Delivery Story

Sorry I'm just now posting my delivery story... I would have done it much sooner, but this last week and 2 days have been HECTIC!!!! We have had tons of Dr. appointments, but I will share that in another post. So on with my delivery story...

Our first child, Caycen Edward Darley, was born into the world on June 15, 2011 @ 5:25 pm.  He weighed in at 7 lbs 14 oz and was 19 inches long... what a big boy!!!

Well we found out at our appointment on Tuesday, June 14th that I would be induced the next day.  I had to be at the hospital at 4:00 am on Wednesday, June 15th to check into my hospital room. 

Getting ready to have a baby!
wooh, I was swollen!!!

I was already 3cm dilated when starting the day.  Around 5:00 am they started the pitocin to get my contractions and labor on the go.  I started having contractions, but I barely even felt them.  My contractions were about 4 to 5 minutes apart. So I just sat and relaxed for a while...

Around 8:30 am my doctor came and broke my water.  Since I was already about 4 cms at that point, they told me that I could get an epidural whenever I felt like I needed it.  Shortly after having my water broken I was so ready for that epidural.  Unfortunately for me, I waited a little too long and the anesthesiologist had just gone into an emergency c-section.  I had to wait about an hour before he could come fix me up.  During that hour the contractions were HORRIBLE!!!! Caycen was also turned backwards so his head kept hitting my tailbone causing me to have INTENSE back pain.  Because of this, I had to lay in several different positions to get him to do a 180 and have his head facing the right direction.  I don't think I will EVER forget how bad those contractions hurt.

having bad contractions... Chance was trying to make me laugh between.

Caycen's heart beat on top, contractions on the bottom

Finally, that WONDERFUL anesthesiologist came in to give me my epidural.  He was just awesome!!! He had the epidural done in 6 minutes! I started feeling great after that.  I just rested until I started to feel the urge to push.  I told my nurse when I started feeling like I had to push and she checked me and I was at 9 cm, so she told me to wait to push a little while longer.  Man the pressure was bad by that point! I wouldn't say it was painful like the contractions, it was a different kind of hurt. 

Finally, I was 10 cms and ready to do some "practice" pushes before my doctor got there.  When my doctor got there, she was great! Sooo encouraging!  Chance held one leg and my mom held the other.  Then my mother-in-law was also in the room.  Pushing was TOUGH! It felt like you really really have to take a shoo shoo (poop), but you are so backed up you can't get anything out. 

Grandma (my mom on left) and Nona (Chance's mom on right)

I pushed for about 55 minutes, and out popped Caycen Edward Darley!!! I did have to have an episiotomy, then I ripped on top of that, so recovery was a little painful. 

We stayed in the hospital until Friday afternoon around 3:00 pm.  It was so nice to go home...

Birthing a baby is by far the HARDEST thing I've ever done, but it was SOOOOOO worth it!!!!

Our family of 2 is now a family of 3

Here are some of Caycen's visitors at the hospital:

Papa Ray and Nona

Grandma

Martha, Melissa, Lee, and Ben

Skyler

Aunt Christy

Skyler and Capri

Martha AKA Aunt Ma



Kyle and Amy



Ben AKA Uncle Ben

Lindsey

Brooke AKA Aunt Sissy

Going Home from the hospital:

Our sweet friends Lee and Melissa made sure we were welcomed home... they are so sweet!!!



God has been so great to me and my family.  I thank you him everyday for blessing us with so much.  I pray that everyone gets to feel the joy of having such a special little blessing put in their lives. I know I told you all when I first got pregnant that it wasn't planned, but God knew exactly what he was doing! I couldn't imagine not having Caycen in our lives.

I hope you enjoyed reading my delivery story. God Bless!!!

Love ~ Aimes

Pregnancy Update - Packed and Ready

So I decided to do my final update on the third trimester before I deliver.  I have been debating on when to do this post because every day I feel like I could go into labor that day... well I haven't gone into full fledged labor yet, so I figured I might as well go ahead and post while I feel up to it. 

