She's Home!

Last night I got a call from the NICU at 7:30pm and they wanted to know if I wanted to room-in with her at the hospital thursday night and go home Friday, or we can just stick to the plan of going home Saturday -- my choice. I didn't think twice, I said let's do it tonight!! I quickly packed my bag and drove back to the hospital around 11pm.

I gathered her stuff together and the nurse turned off her hospital monitor and then I hooked the baby up to the home monitor. The nurse then showed us to our room for the night. She said a NICU nurse would come in and check every couple of hours but if I was sleeping they would not wake me. I was now left alone with my baby, and it was awesome!

{My favorite night nurse}

The night flew by and soon it was time to go home. I had brought several newborn outfits but she was swimming in all of them.



I'm beyond thrilled to have her home where I can hold her and have her all to myself, but it's kinda scary to walk away from the security of the hospital NICU. By the way...her discharge weight was 5lbs 14oz!

{My sister in law & brother}

Plan to Go Home

We have a date for discharge -- this Saturday!! Assuming all goes well this week, I will 'room-in' with her at the hospital on Friday night and we'll go home Saturday morning. It was also decided that Serena needs to be sent home on a monitor, and so yesterday I got training on using the monitor. She will stay on the monitor until her breathing pattern reaches maturity, about 44 weeks post-conceptional age.

{She weighed 5lbs 10oz today!}

{Her sweet smile}

{She's so serious}

{1st Bath}

Birth Story

The day before the c-section I got a phone call from my OB office asking me to come in that afternoon. I asked why they wanted me to come in since my weekly appointment was the next day, but the receptionist didn't know why, she was just doing what the doctor asked. I arrived at the office and my OB came into the room, and I asked if there was any special reason she wanted me to come in today. She tells me yes, and then hesitated a bit. She said before I go into that let's check your cervix. So she does and immediately says "I knew it - you're 4cm dilated! You're having the baby tomorrow!" Then she tells me that she had a dream the night before that I had the baby and that her intuition is always right so that's why she had me come into the office. I was not sure exactly how to respond to that, I was more fixated on the 'you're having the baby tomorrow' part of the conversation. I got scared that she was in fact going to be born prematurely and I started to cry. But my doctor reassured me that I had done all that I possibly could for my baby and my cervix simply could not handle things any longer.

So I drove home in a daze and immediately made phone calls, text messages, etc. letting folks know the big news. I packed my bag, and I needed to rest but I was so wired it was hard to fall asleep, but I finally drifted off around 1am.

My sister in law was unfortunately out of town and there was no way she would be able to get back in time, so my friend Mary and my doula Laura were going to be with me at the hospital. Mary drove me to the hospital and my brother was also there but hung out in the waiting room. I had to be at the hospital at noon and the c-section was scheduled for 4pm.After two attempts they got my IV in and hooked me up to the monitors. I was definitely feeling contractions at that point, but they were not really painful, I tell this to the nurse and she looks at me quizzically. She says not only am I having contractions, but that I was having contractions every 1-2 minutes! Huh, what?! I was only feeling some of the contractions and I didn't think they were all that bad. This whole labor experience was nothing like I had experienced previously.

{Laura & me smiling through contractions}

Mary, Laura and I relaxed in the room while the nurse came in and out. At 3pm the nurse came back in the room all gowned up and said that my c-section had been moved up an hour and that we were going into the OR now! Hospital policy is to only have one support person in the OR so I decided that Mary would be in there while my doula waited behind the door.

{Mary suited up for the OR}

The nurse walked me into the OR and they got me ready for the spinal. After the spinal was placed, and before the c-section began, my doctor tried to remove the cerclage but she said I was too far dilated and she couldn't get to it, so I'll have to wait until my first post partum appointment to get it removed. I remember even though I wasn't cold, I couldn't stop shuddering. I could feel the pressure as they worked on getting her delivered.


After 54 days on bed rest, my sweet baby girl was born at 4:08pm on 7/14/11 at 34 weeks+2days, weighing 5 lbs 6 oz, and 18 1/2 inches long!

As soon as I heard her cry I started to cry. It was the most beautiful sound I’d ever heard. Mary cut the cord and then they brought her around to me so I could see her for a few seconds, and then she was passed to the NICU nurses.

Mary then went with the baby to the NICU. Mary coincidentally is a pediatrician, so I asked if she wouldn't mind going to the NICU with the baby, giving me a play by play, and take pictures. Later, Mary explained to me that when the baby was first taken to the NICU she was initially intubated and then given cerfactin for her lungs, but then after that was administered it was removed and she only required a nasal cannula.

When Mary left the room, my doula Laura stayed by my side as I was stitched up. My external incision was sealed with surgical glue, which means no stitches or staples! About 20 minutes later I was wheeled from the OR to the NICU so I could see the baby.

