He's Here!

About the experience...

Tuesday, April 14

10 p.m. We arrived at Saint Luke's Hospital to begin the induction process with the application of cervical gel. So far, a smooth ride.

Wednesday, April 15

6 a.m. Pitocin was started. So much for being one of those women who went into labor right after their gel was applied...
8 a.m. The Nurse Midwife came in to check on us and to break my water - wahoo - we're ready to get things moving!
1 p.m. Contractions are beginning to get hard, but aren't regular. Let's go ahead and call anesthesia for that epidural.
2 p.m. After four tries, the epidural was finally in place. Have I ever mentioned how much I hate needles?
4 p.m. Mom spent the afternoon sleeping and dad was reading. The Nurse Midwife came back to check on us. So far, I was dilated to a 4 (are you kidding me?! There must be some mistake!). The baby's doing great, she reported, but mom's contractions aren't as regular as they should be for having this much pitocin, so the dosage was increased. Great - anything to move this along!
8 p.m. Dad, normally a wonderfully encouraging coach, made a big mistake when he said "maybe he won't be born on tax day after all" with a big smile on his face. Are you kidding me? There are four hours left in the day!
11 p.m. Nurse Midwife says I'm dilated to a "good 6." My response? There's nothing good about being dilated to a 6 after 17 hours of labor. Granted, I really never experienced "labor" as many of you are probably picturing it and have experienced it yourselves. For me, it mostly consisted of sleeping thanks to the fourth-time's-a-charm epidural.

Thursday, April 16

2 a.m. Nurse Midwife back in room to report she suspects the baby's head is turned in such a way that it's keeping me from being able to dilate fully. They repositioned me to sleep on my stomach for an hour and then will re-check my progress.
3 a.m. Time to check progress again. Looks like we're at about an 8 and the re-positioning helped. "Let's have you lay on your stomach for another hour or so and see what happens," she said.
4 a.m. This isn't working, the Midwife reported, along with the news that a Cesarean Section would be best because the baby appears to be stuck.
5:28 a.m. William Charles Rouse was born via C-section. Ten perfect fingers, ten perfect toes and the two happiest, proudest parents ever.

Twelve Days Later

Mom, Dad and Baby are doing great! Though we've had a few minor bumps in the road, we're recovering well and are so appreciative of everyone's prayers, thoughts, well wishes and the wonderful meals we're received! Thank you for being such a great support system!

Labor Ready

Well, this is it. Tomorrow's the big day (at least, I hope our experience doesn't extend past tomorrow!). Last night James and I went out to dinner and on our way home I noticed a sign for one of those temporary work places: "Labor Ready" it was called. I began to wonder if you can ever really get yourself "Labor Ready." There's the obvious measures you can take like getting enough rest, packing your bag, delving into books and taking childbirth classes. We've done all this and I gotta say I'm not feeling especially ready for labor. But, ready or not, we're about to embark upon this adventure together and the best advice we've received is to keep the end in mind.

So that's what we'll do. "Labor Ready" or not, Baby Will's about to make his entrance into the world!

Week 38

First things first...

Update from the Doc

So it's week 38 and things are definitely moving in the right direction! My blood pressure's come down, the non-stress tests (standard when mom's bp has spiked) show the baby is doing fantastic and our latest sonogram shows he still has plenty of amniotic fluid to swim around in! In addition, the doc believes Baby Will could make his entrance into the world any day now. In fact, if he hasn't done so by next week, we'll be induced on Wednesday, April 15. Our good friend Suzy gave us the t-shirt pictured on the right a couple months ago - little did she know how appropriate it would be!

Target...You Got Some 'Splainin To Do

It was called to my attention there are some pink items on our Target registry, leading to confusion because the registry also says "It's a Boy!" So, I began looking at our registry and it's true - there are dresses, pink sheets, bibs, etc., that we, indeed, didn't register for, along with plenty of blue and gender neutral things that we also didn't register for - ugh! So, my apologies to all of you who were probably confused and maybe even a little concerned when you saw the combination of items. More importantly, I apologize if I seemed confused as I was opening gifts at a recent shower or visit. This certainly explains some of the items that I was a little confused, but nonetheless thankful for!

Maternity Photos

Many thanks to Judith Winn for the wonderful gift she gave us when she captured the beauty of our pregnancy.

Oh the Temptation...

...that comes with being pregnant on April Fool's Day! But I'm proud to say I've resisted all thoughts of starting the rumor mill, despite the fact that I have a lot more time on my hands these days.

Last week my blood pressure began to spike, which means my activities are now restricted. The baby's health, however, seems to be perfect. I had a non-stress test on Monday and will have another tomorrow, but Monday's test showed all is well with our little Will. He moved all around and I had contractions throughout the test, yet his heart rate never changed.

So, for now, I'm enjoying a little more time at home with my feet up. Though as great as this might sound to you, I guarantee I'm not nearly as comfortable as you imagine. With a baby toosh in my ribs and a head on my bladder, a girl can only get so comfortable!

But all is well as we're counting our Blessings and the days until we can meet our bundle of joy!