Audrey Rose

I've finally got a minute (and the energy) to write out the "birth story" of Audrey. I know a lot of people have been waiting to hear about it, and I'll try to do my best to include all of the details everyone is wanting to know.

As I mentioned earlier in the blog, I was having high blood pressure issues and my doctor was getting concerned about my health. He decided to have me induced on Friday, June 3rd. We were on-call and just had to wait for a phone call from labor and delivery telling us when to come to the hospital to get things going. They called bright and early at 6:30am and told us to be there by 7:30. Since we knew when I would be going to the hospital we already had all of our things packed so it was a quick and easy morning for us. We got to the hospital, checked in, I got in my *lovely* gown, and after an examination they decided to start me on Pitocin. The doctor was concerned at my previous appointment that I would need Cerdivil to help ripen my cervix, but I had apparently made good process that week.

For a long time I was having contractions but didn't feel much at all. I was still making progress and the doctor eventually came in to break my water. That was not a very comfortable experience at all! The doctor asked how I was doing and told me, "contractions are going to get pretty mean from here on out." They kept asking if I wanted my epidural yet, but I didn't feel like I was in enough pain to have one. I wasn't really sure how bad things would get so I was trying to go as long as I could before asking for one. When I finally decided to give in and get it the nurse told me that the girl in the room next to me was getting hers and that it would be about 15 minutes. I was sure I could last that long. My contractions QUICKLY got harder and faster and I was crying in pain five minutes after asking for the pain meds. It was the worst pain I've ever felt in my life and I hated that nothing I could do was making the pain easier. Tony was trying counter-pressure moves, I was trying to breathe well, but it just was too much for me. FINALLY the epidural came and all was well again in the world. After the medicine kicked in the nurse checked me and told me that I had labored to 8cm and 90% effaced on my own with no medication. No wonder it hurt! I was a little relieved that I wasn't just being a pansy, and proud of myself for going that long! The nurse told me if she had known I was that far along she would have given me the epidural first.

All the family took Tony to the cafeteria for lunch after I was feeling pretty good and right after I left the nurse checked me and said that I was nearly "complete" and told me to call Tony and tell him not to leave the hospital. The doctor didn't want me to start pushing because my body was doing well at pushing the baby down on its own. He didn't want to make me use all of my energy pushing when I didn't need to. On its own, my body pushed her past my pelvis and about an hour after I called Tony the nurse had me start pushing. The nurse kept saying how impressed she was with how well I did (I'm sure she says that to everyone). I pushed for about an hour, and then little Audrey was born. She weighed 6lbs, 7oz and was 21 inches long. The doctor commented on how little she was. She's a super skinny little girl!

I'm recovering from everything really well, and I've been up doing things since about day 3 postpartum. We are still adjusting to live with a baby. It's amazing how differently I do things now. We are trying our best to get sleep and its been really great having my mom here for a couple weeks to help us adjust. We sure love our little Audrey!

Question of the Day

How am I supposed to try to keep my blood pressure down while knowing that the doctor will deliver by June 3rd at the LATEST?

Please, enlighten me.

I have to go in to the hospital twice a week until June 3rd to make sure baby isn't affected by my super high blood pressure. He wants to keep her in another week and is planning on June 3rd. Holy Crap.

Getting So Close!

I try not to ONLY blog about pregnancy and the baby, but that's all I really have going on for me right now. To quote Tony, "all of our dates involve a trip to the doctor or hospital."

We have had some semi-eventful things happen in the world of baby lately. I had an appointment on Tuesday with the doctor and everything was just peachy. My blood pressure was higher than *my* normal, but still in the normal range so no one was worried. On Thursday night I got a really bad headache. I've suffered from migraines since my freshman year of college, so I'm familiar with how painful a headache can get. Unfortunately for me, this latest one was pretty bad and none of my migraine prescriptions are okay for a pregnant Hollie to consume. I remembered the doctor telling me that if I experienced any headaches with visual disturbances that I need to call him. This was also tricky because my migraines always produce what I call "sparkles." (It looks like the little flashes you get in your eyes after you get your picture taken.) I sort of brushed this headache off, chalking it up to pregnancy causing a migraine.

I went to my Prenatal Water Aerobics class Friday morning (don't laugh!) and talked to my teacher about my headache. During class I still had a dull headache, what I call migraine hangover, and the teacher suggested maybe I go to a drugstore and take my blood pressure. So, after class I grabbed a snack and headed to the store. I took three readings and averaged them out. You have to know that my blood pressure is usually something like 119/59 -- super low numbers. The average from these three readings was 141/91. AH! I called the nurse at my doctor's office and she sent me over to the Labor & Delivery unit for some Non-Stress Testing.

My blood pressure didn't get lower as I was monitored so they drew some blood and had me do a very lovely 24-hour urine collection. I had to report back yesterday.

The results? Well my blood and urine samples were great--the nurse said my urine collection was the best she had seen in a long time, that's right--but my blood pressure still refuses to come down to normal. I was told to rest and I go back to L&D Tuesday for a non-stress test and Wednesday I see my doctor. I guess if my blood pressure keeps creeping up like this, baby might make an early appearance.

I royally freaked out while we were in the hospital Saturday. They were swamped in L&D when I showed up and so instead of putting me in Triage (the transition room, basically) they put me in an actual labor room. Like, the room where I would be delivering the baby. The room was very nice and spacious, and we'll be quite comfortable there, but it was a little weird for me to realize this is all going to happen VERY soon. The nurse kept saying stuff like, "we just want to keep her in for a couple more weeks." Here's hoping my blood pressure goes down! I don't know if I'm ready for all of this!!

