Part 2 of 2...

This is Part 2 of the "8 lb. Update," so if you have not yet read it, scroll down and read it first. :)

Julius brought you through the recovery time at the hospital and explained his experience so well. I will try to tell you a bit of the rest.

They took me out of the recovery area around midnight, blood pressure under control and no more shivering from the epidural (yeah!). The epidural machine they use these days are great! The patient is able to press a button to administer medication, no more than once an hour, to control the pain as she feels it. I certainly tried to stay ahead of it! Through the night, we tried to sleep. Julius had a couch-like surface to use and at least it was nearly 6 feet long so his feet weren't dangling! He can sleep anywhere, luckily. I do not remember much about my first night, though. They brought Evelyn into the room after her observation period ended to "room-in."

Over the next few days, we learned how to breast-feed, and Julius got the best baby education he could - changing all diapers, the first sponge bath on his own, waking the baby every few hours to try eating, and swaddling. He took to these tasks like a duck to water, even though he did not have any experience. All he had was me in the bed giving tips and the nurses passing along a little info here and there. He stayed there 24/7 and would not be talked into going home for a good night sleep. Praise God for a loving new Daddy! While I had a difficult time waking him the first couple nights to help out, he soon learned to wake from sleep quickly when his baby girl let out a wail. :)

My local family also came to visit. We all had a nice time celebrating and enjoying the new beauty the Lord blessed our family with. They even brought a Mother's Day Feast to the hospital on Sunday to celebrate with my mom, my sister Jennifer, and now me as the mothers present. Dad's delicious BBQ chicken certainly made the nurses drool!

I felt better each day, but then they removed the epidural and placed me on pill medication. I had a really bad third night. About 11 pm, I was trying to drift into a nap, completely uncomfortable after spending days on my back (too difficult to be on my side with the incision). I had HGTV on very low, but they made a joke that made me laugh. It hurt sooo bad. Later, my doctor said that my pain was not managed well because I should have been able to laugh. Poor Julius...he was so startled by my outcry of pain and he must have been stunned to look at me. I was crying with pain, a grimace on my face, but still smiling and laughing because the joke kept me going. I must have had a scary, maniacal look with this combination. It took time to calm down, but I was now back to feeling as though it were the first night again. I could barely walk, certainly not without Julius to hold me every step of the way. It was painful and the nurses were unable to give me any sort of rescue medication because I was already taking my prescribed meds. It was a long night, but we made it through and were able to recover some ground before being discharged late the next day.

Since coming home, we have settled into a learning routine. Once I figure something out, which takes a couple days to do, Evelyn changes things up a little. She is wonderful! Wakeful times are slowly increasing and she has a very content temperament. I have recently been reassured by my parents and doctor's nurse that her schedule of going about 4 hours between feedings are just fine, since she is nursing well when she is there. The nurse told me to just enjoy it...I guess I got lucky that I am able to get more than a couple hours to sleep at night between feedings! But then, she is likely to change things on me now that I have said it...

Thank you all for your prayers. We are so happy with this new addition and we will be trying to put up little stories of our experience with our first daughter here on the blog. So check back every once in a while. :) Love to you all.

8lb Update!

Evelyn Lucile Patton was born via C-section on Friday, May 7, 2010 at 7:49pm, weighing 8lbs 7oz and 20” in length. Because of the surgical procedure, Kimberly and baby were kept at Women’s Hospital of Texas until the following Monday afternoon. The entire family is doing well.

That’s the basic update. If you want more info on the whats, whys and wherefores, then here is what Paul Harvey might call, “… the rest of the story.”

Part 1 of 2…

Even though we still had a scheduled C-section set for Monday, May 10, we also still had a previously scheduled doctor’s appointment on the previous Friday, May 7 at 2:50pm. Prior to leaving for the appointment, we thought to bring the hospital bags, but instead chose not to. The reason for this was simple reverse psychology… sort of. Kimberly had previously stated her concern that she didn’t want to share our anniversary date, May 10, with the birth of our first baby. We figured that if we brought the bag, then we wouldn’t need it, but if we didn’t bring the bag, then we might need it.

So, in we go to the doctor’s office and while the nurse is doing their standard checks (heart rate, blood pressure, urine test, etc.), they note that Kimberly’s blood pressure is slightly elevated – though not dangerous. About 10 minutes later, the nurse checks her BP again and it was still elevated. A few minutes later, the doctor comes in and begins her standard check of things, during which Kimberly tells her about some awkward headaches that she has been getting off and on for a few days. When the doctor checks her BP again, it was still elevated. Although the description of headaches did not seem to be indicative of those found with preeclampsia, the doctor wanted to put Kimberly under observation for a couple hours so they could monitor her BP before making a decision about what to do.

We meandered over to the Hospital to the Labor & Delivery Testing area and checked in. Kimberly was put into a room where they hooked up a couple monitors that track the baby’s heart rate and a BP monitor for Kimberly. Over the next couple of hours, Kimberly’s blood pressure continued to steadily climb. After discussing options with the doctor, we all thought that it would be better to do the C-section that evening, rather than waiting until Monday and chancing any possible complications from her rising blood pressure.

