Hi,
So, I was planning to catch up with the rest of the story about Shelby's arrival and recovering from the surgery.
But writing as much as I did hurt.
So here I am, two months later, and haven't done it yet.
Maybe today. but not yet.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
How Shelby Got Here
Warning: If you are not into birth stories, don't read any further. And if you are pregnant, you might want to hold off too. For while my story has a happy ending, there's alot of speed bumps. And the car got damaged along the way.
Don't say I didn't warn you.
So on the morning of my 38 week check up, I was seriously psyched to hear that I was making progress and was in early labor. I had lost my plug. Both of the boys were born at 38 weeks, 2 days. But, instead, Shelby had flipped so she was butt down again, after spending most of the pregnancy transverse, and then flipping head down at 37 weeks.
The doctor brought up c-section. "This is going to be a big baby." "Head down, or heads-up." etc, etc. I so did not want to have surgery! The bottom line was, she was coming out one way or another, and I was convinced that I could deliver her. After all, if my co-worker, who was much smaller than me, could deliver an almost 11 lb baby, surely she'd be able to be delivered non-surgically (after 3 babies, hubby still winces when I use the v word).
39 weeks. still no progress. We walked and walked and walked some more. Lots of contractions, but they would go away on their own.
40 weeks. I had a no bs conversation with one of the two doctors in my practice that I trusted. I even said to him, "Don't bullshit me. Can I deliver this baby" He said, no, probably not. So I listened as I got caught up in the gallop to the o.r. All of a sudden, it was, we're doing this tonight or tomorrow. Standing in the bookstore, I got the call telling me it was tomorrow, be at the hospital at 5 am., get pre-op bloodwork drawn immediately.
We made arrangements for the boys to stay with my niece, and got to the hospital on time...checked in. The whole time, we are cracking jokes about not knowing what we are supposed to do because we didn't pay attention during the tour. The first nurse we encountered was great! comforting, no-nonsense, efficient. As she got me ready for the surgery, she was answering questions, cracking jokes, talking about her children...I was still nervous, but she was helping. My doc (the other of the 2 that I liked) came in, met hubby, told me a couple of things, and then said, "Let's go."
I walked to the o.r. Hubby had to stay outside until I was completely prepped. They put a guy in front of me, to hold me in the position for the spinal. The last time I had this, I was holding my teddy bear, and I was having contractions. This time, I was being held by a stranger.
The anesthesiologist (I am going to call him Dr. A because that's shorter to type) started pricking my back. There was something he was doing, a very painful pressure against the right side of my back..it felt like he was pushing into my spine itself. I complained about that. He asked me where it hurt, and I told him. He pulled the needle out, called for more numbing cream, and tried again. Same pain. Same place. Lots more needle sticks.
The guy in front of me was still holding me in position, pushing against Shelby to get me in the right place. That's where I will say I was very nervous...what if the needle hit her??? Probably impossible, but it was freaky. That's what I was thinking about when all of a sudden, this MONSTROUS pain went roaring down my left leg, and my leg kicked straight out in front of me, kicking the guy that was holding me, and I cried out. I was admonished to stay still, to not move. My doctor came over and asked what was going on. I didn't hear his answer.
I asked Dr. A if we were almost done. He said no. I was doing all I could to distract myself from the pain, telling myself that I had to go through this to get to Shelby. He asked for more numbing cream, and he poked me again. The same pain, again. This must be what it feels like to be electrocuted. This time, I screamed. I couldn't help it. I was sobbing, it hurt so bad. Then, my whole lower body went numb...he finally had the spinal completed.
I have at times imagined that if I hadn't been in so much pain, if the rest of the procedure would have seemed the same. They brought hubby in, who lied to me and told me that he didn't hear me screaming.
Dr. A gave me another med to help me relax...the spinal numbs you from the nipples down, so you cannot feel yourself breathing. Of course, if you can say, "I'm not breathing" you ARE in fact breathing...but still, it was very freaky. I felt like I was encased in cement.
