About 6 years and 8 1/2 months ago...

I wasn't blogging six years ago, but I did write a little bit about what was happening in my life. Now that I'm nearing the end of this pregnancy, I've been reminiscing about my previous pregnancies and I found the following journal entry/emails when I was transforming our office into a nursery. So in celebration of how six years ago today was one of the best days of my life, I thought I would include the stories below so they can be part of my official blog record. The first is a journal entry, and the rest are email updates that I sent to my friends. (Many of my readers were original recipients of these emails, but it's been 6 years, so it might seem new anyway...)

UPDATED - I have included pictures of my precious boy as he has grown, basically a picture taken on or near his birthday each year.

Finding Out We Were Pregnant!
I expected my period by Saturday May 31, 2003. We had decided to wait until Sunday morning before taking a pregnancy test, but on Saturday afternoon I was bored. So I asked Casey if I could take the test then. He agreed. I had an errand to run, so I drank something (Dr. Pepper?) and went on my errand. When I came back, I took the test. Casey was working on the computer (editing our wedding videos). Of course I peeked before the full 3 minutes and I saw a faint pink line. I told Casey, "I think I see a pink line." He jumped up and came to see. He could also see a pink line. We looked at each other, smiled, hugged and looked at each other again. It's a weird moment - full of emotions but still now sure how to feel or act. After church Sunday we went out and bought a full price pregnancy test (the first test was a $1 from a discount store ;-) The expensive test told us the same as the cheap test, so we made phone calls to our parents!

Subject: 15 weeks!!
Date: August 10, 2003

Since everyone wanted to be kept updated:

I got to hear my baby's heartbeat on Friday! It sounded very fast to me (but normal to the nurse practioner). When I got my ultrasound at 9 weeks, Casey and the Doctor could see a heartbeat, but I couldn't. This time I could hear the heartbeat.

On Thursday the first person noticed! I hadn't seen her since May. When she first saw me I could tell by the look in her eye that she suspected something. When I left the room, she asked my friend if I was pregnant. Most of the people who work with me everyday haven't noticed yet, but I think I'm starting to get some stares. I've only gained 4 pounds, but my waist has grown 5 inches. Luckily for me, I lost 10 pounds last year, but didn't have any money to update my wardrobe. So now my clothes are fitting better! :-) My mom is coming up next week with a bag full of used maternity clothes and I am beginning to need it. My biggest clothing issue right now is finding a nice dress for my friend Jaimey's wedding in 4 weeks. I am doing a reading at the ceremony, so it needs to be nice and I need to look good. Plus Casey will be wearing a tux, so I need to look nice next to him. But how big will I be in 4 weeks? (I got some really cute shoes though!)

I went to a wedding last night with an open bar! Unfortunately I was with Casey and a bunch of other medical students, so they wouldn't let me touch the alcohol. (Of course if you know me, that's not a huge sacrifice) I have become good friends with Shirley Temple though. I have one more wedding this summer and I am sure I will spend some more time with Shirley.

At my next appointment (Sept 9) we get an ultrasound. I'm thinking this ultrasound will be more interesting than the first one being that my baby will be bigger that 2.7 cm. I should also start feeling the baby move around that time. I'll keep you updated!

Subject: 21 weeks - Over half way there!
Date: Mon Sept 22, 2003

Wow,
It's really hard to believe that I am halfway there!

I am really enjoying the 2nd trimester. Didn't like the 1st trimester that much, but the 2nd trimester is great! I can eat a lot (which I love!), get to wear new clothes (who doesn't like that?!) and get more attention as people are able to see that I am pregnant.

Getting the ultrasound was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. I was able to detect a lot more that I thought ("oh, there's the head, there's the heart pumping, there's the legs, there's a little foot!"), and I got to see the baby move. We're waiting until the big moment to find out the sex, so you'll have to wait till next year before you can know to buy pink and purple or blue and green clothes.

Everythings going well with the pregnancy. All of my students have noticed by now, I think. One my my beginner students was trying to tell me something. All I understood was the word "pregnant" (she had no problems pronouncing that word, even though my advanced students can't get it right) but the rest of the sentence -- I have no idea was she said. Then she gave my hand a nice squeeze and smiled. I think she was telling me that she knew. [for those of you wondering how to communicate with people who are learning English, that's how it works: a few words (sometimes), body language and and understanding of humanity]

The belly is getting bigger and just beginning to give me problems. It takes me longer to get up from the couch, to change my sleeping position, etc. I also have to pay more attention to my posture or I'll get backaches. Oh, and I pee all the time. At least twice a night, sometimes more often. But I get to eat more. That's good. Interestingly, the baby really likes chocolate. And I like to keep my baby happy.

Casey will be leaving for the month of October. He's going to NC to do a rotation at Wake Forest in Emergency Medicine. We are hoping it will increase his chances of getting his residency there (close proximity to grandmothers= free childcare! * just kidding grandmas, we are more looking forward to building relationships, more than just child care)

Well, I've done enough rambling for now. I'll keep you all updated, probably next month.

