Hospital Stay

After the c-section, Darren stayed with Brooke and I until about 1am when I sent him home to get some sleep. The nurses took Brooke to the nursery so I could try and get some sleep. I get slept for a few hours, until someone came in to take my vitals. Everything looked good, except I had a small panic attack. Being in a small room, with a catheter, leg compression pumps and an IV made me feel VERY trapped and helpless... I asked if I could get out of bed. The nurse looked at me like I was crazy, but I was finally able to convince her to let me up.

I felt great! It felt SO good to be up and walking! So where did I walk to? Straight to the scale, I was excited to see how much I instantly lost. I was expecting about 10 pounds, boy was I wrong! The scale said I had lost TWO pounds??? How do you have a 7+ pound baby and lose 2 pounds? WATER RETENTION! My feet made Fred Flintstones look small, my calves were the size of my thighs and my thighs were the size of a 300+ pound mans. YIKES! They said this was common after a c-section and within 2-3 weeks it would all disappear, something to look forward too!

By 9am Monday morning the catheter was removed and by 9pm (after my last dose of antibiotic) my IV was removed, I was FREE!!! Not even 12 hours after the baby was born I was asking if I could go home. They told me, today wasn't an option, but let my doctor know and they might let me leave on Tuesday! Hospitals are definitely NOT for me! If and when I ever go back, I better be very sick, to the point I don't even know where I am!

The pediatrician came in late morning to check on Brooke, everything looked perfect! She was doing great and was ready to go home on Tuesday. My doctor came in and gave me clearance to leave on Tuesday also, assuming I still wanted too. WOOHOO, I was going home, just like I had planned had I had a normal delivery!

Brooke had ALL kinds of visitors that day!


Of course Daddy was first to get there.



Grandpa holding Brooke for the first time.


Grandma holding her dream come true!


Leanna and Ashley with their new baby sister!


Nana is nothing but smiles with her 3rd Granddaughter!


A proud Auntie Molly (my BFF since child hood) with Baby Brooke!


A happy family of 5!

Auntie Debbie and Louise also came to visit, but unfortunately I didn't get pictures of them with the baby. It was definitely a non-stop day, but I feel great and loved having all of the company! Now if the nurses would just leave me alone!

The Birth Story

I will do my best to make this as short and sweet as possible, but it was a LONG day!

Darren & I arrived at Edwards Hospital in Naperville at 7am on Sunday morning. I was only 1 of 2 scheduled inductions that day and no one else was in labor at the time, so we more or less had a full staff to only share with one other person. By 7:30 am I was in my gown, IV inserted and the Pitocin was administered. The nurse checked me and I was 1 centimeter dilated and 80% effaced (no different than my doctor visit on Tuesday).

We just hung in the room, trying to wait patiently for the Pitocin to start working. Dr. Bromberger came in to check on me and encouraged me to get out of bed and start roaming the halls to try to get things moving along. I was excited to hear that, because laying in a hospital bed, is NOT my idea of fun.

The Pitocin drip was started at "2" and then every 15-30 minutes it was increased by 2. After a few hours it was at its maximum of 20. The machine was showing I was having regular contractions, but nothing that I could feel. Our nurse Lynn, hung out with us a lot of the time, as we were her only patient. After hours went by and NOTHING had happened, she called the doctor to see what we should do next. The doctor decided do decrease the drip back down to 10 and work it back up to 20.

I kept roaming the halls, doing everything I possibly could to get the ball rolling, but nothing was working. I was checked again, I was still 1 centimeter dilated and now I was only 60% effaced... who aside me goes backwards in progress??? Lynn went to call the doctor to see what to do next. She came in to tell us what Dr. B said and to give us time to think about what to do. We had 3 options, sit there and keep doing what we were doing, come back on Thursday to try again, or have a c-section at some point that evening.

Darren and I discussed all the options and really didn't know what to do. Dr. Bromberger called to talk to me around 7pm to explain things more clearly to me and to make a final decision. First thing I asked was, what would SHE do, and of course, she couldn't answer that for me, because there were pros and cons to both. Finally she broke it down for me... she explained that she had a feeling, in the end, no matter what I choose it would be a c-section. Reason being, the baby's head was all the way down, pushing on my cervix and in turn causing it to swell (the reason for why I went from 80% to 60%), her thoughts were that my pelvis bone was the cause. She didn't know for sure, hence why she gave me the two other options. She put it like this... "we can wait and try again and she what happens, but I don't want you needing a c-section and looking back and saying why didn't we just do this on Sunday". That was all she needed to say - c-section it is!

