Update on Life

So anyone who reads this basically knows that I had my baby girl Isabella on February 19th via repeat c-section.

It was very different this time. We went in around 6am, they got me set up in a room, hooked up to IV's and drew my blood for a CBC count. The nurses had a difficult time finding any vein in my arm or hand so the first IV was in my left elbow region and they said they'd let the annestesiologist find the second one. He came in and wanted to put the second IV in my wrist, which completely freaked me out! I told him if he HAD to I'd deal with it, but I'd rather not. Luckily he stuck the second one in my right elbow region. After waiting a while they finally walked me to the OR where they tried to get my spinal in. It took several attempts and most of them didn't hurt but some were slightly painful and I was trying not to cry. After they got the spinal in I of course started feeling very warm and tingly and they laid me back, strapped me down and AJ got to come into the room. The doromorph that they gave me in my spinal made me SO sleepy. I kept nodding in and out of sleep and tried so hard to stay awake because I wanted to hear the baby cry. Towards the point of them pulling her out I got VERY nauseous and before they could get the meds in to me, I threw up. I felt much better after that.

Isabella was born SCREAMING at 9:31am and was just wonderful. She got an 8/8 on her APGAR as she was having a little color issues the first minute and breathing issues at the 5 minute. They took her and my husband off to the nursery and closed me up. At that point I was really sleepy and just didn't care if I fell asleep. I was wheeled into recovery where I stayed for quite a while, though it didn't seem that long because I slept most of the time.

After recovery I got to my Mother & Baby room where AJ, Madison, and my mom were waiting for me. Isabella was still in the nursery because she was "grunting" a lot. After about 30 minutes they finally wheeled her in, and I got to spend some quality time with my whole family.

The day I was being discharged my Doctor came in and asked me if I planned on having more kids. I told him we probably weren't but who knows what will happen 10 years from now. He wanted to let me know that the scar from my previous c-section had VERY thin uterus around it and if I ever did have more kids I COULD NOT go into labor because it would only take 1 or 2 very good contractions and my uterus would rupture wide open. So he put it in my medical file that I need to have my future c-sections at 37 or 38 weeks. So it was good that I didn't try for a VBAC after all.

I was in the hospital only 48 hours and then I got to go home! That was wonderful as I knew I'd be much happier at home.

Once we were home things were ok. I had a day where I was in so much pain that I was crying and wanted to faint, but it was from me laying on my back and stressing my inside stitches too much. AJ went and bought me a fabulous recliner so I could be more comfortable.

During the time my Mom was here they took Maddie many places. They went to this place called Lil' Bigs which is basically a play place for smaller kids. They also drove up to Denver and went to the Aquarium. There were plenty more places they went, but I honestly don't remember them all.

I finally went out with my Mom a week after my c-section to lunch and to WalMart. Things were pretty good until the end of WalMart where I started feeling a lot of pain and very dizzy. Luckily we came home and I felt much better.

My Mom left this past Wednesday and while I do miss her, it is nice to have my house back to normal and less people.

All in all it's been a crazy 2 weeks but Isabella is healthy and our little family is complete :)

Isabella Samara

Isabella Samara was born February 19th via c-section.

Weight: 8lbs 12oz

Height: 22inches

She's perfect.

We're Having A Girl!!!

We had our big ultrasound on October 8th, and found out we are having another little girl. The day was such a mess, but once we found out it was a girl, nothing seemed to matter. AJ managed to lock both my keys and his in my truck, and we really had no idea where he put the spare set. So he spent quite a bit of time trying to break into my car, it was rather hilarious. While I was outside seeing if he could get it unlocked our neighbor Kari drove up and offered to take us to the ultrasound. Right as we were about to leave AJ was able to successfully "break into" my car. So we appreciated Kari's kindness, but we ended up not needing it.

I had been referred to the Fetal Maternal Specialist at Memorial Hospital because I am high risk, and will most likely deliver early, and the hospital here on base doesn't have a NICU. The ultrasound lasted almost an hour and a half, but it was so nice getting to see our little girl, and the technician was so thorough, so I felt confident. I think AJ was a little taken a back by having another girl, as he really wanted a boy, but that feeling left quickly and he is now very excited about a girl.