Subject: After the third trimester...
Date: Tues Dec 2, 2003

After the third trimester, there are no more trimesters! The third trimester is the LAST trimester. I have mixed feelings about this fact.
Sometimes I think to myself "I have been pregnant since May. That's like forever! When will this be over?" and sometimes I think "I can't believe that I am less than 2 months away from my due date! This is all happening so fast!" And Casey told me that I will be officially "term" on Jan 1o -- which means my baby will be able to join the world without being labeled "pre-mature" despite the fact that Jan 10 is 3 weeks before my due date. Jan 10 is VERY close. I'm not ready for a Jan 10 baby. I am thinking more of a Feb baby. Well, I'm sure that whenever the baby comes, I'll be ready. I can feel the baby kicking and moving a lot more now, which I like. And we are starting to get some baby equipment and preparing the nursery, so this time is exciting. But there are some discomforts. I am amazed how heavy 10-15 extra pounds in one spot can be. It is difficult to switch sides at night, get in and out of cars and pick up things from the ground. (Don't misunderstand me on the 10-15 extra pounds -- I have put on more weight than that, but it has been more evenly distributed over my thighs and buttocks. The 10-15 pounds is probably the weight of my baby (about 3.5 pounds now) and all that amniotic fluid).
Over Thanksgiving I got to spend some time with my 1 week old nephew (born Nov. 19). He is so sweet and I can't believe that his little cousin is just 2 months younger and still growing in my tummy. It's amazing! In 2 months I will have a baby of my very own! Not a niece or nephew to coo and cuddle with, but my own baby. And all the responsibility that comes with it -- feeding, diapering, loving, raising into a good person who loves God and all His children -- oh my!
Also, there are happenings in my life unrelated to baby. Casey is currently interviewing for residencies. He is interviewing mostly in NC and VA, but also DE, GA, SC and PA. We won't know until March 18th where we will actually be moving to, but we plan to move in June. (Side note to Georgians -- We will be in the Atlanta area in June also for Casey's brother's wedding. I will need a babysitter on Sun June 13.) For residency, he has decided on Emergency Medicine which will be 3 years.
Well, Thanks for reading my ramblings. I am also trying to send some pictures of myself with belly, my new nephew and of our nursery (Thanks to Anne and Jess for your help!) We went with a Nemo theme for the nursery because the room already had bright blue walls and we had the talents of Anne to draw the fish for us.

Subject: I went to the doctor and the doctor said....
Date: Sat Jan 24, 2004

Well, the doctor indicated that my baby is apparently in now hurry to leave the comforts of his/her womb. The baby has barely "dropped" and I'm only about 1/2 effaced (for those of you who know what that means) They still say it could happen any day, but its more likely that the baby will come later rather than sooner. Due Date is Jan 31 -- one week from today!

Casey was very bummed when he heard this news. He is more impatient about this baby than I am. I have been mentally preparing myself for a long pregnancy, but my mental powers are weakening and I'm starting to get anxious too. I'm not really nervous at all about the labor. That might change once contractions start for real, but I had originally thought that I would be terrified about labor for all 9 months. I think being educated about the process helps to take away the scariness (so I recommend childbirth classes and reading the magazines and books about labor).

So we're getting tired of waiting. We've been carrying a baby doll around the house to help get Chester used to the idea. But now, when I hold the baby doll, I really just want it to be my own real baby. But Chester has been good around all the baby equipment and toys. He sniffs around cautiously when we bring out the baby doll or a new toy. Then he goes and lays down.

I will be working a full week this week (unless the baby comes of course...) and the following week I may work a couple days, but I'm not planning to work a full week. Oh yeah, to let you know one of my pet peeves while being pregnant (so maybe you can avoid it with others...) Every day I go to work and every day everyone says "You're still here!" or "You came to work today!" and "I'm surprised you''re still coming to work" (even after I've explained that I'm saving my leave time for after the baby instead of wasting it before the baby comes, we have a limited amount of paid leave and they all know I'm the only breadwinner in my family) and "How are you feeling?" and "How's the baby today?" etc. Now, it's okay to inquire when you see someone once a week or less, but I see these people EVERY DAY! I must answer these questions EVERY DAY to the SAME people! And I have had to do this for the whole last month. I might accept these inquiries if they waited until after my due date, but it doesn't help me with the waiting when everyone around me is so impatient. And then there are the comments that delivering babies is not in the job description, so I better not have the baby at work, and other allusions to babies just popping out suddenly. First time babies take a LONG time. The average labor for a first timer is 18-24 HOURS! The first few hours aren't that bad, just annoying or slightly uncomfortable, so I think I will do okay on my own or at least have time to call Casey and he can come and get me. Sorry about the tirade, I didn't think it would be so long or so much shouting. I guess these are things I really just want to say to my co-workers, but I can't, so I'm passing it on to you.

