Charlotte Isabelle. Birth Story part 2.

Charlotte is now 2 months old and I’m just getting around to part 2. And, to be quite honest, the details aren’t nearly as clear as they were 2 months ago but I’m going to try and write them down anyways.

After being checked for head positioning in triage, and finding that yes the head was down, they moved us to labor and delivery. I will add that before we officially found out the position of the baby’s head I was asked twice if I wanted to go ahead and deliver vaginally even thought the baby was breech. I said yes and they said they would have MFM come and see me. I thought that was interesting that it was even a consideration.

It was around 10am when we arrived back at labor and delivery. We got settled and a bit later my doc came in to see me. He said since it was my 7th he would mostly just defer to me and be pretty hands off. The contractions were coming about every 5 mins and I was amazed because my body was doing it without pitocin. Around 11:00, my doctor and the doctor he was working with, came in with the ultrasound machine b/c my doctors office noticed that I had been moved to labor and delivery and freaked out b/c my baby was breech and I was supposed to be having a csection. So in they wheeled the ultrasound machine. Yes. Most definitely this babies head is down. The contractions were getting stronger and around noon I asked for the epidural. I explained to the nurse that I had to use the restroom and she said after the epidural started to work she would be back in and cath me. Around 1:00 I mentioned to the nurse again that I had needed to go to the bathroom before they started my epi and it had been a while and I probably needed to have that checked. Around 1:30, the doc who was working with my doc came in to check my progress. After she was done she said she wasn’t sure the head was down anymore. She said it could be but also may be presenting with the hand up at the face. She left and both she and my doc came back in with the ultrasound machine. Again. They checked and the baby was completely head down and was presenting just fine. After another internal it was determined that I was still at 6 and my bladder had been so full it was keeping the baby from engaging. So finally around 2:15 they emptied my bladder and started a tiny amount of pitocin. Around 5:00 I realized I was breathing through my contractions again and mentioned this to the nurse. She asked if I was pushing my button. I said I hadn’t been given a button. They realized that they had it tied up to the back wall and forgot to give it to me. After all this I pushed the button but the pain wasn’t really going away. At 5:30 I said that even with the epi I was still feeling a lot of everything. The midwife on call, Dr. Rawson,  came in and checked and said I was at 10 but the baby was still a bit high. She said we would start pushing before I really had the urge to push so that it would be slow and steady. I started pushing at 5:37 and 11 mins later a big healthy baby came out. It’s a girl!! Born at 5:48pm. All 9 pounds 3 ounces of her! Perfect. It felt like I had been pushing forever. My last 2 were literally pushed out in 2 contractions so this seemed to me like an eternity. I found out that it was only 11 minutes. Ha! It seemed like forever.  My recovery was great. I felt so good. She latched on and was a great nurser. Up until she was born we were still going back and forth between Macie Isabelle and Charlotte Isabelle. When they were cleaning her up, Tim said that he loved both names and it was totally up to me which first name we went with. So, without hesitation, she just looked like a Charlotte our Charlotte Isabelle was named!

Charlotte Isabelle

Charlotte Isabelle

“Free; God is my Oath”

9lbs 3oz

21 3/4inches

5:48pm

 

 

birth story:part 1

This ended up being another successful vba2c only because God is so faithful. At 38 weeks 4 days I had my scheduled ob appointment. We discovered at this appointment that the baby’s head was not head down. We scheduled an ultrasound for the next afternoon to check on baby’s placement. The baby was very much in a frank breech position. Head up, bum down. My doctors contacted mfm to see if they would consider manually turning the baby but because I have a heart shaped uterus the risk was too high. They called me on Thursday and said they would be calling to schedule a c/section for the middle of the next week. At this point I was 38.6. Knowing that my water normally breaks right around 39 I was beginning to panic. I had been doing exercises from Spinningbabies.com since Tuesday and was researching any and all tricks to get baby to turn. I did the exercises, used essential oils (peppermint), and did a lot of praying and crying out to God. On Thursday I decided trying a chiro would be my last ditch effort. I called and the doc said he did specialize in the Webster Technique and would see me today. He and I talked about the success rate at this point and he said it would probably take 2-5 times considering how far along I was. I threw the kids in the car and off we went. I left the chiro and headed to dance class with Kylie. I got home and spent the evening praying. When Tim got home from picking up Maygen from gymnastics I took more time to do more exercises, use more essential oil and pray. I went to bed that night and prayed to God that my water would not break until the baby’s head was down. I woke up the next morning and felt a little pop. At almost 7:00am my water broke. We got things ready and I grabbed a few extra clothes so I was prepared for the extra stay associated with a c/section. We go to the hospital at 8:15. At 9:00 they checked me and the baby was head down and I was 6cm. Tim and I both just stared at each other! God is so amazing. He hears our cries. He is so faithful!!

