Baby Quay is Born!

On the morning of Friday, July 13, I went to Geisinger for my 8:00 check up.  I was supposed to have a half hour non-stress test, then see Angie, one of the midwives.  She had told me previously that we would try to set up an induction for the following week if everything looked okay on the NST.  I had several of these non-stress tests with Trafton, every other day until he was born (9 days late), once I was overdue.  You get to lay in a comfy chair for 30 minutes, drink cold water to get the baby active, and push a button every time you feel the baby move.  While this is going on, there are two monitors strapped to your belly to monitor the baby. 

As the nurse was strapping the monitors to me, she was having a lot of difficulty getting a heartbeat on Baby Owl.  She said that she kept hearing my heartbeat instead of the baby's because my placenta was lying on the outside edge of my belly.  I had been told this before in some of my prenatal checkups.  She kept fiddling with the machine and once she thought she had a good sense of the baby's heartbeat, she would walk away and the machine would make a loud beeping noise that demanded immediate attention from the nurse.  She had another nurse try and get the monitors situated so that they would stop making this beeping noise.  This went on for close to an hour.  I was starting to get nervous that this was not going to end as easily as I had expected.  Finally the first nurse asked me when I last had an ultrasound.  I said not since February since everything had been normal at that 20-week scan.  She said she was going to have me go in for an ultrasound immediately because there seemed to be something they were picking up in the baby's heartbeat.  She also said it looked like I was going to be delivering this baby today.  This was a shock to me.

I was led across the hall to an ultraound room where the technician said that she was going to to take very detailed pictures of the heart and look at several other things.  She said my appointment with Angie would be cancelled and instead I would see a high risk doctor when the ultrasound was over.  I asked her if she was seeing anything abnormal as she looked at Baby Owl's heart, but she said she was unable to comment and that the doctor would discuss that with me when she was finished. 

When that was done, two hours had now gone by since I arrived for my initial appointment, I was told to go back out to the waiting area and wait for the high risk doctor to see me.  The ultrasound tech told me that while I was in the waiting room, I may want to make some phone calls, since I was probably headed toward the Labor and Delivery room next.  Yikes!  Why was everyone telling me this?

I called Daniel, my mom, and Karen.  My friend Karen had agreed to take care of Trafton when it was time for Daniel and I to go to the hospital to have our baby girl.  I also ran into my friend Megan in the waiting area, which was really nice just to have someone to sit and wait with me and talk to since I was at the hospital alone because Daniel was with Trafton. 

At 11:30, I was called back to see the high risk doctor.  He said that the baby had a heart arrhythmia, which was something irregular in her heartbeat.  He also said that everything structurally in the heart looked normal on the ultrasound scan.  However, because I was four days overdue and this heartbeat irregularity was a new finding, it would be best to deliver the baby today.  He wanted me to go straight to Labor and Delivery to start the induction process.  He said that they would monitor the heartbeat for a longer period of time once I was there.  If they could get a regular heartbeat after sometime (he explained that these irregularities can come and go), then I could be induced.  If, after sometime, the irregular heartbeat was still present, a c-section would be necessary.  I asked him if I could run home quickly just to gather my things and see my son.  He said that if I promised to return, and if I promised not to eat anything, I could run home quickly because the L & D department was pretty full anyway and there most likely would not be a bed available for a while anyway. 

I ran home, gathered a few things (we were mostly packed anyway), gave Trafton a bunch of hugs and kisses, took a shower, and asked Karen to come over.  In about an hour's time, we were on the road back to the hospital, ready to have a baby!

When we got to Labor and Delivery around 1:00, there were no rooms available, so we were sent to the Triage room to start monitoring the baby's heartbeat.  The doctors and nurses were having the same problem that other nurses were having - being able to hear my hearbeat over the baby's because of the position of my placenta.  When they were finally able to hear the baby's heartbeat, they continued to detect the irregularity in rhythm.  Lots of doctors and nurses came in to check on me and one doctor brought a portable ultrasound over to check the heart again.  I won't say it wasn't sort of scary.  Then Dr. Srivastiva, one of the doctors I had seen during the course of my otherwise normal pregnancy, came in, and said she was just about ready to do a c-section.  I was confused and sort of overwhelmed because I didn't think it had been decided yet that I was definitely going to have a c-section.  I asked if there was anyway I could safely be induced and she said she would let the heartbeat continue to get monitored before a definite decision to do a c-section was made.

