11 Temmuz 2012 Çarşamba
10 Temmuz 2012 Salı
9 Temmuz 2012 Pazartesi
Homebirth in Australia: more marginalized and less safe
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Homebirth Australia just issued a statement responding to the SA Deputy Coroner's recommendations to require health care workers to reported planned "high-risk" home births (more details available at the end of this post). The statement is included in full below.
Also worth reading is Hannah Dahlen's article Pushing home birth underground raises safety concerns. Dahlen is an associate professor of midwifery at University of Western Sydney.
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Coroner’s Recommendations: Short sighted and misses the point on homebirth
7 June 2012
Following an inquest in to the death of three babies, recommendations about the provision of homebirth services have been made by South Australian Deputy Coroner Anthony Schapel.
Homebirth Australia has concerns about the recommendations made by the Coroner. It is our view that, if implemented, the recommendations will lead to homebirth becoming more marginalised and less safe.
What was missing from the Coroner’s findings was any real consideration of the reasons why women choose homebirth. Lack of access to quality maternity care options and sensitive providers forces many women to turn their back on hospital care.
Listening to women, respecting their autonomy and developing services that genuinely meet their needs we will do far more to ensure the safety of mothers and babies than punitive short-sighted responses that remove options and marginalise certain choices.
Women make the choice to give birth outside a hospital with identified risk factors due to their profound dissatisfaction with the current maternity care system and in some cases because of previous hospital experiences that have left them deeply traumatised.
When our hospitals leave women so damaged after a birth that they refuse to return no matter what the risk, then we need to look at why.
Any law reform around homebirth must recognise that all women (including pregnant women) have a fundamental right to bodily autonomy and a legal right to refuse medical care.
The right of women to make decisions around the circumstances of their births and to choose homebirth has been recognised by the European Court of Human Rights.
The ability of women to make decisions about their maternity care is recognised at common law and by the Australian College of Midwives, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Australian Medical Association.
Women will continue to choose homebirth regardless of the legal or regulatory framework surrounding midwifery practice and other women will heed their call for support if the maternity care system fails to support them to give birth at home.
Contact: Michelle Meares – 0439 645 372
Also worth reading is Hannah Dahlen's article Pushing home birth underground raises safety concerns. Dahlen is an associate professor of midwifery at University of Western Sydney.
~~~~~
Coroner’s Recommendations: Short sighted and misses the point on homebirth
7 June 2012
Following an inquest in to the death of three babies, recommendations about the provision of homebirth services have been made by South Australian Deputy Coroner Anthony Schapel.
Homebirth Australia has concerns about the recommendations made by the Coroner. It is our view that, if implemented, the recommendations will lead to homebirth becoming more marginalised and less safe.
What was missing from the Coroner’s findings was any real consideration of the reasons why women choose homebirth. Lack of access to quality maternity care options and sensitive providers forces many women to turn their back on hospital care.
Listening to women, respecting their autonomy and developing services that genuinely meet their needs we will do far more to ensure the safety of mothers and babies than punitive short-sighted responses that remove options and marginalise certain choices.
Women make the choice to give birth outside a hospital with identified risk factors due to their profound dissatisfaction with the current maternity care system and in some cases because of previous hospital experiences that have left them deeply traumatised.
When our hospitals leave women so damaged after a birth that they refuse to return no matter what the risk, then we need to look at why.
Any law reform around homebirth must recognise that all women (including pregnant women) have a fundamental right to bodily autonomy and a legal right to refuse medical care.
The right of women to make decisions around the circumstances of their births and to choose homebirth has been recognised by the European Court of Human Rights.
The ability of women to make decisions about their maternity care is recognised at common law and by the Australian College of Midwives, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Australian Medical Association.
Women will continue to choose homebirth regardless of the legal or regulatory framework surrounding midwifery practice and other women will heed their call for support if the maternity care system fails to support them to give birth at home.
Contact: Michelle Meares – 0439 645 372
Dutch bikes
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Some tourists in the Netherlands take pictures of canals or old buildings. I take pictures of bikes.
Now my favorite part...all of the cool bikes & bike seats. I loved these front-end cargo bikes.
Inside there is a seat with 2 seatbelts. 
I also saw some serious cargo bikes! You'll never get wet inside these. 
Tandem bike, plus a child seat on the back
A family with 3 children lives here! You can see the parent's bike with 2 child's seats and saddlebags, and a kid's bike chained up behind it. I love the little windscreen in front of the baby seat.
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| a typical street, full of parked bikes |
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| bikes parked in front of a theater building |
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| old street & canal in Amsterdam, with bikes parked all over of course |
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| lots of people doubled/tripled up on bikes (usually a parent with 2 kids, but occasionally adults would ride too!) |
Inside there is a seat with 2 seatbelts. I also saw some serious cargo bikes! You'll never get wet inside these. Tandem bike, plus a child seat on the backA family with 3 children lives here! You can see the parent's bike with 2 child's seats and saddlebags, and a kid's bike chained up behind it. I love the little windscreen in front of the baby seat.
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| "No biking" signs |
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| Okay, I did take one houseboat picture! |
A lot can happen in a week
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This past week we...
Bought another multi-family property. We spent Saturday ripping out loads of old carpet, layers and layers of flooring, and trash left by previous tenants. It will be really nice when we're finished with it but I am having major buyer's remorse. Why do we do this???
Went on vacation to my parent's cabin in northern Wisconsin. It took 10 hours to drive there and 14 to drive back (you'll see why later).
Had our car break down on the way home. The alternator pulley and belt broke about 5 hours into our trip. Fortunately we were 5 minutes from a European auto repair shop. Fortunately the shop was still open at 4 pm on a Friday. Fortunately the shop was able to locate the hard-to-find parts at a local VW dealership, since none of the auto parts stores carried them. $550 and a few hours later we were on our way.
Classic Eric quote: "The noise stopped! We should just keep driving." This was right after the alternator belt broke and the screeching noise stopped. I insisted we go to the shop. A minute later, the A/C failed, the power steering failed, and the alternator light went on. He conceded we should have the car looked at.