A very real and scary story of a tick.

Seeing as I had almost zero knowledge of ticks and Lyme Disease I figured I’d post about what happened to us so that others know and are aware!

On Friday May 31st, Nora woke from sleeping with a tick buried in the top of her head. Having only ever dealt with a tick once before, we found one on Kylie while vacationing in Williamsburg, Tim and I figured we’d take her to the docs and have them remove it. While getting Nora out of the car and checking on the tick again, Tim accidentally flicked it off. He took her in though and they double checked and said it was all gone and that since we hadn’t noticed it the night before it probably wasn’t there more than 12 hours so not to worry. They said if a fever or rash develops to call.

Exactly 1 week later Nora woke up with a bullseye rash on her head and within a few hours of waking also had a fever. She was extremely extremely lethargic also.  I called the peds and they said we should bring her in. They prescribed amoxicillin 3x a day for 21 days. We headed to the pharmacy, picked up the meds and went home. I gave Nora her first dose and then put her down for a nap. She woke up from her nap about 4 hours later and was warm (102.5) so I gave her motrin which seemed to bring the fever down for a while. She actually ate a few bites of dinner and seemed very “up” for the first time all day. Around 6:30 I mentioned to Tim that she was very warm but it had only been a few hours since the last dose of motrin so I didn’t want to give it again. I said I’ll just get her ready for bed since she’s not feeling well. We gave her her beta blockers and her next dose of amoxicillin. As I was walking past Tim in the hallway he said that he really felt like we should wait to put her down and asked me just to hold her for a while.

20 minutes later Nora was standing and holding onto my knees and out of the corner of my eye I noticed she was having a seizure. I screamed to Tim, who was across the room on the phone, that Nora was having a seizure. She fell straight over and Tim rushed over and dropped to his knees and began praying over her. I yelled we need to call someone. He grabbed the phone to call the docs and then realized it’s Friday at 7 so I said call 911. I was on the ground by this point and had rolled Nora onto her side. She was salivating a lot. Tim was on the phone with 911 and Nora started to turn blue. Her lips first then all around her mouth. Tim is saying to the 911 person, “She’s turning blue. She’s blue.” After about 5 minutes the seizure ended and she went completely limp and lifeless. Her eyes had rolled back in her head and she was still blue around the mouth. I scooped up my limp Nora and just kept saying, “Nora, can you hear mama???” Erin had been in the room for the whole thing and was crying and screaming and by this point the other kids were in the room crying and nervous. I realized that they needed a distraction and since Nora was not doing well, I honestly thought at this point we were loosing her, I asked the kids to pack bags for me and Nora. I said we needed to go to the hospital and that we needed PJ’s and socks and anything else for an overnight stay. I just sat on the floor holding Nora’s limp little body. My heart was pounding a million miles a minute. It was so so scary. I had called my parents too and told them the ambulance was on the way and they needed to come down. This was one of the most scary things I have ever gone through. The paramedics got there about 10 mins after Tim called 911. By this time though, Nora was still out of it but was no longer blue and was somewhat responsive. We left in the ambulance and headed to Children’s.

We met with the resident at the hospital and I told her the events of the past week and said I wasn’t even sure any of it was related but that this is what had transpired over the last week. She checked Nora out and said that the rash was textbook for Lyme Disease and she was going to need to consult with the attending. The attending and resident came back in and said that there were two possibilities. One being that the fever had caused the seizure or two, the Lyme’s had spread through her body and she now had meningitis Lyme Disease and a symptom of that is seizures. They said they would only know the difference if we did a spinal tap. We asked if the treatment was different b/c if it was the same I didn’t think it was necessary to put her through that on top of what had just gone through. Plus we had to explain to them that she was just officially diagnosed with Long QT type 1 and wondered what the seizure had done to her heart. The attending said the treatment was 7 week for meningitis and that is was only 3 for Lyme Disease and if we she did end up with meningitis and it wasn’t treated it could seriously delay her development. We agreed to the spinal tap. They gave her sedation meds and did an ekg to check on her heart and drew blood. Her ekg looked fine and so about an hour later they came to do the spinal tap. Tim and I had to leave the room so I’m not sure how she did but was told she did great. This was around midnight and I said to Tim that he could go home and we’d just wait to be taken upstairs to our room. Tim left and about 15 mins later they started her on IV antibiotics. Around 1am the resident came back in and said they had gotten the results from the spinal and she did have Lyme disease but did not have meningitis and if we wanted we could go home. So I called Tim and he loaded the kids in the truck and picked us up around 2am.

