Finally..she's here!

Has it already been four weeks? I can't believe I had gone that long without posting. Well, I actually can..but I didn't realize it had been almost a month!

I am no longer pregnant!! YEAH! I can't even begin to describe how much better I feel. Here is the whole account of how Lyla Avery Brown came into this world.

So I think the real reason I didn't post anything was because the last month of my pregnancy I developed a little thing called gestational hypertension. In other words..really high blood pressure. This along with pitting edema ( lovely..you saw those huge feet!) ultimately put me on bed rest. I was told to lay around all day with my feet up higher than my heart and just hang out. Well, Ashleigh wasn't a very good listener (I really tried..I swear!) and at my last doctors appointment on Friday June 27th I had gained 7 lbs..all of it water and my blood pressure was..dun dun da da...158/102. How do like them apples? The doctor didn't at all and he told me that he thought I should be induced right then an there or I was going to have a stroke.

I had heard so many horror stories of that wonderful drug called pitocin that I almost cried. The Man and I talked it out and decided that it was probably better to not take the chance that I might die over the weekend..so we headed over to the hospital. We had Little Girl with us and she was so happy to be there. The nurses were in love with her and she really wanted to stay with me, but that was not an option, so after I had gotten into my lovely gown and was all hooked up to my IV, The man took her to get The Boy and take them to our friends house for the night. This was at about 2:30 in the afternoon. So I was all alone in the hospital, waiting patiently for my horrible contractions to set in. It was actually really nice..all quiet and alone. I got to watch whatever I wanted on tv! The man kept calling to make sure I hadn't started without him. ( I am kind of a rocket..once I start... it goes fast!) The doctor came in and broke my water at around 3:15 or so and contractions started around 4:00. I was still by myself. My nurse was so great though, very friendly and explained everything. She made me feel a lot less scared about being induced ( never had been before) and asked me very kindly if I could have the baby before seven. She was going home then and wanted to end her three day shift with on a happy note! ;-) I told her I would try really hard. hee hee hee.
The Man got back around 4:45 and was there to talk to me and take my mind off of the pain. It wasn't as bad as I thought and around 5:30 or so my contractions were one on top of another and were hurting pretty bad, so they turned off the pitocin and let my body take over. I asked for a little something to take the edge off of the pain and it made me loopy and giddy. It was great. The Man kept telling everyone how fast my labors were, but no one really believed him. I was ready to push around 6:30 and she was here at 6:39. ( if anyone is keeping track..I kept my promise to my nurse! ) ;-)I think I pushed three times..or so The Man says..I wasn't really paying attention. I was just wanting it over. It hurts!!

When they handed her to me I was still a little loopy, I was cognitive..but really tired. I remember thinking she was so beautiful..but so quiet. She wasn't crying. She wasn't doing anything. I feel like I said " she isn't crying..is she ok?" about a hundred times before they took her over and stared manually breathing for her with a mask. The Man said they gave her chest compressions too. I couldn't see because I was stuck in the bed and so many people were all around her. I remember being scared and praying that she would be alright..I don't think I could have handled it it if she had died. The Man and I made eye contact at one point and he smiled at me, I could hear her finally crying underneath that stupid breathing mask. I was sooo relieved!
They had decided that she had gotten some of the drugs that I had taken into her system and it made her really lethargic.( um..talk about mom guilt!) They had to give her another drug to counteract the first one and it was all one big mess. I got to hold her for about five minutes and they took her to the NICU.

I had earlier tested positive for group B strep, so with that on top of everything else, she had to stay in the hospital under observation for 48 hours to make sure everything was ok and there was no infection. I was there from 2:00 Friday afternoon, until Monday morning around 11:00. I was absolutely crazy by the end. But she is doing great now and is so beautiful. The kids absolutely love her and my mommy is here now taking care of me. Life is wonderful and I am amazed everyday at how much I have been blessed. I am also sooooo happy to be done being pregnant and my feet have shrunk considerably! ;-)

Here are some pics of Lyla Avery Brown for your viewing enjoyment!

Born June 27th 2008
6:39 PM
7lbs 7oz
19.5 inches