While Dr. Bromberger was heading to the hospital, Darren went home to let the dogs out and I packed up the room. At 9pm we walked down to the operating room. The rest was quick and easy! 9pm I got a spinal and catheter, 9:11pm they announced that they were making the cut, 9:15pm Brooke was born! If I had only known it was going to be that quick and easy, I would have begged for a c-section right off the bat! By 9:45pm I was in recovery and by 11pm I was checked into my room in the Mother Baby Unit. Talk about quick and easy!!!

The Lil Monkey is here!

Brooke Morgan Wills

Born on Sunday, November 28th at 9:15pm

7 pounds, 15.5 ounces & 20 inches long



10 Minutes after Brooke was born, with Dr. Bromberger...






A very proud Daddy!


Mommy's in love already!

Nursery

9 hours before we have to leave for the hospital, for me to be induced, the nursery is complete!

False Alarm

I ran out to the store this afternoon to grab a few groceries. As soon as I got home and got out of the car, I thought my water had partially broken.

I went inside, called the doctor, they asked me a few questions and told me to come in and get checked. Darren was at work, making big bucks, so I really didn't want to drag him away for no reason. I asked the doctor if I could drive myself over to the hospital, she said fine, as long as I felt up to it.

So I took a quick shower, fed the dogs, grabbed my bags and headed out the door. I arrived at the hospital around 1:45 pm.

I was impressed at how quickly they got the ball rolling! I wish hospital visits were always like that! Within 10 minutes of checking in a nurse was in the room to do a few tests. One test said my water was broken, the other said it wasn't... go figure!?! LOL So the next step was off to get an ultrasound to measure my water. 10 or more, I get to go home, 9 or less, I get admitted... the result was 12.

YAY! I get to go home! NOT! I get back to the room to find out the doctor wants to do another test... the non-stress test the baby has failed in the past. I knew I was in for the long haul! I was right, after 30 or so minutes being hooked up to the monitors, they sent me over to ultrasound AGAIN to do a more advanced test of the baby's movement. She passed with flying colors, but for whatever reason, I just don't feel the movements, like they expect me to.

I get back to the room, the nurse did one final exam - telling me I was 1 centimeter dialated, 80% effaced and cervix completely ripe and ready. She also told me that I was having some contractions when hooked up to the monitors, but I never felt any of them (lucky me!). After that, I was discharged... my instructions were to come back at 7am to be induced.

I returned home at about 5:30pm. I finished doing a few things around the house AND did the final touches on the monkeys room. In about 9 hours we will be heading out to go back to the hospital, I can only hope that tomorrow goes as fast as today did! (I know, keep dreaming)

39 Weeks!

Well, so much for the doctor and her "could be any day now" theory! Here we sit... still waiting! The good news is, we are down to single digits!

Last night, I went to my final weekly appointment. The visit started out with the non-stress test and the baby finally passed with an A+! The results of this test reduce her risk to less than 5% of being born stillborn. So that is good news!

After the test, the doctor did another internal exam on me and also stripped my membranes. She said, by her doing that, it should hopefully send me into labor within 48 hours, but there are no guarantees. She said again, my body is as ready as it can be, we are just waiting on the baby to want to make her appearance.

If the baby continues to be stubborn, an appointment is set for me to go in at 7:15am on Sunday morning to be induced. I'm hoping we don't have to wait that long, but we shall see. So worst case scenario is 4 days and counting!!!

I still feel pretty good, but I sure won't miss these last few weeks. Between my back, my right hip/leg feeling dislocated and having to pee what feels like every 10 minutes, I am definitely ready to get this baby out!

I never thought I would say this, but I think we are ready. My bag is finally packed, as well as the baby's bag! The nursery is complete, the car seat is installed and I hope we have everything else that we need!

Thank you to everyone for all the good luck and well wishes! I'm actually not all that nervous, but actually more curious to see what my pain threshold really is! I'm sure this will be a huge reality check for me, but hey, anyone can endure anything for a day or two!

