November 2005 Birth Stories

Trey and Bella's Story

This is Trey on his "Birth Day"
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This is Bella on her "Birth Day"
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These are Trey and Bella at age 1!
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This idea that was suggested inspired me to write out Trey and Bella's story from conception to birth so that I can share it with them when they become parents. Rather than retype some, I am posting the whole thing here. Please feel free to read the whole thing or skip to the bottom where the actual "birth story" is!

Trey and Bella's web site is www.treyandbella.com if anyone is interested!

Mommy and Daddy met in August of 1995, began dating in September of 1995, got engaged in November of 1999 and finally got married on June 15, 2002! Mommy and Daddy began trying to conceive in February of 2003, predicting that it would be difficult since Mommy had no menstrual cycle. The Doctors put Mommy on a medication called provera to bring on her cycle, and would need to do this every time she needed to have one. This was particularly difficult since Mommy never knew if she was pregnant or not since there was never a period to tell her she wasn’t pregnant. Just lots of BFNs and lots of tears. The doctors discovered that Mommy did not ovulate, so prescribed a medication called Clomid in February of 2004. Mommy and Daddy tried to conceive with Clomid for 6 months, increasing the dosage as much as possible. It only made Mommy ovulate for 2 of the cycles.

Mommy and Daddy began seeing a Reproductive Endocrinologist in July of 2004. The RE did some testing and discovered that on top of Mommy’s lack of ovulation, Daddy’s sperm had low motility and low morphology even though he had a very high count. This means, they didn’t always swim in the correct direction and were not always shaped correctly (some had 2 heads or 2 tails). These less then perfect specimens would never be able to produce a baby. To increases our odds on both sides, Mommy and Daddy decided along with the RE to move to injectable fertility medications, including Follistim and a drug to release the growing follicles, along with intrauterine insemination. We did 2 cycles like this. The first was in late August/early September, resulting in a BFN. The second, in late October/early November, did not result in a pregnancy, but rather in over stimulated, very painful ovaries!

We began our in vitro fertilization process in November of 2004. Since the IVF lab closed over Christmas, and the process took about 2 months, we had to wait until the new year to begin. Mommy began protocol of 21 days of BCP on January 3, 2005. Daily Lupron injections began on January 19, 2005. Hot flashes kicked in on January 25th! Mommy began another daily injection – Follistim – on February 7, 2005. By February 15, 2006, there were 31 follicles! On February 16, Mommy had an egg retrieval and 14 eggs were removed! The embryologist performed ICSI (injected the sperm directly into the eggs) on 7 eggs and 6 fertilized. One egg was cracked and the remaining 6 were put in vials with some sperm and all fertilized. This meant there were 12 fertilized eggs growing!!!! Two more daily injections began, one of February 17th (progesterone, which I would take until 14 weeks pregnant) and one on the 18th (Medrol) to prepare Mommy’s body to accept the fertilized eggs. Daddy left for a business trip on February 18th, so Grandmom went with Mommy on February 19th to have two embryos implanted. On February 28, 2005, Mommy got a BFP on a home pregnancy test!!!! Morning sickness kicked in on March 2nd, the very same day my blood test showed and HCG level of 148, high but not too high. By March 4th, my HCG had more than doubled to 339 and then went to 1003 by March 7th, which is a great sign since its supposed to double every 3-4 days. By the 10th, it was 3672, and then skyrocketed to 28194 by the 14th of March, a sign that there were multiple babies growing inside!!!!

Mommy and Daddy had their first ultrasound on March 18, 2005 and found out there were two precious babies growing inside. The heartbeats were music to our ears! Our due date was set at November 9, 2005! Mommy and Daddy were walking around on cloud 9!

Unfortunately, our pregnancy was not an uneventful one! On March 21, Mommy began having severe pains and went to the RE’s office. He believed it was one of three things: kidney stone, appendix bursting or the extremely rare case of the ovaries twisting around the fallopian tubes. Mommy was rushed to the Emergency Room and then into exploratory laparoscopic surgery to find out that is was the right ovary twisted around the fallopian tube. This was followed by a week of bed rest at home. Before the week was over, Mommy began to bleed severely on March 27, 2005. It appeared as though a miscarriage might be inevitable. We were very lucky to see two healthy babies on ultrasound the next day. The bleeding was coming from a sub-chorionic hematoma in Mommy’s uterus, which was larger in size than the babies. Another week of bed rest was in order.

Mommy was able to return to work when she was 8 weeks pregnant. By 9 weeks, the hematoma was nearly gone and Mommy “graduated” from the Fertility Doctor’s Care (RE) to the care of her OB, who happens to specialize in high-risk pregnancies. The plan was to take Mommy out of work at 28 weeks since they were expecting the babies to arrive between 28 and 35 weeks.

Alas, this plan was not to be! Mommy started bleeding again when she was 12 weeks pregnant on April 27, 2005. We rushed to the ER immediately. No reason could be found at this time, so Mommy was put on bed rest. Mommy was able to stop taking her progesterone injections at 12 weeks (bleeding to continue until 20 weeks) and her progesterone suppositories at 14 weeks.

May 8th was a glorious day, as Mommy felt the babies move inside! What a wonderful Mother's Day! On May 29th, the OB let Mommy go to the baby furniture store in a wheel chair to pick out furniture! It was fun! Mommy and Daddy chose beautiful cherry wood cribs and dressers.

