He's Here!!

Well, Noah finally made his arrival into this world. On Tuesday, March 23rd, I had some bleeding and an increase in pain in my belly. The doc wanted to see me. While being monitored in the office, it was determined that I was contracting every few minutes. When she checked me, I was 2-3 cm and 80% effaced. I went home not knowing if the contractions would continue, etc. The doctor had said it could be "today, tomorrow, or a few weeks." After getting home, we went for a walk to see what the contractions were gonna do. They got closer and harder. I quickly decided that we were gonna have to head to the hospital. We scrambled to find someone to keep the kids (Thank goodness for Gretchen) and Aunt Lisa was on her way down thanks to Grandpa Yant.

When we arrived at the hospital I was monitored for a while, contractions were 1-2 minutes apart. We did some walking to see exactly how things were going to go (ie: contractions stop or keep going and make cervix changes). At 11:30 that night, they checked me and determined that Noah (being the turkey he is) had turned from a head down position to being completely sideways while we were in the hospital. My OB was shocked. There was fear of him continuing to flip around and tying his cord in knots. I was still contracting regularly every 1-2 minutes and the doc decided it was time for Noah to come out. So we headed to the OR for a c-section. The c-section is a completely different post for another time. But after he was born, he was struggling with his breathing. He was requiring oxygen so they took him to the NICU.

He was diagnosed with transient tachypnea of the newborn, caused by him inhaling fluid into his lungs. We were told it could take 24 hours or up to 3 weeks to get things better. As of today, he is 2 days old and has completely turned around. I have just started being able to attempt to bottle feed him at each feeding. He tires easily, but is doing well. They are weaning the flow on the oxygen and are hopeful that he'll be ready to come home early next week. Keep the prayers coming!!

Baby Noah Updates

Well, Saturday I had my first short shift scheduled, cutting me back to 8 hour shifts. Thought I was doing well. I didn't push any beds, had coworkers walk my patients to xray, drank lots of water, etc. UNTIL 1900 hit and 2 patients both crashed at the same time. My adrenalin kicked in, I ran for and pulled the code cart, and was very stressed for an hour or so. When it was all said and done, I realized I was contracting, frequently. Sat down and got my water. One of our nurses has numerous years as a L&D nurse and she started monitoring me. My contractions were every 2 minutes and for some reason, my peds er staff physician didn't want to deliver my baby so she sent me by ambulance to IU. It was quite stressful, but after some rehydration with IV fluids and laying down, things calmed down. Needless to say, I am now on light duty.

Has it really been 2 1/2 months?

Seems like forever since I last posted an update, so I have lots to say. Let's start with a baby update. I am now 33 weeks, hard to believe, except that my belly and back ache so badly that they believe it! Baby Noah is doing well. Most recent ultrasound shows a perfectally sized baby, despite the fact that mommy is still not gaining much weight. My belly is growing by leaps and bounds and it's so funny to me to actually have a baby belly this time around. Normally with my pregnancies, I just look fatter! He is a very active little man and we're convinced he's gearing up to take on his big brother Zach. I have been diagnosed with polyhydraminos (excess amniotic fluid) and so they are going to watch me closely from here on out. My fluid level is twice what it should be and this can cause preterm contractions/labor. I have had lots of contractions, and actually spent some time in labor and delivery last week being monitored. So far, everything is going ok.

Zachary is about to turn 3 on the 15th. We have a big birthday party planned for him on Sunday the 14th. But first, we have to get through surgery on Monday. He saw a new ENT this week who agreed that it's time to remove the tonsils and adenoids and put more permanent ear tubes in place. As soon as the ear tubes fall out, he begins having ear infections. The ENT also said it appears his adenoids are blocking his nasal passages enough that it's creating some breathing difficulties. Not looking forward to the recovery stage, but will be so glad to get it done and get my little boy healthy again.

Joshua is doing well, just brought home his 2nd trimester report card. He had all A's and B's. Now, if the Danville school system used a normal 90, 80, 70 grading scale, he'd have all A's. The grading scale is so tough, I'd have flunked out for sure! He's loving school and getting very excited about little Noah's arrival.

I think that's about it, will try to post updates more frequently and get some belly pics on here soon.