Enjoyed wonderful weather while most of the country suffered through a heat wave. Today's high is 92 F (close to 34 C) and that's cooler than last week
Had no internet access for a week. I read 2 books and about 20 magazines. I took naps in the hammock. And I realized that I probably don't need to check my email several times a day!
Bought another multi-family property. We spent Saturday ripping out loads of old carpet, layers and layers of flooring, and trash left by previous tenants. It will be really nice when we're finished with it but I am having major buyer's remorse. Why do we do this???
Went on vacation to my parent's cabin in northern Wisconsin. It took 10 hours to drive there and 14 to drive back (you'll see why later).
Had our car break down on the way home. The alternator pulley and belt broke about 5 hours into our trip. Fortunately we were 5 minutes from a European auto repair shop. Fortunately the shop was still open at 4 pm on a Friday. Fortunately the shop was able to locate the hard-to-find parts at a local VW dealership, since none of the auto parts stores carried them. $550 and a few hours later we were on our way.
Classic Eric quote: "The noise stopped! We should just keep driving." This was right after the alternator belt broke and the screeching noise stopped. I insisted we go to the shop. A minute later, the A/C failed, the power steering failed, and the alternator light went on. He conceded we should have the car looked at.
Enjoyed wonderful weather while most of the country suffered through a heat wave. Today's high is 92 F (close to 34 C) and that's cooler than last week
Had no internet access for a week. I read 2 books and about 20 magazines. I took naps in the hammock. And I realized that I probably don't need to check my email several times a day!
At the lake
To contact us Click HERE
Pictures from our week at the cabin...
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| Wheelbarrow rides with Inga's cousin (I love my dad's shirt!) |
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| everyone got a turn |
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| My sister's biiiiiig pregnant belly...she's due in about 4 weeks |
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| Dio screaming when I made him go on the waverunner...of course he loved it as soon as he and Eric started |
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| Dio being attacked by his 16-month-old cousin |
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| playing in the hammock |
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| Inga's dinosaur face |
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| we swam a lot |
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| Zari loved going super fast on the waverunner |
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| on the dock |
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| me & mini me |
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| water trampoline |
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| Zari's first kayak ride |
Unsolved mysteries
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Mystery #1: Dead Birds
When we came home from France, there were two dead birds in our house. One was in the entryway, the other upstairs in our bedroom. I checked every single door and window, and all were closed and sealed tight. I have NO idea how these birds got into the house.
Mystery #2: Itchy Rash
I got a strange, horribly itchy rash when I was in France. I visited the doctor twice, took 3 prescription & 2 OTC medications, and spent almost 2 weeks in misery before it started to clear up. I suspect it was an allergic reaction (possibly a photoallergic eruption) to a sunscreen. Here are my reasons:
A rash started appearing 2-3 days later in the top circle, where I had applied Equate Kids Lotion. I compared its ingredients against the other two products I did not react to, but I wasn't much closer to a solution. Each sunscreen had 20-30 ingredients and very few were the same! I haven't solved this one entirely, but I've been staying away from any Wal-Mart brand sunscreens. So far haven't had any reactions to Coppertone brands.
Mystery #3: Early Miscarriage?
The day we flew home from France, my period was due to start. I had saw some red spotting before I got on the plane and figured that was it. But then, for the next 6 days, I only had very light spotting. I figured it had been a really weird period.
Then a week after I got home, I got a really heavy period. Torrential is a better word. I was completely filling a Diva Cup every 2-3 hours. My flow continued for 9-10 days, and spotting continued almost until the 14th day.
I took a pregnancy test a few hours before the heavy flow began. It was negative, but that doesn't really prove anything either way. I strongly suspect this was an early miscarriage based on the timing and volume; my cycle is always regular within +/- 1 day.
So, what do you think about these three unsolved mysteries? Any additional ideas?
When we came home from France, there were two dead birds in our house. One was in the entryway, the other upstairs in our bedroom. I checked every single door and window, and all were closed and sealed tight. I have NO idea how these birds got into the house.
Mystery #2: Itchy Rash
I got a strange, horribly itchy rash when I was in France. I visited the doctor twice, took 3 prescription & 2 OTC medications, and spent almost 2 weeks in misery before it started to clear up. I suspect it was an allergic reaction (possibly a photoallergic eruption) to a sunscreen. Here are my reasons:
- the reaction showed up only where I applied sunscreen (face, arms, chest, and back of the neck) but not on any other part of my body
- the reaction wasn't immediate
- I got a rash, which took a few days to appear, when I applied sunscreen to my torso as an initial test
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| look at those lovely original "tomette" tiles in our apartment! |
A rash started appearing 2-3 days later in the top circle, where I had applied Equate Kids Lotion. I compared its ingredients against the other two products I did not react to, but I wasn't much closer to a solution. Each sunscreen had 20-30 ingredients and very few were the same! I haven't solved this one entirely, but I've been staying away from any Wal-Mart brand sunscreens. So far haven't had any reactions to Coppertone brands.
Mystery #3: Early Miscarriage?
The day we flew home from France, my period was due to start. I had saw some red spotting before I got on the plane and figured that was it. But then, for the next 6 days, I only had very light spotting. I figured it had been a really weird period.
Then a week after I got home, I got a really heavy period. Torrential is a better word. I was completely filling a Diva Cup every 2-3 hours. My flow continued for 9-10 days, and spotting continued almost until the 14th day.
I took a pregnancy test a few hours before the heavy flow began. It was negative, but that doesn't really prove anything either way. I strongly suspect this was an early miscarriage based on the timing and volume; my cycle is always regular within +/- 1 day.
So, what do you think about these three unsolved mysteries? Any additional ideas?
8 Temmuz 2012 Pazar
Peri Appointment - 33 weeks
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Both girls passed their Biophysical again. Breathing and cord flow all looked great.