A little while later a room opened up and we made our way down the hall to room number 11 - right next door to the room where Trafton was born :)  I was hooked up to monitors there and right away the doctors and nurses could detect the arrhythmia.  It was about 4:30 at this point.  One of the residents came in and said that it was going to be in the best interest of the baby to do a c-section right away.  I said okay, signed some waivers, and tried to mentally prepare myself.  I was a little freaked out, since I really didn't want a c-section, but I certainly understood that it was for the best. 

I had the greatest nurse, Lisa, and the greatest nurse anesthetist, Tom.  Tom asked me when I ate last and I replied that I had finished my morning smoothie around 11:30 that morning.  He said great, since that's all I had, the c-section could get started immediately.  Daniel then informed him that my typical morning smoothie consists of all sorts of heavy ingredients, like tofu, yogurt, fruit, flaxseed, wheat germ, etc.  Tom said, whoa - and decided it would be best to wait the full six hours since that smoothie sounded more like a meal than just fruit and ice.  So, the c-section was scheduled for 6:00.

My parents arrived before I was wheeled away, so it was nice to be able to see them before delivering Baby Owl.  I was taken to the c-section room, just about a 30 second ride down the hall from my room in my bed at 6:15.  At 7:01, Quay was born!  It was a very quick procedure, for sure.  I was so nervous that my whole body was shaking as I was being led into the room, but once I had the spinal, I was numb from the stomach down and only my arms were shaking a little bit.  Tom described the c-section as being like dental work - you can feel them working and you can feel pressure, but there is no sensation of pain.  He said it perfectly - that is exactly what it was like.  I could feel Quay being lifted out and my stomach sort of being 'deflated,' but there was no pain.

What a screamer!  I heard someone (there were SOOOO many people in the room!) exclaim, 'what a great color she has,' and she did!  When I saw her, she was so pink.  And she was screaming.  Actually more like screeching - perfect for an owl :)  Daniel had been holding my hand through then entire c-section, but I told him to go and see Quay and tell her what her name was.  He was able to go see her and take some pictures while Tom stayed next to me giving me a play-by-play of what was going on beneath the sheet.  Yikes!

I was put back together and Quay was placed in my arms around 8:00, and we were wheeled back to our room together in bed.  I was able to feed her for the first time then and she did great!  My parents stopped in for a bit before heading back to the house where Karen was still with Trafton (many many thanks to her for such a long day with him!). 

We were able to stay in the hospital for four days following the c-section, but we opted to go home one day early, so we came back to the house on Monday.  (I got my wish - we completelly missed the 4-Wheel Jamboree!)  We had many visitors in the hospital which was very nice :)  A home health nurse came to our house on Tuesday since we chose to leave the hospital on day three instead of staying the full four days.  The recovery was and has been much more intense than with Trafton (I would never recommend an elective c-section at all!) but we are all feeling pretty good after a couple of weeks of being at home.  

Quay was seen by a pediatrician and we met with a NICU nurse to discuss her irregular heartbeat.  She was diagnosed with having PVCs (premature ventricular contractions) and given a follow-up appointment with a cardiologist for about a week and a half after her birth.  

In all, it was a good birth experience.  It was much, much different than the experience with Trafton, but still overall very positive.  The doctors and nurses are so amazing at Geisinger, we felt so well taken care of the entire time!

40 weeks and 4 days



Just before leaving our house on Friday - only hours before Quay's entrance into the world



Waiting to see if I could safely be induced or if a c-section would be necessary

Waiting

Minutes before being wheeled away to the c-section room

All dressed up

Baby Quay has just been delivered; I'm being put back together



7 pounds, 13.8 ounces, pink as could be, and exercising those lungs



Getting to know our baby girl

Quay's first meal





Delighted grandparents

My first meal - Yum!

This couch turned into a bed for Daniel - it was an upgrade to the chair that was in the room when Trafton was born.

Proud Pappy

I just love this tye-dyed had that my friend Lauren gave me for Quay

Grandmom O'Hare

Karen and Lou

Kind of curious big brother, Trafton

First family of four photo

Why is she so loud?

Grandparents and kids



Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Melissa drove out from New Jersey to see their new neice.



Ahhh . . . first shower and my own clothes - heavenly!

Uncle Jason drove up from Maryland to see his new neice.

One of my very favorite pictures!

All dressed up and ready to greet the world

And we're ready to leave the hospital