i'm a mommy!

It's been 10 days since Camden was born. Been wanting to update this blog (not that all that many people even follow it!) but sleepless nights, feeding and adjusting to our new lives with baby has of course, kept me busy.

I'm sleep deprived (this term, btw does not do how new parents feel justice), hormonal, in some physical pain though not too bad and have only a few moments of feeling "normal." So, there will be typos galore and who knows what else moving forward, just fyi.

Where to start? How about a quick recap of the labor and delivery.

Labor wasn't bad at all. All future moms, don't be afraid because it is NOTHING compared to the first week with baby. A cake walk, in fact. Here's how it went down for me:

Sept. 21, 2009

7:30am - Hospital calls and says to come down for my induction. I'm unbelievably nervous about being induced. 9 days overdue so doctor gave me the choice of being induced on Monday or Thursday. We opted for Monday, but the weekend before I started to question our decision. The internet can be a terrible thing. Researching inductions on the web was a bad move. Sometimes what you don't know won't hurt you! So I was nervous about it not going well and mostly about having to be forced into a c-section. Let's just say I sweated my way to the hospital.

9:30am - Arrive at hospital. Kristine is our nurse. We loved her! My hula sister, Lani, works at Swedish as a L&D nurse so she called ahead and told them I was coming so Kristine was extra nice to us.

10:00am-ish - Check into our birthing suite. It's huge! Apparently, Gov. Locke built it when his wife gave birth. Knowing Lani has awesome perks! Thank you aunty Lani. :)

11:00am - IV is in (this sucked, btw. I HATED my IV. So uncomfortable), antibiotics start flowing for GBS and the pitocin is started at the lowest level. Kristine pretty much stays in the room with us monitoring for me the most part. I'm attached to fetal monitors and a BP band around my left arm round the clock. After awhile, all three -- IV, monitors and BP got annoying.

12, 1, 2...5pm - I feel nothing painful! Contractions are coming closer together but they just feel like stronger tightening. So, they keep slowly upping my pitocin.

5:30pm - Okay, I feel that contraction. Ouch. It kinda hurts. And because of the pitocin they are coming really close together -- about 2 minutes apart. I've heard that it can take up to an hour to receive an epidural from the time you order it so I contemplate how long I can hold out. I'm only at 5cm at this point but since the contractions are pretty much one on top of the other, I'm not really getting a break. I can probably go another hour with the pain but what if the epi takes longer than that to get here? I'm uncomfortable enough to stop talking during the contractions...I have to breathe through them. I decide to get the epi.

6:30pm - Good call on my part! Right after I "order" the epi, the guy giving it to me gets paged for a few more orders. Luckily I got mine in 30 seconds before the mommy-to-be next door to me so I got to go first. Takes about 15 minutes to get the epi in. I was scared, I'm not gonna lie.

They have me sit up and lean over a pillow. The anesthesiologist first "numbs" where he's gonna insert a huge needle into my spine with a smaller shot. The numbing one doesn't hurt much but I don't really now how much it numbs anything cause when that big needle (or I assume that's what it was...thank goodness I can't see it) went in, I sure felt it! It wasn't as bad as I imagined it would be, but it definitely hurt. Sort of like a combo of really strong pressure and stinging.

Then they put the catheter in. That hurt more!! Luckily, the pain doesn't last long. He asks if I feel it on the right, left or middle. I felt cold trickling down the right so adjusts it so I feel it in the middle. The adjusting kinda hurt too.

Then it was pretty much over. He tapes my entire back, had some trouble with some attachment where the medicine goes in at the top though. Another guy comes and helps him undo a "kink" somewhere near where the needle went in my spine. Thank goodness cause I did NOT want to redo that entire process!

6:45pm - The epi really kicks in and life is good again. I feel no pain. It is lovely.

7:30-ish - Aunty Kainoa, Uncle Ponce and Aunty Nicole come to hang out for a bit. I told them it would be a bore fest, but they are so sweet and came anyway! I can now laugh at jokes and have a conversation. Epi ROCKS.

9:00pm - My new nurse, Marissa, keeps telling me that "I should rest." I think that was code for, "All you visitors, get the hell out of here."

9:30pm - Aunties and Uncle leave and Brian and I try to sleep. I sort of slept but it was more like skimming the surface of sleep rather than diving deep. I never actually thought I was asleep but time went by quickly so I must have slept some.

10:30pm - Marissa checks me, I'm 6cm.

11:30pm - Checks again, 7-8 cm!

September 22, 2009

12:00am - 9cm! I can feel the contractions now. THROUGH the epi. They feel like the contractions I was having at around 4.5 cm. I can't fathom what they would feel like without drugs!

1:00am - Nearing 10cm! Time to let the doctor know...

1:45am - I start pushing. Marissa and Brian assist me. I feel the contractions so I know when to push. I don't feel anything when I push though and am thankful. ;) Contractions come every minute or so. I just chill in between them. They told me "I'm a great pusher." Who knows if that's just a line of crap to encourage me along or not, but I ended up only pushing for a little over an hour and they say most women push for 2-3.