The next day her head started leaking pus at the site where the tick bit her. It continued to get worse and by Sunday was pretty icky looking. Also on Sunday, Nora and I were walking the halls at church and she started saying ow and pointing and grabbing at her knee. Later Sunday night after we got home from trying to go to the zoo for Make a Wish night but the storms killed that, she continued saying ow for the whole trip home and when we got her out she was screaming and limping and after carrying her inside she fell to the ground in pain. We called the docs just to check and since no joints were swollen they said they’d like to see her tomorrow but unless swelling happened or she spiked a fever to just watch her. Also I mentioned her head and they said it’s probably a skin infection from the tick and that will not clear up with antibiotics she’d probably need a topical cream.

So on Monday when she woke up her head was getting worse. It was extremely red and now blistered around the tick bite. We took her to the peds and they prescribed a prescription shampoo and a topical cream. The joint pain is unfortunately a side effect of Lyme’s. We go back in two weeks to have her rechecked. After one shampoo application she does look better so that’s a good sign.

This was seriously at the top of my list of scary things that we’ve gone through. I’m always amazed though, how our God, is so good ALL.THE.TIME. Every time I think of the fact that God was speaking to Tim when he said he felt like we shouldn’t  put her down for the night is so amazing and I’m so thankful. He really cares for and protects His children and I’m just humbled by this. Our God is amazing

One Tip and Trick

A few friends have been blogging about tips, tricks and favorites and after Renee posted a wonderful tip about getting rid of warts I thought I’d post one of the most helpful tricks I’ve come across in my nursing career.

I stumbled upon this when Garrett was around 9 months old and  I came down with my first case of mastitis. I had a blocked duct that I could not get to work its way out even after being on antibiotics for 48 hours. I tried all the normal tricks, dangle nursing, switching nursing positions, hanging out in a hot shower, massage, heat, etc. You name it, I tried it but nothing was working. Then, I read that an electric toothbrush turned on works to help unclog the milk duct.

You use the backside and hold it on the blocked duct for a bit and let the vibrations do the work, and you know what?! It worked!!

With Nora I had a large milk supply so I ended up with several blocked ducts  and every time I would head straight for the electric toothbrush and it worked every time.

Long QT

Most of you are probably wondering what in the world Long QT is?? I wondered the same thing a few months back when they said that a few of my kiddos had Long QT.

After Nora was born they did an ekg while we were still in the hospital. They wanted to double check on the Heart Block scare from earlier in the pregnancy. Everything came back normal. NO heart block.  Then at her first doc apt (like a few days old) they heard a murmur. No biggie. That is pretty normal. Then at the next apt, no murmur. Good, right?! Well, then at the next apt they heard it again..so Travis, who is the PA and who also had a son born a few months before Nora with a severe heart condition, felt that it would be wise for us to see cardiology. So, I figured, I would just make Maygen’s yearly at the same time. We took both girls, Nora and Maygen, and had ekg’s and Maygen had an echo. After they ran the ekg they found that M and N both had Long QT. NOW, here’s the really weird part, the cardiologist said it was no biggie and he would see us in 2 years. So, I left and never thought about it again and in fact didn’t even remember what he said they had. So, a month later I’m at a well visit and my ped asked how the ekg’s went. I told her and she read the note from cardio. She said that since 2 of my kids had this that it would be a good idea for all of them to be tested. So, not thinking this was a big deal, I just waited until Maygen had more apts at Children’s. So, in September, I take all 4 of the other kids in to have their ekg’s done. So after they ran the 4 the nurse said I need to have the 1 kid’s test read. Ok. No biggie. She then pops her head in and says, “Is there history of cardiac death in the family?’. I said no. Then I looked at Tim and was like what did she just say. So then she pops back in and says she needs to see me in the hall. I went into the hall and she said we really need to know about your family history in terms of cardiac death. I said there isn’t any. She said the guy who read the ekg says you need to see cardiology asap. I asked to speak to him. He comes out and starts talking about the ekg and how we really need to get in, RIGHT away. I’m like ok. So then I ask if I should be worried and he says, I’m not going to tell you NOT to worry and then proceeds to say I don’t think anything will happen between now and her apt but she needs to get in asap. So I leave in a complete fog. Erin then sees Cardio but with a different doc b/c our cardio doc was busy. So Dr. Russo says this is a very serious condition and 3 of your kids have it and def needs to be looked at.

