Sunday, November 22, 2009

Annabelle Renee has arrived...


Sorry this post has taken forever to add, but I've been a very busy mom. Annabelle Renee arrived seven weeks early on October 7, 2009 at 4:30 p.m. weighing 4lbs and 10 oz and 18.5 inches long. Here's the birth story for those that are interested. I woke up on the sixth feeling not right. The day before I received my annual flu shot and I thought maybe the flu shot was making me feel awful. I went to work, feeling quite large and had a feeling that my blood pressure was on the rise. I had my 33 week check up later that day. I was so surprised when the doctor confirmed that I gained 20lbs in two weeks and my blood pressure had skyrocketed. She sent me to the hospital for some testing. She wanted to make sure the baby was okay. I was really upset, being that this was the first appointment that Tim had missed the entire time. I left the doctors office very upset, headed downstairs, finding my coworker (she works in the same office building that my doctor is located in). I started to cry because I was scared. She told me not to worry that she would take me to the hospital. She called the shuttle, but unbeknowest to me, she was having Franklin Square Security pick me and her up and taking us to the Women's Pavilion. I first called Tim and I told him to high tail it to the hospital and secondly I called the dentist office to cancel my appointment.

I arrived at the hospital thinking that I was only getting some blood work and another ultrasound. They decided to admit me due to my weight gain and high blood pressure. My doctor arrived an hour later to assure me that I was in good hands, but they needed to induce me, so I was having this baby in the next two days. I was so scared because I knew that she was too early and that she would be on the small side.

I was admitted at 4:30 p.m. and the doctors started to administer magnesium sulfate to get my blood pressure back on the positive side. I was not ready to have this baby, I didn't have my bags packed, nor did I have a baby book. So thanks to my aunt Linda for picking up clothes for Tim and I and my sister-in-law Rena for coming all the way to the hospital from Anne Arundel County with four or five different baby books. We settled in for the night for a long night of testing and hardly any sleeping. Around 2:00 a.m. I felt some leakage down below and I told the nurse that something was happening. At first she didn't believe me, but later it was confirmed by the house OB's that my water did break. Contractions started a little later and I keep asking for drugs, but I never received any. I didn't realize until a few days later that because of the magnesium sulfate I was unable to receive any good drugs. I did receive an epidural around 9:00 a.m. and I was told to get some rest. Okay, yeah okay, I'll try and rest. I happen to feel one side effect with the epi and that was that my entire body was itching. Tim keep commenting not to scratch my eyelids. Around 3:30 p.m. I thought the epi was wearing off, but I think that was just my body telling me that it was ready for this baby. I progressed pretty fast with pitocin that at 4:oo p.m. I was 100% dilated and ready to push. I thought for sure I was going to have this baby without my doctor (the hospital was so busy) that my nurse told me not to worry that she could deliver Annabelle if Dr. Hesse was not available. Annabelle arrived 30 minutes later with a ton of hair and healthy scream. But because she arrived so early, she was whisk away to the NICU.

She sent 12 days in the NICU, causing havoc to the entire NICU Staff. She drove them crazy because she was so feisty, but because she was feisty, I feel that this brought her home a little early.

Annabelle is currently one month and 2 weeks old and is up to 7lbs. She is still feisty and has her days and nights mixed up, but we still love her, even if we are getting about four hours a sleep a night.

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