At 17 weeks, we had our first visit with the perinatologist, and found out we were having a BOY and a GIRL!!!! Mommy and Daddy were thrilled. Also, the reason for the bleeding was finally found – another subchorionic hematoma!

At our 20-week appointment with the Perinatologist, we got some very bad news. Mommy was already contracting and her cervix was funneling (opening from the inside out). Mommy is no longer allowed to sit up. Two days later, Mommy was in Labor and Delivery having contractions. The Doctor was able to stop them and sent Mommy home on Procardia. Less than 36 hours after than, we were back in Labor and Delivery and the contractions could not be stopped. Mommy was given Terbuteline injections and Indocin and admitted to the Ante-partum unit, which would be her new home until the babies were born. Terbuteline would be given every 6 hours around the clock and Indocin every 12 hours, but of course not at the same time!

By the next day, July 5, Mommy was 1 centimeter dilated and her cervix was only 1 centimeter in length.

At 24 weeks, a Fetal Fibronectin Test indicated that Mommy would deliver the twins within 2 weeks time. This is not good news, as the survival rate at this early gestation is minimal. Mommy met with the NICU doctor, who only gave them about a 10-20 percent chance of living if born this week. By 25 weeks, Mommy’s cervix was fully effaced and fully dilated. Mommy is no longer allowed to shower and her bed was tilted so her feet were way above her head! Mommy and Daddy chose the babies names in case they made their debut. Mommy also missed her baby shower this week, so Daddy and the Grandmothers brought all of the gifts to the hospital for Mommy to open!

When Mommy made it to 26 weeks, she proved that they FFn test was a false positive and speculation began that Mommy may have a dynamic cervix (one that opens and closes at will) but we will never know for certain because the Doctors cannot check for fear of breaking Mommy’s water.

At 27 weeks the babies’ fluid level was dangerously low, so Mommy was taken off Indocin for a few days. The contractions increased dramatically and more injections were needed. At 28 weeks, Mommy was put back on Indocin. By 30 weeks, the fluid was low again, and back off it we went since it would begin causing the babies’ kidneys’ to be at risk. On September 1, contractions increased severely and Mommy was given more injections of Terbrutline until they were under control. On September 2, Mommy spoke with the NICU doctor was told Mommy that though it was risky to deliver now; the babies had a fairly good chance of surviving.

By 9pm on September 3, 2005, the contractions were fast and strong and Mommy was moved to Labor and Delivery and put on a Magnesium Sulfate Drip as a last ditch effort to stop the birth. The OB was called in by midnight since it was doing nothing!

The next thing Mommy knew, Daddy was in scrubs and Mommy was in the OR lying on her side. The anesthesiologist could not get the spinal in after MANY tries (Mommy had over 20 holes in her back). Mommy’s leg started to spasm and she started to cry and the OB began screaming at the anesthesiologist to put Mommy to sleep. Mommy asked for Daddy to come in so they let him see her for a few seconds then made him leave while they put Mommy to sleep.

As soon as they put the oxygen mask on Mommy, she felt like she couldn't breathe and started to have a panic attack (this has never happened before when getting general anesthesia). The last thing Mommy remembers is my OB screaming at the anesthesiologist to get Mommy to sleep now.

When Mommy woke up in recovery, Daddy was there and told Mommy that the babies were beautiful and were doing fine. Mommy found out that Daddy did not get to see them being born since Mommy was asleep (due to the intubation and general anthesia). Mommy was upset that neither of us got to experience this, but was very glad that they let Daddy go with the babies to the NICU immediately. Grandmom and Aunt Danielle were allowed into recovery to see Mommy and then Mommy was taken to the NICU on the stretcher to see the beautiful babies before she was taken to her room. It was a very stressful experience, but it was all worth it.

Mommy and Daddy welcomed their new babies into the world on September 4, 2005 at 30 weeks and 4 days gestation!

Gerald Charles Damico, III came into the world at 1:47 am. He weighed 3 pounds and 4 1/2 ounces. He was 16 inches long. Mommy and Daddy have decided to call him Trey (which is three in Italian since he is the third).

Isabella Christine Damico came into the work at 1:49 am. She weighed 2 pounds and 14 1/2 ounces. She was 14 1/2 inches long. Mommy and Daddy have decided to call her Bella.

The next day, Mommy woke up with a spinal head ache (NOT FUN). The solution to this is to have an epidural put in and to have blood from your arm put into your dural space to clot. Mommy did not want to be stuck again, so she declined this for three days. It then got so bad, that she had the procedure on Wednesday night. It was like a miracle. The headache was GONE IMMEDIATELY. It was like heaven!

Trey and Bella were on ventilators for a few days, then c-paps, then Vapotherm. They were both feed Mommy’s milk via a tube in their mouths or noses until they developed the sucking reflex. They were both under photo therapy lights for jaundice for a few days. Trey had some eating problems with reflux so his feeding was put on a pump. Isabella developed a bad infection when she was 8 days old and we were told she might not make it. Mommy cried for days until Bella was better (thanks to lots of prayers and very strong antibiotics). Bella also had a hole in her heart (the ductus) which closed on its own by the time she was 6 months old.

Trey and Bella first nursed when they were about 3 weeks old, and when they were 24 days old; they both graduated from their isolettes and were moved into a special twin crib where they cuddled up together!

