Brand new family of 4!
It’s been 12 days since my sweet daughter was born and I am just now getting to sit at the computer and write down the story of her birth. Sorry it’s so lengthy, but this is my baby book and I don’t want to forget anything.
Having a planned cesarean section is much different than my first experience of going into labor and then having an emergency c-section. I decided early on in this pregnancy that if I went into labor naturally before my scheduled c-section date of October 14th that I would attempt a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). I never got the opportunity, so on Friday, October 14th I checked into the hospital at 6am.
Checking into the ambulatory surgery department is very different than checking into labor & delivery. Out of the 5 or 6 women waiting for their surgeries, I was the only pregnant woman there. I checked in and waited until 7am to be taken back to be prepped for surgery. I changed into my hospital gown (known up here as a Johnny) and relaxed while I got my IV and answered questions from the surgical nurses and anesthesiologists.
Promptly at my scheduled c-section time of 7:30am I was wheeled back into OR 1. While we crossed under the OR doors, the anesthesiologist, Tom, asked everyone if they were ready to go to a birthday party. Mine was the first surgery of the day so I tried to take deep breaths and relax as the team prepped for the surgery. Tom checked with the 3 OB’s who would be operating if Steely Dan playing in the background would be alright and everyone agreed it was fine. I don’t remember if anything played at Jackson’s birth– probably not, because it was an emergency situation.
It was surreal laying there knowing my daughter would be born in a matter of minutes. I spent the 30 minutes until her birth looking into my husband’s eyes and watching the blood pressure monitor to my right. The doctors told me when they were close and when she was born they all commented on her dark, long hair and told me she was gorgeous.
Unfortunately the OR we had was not designed for c-sections so the area they whisked her away to a corner where I couldn’t see her. Thankfully, my husband went over there and told me what was going on with her. They took about 45 minutes to sew/glue me back together and then I headed to recovery and was able to nurse her for the first time. She acted like an old pro and the recovery nurse was amazed at how easy it was for us. I’m so lucky to have two kids who easily breastfed without any issues.
Her birth was so different than that of her big brother’s. She cried right away where he didn’t. She only had the cord wrapped around her neck once to his 4 times. My placenta was in perfect condition with hers while my son’s was shredded due to the abruption. Her APGAR scores were 9/9 while his were 1/3/8. She weighed 7 lbs 13 oz and he was 6 lb 2 oz. She was 20.75 inches long to his 20 inches. He was a blonde baldy while she has a full head of dark hair. Hers was a planned c-section while his was an emergency in the middle of the night. I was more nervous/anxious/scared this time while I never had the chance to feel like that with the Jackson’s birth. My 5 day stay at the hospital with my son seemed like a vacation while 3 days seemed way too long this time, especially with a mouse strolling through my hospital room my last night there. You read that correctly, a mouse. In my hospital room. That was exactly what I needed to decide to go home the next day instead of the fourth day.
Overall, the recovery from this c-section has been more difficult than my first. It’s probably because I know have a very busy 22 month old to tend to, but both times I’ve had the help of my Mom and In-Laws. This time, the pain meds didn’t seem to work as well and I didn’t even feel like myself until about 10 days postpartum. Now I feel great and even got back to my old daily routine with a trip to Target after a pediatrician appointment this morning.
Despite the recovery being harder this time around, I’m glad I did a repeat c-section because my Mom was able to be there and I was able to plan around the birth. It might have put me over the edge not knowing when she was going to come in the midst of moving into a new house. Even though it’s been harder healing this time, I’m thrilled to have two healthy, wonderful children to complete our family and am overwhelmed with how blessed I am. These kids make me count my blessings often, motherhood is the best thing that has ever happened to me.
For old times sake, I’m sharing a belly picture of the day before I had her and 12 days postpartum:
39 weeks pregnant, the day before Baby S was born
12 days post-Baby
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