Violet's Birth Story - Part 2

Sorry to have left y'all hanging on the last post... I just didn't want the post to get too long so I figured I'd split it into three but since I've taken so long I'm just putting the rest of it into this one post. Get ready for a novel!

I'd have posted much sooner but things have been crazy around here! Poor Violet has some serious acid reflux and cries so much, sometimes inconsolably for hours. She's on a medication for it and even had an x-ray done to see if she had any problems with her GI tract. Luckily everything showed up normal, we just have to wait out the med for it to work.. More on that later though.

Read Part 1 here.

So continuing...Tuesday, February 28th
By this time it was around 1:30 and we were on our way to Labor & Delivery so they could continue to monitor Violet's heart rate. They were expecting me in triage so when we arrived they immediately took me back to change and set me up on the monitors. I was still crazy nervous about baby girl's heart rate but at the same time I knew deep down that I would definitely be meeting her today and that part was just SO exciting!! My mother's intuition had helped me get us to the doctor that day and my intuition again told me Violet was going to be just fine! We called our parents to let them know what was going on and to prepare them just in case they needed to come to the hospital soon!

My L&D nurse, Michelle was so awesome (why didn't I think of taking pictures of any of my nurses?! Ugh. I could kick myself for that) and continued checking the monitors and reassuring me that everything was ok. She told us too she was sure the baby would be born today but of course would be leaving that decision to my OB. By 2:30 Dr. O showed up and I was so relieved to see her because I knew she'd have a plan. She was her usual laid back self when she came in but Ronnie and I totally knew what she was going to say before she said it: c-section.

Dr. O felt that since I was not dilated at my last appointment that there was no way I had made that much progress by today. Her biggest concern was that Violet was in so much distress that she wanted to get her out and not put her through a long labor by inducing me. So c-section it was. Ronnie and I already expected her to say that so we were prepared. I seriously had no qualms about it. I just wanted Violet here safe and sound!

It was about 2:45 by this time and Dr. O told Michelle to get us set up and ready for the surgery! We made sure the grandparents were on their way, the camera was ready and Ronnie and I just did a whole lot of (slight) freaking out and cracking nervous jokes.

 

The daddy to be in the hallway outside the OR where they were prepping me. I love this pic!

They had pretty much just cut me open right here but of course I didn't feel a thing so I was feeling good! It wasn't until later that I felt some incredible pressure and tugging and got pretty nauseous. Good thing I had an amazing anesthesiologist and Ronnie by my side, they were on top of things, always asking how I felt!

Two minutes after they cut me open, Violet was here!!! (We have pictures of when they first pulled her out but I thought I'd save you from that gore ;)

Unfortunately she had passed her first stool (meconium) inside the womb so she had inhaled it which was a big issue and on top of it, her cord was wrapped around her neck so nurses and a neonatologist rushed in to suck all the yucky stuff out of her and to get her breathing properly. She had basically come out the color violet and needed oxygen. Everything they did took about 10 minutes and I still had yet to see her. All I could see was this and all I could hear was a bunch of low talking. Scariest 10 minutes ever.

I kept asking Ronnie what they were doing and he would tell me and then assure me that she was ok. Poor baby, I could hear her muffled cries under the oxygen mask. I was just incredibly worried the entire time - I just wanted to see her!

But I finally got to meet her a few minutes later and it was perfect. I swear she was smiling at me ;) I got to kiss her a couple times and they whisked her off to the NICU.

Unfortunately Ronnie and I didn't get to take that typical new family picture just the 3 of us which makes me sad but I know it was way more important to get her to the NICU quickly. It took a few hours for my anesthesia to totally wear off so I was laid up in my room unable to move. That sucked. When I finally got feeling back, I was having the worst contractions ever. The nurses told me this was normal but it freaked me out. So after some sleep and getting to where I could finally get out of bed, I was able to visit my girl in the NICU. It was already close to 3 am the next day. I hate that I had to go that long without seeing her but Ronnie and our parents got to visit her a lot that first night so at least she had her family with her :)

 

I didn't get to hold her until maybe a full 24 hours later, that part was rough. I hated not snuggling her. When I finally did get to hold her though, I was SO nervous!! She was just so teeny and fragile. I was glad most of her tubes had been taken out so it was a sign she was slowly but surely getting better. The moment I held her was just amazing and it was worth the long wait! I was so excited that my milk had already come in so I got to at least bottle feed her. It was perfect.

I was discharged from the hospital on Friday, March 2nd which was pretty funny because that was the day I was scheduled to be induced! They even called me on Thursday to verify that I would be coming to the hospital that night - the lady was shocked when I told her I had already had the baby 2 days before. ha! 

Violet however needed to stay in the NICU for one whole week while on a week long dose of antibiotics to clear up her infection, most likely from the meconium she had inhaled in the womb. Having her stay there was torture for us but in a way it was a blessing in disguise.  First, I was able to go home and actually rest which helped me heal from my c-section super quickly. And second, ask any parent of a NICU baby and they'll tell you that the NICU is kind of a mini baby boot camp - you learn SO much! Our NICU nurses were amazing and every time we visited Violet they had us do all the checking of her vitals, changing her diaper, cleaning her umbilical cord, bathing her, changing her clothes and of course, the feedings. They really taught us a lot and we grew really comfortable with taking care of our fragile little baby (while under the watchful eye of our helpful nurses!). We're grateful for that week because they took such good care of her and got her totally healthy! We felt much more prepared for bringing her home the next week!

Thanks for reading! Next time I'll post more on her time in the NICU! and catch y'all up on some pictures ;)

Updated to add NICU Story.