We waited about 2 months and then were seen by the EP specialist. He confirmed that Maygen and Nora do have Long QT but Erin’s ekg actually looked pretty normal. We’re having genetic testing done to see which type of Long QT the girls have. Long QT is hereditary but we’ll wait to see what the genetic tests results are before having anyone else tested.  

The girls were put on beta blockers to help with the electric currents in their hearts. They have to take the medicine 3x a day. Every 8 hours. That has been a logistical nightmare but we’re working through it. 

We just had a sermon series on God With Us. I can say with absolute certainty that God was most definitely with us. He not only provided all of the right people to be in the right places at the right time but He’s been protecting their hearts since they were conceived. I also know if Nora hadn’t had a murmur and then not and then again and if Travis wasn’t so cautious b/c of his own son then we would have never been seen by cardio in the first place. I also find it amazing that it was Erin’s ekg that sent us to the EP specialist when in reality her ekg looked normal. It was again, our God guiding us in the right direction.  God is so good. He is a God of details. He is a God of love. He is a God of protection, comfort and healing. We now know and can pray and deal with it. I have some days where I panic but then I remember that fear is not from God and that the enemy continually tries to wreck havoc in my kids health and EVERY time we witness a true miracle.  We are so blessed to be able to see God moving in our kids lives again and again.

Holiday Fun

The day after Thanksgiving every year, we search and search and finally pick that just right tree. This year snow covered the ground, giving us a reason to wear our new fun snow boots!

Adding the star on top is a very important job. We rotate which child gets to put the star on every year. This year it was Garrett’s turn.

Erin and Ada both preformed at Kennywood this year. We had a great time and it gave us a reason to head to Kennywood in December to see the Festival of Lights!

Ada’s class!

Erin’s class!

The train display was super! Garrett was thrilled and it was nice to something inside and stay warm.

Eating Potato Patch Fries in December!!!

We also enjoyed Salem Crossroads this year too. Walking through a live nativity. Listening to the Christmas Story. Seeing it acted out as you walk along in the cold dark night. Taking time to remember that a baby was born to save us. Yep. US. Enjoying hot cocoa and snacks after.

 

Lots and lots of Christmas cookies were baked. And lots and lots of cookies were eaten!!

A beautiful tree with packages just begging to be opened.

I’ve wanted to try making my own vanilla for years. While I was sick with pneumonia and had lots of time to google, I decided to give it a go. 10 little bottles were made up and passed out as gifts. Our bottle is in the pantry waiting until March to be used. I can’t wait to give it a try!

 

Christmas Eve 2013.

Christmas morning! We opened gifts, enjoyed yummy cinnamon rolls, played with our new toys and then got ready to head back to my parents for more Christmas celebrating.

 

In honor of World Breastfeeding Week…

A few weeks ago was World Breastfeeding Week. I counted and I’ve nursed a total of 81 months and counting. That’s almost 7 years worth of breastfeeding! How amazing!! But, I wanted to write this post as I remember that each and every time I nursed the situation was different. The baby was different. But God was good every time.

When Erin was born I was overjoyed at being her mama. My little Erin was absolutely beautiful in every.way.possible. When I was pregnant with her, a very normal and very much a conversation starter, was if I planned to breastfeed. My answer was yes although I really had no idea what that meant or what it would look like but I knew I wanted to do it. Erin was born at 37 weeks and came out with little to no interest in feeding. I mean the girl didn’t even open her mouth to cry for what seemed like days. I tried everything. Worked with the lactation consultant at the hospital but to no avail this little one would not open up…so we got home and I was surprisingly calm. Maybe as a new mom I was just that oblivious but I just kept thinking, she’ll get it. We hadn’t picked a pediatrician for her so we didn’t really have one to go to but we did take her in to see a doc that my doctors recommended. They wanted me to give her formula. When we left I said to Tim, I’m not going to do that. So I continued to pump and fed her using my finger and a dropper. At 1 week old I had a revelation that I bet someone could come into my house to help me. So I looked around and wouldn’t you know it, a LC lived right down the street from me and she worked for WIC so every house call would be completely covered!! Is God amazing or what?! So she came over when Erin was 7 days old and helped me get her to latch. We used a nipple shield but it did the trick. Erin started to nurse and by her 2 week apt was 1 ounce over birth weight!! When Erin turned 3 weeks old we finally ditched the nipple shield and entered into breastfeeding bliss! She nursed for 14 happy months.