After many ups and downs, Gerald and Isabella came home with Mommy and Daddy on October 16, 2005 at six weeks old!

Trey and Bella are now precocious one year olds who like to climb steps, walk behind push toys, and eat grown up food! They love to talk and try to imitate Mommy and Daddy. They love playing with their puppies Cara and Mia too!

This has been the most amazing year of Mommy and Daddy’s lives!


UPDATE - TWO YEARS OLD!

Trey and Bella are doing great! They have learned so much in the past year and are both growing up so fast!

Let's see! What are we up to now...

• They were released from the NICU Developmental Follow-Up Program, as they are ahead of most two year olds!
• They self-weaned from nursing at 18 months
• They are both speaking in full sentences
• Potty Training is going so-so. There are weeks that they go on the potty 100% of the time and weeks where they have lots of accidents.
• Trey is sleeping a lot better and Bella still loves to sleep! Neither likes to go to bed though and they whine about it!
• Bella is the boss! She dresses herself from head to toe and insists on picking out all of her own clothes! She can throw a fit with the best of them!
• Trey still loves all things electrical and always wants to help! He loves to tell mommy "No" when he doesn't like something!
• They both love Dora and Diego, and of course all things Disney
• They are learning how to ride tricycles
• They are both doing well at Gymnastics, taking classes once a week

wow, what a scary experience, but such beautiful children. thanks for sharing

I will post pics once I can find the right disks.

Logan’s Birth Story

October 12, 2005 is still so vivid in my mind. Here is his story:

I was having a “normal” pregnancy up to about 25 weeks. In both of his u/s he looked fine and weighed more than Autumn at the same time. At my 27wk appt I mentioned to my doctor that his movement had decreased dramatically. She told me it was normal and that if I felt him 10 times in a day he was fine. I thought it was 10 times in 2 hours, but since she was my doctor I trusted her. At 31wks I had another appt and told her the same thing. She told me to drink OJ or a soda and lay on my left side. That worked for a short period of time. At my 34 wk appt I saw a different doctor and mentioned the same thing. She ordered a u/s ASAP. The earliest I was able to get an appt was 2 days later.

On Wednesday October 12, 2005 I went in for my u/s. I knew something was wrong when the tech and her student didn’t say a word to me. She finally asked if I wanted any pictures and the way she said it, it was like dooms day. So they leave me and go see the radiologist. They leave me in a room for 15 minutes with my heart just racing. At this point I knew something was wrong. They come back in and told me to go see my doctor once I left. I was able to hold back tears till I was going down the stairs to get to my car. I called my husband and told him and then I called mom and she started crying and told me to stay positive. I get to my doctors office and I was immediately escorted to a room and told to get undressed. My doc comes in and asks me if I have felt funny. I told her just some mild cramps every now and then but nothing to be alarmed about. She did an internal and said I was 2cm dilated. She listened to his heart and told me to get dressed. When she came back in she told me to sit down. She said on the scan that morning he scored a 2 out of 10. The only reason he scored a 2 was he had plenty of amniotic fluid. His heart rate was low, he had fluid around his stomach and he had fluid in his brain. My heart just dropped. She said he had to come today regardless and she did not want to deliver him at the hospital since it does not have a NICU. She said she was going to try and get me transported to Bayview. She told me to meet me at the hospital so she could monitor him before a final decision was made. So off to the hospital I go. I called my husband and he said he would be their ASAP. I called mom told her to take care of Autumn for me and to tell her I loved her.

I was admitted and my doctor met me their 10 minutes after I arrived. She did another internal and I was still at 2cm. She hooked me up to monitors and started and IV with glucose to get his heart rate up. At this point I started having contractions but they were not bad. Doc comes in to say Bayview doesn’t have a spot but JHU will take me. They were going to transport me via ambulance. Hubby and FIL show up and they decide to drive home(opposite direction) so dh could drop off his mechanics truck and grab my bags. Transport came to pick me up and a nurse escorted me. 30 minutes into the ride everything just went down hill. Near Ellicott City his heart rate started decelerating into the 50’s and my contractions were picking up. Every time I had one I had to let the nurse know. She jumped into gear told transport to put on the lights and sirens and to floor it. She got on the phone and called JHU and said we needed to detour to University of Maryland since it was closer. They approved and called them. After a bumpy ride into downtown we arrive at UofM. They denied us at the door. Nurse was mad to say the least. She got back onto the phone to JHU said I was denied and if they could still accept me. So off we went. We finally arrived at JHU and I was whisked upstairs. The nurse warned me I would have a ton of people waiting on me. I was in the room for 5 seconds and 30 people were in there. They hooked me up to a monitor, put in a catheter, put in an internal monitor and one other thing. I was answering questions left and right and then they brought in the anesthesiologist since they thought it was going to be a c-section. They then decided to do another u/s to see exactly what they were facing. During the u/s I asked for an epi even though I did not want one. It seems I can stand the pain until I’m right there. I finally told them to stop the u/s because I felt pressure. I was whisked into the largest room so my entourage would have room. The told me not to push. I started sweating so bad fighting the urge. We get into the room and I asked if I was allowed yet they said just to hold on just a little longer so they could set up. I had 2 nurses for myself and 5 doctors plus Logan’s people waiting in the room. Dh still was not there but I could not wait. I finally pushed and felt his head come out. They told me to stop while they suctioned and unwrapped his cord around his neck. They next push he came out crying. He was handed to the NICU team at the same time dh walks into the room. They showed him to me and off they went. He was born at 4:10pm weighing 3lbs 4oz and 15” long. It took forever to deliver the placenta and then they could not stop my bleeding for several hours. I did not get to see him until after 9pm. He was on a respirator for the first few hours and then placed on oxygen. He had severe IUGR (intra uterine growth restriction) and edema. They said in reality he probably weighed 2lbs 12oz. He remained at JHU for 2 ½ weeks before he was transported to a closer hospital with a stage 2 NICU. He was there for 1 week and 1 day before he came home on November 8, 2005. At that time they told me that he had failed both his newborn hearing screening test and he needed to see and audiologist.