Right now we are playing the waiting game... I am 38 weeks and 5 days today.  Who would've thought that I'd make it this far after going into preterm labor at 33 weeks?? Well my due date is on the 20th, but we have our next doctor's appointment on Tuesday.  I will be 39 weeks at that point and my doctor says that we can induce on either Wednesday or Thursday (hoping for Wednesday), if he's not here by then (hoping even more that he will come before my doctor's appointment).  I know a lot of you are going to say "no Amy, don't induce, it's horrible, you have long labor, you want to wait for him to come by himself, you will probably have to get  c-section if you induce, dot dot dot"... Well, I hate to say this, but it's my decision and I've already made up my mind... I have read so many negative things about getting induced, but I've heard lots of positives also.  If you've been pregnant before you may understand how I'm feeling right now... I am SOOO ready.  At my last appointment I was almost 3 cm dilated already so my doctor told me that if I were to be induced it should WORK pretty quickly since my body has already dilated to 3 by itself.  Who knows, I may be even more dilated by the time I go in to be induced.  I know a lot of people keep telling me "you say you're ready now, but you'll be wishing he were still in you when he comes"... Hopefully I'm not wrong but, I'm pretty sure that I would rather be tired and not getting any sleep from having a newborn, than tired and not getting any sleep because I'm in pain... but that's just me thinking here, I could be wrong.

Ok more of the update:
How I feel:
Well most of the third trimester I have been on bedrest, but felt pretty good! They say that the third trimester is usually as bad as the first, but it hasn't been too bad for me... other than preterm labor, everything else seemed to go pretty smooth.  That is, until the last couple of weeks... ugh! I am miserable!  I try not to complain TOO much, but I know Chance gets his earful of it.  The main thing is that my back has been KILLING me!  It hurts no matter what I do; stand, sit, lay down... it just plain hurts! Doctors say it's mostly because your hip bones are opening up to get ready for delivery.  Well, last Tuesday night my back hurt so bad that I was up every 30 minutes during the night walking around the room in the dark trying to get the pain to go away!  I was also getting really bad cramps in my stomach, which I would have thought were contractions, but they were lasting for like 5 to 10 minutes at a time (contractions are supposed to only be about a minute during active labor), then they would go away for about an hour and come back... I was MISERABLE! And poor Chance didn't get any sleep that night either because I was moaning and groaning, walking around, getting in and out of bed... I felt so bad for him!  The next day I went for a LONG walk and the pain eased up some, then started to come back, but it never got back to the pain I felt during the night.  I called my doctor just in case and they told me to come in.  My GREAT friend Martha came and picked me up and went to my appointment with me.  They hooked me up to the stress monitors to see if I was having contractions, and I was, but they weren't very strong contractions.  They had me hooked up for about 20 minutes and I had about 4 or 5 small contractions during that time (which I couldn't even feel).  They said the back pain was most likely labor pains.  They checked me and I hadn't dilated any more so they said I was good to go home.  Pregnancy is so confusing!

At this point in my pregnancy I am having continuous back pain; it hurts my stomach to bend down and tie my shoes or even try to put socks and shoes on; my hands, ankles, feet, legs, and pretty much everything gets swollen about 50 times a day; I get cramps in my lower abdomen (that apparently aren't contractions); I get shooting pains in my wahoo because the baby's head is so low and hitting my pelvis and nerves down there; and I feel like an emotional wreck (although I have kept my tears in and I've only cried maybe once during this trimester and it was just a little pout I promise!)!!!

Not trying to scare anyone who is pregnant or anything... but gosh this last part is uncomfortable!!!!


Body:
Well, my tummy just keeps getting bigger and bigger!!! I'm pretty sure that's the only thing that keeps changing other than the swelling. 

A few more pics:

34 1/2 weeks

36 weeks

37 weeks

I didn't take a picture for 38 weeks, but I will make sure to take one for 39 if I make it to Monday, and of course I'll take a picture on the day I go into labor (whether it's before Monday or after). 

