Photo of the cuteness

I absolutely LOVE this picture of him in his Snuggle Nest. He is so cute,
alert and happy!

Alton's Birth Story

This is long. If you want to see any of the pictures click on them to make them bigger.

Like everyone else on the board, I thought I would have my baby early. My husband was born two weeks early; and never mind that I was born two weeks late; I was convinced Alton would make an early appearance. My due date came, and went. Thursday morning at 5 AM, four days past my due date, I lost my mucous plug and there was bright red blood on the toilet paper. Because I had two previous abruption episodes, I was convinced this meant another one had occurred and I would be having my baby that day.

Travis and I went to the hospital and I was sent for a NST and fluid check. The told me that both the baby and I were fine. I had an OB check-up later that morning, so we went from the hospital to Dr. Lynch’s office. The news was distressing. I was only 90% effaced and a finger tip
dilated. Because I had convinced myself that today was baby day, I asked her to induce me, even though we took Bradley training and it went against our birth plan. She informed me that I was “not a favorable candidate for induction and that it was not likely that I would be going into labor over the weekend. She scheduled another NST and fluid check for Monday morning. Since I would be 41 weeks and one day on Monday, she also scheduled me for an induction on Monday evening. I cried and went home with Travis.

Monday morning came. We packed up the car, kenneled the dogs, and went to the hospital. We were convinced we had done all of this in vain and that we would be returning home that night.

Alton passed his non-stress test with flying colors. Travis and I discussed it and even though I was soooo tired of being pregnant, we decided to wait until Thursday to let Dr. Lynch induce me. We thought that surely by then, I would go into labor.

They sent me downstairs to get my fluid level checked. We went down and chatted back and forth about what day I thought I would go into labor… they hooked me up to the machine and the tech started making noises as she scanned Alton. They sent me back upstairs and we were fully expecting to go home. Instead, the nurse handed me a hospital bracelet and took me to a room. We told her that we had decided to postpone the induction. Rae Ann (the triage nurse)
told me that my fluid level had only been 3 mm and my doctor had instructed her to begin an induction. Travis and I were both startled, and I said, “But we haven’t even fought about that!” Because even though I’d said I wanted to wait until Thursday, I really wanted to have
my baby sooner.

We called Maggie who had to come up from San Diego and I changed into my hospital gown. The placed the Cervadil and hooked me up to the monitors. Because I was being medicated, constant monitoring was required.

Alton hated all of the ultrasound equipment, especially the contraction monitor. I hated it because it meant I couldn’t get up and walk around to try to stimulate labor naturally.

Maggie and I decided to send Travis home. They weren’t going to start Pitocin until 1 AM. Maggie figured that the chair that unfolded into a bed wasn’t long enough for Travis and my real labor wouldn’t start until morning anyway. At about 11, Alton ’s heart started to race. It remained high for a while, so they removed the Cervadil and his heart rate returned to normal. Once Alton ’s heart had normalized, Travis went home to get a good night’s sleep.

They started the Pitocin at about 1:15. I had to get up to go to the bathroom about every 30 minutes. I was unable to get the solid sleep I wanted to get before labor hit. The pitocin contractions never got very strong; in fact, I’ve had worse period cramps. Then about 5:30, Alton ’s heart would decelerate after every contraction. The nurse came in and told me that she had called my doctor, and stopped the pitocin. I thought she would tell me that my doctor was coming in to break my water. Instead, when I came back from yet another trip to the bathroom, she had a razor in her hand.

I asked her, “What is the razor for?”

“They told me to prep you for your c-section.”

“My what?”

She shaved me and left the room. A new nurse came on at 7. By this time, Maggie was awake and aware of what was going on. We asked the bright eyed nurse, “When will my c-section be?” She said likely around 9. We called Travis and then Maggie left so that she could pick up her daughter Hannah who was staying at our house with Trav’s Aunt Laurel. She had to take her over to my friend Roxanne’s house so that she could watch her during the day.