The surgical team did some stuff with taping me (I have the impression of a big X, but I am not sure about that) and then they put the drape up and started cutting. I have no idea how long it took. I have vague memories of them saying, "Here she is!" and of the doctor commenting that it was unusual for there to be a tube and ovary removed during an ectopic, but I didn't hear Shelby cry (hubby did), and I didn't know of the drama that was surrounding my daughter as I was on the table being closed up.
Apparently, before she took a breath, she took in a huge mouthful of fluid, so they had to suction her repeatedly, and the neonatalogist was very concerned about her. AFter they got her cleared enough to move her, they asked me to hold her to take her to recovery, but I was too out of it and didn't respond.
I don't remember a lot of the recovery time, as they waited for a bed for me upstairs. I remember getting bathed, which was really freakin' weird, as Shelby got her first bath (thankfully, hubby was watching her bath, not mine!).
As we started to get acquainted, I had no idea what I was in for. The next morning would find me in excruciating pain, but not from my incision. to be continued...
Don't say I didn't warn you.
So on the morning of my 38 week check up, I was seriously psyched to hear that I was making progress and was in early labor. I had lost my plug. Both of the boys were born at 38 weeks, 2 days. But, instead, Shelby had flipped so she was butt down again, after spending most of the pregnancy transverse, and then flipping head down at 37 weeks.
The doctor brought up c-section. "This is going to be a big baby." "Head down, or heads-up." etc, etc. I so did not want to have surgery! The bottom line was, she was coming out one way or another, and I was convinced that I could deliver her. After all, if my co-worker, who was much smaller than me, could deliver an almost 11 lb baby, surely she'd be able to be delivered non-surgically (after 3 babies, hubby still winces when I use the v word).
39 weeks. still no progress. We walked and walked and walked some more. Lots of contractions, but they would go away on their own.
40 weeks. I had a no bs conversation with one of the two doctors in my practice that I trusted. I even said to him, "Don't bullshit me. Can I deliver this baby" He said, no, probably not. So I listened as I got caught up in the gallop to the o.r. All of a sudden, it was, we're doing this tonight or tomorrow. Standing in the bookstore, I got the call telling me it was tomorrow, be at the hospital at 5 am., get pre-op bloodwork drawn immediately.
We made arrangements for the boys to stay with my niece, and got to the hospital on time...checked in. The whole time, we are cracking jokes about not knowing what we are supposed to do because we didn't pay attention during the tour. The first nurse we encountered was great! comforting, no-nonsense, efficient. As she got me ready for the surgery, she was answering questions, cracking jokes, talking about her children...I was still nervous, but she was helping. My doc (the other of the 2 that I liked) came in, met hubby, told me a couple of things, and then said, "Let's go."
I walked to the o.r. Hubby had to stay outside until I was completely prepped. They put a guy in front of me, to hold me in the position for the spinal. The last time I had this, I was holding my teddy bear, and I was having contractions. This time, I was being held by a stranger.
The anesthesiologist (I am going to call him Dr. A because that's shorter to type) started pricking my back. There was something he was doing, a very painful pressure against the right side of my back..it felt like he was pushing into my spine itself. I complained about that. He asked me where it hurt, and I told him. He pulled the needle out, called for more numbing cream, and tried again. Same pain. Same place. Lots more needle sticks.
The guy in front of me was still holding me in position, pushing against Shelby to get me in the right place. That's where I will say I was very nervous...what if the needle hit her??? Probably impossible, but it was freaky. That's what I was thinking about when all of a sudden, this MONSTROUS pain went roaring down my left leg, and my leg kicked straight out in front of me, kicking the guy that was holding me, and I cried out. I was admonished to stay still, to not move. My doctor came over and asked what was going on. I didn't hear his answer.
I asked Dr. A if we were almost done. He said no. I was doing all I could to distract myself from the pain, telling myself that I had to go through this to get to Shelby. He asked for more numbing cream, and he poked me again. The same pain, again. This must be what it feels like to be electrocuted. This time, I screamed. I couldn't help it. I was sobbing, it hurt so bad. Then, my whole lower body went numb...he finally had the spinal completed.
