Some of my favorite pics

Here are some of my favorite pics of Isaac from this past week. I'm taking about a trillion a day so it's hard to choose from!

Our little man

Our little family

Good morning, Isaac =)

Watching Sportscenter with daddy

This is what he does after he eats...it's like a milk hangover

Happy Birthday, Isaac!!

Ok, now that Isaac is home I'll give all the info on his birth just for those who want ALL the details. HAHA. So, I went to the hospital last Monday, the 22nd for a regular NST and he failed as usual so they ordered me to do a fluid check and a bpp. Although he did pass, they noticed that my fluid was low. Because I was 38 weeks, 6 daysthey decided to induce for the fact that "he would do better outside than inside of me at this point." I was shocked! Not expecting that one...In fact, my mom was on a plane on her way to Hawaii. So they brought me to labor and delivery and checked me. I was only 1 cm. This was scary because I was just hoping that everything would work to get me all the way from 1-10 cm. So they gave me a pill (Cytotec) which would help to dilate me and inserted a foley with a 3-4 cm balloon on the end. It would cause pressure on my cervix and cause it to dilate...when it came out then I was 3-4 cm along. All that worked and in the meantime, I started to have contractions. Holy cow...so I imagined what a contraction felt like and it wasn't anything like that. HAHA. Andrew also left to go get my mom who had no idea what the hell was going on. Well, they gave me another dose of Cytotec. It worked well and it was good because they waited 4 hours to check me. Made the time go by fast. They then broke my water...and waited to see if it would help me to dilate. When they checked again, I was 5-6 cm. They were about to start the pitocin and they offered up the epidural. Yeah, give me some of that! I swear, my hat goes off to people who don't get it. At this point, the pain was honestly bearable, but I knew it would get worst especially with the pitocin, which is known to cause more painful contractions. I was terrified of the epidural but it was decent and so worth it. After that, I could feel the pressure from some of the contractions but that's about it. At this point, they told us that Isaac's heartrate was dropping after each contraction, which meant the placenta was not doing it's job of delivering oxygen after the contractions...if the pitocin wasn't going to work fast enough then they would do a c-section. They also had me wear an oxygen mask to make sure he was getting enough. At this point I was supposed to rest but...not possible. While my mom and Andrew were sleeping I starting feeling the contractions and told the nurse that I either had to poop or that I needed to push. When she checked me, I was 9cm! That was quick. So then they prepped me for the pushing. I did that for a little over an hour. When Isaac came out the first thing I noticed was the HUGE conehead. HAHA...it went down pretty quickly though. And he was so much smaller than anticipated. Only 6 lb, 5.6 oz. He looks so long and skinny. For those who know about Apgars...he did great with 2 9's =). I was very upset though because I wanted him on my chest right after he came out. Because of the oxygen problem they were having, they had to take him to the baby warmer. And then they waited forever to give him to me because I had to get stitches. Needless to say, I did not get to hold him first. Ok, I'm not bitter at all. *rolls eyes* A couple hours later, we went to the mother/baby unit where we spent the next 2 days. The night we got discharged we ended up going back to the ER...see "Prayers for Baby Isaac". Now we're all doing well and my little man is cuter than ever! =)

Prayers for Baby Isaac

As you all may know, we had our precious Isaac on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 2:38am. Labor went well and we were discharged last night hours after his circumcision. I noticed that he was very lethargic and he was not breastfeeding nor crying as much as he should, so we went to the emergency room last night around midnight. His temperature was low and his blood glucose was low. In babies, this is a sign of infection. So they had me hold him close and wrap us both in hot blankets to get his temperature up. They eventually sent him to the NICU where he'll be staying for at least 72 hours. So basically, they're just doing a lot of tests to figure out what the infection is or if it's something more serious. They immediately got his blood glucose higher and his temperature under control. We were unable to stay at the hospital because they had no room for us...not to mention I'm still recovering so I'm having a tough time right now. We spoke to them about 2 hours ago and they said that he's looking a lot better and that they got some results back and everything looks good so far. I've also had to start pumping my colostrum already which I've been pretty upset about, but I'd rather him have it this way if it's the only way possible. They told us this morning that by the time we get there today, he'll probably be able to eat, so that's a really good sign.

So what was meant to be our first night with Isaac at home ended up being a horrible time at the ER/NICU. We're hoping that it's an infection and that it clears up soon with the antibiotics. And if that means him staying in the NICU, no matter how tough it is...then that's what we need to do. Please pray for our family as well as Baby Isaac that he gets better soon.