In the beginning of December he saw his eye doctor and got the all clear. His audiologist said there was hearing loss but the test could not tell the extent and what part of the ear was affected so she sent us to JHU for a brain stem test. In January we went and it was confirmed that he has moderate hearing loss that iit s permanent but it is correctable with hearing aids. That was a relief when both dh and I thought he may be deaf. In January he also got the all clear from his cardiologist that both his holes had closed up and the nuerologist gave him the all clear.

It's been a trying time year and I am so much stronger because of it. I worry everyday wondering how much he will get teased and stares. He is saying more consenant and vowel sounds together and calls me "mama" so that is a gift in itself.

Pics

3 hours old
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He looked so peaceful in this pic
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Helping me do the laundry
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I think it's time for me to post Liza's story
We don't have pic of Liza when she was first born ( they didn't allow to bring cameras in that NICU due to privacy breach that happened right when she was born), but here couple pics of Liza
That's Liza's first day home- she is 6 weeks old, byt 36 weeks GA
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And that's her now

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Here is the story
Me and DH met in 1990, started dating in 1993, got married in 1995. I had m/c in 1995 and went on BC. We moved to States in 1997 and since it was stressful time and we needed to build life here we decided to wait a little before having kids. I was done with nursing school in 2002, but we started TTC in 2001 and nothing was happening. Waited to 2003 and my OB/GYN was not really worried about what was going on, so i started pushing towards figuring out what's wrong. We had all possible tests and everything came back negative. We were diagnosed with unexplained infertility. I had to change my OB doc because of insurance change, and my new OB did not take any time waiting and sent us to RE specialist. I was started on Clomid, which did not work, than Clomid and IUIs - 3 cycles, did not work, we scheduled to start IVF process, and while we were waiting for initial interveiw, I was put on Femara with IUI ( just to keep myself busy and don't lose any time!). And guess what! I got pregnant! Our IVF interview was scheduled for March 22 2005, and i called them on March 21 and told them i was pregnant. Blood work was done, confirmed i was pregnant, then we did u/s , found beating heart and i went back to my usual OB. For the most part my pregnancy was uneventful, i felt really good, no m/s, nothing. It was very stressful for me in terms of DH behavior, but that's a different story. Around 20 weeks i started having a lot of Brakston Hicks and a lots of discharge, but my OB was not concerned about it at all. So, I was approaching 27 weeks, worked weekend right before that, and had tons of Brakston Hicks. Called my OB and doc on call told me to get some rest., drink a lot of water and not worry much. I did. That following Monday we went to Babies R Us to look for baby's furniture, came home, ate dinner and i was on Internet, lurking on our board. I felt like i just peed myself, but i did not feel myself peeing. I went to bathroom, and took my underwear off, and i had wet spots on it - sorry if TMI. I made my DH to look at that, but he also thought it was urine. And then i felt more fluid coming out. I freaked out! Told DH we are going to hospital, called OB, and we were at the hospital in 10 minutes. I got admitted and nobody beleived my water broke, my cervix was closed, they kept checking and checking, and then more water came out, in huge amount! Did an u/s, baby was ok, but amniotic fluid level was really low. OB came and talked to me and since i was only 27 weeks along, they had to transfer me to another hospital where was the highest level NICU. It did not settle in at first, but by the time i was in L&D high risk maternity i freaked out completely! I was praying for the best, and hoping since that was A GIRL, she would survive. Nicu doctors came in and scared us even more. I got steroid shots and was started on antibiotiocs. The plan was since i did not have contractions and my cervix was closed to keep me pregnant as long as possible for Liza's sake. I was put on a bedrest with bathroom priviliges and lasted another 3 weeks. I was told i would eventually get an amniotic fluid infection and than have to deliver, and that's what happened. It was Monday , exactly 3 weeks after my water broke, and DH just left hospital to go home and do some stuff for work and I just did nto feel right. Complained to a doctor, he said it probably was ok. I started getting chills about an hour later, called a nurse, and I had a fever, like 104. I also started feeling contractions, and they moved me from high risk antepartum to high risk L&D. They told me i had to deliver vaginally for the best outcome. I was freaking out really bad, called my mom and could not reach DH, who was sleeping. So, my dad drove to wake DH up and my mom and sister came in as well. I was started on pitocin to speed up a process. Then anesthesia doctor came in and I wanted epidural and doctor started saying "You might have sepsis, anfd I don't want to give you an epidural, so iyou don't get a spinal abcess and don't sue me later on". DH and I got scared and decided to go without epidural. Pitocin finally kicked in and pain was so intence, i could not even breathe, was screaming and yellin, and demended an epidural. Anesthesiologist was angry with me, btu put an epidural in , and i cannot even tell you what a relief it was! Later i was told it was so painful because of infection I( thank you very much, and why nobody bothered to tell me beforehand?!). So, another 3 hours went by, and i kept asking a nurse to go to bathroom, to urinate, btu she kept forgetting a bedpan. And then, around 3:30 am they lost Liza's heartbeat! I never was more sacred in my life! They called a doctor, checked me and found i was complete and Liza was on her way out with contractions! Immediatly room was filled with people, my DH and mom were in the corner having a heart attack, i started pushing at 3:45 am and at 3:49 am Liza was born! I was so scared i wanted to get her out as fast as i could! I remember my mom saying "oMG, she is so small", and DH fainting. Liza did not cry, was wiscked away, her Apgars were 6 and 7. Then she started breathing on her own, but they still had to put her on a ventilator to give drugs to help her lungs to mature. I started bleeding, which stopped fast, then spiked another fever and started shaking so bad i could not even breathe. We did not hear anything about Liza and i was really scared and DH believed i was going to die. But we survived! Liza was on a ventilator for 5 hours and by the time they were ready to take tube out, she took it out by herself! She did not require more oxygen, but was under bili lights for 7 days due to severe jaundice. Both me and her were septic, and were on antibiotics. Other than that she was just perfect, very tiny , but perfect. My milk came in on second day after delivery and they started to feed her right away. Unfortunately, she never latched on, so I pumped for 7 months. Liza spent 6 weeks in NICU (well, part NICU, part step-down), her main issue was inability to eat from a bottle, but at 35 weeks GA it resolved and week later she came home. She was cleared by eye doctor and everybody else, gained weight and caught up on all milestones. She is very stubborn and knows very well what she does and doesn't want to do. She wants to walk really bad, but affraid of falling and walks holding to 1 or 2 hands. I cannot even imagine her to be any different and we both, me and DH feel very fortunate to have her, and now talking to start TTC#2 in November/December
Thanks for reading my novel