While both Maggie and Travis were gone, the nurse came back in and gave me some NASTY sour tasting stuff. She said it would neutralize the contents of my tummy. Still no Travis. She unhooked all of the monitors and then left. She came back and said that there had been a cancellation and that my c-section had been moved up to 7:15, which was in 20 minutes. Travis came in just before they wheeled me off to surgery. Dr. Lynch came in and we asked her if Maggie could come into the room with us. She said it was okay with her, but not up to her, we
had to ask the anesthesiologist.

At this point, the reality of my situation set in and I started to cry. Every pregnancy book I read had a chapter on c-sections. I ALWAYS skipped it because I was going to have natural child birth. On the tour of both hospitals we toured, I would get the chills whenever they would show us where c-sections occurred. I always told myself, “it doesn’t matter, I am having natural
childbirth.”

As they wheeled me into the overly lit operating room, I started to shake. I cried even more. The anesthesiologist introduced himself and had me sit up. He missed 4 times!!!!!!! On the fourth miss, he hit a nerve and it sent pain spasms through my entire body. He FINALLY inserted whatever it was he inserted for my spinal block. I heard him tell the nurse, it was MY fault he missed so many times because I was so overweight. I was about to get upset and say
something, but then the spinal started to work. It was the most awful sensation.

Then I started to panic. I COULD NOT BREATHE. At least, I couldn’t feel myself breathing. I told the nurse, “I can’t breathe.” She assured me that I could. So I started saying over
and over again, “I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe.” The anesthesiologist’s response was to yell at me and to cram an oxygen mask over my face. This made me even more claustrophobic. I started to try to take the mask off, but my hands weren’t working. So I waved them in the air as much as I could, which wasn’t much because of the drugs. My head was turned to the side, and I saw my doctor’s purse as she walked in.

I heard him tell her, “she is very combative, I had to tie her hands down, we have to get this baby out of her.” I was still trying to move my restrained hands when they finally let Travis in.

At this point, I did not know, but Maggie had gotten back to the hospital just in time to see Travis going to the OR, and he was able to get her into the OR with us so that she could see Alton being born. The nurses had told her no, so it was lucky she saw Travis.

When he came in, I told him immediately about my breathing situation. Surely he could do something to overpower the mean anesthesiologist. But my husband just assured me that I could breathe. He informed that if I was talking, I could breathe. But in my head, my voice was getting lower and lower in volume. I was absolutely beside myself, but thankfully, my husband was able to lovingly stroke my head and relax me. I heard Dr. Lynch say that they were getting started….

When they opened me up, they were able to see the head, but he crawled up higher! Dr. Lynch’s assistant OB was Dr. Mendoza. She is a tiny, tiny 5 foot tall woman who might weigh 100 pounds when soaking wet. Travis was sitting behind the curtain stroking my head, when all of a sudden, he saw this tiny little woman flying through the air. She had to body slam the top of my body to get Alton to move down! Then she used her forearm to extrude my baby from my body. L

Thankfully, I was unaware of this at the time. It was a good thing they did the c-section. I had absolutely no fluid left at all. On A Baby Story when they do a section, you always hear them tell the mother that she will feel some pressure. I felt no pressure when they cut Alton out of me. I know it is silly, but I am sad I didn’t get to feel him leaving my body.

At this point, I was still completely out of it. Maggie took some great photos and the mean anesthesiologist somewhat redeemed himself and instructed Maggie where to stand to get the best pictures. I heard Maggie exclaim when they lifted him out, “Oh Jen, he is beautiful and he has dark hair!” Well she was half right, he is beautiful, but he ended up with Daddy’s red hair.

It was really important to us that we were the first ones to hold our baby; and we weren’t because of the section. But as soon as they had him weighed, measured and cleaned up, Travis
brought him over to me and placed him on my chest. They had untied my hands at some point and I was able to use one of them to stroke his tiny head. I just stared at him through my opium-like haze.

They took him away to go to the nursery. Travis went with him and I was wheeled off to recovery. I got the absolute worst itching from the morphine they gave me. I scratched my face and chest like I had fleas. They gave me some Benadryl to make the itching go away, but it too, put me into a catatonic state.

