Emma's first picture, just 15 minutes after she was born.
Emma had a bit of a difficult time getting here, and Nichole had an even more difficult time getting her here: After Nichole finally reached full dilation (which took almost all day), she pushed (and I coached) hard for more than two hours. During all this time, however, Emma really made no progress at all in moving downward. It was as though she was stuck in one place, which was frustrating and exhausting.
By about 6:30, Doctor O. was suggesting that we consider a C-section. Neither Nichole nor I wanted a C-section because of the risks involved as well as the recovery time, but it was really our only option at this point. They prepped Nichole, and I put on a paper suit, hat and face mask, and they began the procedure shortly after 7pm. Nichole was shaking violently from the flood of hormones, drugs, and anxiety, which was making her feel very cold, so they wrapped her upper body in a pretty high-tech warming system while they performed the surgery. I was allowed to sit next to her, touch her face, and basically describe what I could see happening... Which wasn't much until the baby was about to be born.
When it was time, the nurse told me I could stand up, and I watched as they pulled Emma out of the womb. It was an amazing sight, and as I told Nichole about it we both started crying. They placed Emma in a warming tray and I got to go to her while they cleaned her off and suctioned her mouth and nose. Then they wrapped her up and I brought her back to the top of the operating table so Nichole could see her for the first time. They finished the procedure and closed Nichole's incision, and we went back to a birthing room for recovery. I was very concerned about the abdominal surgery and the pain afterwards, but the doctors have done a fantastic job and the procedure was relatively quick.
Nichole was able to nurse Emma almost immediately, and since then she's fed several times and always falls asleep afterwards. Nichole is very wobbly and unsteady from the surgery, and they will keep us here for several days until we can all go home. As the epidural wears off, she's bound to have quite a bit of pain, so I plan to stay close to help with as much as I can so she can concentrate on resting and recovering. One of the great things about this hospital is that I'm allowed to stay if I choose, and so the three of us have spent a full night and most of the morning together, and I'll stay with them until we go home as a family, which will probably be sometime this coming weekend.
Emma without her hat. Tons of soft, curly hair!
Emma is beautiful... She has a face like a little cherub, and she has a lot of very soft, somewhat curly black hair. She almost seems to recognize our voices, because the few times she has fussed, we've noticed that she calms down when she hears one of us talking... Unless she's hungry, of course. She is adorable. I hope to be able to post some photos today or tomorrow. We're very happy, and our new little girl is so sweet.
Visitors last night who got to be the first to see Emma include her Grandma M., Grandpa M., Grandma S., Uncle Aaron, and Sue and Jimmy R. We expect even more visitors today. One last note -- Emma was born, nearly to the minute, on the three-year anniversary of the day that Nichole and I first met, which was September 9, 2001!!!
Emma and Mommy on September 9th
No comments:
Post a Comment