Mandy weighs in at 4 lbs; 5 ounces (40th percentile)
Emily weighs in at 3lbs; 4 ounces (below 10th percentile)
Emily is now below the 10th percentile which is what we were all expecting. Because of that I got the sterioid shot to help mature their lungs faster. I go to the hospital tomorrow for second dose of it.
Both girls were very active during the ultrasound and the tech got a few kicks at the ultrasound wand. Emily is still breech while Mandy is head down. Emily has her foot in Mandys face. That can't be comfy.
When it came time for my internal ultrasound I had a room full of people to look at the vascular area we have been discussing for the past few weeks. There were 2 ultrasound techs and my Peri. Today things looked alot better to my Peri. She said today she is much more confident that what we are seeing is maternal. She is 99% certain. She had a much better few of the blood flow and what it was doing. One of the techs would squeeze my leg and release it to see what the blood flow did. She said I can deliver these babies by c-section or vaginal and she is not worried. Todays discussion made me feel so much better about this. I asked if her if they had turned out to be fetal would it have been Vesa Previa and she said "yes".....yikes!!! That would have not been good. Then she said she may not have necessarily called it Vesa Previa because it wasn't laying directly over my cervix. Anyhow....I was releived today to hear they are maternal.
My OB thinks I will deliver next week or the following. If I don't deliver by then my Peri said they will be kicked out between 36-37 weeks because of Emilys growth...normally if they were growing good they would wait till 38 weeks.
Only 3 more weeks at the most!!!!!
Mandy weighs in at 4 lbs; 5 ounces (40th percentile)
Emily weighs in at 3lbs; 4 ounces (below 10th percentile)
Emily is now below the 10th percentile which is what we were all expecting. Because of that I got the sterioid shot to help mature their lungs faster. I go to the hospital tomorrow for second dose of it.
Both girls were very active during the ultrasound and the tech got a few kicks at the ultrasound wand. Emily is still breech while Mandy is head down. Emily has her foot in Mandys face. That can't be comfy.
When it came time for my internal ultrasound I had a room full of people to look at the vascular area we have been discussing for the past few weeks. There were 2 ultrasound techs and my Peri. Today things looked alot better to my Peri. She said today she is much more confident that what we are seeing is maternal. She is 99% certain. She had a much better few of the blood flow and what it was doing. One of the techs would squeeze my leg and release it to see what the blood flow did. She said I can deliver these babies by c-section or vaginal and she is not worried. Todays discussion made me feel so much better about this. I asked if her if they had turned out to be fetal would it have been Vesa Previa and she said "yes".....yikes!!! That would have not been good. Then she said she may not have necessarily called it Vesa Previa because it wasn't laying directly over my cervix. Anyhow....I was releived today to hear they are maternal.
My OB thinks I will deliver next week or the following. If I don't deliver by then my Peri said they will be kicked out between 36-37 weeks because of Emilys growth...normally if they were growing good they would wait till 38 weeks.
Only 3 more weeks at the most!!!!!
34 weeks with Twins
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Made it another week!!! I can't beleive I am 34 weeks pregnant with 2 babies. I remember putting up my twin pregnancy ticker at only 6 weeks, I can't beleive how fast the time went.
I went to my OB on Monday. I weighed in at 165. I have officially gained the 40-45 pounds you are supposed to gain with twins. My blood pressure was still great. She decided to measure me, I only am measuring 2 weeks ahead at 36 weeks. I know there are twin Moms who measure 6-8 weeks ahead so thats not bad all all. She did say I really stick out...I just carry them far out there. All babies.
At church on Sunday a lady asked me when my baby was due. I told her they were twins and she said "It doesn't look like you are going to make it thru the service". I had another lady tell me it looks like I was going to pop. The comments make me laugh and I never take any offense. After all....I should be big since I'm carrying 2 babies. Its been an awsome experince.
I am getting uncomfortable now. Around 32 weeks I started noticing more pain. My stomach gets so heavy at the end of the day. I need to be pulled off the couch. Flipping in bed is not easy and hurts. Just sitting on the couch I need to take a pillow and stuff in under my stomach to support the weight. Last Sunday my ankles and feet swelled....that was a big time first. I have contractions every day. At one point I timed them coming every 4 min and they lasted each a minute and then eventually went away. Some of them are starting to feel more intense and strong....just not uncomfortable like they were. I am ready to meet these girls. I love being pregnant with them but I am ready for them to make their appearence. I can't wait to see them. Cassie says they will come next week....we shall see.
And if these girls decide they don't want to come on their own accord they are being kicked out on Monday June 25th. That was exciting news...to officially have a date set aside for them to be born.
Its all very surreal.
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| 34 weeks |
I went to my OB on Monday. I weighed in at 165. I have officially gained the 40-45 pounds you are supposed to gain with twins. My blood pressure was still great. She decided to measure me, I only am measuring 2 weeks ahead at 36 weeks. I know there are twin Moms who measure 6-8 weeks ahead so thats not bad all all. She did say I really stick out...I just carry them far out there. All babies.
At church on Sunday a lady asked me when my baby was due. I told her they were twins and she said "It doesn't look like you are going to make it thru the service". I had another lady tell me it looks like I was going to pop. The comments make me laugh and I never take any offense. After all....I should be big since I'm carrying 2 babies. Its been an awsome experince.
I am getting uncomfortable now. Around 32 weeks I started noticing more pain. My stomach gets so heavy at the end of the day. I need to be pulled off the couch. Flipping in bed is not easy and hurts. Just sitting on the couch I need to take a pillow and stuff in under my stomach to support the weight. Last Sunday my ankles and feet swelled....that was a big time first. I have contractions every day. At one point I timed them coming every 4 min and they lasted each a minute and then eventually went away. Some of them are starting to feel more intense and strong....just not uncomfortable like they were. I am ready to meet these girls. I love being pregnant with them but I am ready for them to make their appearence. I can't wait to see them. Cassie says they will come next week....we shall see.
And if these girls decide they don't want to come on their own accord they are being kicked out on Monday June 25th. That was exciting news...to officially have a date set aside for them to be born.
Its all very surreal.