The whole rest of the first day is a big blur. I remember two candy stripers coming in and saying that they had something I knew I wanted;

“My baby is here?”

“No we just brought you some beautiful flowers.”

My disappointment was evident. I ended up waiting three hours before they brought him to me.

When Travis and the nurse finally brought Alton in, I was completely foggy from the Benadryl and the morphine. The nurse said he was hungry, so Maggie and the nurse put my bed into a sitting position. He latched onto my nipple immediately and began to suck. “My goodness, you’ve got yourself a little Hoover there!”

Then that night, Travis was in a bad mood and I still felt drugged out of my mind. We decided to send him to the nursery after I fed him at midnight. The nurse assured me that they would bring him to me to eat at 3. They never brought him!

I woke up at 8:30 yearning for my little boy and he was still in the nursery. I did not know any better and just assumed it was okay that he slept through the night.

The next night, the same thing happened. I woke up at 7:30 and decided to talk to the nursery and get him myself. They had told me that they would bring him in for a feeding at 5:30. I assumed that he was being cared for and just slept through. When I got there, there were four nurses in the nursery. One was taking care of a new arrival, but the others were chatting. I found Alton in a corner, screaming his head off. Not only was he crying, but his diaper was
soaked and poopy. He got diaper rash from sitting there in his dirty diaper. The nursery pediatrician was in there so I asked her if he had diaper rash. She looked at him and said he did. I found diapering supplies and changed him right then. While I was changing him, I found a note in his bassinette stating he should be brought back at 5:30 for a feeding.

I was crushed. I slowly wheeled him in his bassinette back to our room and fed him. I called my nurse into the room, but she did not know why he hadn’t been brought back for a feeding at
three and the nurse who had been in charge of us was off at 7.

He went on to continue to feed and sleep well. We came home from the hospital on Saturday with the crew for Bringing Home Baby. But that is an overly long story for another day.

There are good points to this story. My fluid level was non-existent when they got him out, so it is a good thing it happened when it did. He was already not responding well to the induction, so he never would have handled real labor. Both my husband and my best friend were able to be there to see Alton ’s birth.

Alton is in perfect health and eats and sleeps well. We all survived even when I was sure I wasn’t going to. If you made it all the way to the end of this, thank you for reading. J

Yes, still no baby

I went to my dr. appointment yesterday and I cried. Not only did the castor oil not give me so much as a toot, my cervix was less effaced than last time and still not one centimeter dilated. I cried. Even with Travis there with me, I asked Dr. Lynch to induce me and she said I was "not favorable" for induction. She said she could induce me today, but I would have a 75% chance of ending up with a c-section. This is because the baby is still floating and has not gotten his little head down into the pelvis.

The good news is that I have started to lose pieces of my mucous plug, so who knows? Maybe I won't make it to my next NST and biophysical profile on Monday. On Monday, if I am looking more favorable towards induction, she will induce me after all of my tests are done.

So we had to make arrangements for Jack and Lucy. If Alton had come on time like he was supposed to, Uncle Alex was going to stay here with them and walk them and stuff for free. But Al starts his new job on Monday in Santa Monica, so he is unavailable for dog watching. Now on our way to the hospital on Monday, we are dropping them off at a boarding kennel by the other hospital. I know they will be safe there and they give the puppies a bath the day you are going to pick them up that includes an ear cleaning and toe-nail trimming. WHOOT! Having someone else trim their nails is worth every penny, trust me.

I found out that the low lying pain i have frequently isn't a weird contraction. It is Alton's little head trying to descend into the pelvis. Now that I know what it is, it makes it a lot easier to endure.

So it is starting to feel real now, I could have a baby on Monday or Tuesday!

Still No Baby: Day 3 past D Day

I am really trying to not take it personally. So my son doesn't want to meet me. That's fine. :(

Travis and I went to six stores last night looking for castor oil. I am really to that point. The threee drug stores we tried were closed, and Pavilions and neither Ralphs had any.

The UPS man just delivered The Lorax by. Dr. Seuss. I don't remember it from childhood, but it looks good.