As soon as they placed her in my arms the whole room melted away, the moment I gazed at my daughter I was totally overwhelmed with joy and cried from sheer happiness.
My brother was there and he gave me a big hug and told me that the baby was cute :)

I only got to spend a few minutes with her until they took me to my room. I wanted to be with my baby so badly but I was grateful for the rest. I really don't remember anything about those first few hours back in the room, and really most of the night is a blur too. But by 4am I was desperate to see my baby! The spinal had long worn off but I was still on an IV. The nurses were like don't push yourself too hard dear, but I was not to be deterred. So they brought in a wheelchair and I got out of bed and they wheeled me to the NICU. The nurse handed my daughter to me and a feeling of euphoria washed over me. I love her SO much!!



A big thanks to Mary for taking pictures. I told her that if she wasn't such a great doctor she should think about becoming a photographer!

Caffeine Therapy for Preemies

Many people rely on a caffeine kick from their morning coffee to boost their critical thinking. But for premature infants, a dose of caffeine may help with more vital functions, such as breathing. Premature babies commonly suffer from 'Apnea of Prematurity' - as their lungs have not developed completely and their nervous systems are immature, babies literally forget to breathe.

Last night while I was there, Serena had an apnea incident where she had to be mildly stimulated, so they started her on caffeine today. Experts are not sure exactly how caffeine helps infants breathe better, but they do know that the stimulant activates a respiratory control centre at the base of the brain, which in turn communicates with the diaphragm.

She'll stay five more days and send her home on a monitor.

Feeding Tube Removed Today

Look at that cute face!!! I love her so much!!!

One Week Old

I can't believe it was seven days ago that little one came into my life.

Time for Me to Go Home

I'm getting discharged today, but it's going to be a few more weeks at least before little girl can come home. It's gonna be hard to go home without her but I just keep reminding myself that I need to use this time wisely to heal from the csection, get my sleep and prepare for her homecoming. She's a great little sleeper and the NICU nurses already have her on a schedule to feed every 3 hours.

I'm in the process of writing the birth story and will post it soon...until then, here's a picture of her yesterday - notice that she's now completely off the oxygen, she just has the feeding tube.

Welcome Baby Girl

Serena is here!

Born on July 14, 2011 at 4:08 pm,

weighing in at 5 lbs 6 oz and measuring 18 1/2 inches long.

At 34 weeks + 2 days, she's a preemie.

She's doing really well though,

she has a few common preemie medical issues

but the doctors are confident they'll be resolved over time.

I'm crazy in love with her!!!

I'm Having a Baby

More specifically, I'm having a baby TOMORROW!!!!

So here's the story...my weekly OB appointment was scheduled for tomorrow but I got a call this morning from the OB office that they want me to come in this afternoon instead. I asked why and the receptionist didn't know. So I get there and the doctor checks my cervix and I am now 4 cm dilated and the cerclage stitch is starting to give!!! She was like -- I knew it! She tells me that she had a dream about me having the baby and felt it was important to get me in today to be checked. She said her dreams/intuitions are always correct!

I wasn't sure what to say, I think I said OMG about fifty times and then I couldn't keep the tears from coming. I'm so excited about meeting her but she's 6 weeks early and I don't want her to be in the NICU, also my sister in law is out of town and doesn't get back until saturday so she's going to miss it :(

Holy Moly folks!

34 Weeks

Bedrest: 54 days and counting! I know bed rest is best for baby so I take it very seriously, but I just wanna get out of the house!

How Big is the Baby: Average size: 17.2-18.7 inches, 4.2 - 5.8 lb. Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through the stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs! Growth inside the womb is starting to slow, and her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. Babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the nicu and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run they usually do as well as full-term babies.

33 Weeks

Bedrest: Day 47 and counting! Every time I start to get bored, I rub my belly. Sure enough, she starts to move and I think about how wonderful it will be when I'm able to hold her.

How Big is the Baby: Weeks 33-36 (month 8) the baby is now about the size of a honeydew. Average size: 17.2-18.7 in, and 4.2-5.8 lb

*Update 7/7/11* I had my weekly OB appointment today...I'm still 1 cm dilated so no change from last week! She thinks I may still go a few more weeks which of course would exceed all expectations! A healthy baby and no time in the NICU is the ultimate goal!

Weight Gain: No change, I haven't gained any weight in the past month. My OB was impressed that I haven't gained a ton of weight on bedrest, but I told her I'm no saint -- my brother & SIL buy my groceries for me and I lovingly have dubbed them the "food police". Even if I ask for junk food they won't get it for me. Damn it, sometimes I have a serious craving and a bag of grapes just ain't gonna cut it! LOL

Emotionally it has been tough for me lately. As I get closer to meeting her I am more sad about not having my mom around. I feel that she is watching over me but it isn’t the same. Not having her around and not being able to ask her about her experiences is proving to be a lot harder emotionally than I thought it would be. I try to be strong but I fill up with tears more often than I care to admit.