Wednesday November 14th started out like a pretty normal day

Wednesday November 14th started out like a pretty normal day. We got ready for work and headed to my OB's office for a NST since previous scans had put the baby at risk for being on the small side (IUGR).

We got the the appointment and they took my weight. My OB came in to check my blood pressure. It had been a little high off and on before, so I tried my best to take deep breaths and stay calm. She tried my right arm, then my left, becoming increasingly concerned. She went to a cabinet in the exam room and brought out another blood pressure cuff, and repeated the process.

"I think I'm going to send you to the hospital for monitoring. Your blood pressure is a little high and we want to make sure you and the baby are safe." Her face remained calm and she apologized.

Jason and I walked down to the car and drove to the hospital. We checked me in, called work, got me hooked up to a set of machines that monitored the baby's heartrate,  movement and blood flow, along with a blood pressure cuff for me that recorded the results every 30 minutes.

What I thought would only be a few hour hospital stay ended up lasting nearly a week, and didn't end as expected. I guess it was the Universe reminding us that babies have their own schedules.

Wednesday was pretty boring. We started out in a triage room, and were moved to a delivery room shortly afterward. This room was nicer by far, with a tub, tv, and even a mini fridge. We'd toured the same sort of room during our birthing class. I was excited to get to use some of the techniques we'd practiced- breathing, movement; massage. I even had my birth plan on an app on my phone, but our baby had a while yet. The official due date was December 29th.

Wednesday afternoon, I was put on fluids and magnesium. The magnesium was to combat my increasingly uncooperative blood pressure. It felt like fire ants were inside my veins and caused hot flashes. The nurses were wonderful! They helped me put ice packs under my armpits and neck to avoid getting sick (spoiler alert- I hadn't gotten sick during my entire pregnancy, including this event), and helped me to the bathroom since I had to be unplugged from everything. Surprisingly enough, I was able to move around fairly easily on my own despite the medication.

Jason and I spent the day watching Marvel movies in the delivery room. Jason slept in the room with me at night, staying on a couch that was comfortable enough, but nothing like our bed at home. A lot of what we were doing at this point was 'hurry up and wait'.

My OB kept checking on me, and let me know on Friday after the Maternal Fetal Medicine specialists did a scan to determine the baby's weight and that the baby also remained breech; they would induce on Saturday and if the baby didn't turn on their own, a csection would follow on Sunday.

Thursday and Friday were pretty boring. I spent a lot of time on Facebook and napping, and Jasonwent to work.

I had a visit from a therapy dog named Alpine, a Golden Retriever who made sure to give me lots of snuggles and . We did take a shower in the hospital, which was as close as I would come to using that awesome jacuzzi tub. The days kind of blurred together, to be honest. Friday they told us the baby was breech, and that they thought she weighed around 3lbs. Thry gave me 2 shots of steroids to make sure the baby's lungs had a boost. They were worried that the lungs wouldn't be able to inflate because they wouldn't have developed enough to produce serfactin, which basically means your lungs can function like a balloon instead of cling wrap.

On Saturday evening Jason ran home to change clothes and grab some things from the house. Family had stopped by earlier in the day to keep me company, but had gone to find food.

The nurses were supposed to continue monitoring my blood pressure every hour, but didn't. When my OB came in to check on my blood pressure she was concerned again. She left the room and came back, and told me that they would need to do the csection tonight. She apologized, because she knew it wasn't what we had planned, but I let her know I had confidence in her ability to keep me and the baby safe.

No one else was in the room, so it was a bit of a blow.

I called Jason, who had been taking a nap. He came back to the hospital and made sure I was comfortable and as calm as I could be.

By this time, family had come back in the room.

My dad had flown into town from California earlier Saturday and had stopped by the hospital then gone to my brother's apartment. They were going to come back before the procedure with my sister-in-law who was a nurse at another hospital. Since the timeline for the delivery moved quickly, she was still at work and trying to find someone to cover her shift so she could be there.

Family hung out in the room until they came to get me for the procedure. I was still pretty out of it from all the medication, so that's probably why I wasn't scared.

The nurses helped me put a cap on my head and had me sign paperwork. The anesthesiologist introduced himself. They gave Jason the gown he'd wear and wheeled me towards the OR.

It doesn't look anything like the OR's in movies or Tv shows. It's actually surprisingly crowded with machines and cold.

There was a nurse named Theresa who held me while they put the spinal block in, which would mean that I wouldn't feel anything aside from pressure during the surgery. I started to cry and had to tell the anesthesiologist to adjust the block once before I laid down, then I started shaking. I know now that the shaking is normal, but at the time it made me scared. I really didn't want to do this without my Mom. The nurses got me a lot of warm blankets and I cracked some jokes with the anesthesiologist, telling him he would be my favorite person in the room for a while.

Jason came in with his camera.

I'm glad the spinal block worked, and that they had the blue paper up.

I could feel pressure and tension. I could see splattering hit the other side of the blue paper, but I tried not to think about it. The doctors and nurses pretty much ignored me, but I could hear them talking as they were performing the procedure. I wish I was able to remember more of it, but it's just become a jumble of medical jargon whitenoise.

I do remember the nurse Theresa telling Jason he would be the last thing they picked up off the floor if he passed out (he'd looked over the blue divider during the procedure and been able to see my abdominal cavity and all the bits and pieces they needed to take out and put back). I remember the sound of the baby's cry, proving that the steroids had done their job and the lungs worked fine. Jason went closer to the NICU team to get a few pictures, and they stopped so that we could see the baby, a girl, before they brought her to the NICU.

I remember the doctors removing the tubular cyst they had found earlier in the pregnancy (we later discovered that it was benign and there was no need to worry).

They put everything back together and wheeled me back to my room to recover. I stayed on magnesium sulfate because my OB was still worried about postpartum preeclampsia, and they continued to monitor my blood pressure.

A nurse brought a breastpump in and had me pump, which was an interesting feeling. I was able to provide a bit of colostrum for our daughter, and that made me feel a bit better. I had read it can take a while for your milk to come in, especially if you deliver early. My milk wouldn't fully come in for another few days.

Theresa stayed with me and made sure I recovered from the spinal block with all my movement. I was still out of it, but cracked jokes with the nurses about how, since I could move my legs and feet, I'm pretty sure I could walk down to the NICU to see my baby.

They kept assuring me they would talk to my doctor, but since I was still on magnesium sulfate I should rest.

I didn't get to see my daughter until Sunday around 2:30pm. My sister-in-law had to have a conversation with the nurses.

While I was recovering on Sunday, Jason took family down to see the baby. I didn't want anyone else to hold her until I did, and I refused to name her until I held her.

I started crying when the nurses wheeled me to the NICU.

Our daughter was hooked up to a lot of wires and tubes to help her. At first, they made me anxious, but by the end of her 18 day NICU stay, neither of us were concerned about them, and could reconnect them if needed.

I got to hold our daughter, Adeleine Kaye, and knew what it meant to have your heart reside outside your body.