Peri appointment and other news
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Both girls passed their biophysical again, scored 8 out of 8. The Peri said they were being perfect kids. They were very active, especially Baby A....Mandy. The ultrasound tech kept commenting on how it was good they were so active.
When my ultrasound tech called me into the room she commented on my size. She said I looked alot bigger than last week. I totally agree with her. I feel like the last couple of weeks I have really grown in size. I have no clue where my lungs are....I am always out of breath.
Next Friday is my last growth scan before they are born....how crazy is that!!!
Emily (Baby B) has also decided to flip AGAIN!! I don't know how she is flipping so often and so late in the game. The good thing is she flipped from breech back to head down so I am hopping she stays like that....it will be a much easier delivery for me and I won't have to worry about a breach extraction.
In other big news......we sold our house 2 days ago! Super crazy timing. We tried for 3 years to sell our house with not so much as an offer. Then we heard the market was really doing well with houses in our price range so we decided to put it back on the market. It was only on for 30 days, we got 2 offers....one of which we accepted right away. We have to be out of this house on July 27th. The twins will be 5 weeks old. Are we crazy? YES. So we are in a mad rush looking at houses. We have found one we like and are putting an offer in this weekend. We will see how it goes. If it doesn't work out we have 2 more lined up. I just want to have a house to be able to move into by July 27th. I am trying to take it a day at a time and not stress out but the fact that we will have 2 newborns at that time makes it easy to stress! Big Breath....I know it will all work out.
When my ultrasound tech called me into the room she commented on my size. She said I looked alot bigger than last week. I totally agree with her. I feel like the last couple of weeks I have really grown in size. I have no clue where my lungs are....I am always out of breath.
Next Friday is my last growth scan before they are born....how crazy is that!!!
Emily (Baby B) has also decided to flip AGAIN!! I don't know how she is flipping so often and so late in the game. The good thing is she flipped from breech back to head down so I am hopping she stays like that....it will be a much easier delivery for me and I won't have to worry about a breach extraction.
In other big news......we sold our house 2 days ago! Super crazy timing. We tried for 3 years to sell our house with not so much as an offer. Then we heard the market was really doing well with houses in our price range so we decided to put it back on the market. It was only on for 30 days, we got 2 offers....one of which we accepted right away. We have to be out of this house on July 27th. The twins will be 5 weeks old. Are we crazy? YES. So we are in a mad rush looking at houses. We have found one we like and are putting an offer in this weekend. We will see how it goes. If it doesn't work out we have 2 more lined up. I just want to have a house to be able to move into by July 27th. I am trying to take it a day at a time and not stress out but the fact that we will have 2 newborns at that time makes it easy to stress! Big Breath....I know it will all work out.
35 week OB appointment
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My appointment went well. Nothing too new and exciting. Blood pressure good, weight good.
Both girls are head down. My OB checked me and said Baby A is very low...she could feel her head. I am maybe a finger tip dialated. She thought I would make it this week but she can't say about next week. Either way, next week is my last week of pregnancy. That is just crazy.
Both girls are head down. My OB checked me and said Baby A is very low...she could feel her head. I am maybe a finger tip dialated. She thought I would make it this week but she can't say about next week. Either way, next week is my last week of pregnancy. That is just crazy.
35 Weeks with twins
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I can't beleive I'm 35 weeks. Its amazing. Time has flown by and I am proud of the fact I have been able to carry twins this far along. In the early stages I was told I was so small framed that my goal was to get to 32 weeks and now I am 35! My nurse said I've been a champ. Their not kidding you when they say a twin pregnancy is alot different than a singleton.
I have the hip and pelvic pain. Contractions every day. I can't breath. There is a list of things but its still awsome. At the library today a lady stopped me and asked if the size of my stomach hurt. Yes, it does. My skin hurts. I get stinging pains in my skin from the stretching. The stretch marks show more and more every day. Its unbeleivable. I don't think pictures do the size of my stomach justice. Once these girls are here I am looking foward to running again. I doubt a bikini will ever be worn by me again but it will feel good to be active again.
Next week is my last week of pregnancy!!!!! June 25 being induced....unless they decide to come early.
I have the hip and pelvic pain. Contractions every day. I can't breath. There is a list of things but its still awsome. At the library today a lady stopped me and asked if the size of my stomach hurt. Yes, it does. My skin hurts. I get stinging pains in my skin from the stretching. The stretch marks show more and more every day. Its unbeleivable. I don't think pictures do the size of my stomach justice. Once these girls are here I am looking foward to running again. I doubt a bikini will ever be worn by me again but it will feel good to be active again.
Next week is my last week of pregnancy!!!!! June 25 being induced....unless they decide to come early.
7 Temmuz 2012 Cumartesi
The Birth: Baby Out of my Baby!
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The Day of our Birth - April 2, 2012
3:00AM I came out of a very deep sleep to the sound of my wife talking and the lamp turned on. I could not understand what she was saying at first as it took me a few seconds to wake up. I saw her frantic look which awakened me faster. She said "Honey, I don't mean to alarm you, but I'm having strong contractions frequently which I am unable to sleep through."
I asked her how painful they are. She said painful enough so she couldn't sleep through them. She also said after timing them for over an hour they were approximately 4 minutes apart and lasted 45 seconds to a minute. We both knew about the 4-1-1 Rule which means when the contractions are at least 4 minutes apart lasting at least 1 minute for at least 1 hour you should go to the hospital.
I started to get goosebumps and felt slightly sick to my stomach with anticipation. We then called the nurse line to get some advice. As expected, they did not advise us to hurry to the hospital just yet. They suggested her to take a warm shower and call back in an hour see if that affected the contractions.
4:00AM Called the nurse line back and she reported that the shower didn't slow the contractions, actually they had increased in the intensity and were lasting a little longer now, about 1 minute. She said okay a couple more times quickly and hung up. Then she looked at me with a excited/worried look. "We're going to the hospital! Quick, finish packing our hospital bag"
After grabbing her robe and a few last minute items, we were off! She was having contractions while driving to the hospital, but it wasn't like the movies. No water had broken yet, I wasn't speeding, and she wasn't screaming in pain. We were calm, turned on some classical music and drove the speed limit. I was a little fast around corners which prompted her to tell me to slow down so she could stay comfortable.
