well, as of this past Friday, i'm on "complete and total" bed rest... my blood pressure has been going up and at my appt on the 31st it was 140/101...

the only things i'm allowed to do:

go to the bathroom

take 1 shower a day

make a simple lunch for myself only (she said sandwich)

that's it...

what cant i do:

no dishes

no cooking

no laundry

no CHILDCARE ()

it sucks and its boring. i was in the hospital all weekend and it was just boring as all - whatever -....

docs want me to stay preggo for at least 2 1/2-3 more weeks, but if BP cant be controlled, they'll induce me earlier. i did get the steroid shots to strengthen his lungs...

Congratulations! I am so happy for you !:thumbup::drool::tongue2::cheated:

Congratulations! I hope you have an easy recovery from your c-section and the little one starts eating better. I think it is usually slow going on that at first, especially when they're a little early.

Awwwwwwwww, he's just adorable!! Congrats to you and your family! Makes me more anxious to meet my new grandbaby due in 3 weeks.

Way to go LJ! It sounds like you were quite the warrior woman. I'm sorry you had to have a C-section, I bet most of us prefer not to have them.

Hugs and congrats! Happy Happy Joy Joy!

Wooohooo! I just got back from vacation and saw the good news! He is sooo adorable, aahhh I want one!!!!! )

Wooohooo! I just got back from vacation and saw the good news! He is sooo adorable, aahhh I want one!!!!! :thumbup:)

Ummmm you HAVE one.. He just hasn't come out to play yet.

thanks so much everyone... and i agree - FF - you do have one and you will be playing with him soon! :sleep:

i also posted this on my blog - here is my birth story ... well, Joshua's birth story...

ok, here goes ... its pretty long, but it's everything i can remember. Joshua is the greatest... takes up a ton of my time by me just looking at him...

my induction started at 8 on Thursday night (29January) with cytotek (?? – a cervical ripener) nothing happened after that until i received a second dose at midnight-ish then the contractions started very sporadically - although i had NO CLUE they were contractions ... i didnt know what they were supposed to feel like... so at 5:30am Friday they started the pitocin and just upped it every 15-30 minutes. the contractions were there but not regular (still)...

about noon my Water broke on its own (thought i peed the bed - seriously - i was apologizing to the nurse and everything...) *one thing no one ever told me was once your water breaks, sometimes it just doesn’t stop …. my water did not stop flowing – errr – gushing - for a very long time – maybe until delivery ????* the contractions were finally regular enough to get my epidural about 230pm or so. unfortunately, the epi caused my BP to plummet (60s/20s) and Joshua did not like that and his heart rate went from the 140-150s to 70s for about 7 minutes. so they stopped the pitocin and that regulated my BP - i dont remember much of this at all - - i was really light headed from the BP issues and from the thought of a needle basically sticking out of my spine... i didnt know this then but they were basically prepping me for an emergency C Section there and then... :thumbup: rick was petrified of losing both of us.

they made sure we were both stable for quite awhile before starting the pitocin again ... basically with the pit, they start it at level 2 and increase it by 2 every 15-30 minutes up to level 42... when they started it over, they had to start back at level 2 again. the bad thing is with my blood pressure, i was supposed to lay on my left side pretty much the entire time so the epidural wasnt exactly working properly. i felt the contractions on my right side starting at my back and radiating thru my tummy to about my belly button. when i flipped to my right side, i felt them on my left. not a fun thing at all.

about 5 or so the contractions were REALLY strong but still irregular. i'd have a 'good' one then a mild one then a few minutes later another 'good' one...

around 8 or 9ish, my OB came in and told them to start upping the pitocin every 15 mins vs the 30 they were doing to get things 'moving along'. oh dear... the contractions became VERY intense – so high they were “off the monitor” intense - and regular - every 3-4 minutes apart. at 1030 i was having severe contractions still but we noticed with each contraction, Joshua's heartrate dropped back into the 70s (vs 140-150s). i buzzed the nurse cause i was petrified of losing Joshua. they assured me they were watching and as long as the heartrate rebounded as soon as the contraction was over, all was well.