I have at times imagined that if I hadn't been in so much pain, if the rest of the procedure would have seemed the same. They brought hubby in, who lied to me and told me that he didn't hear me screaming.
Dr. A gave me another med to help me relax...the spinal numbs you from the nipples down, so you cannot feel yourself breathing. Of course, if you can say, "I'm not breathing" you ARE in fact breathing...but still, it was very freaky. I felt like I was encased in cement.
The surgical team did some stuff with taping me (I have the impression of a big X, but I am not sure about that) and then they put the drape up and started cutting. I have no idea how long it took. I have vague memories of them saying, "Here she is!" and of the doctor commenting that it was unusual for there to be a tube and ovary removed during an ectopic, but I didn't hear Shelby cry (hubby did), and I didn't know of the drama that was surrounding my daughter as I was on the table being closed up.
Apparently, before she took a breath, she took in a huge mouthful of fluid, so they had to suction her repeatedly, and the neonatalogist was very concerned about her. AFter they got her cleared enough to move her, they asked me to hold her to take her to recovery, but I was too out of it and didn't respond.
I don't remember a lot of the recovery time, as they waited for a bed for me upstairs. I remember getting bathed, which was really freakin' weird, as Shelby got her first bath (thankfully, hubby was watching her bath, not mine!).
As we started to get acquainted, I had no idea what I was in for. The next morning would find me in excruciating pain, but not from my incision. to be continued...
Friday, July 1, 2011
And so it goes...
A year ago, I was just learning that I might be pregnant.
A year ago, my grandmother was in the closing days of her life.
A year ago, we were looking for a new place to call home.
Now, here I am, with a 16 week old daughter, and we are looking again for a new place to call home!
I will post about Shelby later.
Those are the big changes that occurred in our life this year. There are more things. When I post Shelby's birth story, you will see what I mean.
Tomorrow we are celebrating Independence Day with a life long family friend. It will be good to relax at her house, which is on the water, especially since we are under a heat advisory again tomorrow.
Stay tuned faithful readers...I will catch you up!
A year ago, my grandmother was in the closing days of her life.
A year ago, we were looking for a new place to call home.
Now, here I am, with a 16 week old daughter, and we are looking again for a new place to call home!
I will post about Shelby later.
Those are the big changes that occurred in our life this year. There are more things. When I post Shelby's birth story, you will see what I mean.
Tomorrow we are celebrating Independence Day with a life long family friend. It will be good to relax at her house, which is on the water, especially since we are under a heat advisory again tomorrow.
Stay tuned faithful readers...I will catch you up!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
How time flies...
So, we have limited access to the 'net in our new digs, and school keeps me hopping from sunrise to sunset...so here I attempt to catch up on two and a half months of events!
1.) Yes, I am still pregnant...24 weeks and 5 days, as of this writing. After two boys...yep, it's a girl! We are calling her Shelby Celine...Cel from Cecelia, and Ine from Elaine. We couldn't decide on an appropriate nickname for her if we stuck with the original names, so here's our compromise! So far so good...she's growing like a weed, and we are looking forward to seeing her in February.
2.) We finally moved to Laurel! I have a ten minute commute to school, and it takes Scott and the boys about 20 minutes. It's not the best neighborhood, honestly, but it serves its purpose until we can get where we want to be.
3.) Brandon is SOARING in school- 815 on the SRI, which puts him reading on the sixth grade level (he's in third grade)...and well on his way to being identified as TAG, which gives him additional challenges and ideas, as well as on extra field trips. He's currently reading a series of books called "The Shadow Children", and he is on the second book. I ordered the first one so I can keep up!
4.) Jeremy is settling nicely into second grade...although he hates wearing a uniform to school! And he's also made peace with having a sister on the way. Every day he asks me how Shelby is...did I feel her move? It is so cute!
5.) Scott is on his way to China at the beginning of December for a week! It's a crazy plane ride...he leaves Maryland at 830 in the morning on Thursday, and lands in Beijing at 9:00 Friday night! He flies first to Seattle, then on to Beijing. He is excited and nervous...and I am keeping an eye on the bank account. This will be a great experience for him, and for his resume, but it sure has been an expensive trip.