5:00AM Arrived at the hospital. We parked in and headed up to labor and delivery. After checking in the front desk, we were seated in a triage bed. The nurse on staff came and hooked Nikki up to monitors. The also checked her cervix. She was 2 centimeters dilated. Nothing to be alarmed about since most women labor at home until they get to 4.
Nikki was upset and was thinking that she might get sent home. She was uncomfortable and didn't like the prospect of leaving the hospital. She wanted to have the baby now! So, the nurse suggested that we walk around the hospital for about an hour to see if that helped her progress.
6:25AM It seemed like forever, we made several laps on the first and second floor and Nikki's feet were really starting to get swollen and hurting her. Surprisingly, the contractions dulled and she couldn't feel them as much while walking. After 45 minutes of walking we sat down to rest by the doors of labor and delivery. Then the on-call midwife showed up. She was very nice and explained that we might not be progressing fast enough to stay at the hospital.
This made Nikki more upset and she wanted to have the baby. The midwife sympathized and said why don't we check your cervix again to and go from there. We agreed and headed back into the triage room. The contractions were intensifying now and she was in more pain. I was holding her hand now. We both waited impatiently as we watched the baby's heart rate and the contractions go up and down on the monitor.
8:00AM After about another 30 minutes I was just about to get someone and the midwife and nurse came in. They asked her how the contractions were and she said more painful and just as frequent. They checked the cervix again to find out she was 4 centimeters! She also had some bloody show which was a sign that labor was starting. A sigh of relief came over both of us and they transferred us to our labor room!
8:40AM Now the real pain started! If you read our birth plan, you know that Nikki did not want an epidural. I showed the nurse and the midwife our birth plan I had saved on my cell phone. She wanted to try a water birth if possible and no pain medication if possible. We quickly learned this was a tall order to live up to! Her contractions were increasing in intensity and duration. The pain now was centered on the sides of her hips more than anywhere else.
She described the pain from the contractions as sharp stabbing on the sides of her hips and she asked me to start rubbing there on each side as she was having the contraction. It alleviated the pain somewhat and I was happy to help in anyway I could even if I couldn't help much.
10:15AM They checked her cervix again, she was at 6 centimeters! The contractions were getting more painful now and I had to rub her hips harder each time. My hands were starting to hurt, but I didn't care, it was nothing compared to her pain and it seemed to help somewhat. I did have to keep readjusting where I rubbed because her pain seemed to change locations slightly each contraction but still along the sides of her hips and lower back.
We tried several positions to help the labor along. First she tried hands and knees, which seemed to help for awhile but then it became too painful again. Each contraction I rubbed vigorously until the pain subsided. She then told the midwife that she wanted to get in the bathtub. We knew that laboring in the water can be easier for women and it relieve some of the pain from the contractions.
She sat in the tub cross-legged facing the tiled wall and I continued my rubbing during contractions. She said it did help significantly and I could even gently pour warm water over her between contractions which was soothing she said.
I learned many of these comfort measures from our lamaze class at Baby Love Childbirth Education Classes in Eagan, MN. They taught me to basically be at her beckon call through labor and to do anything she asked. It seemed to help and it was the least I could do for my beautiful wife.
11:30AM after over an hour in the tub, the water was losing its effectiveness in relieving the pain. She was starting to cry and I cried with her. It was so hard seeing her in pain with her teardrops hitting the bathtub water each time a contraction came. It seemed unbearable pain at that point. After a particularly painful contraction, she looked at me and said "I want an epidural!" I said okay dear and kept helping her through the pain while we waited for the midwife to come back. We mentioned it to the midwife and she suggested we check the cervix again to see where she was at and then if we wanted we could start the process of getting the epidural.
11:45AM She laid back down on the bed and the contractions got worse still. The midwife asked her where her pain was on a scale of 1-10 and she said a 9. They suggested some mild narcotic pain medication also called opiods. They would help with the pain but be relatively harmless to mother and baby and would feel like you had a couple glasses of wine. After injecting the medication by IV she felt some relief right away. It didn't help much with the pain of contractions, just helped her rest in between.
She was in a lot of pain now and uncomfortable on the bed. They then suggested the exercise ball. She sat on the ball with her head and arms resting on the bed. They suggested I sit behind her to support her since she now as a bit uncoordinated from the medication. They suggested she do a hula hoop motion with her hips during the contraction as I rubbed still in about the same spot. They also suggested that she say some phrases to help her breathing. She said "Owie Owie Owie" over and over during the contraction that seemed to help. The nurse then said "You're going to hula that girl out of there!" We both laughed briefly and Nikki even cracked a smile for a second which the nurse and the midwife were delighted to see.
12:15PM Nikki carefully climbed back on the bed and they checked her cervix again. She was at a 9! The midwife was astonished how fast she was progressing and just then her mom showed up. She jumped right in comforting her on one side with me on the other while the nurse and midwife monitored. Between contractions I spent my time getting fresh cool washcloths for her forehead, eating a brief meal for energy, and I quickly called my mom to let her know it was time for her to come to the hospital.
12:45PM The pain was off the charts now. Nikki was screaming and crying at times like I had never seen her do before. She seemed barely conscious, almost in a trance like state of pain and anguish! I couldn't contain myself as I sobbed over her. My teardrops fell on her back as I continually massaged her hips. The muscles in my arms were burning now from the pain of rubbing for nearly 6 hours but still I kept going. I know she needed me to continue and it was the least I could do.
We then changed positions again. This time draping her body over the front of the bed with it elevated. This position helped as she didn't have to hold her body up anymore on her hands and knees. It seemed never ending!
1:00PM Between another whopper of a contraction, the midwife asked if Nikki wanted her to break her bag of water. The midwife warned if she did this it would speed things up drastically and the pain would get even more intense. Without hesitation, she said loudly "Let's do this!" My mother-in-law and I couldn't help but laugh a bit because she was so confident in her answer. She was determined to have this baby now!