Best moment:
hmm... this is a hard one... this may be a little weird, but hearing the doctors say they can feel his head was kind of a great moment... I knew that he was lodged head-down and ready to go at that point.  The doctors told me that because of how low he is, it is not likely that he will move out of position and become breached.  That was VERY EXCITING to hear.


Packed and Ready:

Well, I figured I would also let you guys know that we have been packed an ready pretty much since I went into preterm labor at 33 weeks... I have changed out a few things here and there or added some things that I hadn't thought of, but we have BEEN ready.

Caycen's diaper bag

I will give you the overview of what we packed for the hospital:

We made sure to pack his door hanger and a paint pen to write with (this will hang on the outside of the door at the hospital), his baby book to do his foot prints, some baby wipes, diapers, and a burp cloth.  I know that I may not use the wipes, diapers, or cloth, because they give you this stuff at the hospital, but I want it in there just in case.

CLOTHES- everyone loves baby clothes!!! Well we have an outfit for his first picture, an outfit for taking him home, and another one just because I might use it.  Of course we have some socks and a couple of little beanies (Chance's cousin actually made the green and blue one for us! Isn't she talented???).

And we have a receiving blanket and a little passy (which he might not use, but another just in case). 

 Now for what we packed:

In the big suitcase we have our clothes.  We packed Chance a couple of outfits, some comfy shorts and t-shirts to sleep in, and some underwear.  For myself there are some comfy t-shirts, tank tops, shorts, a going home outfit, nursing bras, underwear, and slippers. 





This is our toiletry bag... we packed travel sized shampoo and body wash, face wipes, nursing bra pads, nipple butter (haha), toothbrushes, toothpaste, hair ties and bobby pins, deodorant, phone charger, and anything else that may be needed to keep ourselves clean :)

We have the boppy pillow in the car already, which will be used for nursing. 

I may even bring one of my own pillows to sleep with.

And of course we have the camera packed so we can take TONS of pictures!!!!! I wonder who is going to be shooting these pics for me...  We will be bringing our camcorder also, but haven't decided if we will use it yet.

Well, I think that's about all we packed... hope I'm not forgetting anything!

I hope you enjoyed my pregnancy update and packing list... feel free to leave comments and advice! I'm hoping my next post will be my delivery story!!!

Love y'all!~Aimes 

Pregnancy Update

So, I haven't blogged in a while... I don't really know what my excuse is... I haven't done much or been too busy.  But anyway, I thought I would update everyone on the pregnancy.

I am 37 weeks as of yesterday! WOOHOO!!! I made it to full-term!  Since I have been on bed rest I have read a lot, watched some t.v., played Golden Eye (haha Chance is so proud of me), checked a lot of blogs, done a lot of laundry, and taken TONS of naps! I finished two books "Something Borrowed" and "Something Blue" by Emily Giffin.  The two books go together and they are great! I definitely like "Something Blue" a LOT better though!!  I can't wait to go see the movie with my besties!  I am now reading the third book by Emily Giffin "Baby Proof".  So far it's looking pretty good too.

Now to the pregnancy... While I was on strict bed rest, weeks 33-36, I couldn't get up except to use the bathroom or take a shower... man that stunk!!!  I didn't have anything really going on at all during those weeks.  At week 36 they took me off of the Procardia, the medicine that was keeping me from contracting.  About 2 days after getting off the medicine (Wednesday), I started feeling sharp pains, almost like a knife going through me, down in my wahoo (sorry I couldn't come up with a better word).  The doctor checked me and said that the baby is VERY low and is probably hitting my cervix which is causing the pains. Then the next day (Thursday), I started feeling the sharp pains along with cramping in my lower abdomen.  The pain and cramping only lasted about 10 seconds and wasn't very consistent, so I knew I shouldn't call the doctor.  I tried timing them and they would be 8 minutes, then 10, then 8, then 20, then an hour... I was confused, but decided to wait it out and just see if they got any more normal.  I waited out for two days.  Then on Saturday morning I started getting a constant cramping, headache, and felt very nauseous... so I called the doctor on call and he told me that was "normal"... ugh!  I was so confused though, because when I went into preterm labor I had the cramping, I went in, and they told me I was having contractions and dilated a cm!!! How can this be normal?? But whatever, I guess I will have to deal with it. I have been "dealing" with it since... My mom also called a close friend of the family who is a midwife and she says that I'm just having really strong Braxton Hicks contractions, but I heard that those don't hurt... I guess everyone is different.  Well today I have my doctor's appointment and I am anxious to hear what she has to say.

