Updates!

Well, it's about time! I've finally gotten a chance to blog about my sweet baby girl, Hadley! The last 6 weeks have been a whirlwind, and I have loved every minute of it.

Hadley was born April 2, 2009 weighing 7pounds and 20.5 inches long. Here is our birth story...
Wednesday night, April 1, Jeremy and I had dinner at Sinclairs. It was WONDERFUL!! I had a grilled chicken salad...my favorite. :) After dinner, we made our way to Jackson Hospital. We were supposed to be there at 7:00, but we arrived a few minutes early. Once we got there we had to wait...and wait...and wait...until finally our room was ready. Apparently they were cleaning it. We didn't get in the room until after 9:00 & I was getting antsy...I really wanted to settle in (Watch LOST...it came on at 8:00, so we missed it). I guess I was just so anxious about everything I just wanted to lay down & relax. Finally after waiting for over 2 hours, we were in our room. My friend, Sheena, is a nurse at Jackson & was a HUGE lifesaver throughout this entire experience. She got me the best rooms & more importantly...the best nurses on staff. THANK YOU Sheena!!! After we signed all the necessary paperwork, etc....I finally was able to get ready for bed. :) They gave me an ambien to help me sleep, but it didn't work one bit. My mind was racing & so curious about what the next day would hold.


April 2...4am. They started my petocin. My poor mom came to the hospital at 4am too, because she heard that once they start this drip that contractions can come on very fast & very strong. I did ok. Honestly, I slept for another couple of hours. At around 7am, I started feeling the contractions & I was getting very uncomfortable. Dr. Kouri came in to break my water. This was so painful!! Thank goodness Jeremy was there to hold my hand. I thought I was going to die. At around 8:30 I was able to get my epidural. This experience scared me because I've heard if you move you can have some major reprocusions. It did not hurt...I was just nervous about the experience. After the epidural...I was great. I felt like from my chest down I was like a dead person....it was the weirdest feeling ever. It's like when your mouth is numb when you go to the dentist only 100 times worse, but I was happy not to feel the contractions any longer. :) 12:00 came and Dr. Kouri came to see me again, and he checked me again. It was at this point that he realized that I was not progressing in labor. The monitor showed very, very strong contractions, but they just weren't doing anything to progress the labor. He said that he would come back at 3:00, and if nothing had changed then we would need to sit down & discuss what our options would be. I was scared to death. The last thing that I ever wanted was to go through labor AND then also have a c-section. Well, 3:00 rolled around & I hadn't progressed or changed at all. It was at this point that we made the decision to have a c-section. I was worried about Hadley. Her heartrate had been all over the place & at one point was so low that it scared everyone to death. I didn't want to continue making Hadley go through this labor...I had an epidural & couldn't feel anything, but she was having to withstand all of those contactions that were not doing any good. I was scared to death about the c-section. And honestly, I was angry that I was being robbed of the delivery that I wanted. At 4:30, they came to get me and prep me for surgery. They rolled me down to surgery, and the anestesiologist was WONDERFUL. I truly believe she was a God-send. She did everything to keep my mind off of what was about to happen. After I was preped & ready to go, they finally let Jeremy come down. I was so relieved to see him. The surgery didn't take long at all, but while I was lying there it felt like an eternity!! I just kept waiting to hear my little baby cry. Jeremy was my rock through the whole thing. He even video taped the surgery & stood up to watch it!!! At 5:09, my precious baby girl was born!!! I cried & cried...I didn't realize that I wouldn't get to hold her yet...Jeremy brought her to me & let me kiss her & then they were gone. After they left, the doctors finished up the surgery...I guess stitching me up & things. I remember them having a conversation about American Idol and they were asking me who I liked the best. I was so glad to have my mind off of what was going on! When everything was complete, I was rolled into the recovery room...this also felt like an ETERNITY. All I could think about was my baby girl. How was she? Did she have all of her fingers & toes?? How much did she weigh? How long was she?? I wanted to look at her again & check her out...and more importantly, I wanted to HOLD my precious baby girl. I know I was driving those poor nurses down there nuts because I kept asking them when they would take me back up to see Hadley. Now...keep in mind...at this point I was totally druged...no telling what else I said to them...this part gets very blury. FINALLY...they took me up the elevator to meet my sweet Hadley girl. :) I remember there were a lot of people there & all that is a little foggy. But, I remember finally getting to hold my precious angel. She was so sweet. I remember thinking...she's so tiny. I praise God for protecting both of us through this entire situation. Anything could have happened. The next few days in the hospital were rough & I had a few complications that I won't go into here on the blog. But, what I will say, is that I am so very grateful for such a wonderful & amazing husband!! Jeremy was there for me every step of the way...I know he must really love me after everything that he saw in the hospital. It was rough....however, it was all worth it for the prize at the end...our precious daughter. :) Jeremy, THANK YOU for everything!!!! I love you more than anything & you truly are my best friend...my help-mate. :)

Hadley is doing wonderful! :) At our last doctor's appointment she already weighed 9.6pounds!! She gained over 3 pounds since we left the hospital! :) She loves to eat...just like her mama. :) I love every minute I get to spend with her, and I'm so grateful to God for such an amazing gift. :)