1:05PM Just after they broke her water, my Mom came in the room in between contractions. I briefly hugged and kissed her when another one started. Now they encouraged Nikki to push. She was completely exhausted so the only position left now was on her back. Now her mom and mine stood back and watched. The nurse took one leg and I took the other. We held them as to have counter pressure for her to push against. Nikki was pushing so hard that the midwife told her to stop, she needed to take more breaths between pushes.
1:10PM Things were happening so fast now thinking back it was like a blur of motion. The bag of water was leaking out and during one of the pushes the midwife saw the crowing of the head. Meconium," the midwife said and suggested that the nurse call the nic unit to stand by to suction the baby off after birth due to thick meconium (the baby's first stool) in the amniotic fluid. Just then I looked down and saw it too. Anxiety flushed over me in a wave. I asked the nurse is the baby okay? She said yes as the baby was still being monitored and the vital signs looked good. Still, I couldn't imagine how the baby could breathe with how think the Meconium looked!
1:20PM The pushing was extremely intense now. The pain was off the charts, we were all encouraging her to push as much as she could. The baby's head was coming out a couple of centimeters. Whew, another contraction done. I noticed that the baby's head would sink back in a couple centimeters between contractions. Almost like 2 steps forward, 1 step back. I thought, how much longer can we go? Then another contraction was starting. This was the most intense one yet. Nikki seemed to push forever with all she had. I was absolutely in awe as I watched what happened next...
The head came out 3 centimeters, then 4, 5, 6, 7, and then enough for the midwife to grasp the head on both sides. She came out face down or in the anterior position which we learned in our class is the preferred method.
It was jaw dropping amazing! I don't understand why I used to and many men still say they wouldn't want to watch it. It was truly the miracle of life right before my eyes. Sure, she was messy and bloody and covered with meconium, but you overlook the gross stuff. Her little chubby body was pulled out in one fluid motion by the midwife. She flopped onto the bed head first quickly the midwife turned her and made sure she was breathing.
1:26PM A nurse called the time of birth and she was born!!! Then the nurse quickly cut the umbilical cord and whisked the baby over to a nearby auxiliary table where she was promptly suctioned off to get all the meconium off of her and to inspect her.
We were all silent. We just walked over to inspect the baby ourselves and she was still purple, and was silent. They gave her a little oxygen but then took it off as she was breathing on her own. They said she luckily hadn't aspirated any meconium. She opened her eyes and was looking around for the first time in a new world!
After making sure she was okay, they brought her back to my wife, her new proud and exhausted mom! We had almost forgot about Nikki for a minute there, but I apologized for being distracted, I just wanted our baby to be okay.
Then Nikki held little Josephine for the first time!
That's right, we decided to name her Josephine, or Josie for a nickname. It's one of those old fashioned sounding names that's coming back into style. She was 7 lbs. 3 oz. and 19.3 inches long!
So now that my beautiful baby is officially out of my baby, blogging about our pregnancy has come to a close. I enjoyed writing about this and I hope you have enjoyed reading about my experience. I will continue to post on this blog about my journey into fatherhood raising Josie and at my New Blog:
The Good Father - learning to be a good dad, from conception to graduation
Thank you for reading from me (Justin), my wife who is my baby (Nikki), and from my baby now out of my baby, Josie! (right before we left the hospital, pretty in pink in her car seat)
The Day of our Birth - April 2, 2012
3:00AM I came out of a very deep sleep to the sound of my wife talking and the lamp turned on. I could not understand what she was saying at first as it took me a few seconds to wake up. I saw her frantic look which awakened me faster. She said "Honey, I don't mean to alarm you, but I'm having strong contractions frequently which I am unable to sleep through."
I asked her how painful they are. She said painful enough so she couldn't sleep through them. She also said after timing them for over an hour they were approximately 4 minutes apart and lasted 45 seconds to a minute. We both knew about the 4-1-1 Rule which means when the contractions are at least 4 minutes apart lasting at least 1 minute for at least 1 hour you should go to the hospital.
I started to get goosebumps and felt slightly sick to my stomach with anticipation. We then called the nurse line to get some advice. As expected, they did not advise us to hurry to the hospital just yet. They suggested her to take a warm shower and call back in an hour see if that affected the contractions.
4:00AM Called the nurse line back and she reported that the shower didn't slow the contractions, actually they had increased in the intensity and were lasting a little longer now, about 1 minute. She said okay a couple more times quickly and hung up. Then she looked at me with a excited/worried look. "We're going to the hospital! Quick, finish packing our hospital bag"
After grabbing her robe and a few last minute items, we were off! She was having contractions while driving to the hospital, but it wasn't like the movies. No water had broken yet, I wasn't speeding, and she wasn't screaming in pain. We were calm, turned on some classical music and drove the speed limit. I was a little fast around corners which prompted her to tell me to slow down so she could stay comfortable.
5:00AM Arrived at the hospital. We parked in and headed up to labor and delivery. After checking in the front desk, we were seated in a triage bed. The nurse on staff came and hooked Nikki up to monitors. The also checked her cervix. She was 2 centimeters dilated. Nothing to be alarmed about since most women labor at home until they get to 4.
Nikki was upset and was thinking that she might get sent home. She was uncomfortable and didn't like the prospect of leaving the hospital. She wanted to have the baby now! So, the nurse suggested that we walk around the hospital for about an hour to see if that helped her progress.
6:25AM It seemed like forever, we made several laps on the first and second floor and Nikki's feet were really starting to get swollen and hurting her. Surprisingly, the contractions dulled and she couldn't feel them as much while walking. After 45 minutes of walking we sat down to rest by the doors of labor and delivery. Then the on-call midwife showed up. She was very nice and explained that we might not be progressing fast enough to stay at the hospital.