Since this is our second, and last, baby AJ chose the first name, Isabella. We haven't decided on a middle name, that's my choice, but I am leaning towards Grace. We decided before I got pregnant this time that this would be our last baby, and I'm getting my tubes tied. My pregnancies are so risky, and I get so ill that we know for my health that this will be our last. We also talked extensively about when we are more stable in our lives we plan on adopting an older boy. So I feel confident in our decision about the tubal ligation.

Either way, Isabella is due late February and we cannot wait for her arrival.

Baby #2

So I am now officially in my second trimester, though no one can seem to agree if I am 14 weeks and 2 days or 15 weeks and 2 days, either way, in my second trimester. I had my nuchal translucency screening test on August 17th and the little baby was just flipping and jumping everywhere. So they of course could not get the measurements they needed. So we went back on August 24th and I was hoping that they could get the measurements and maybe see the gender (as I have many friends who were able to find out as early as 12 weeks). Well baby "ninja" wasn't doing acrobats this time, but was sleeping in an awkward position and was not to be disturbed. So none the less, no measurements, no gender, nada! I am now past the point where the measurements would be accurate, so I will have to wait until my 16 week quad screen test, which is solely a blood test (like I want more of those).

I am seeing a high risk OB every two weeks for multiple reasons. Madison was born 4 weeks early, and due to elevation here in Colorado, it is common for preterm labor, so they really don't want me going to early. I am also a candidate for a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). I am excited about that because I had so many complications with the c-section. I also have gestational diabetes again, which puts me at risk for a large baby and...of course, preterm labor! Also I have a severely tilted uterus, which is now pressing and growing against my spine, which is causing me tons of discomfort. My blood pressure has been slightly elevated, but nothing they are concerned about yet. I am keeping my blood sugars in balance, and have already lost 5lbs, again, nothing they are worried about.

This pregnancy has been different in many ways, and the same in others. I still have all day sickness, which I had with Madison until 33 weeks. I am much more exhausted this time, and enjoy my daily nap while Maddie is sleeping. I am still having horrid acne as I did with my previous pregnancy. It's this back pain that is really causing me a lot of discomfort.

We are still desperately waiting to find out the gender so that we can go shopping, but due to my tilted uterus and difficulty getting clear pictures they will probably not send me for my Level 2 ultrasound until 22 weeks instead of 18-20. AJ and I have thrown up the idea that we will go to an independent business that does 3D/4D ultrasounds and gender determination but patience is a virtue. So I know we can wait. We have decided if the baby is a boy his name will be Alexander Joseph, after AJ who is Anthony Joseph. Should the baby be a girl she will be Alessa Bryleigh (A after hubby and B after me). Madison is Madison Taylor (M after my mom Minda, and T after AJ's mom Tina). So either way I'd just like to know boy or girl so s/he can have an identity other than "squash" or "ninja".

All in all things are very well with blessing number 2, my tubes will be tied after this baby so even through the horridness, I'm enjoying it.

Just A Quickie

Well I have not updated in quite a while, and for those of you who actually read this, here you go!

I am now 9 weeks pregnant according to my LMP, and am really feeling the effect of pregnancy. I am still having slight vomitting, but luckily not a whole lot of nausea. My belly is growing a lot quicker this time, and I am EXHAUSTED. I have also been way hormonal. I am very much crying one moment, and laughing the next. Though Thursday night I was laughing and crying at the same time because I wanted AJ to go get me a Beef & Potato Burrito from Taco Bell, it's insane the mood swings I go through. I had a Doctors appointment on Tuesday, and everything seemed to have gone well. They discussed a lot of my options, including having a VBAC, which made me very happy. I have to go in for blood work on Monday, and have another appointment on August 14th. I also elected to have a NT scan done. Basically it is an ultrasound that they measure the flap of skin behind the babies neck and in conjunction with blood work they can tell you the risk of Downs Syndrome. I would never alter my plans on having a child with a disability, I was just more excited about having an ultrasound. AJ really wants a boy, but he's also said if it's another girl he'd be just as happy. I am on the fence, I'd like either.

