She's Here, She's Here

WOW! It's been 9 weeks since I last posted and what a 9 weeks it has been. It has been a whirl wind adventure these past 2 months. I am going to try and get Jennifer's birth story posted and then provide you with what parenthood has been like Tracy and Simon style. Let me tell you it has been amusing.

Jennifer's Birth Story. It's a long one!

Sunday June 7th- bedrest is absolutely horrible. It is so boring and I feel the need to do something (and it has only been 2 days- can you imagine people on it for weeks and months?). Everything is ready for the hospital Monday and we did (well Simon did, I directed) a few last things for baby. Suddenly I have a horrible headache and it won't go away for several hours. Which is usually a sign of high bp. So we call the dr. as I was instructed to do. She wants me in the hospital now. Bring your bags you may not leave............WHAAAA?????? Panic we run around the house getting the last few things and off we go.

LONG Story- but end result everything looks ok so they want me to go home so I can get a good night sleep and a big breakfast before the big day. So they give me Tylenol 3 with codeine. Monitor me briefly and send us on our way. It is about 10 p.m. We get home I put on my night clothes and go to bed. All of a sudden I can't breath and I am having horrible pain in my rib cage area. I start pacing around and trying anything I can think of to make this go away. I just can't get comfortable. I am having trouble catching my breath. We get nervous- Simon calls the dr back and she is worried as well. Get here immediately she says. Off we were again.

The drive down was excruciating- I was in so much pain and scared, really scared because I have no clue what the problem is. There is a constant pain, but sometimes it just hurts more than others. Simon wheels me up in a wheel chair and they are waiting on me. They start running tests, hook me up to monitors (Jennier is ok), I still have the pain, all of a sudden it is hurting worse again. The nurse looks at me and says - are you having the worse pain again? I said yeah how did you know? She says- It's a contraction!!!!!!!!!! WTH??? These are contractions- is the baby about to pop out because these hurt. Turns out I had a reaction to the Tylenol causing some problems in my liver and created an enormous amount of acid build up causing the pain. The contractions just made it worse and push on my ribs and that area giving me the breathless feeling.

Forget Monday, we are going to induce now since you are here. In goes the medicine. I will not describe this process, but it hurt!! Now we wait. She gives me ambien to sleep - wow that stuff is great when you have a million things on your mind. My contractions start to get stronger. Monday rolls around, but I don't seem to be dialting. I am in early labor, but no progress. So they decide to try another drug, but before they do I beg for food it has been almost 24 hours since I ate last. My doctor says ok since Jennifer is obviously taking her time.

Sarah (SIL) gets me some Pappasitos- she is an angel sent from heaven for doing that. I PIG out knowing it's my "last supper". They start the new medicine Tuesday morning (like 4 a.m.)

WOW, the new medicine causes more intense contractions. OK, we are moving (so i think). Mid morning the pitocin drip starts and the contractions get even more intense,but I am handling them like a champ. I start dialting- FINALLY. We start a pool about what time we think Jennifer will make her arrival and other vital stats. I am getting excited and nervous. People are arriving, phone calls are coming in- they break my water- THAT IS SO GROSS! I won't describe that either. Next, exam I am a little further - those exams SUCK they are painful. A few more hours go by and now nothing- I seem to stall. They up the pitocin a bit, but nothing. So they decide to see if the epidural will help relax me and help me get over the hump.

The epidural made me cry! Not for the reasons you would think. There was no pain or anything, but I think the stress from the past two days (by now we are heading into early evening Tuesday)and the fact that I could not feel my legs really threw me. I hated that feeling. Even the epidural did not work to get me over the hump. They insert something to monitor my contractions and even though they hurt they were not as productive as necessary to get this baby out. We were approaching decision time since my water had already been broken.

Finally- 7:00 p.m. the call was made we have to do a c-section and now! Before I know it I am being being unhooked from walls, the bed is moving, and we are off to surgery. Simon is quickly getting on his scrubs. We are running down the hall. The intensity of it all has me freaked out- I am crying it is very emotional. Everything is so hurried. As they are running me down the hall, they realize I still have my personal pillow. They instruct Simon to take it to the waiting room and return to this little room and wait. Simon leaving my side really scared me, but they assured me he wouldn't miss a thing.

We enter the surgical suite, a million people introduce themselves to me. I am so out of sorts, in comes Simon, some final instructions and we get started. I ask Simon what time is it..... 7:29 he says. It feels like an eternity, I can feel pressure, but that is it. Simon what time is it 7:30 he says. They said this would be fast, but it is taking forever.... Simon what time is it 7:30 he says. More time goes by - it has to have been 5 minutes, Simon what time is it 7:30 - "You are stressing me out Tracy" he he. I had no concept of time and it seemed like forever. I had to keep telling myself don't ask what time it is.

FINALLY- the doctor says there she is- I don't hear anything, we wait, wait, then finally the sound I have been waiting my entire life to hear. My baby girl had arrived. Tears came flooding out, I'm a MOM, I'm a MOM is all I kept thinking.

Tuesday, June 9th @ 7:33 p.m. Jennifer Anne Scott was born. She weighed 8 lbs 6 oz and was 20 3/4 inches.

2 days of labor and a c-section, but a beautiful baby girl!

Here are some Pics of the process.