Friday started just like any other Friday. I had my regular non-stress test appointment at my OB/GYN at 11 in the morning and then I was going to pick up Taylor so he could come with me to the hospital for our follow-up with the neonatologist where we would be getting an ultrasound and see how big our boy was at that point.
My non-stress test was pretty uneventful. He did great on the test as usual. The nurse performing the test asked me if I could feel the contractions that were coming pretty regularly on the screen. I said that I did but they weren't particularly painful, just uncomfortable really. She said to make sure to keep an eye on them and to call if they got worse. My blood pressure was also a little higher at this point, but nothing that caused any alarm.
I left that appointment and went to pick up my husband. Taylor was so excited to go to the ultrasound and see our boy. We got to the hospital around 12:30 and my appointment was at 12:45. We were taken back and my vitals were taken. My blood pressure was higher than before. She tried taking it a couple of times, letting me "calm down" between each one but it didn't seem to help so we just went with what she got. The ultrasound tech came into the room to do the ultrasound before the neonatologist got there. She was going to take his measurements and look at his heart. From the ultrasound, he was measuring to be 7 lbs. and 11 oz. already! That's the size of a full-term baby and I was only 35 weeks and 2 days along. The doctor came in next and said some of the same stuff we had already heard and then Taylor and I had a few questions to ask. I had noticed the last few days that I had been using less insulin that normally (which is the opposite of what should be happening). At this point, it had been more than 12 hours since I had manually given myself anything and my blood sugars were normal- something obviously was off. I had also been getting killer headaches every day for the last few days, my contractions were coming pretty constantly and my swollen ankles were almost unbearable.
She asked if I had had my cervix checked yet and I hadn't. She said that she was going to send us up to Labor and Delivery and have them check that to see what was going on and possibly run a few labs. She said, "We will schedule a possible amniocentesis for when I was 37 weeks along to check his lungs if I hadn't already delivered by this point." But she was very clear that she was certain I'd have the baby before then. So, thoroughly freaked out, we collected our things, made a "follow up" appointment, and went up to Labor and Delivery.
When we got up there, they checked us into the hospital and took us to a delivery room. The nurse told me to put on a gown and where to put my stuff and such. At this point, I was freaking out. It felt permanent when we walked into that room- like I wasn't going anywhere. Why does she want me to put a gown on? We are only going to be here for a little bit and then we're leaving...right? Wrong. So I changed and then a little while later she came in and checked to see how far dilated I was. I was at almost a 2 and 70% effaced. WHAT?! Holy cow. She said we were going to run a few labs and then decide what the plan was. All of this was happening around 2:30. An hour and a half later she checked again and I was at 2.5 cm and 80% effaced. "You're in labor dear," she says. My heart fell into the pit of my stomach. At this point, my contractions were getting pretty strong and were coming every 2-4 minutes. 30 minutes later at 4:30, she came back with the lab results. "Your lab results are in. You're having a baby today!"
My lab results came back that I had preeclampsia. If I hadn't have had an appointment at the hospital that day, I don't know if we would have found out. It only would have gotten worse, so it is a huge blessing that we were where we were supposed to be...and that I was going into labor all on my own! After she broke the news to us, we were informed that the doctor was going to come in shortly and break my water and that I could get an epidural anytime. I was given advice beforehand to get the epidural before having my water broken so I asked for that immediately. Around 5 o'clock, the anesthesiologist came in to give me my epidural. I had already been poked around 6 times because the nurses couldn't get an IV started, so I wasn't super excited about this- but I was ready to get a little relief. I wanted Taylor to hold my hand but the nurse said he couldn't stand by the bed because they had too many people pass out before. Funny. So I made him stand to where I could see him and then I curled up in a ball and mentally prepared myself for what was coming. It hurt more than I was expecting because he couldn't get it in the right spot. I also had a lot of fluid in my back from being so swollen so I guess I bled a lot, which I didn't particularly notice or care to think about. Out of sight, out of mind- right?
After the epidural I was feeling good. By this point, my mom and Shayla were there as well. We were chatting and taking pictures and trying to stay calm- the baby was coming..and fast! The doctor showed up around 6 to break my water. I made everyone vacate the room and then she broke my water. After that, contractions started coming about every 2 minutes to every minute and a half.