2:45am - Doc arrives. I continue pushing. After a few pushes, she says that I'm more than likely to tear. The babies head is right there but doesn't want to come out. She thinks I might tear up and says that a very small cut is all it would take to get baby out. Tearing up is BAD so I agree.

3:00am - She makes the small cut (about 1/4 inch she says but who knows), tells me to push gently and poof! Out comes baby!! It happened so fast. He came out and I heard him cry. She passes him too me and I hold him to my chest. Oh my goodness! I hold him and kiss his head. He's finally here and he's real. It was hard to believe!

Brian cuts the cord and after a few minutes they take him to clean him up and eventually hand him back to me.

And all of sudden, Brian and I are parents. :)

41 weeks

More growing and definite dropping of the belly, but still no baby!


39 and change



41 weeks!

day 4 and still no baby

Yep. I'm still pregnant. Yesterday, I decided to clean the whole house in the hopes that moving around would encourage baby to move on out. I swept and mopped the floors, vacuumed pretty much every room in the house, organized our pantry, dusted, did the laundry and even scrubbed our stove as best I could.

It kept me occupied which is great and at least the house is pretty clean for when baby does arrive, but all that work and still no baby!

Went to a friend's BBQ last night and then out for dessert with Uncle Ponce and crew since it was his birthday. Sorry Ponce, but looks like the little musubi won't be sharing your bday. :( All that activity and baby B is as comfy as ever in the belly.

I'm definitely starting to get more uncomfortable. My hands and feet are more swollen and ache from the extra fluid. It's not excruciating, but not fun either. Sleeping hasn't been any worse than it's always been but I notice that I get more swollen when I sleep so that's just great. More than anything, I'm BORED.

Brian won't let me drive anywhere so I'm trapped in the house all day with nothing to do but wait. There's only so much cleaning, reading and watching tv I can do. I'm considering organizing our CDs today. But that task sounds just as boring as sitting and staring at the walls.

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow so we'll see what she says about being induced! Friends who have been induced recommend it. I wonder if she'll want me to just keep the baby in longer or what. We shall see...

out, out, out!

This baby is so stubborn! He does not want to come out. Was definitely false labor cause here I am still pregnant and the baby is just chillin'. Doc appointment isn't until Thursday and my folks come in on Saturday. I really want this baby to come soon because Brian and I want some time with baby on our own before the grandparents get here. Today!!! Come out today, baby!!!!

i just don't know...

Tracked the contractions until 5:00am and they were still only 10 min apart with just tightening and no pain. So I decided to sleep while I could. Just got up and there can't be much change if the contractions didn't wake me up in those hours.

This could very well be a false alarm. :( Man, I HOPE NOT! We'll just have to see how the rest of the day goes...

could it be???

It's 2:40am. Went to bed at around 12:30 but couldn't sleep. Wide awake, in fact. Brian was out in 2 minutes but I just laid there. I tried to go to sleep but the baby was awake and kicking me. I think he had the hiccups, actually. I thought maybe I was just anxious for his arrival, had too many thoughts going through my head and that's why I couldn't catch any zzz's. But somewhere in the back of my mind, I also thought...could this be it?

Our friend Traci said that when she went into labor she woke up at 4am, wide-eyed. She went downstairs to watch some tv and realized that she was having contractions. That story was going through my head as it lay on my pillow unable to settle, but I tried to push it aside. Don't wanna get my hopes up.

Nonetheless, I go downstairs to keep myself occupied until I got tired. Facebook is such a good distraction for such things. My new favorite game to play on FB is Farkle. It's a dice game where you collect points. Started to play, tried to beat my current high score. (which i did, btw!)

1:34am and I notice I'm having a contraction. Nothing unusual, my belly's been tightening for days now. Keep playing Farkle. Shortly after I feel another. Hmmm....check the clock and it's 1:45am.

Okay, keep playing. Another at 1:55am! This is new. Never have my contractions been regular and these seem to be coming 10 minutes apart. No pain, just tightening. I decide to start writing the times down.

2:08, 2:19, 2:30, 2:40, 2:45 and just had one at 2:54am.

There was one in there that was only 5 minutes apart. Interesting.

I've decided I won't wake Brian until I'm sure I'm in labor and my contractions are about 5 minutes apart. No sense he be up for a false alarm.

Could be!! No way I can sleep now. Although perhaps I should try. If it is the real thing, I won't be sleeping for awhile and that could prove to be a problem.

I'll know soon enough if it's real or not!!

he's officially late!

Due date has come and gone and still no baby. Brian says maybe he's just really comfy and warm in there. I think maybe he's just lazy like his daddy or stubborn like his mommy...or both!

I can just picture him in there, chillin' with both hands behind his head (like how daddy naps these days) humming and smirking to himself cause he knows we want him to come out but he's choosing to make us wait. Oh yes, a personality already. haha

Went for a 3 mile walk around greenlake yesterday. Nothing. I drink my tea every day. Nothing. Haven't tried these herbal pill things someone suggested but if he doesn't come in a few days I may consider it. And of course there's always the old standby of "jumping Brian's bones" as my friend says but I'm not so into that at this point. We'll see though. I could change my mind.