Ainsley's birth story...

Ainsley Elayne
October 27, 2005
11:55 a.m.
9 lbs. 6 oz.
21” long

On Wednesday night, Oct. 26th, at about 6:30, my water broke. Since we were scheduled for an induction the next evening, things were pretty much ready to go. We headed to the hospital where we were very pleased to find that they were not busy, so they put us straight into a delivery room. The nurses let me go until midnight to see if I would make any progress on my own before beginning the pitocin to stimulate labor. Unfortunately, at midnight, I was still only 2 cm. dialated, just as I had been the week before at my appointment, so we began the pitocin. Contractions started coming and we watched them on the monitor. Around 4 a.m. I had an epidural (thank goodness) and at about 9:30 Dr. Iyer came in and said I was at 10! About a half an hour later we started pushing. Pushed for an hour and 45 minutes, but you were just too big. When I would push, your heart rate would go way too high, so Dr. Iyer decided we needed a C-section. At 11:55 you were born and I have never heard such a wonderful sound as the cry that you gave when you came out. Welcome to the world Miss Ainsley, we love you.

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and now...
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Declan Pierce Johnston
October 19th, 2005 - 1:51 pm
5lbs 11.9oz, 19"

On October 8th, Matt, my mom and I got up bright and early to met Matt's mom and Aunt at a 3D ultrasound place. Matt's Aunt had offered to pay for the Ultrasound just as a keepsake.

When we arrived for our designated appointment time, we were told that one of the machines was down but they would be with us as soon as possible. My time came and the tech gave me a little bit of flack because I had gone past the suggested gestational age and said it may be a little hard to get any good footage. I was 33 weeks along according to my calculations, 35 weeks according to my US. We all crowded into the room and I got on the table. When the tech started probing around to find Declan she got really quiet and started taking a bunch of measurements and changing the settings on her machine. Then she kinda freaked out, said something was wrong and left the room. I was devastated to say the least. They center tried to contact their head honcho to take a look at the scan, but there was no answer. The tech came back and told me that my amniotic fluid was very low - about 5.5 with 5 being at the very very bottom of "safe" levels. They crowded me into a back room and asked to speak with my midwives. After they spoke with Mary and Sue, I spoke with them and they told me that they were not concerned, but wanted me to go to Banner Desert and have an NST done that day.

Matt and I decided to postpone going to the hospital because my baby shower was scheduled for that afternoon. So we went home, got ready and had a wonderful baby shower.

The next morning after going to a breakfast buffet with Matt, my mom and my sister, we headed down to the hospital. The first thing they made me do was a UA. I was pretty nervous, and I had to take the little collection cup to the front desk with about 5 drops in it. I was so embarrassed! When one of the nurses asked me who my OB was and where I was planning on delivering, she acted incredulous that we were planning a home birth. She even had the audacity to look at Matt and ask him if he was Okay with that!! I wanted to leave right then.

I passed the NST with flying colors, but they monitored me for over an hour and half even though the nurse told us 15 minutes. A doctor came in a told us that they wanted to do an ultrasound just to make sure. The ultrasound confirmed that Declan was indeed a boy, but their findings were a little odd. They said that the size of Declan's head, legs and belly did not match his gestational age. This news did not bother me because they were telling me his legs were long, his head was normal and his belly was small. Big deal, his dad is tall and skinny and he's still got 7 weeks to go, right? Wrong!