Around 7 I was at a 4. An hour later at about a 5. Around this point, the nurse brought in a peanut-shaped yoga ball. It was put between my knees the way you would put a pillow between your legs. This was supposed to help open up my hips and help baby boy's head to drop lower. And it was supposed to speed things up as well. An hour later at 9:10 ish I was dilated to a 6. Then she checked me again at 10, which wasn't quite an hour later. After she checked, she didn't say anything. So I assumed not much had happened but had a feeling I was probably wrong about that at the same time. So I casually asked, "Oh, am I about the same then?" And she responds with a funny, excited look in her eyes- "Nope!...Guess!" So Taylor blurted out- "An 8??" And she said, "Well, you're more like a 9 and a half." WHAT! It hadn't even been an hour and I was almost at a 10! So she said she'd come back in about an hour and check again and told me that we'd be pushing soon.
Our doctor was in another room helping deliver a baby and she said as soon as he was done, that we would be ready to go. I had been feeling the urge to push starting at 11:15 but we were going to wait as long as possible. Around 11:42 we started to push in our room. I didn't know what the heck I was doing so with the first push nothing happened. Then she got the mirror and I pushed two more times with contractions in our room. She quickly made me stop because our baby was starting to crown! She told Taylor to quickly put on his "outfit" which consisted of a zip-up gown, cap, and shoe covers. I was laying there trying to breathe through the contractions as the minutes inched on. Then Taylor and the nurse wheeled me into the operating room and the rest of our delivery crew assembled. This took about five-ish minutes to get ready. When they finally got the mirror positioned, they had me push and I again pushed two more big times. They got his head out and I did one "half push" that the doctor asked for and our baby was born! I had only pushed for about 18 minutes total!
Tucker Levi Jeffery
born 12:01 AM on 6/21/2014
7 lbs. 12 oz. and 20 inches long
looking into sweet Tucker's eyes for the first time set my heart on fire. i couldn't believe that i already loved him so much! i was in tears from the moment he took his first breath. after months and months of imagining what he would look like, i looked at him and felt like i had known his face all along.
giving birth was not at all like i had imagined. it was so so special and spiritual. i feel like i was closest to God in those moments. i feel like i understand better the love that Heavenly Father feels for us because i have a sweet angel to call my own.
after Tucker was born, he was immediately taken to the NICU (newborn intensive care unit). they put him on a CPAP breathing treatment and watched his blood sugars for a couple hours. after a couple days, he was upgraded to the "better" NICU and remained there for the rest of his 12 day stay. it was a really long 12 days. Taylor and I had to check out of the hospital on Sunday after a 48 hour stay. leaving the hospital without my sweet baby about killed me. after returning back to our room before we checked out after seeing Tucker for one last time before going home, both Taylor and I just held each other and cried. everything seemed so impossible in that moment. for the next few days i was at my end emotionally. i went back and forth to the NICU three times and day, and taylor came whenever he could work it around his work schedule. it was hard. we were both physically, emotionally, and mentally drained. we were being bombarded with information, numbers, stats, etc. it was a lot to take in. we both talked about how it didn't really feel like we had a baby because we only saw him a few times a day. as the days inched by, Tucker got stronger and more awake and we were able to get him to feed better- the thing that was ultimately what was going to get him out of the NICU and home with us. finally, on July 2 after a two night stay in the hospital with him, we woke up, strapped him in his car seat, walked down with a nurse, put him in our car and drove home! (not without me completely bawling my eyes out first, of course.)
since then we have been loving every single second with our sweet boy! he is so so cute and fun and probably tell each other that we think that multiple times a day. he is eating more and more all the time and growing like crazy! he has gained about 1.5 pounds since birth and grown a little over an inch. and we're convinced his dark, fluffy hair has grown too!
Tucker loves:
-milk :)
-his swing
-snuggling in anyone's arms
-kicking his feet out and around like crazy
-putting his hands by his face
-stretching and arching his back
-tummy time
-sleeping all day and staying up all night ;)
-his car seat and car rides
-bath time (sometimes)
-going for walks in the BOB stroller
-his daddy, momma, nanas/grandmas/grandpas/uncles/aunts
Tucker doesn't love:
-doing anything that's not on his agenda
-having to sit still when he's awake
-being hungry
-being left alone
-his oxygen tube and the stickers on his face
he has quickly become the most photographed child in the whole world. i may be a little biased, but he is the cutest little boy ever. prepare for three-weeks-worth-of-pictures-overload!
he will be on his oxygen for probably a few more weeks and will remain on his apnea monitor till about his 2 month birthday. they are both a hassle to haul around, but we are grateful for the peace that they give us. however, i will be more than excited to finally be able to take him to different rooms in the house without all of his cords!
sorry for the long post, but now you are all caught up on all things Tucker!
stay tuned :)
the best is yet to come.