We are doing very well in Colorado. I love the weather. It's so nice and cool compared to Tucson, and we get a lot of rain, which I LOVE. We are mostly unpacked minus things we cannot do this second due to one reason or another. AJ finally got his enlistment bonus so 2 weeks ago we went down and bought me a car! I was so happy. It's a 2004 Ford Explorer XLT, it's dark blue with grey interior. It's so wonderful having my own vehicle again, because even though I don't go a lot of places during the day, the fact that I can now, is awesome. So today we decided to go window shopping at Babies'R'Us and Dillards. Since we don't know the gender of the baby yet, we just wanted to look and get an idea for what we wanted. We definitely found a lot of things that we really liked, and looking forward to buying when we find out if it's a boy or girl. Dillards was a lot of fun and we let Maddie walk around and she kept picking up little boy clothes, so I don't know...maybe she knows?

Right now I am watching Planet Earth and relaxing. It's been very rainy all day, and earlier we had such bad thunder it shook the house for a good minute. It's supposed to be this kind of weather for the next 5 days. Should be interesting. I am missing everyone in Tucson terribly, but I don't miss the weather! I feel very lonely during the day, but remind myself that this was a family decision, and hope that I'll learn to make friends here more.

Not a very long post, but it works.

Happy Father's Day!

Father's Day 2009 was so nice. We started the day off pretty quietly, then we went grocery shopping. I had asked AJ if he wanted to go out to dinner or if he wanted me to make him something. He wanted corned beef and au gratin potatoes, so that's what I made him! We had a great dessert and it was just a nice day.

Sliced and Diced!

So we finally got our stuff from the movers who were hired by the military. The picked up our stuff on June 5th and said it would be here by Friday, the 12th. Lucky for us though it came early on Wednesday. We were very excited and I could not wait to get our stuff unpacked. Particularly the kitchen stuff so I didn't have to use the cheap pots & pans that we had bought at WalMart to hold us over until the things got here. Well we had already gotten a ton unpacked and I was taking of labels from the whisks we had gotten from our wedding. Being the smart person that I am I didn't even bother looking for scissors and decided just to cut it off with the brand new paring knife, BIG mistake! I had to use some pressure and as soon as it cut through the bottom the knife FLEW down and sliced open my middle finger on my left hand. At first I was just in a little shock and took a look at it, once I started checking the cut out I realized it was bad. It soon started bleeding, and bleeding bad. I started freaking out and AJ looked at it and said, "Yea, we need to go to the ER." So he woke up Maddie, who he had just put down for bed and we all got in the car and headed towards the Hospital on base. We got there and signed in, my finger was still bleeding. So as we were waiting we were talking to other people there who had been waiting hours, and I started regretting our decision to go to the ER, as they are really known for the horrid lengths you will wait. Luckily enough because I didn't need to see an actual doctor, I could go on FastTrack. We probably only waited an hour or so and got called back. By then the bleeding had stopped and the Nurse began washing my wound. I also got a tetanus shot, and the actual shot didn't hurt. After he finished washing my cut it started bleeding again, of course! I am not a big fan of blood and being anemic I get very dizzy quickly, so I told the nurse and doctor that I felt like I was going to faint and they laid me back, and I soon felt better. So they asked me if I wanted stitches, which would leave a smaller scar, or glue that would be quicker. I opted for glue because I've never had stitches and didn't want to experience it. So while it was still bleeding he went ahead and glued it. While the site looked ugly, it at least wasn't bleeding anymore. After the glue he followed up with a band aid and a split so I didn't wiggle my finger and bust the glue. We finally left and that's when the pain started. It hadn't hurt much prior to all this but once we left it started throbbing! Needless to say when we got home I did not continue unpacking and instead went and laid down. I didn't get much sleep Wednesday because my finger was very painful.

Today my finger is feeling much better. I finally took off the original band aid which pulled the glue out, that was painful. But on the other hand (haha! what a bad joke) with the glue off every time I stretch my finger the glue does not pull on the wound. It's starting to heal, but it is for sure going to leave one gnarly scar. So I have a lovely cut on my middle finger on my left hand. Now for the tetanus shot. They gave that to me on my right arm. GOOD GRIEF!! What pain, I woke up this morning and I am hardly able to move my arm and it feels like there is a marble under my skin where they gave me the shot. Also last night I was running a fever and kept having chills. I was so uncomfortable all I could do is cry. My lovely husband has been so good at taking care of me, and thank goodness he had today off! I haven't been able to lift Maddie up, which makes me sad, but it hurts too much.

So here's hoping to I heal quickly and that the pain from the tetanus shot goes away soon, I am so glad those things are boosters for 10 years. Maybe I won't be such a baby when I am 33...