Proud Moments in Parenting, continued

And what miracle did today bring? I'll tell you: dried blood in baby's projectile vomit, found only hours later when attempting to re-wrap him in the same filthy swaddling blanket.

Thankfully, the blood appears to be coming from his nose--which has taken a pummelling due to the vomit projecting from all available means of egress--and not his gullet.

Proud Moments in Parenting

Yesterday, I managed not to leak bodily fluids onto any piece of upholstered furniture.

What miracle, I wonder, will today bring?

Now with 100% more baby

False alarm after irritating false alarm left me highly skeptical when some mild contractions started up just before midnight on Wednesday. Ignore them, I said to myself. Nothing to get excited about. I tried to go back to sleep but they were just uncomfortable enough to keep me grudgingly awake.

At 1 a.m., one came on that was actually painful. In a fit of optimism, I woke up Jeff and told him it was probably nothing and to go back to sleep, but maybe, just maybe, this was the start of labor. He popped up and started packing toothbrushes while I sat and hoped for more pain. About an hour and a half later, contractions got going in earnest and I got my wish: painpainpainpainpain. Called the doctor, woke up Jeff's parents (who have been staying with us, patiently awaiting the big day, for almost a month), kissed the kids goodbye in their sleep and headed for the hospital.

During the twenty-minute car ride, contractions went from 8 minutes to 3 minutes apart, and from yeeowch to motherofgodmakeitstop. Got triaged (which took a ridiculously long time given the circumstances--why do they make women in obvious labor--not to mention agony--go through this process?), got to the L&D room and waited with growing impatience as a novice nurse tried to get an IV started. A blown valve, a call for assistance and another six or eight miserable contractions later, a new nurse managed to hit a vein. (At this point, I was enjoying "camelback" contractions, if I remember the nurse's description correctly: sets of two, no break between, followed by a brief downtime and then another set of two. This seemed somehow unfair.)

Finally, an order for drugs was placed, and within a few contractions, the fentanyl was taking much of the edge off. The anesthesiologist was called, and when he arrived the only hitch was timing the epidural placement between the contractions, which were coming so fast and furious that he finally opted to start as one was tailing off and continue come hell or high water. Fortunately, he was quite expert and I received a most outstanding epidural: within two contractions, nearly all pain was gone, but I could feel pressure just fine and could even have walked if necessary.

The nurse told me to get some rest and left the room for a moment, at which point my water broke with a rather spectacular popping sound. She returned a moment later, checked and, somewhat to her surprise, found me complete. (For the record, I was not surprised, as I had been telling her for some time that I felt like this was going really fast.) OB was paged--coincidentally enough, my very own OB happened to be the one on call. One minor episiotomy and four pushes later, our little boy was born.

Dominic Noel
11/3/11
6:36 a.m.
8 lbs 3 oz
21 inches

Maybe he'll just fall out in my sleep

So it's been three weeks of, "Any day now!" Friday's appointment included the offer of a membrane sweep (gratefully accepted) and the news that I was three centimeters dilated, almost fully effaced and still at zero station. OB predicted labor within 48 hours. Later that afternoon, massive downward pressure, significant contractions, bloody show and my premature assumption that he was really and truly on his way. Needless to say, that assumption was false.

The contractions continue on and off around the clock, but are most noticeable in the middle of the night. They are mildly painful--a breathe-through-it kind of pain, not a grit-your-teeth-and-groan pain--and so very regular during certain stretches. (Last night, every seven minutes on the dot for two hours. I subsequently had a dream in which I was giving birth while asleep and couldn't rouse myself to get Jeff up to cut the cord.)

Today, I threw caution and rest to the wind, gathered up an under-the-weather Josh and ran errands for three hours. I hoisted heavy items--flats of water, a jumbo-sized Costco bag full of groceries, and Joshua himself--much to Jeff's concern. Felt good not to act like an invalid.

More of nothing in particular

Still twiddling thumbs, making vain attempts to sleep and wishing each and every moment that this little boy would come on out. I've been 70% effaced, zero station for a week and a half. 1 cm dilated as of last check. Contractions coming very infrequently, for the most part, with a couple of nice regular sets that served only to get my hopes up.

So, that's the unexciting story for now. Hoping my next update will include some actual progress.