As for me, I am the same as always...a busy mom, wife, daughter, and teacher. I am hoping to have some time for myself before the baby comes. We'll see about that. And I am also going to try to get on here more often to keep you all up to date on all of our adventures!
1.) Yes, I am still pregnant...24 weeks and 5 days, as of this writing. After two boys...yep, it's a girl! We are calling her Shelby Celine...Cel from Cecelia, and Ine from Elaine. We couldn't decide on an appropriate nickname for her if we stuck with the original names, so here's our compromise! So far so good...she's growing like a weed, and we are looking forward to seeing her in February.
2.) We finally moved to Laurel! I have a ten minute commute to school, and it takes Scott and the boys about 20 minutes. It's not the best neighborhood, honestly, but it serves its purpose until we can get where we want to be.
3.) Brandon is SOARING in school- 815 on the SRI, which puts him reading on the sixth grade level (he's in third grade)...and well on his way to being identified as TAG, which gives him additional challenges and ideas, as well as on extra field trips. He's currently reading a series of books called "The Shadow Children", and he is on the second book. I ordered the first one so I can keep up!
4.) Jeremy is settling nicely into second grade...although he hates wearing a uniform to school! And he's also made peace with having a sister on the way. Every day he asks me how Shelby is...did I feel her move? It is so cute!
5.) Scott is on his way to China at the beginning of December for a week! It's a crazy plane ride...he leaves Maryland at 830 in the morning on Thursday, and lands in Beijing at 9:00 Friday night! He flies first to Seattle, then on to Beijing. He is excited and nervous...and I am keeping an eye on the bank account. This will be a great experience for him, and for his resume, but it sure has been an expensive trip.
As for me, I am the same as always...a busy mom, wife, daughter, and teacher. I am hoping to have some time for myself before the baby comes. We'll see about that. And I am also going to try to get on here more often to keep you all up to date on all of our adventures!
Friday, August 6, 2010
The clock is winding down...
and soon, we will be back to school!
The boys are excited- they will be going to a new school this year, and they are excited about meeting new people and making new friends, although they will miss their old Assistant Principal...which I think is so sweet.
L.B. is hanging in there. 9 weeks and 4 days today, and the only thing I would really complain about is the nausea, which is getting a little more intense. I really am grateful that I will be almost to the second trimester when it's time to go back with students, and hopeful that I will not be dealing with this particular symptom.
We've been talking a little bit about names. The boy's name is easy, as it has been set for years...but we have gone back and forth about the girl's name. Originally, we wanted to honor my mother and his mother...since in all their grandchildren, no one has used their names! But we've also talked about using his initials, since we are thinking it is highly likely that this will be the last Case baby.
I don't know. One thing's for sure...it won't be named after me!!!
The boys are excited- they will be going to a new school this year, and they are excited about meeting new people and making new friends, although they will miss their old Assistant Principal...which I think is so sweet.
L.B. is hanging in there. 9 weeks and 4 days today, and the only thing I would really complain about is the nausea, which is getting a little more intense. I really am grateful that I will be almost to the second trimester when it's time to go back with students, and hopeful that I will not be dealing with this particular symptom.
We've been talking a little bit about names. The boy's name is easy, as it has been set for years...but we have gone back and forth about the girl's name. Originally, we wanted to honor my mother and his mother...since in all their grandchildren, no one has used their names! But we've also talked about using his initials, since we are thinking it is highly likely that this will be the last Case baby.
I don't know. One thing's for sure...it won't be named after me!!!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
A long overdue update
So...let's see.
Since I wrote last:
1) We finished the curriculum project!! Can't wait to see what other teachers think of it!
2.) We put in notice to our apartment complex that we are, in fact, moving. Now, we need to find a place to go!