I feel like I have had a pretty easy pregnancy, except for the preterm labor and all, but this last week has been horrible! I having been sleeping well at all, I get up every hour to use the bathroom, my feet and hands keep swelling, I had proteinuria (good think my blood pressure was normal because then it could have been preeclampsia), I have had the shooting pains and cramping for almost a week, and I am READY for him to come out!!!  No doubt, this is the worst part of pregnancy for me! 

Ok something positive... I have the greatest family and friends EVER!!!!! My mom drove down on Saturday "just in case" I was going into labor, my in-laws have been feeding us almost every night this past weekend, my friends have constantly been checking on me, some of my co-workers brought us dinner one night, and even my family has been calling and emailing me to say they were thinking of me!  It's so nice to know that I have sooo many supporters! 

Now for those of you who have had babies, I need your feedback... what are your labor stories?? Were there signs before you started going into labor? How many weeks were you when you went into labor? How long were you in labor? Did your water break?  Did you have to been induced, was it natural, or a c-section?  How much did the baby weigh and how long was he/she? Did you do anything trying to make yourself go into labor and did anything work?

I can't wait to hear every one's stories!!!! You can either leave a comment here, leave a link to your blog with your story, or even leave me a comment or message on facebook!! I'm sure everyone else would love to hear your stories too! :)

Well, my appointment is at 4:00 today, so I have a long day of waiting to see what the doctor says... Will you please do me a favor and PRAY that this little man comes soon??? Thanks everyone!

love ~Aimes

Pregnancy Update

Well, the last few days have been a little tough.  It started on Sunday when I began to feel a little cramping... pretty much like period cramps, but it wasn't at all painful so I didn't think much about it.  Then Monday it got a little bit worse, but still not very painful.  I went to one of my co-workers (who has become such a great friend to me this year), since she has had two babies, and asked her if it was normal to feel like that.  She told me I should probably call the doctor just in case... so I did and they told me to come in immediately.  I had to leave school right away to make it to the doctor. 

When I got to the doctor they hooked me up to a machine to determine whether I was having contractions or not.  They told me that yes, I was having contractions and then had to check my cervix.  They said my cervix was only 12 mm long and should be about 26 mm at this point, so it was about half as long as it should be.  They perscribed some meds to make the contractions stop and to hopefully keep me from going into labor.  They also scheduled an appointment for me to come in the next day to get a steriod shot to help Caycen's lungs develop faster just in case he decides to come early.

Tuesday I went in around 2:00 and they hooked me up to the stress monitor again to see if I was still having any contractions.  The test showed that I wasn't, but I told my doctor that I was still feeling very crampy.  They checked everything and said I was looking good, then she had to check my cervix again... well I was 1 cm dilated! She immediately admitted me to the hospital so that they could hook me up to some fluids, antibiotics, and keep me under observation.  They did all this to keep me from continuing labor.  They even gave me a test that was positive for preterm labor.  While I was in the hospital they gave me my first shot of hte steriod for Caycen's lungs.  They also did a sonogram to measure our little Caycen.  He was about 4 lbs 9 oz, which is pretty good for 33 weeks! I was a little relieved to hear that!

We had to stay in the hospital all night and all day today... then around 5:00 today they gave me my 2nd shot of the steriod and checked me one more time to make sure that I hadn't dilated anymore.  I was still only 1 cm, so my Dr. released me to go home.  She told me that I will be on strict bed rest and will not be able to get up to do anything but use the bathroom and take a shower.  What fun... NOT! But I will do anything to keep Caycen in for as long as I can!!!