This made Nikki more upset and she wanted to have the baby. The midwife sympathized and said why don't we check your cervix again to and go from there. We agreed and headed back into the triage room. The contractions were intensifying now and she was in more pain. I was holding her hand now. We both waited impatiently as we watched the baby's heart rate and the contractions go up and down on the monitor.
8:00AM After about another 30 minutes I was just about to get someone and the midwife and nurse came in. They asked her how the contractions were and she said more painful and just as frequent. They checked the cervix again to find out she was 4 centimeters! She also had some bloody show which was a sign that labor was starting. A sigh of relief came over both of us and they transferred us to our labor room!
8:40AM Now the real pain started! If you read our birth plan, you know that Nikki did not want an epidural. I showed the nurse and the midwife our birth plan I had saved on my cell phone. She wanted to try a water birth if possible and no pain medication if possible. We quickly learned this was a tall order to live up to! Her contractions were increasing in intensity and duration. The pain now was centered on the sides of her hips more than anywhere else.
She described the pain from the contractions as sharp stabbing on the sides of her hips and she asked me to start rubbing there on each side as she was having the contraction. It alleviated the pain somewhat and I was happy to help in anyway I could even if I couldn't help much.
10:15AM They checked her cervix again, she was at 6 centimeters! The contractions were getting more painful now and I had to rub her hips harder each time. My hands were starting to hurt, but I didn't care, it was nothing compared to her pain and it seemed to help somewhat. I did have to keep readjusting where I rubbed because her pain seemed to change locations slightly each contraction but still along the sides of her hips and lower back.
We tried several positions to help the labor along. First she tried hands and knees, which seemed to help for awhile but then it became too painful again. Each contraction I rubbed vigorously until the pain subsided. She then told the midwife that she wanted to get in the bathtub. We knew that laboring in the water can be easier for women and it relieve some of the pain from the contractions.
She sat in the tub cross-legged facing the tiled wall and I continued my rubbing during contractions. She said it did help significantly and I could even gently pour warm water over her between contractions which was soothing she said.
I learned many of these comfort measures from our lamaze class at Baby Love Childbirth Education Classes in Eagan, MN. They taught me to basically be at her beckon call through labor and to do anything she asked. It seemed to help and it was the least I could do for my beautiful wife.
11:30AM after over an hour in the tub, the water was losing its effectiveness in relieving the pain. She was starting to cry and I cried with her. It was so hard seeing her in pain with her teardrops hitting the bathtub water each time a contraction came. It seemed unbearable pain at that point. After a particularly painful contraction, she looked at me and said "I want an epidural!" I said okay dear and kept helping her through the pain while we waited for the midwife to come back. We mentioned it to the midwife and she suggested we check the cervix again to see where she was at and then if we wanted we could start the process of getting the epidural.
11:45AM She laid back down on the bed and the contractions got worse still. The midwife asked her where her pain was on a scale of 1-10 and she said a 9. They suggested some mild narcotic pain medication also called opiods. They would help with the pain but be relatively harmless to mother and baby and would feel like you had a couple glasses of wine. After injecting the medication by IV she felt some relief right away. It didn't help much with the pain of contractions, just helped her rest in between.
She was in a lot of pain now and uncomfortable on the bed. They then suggested the exercise ball. She sat on the ball with her head and arms resting on the bed. They suggested I sit behind her to support her since she now as a bit uncoordinated from the medication. They suggested she do a hula hoop motion with her hips during the contraction as I rubbed still in about the same spot. They also suggested that she say some phrases to help her breathing. She said "Owie Owie Owie" over and over during the contraction that seemed to help. The nurse then said "You're going to hula that girl out of there!" We both laughed briefly and Nikki even cracked a smile for a second which the nurse and the midwife were delighted to see.
12:15PM Nikki carefully climbed back on the bed and they checked her cervix again. She was at a 9! The midwife was astonished how fast she was progressing and just then her mom showed up. She jumped right in comforting her on one side with me on the other while the nurse and midwife monitored. Between contractions I spent my time getting fresh cool washcloths for her forehead, eating a brief meal for energy, and I quickly called my mom to let her know it was time for her to come to the hospital.
12:45PM The pain was off the charts now. Nikki was screaming and crying at times like I had never seen her do before. She seemed barely conscious, almost in a trance like state of pain and anguish! I couldn't contain myself as I sobbed over her. My teardrops fell on her back as I continually massaged her hips. The muscles in my arms were burning now from the pain of rubbing for nearly 6 hours but still I kept going. I know she needed me to continue and it was the least I could do.
We then changed positions again. This time draping her body over the front of the bed with it elevated. This position helped as she didn't have to hold her body up anymore on her hands and knees. It seemed never ending!
1:00PM Between another whopper of a contraction, the midwife asked if Nikki wanted her to break her bag of water. The midwife warned if she did this it would speed things up drastically and the pain would get even more intense. Without hesitation, she said loudly "Let's do this!" My mother-in-law and I couldn't help but laugh a bit because she was so confident in her answer. She was determined to have this baby now!
1:05PM Just after they broke her water, my Mom came in the room in between contractions. I briefly hugged and kissed her when another one started. Now they encouraged Nikki to push. She was completely exhausted so the only position left now was on her back. Now her mom and mine stood back and watched. The nurse took one leg and I took the other. We held them as to have counter pressure for her to push against. Nikki was pushing so hard that the midwife told her to stop, she needed to take more breaths between pushes.
1:10PM Things were happening so fast now thinking back it was like a blur of motion. The bag of water was leaking out and during one of the pushes the midwife saw the crowing of the head. Meconium," the midwife said and suggested that the nurse call the nic unit to stand by to suction the baby off after birth due to thick meconium (the baby's first stool) in the amniotic fluid. Just then I looked down and saw it too. Anxiety flushed over me in a wave. I asked the nurse is the baby okay? She said yes as the baby was still being monitored and the vital signs looked good. Still, I couldn't imagine how the baby could breathe with how think the Meconium looked!