3.) Had an ultrasound and first "official" ob appointment on Friday. The ultrasound tech (by now, it feels like we are old friends) laughed when I laughed at how my uterus looks like a huge mouth with one tooth stuck up in it. She said the tooth...is the baby!! She showed me the heartbeat...then we got to listen to it! Fast little sucker too...162bpm.
4.) We told the boys about impending big brotherhood. Jam's response, "It BETTER not be a girl!" was only slightly less funny to me than Bran sitting on the floor saying, "YES!! YES!!!" complete with arm pumps!!
So things are looking good in the Bears' Den. Now...if we can only hang on by our fingernails until we get paid!!
Stupid leave last year...still struggling with that. HOWEVER...this is going to be so different!! For one, I have disability (I LOVE that little duck!!) so will get paid through that. For two, PGCEA gives 2 weeks of paid maternity leave. So, look out world...!!
Thanks to all for the love and well wishes. It has made a difference!
Since I wrote last:
1) We finished the curriculum project!! Can't wait to see what other teachers think of it!
2.) We put in notice to our apartment complex that we are, in fact, moving. Now, we need to find a place to go!
3.) Had an ultrasound and first "official" ob appointment on Friday. The ultrasound tech (by now, it feels like we are old friends) laughed when I laughed at how my uterus looks like a huge mouth with one tooth stuck up in it. She said the tooth...is the baby!! She showed me the heartbeat...then we got to listen to it! Fast little sucker too...162bpm.
4.) We told the boys about impending big brotherhood. Jam's response, "It BETTER not be a girl!" was only slightly less funny to me than Bran sitting on the floor saying, "YES!! YES!!!" complete with arm pumps!!
So things are looking good in the Bears' Den. Now...if we can only hang on by our fingernails until we get paid!!
Stupid leave last year...still struggling with that. HOWEVER...this is going to be so different!! For one, I have disability (I LOVE that little duck!!) so will get paid through that. For two, PGCEA gives 2 weeks of paid maternity leave. So, look out world...!!
Thanks to all for the love and well wishes. It has made a difference!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
And so it begins...
Today marks the first of what will be a long collection of days when I will be away from my family for the summer. My mom and sister are traveling with me to New York for my grandmother's services, so I will be gone today and tomorrow. Bran has already asked that I send him text messages!
Sunday, I have two rehearsals at church and an extra service on Sunday night (you should come to Emory Grove...there is something so spiritual about worship when it is outdoors).
Monday, I am supposed to go to lunch with a colleague.
Tuesday, I have a four hour curriculum meeting, with an hour commute each way (that is, if I am LUCKY...you know that Baltimore-Washington corridor is a bear).
Wednesday, I have an all day workshop at some place in PG County.
Thursday, I think I am home???
Friday I have two doctor's appointments and then a workshop (this time, it's a singing workshop...looking forward to getting some great music ideas!).
Saturday, I have part two of the workshop...and both days, I will be driving down to Alexandria Virginia and back!
Sunday, I "only" have church.
The good news is, since Scott is home, I don't have to find anyone to watch them.
The bad news is, we are running out of quality time for the family because school starts next month. The 17th of August is sitting on my calendar, a reminder that I have so many things that I WANT TO DO and I better get cracking!
Sunday, I have two rehearsals at church and an extra service on Sunday night (you should come to Emory Grove...there is something so spiritual about worship when it is outdoors).
Monday, I am supposed to go to lunch with a colleague.
Tuesday, I have a four hour curriculum meeting, with an hour commute each way (that is, if I am LUCKY...you know that Baltimore-Washington corridor is a bear).
Wednesday, I have an all day workshop at some place in PG County.
Thursday, I think I am home???
Friday I have two doctor's appointments and then a workshop (this time, it's a singing workshop...looking forward to getting some great music ideas!).
Saturday, I have part two of the workshop...and both days, I will be driving down to Alexandria Virginia and back!
Sunday, I "only" have church.
The good news is, since Scott is home, I don't have to find anyone to watch them.
The bad news is, we are running out of quality time for the family because school starts next month. The 17th of August is sitting on my calendar, a reminder that I have so many things that I WANT TO DO and I better get cracking!
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