Like Mother, Like Daughter

The older I get I realize more and more how similar I am to my mom. We certainly have our differences, and are in no way the SAME, but there's a lot about me that reflects who my mom is and what she's about. I came to realize this over the weekend during various activities and things I had to do. I won't go into all of the ways i feel like I'm just like my mom, but my favorite trait I inherited from her is perfectionism.

When my mom and I throw a party, it gets done to the extreme. We both try to make things look the absolute best they can and if it doesn't work out it's never good. I've spent many days early in my marriage sobbing on the floor because a cake flopped over on the floor from being too soft, a recipe tasted nasty, etc. We really like to go "all out." A lot of people think its because we want to impress other people, and there may be a hint of that in there, but it is mostly because we want everyone to have a great experience. Especially if we are throwing a party for someone else.

If you look at the pictures from the baby shower my mom threw for me you can see what I'm talking about. Every little detail was planned to perfection by my mom and I loved it. The cupcakes were beautifully frosted with little flowers piped on top, the diaper cake looked edible (even Tony said it made him want cake), even the games were printed out on scrapbook paper that matched the theme. It was the loveliest party anyone has ever thrown for me. There was nothing about the shower that I would have changed had I done it on my own. I'm really glad I got to go home for that weekend and so grateful that my mom put so much time into the party.

I'm not entirely sure why I wanted to write this post. The whole perfectionism thing has just been on my mind this weekend and I know without a doubt that I got it from my mom. While I like the fact that I inherited the desire to make things "just so" from my mom, I realize that as a mother you can't be a perfectionist. Kids aren't going to listen to you all of the time. I've been trying to tell myself this and learn to let some of my perfectionist tendencies go in preparation for motherhood.

Speaking of motherhood - my due date was a month from yesterday! CRAZY. I have a doctor's appointment today, so we'll see how it goes! I'm getting a bit impatient with this last month of pregnancy. I wish she could just come today.

Fruit Lady

I haven't had a lot of cravings this pregnancy. I've had a lot of "cravings" (things I just felt like pigging out on that I blamed on pregnancy) but no true foods that my body just wanted and needed. The one craving I have had is fruit. Beautiful, colorful, delicious fruit.

I seriously just can't get enough of it! Prior to my pregnancy if we got fruit at Costco it was often a waste of money because we couldn't consume the large quantities in time. Since about month 6, however, Costco fruit has been a weekly purchase in our home, and I eat most of it. I'm glad my craving is a healthy one at least!

I realized how bad its gotten today when I was checking out at Costco. Here's the list of things on the conveyer belt:

-4 lbs strawberries
-1 large clamshell blueberries
-1 large clamshell raspberries
-a box with probably 12 kiwis in it
-a box of frozen all-natural fruit bars (26 total!) - I've already eaten two today :)

Upon ringing me up, the little checker lady started giggling. I grinned at her, wondering what the heck she was doing, and asked, "what?" She said, "I can TOTALLY tell what you're craving!" I had to laugh, and I wasn't embarrassed because hey! It's fruit for crying out loud! No one can call me a pig for eating too much FRUIT. I know, I know.... fruit even has calories. I just feel justified in pigging out on fruit instead of cheese puffs.

In other pregnancy news, this baby is getting insanely close to being here! I can officially say that she'll be here NEXT MONTH. I am so excited but sometimes I have moments of sheer panic about all of this baby business. This usually happens when I'm alone and bored. I'm really excited to not be pregnant anymore, though. This being a huge, clumsy whale thing is getting old really fast.

Doctor Follow-Up

Yesterday was my doctor's appointment. I was really nervous to go because of all of the stuff that happened in Florida, but I was excited to make sure that baby was okay. The wait in the waiting room seemed to be an eternity and finally when they called me back and began taking all of my vitals, the nurse got a very concerned look on her face after taking my blood pressure. Oh great. When I asked her what was wrong, she asked me to put my arm up and squeeze my hand over and over. After doing this, she took my BP again, then had me walk up and down the hallways. Third time's the charm, I guess, as my BP was completely normal after my little walk. This was really strange for me because I am notorious for my low blood pressure readings. The nurse told me that sometimes the cuff she was using was a little wacky.

The doctor came in and we talked about Florida, and he smiled throughout the entire discussion. He said I was fine and to let him know about any more "excitement." He said I probably just did too much. I wish I would have had HIM in Florida with me! We could have made our flight home!! He told me that they were probably overly cautious with me because I was an out-of-towner that they hadn't seen before. Better safe than sorry, I suppose.

So, baby and I are all a-okay. She had a healthy heart rate, I'm measuring right on track, and the doctor was pleased with her activity level (though sometimes I wish she'd chill out a bit). I'm actually very glad that she moves a lot, because if something were wrong, I'd know in an instant. This little girl moves all day long it seems.

Only 7 more weeks!

Baby Room Update

I apologize for two posts in one day, but I just realized that we basically finished up baby's room this weekend! I bought some flower & butterfly decorations I've been eying at Hobby Lobby and we're so glad we got them! They really make it look like a little girl's room.

The toolbox on the shelving is NOT a permanent fixture ;)

It's really fun to have the room done! Now all we need is a cute baby to put in it.