While they guided Kimberly to prep for the surgery, I made the informative phone calls to family and then headed up to the C-Section Father’s Waiting room. After donning the scrubs and pacing around a 10’x10’ room for what seemed like hours, a nurse came in and led me to the operating room. I walk into a large square sterile-white room where 2 doctors are leaning over Kimberly’s abdomen – covered from our view by a sheet, along with an anesthesiologist near Kimberly’s head and two nurses standing ‘at the ready.’

I sat down next to Kimberly and did my best to calm and encourage her. They already had her on local anesthesia, so she was awake and aware while they were performing the surgical procedure. She was feeling some of the side effects of the medicine and kept shivering off and on. After only a few short minutes, the anesthetist asked me if I was ready to be a Daddy, to which I could only respond with a look that was somewhat similar to a ‘deer in the headlights’ look. He smiled and told me to grab my camera because, “… in about 30 seconds you’re gonna be a Daddy.”

Sure enough, about 30 seconds later, we heard the first cry of our baby. They lowered the shade enough so I could get a quick picture right before they cut the umbilical cord. The doctor made the comment, “No wonder you couldn’t get her to turn in the womb… there was no room!” Kimberly and I shared a smile as they brought me over to the ‘warming table’ where one of the nurses started doing all the cleaning, foot-printing, etc. I couldn’t keep from taking a lot of photos, grinning ear to ear, and praising God.

It’s one thing to hear stories from other people about the birth of their children, or to look at Kimberly 8-9 months pregnant knowing our child is growing inside her, or to look on the screen at a sonogram and actually seeing a computerized, graphical representation of what our child looks like. However, it is nothing compared to actually seeing your own child with your own eyes while she is crying about being pried from the womb and you are crying with joy and praise.

When the nurse finished with all her paperwork and stuff, she had me stretch out my shirt and lean over while she inked Evelyn’s feet and placed both footprints right on my stomach. It was great. She then handed Evelyn to me – anxious, nervous and scared I might hurt her, I brought her over so that Kimberly could see and hold her. After holding her for only a few minutes, the nurses came back to take me and Evelyn to the transition nursery while the doctors finished their work on Kimberly.

So… giddy as a schoolgirl, grinning like a kid in a candy shop, and proud as a soldier protecting his country, I escorted Evelyn upstairs to the nursery – stopping at the family waiting room to notify the family.

After awhile, I went to the C-Section Recovery room where Kimberly was being kept. Her blood pressure was still a bit elevated and going up a little. They decided to use Magnesium Sulfate to help regulate her blood pressure and after a couple of hours, her BP began to lower. The nurse suggested we stay in the recovery room a little while longer because the AC unit in the other wing had gone out and they were trying to repair it. After about another hour, we were able to move into a room where we would stay for the duration.

to be continued...

We Have A Date

While at the regular Doctor's visit on Apr 29, we were chatting with the doctor about different things. At the end of every visit, she always takes a few moments to ask us if we have any questions, concerns or anything. We had some questions regarding the position of the baby: How does she know when to turn? When does she turn? etc.

The doctor paused a moment and asked if they had confirmed that the baby had actually turned yet. We said 'No' and when she double-checked the file, she saw that it had not yet been confirmed. So she set us up for a quick ultrasound a few minutes later and saw that Evelyn had not turned into the proper position for vaginal birth.

We were at 37.5 weeks pregnant and the baby should be turned by then. The doctor sadly informed us that Evelyn is in 'Breech' - basically means that the baby is not sitting head-down in preparation for a vaginal birth. Either they are sitting head-up butt-down or with a leg sticking down or something similar.

She set us up for an appointment the next day at the hospital to attempt an External Cephalic Version, or External Version. This is where they externally monitor the baby (heartrate & position) while pushing and turning the baby by pressing on the belly. It is an uncomfortable and sometimes painful process that attempts to position the baby correctly for vaginal birth. They have to do this process at the hospital just in case something happens and they have to do an emergency C-section.

Later that night, Kimberly and I were talking about it and we both believed that God was in control. If God plans for Evelyn to turn and enter this world in a vaginal birth, it would happen and we would praise Him. If He plans for her to enter this world via a C-section, it would happen and we would praise Him. We are often remind of Jeremiah 29:11 and it is very comforting.

The next day, after multiple attempts, the doctor was not able to turn Evelyn. As she was apologizing for the lack of success, Kimberly told her, "It's okay. God is in control."

So they scheduled us for a planned C-section for 10am on Monday, May 10, 2010 (aka. Our Anniversay), when we get to meet our first bundle of joy. Kimberly will be at 39 weeks tomorrow (May 8), so Evelyn will be born at almost full term. In the meantime, we have both been counting down the days, praising God and trying to not get too overly anxious!

Please keep praying for us and the hospital staff for a successful and healthy birth.