UPDATE (10/1/08 9 am): Isaac came home yesterday! Thank you so much for all the prayers everyone...they worked! They still have no idea what caused his episode. Most likely poor feeding. They treated him with 3 different antibiotics but all the cultures for infection came back negative. They did cultures on his spinal fluid, blood, and urine. They even tested him for viruses, but still negative. The biggest worry was his feeding. He couldn't get the hang of breastfeeding at all...so I had to resort to pumping and feeding him through bottles sometimes. I really didn't want to but I just wanted him to eat. They even inserted an NG tube (nasogastric) just in case they needed to give him breastmilk...turns out they didn't need it. It was so hard seeing him being poked and prodded so many times. They had to give him an IV for his antibiotics and to give him glucose and they kept having to move it because his veins are so little...if he would have to stay one more day they would probably have to go through his belly button because they were running out of places to put it. They were also testing his glucose before each feeding. The only results we're waiting on is the newborn screen. This tests for tons of metabolic disorders. It's a possibility that he may have one that is causing his poor feeding. These can be serious depending on the disorder. The doctors don't expect anything though, and the initial reading was negative. We'll be at the hospital today for them to check him but he's doing fine from my viewpoint. He's not only breastfeeding well, but he's waking up every 2 1/2 hours on his own to eat. Trust me...I know. HAHA

I just wanted to thank everyone for their prayers. This has honestly been the hardest thing we've been through...especially when I was trying to recover myself. But somehow, God managed to give us the strength to be there for Isaac. I even stayed at the hospital in the NICU on a pullout chair for 4 nights so that I can get up and feed him (or attempt) every 3 hours. We're just so thankful and blessed to have him home now and to have such supportive friends and family! Love ya'll.

I used to be skinny!!

*sigh* Every pound that I put on for my baby boy has been worth it...but I can't wait to take up a small amount of space again! The worst is when you actually bump your belly up against someone. Sorry stranger, I can't suck it in! HAHA. So this post is my motivation. To tell myself that I was NOT fat before and that I WILL look like I did in this pictures again. Even though my boobs will probably be bigger and hips wider. =) Enjoy the pics...I'm such a ham.

Graduation-May 2006

Me doing foolishness-Spring 2007

Horseback riding in Kauai-June 2007

"Still pregnant?"

Yes, I'm still pregnant. I'm not even late so technically I can't even evict him yet! I had my second exam today and I am still not dilated, but I am a little effaced (your cervix gets thinned out as you get closer to labor, which is necessary for dilation). Baby still hasn't dropped into the birth canal yet. How frustrating! I know it means nothing...it doesn't mean that my water can't break anytime. But we need to see some progress to have a successful induction, if that's necessary. Soooo, they're having me go in again on Monday or Tuesday. If I'm 3 cm or more than they'll schedule the induction next week. If I'm still only 0-2 cm, then they're going to wait to induce until the next week (that I'm due.) Hopefully in that case, I'll have him naturally before then. My mom will be here on Monday, so it looks like she'll make it for the birth.


As for me, I'm actually feeling pretty good. Quite a bit of discomfort and pain but not to the point where I can't walk or anything. I'm sleeping a little better...it's hard. My mind is racing more than anything. We have everything set up around the house that we'll need...just a little more cleaning to do. And mentally...well, I'm just trying to think positively and be patient. I know that God has a plan for us and Baby Isaac will be here when he's ready. I can't help it if I have a cozy uterus =)

Me at 38 weeks

38 w 2d-Look at those big ole lips!! He was making sucking motions.

Big foot =)

Some more pregnancy humor...

This is right about where I'm at right now...=)

Progress?

Nope, not yet. We had a dr. appointment today and I had my first internal exam. On a side note, it was not as bad as I was planning. Anyway, no dilation yet. In fact, he hasn't even dropped yet. It's still early though so I'm not worried. I'm hoping that by next week's visit I'll be 1-2 cm. It's just a game at this point. The thing is that my blood pressure is going up a little bit now, which means that they may have to induce (which was expected) before things get dangerous. But they don't want to induce if I have no progress on my own...that will most likely result in a c-section and I really REALLY don't want one. I'm terrified of getting a c-section. I know they're safe and all but it's just a personal preference. Of course, if there is any danger to the baby I'll do what I have to do. That being said, I don't want to progress too fast because I want him to wait for my mom to get here. 

*sigh* This is one stubborn little baby...I'll tell you that much. But it's still early. Progression at this point really means nothing. A woman can walk around stuck at 3 cm for 2 weeks, where as another woman may go from 0-4 cm in a day. So, hopefully he'll come on his own but not too soon. In the meantime, I'll be patient and continue to get my 3-4 hours/sleep a night =)

PS-I find it so weird to talk about my progress with someone I'm not close to. And if you're ready this, then we're close so it's cool. HAHA. It's just weird. Like, "so...how is your vagina doing today?"  "It's all good...and yours?" Like we're talking about the weather or something!