When Maygen was born a year later at 28 weeks my dreams and hopes to nurse my baby seemed to be crashing down around me. Nurse her. Yeah right. I couldn’t even touch her. But I was able to pump for her. And pumping I did. One nurse commented on the fact that I was producing enough milk to adequately feed triplets!! I pumped ’round the clock for months. When I was finally able to try and nurse her I was so excited. The LC’s from the hospital make special time to spend with NICU mom’s. They came in with a nipple shield and I remember feeling thankful that my experience with Erin had given me some insight on how to nurse a babe who wasn’t an over achiever! So we used the shield for 2 months and in early May, after many many months of pumping and using the shield, my little 4 pound baby latched on!! Woohoo!! God is good, all the time. Of course, 6 weeks after this, her GI specialist decided that b/c her liver was so sick that she needed to be on formula specifically designed for her liver issues. I was crushed. It felt so horrible to have the my nursing experience ripped from my grasp. But, God is ultimately in control. As devastated as I was, I knew this was what my little girl needed. So our nursing experience ended at 5 1/2 short months.

Then 8 1/2 months later Ada was born. Big, full term, Ada Rose! She did not latch on in the delivery room but waited until we got into the post pardom room. But she did latch. And without a shield. I cried! tears of joy. I thanked God for this gift. For this healthy, chubby, full term, latching baby! We nursed happily for 13 months. Ada was a healing to my soul.

Then 7 months later Kylie was born. She came out hungry and latched right on. Oh my word. My first baby to latch after delivery!! Oh yeah! But, believe it or not, Ky was one of my most tricky because she had a very tiny mouth and I worked extensively with LC’s but we could not get her latch correct. Finally after about 3-4 weeks, the LC’s just suggested that we wait b/c her mouth just need to grow. I’ll admit it was one of the hardest times for me. I felt like a floundering “new” mom. I mean, I’d done it before. Many times and not all were a cake walk so why were me and my babe having so many painful issues. Well, I continued to nurse through the pain. I had read that unless one is throwing up then the pain is not really that bad so I just kept on and when Kylie was 5 months old things finally started to get better. So, yeah, almost half a year but so worth it. I thank God for placing so many qualified and caring people into my life at the time. Without all of the help and pain management cream it could have had a very different ending. And, believe it or not, Kylie nursed longer than any of my other kids. 20 total months!!

Garrett was born via c-section 4 months later and when we got back into the room from the surgery he was already rooting around. He also latched right on and nursed very happily. He gained tons of weight and plumped up nice and fast. After his traumatic and somewhat scary entrance into the world I was so relieved that our nursing life had started out on the right foot. Again, God takes care of all details. He knows what we need and when we need it. Garrett happily nursed for 17 months!!

6 months later Nora entered our lives. She also came out rooting and latched on in the delivery room. She gave me no problems and is still nursing 8 times a day at a year old. God is good!

It hasn’t always been easy but I’m so glad I’ve been able to nurse my babes. God has been so faithful and it’s been an amazing blessing to be able to breastfeed. So, I say all of  that to say, I’ve been nursing for a total of 81 amazing months and counting!!

1 year stats

I hardly ever write anymore but I have to document Nora’s 1 year check up somewhere. You know, because the whole I keep a baby book for my kids idea…well, let’s just say that ship sailed about 3 kids ago!!

So here it is:
Weight: 19 pounds 7 ounces putting her nicely in the 50%.
Height: 28 inches. 25%
Head: 50%

We have an appointment to see an allergist because her dear brother shared some of his peanut butter sandwich with her and it lead to a swelled up tongue and continuous vomiting. Good thing I haven’t started any solids yet and she’s still exclusively breastfed!!

And, b/c I can’t end a post without a picture of her!!

Beautiful Nora!!

Happy birthday to our Nora Bean!

A year has passed. A year filled with blessing.

A year ago today I delivered Nora Adelaide via successful VBA2C!! Such an answer to prayer!

At a year old, sweet baby girl, you are crawling, pulling to stand, clapping and on demand you make the most precious “funny” face! We love you to pieces.

A year in ‘picture’ review!

   

11 months!

I don’t post much anymore. I think about it. But for now a picture update.

Nora Adelaide is 11 months. Yep, 11 whole months old. Her first birthday is right around the corner. Time is flying.

Doesn’t she have the most kissable cheeks?!!

Silly face!!

This is her favorite silly face!! This girl has a ton of personality!!