Our new baby is here, and we are so happy and in love! The morning of her birth started out super scary though. I couldn't feel her moving at all, even after taking a shower and eating breakfast. She was always active in the mornings, especially after I would eat or drink something. Still unable to get any movement after laying down and poking and and pushing on my belly, I panicked and called the doctor. They told me to go to the hospital to get checked out. I rushed to get the kids packed into the car, and then headed to the hospital in the middle of rush hour traffic, praying that she was ok, and thinking I couldn't bear to lose another baby. Having to sit in traffic made it that much worse, and on top of that my phone had died right after I called Alex to tell him I was going in, and I didn't have a car charger. Once we got to L&D, they had me go into the bathroom to put on a gown on. I noticed a little blood, so I called to the nurse and asked if they could please check for a heartbeat. I don't know why they didn't do this right away, but they finally got me hooked up and were able to find her heartbeat right away. I have never been so relieved! They left the monitor on for awhile, and I felt a few kicks now and then, but not as much as I was used to. I'll never know why I wasn't able to rouse her, but I'm so grateful that she was ok. Since I was 39 weeks, we decided to go ahead and induce. After Alex arrived, and my mom came to take the kids, they broke my water and I was able to walk around for a bit to see if I could get things going on my own. No such luck. Shortly after 2pm, they started a low dose of pitocin. I started feeling contractions about 3pm, and she arrived a little over 2.5 hours later! I never like being induced, but short labors are awesome :)
Here she is!
They let me hold her as long as I wanted, and I got to nurse her for awhile before they cleaned her up and got stats.
5.15 lbs. and 18.5 inches. Probably my smallest baby, considering gestational age. Mary was also 5.15, and Lucy was 5.4, but they were both 37 weeks.
The kids were beyond excited to meet her, and in awe at how tiny she was!
Our stay in the hospital went well. We had to stay two nights, because her bilirubin level was elevated, and since it peaks on the 4th day, they wanted to make sure her level wasn't climbing too high. The day after we got home, I took her to the pediatrician to get another blood draw and luckily it wasn't high enough to require light treatment. Yay!
It is SO great having a newborn again. Oh, how I have missed having a tiny baby snuggle up on my chest. It has been an easy transition, and I find myself more relaxed and better able to fight the urge to get up and clean or work on my to do list. It helps having bigger kids too, of course. They are very eager to hold her and run get whatever I need. I love my growing family, and feel incredibly blessed! Thank you God, for this precious little soul!