They told me that they were admitting me to the hospital because Declan was in danger. They told me that I could not leave or they'd have me arrested for child endangerment. Then they sat us down and gave us huge scare tactics about lung maturity, induction, infections, and fetal death. Not wanting to endanger my baby I cowed and stayed. Looking back, that was the biggest mistake ever. Had I know better I would have gone home and had Declan almost 2 months later.

In order to try and bring my amniotic fluid up they put me on oxygen, a saline drip and bed rest (unknown to me). Every day at 8 am they woke me up and wheeled me to sports therapy so that i could soak in a stock tank of warm water, thinking that the osmosis would help with the AFI. They took an amniocentesis, checking Declan's lungs for maturity, then told us that regardless they would induce me in one week. The amnio came back that Declan was not ready and far from it.

In order to try and achieve the birth that we wanted, as close as possible anyway, we wrote up a birth plan. The OB was completely clueless to things such as letting the umbilical cord stop pulsing before cutting which especially helps with newborns, laboring in the shower for pain relief, etc. Everyday I grew more and more frustrated with the way we were being ramrodded into fitting into the "typical" medical model.

One week came and went because they were too full in L&D to take me, even though my "condition" was sooo life threatening. On October 16th, they moved me into a LD&R room and started an insertion of cervidil. After 12 hours, my cervix was still high and tight. It was still high and tight after 36 total hours of cervidil. At this point Matt and I were exhausted. The cervidil was causing very intense menstrual like cramps but no contractions and I couldn't get comfortable because they insisted on monitoring me the entire time. At this point, the only contractions I felt during my entire pregnancy were during an orgasm and those were pleasant. I had to tell the doctor to take out the cervidil and leave so that Matt and I could get some sleep. I hadn't sleep in 2 days. The doctor reluctantly agreed and said that I would not be bothered until I felt fully rested and to let the nurses station know.

We got 2 hours of sleep. At 7 am, a different doctor came bursting in and started me on a Pitocin drip without even checking my cervix. This is my 10th day in the hospital. After 3 hours of Pitocin, I lost my mucous plug. Two hours later I was alone in my room with just my mom, Matt had gone home to take a shower and get some rest. I was hooked to an IV, a pitocin drip, external monitors, oxygen and a blood pressure cuff. I got the sudden urge to pee and kinda panicked because it was a long ordeal to unhook. I had my mom come over and help. When I stood up, I started leaking all over the place. I embarrassedly told my mom that we were too late and I had wet myself. She laughed at me and told me it was most likely my water breaking. We called the nurse in and she agreed that it was my water breaking.

After that I finally started getting contractions - intense contractions! They were pretty much on top of each other for an hour straight. As much as I wanted a natural birth, I wasn't sure I could take more hours of this. I was given a Demerol shot, which did nothing more then make me feel blitzed out of my mind when I wasn't having a contraction, but because they were so close it didn't help or give any relief. I asked for an epidural and they gave it to me without checking my cervix again. As soon as the epidural was given they checked my cervix and I was 9.5 cm! I was so so so mad and I let everyone know. Had they checked me before I wouldn't have gotten the epidural.

10 minutes and 3 pushes later, Declan was born showing definite signs of epidural sickness. They cut his cord immediately, and put him in a warmer while the OB yanked out my placenta. Shortly after they wheeled him away to the NICU, where Declan spent 12 days fighting with his immature lungs. The doctors told me there was no reason that his lungs should be this weak because according to their Ultrasounds (!) he was almost 38 weeks. According to my calculations and his possible conception date he was 34.5 weeks. I never once got Declan to latch and every appointment I setup with a LC was canceled or they just flat out did not show. The only help I got was a floor nurse who would try to force my DD's into Declan's poor face. He'd get so mad that he made himself sick again. He spent 5 days under the Bili-lights.

He finally came home on Halloween 2005. We both had the most horrendous care and will never trust or go to a hospital if possible again. I never really liked doctors before and now I know why.

Wyatt Christopher C.

On October 24, 2005, I went to the hospital for sweeling in my hands and legs. I sat there for 4 hours before I was seen. Wehn I got seen, I was only dialated 1 cm. The doctors monitored me for a hour. During that hour, I also got some labs done to see if I had toximia. I also contracted a lot and my blood preassure was really high. The doctor came back and said my lab results were not bad but not good. They took me off the monitors and let me rest somemore. When the doctor came back, I told her that I had been contracting a lot harder and was feeling dizzy. She checked my cervix and I had progressed. She got the resident doctor and they decided to induce me since I had mild toxima. It was midnight. I had to call Chris so he could come to the hospital. The poor guy. He was in the middle of his sleep. He got up and woke Paris up. Chris says that Paris was his life saver. She kept him very calm. Chris, Paris & Krissy (family friend) arrived at the hospital at the same time I was being wheeled to the labor room. Paris wanted to stay until I gave birth but when the she saw how much I was hurting she asked to go home. Krissy took Paris to her house. I received some demeral (I think that was it) for the pain until I was able to get my epideral. I was so tired. Chris an I slept. I don't remember what time it was that I was able to get my epidural but man I was happy about it. :) I know that I talked to my MIL here and there and she talked to the nurse too b/c Chris & I were too tired. LOL. Around 1130 am on the 25th, I was only 7cm dilated. At this point Wyatt's heartbeat was starting to go down and my blood pressure was still gross. I was put on Magnisum Sulfate for my BP. The doctors decided that I was not progressing fast enough and were afraid if we waited too much longer that Wyatt would not do well. They decided to do a c-section. I was wheeled into the OR at 1210 and received my spinaltap. I remember Chris coming into the room and standing by my head and I was very cold.