Still No Baby

Last night was kind of exciting; I thought I was in labor. I had strong contractions for about 3 hours, 10 minutes apart. Then they just stopped. I am mostly okay with that because it means I was able to sleep a deep, whole night's sleep. I am afraid of going into labor at bed time because it means I will not be well rested for labor. I am sort of disapointed though because it means I am still pregant, and even worse, over due.

Kristina brought John John and Elayna over yesterday and we went to the pool. John John did not want to swim, he just wanted to splash everyone. We had a good time, and they stayed and joined us for tacos that Travis made without complaint. :)

The dogs are currently fracasing and causing a commotion. It is entertaining when they do that. :)

Alton Update

Tomorrow is my due date. I have been having contractions this morning, but nothing consistent enough to time. :(
At my doctor appointment on Thursday, I am a finger tip dilated, 90% effaced, and Alton is 1/2 way between -2 & -1 station. Whoot! Although, I think he is further down now because there was a visible change in the slope of my belly yesterday. Also, my contractions are starting to hurt more. While not fun, it is a sign that things are happening!!!
Travis got REALLY nervous yesterday. I think the doctor's appointment made him realize, "Holy criminey! We are having a baby!" He was running around the house yesterday morning like a chicken with it's proverbial head cut off. It was cute. I really hoped for his sake, that I would just go into labor so that he didn't have to stress about it anymore.

**************************************************************

Week Forty
Much of the vernix has vanished but you will notice traces on her body.
15% of your child's body is fat. Since he hasn't learned to shiver yet, these fat stores will help regulate his temperature.
Approximately 60 - 75 percent is water!
Your baby's chest sticks out, almost as if he's ready to strut proudly over his accomplishment!
His lungs will continue developing until birth. They are manufacturing large quantities of surfactant which works to keep the air sacs open.
He continues to grow; his hair and nails longer as well. You may need to trim those fingernails soon after birth or protect his face from scratches with mittens.
Small breast buds are present on both sexes.
The baby now weighs 7.6 pounds (3462gm) and is 20.2 inches (51.2cm) long.
Congratulations! Any day now you will be cradling your son! Cherish the moments and learn all you can about this new personality in your life. They go by all too fast!

Alton Update

The lanugo has mostly disappeared, but you'll probably find a bit on his shoulders, arms and legs and in those protected little bodily creases. It will vanish completely on its own in time.
His lungs are maturing and surfactant production is increasing and fully prepared to take on the outside world!
Your baby doesn't have much room to move and certainly mom agrees! Did you imagine 8 months ago that this wee one would be able to hook a toe in your ribs while elbowing your bladder? He certainly has grown!
His body continues laying on the fat stores that will help regulate his body temperature after birth. In addition to normal fat, he is accumulating a special "brown" fat in the nape of his neck, between his shoulders and around organs. Brown fat cells are important for thermogenesis (generating heat) during his first weeks.
Your infant's weight is around 7.25 pounds (3288gm) and length is 19.9 inches (50.7cm).

I am so ready for him to be "Done". He isn't making me overly uncomfortable. Thankfully he has not been playing bongos with my ribs. But I do have the gosh awful heartburn.

When I went to the doctor on Thursday, I was not dilated AT ALL. She said I was about 40% effaced, but to be honest, I think she was being charitable because she knew how disappointed I was about not progressing.

I have been having weird uterus twinges and discomfort "down there". My Bradley teacher assures me this is normal and I am taking it as a sign that things are getting warmed up for the big day.

We asked a couple of couples from our home group to come to the hospital to lay hands on me and pray with us when I go into labor. Dave and Roxanne were one of the couples and they will be in Texas until tomorrow. So Travis would like for me to wait until at least Wednesday to go into labor. Dave was so touched that we would ask him, that Travis is convinced that God won't let me go into labor until Dave can be there.

Travis is going to bring his laptop to the hospital and we got a new digital camera to take fabulous pictures of our new little boy when he arrives, so we should be able to post stuff quickly upon his arrival.

Thank you all for your kind comments. :)