Hopefully the next time you hear from me, I will be introducing the lil monkey (or should I say turkey)? Happy Thanksgiving to all!

38 Weeks!

And the countdown begins...

First thing this morning, I went to the doctor. This visit was the 2nd attempt at the "non stress test". Again, the lil monkey decided it would be a great time to sleep and did not cooperate. The doctor was able to detect 2 "reactive" responses, which was good, but she wanted to see at least 4. I was reminded that the only reason for this test was my age, so she wasn't overly concerned I wasn't feeling much movement.

The next part of the exam, was the internal... After about 30 seconds of horrific pain, she reported that I am "ripe". Of course, I was like, ummmmmmm, what's ripe? She said, that means the baby could make her first appearance any day. I asked her if she thought the baby was coming sometime this week. Her response was, "I don't make predictions, but it could happen any day so have your bag packed". We then had a discussion about when to go to the hospital, etc... A scheduled c-section has been ruled out... she feels even tho my pelvic bone is not the ideal shape, the opening will be large enough. I sure hope she is right! She did have me make my appointment for next week, just in case. She also mentioned that if she saw me next week, we would be setting an appointment for induction on either the 28th, 29th or 30th.

The reality has set in!!! Any day now? YIKES! Am I ready? Probably not, but am I ever ready for anything? Nope! I sure don't feel like it could be any day, I had anticipated the end being a lot harder than it has been. It was less than a week ago that my aunt, beat me again, on the golf course and now the doctor is saying any day? The appointment was definitely motivation for me to stop procrastinating and get the things done that I was hoping to.

Hopefully the last belly shot... enjoy!

37 Weeks

3 weeks to go!

Had my weekly visit to the doctor today. After reviewing my ultrasound, my doctor is thinking a c-section won't be necessary. Being that the baby isn't THAT big, she thinks a natural birth will be ok. She will make a final decision and assessment at next weeks visit. I was a bit shocked by her saying that, since she had kind of lead me to believe a c-section would be necessary. I expressed my concern to her, that I did NOT want to be in labor for hours on end to have to have an emergency c-section. She explained to me that everyone who walks through the hospital doors has a 10% chance of that happening.

The next part of the appointment was the "non-stress test". The only reason they did this test was because of my age. Kinda silly if you ask me, but protocol is protocol, I guess. The point of this test is to evaluate the baby's condition. During the test, a machine monitors the baby's heartbeat, first while the baby is resting and then while she's moving. Just as your heart beats faster when you're active, the baby's heart rate should go up while she's moving or kicking. Of course, this was the one time when the lil monkey decided to sleep the entire time! So after lying there for an hour, the doctor finally gave up and said we'd try again next week.

And lastly, my Group B Strep test results came back negative, which means no antibiotics will be needed during labor.

As far as how I am feeling... I still feel good! Between my back and constant trips to the bathroom, trying to sleep for more than 20 minutes straight is frustrating! I know this is nature's way of preparing me for what is ahead, but enough is enough!

36 Weeks

Finally - the light at the end of the tunnel! Went today for my final ultrasound. Everything looks great and the baby is already weighing in at 6 lbs 14 oz, which puts her in the 65th percentile.

The doctor explained to me that at this point, babies typically gain about 1/2 a pound per week. So if you do the math, 3 weeks from now, we're looking at an 8 + pounder. I have an appointment to go see my regular OB/GYN on Monday, so we shall see what she has to say. Natural birth or C-Section? I'm ok with either one.

As far as the rest of the appointment, it was a little disappointing. For 4d ultrasounds to work properly, the baby needs to be very still. The little monkey was up to her usual antics today and was squirming all over the place, making picture taking virtually impossible. Any movement at all makes the pictures look distorted.

At first I thought maybe I was being overly critical, but after hearing both grandmother's comments and Daddy's comments, it wasn't just me.

Sandy/Nana (Darren's mom) - "she definitely wasn't photogenic today"

Joan/Grandma (my mom) - "you didn't tell me she participated in Wrestlemania 6 and got her butt kicked"

Darren (Daddy) - "what happened to my baby?"

Looking at the picture below, not only has she been kicking and punching me, but in my opinion, it looks like she has been doing a number on herself.