term, by “so long,” I mean 11 hours) with my mackerdoodle. Three and a half hours later the nurse told Jonathan to go have lunch because I was at seven centimeters. By the time Jonathan got back from lunch I was feeling a lot of pressure, and five hours after having my water broken I was pressing the nurse call button saying, “Um, I think someone should come and check me. I’m feeling like I need to push!”
I was right, and less than 45 minutes later, my son was in the doctor’s hands, crying, and Jonathan was calling friends and family with details.
If it wasn’t for the 20+ weeks of throwing up, and the 12 weeks of being unable to bend over, roll over in bed and see my feet, I’d be signing up to do this avery 18 months or so.
5 Comments
June 9, 2009 at 8:15 am (pregnancy)
Tags: birth, pregnancy
Well. . . . all the beds were taken up with babies who decided to come on their own. We’ve been told they will call us when a bed becomes available, until then we wait . . .
1 Comment
June 9, 2009 at 6:23 am (pregnancy)
Tags: birth
We’ll do our best to update the blog with any relevant data, but if you need us, we will have Jonathan’s phone with us at the hospital, and my parents (and the mackerdoodle) will have my phone with them.
I don’t think I will be answering either phone. Just saying.
Comments Off
June 8, 2009 at 7:29 am (Thoughts and Musings, pregnancy)
Tags: books, feminism, pregnancy
When I’m asked “How are you feeling?” I answer, “pregnant.” I mean it to be funny, but I think it might come off sounding complaining and whiney. If so, I’m sorry. Children are a blessing, and that means pregnancy – even the so-big-I-can’t-do-anything-comfortably stage – is a blessing. Even the pain in child birth is a blessing, because it is the result of the curse and so points us to the awesome mercy and grace of the cross of Christ. Pregnancy is not oppression.
I only bring this up because I was reading a book a few nights ago that completely disgusted me. I VERY rarely get so disgusted or bored with a book that I quit reading it, but I couldn’t stomach this book for another page! It was about a collection of women who come together to protest the closing of a garden – or at least, that’s what the back of the book promised. I didn’t get that far.
What I noticed very quickly was that there wasn’t a single positive male character represented. All of the husbands/fathers/boyfriends were at best disinterested and at worst abusive. To make matters worse, the women were weak and completely unappealing.
But the reason I stopped reading the book was because of one specific character. She had made the decision to leave a lucrative career to become a stay at home mother. The book introduces her as the mother of an almost two year old girl, and 38 weeks pregnant with a son. (sound like any blogger you know?) Motherhood has changed her from a shrewd and talented business woman into a soap opera watching, gossip magazine reading, bored housewife who yearns for her white minimalist apartment and maid service. All of the other characters are fighting some sort of insurmountable challenge. For this character, her insurmountable challenge was motherhood and pregnancy.
I just couldn’t read any more.
I might be uncomfortable, hot and puffy but I am NOT a reluctant victim of domestic oppression. I am blessed beyond measure and unfathomably treasured by a righteous, holy, sovereign God, who has chosen to give me more than I had hoped to ask for. Next time I’m asked how I’m feeling, I’m going to try to say that – or something like it.
How am I feeling? Blessed.
4 Comments
June 4, 2009 at 8:52 am (pregnancy)
There is so much going on in the world right now. GM filed for bankruptcy, an Air France jet broke up over the Atlantic, Sonia Sotomayor is nominated for the Supreme Court, President Obama is touring the Muslim world and declaring the U.S. one of the largest Muslim countries by population, Jon and Kate are breaking up . . .
. . . but what’s really filling my mind and life right now is the Cheesedoodle and his imminent arrival. The bag is packed and sitting by the door, ready for a trip to the hospital. My parents are arriving this evening. I’ve charged the batteries on the camera. I’ve even designed the birth announcement (sort of. I keep tweaking it.). Now, all there is to do is wait.
I’ve spent two years telling everyone we were crazy for renovating a house so close to the mackerdoodle’s due date, but now, as I sit 11 days away from my due date, and 5 days from my scheduled induction, I’m feeling discontented and impatient. There’’s very little to keep my miond from my enormous size and Braxton Hicks contractions, so it’s all I end up thinking about. It’s made my world very small and insular. Looking back, I think it was a good thing to have a project to keep my mind off my own discomfort. Okay, probably not a major house renovation, but some sort of project is a good idea.
If I ever do this again, I think I’ll plan some sort of project for the last few weeks of my pregnancy, something to open my world up beyond myself and my temporary discomfort.
4 Comments
June 2, 2009 at 3:17 pm (pregnancy)
Tags: inducing, pregnancy
Well, despite my strong Braxton Hicks contractions, and the dilation/effacement from last week, I’ve had no further progress. I’m scheduled to be induced at 5 am on Tuesday, June 9th unless something happens earlier than that.
