January 12, 2005
Olivia is here!
Olivia was born this morning at 7:58 am. She weighs in at 7 pounds 4.9 ounces and is 19 inches long. Pam and Olivia are both fine although Pam is really drugged up right now. Tomorrow she may have a different opinion. As soon as I figure out Pamela's site setup I'll post my favorite pics.
(Dale)
Update: pictures are here, here, here, and here.
38 wk Checkup / Final Pre-natal
We had our final prenatal visit today. My vitals were fine. My final weight seems to be 16lbs more than pre-pregnancy. There wasn't an ultrasound done, but we got to endure another fetal non-stress test. Olivia was more cooperative this time. It wasn't necessary to press the heart monitor into my belly this time, and she started off the test with hiccups. She also had intermittent movements throughout the test, so I got to press the little button plenty of times, unlike the last test when she adamantly refused to move, despite a pre-test meal and repeated zapping with the buzzer.
Olivia also seems to be just fine. I'm actually about 1cm dilated now, but we're still on track for the C-section tomorrow morning.
I had plenty of questions for the doctor this time, though I'm sure there are still plenty I forgot. I've probably already forgotten about some of what I asked. Let's see what I can remember.
- I need to have my bedtime snack and insulin shot at midnight. No more food and drink after midnight. No insulin in the morning. (Oh, that reminds me! I have to go do my shot/snack now!)
- We need to be at the hospital by 6am. We are to go right to the 4th floor (maternity) to check in.
- If the procedure gets started at 7:30am (as scheduled) and there are no complications, we should be done by 8:30am.
- Visiting hours end at 9pm. That means my parents and sister will have to hustle from the airport if they want to see us and the baby Wednesday night. :(
- The incision will go right across the two scars from my laparoscopy. But it's going to be a LOT longer than those incisions were.
- Cord blood storage is something they will do, but we needed to have contracted with a storage place and gotten a kit already, which we haven't done. So no cord blood storage for us.
- There is a lactation consultant on staff.
- I don't really need to bring anything for the baby, but most people have a special "going home" outfit. For myself, Dr. Storey recommended just wearing the hospital gowns to keep my own from getting stained (breast-feeding and incision leakage) but to bring my own robe and slippers.
- I am scheduled to stay in the hospital for four days. If I'm feeling up to it and recovering well, I might get to leave on Day 3 (Saturday).
I also brought up an issue Dale and I had discussed previously but kept forgetting to mention to Dr. Storey. When I had the laparoscopy in May and the ectopic pregnancy was removed, Dr. Vaughn (my reproductive endocrinologist) had wanted to remove the affected fallopian tube, but since he hadn't discussed it with me beforehand, he couldn't. I asked Dr. Storey if she could go ahead and remove the tube during the C-section because I was afraid of the high risk of ectopics if I had any other pregnancies. I expected a lengthy discussion, but to my surprise, she readily agreed. I just had to contact Dr. Vaughn to confirm which tube it was because non of my records specified it. We were pretty sure it was the left tube, and later, I confirmed that it was. So tomorrow Dr. Storey will remove my left fallopian tube after delivering Olivia.
And that wraps up the appointment recap.
Early in the evening, Dale's Mom stopped by. She asked us if we were scared. We both said yes, and she said she couldn't tell. Dale said he was pretty laid back. I said I'd probably freak out later. A couple of hours later, while Dale and I were at dinner, I asked him what time it was (8:30pm). We then discussed the fact that in less than 24 hours, we'd be parents. I said I hoped we won't screw her up too much. Then the predicted freak out hit. I said, "in 24 hours, they're going to ram a giant needle into my spine and cut my abdomen open." I can't even remember what Dale said. Then I said, "I wonder what she'll look like," and burst into tears.
Poor Dale tried to comfort me while I had a taco in one hand and a napkin covering my eyes with the other. Fortunately, the freak out was fairly short and quiet. We finished dinner then went out to pick up a few things and head home. Since then, I've continued washing baby items and setting up the nursery while Dale's set up the computer room and living room.
Now it's nearly 12:15am. Time for me to stop typing and pack my hospital bag. Wish us luck!