Casey was supposed to be doing research at the hospital this month, but it didn't work out like he had planned, so he spends all day at home just waiting for me to have the baby. (No wonder he's so impatient) Next month he will be facillitating small groups with second year med students (about 10 hours a week) so basically he'll be home that month as well. And he has a vacation month for March. I will go back to work at the end of March, but I will hopefully be able to work some hours from home. In April, he will be taking a humanities course (Medicine and Religion) that will meet for about 4 hours each day. The grandmas and two friends will be helping us with the childcare in April. In May, Casey graduates!!! I will probably quit my job at the end of May and we will move at the beginning of June. I'm so glad that he will be home so much during these first months. I think it will be good for me to have him share the baby duties with me and also good for him and the baby to bond -- especially since his time will be very limited next year during his first year of residency. We'll find out on March 18 where we will be moving for residency. That's another date we are anxiously waiting for.

Well, I hope that my next mass mailing will be to announce my baby!

Subject: Labor Details
Date: Mon Feb 9, 2004

Yes, the rumor is true, my labor was only 3 hours long. I took castor oil (natural induction method) to encourage things along since my due date had passed already. I took the castor oil before dinner on Tuesday night. That evening I had some Braxton-Hicks contractions (the "fake" contractions that go away with movement and are irregular and not painful). Then we went to bed. I didn't sleep and around 1:00 I felt some contractions that were definately not like the ones before. So I got up and walked around to see if they continued and also started timing them. Once I decided that they were regular and increasing in strength, I woke up Casey (~1:30 am) and he helped me time the contractions. At that time, the contractions were coming about 8 minutes apart. At 2:00 Casey "checked" me and said I was about 3 cm dilated (benefits of having a doctor in the house) Generally, you go to the hospital when contractions are about 5 minutes apart and about 5 cm dilated. But by 2:30, contractions were extremely severe and coming 3 minutes apart. So Casey called the hospital to let them know. He was on the phone for about 20 minutes, repeating all the info to 3 different people and being on hold. Meanwhile, I wake up my mother and we start getting ready (luckily we put the bags by the door before bed in hopes that that would encourage labor also) and I'm also suffering severe contractions. While he is on the phone, my water breaks with a gush! I checked my fluid and it was full of meconium (the baby passed his first bowel movement in the womb, not a good thing) So I rinse off and we rush to the car. As Casey pulls up to the hospital, I'm in the middle of another contraction with the urge to push, this is about 3:00. Casey says you don't get the urge to push unless you absolutely ready, so he knew this was happening soon. Mom and I went to the Labor and Delivery while Casey parked the car and ran as fast as he could back to the hospital. I got to the nurse's station and gave the nurse my name. She took me into the examination room for an inital check. She asked if I could give her a urine sample and I said no. She watched me breathing through a contraction and said "Let's skip the examination and just put you in a delivery room" In the delivery room, I asked the nurse if it was too late for an epidural. The doctor checked me and I was 10 cm dilated (10 is the goal!) so yeah, too late. But the pushing phase isn't as bad as the 8-10 cm phase, so the worst was already over. Once they got me hooked up to the monitors and my IV in, they let me start pushing (finally, thank goodness). The rapid labor probably contributed to the bad tear because my body didn't have enough time to gradually stretch out. I don't know how many pushes, but they did have to use a vaccuum (I had no idea until the next day when Jaimey said something, I had my eyes closed through all the pushing.) When the head was out, I reached down and touched his head. They rushed the delivery (cutting and vaccuum) because of the meconium and the heart rate was dropping a little. He also had the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, but not very tightly. There was a team of neo-natal specialists to take him as soon as he came out, so I didn't get to hold him right away. I was prepared for this because I knew that's what they do with all meconium babies. So the team worked on him and I watched from my bed and Casey would go back and forth and tell me what they were doing. For the labor, Casey, my mom and my friend Jaimey were there. (Jaimey will be an OB/GYN resident next year.) They all helped me with my breathing and telling me to push and encouraging me. My mom almost passed out and had to leave briefly to drink some OJ. I didn't really notice until someone said something about getting my mother before the baby came out so that she wouldn't miss the delivery.

Coulson was breathing okay but had a slight grunt, so the pediatrician took him to the neo-natal ICU for longer observation. I did get to hold him for about 15 minutes before they took him to the ICU. After they finished up with me in the labor room (about 2 hours after delivery) Casey and I went up to the ICU to see my baby. He was just fine and I got to try to feed him. He later joined me in my recovery room (after I got a chance to sleep a little).

So there are all the wonderful details. A very unusual labor for sure.

Big Coulson says he has never called anyone else Coulson before, so he's not sure what it will feel like to have another Coulson around. I'm still getting used to it myself. My dad is coming up this weekend to see the baby.

I'm sure I'll write more later about little Coulson and motherhood.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY PRECIOUS BABY!!!!