At 12:36 pm on October 25th, 2005 Wyatt Christopher was born. He weighed 5 lbs 13 ounces and was 18 3/4 inches long.

Here are some pics...

Wyatt and his big Sissy
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Wyatt & Daddy
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And now
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well i remember being HUGE!! and 5cm dialated for 2 weeks. From day one everyone thought it would be twins or i was further along then we all thought. Well after going into the doctors everyday for 2 weeks i finally went to L&D on halloween knowing that that night was the night. Well IT WASNT. Even though i was miserable they made me walk the halls for 4 hours and i finally got sent home. Nov1 at 2am i went to walmart and lost my plug!

After keeping Dh up all night on halloween i felt bad that the very next night i was still having terrible contractions. I would get out of bed and go to the bathroom to scream them out, crawl back into bed etc.. Finally he told me to get dressed because when i thought he was sleeping he was counting them for me LOL. They were 1min apart for 40 sec long. We went to the hospital and FINALLY i was a 7 instead of the 5 cm. I was admitted at 12:36 and got an epi at 1am. slept until 4 when they popped my water and started pushing at 5am. At 7am my doctor got there and we had noah at 7:42am November 2nd! I remember it like it was yesterday. I love that kid more then life itself.

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not very good now pic, ill put more from his b-day party pics
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...20/noah023.jpg

Reina’s birth story (warning, it's long)...
OK – so after 8 glorious months of preparing my self for an un-medicated natural birth, on October 27th I was thrown for a loop (the first of many – guess it was getting me read for motherhood!) when the doctor determined my little bean was breech. No wonder I was carrying so high and I swear I would feel the top of a head underneath my ribs.

I was initially devastated and upset that after all the preparation and childbirth classes, not to mention how much I was looking forward to the bonding of a natural birth with DH and the baby, I was whisked into the doc’s office to set the date for a scheduled c-section. It all happened so fast. So, we picked Friday, November 4th. I went home and cried. I was so disappointed. I spent the next day researching c-sections on the internet and stumbled on websites where they basically berated the women for even thinking about having a c-section and provided all kinds of home remedies to “get the baby to turn”. My doc had said the baby was too far along and too large to try to manually turn, but what did he know, right!! I couldn’t believe how some of these women made other feel. I immediately felt worse and worried that my baby would not be as healthy as a vaginal delivered baby because the lungs would not go through the same compression as a baby in a vaginal birth. So just as I am about to climb onto the inclined ironing board in an effort to roll the baby 9you think I am kidding?!?), I realize that a healthy baby is all that matters. And I learned a valuable lesson, NEVER READ THE INTERNET WHEN IT COMES TO MEDICAL INFORMATION – it will get you ore worked up than necessary!!

OK – so I began to focus on the following Friday and the birth of our bean (remember we didn’t know the sex). On Halloween night I was sooooo uncomfortable I had a feeling that my mom’s prediction of a Halloween baby might come true, but I woke up the next morning feeling better and more energized than I had in months!! We had a big dinner and at 9pm I allowed myself a piece of Halloween candy (Reese’s peanut butter cup I believe) – that darned candy would come back to haunt me.
We went to bed around 11pm and at 12:10am I woke up and had to pee (big surprise). As I go to stand up when I am done I hear and feel a faint pop and then comes the gush of fluid. I sit down and my heart starts racing and all I can remember doing is staring ahead with the biggest smile on my face. My baby was ready and I was going to be a mom. I grabbed a towel and gently walked to the bed where I said to DH, “honey my water just broke”. Now looking back I am not sure if what I remember in my mind actually happened, but the picture I have in my head is that as soon as I finished the sentence my husband, who was asleep on his stomach, launched out of bed and was standing upright in about .0025468 seconds. He didn’t slowly go with feet first, it was like he was straight as a board and landed feet first. Cartoon-like and not likely what happened in reality, but it’s the way I remember it!!!

We called L&D and told them that the baby was breech, we were scheduled for ac-sec on Friday and that my water broke. They told us to come in and then we called my parent and DH’s. Other than the ickiest leak feeling, I was having no discernable contractions and felt good. So, I had not yet unpacked my hospital bag of the required natural birth items such as scented oils, night mask, etc. but oh well. After DH put numerous towels down in our new car, we were ready to go.
I was put into triage to monitor me and the baby and then they came and asked various questions. By this point, I swore I must have had more amniotic fluid than any other woman in history because her it was an hour and a half later and I was still leaking a lot and it felt GROSS!!! They did an ultrasound to ensure the baby was still breech. I tried to tell them that as big as I figured this baby to be and the fact I felt every slight movement it made, I was pretty sure I could tell if it had managed to learn how to somersault and stick the dismount by getting the head down into my cervix, but I kept quiet and they did the ultrasound. That’s when we found out that not only was our baby breech, but he/she was footling breech with both feet down. So this is a bit concerning because a leg is much more like to slip through a cervix that isn’t fully dilated than a rear-end would plus there is a higher chance of the cord coming trough, so they were monitoring me closely.