Everyone says to just enjoy these last few days without baby. Go to dinnner, catch a movie...it may be your last for awhile, etc etc. I know this to be true but it's hard to wrap my mind around that. I'm sure in hindsight I'll wish I appreciated these last days a little more, but all I can think about is, "Why doesn't he want to come out?!"

Soon enough though. He can't stay in there forever, right?

natural remedies-3, alli-0

Brian and I are SO ready for this baby to come out already. We tell him every day to come meet us but he seems content chillin' in the belly. I've been trying some "natural remedies" that people say help to induce labor. Who knows if any of them actually work, but I figure it can't hurt to try.

Went for a long walk with Kainoa on Tuesday. That seemed to make baby more restless and my belly was tightening more. Progress! But then it stopped. :( Last night, Brian picked up spicy tofu soup for dinner. Nothing. Spicy foods really do nothing for me.

Then I got some red raspberry leaf tea that a friend suggested. Apparently, it's supposed to help your uterus contract or make it more efficient...or something. Like it helps to "focus" your braxton hicks, etc. (which I'm pretty sure I'm having though there's no pain, just tightening) I had two cups last night and am drinking another one this morning. So far, I don't feel anything but it doesn't stop me from trying!

I have a doc appt today so we'll see if I'm dilated more. I hope so! It's boring sitting around the house and we just don't want to wait any longer. Baby, come meet mommy and daddy!!

39 weeks and change

I was too lazy to take off my bella band and show the naked belly.


37 weeks



39 weeks, 2 days. Just 5 more days to go! (hopefully less)

tired and uncomfortable

That pretty much sums up the last couple of weeks of pregnancy. I get up every 1-2 hours these days either to pee or to switch sides, or just because. And when I get up I'm pretty wide awake. I guess your body is really preparing for baby. The night before last, I was SO happy because I actually slept for 4 hours straight! 4 hours! I haven't done that in months. But alas, last night it was back to waking up every couple of hours and I've refilled my sleep deprivation tank.

The belly is still getting bigger and now I have all kinds of strange little pangs and pains. My lower back hurts more often. The back of my right rib (and only my right rib...weird) hurts from time to time. If I push on the spot that bugs me, it hurts. Maybe the baby is kicking around that area and it's bruised? It is right where his feet are. I've also noticed my right pelvic bone/hip hurts in the last few days. If I turn a certain way or put weight on it, I feel a pang. I figure baby's head it so low that it's pushing against my pelvis. All of this is apparently just normal pregnancy stuff.

I think I've felt a contraction or two but can't be sure. It's not obvious enough to where I know 100% that it's a contraction. But I have felt strange pangs that I haven't felt before. But baby continues to stay in!

Tick tock, tick tock. And the waiting continues.

mystery gifts!

I finally finished up the last of the thank you notes. My fingers are so sore that it's hard to write and these poor last people are getting the messiest thank you notes ever. But there are two gifts that are still a mystery to us! We had 4 that didn't have a card or got separated from their card but I figured out two of them. The remaining two are the car seat base (the 2nd one) and a box of swaddler diapers that are both off of our registry. Neither had a card and I can't figure out who sent them! I don't have access to that info on BRU. I suppose I could call and dig deeper to figure out who bought these for us (if BRU will give out that info) but that's just such a pain.

So, I'm hoping that whoever gave either of these gifts to us some how comes across this blog post so I can say THANK YOU!

And if you did give us those gifts, please comment and let me know. :)

the waiting game

10 more days until my due date! Went to the doc yesterday and I'm still just 2cm and 50% effaced. Now I think this baby will probably stay in another week or so. Brian's hoping for 9/9/09 so we'll see if his wish will come true.

Since I've been dilated for awhile, Brian and I have had time to freak out and then calm down. Worked out well actually, because now we're both just playing the waiting game and are ready for baby to come whenever he decides it's time!

I've had a new surge of energy to clean and organize the house some more. It's small, silly things like clearing out the freezer and taking the mess in the corner of the living room and organizing it into a neater mess.

I'd be okay with the baby staying in another week but I also would be perfectly happy if the baby came today. I have decided to increase my activity a bit to encourage baby along. Plan to go back to yoga on Thursday (I figure the stretching will be good for labor anyway) and then if baby still isn't here by next week, I may need to start some home remedies! I've gotten tons of suggestions from folks so we'll see how it goes. :)

swollen fingers

The past couple of weeks my fingers have been bothering me. They're a bit swollen from excess fluid or something. My doc says it's normal and nothing to worry about since my BP isn't high. In fact, most times when they take it is lower than 120/80. (If your fingers swell and you have high BP, it's a sign of preeclampsia) I'm supposed to drink more water because ironically drinking water helps to reduce water retention. Go figure.