1:20PM The pushing was extremely intense now. The pain was off the charts, we were all encouraging her to push as much as she could. The baby's head was coming out a couple of centimeters. Whew, another contraction done. I noticed that the baby's head would sink back in a couple centimeters between contractions. Almost like 2 steps forward, 1 step back. I thought, how much longer can we go? Then another contraction was starting. This was the most intense one yet. Nikki seemed to push forever with all she had. I was absolutely in awe as I watched what happened next...
The head came out 3 centimeters, then 4, 5, 6, 7, and then enough for the midwife to grasp the head on both sides. She came out face down or in the anterior position which we learned in our class is the preferred method.
It was jaw dropping amazing! I don't understand why I used to and many men still say they wouldn't want to watch it. It was truly the miracle of life right before my eyes. Sure, she was messy and bloody and covered with meconium, but you overlook the gross stuff. Her little chubby body was pulled out in one fluid motion by the midwife. She flopped onto the bed head first quickly the midwife turned her and made sure she was breathing.
1:26PM A nurse called the time of birth and she was born!!! Then the nurse quickly cut the umbilical cord and whisked the baby over to a nearby auxiliary table where she was promptly suctioned off to get all the meconium off of her and to inspect her.
We were all silent. We just walked over to inspect the baby ourselves and she was still purple, and was silent. They gave her a little oxygen but then took it off as she was breathing on her own. They said she luckily hadn't aspirated any meconium. She opened her eyes and was looking around for the first time in a new world!After making sure she was okay, they brought her back to my wife, her new proud and exhausted mom! We had almost forgot about Nikki for a minute there, but I apologized for being distracted, I just wanted our baby to be okay.
Then Nikki held little Josephine for the first time!
That's right, we decided to name her Josephine, or Josie for a nickname. It's one of those old fashioned sounding names that's coming back into style. She was 7 lbs. 3 oz. and 19.3 inches long!
So now that my beautiful baby is officially out of my baby, blogging about our pregnancy has come to a close. I enjoyed writing about this and I hope you have enjoyed reading about my experience. I will continue to post on this blog about my journey into fatherhood raising Josie and at my New Blog:
The Good Father - learning to be a good dad, from conception to graduation
Thank you for reading from me (Justin), my wife who is my baby (Nikki), and from my baby now out of my baby, Josie! (right before we left the hospital, pretty in pink in her car seat)
Projects!
To contact us Click HERE
The past week has been a great "finishing week." I have been working on several projects. Most of these I started working on weeks or months ago. This week I happened to finish a lot of these projects that I've been picking away at. Finishing is such an exciting part of a project, so I am happy to post some pictures of what I've been working on. :)
For baby Shurtz's room, we are doing a road trip theme. We are using brown, red and grey as our color scheme. I found this cool picture online and was inspired!
I have colected liscense plates for a while and wanted something fun to do with them. This was a perfect project. I didn't have a whole bunch of the same liscense plate and this particlar yellow truck used at least 5 of the same liscense plates. Of course, I altered what I wanted to do with it and used our color scheme. This is the result!
Project #2 Baby Carrier Cover
These are all over the place and a super good idea....just in case some stranger wants to come and touch the baby and get germies all over the place. Plus they are super cute. I was sitting in church one day and a couple in front of us had one of these sitting on their baby carrier. For the whole hour of sacrament meeting I sat there looking at it from a distance and drawing up a pattern of how I could make one myself. It was super fun and easy. Here is the finished product!
TA-DAH!!!
All I did was get some cute flannel material (on sale even!!!), sewed together a rectangle/square lookin thing, added straps, velcro and buttons.
I have more to post, but it is bed time! So...I'll just have to add more later :)
For baby Shurtz's room, we are doing a road trip theme. We are using brown, red and grey as our color scheme. I found this cool picture online and was inspired!
I have colected liscense plates for a while and wanted something fun to do with them. This was a perfect project. I didn't have a whole bunch of the same liscense plate and this particlar yellow truck used at least 5 of the same liscense plates. Of course, I altered what I wanted to do with it and used our color scheme. This is the result!
Project #2 Baby Carrier Cover
These are all over the place and a super good idea....just in case some stranger wants to come and touch the baby and get germies all over the place. Plus they are super cute. I was sitting in church one day and a couple in front of us had one of these sitting on their baby carrier. For the whole hour of sacrament meeting I sat there looking at it from a distance and drawing up a pattern of how I could make one myself. It was super fun and easy. Here is the finished product!
TA-DAH!!!All I did was get some cute flannel material (on sale even!!!), sewed together a rectangle/square lookin thing, added straps, velcro and buttons.
I have more to post, but it is bed time! So...I'll just have to add more later :)
Projects...continuted.
To contact us Click HERE
Here is my process for the Car Seat/Carrier Cover
1) I bought flannel (one cute fabric and one more plain color that matched). I bought a yard and a half of each (if I remember correctly). Then I measured out about what size I wanted for the carrier. (It ended up being pretty much exactly a yard and a half...just more squared off and with the outside pieces cut off), and I sewed the two pieces together. (kinda like just making a basic blanket).
2) Then I added these cool tabs/handles (I just sewed a square in the middle with an "x" across it. It's kinda hard to see...)
3) Put velcxro on the two sides...
4) and added these adorable huge buttons!
It took me a little while to figure out/map things out in my mind. But once I did, this was an easy project that probably took me way longer than necessary. haha.
Here is what the cover looks like when it is flipped up.
p.s. isn't the bird material just super cute!?
1) I bought flannel (one cute fabric and one more plain color that matched). I bought a yard and a half of each (if I remember correctly). Then I measured out about what size I wanted for the carrier. (It ended up being pretty much exactly a yard and a half...just more squared off and with the outside pieces cut off), and I sewed the two pieces together. (kinda like just making a basic blanket).
2) Then I added these cool tabs/handles (I just sewed a square in the middle with an "x" across it. It's kinda hard to see...)
3) Put velcxro on the two sides...
4) and added these adorable huge buttons!
It took me a little while to figure out/map things out in my mind. But once I did, this was an easy project that probably took me way longer than necessary. haha.
Here is what the cover looks like when it is flipped up.
p.s. isn't the bird material just super cute!?
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