The dr. told us that she hopes we can make it a few more weeks before he comes... ME TOO!!! I am so ready to see my little man, but I would rather him come when he will be nice and healthy and not have to be hooked up to any machines.  I want to be able to take him home with us so we can love on him!

Thank you for all of your prayers and please continue to pray that he will at least stay in my tummy for a few more weeks.  It was so wonderful to have so many people telling us how they were thinking about us and praying for us!  God has blessed us with such wonderful friends and family!!!! We love y'all!!!!

Thankful
~Aimes

Journey of Pregnancy Third Timester

Hey guys! I figured it was about time for an update on the third trimester.

So far the third trimester has been a lot like the 2nd.  Not too much of a difference except that my belly just keeps on getting bigger.  I do feel Caycen kicking me CONSTANTLY.  He is going to be a very active boy!!

How I feel:
Well, I am almost 33 weeks, so you can say I feel big!  I am starting to get tired again, which is most likely because I'm not sleeping very well... I just can't get comfortable! I roll around constantly during the night, I get hot then cold, and it doesn't help that Sugar has to sleep right under my feet!  I have been tired during the day at work and it's really hard when you're having to stand all day and work with 2nd graders. 

I have had a lot more heartburn lately! Before I was pregnant I NEVER had heartburn... now during the third trimester, it's pretty much an every day thing. I can't wait for that to go away!

I have heard that whatever your first trimester was like is what your third is like... well I guess that doesn't apply to everyone because I haven't been sick at all... yet... I did end up getting morning sickness during the first trimester and so many people have said that I would have it in the 3rd because of that... but nope, no morning sickness.  I hope I'm not speaking too soon!

So, other than being pretty tired and the heartburn, I don't feel too different... but hey, I still have 7 weeks to go :)


Body
Well, my belly is for sure a LOT bigger this trimester!  I am loving my maternity jeans and Chance's t-shirts! haha! Poor guy, I hope I don't stretch his shirts out!  I still don't have any stretch marks on my tummy, so I'm grateful for that... hopefully it stays that way!  My feet and ankles have started swelling off and on, mainly when I get hot or stand for long periods of time.  The doctor told me to elevate my feet while I'm at work... I don't think she realizes that as a 2nd grade teacher you don't get much opportunity to sit and elevate your feet...

Here are a few pics from the 3rd trimester so far:

26 weeks

27 weeks

28 weeks

29 weeks

30 weeks

32 weeks

What I'm eating
Well, the same old thing... still don't feel like I'm having any cravings... BUT, I do feel like I get hungry and a lot more irritable if I don't eat now.  And though I'm not craving anything all the time, when someone suggests something to eat and I get my mind set on eating that, I have to have it! I'm not good at changing my mind after I have decided I want something specific.  I am drinking a lot more milk lately, mostly for the heartburn!


Best moment so far
The best moment so far in the third trimester is definitely just being able to feel Caycen and watch him move across my stomach.  During the 2nd trimester I started feeling him kick and could see it, but now it's a lot more movement and you can definitely see it a lot better.  I can actually feel body parts and everything!  I love it when Chance plays his guitar and Caycen just rolls around and kicks me like crazy.  It's sooo amazing to see my stomach move from this itty bitty baby inside of me!


Well, that's my update for now... I will be updating again probably right before Caycen comes (or maybe after if he comes earlier than expected). 

Thanks for reading!!! I love hearing your comments and advice, so leave me lots!!!!! :)

Love y'all,
Aimes

Journey of Pregnancy - 2nd Trimester

Today is the last day of my 2nd trimester! WOW that went by fast!!! Tomorrow I will be 25 weeks! The 2nd trimester is when I really started to actually feel pregnant... for many reasons.