So they fired away at their questions and I happily answered wondering when we could get this show on the road. Then thy asked the fateful questions, “When was the last time you had anything to eat?” I quickly said, “we finished dinner about 7pm” – Great they said, you can go in the next half an hour or so. And then it hit me – the damn Halloween candy. I said, “ oh wait I had a tiny, tiny piece of candy at about 9pm, but that shouldn’t matter right” Well do you tend to get nauseous under anesthesia?” – UMMMM, yes a little bit.” Then we will have to wait until 5am.” DAMN wrong answer. And I swear that at that same moment, I felt my first real contraction. Ok not too bad, I thought – but man do I really have to wait another 3 and a half hours?

So we waited in triage and women were rolled in and out, going to have their babies in the cozy confines of the L&D birthing suites and there was huge beached whale me waiting to have my c-sec because of some stupid little piece of candy. Then a woman cam in who obviously waited too long to some in because she was 7 cm and writhing n pain. But at least it was entertainment for those of us behind my curtain. Man she swore like a sailor.

All the while my contractions as growing stronger and closer together. When I arrived they checked me and I was only 1.5cm. but these contractions were coming on very quickly. They were less than a minute apart and were between 90 and 120 seconds long. So labor was progressing fast and they did not want me to dilate faster and have a chance of the foot or cord coming through. So despite the higher chance of vomiting with the food in my stomach, the wheeled me into the OR, bumping another c-sec. The procedure started at 4:09am and Perry the anesthesiologist was a Godsend for both me and DH. He kept us informed and laughing and we found out his wife was 7 months along wither their first.

So, after month of waiting and wondering and preparing we were about to be parents to a baby (what). The moment arrived. DH, who had told Perry at the beginning that he wasn’t going to look over the curtain (he’s squeamish), did just that when Perry tapped him on the shoulder and told him to stand up. I don’t thin DH even realized what he was doing.
The doctor said, “Wow, big foot!!!” Seriously, that’s what you tell me, big foot – well OK the baby was feet down so that is what came out first. So the progression went one big foot, a second big foot, a butt, the back, the shoulders and the head. They flipped the baby and said, “It’s a girl.” I heard it but I don’t think DH processed it because after about 5 seconds he looked down at mea and shouted, it’s a girl!!

So the pediatrician took Reina and checked her out and her AGPAR’s were 8 and 9. I could hear her scream although it took a little longer than I would have liked. Just when I was about to say “why don’t I hear her crying” she let out a big wail that filled my heart with something I could never describe to someone who isn’t a mother.

DH had wanted to stay with me while the closed me up, but I insisted he go with the baby. It took way longer than I would have liked to get me through recovery and get her to regulate her body temp, get her bath and get me to a maternity room. But nearly 3 hours after she was born she was brought to me and it has pained me to leave her side ever since.

Happy Birthday baby girl. Mommy and Daddy love you very much!!


Then
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and now
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Here's Robyn's birth story. I'll put some pics up later

it seems the girls are actually napping, so let's see if I can get this typed up real quick....

I was 40 weeks + 1 day pregnant and I wanted her OUT really bad. So, after work that day, we went to the arboretum for a very vigorous, hilly 3-4 mile hike. I really pushed myself hard and was exhausted when we got back home. We had schedule an induction for 41 weeks, but I didn't want to go that route because I wanted a vbac, I really didn't want to be induced.

That night, I was laying in bed reading. I started falling asleep around 10pm when I heard this 'pip' sound from my belly. It woke me up and I thought to myself what a strange sound that was. So, I got up and the water started trickling down my leg. That sounds was my bag of waters breaking! So, I go down and tell Matt the news. He phones my mom so she can come and watch Vanessa and he gets the bags in the car and such while I take a shower. For some reason, I had an overwhelming urge to take a shower.

We get to the hospital at 12:30am and get all checked in. I was not have frequent contractions yet, and I remember sleeping on and off the rest of the night. Since I was trying for a vbac, they had me hooked up to the monitors and the IV ready once I got there.

Around 7am, when the new nurse shift came in, they checked me and I hadn't really progressed much, so they decided to give me a tiny amount of pitocin. They did not want to give me too much, again, because of vbac. Matt left for a few minutes to get some coffee and breakfast and I started having very painful contractions while he was gone. They became more frequent, 3-4 minutes apart.
I think sometime around 10am, I was dilated to about 4.5 and then I got my epidural. The epidural had a window in my left side, where it didn't take, so everywhere else was numbed that was supposed to be, except my left side. Then, the back labor started, she was posterior. I felt like her head was trying to push out of my left hip socket. The pain was incredible! I wanted to give up so bad, we tried all different kinds of positions trying to get her to turn and go down the birth canal. Matt was so encouraging, I don't know what he said to me, but he was there at the moment I needed him most and he gave me the strength I needed to continue on. Finally, my super cool nurse that stayed with us for the entire time, had me to a supported back bend. We lifted my pelvis up onto some wedge pillows to create a small backbend. This caused her to turn because almost immediately I felt the need to push. They called the dr's in and started converting the bed to a birthing bed. I was so relieved when they told me I could start pushing. Only 20 minutes of pushing and little Robyn Leigh was born at 2:07pm 9lbs 1oz, 20.5 in