If Cheesedoodle does choose to arrive on June 9th, our family birthdays will be:
- Cheesedoodle – June 9th
- Me – July 8th
- Mackerdoodle – August 7th
Jonathan sort of gets left out with April 17th, but it’s stil a sort of cool pattern.
3 Comments
June 1, 2009 at 9:52 am (Family and Friends, pregnancy)
Tags: Jonathan, pregnancy
My parents are selling my childhood home in order to move closer to their grandchildren – oh, and also their daughters and sons-in-law. The house is on the market, but last week they packed all of their worldly possessions into a rented U-haul truck, left their keys with their Realtor and moved themselves across the country – roughly 2500 miles.
Several weeks ago, Dad had mentioned that he’d like to have the opportunity to see me pregnant. He asked if I would be okay with them coming down to see us at the end of this pregnancy. Knowing that they were about to embark on a 2500 + mile drive, I told Jonathan that I just didn’t think Dad would want to add another 950 miles in such a short time. Jonathan told me confidently, “Yes he will. I expect them at the end of the first week in June.” I remained skeptical.
Saturday my parents called. They unload the moving truck today, and leave Ontario Wednesday. They’ll be here around suppertime on Thursday.
So I have learned two things:
- Apparently my husband knows my father better than I do.
- The opportunity to be present for the birth of a grandchild outweighs thousands of miles of driving.
Yesterday I was telling everyone that the baby could come any time after Friday. Mitch has predicted that I’ll go into labor Thursday at lunch. He predicts a conversation wtih my parents in which they say “we’re coming through Chatanooga.” and Jonathan tells them, “better hurry. . .”
Regardless, I will be scheduling an induction for next week when I see my doctor on Tuesday, so I know for sure we’ll have a newborn by June 12th at the latest.
Comments Off
May 29, 2009 at 11:01 pm (pregnancy)
Tags: baby bump, pregnancy
And, for some comparison, here is a picture of me at 39 weeks with the mackerdoodle.
4 Comments
May 27, 2009 at 9:11 pm (pregnancy)
Tags: pregnancy
Tuesday I had a weekly appointment with my doctor which was very encouraging for a number of reasons.
First, after looking at my info from the E.R. he agreed with my vomitting husband that I had a virus, NOT Hyperemesis Gravidum. He also told me that even if it hadn’t been Memorial Day, he would have sent me into the hospital for I.V. fluids, because at this stage in a pregnancy, one can’t be too safe. So I felt better about taking up a bed in a hospital.
Secondly, I am dilated 1 cm and more than 70% effaced. This is great news. In fact, at this stage with the mackerdoodle when I left the office he told me that he was going out of town and wouldn’t be back until after my due date. Then he told me he’d see me when he got back and the office staff would schedule my induction. This time, he told me “see you next week, unless you’re in labor first.” yay!
Finally, my doctor is once again planning to be out of town in close proximity to my due date. This time, however, it’s for *after* my due date. He’s giving me the option of being induced a few days early if the cheesedoodle doesn’t come early on his own.
So I have progress. I will keep you updated.
4 Comments
May 25, 2009 at 6:28 pm (pregnancy)
Tags: E.R. Hyperemesis gravidarum, I. V.
Well, I wrote the post below last night, set it to auto post this morning and went to bed. At two this morning I woke up and threw up, and then did it again at 3:30 and then at 5:00 and then at 6:00 and then at 9:00. So I called my doctor, because I thought “This is probably not a healthy sign.”
It’s memorial day, so I had to speak to the doctor on call, instead of my doctor. I gave him the details, including the fact that I am 37 weeks pregnant, and then I gave him the option of telling me just to lie down until I felt better. Instead, he told me to go to the E.R. because I was probably dehydrated. He made it sound so easy – just go in and they’ll give me IV fluids, and then I’ll go home.
HA!
We got to the hospital at 10:30. I got the I.V. at 12:30. They drew blood. They took other samples. They tested those samples. I had fluids dripping into my arm. I read half of a book. They discharged me at 2:30 in the afternoon with a diagnosis of Hyperemesis Gravidarum – basically extreme morning sickness. At 37 weeks. Yeah, I’m weird.
The mackerdoodle spent the day hanging out with Ankica and Lillian (and Ms. Tera and Mr. Loran) which was a spectuacular blessing. I can’t even begin to imagine how bad it would have been to be strapped to a bloodpressure machine on one arm and an I.V. drip in the other while my toddler ran around pressing buttons on the x-ray machine in the next room or something like that.
I’m supposed to be on a liquid diet for 12 hours, so when we picked up the mackerdoodle, Jonathan got to eat a hamburger and some grilled bratwurst from Tera, while I ate Jello. sigh.
So how was your Memorial Day?
1 Comment
