I haven't blogged in awhile, but I think I have a pretty good excuse...
On June 30, my due date, we went to the doctor for a progress check. I hadn't gone into labor and the doctors were very concerned about the baby's size. After much discussion and consternation, we decided to opt for a c-section the following day to get her out before she got any bigger. Though inducement was discussed, the doctors weren't confident that I would be able to deliver naturally at all. At that point, three separate doctors had estimated that the baby would be over nine pounds.
I couldn't believe that it was finally going to be the big day, and thought it was pretty fitting that Andy, the planner, would get to know exactly what day and time she would come. Andy and I stopped by our offices after the doctor's appointment to say goodbye and set our out of office replies on our email and then Andy, my mom (who arrived on June 26th and was waiting ever so patiently for her newest granddaughter to arrive!), and I went out to dinner for one last baby-free hurrah.
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| My belly at 40 weeks + 1 day - time to say goodbye to the bump! |
Surprisingly I slept pretty well, and then we spent the morning of July 1 lounging around and trying not to think about the surgery. I was pretty scared about the prospect of undergoing major abdominal surgery without having more than about 12 hours to prepare myself for the idea, but Andy and my mom did a great job of keeping my mind off of it. Around 11 a.m. we headed out to the doctor's office to meet the doctor who would be doing my c-section, sign some papers, and then we drove to the hospital to check in.
I was prohibited from wearing makeup, yet I allowed Andy to take pictures of me anyway. This is the face of someone about to be somebody's mother.
We said goodbye to my kankles (check out those sexy hospital socks!)...
...and Andy got geared up. By this point I was freak. ing. out.
At 1:30 they took me into the OR. They wouldn't let Andy come into the operating room with me right away. I went in with the nurse anesthetist who was extremely comforting and did a fabulous job both explaining and then inserting my spinal block. I have a really really weird thing about epidurals (had I had the baby naturally, I don't think I would have opted for one except in the most dire of circumstances), so the fact that I didn't have to have one made me feel slightly better about the whole thing. By 1:45 I was numb, prepped, and they were bringing Andy into the room to come and sit by my head. We were both pretty nervous at this point, and I'm sure he'd agree with me that it was pretty intense in the room by the time he got there.
After a few minutes where I only felt pressure and anonymous touching around my abdomen, we heard a loud scream! The baby was yelling before she even exited the womb! The nurse told Andy to peek over the curtain, not knowing that he wasn't exactly planning on watching the birth, and he got an eyeful of EVERYTHING that was going on. Poor Andy will be scarred for life.
They whisked her away as soon as she was out to make sure she was okay. We didn't know at the time - and only just found this out yesterday at the pediatrician's office - she had her cord wrapped around her head once. This is probably why she wasn't progressing and it 100% reinforces to me that the "planned" c-section was the right decision.
From my spot on the table, I could see them checking her out at the warmer. Our baby!
Olivia Eowyn Naylor - born July 1, 2014, 8 lb 6 oz, 21" long. Totally perfect.
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| They let Andy cut the cord - something he didn't think he wanted to do, but I think once he saw my insides, his squeamishness went right out the window. |
You read that right...8 lbs, 6 oz. Turns out she wasn't quite so big afterall, not weight wise anyway, though her length puts her in the 90th+ percentile and her head was also in the 93rd percentile at over 14 inches in circumference. The doctors performing the c-section both said that I did not want to see what it would be like to try to deliver her naturally. Yow!
As soon as they checked her out, they brought her over so I could say hello. The nurse took these sweet photos of our little family.
After introductions, Andy followed Olivia - Olive, as we have called her pretty much since the day we found out I was pregnant - into the nursery to get her checked out by the pediatricians, while I got stitched up. This was probably the worst part of the whole procedure. Not exactly painful, but not comfortable or something I would like to do again anytime soon. By the time the doctor finished her handiwork, I could already feel my toes, which means the spinal was really well timed, but is also kind of horrifying if you think about it too long. I'm just thankful she was quick!
We spent a couple hours in recovery and then headed to the room where I was given a whole bunch of drugs and got to spend some time getting to know Olive. I know every mom says this about their baby, but she really is the cutest baby ever.
Shortly after we got settled into the room, little miss needed to be changed and Andy got to finally put his skills from baby class into practice! With my limitations, he's had more than his fair share of diaper changing in the last few days and he's awesome at it.
Andy drove home to pick up my mom so she could meet Olive, too. Look at that hair!
As predicted, she loves being swaddled with her hands by her face. Just like all the sonogram pictures.
The first night in the hospital, I had to stay in a hospital bed and Andy slept on a cot. It was not the most comfortable, but I needed to be in the bed because of my recovery. The nurses did a great job taking care of us, even if we did complain (behind their backs) about them coming in too much. At 2:00 a.m. they had me up walking for the first time to get me back up and at 'em and on the way to recovery. It wasn't fun at the time, but I think I've been recovering really well, so I have to admit they know what they're doing!
The morning of day 2, they moved us into a nicer recovery room with a king sized bed that Andy and I could share. Mom came to hang out again and I took about 400 pictures of her in the hat the hospital gave her with the bow on it. I die.
Ann stopped by for a visit. She's excited about her newest honorary niece!
My office sent me the prettiest flowers. I work with some super nice people!
We spent the next two days enjoying the comfy bed (I would like my own adjustable king sized posturepedic bed please!) and our newest little family member.
I could sit all day and watch Andy with her. He is already the best dad. Look at how she looks at him!
After three days in the hospital with some incredible nurses who took fabulous care of us, it was time to go home. We dressed little missy up in one of the only newborn sized outfits we had (we didn't know she would end up being small!) and headed for home and our new life as a family of three (six if you count Ripley, Zeus, and Fro, which we obviously do).
We headed home around 2pm on the 4th of July, almost exactly three days to the minute after we had her. I can't believe that tomorrow she'll already be a week old...pretty soon we'll be heading off to college, I swear.
Welcome to the world, little one. We're so happy to be your parents!