How I Felt:
During the 2nd trimester I actually started getting some energy back.  It was great, because at school I felt tired all the time early in the pregnancy and just felt like a horrible teacher.  But, I finally got my energy back and could move around a lot more.  Unfortunately, near the ending of my 2nd trimester I started having some lower back pain.  I'm still having the pain but it's off and on.  Some days it hurts all day, some days it only hurts at night, and some days it just hurts in the afternoons.  I feel lucky though because that's all that's hurt SO FAR.

Body:
Well, my pictures will prove how much my body has changed during the 2nd trimester... which is A LOT!!! Everyone still says I don't look 25 weeks pregnant, but I feel like I do.  I think the first week I really started to pop was about week 20.  I have also started to get spider veins in my legs YUCK!!! The doctor says it's probably from standing all day (how can you teach sitting down???). 

Here are some belly pics:

14 Weeks

16 weeks

17 weeks

18 weeks

20 weeks

21 weeks

22 weeks



24 weeks

 Cravings:
Ok, maybe I'm just a boring pregnant person, but I don't feel like I've really had too many cravings.  I think the only thing I crave are things that the doctor says DON'T eat.  I've had some sushi (a few bites, don't worry!), I've still been eating subs from Subway (yes, isn't that crazy, they tell you not to eat deli meat except for Boar's Head because of the way it is stored and it could have bacteria on it - BLAH!), I have coke every now and then, and also at least a piece of chocolate a day.  ONE thing that I have really enjoyed the smell of since I've been pregnant is BEER.  That's so weird of me because I've NEVER liked beer, but recently when I smell it I really want to taste it.  I think this is the only weird thing that I have wanted since being pregnant.  Oh and good news, I ate Chick-fil-a yesterday and actually enjoyed it for the first time since I've been pregnant!!! YAY! I'm so glad that I don't get sick thinking about Chick-fil-a anymore! :)

Best and Worst Moments:
The worst moment has to be when I ALMOST fell in the lunchroom at school one day because some kid spilled applesauce right beside the table and didn't pick it up.  I slipped in the applesauce and grabbed the table and caught myself before I could hit the floor.  That pretty much made my heart stop! It strained my wrist and my back at the same time.  Now I am VERY cautious when walking in the lunchroom every day.

The best moment is easy! It's definitley the first time I felt Caycen move with my hand.  I felt him for the first time moving inside of me at about 17 weeks.  At 19 weeks I was laying down on my bed about to go to sleep, my hands were resting on my stomach, and all of a sudden I felt something kick my hand.  I didn't move or breathe because I wasn't sure if that was actually him or not.  But then about 3 seconds later he kicked again and then another 3 seconds later he kicked AGAIN! I knew that it was him after the third kick.  Chance wasn't there so I called him and started crying and telling him that I felt him with my hand.  Then I ran into Taylor's bedroom to tell her also! I was SUPER excited.  After that night I felt him kick all the time.  Three nights after I felt him the first time, I was laying in bed and he was kicking, so I grabbed Chance's hand and put it on my stomach for him to feel and that was the first time Chance felt him kick.  He was so excited and I knew it wasn't just me anymore!  Now it's to the point where I feel him all the time and can even see him move across my tummy. 

I think the 2nd best moment of the 2nd trimester was probably when we found out that we were having a boy! It was so much fun finding out! If you missed my story on how we find out, check out my earlier posts Baby Boy and Finding Out to see how much fun it was!  I think the greatest part was having our friends and family there to find out with us.  It really meant a lot to see how excited they were for us.

More Fun Stuff:
During the 2nd trimester we picked out the baby bedding and painted the nursery (see my earlier post Planning to see the bedding and wall paint color), we picked out his name, Caycen Edward Darley (see how we made the decision on the post Baby Update), and just today I bought his BABY FURNITURE!!! Yay!!! I can't wait for it to be here and to put it all together up in Caycen's room! Here is a picture of the furniture set we ordered:

Closing Thoughts:
Well, the 2nd trimester went by super fast, a LOT faster than the first trimester.  Being pregnant definitely has gotten better.  I just can't wait to meet our little man!  Caycen is going to be one spoiled youngin!

3rd trimester here we come!!!! :)

God Bless ~ Aimes