a tad before 11pm my nurse came in to do an internal ... those are funnnnnnn - not... i was 90% effaced but only 3 cm dilated - still - since about 2ish and this is with the pitocin at the very highest level available (42). she said she would let my OB know and i knew right then i would be having a c section. my doc came in about 15 excrutiating minutes later and did another internal with the same results - all the hoping and wishing didnt dilate me any more unfortunately.... she confirmed my fear of the c section and the anesthesiologist came right in to start giving me mega epidural... he was literally pushing a whole syringe full into my line (before he was giving me a few cc's at a time). i asked if he'd be a 1/30 baby or 1/31 cause i like the idea of 1/31. they told me more than likely 1/30 cause they thought it would be a good idea to get him out ASAP.

so in less than 1/2 hour, i was fully prepped (mostly prepped from when my BP dropped earlier), the OR was ready and i was on the table. the epidural still wasnt working and i felt the 'prick' of the needle around where they would make the incision line, so they decided to put me in 'twilight' .. after about 1 minute of that med, i was OUT ... i didnt feel anything ... i was nowhere near awake which was really disappointing. i did wake up to hear them say "her" (Rick said in reference to me) and i said Dr. G (perinatologist) said he was a BOY!!!! then zonked out again. i once again woke up as they were closing me with staples... felt every last one of those puppies...

so at 11:47pm after about 20 hours of labor my son arrived. he is perfect. i never thought i could love someone i didnt even really know so incredibly much. i never thought i could share the love i have for Syd... but its just amazing...

Joshua is now doing well. he was a bit jaundiced for a few days, but his levels came down today (yay!!) and he gained 1.5oz (yay again!) he really is so much fun... (although that is probably the sleep deprivation talking as well - up every hour or so (we have to feed every 2 hours) ... fun times but worth every sleep deprived minute!

Oh how exciting.. getting so anxious just reading your story...

Wow! What a roller coaster! I'm glad you're having so much fun with him! Take care!

So LJM, when you got your first really good look at him after you were coherent . . . what was that like for you?

I remember just being shocked and in awe. It was just so amazing to actually see my son for the first time. He looked nothing like I had expected, but I really didn't even know what I was expecting. I just couldn't stop looking at him . . . his face, his nose, his ears, his toes. He kind of took my breath away.

It is like I don't even have sufficient words to describe that particular part of the experience. That first glance made all of the uncomfortable parts of pregnancy, labor and delivery melt away into insignificance. Nothing ever seems to matter quite the same again once you have delivered your very own baby.

you know, Heather - there really isnt a way TO describe how i was feeling. i think you pretty much nailed it though... looked nothing like i expected but didnt have a clue WHAT to expect. i actually think my first thought is "you have your father's nose"... and i did notice he has little white specks (assuming baby pimples??) on it...

all i remember is looking into his eyes and just being amazed that he is my husband and i combined. (*tears* - yes, still).... i knew i'd love him, but just did not imagine the enormity of my love for him. it was instant and indescribable...

i never thought i'd say this but the labor pains really did become a memory ... i mean yeah, they hurt, but now i'm just kinda relating 'em to period cramps... bad ones but cramps none the less...

LJ, that's just great babe, it sounds like you're doing well! I am so excited for you and for all of us who will be following. I remember reading your blog last week and it said you were being sent in for a c-section at that moment. It took my breath away to flash back on the past 8 months, your "Coming out of the Closet" post where you spilled the pregnancy secret to all of us, all your great advice and encouragement when I was trying to get pregnant and how wonderful you and everyone has been since! Such a fun journey, and I hope you will continue to post and read the pregnancy threads even though you've now given birth!

Hugs!

LJM, how was your first week at home??? For all of us new moms to be that haven't experienced it yet or have had such a long delay that they have forgotten, any words of wisdom? Are you getting any sleep?

it's been good.. I didn't realize how much they actually sleep the first week... now he's a tad more awake...

DH is really helping out with the night feedings... he takes midnite & 6 am shift.. I get 2&4. not so bad... I am tired though... need to settle into routine..

loving every minute of it though!!! :biggrin:

Congratulations!

I was so relieved to discover they actually sleep (almsot constantly) the first few days. I had several weeks of insomnia prior to delivery and really needed the rest.

The routine will come. You won't see it coming. Kind of like with weightloss, when you suddenly realize you went up those stairs without losing your breath... you'll suddenly realize that you have a good idea when X is going to happen, what time you have to start Y by to finish on time, etc.

But enough about that, seems I have a thread I need to finish reading. :tongue2: