The Boys

1 week old

Sleepy baby

Owen's favourite new toy, he even sleeps with it :) too cute.

A Few Firsts

First photo of the four of us.

First bath

First time in the car seat (not so happy)

Owen holding & kissing Noah for the first time

Owen came to visit at the hospital on tuesday evening. It was difficult because he obviously wanted nothing to do with me or the baby. His world had been turned upside down in a matter of hours. He is adjusting to life as a big brother, but it is hard. He has started throwing things out of frustration & has started to hit us when he doesn't get his way. We are trying to stick with his routine, set boundaries, & give him as much attention as possible. It is hard, but he is getting better each day with the baby. We are hoping for some better days to come. The inappropriate behaviour was expected, I'm just hoping it doesn't last long.

Birth Story Continued

After we were sent home from the hospital monday afternoon, contractions intensified. I tried to relax & get some rest but the pain was getting too bad. We were timing the contractions using contraction master, my contractions were further apart then they had been. At approximately eight pm, the pain was making me feel sick so we decided to head back to the hospital.

At the hospital I was assessed again & found to be 5cm, dilated. Progress had been slow because the contractions were so far apart. We were told it was going to be a very long night & they expected delivery sometime the next day. We were admitted & taken to the birthing suite. Nurses explained pain relief options, & we decided on the epidural because of how long labour was expected. The anesthesiologist was called, & at 11:30 I had the epidural.

The Doctor broke my water after the epidural. Things progressed much faster after that. After a couple of hours of rest, I was checked again. I was found to be 10cm dilated at 2am. The nurse said she was going to prep. the room & we should call our families in to the hospital. My mom arrived at the hospital soon after.

I started pushing at 2:50 am. The nurse didn't expect me to have to push very long. After 37 minutes of pushing Noah was born!
Gavin told me that we had another boy. I was so happy!

The cord had been wrapped around his neck, so the Doctor quickly unravelled it, & cut the cord. He yelled for the nurse to resuscitate, but luckily after he was suctioned Noah was screaming on his own. His colour was nice & pink & I knew he was fine. Such a relief.

Gavin was able to cut the cord after Noah was suctioned.

We're Home

We were discharged today at 12pm, I will write the birth story as soon as I can. Maybe tonight, if not tomorrow. It is great to be home, we are all doing well.

Baby Noah has arrived!

It was a late night... our new son baby Noah arrived at 3:27 am this morning. Baby, Mother and Father are all doing well and catching up on some much needed sleep. Noah weighed in at 6 lb 7oz (good things come in small packages).

Sent Home

We arrived at the hospital & were assessed at 12:30. Found to be 3.5 cm dilated & 80% effaced, we were given the option to walk the hall for an hour or 2 and be reassessed. An emergency C-section came in, so we were bumped for our assessment. After 4 hours of walking the hall, strong 5 minute apart contractions, dilation has not progressed.

We are now home waiting for either 3 minute apart contractions, or my water to break. the nurses have seen early labor go as long as 2 weeks. Things could continue the same, progress, or phase out. This is so frustrating. I almost cried when they said there was no progression. I really do not think I can handle contractions so frequently for so long. I'm now hoping things either get much more intense tonight, or stop all together until the baby is ready to come. So now we are at 24 hours of early labor & counting. Contractions are coming no matter what position I am in, & the baby is crazy active in there!

Planning on having dinner & trying to rest, we are exhausted.

Going to the Hospital

We are leaving for the hospital now, it is 12pm. Pain is getting more intense & change of position is not relieving the pain. Things are appearing to be more real, but i want to get checked. Contractions are still between 5-10 minutes & we may be sent home, but I'm starting to feel more panicky & want to be checked.

Still Home

We are still at home :(
Had contractions throughout the night, but they were still about 20-30 minutes apart. I was able to sleep off & on. We just came home from another long walk, hoping to get things moving. More frequent contractions but not close enough to send us to the hospital. I'm hoping it's not false labor, or it's going to be a really long week. Things are more painful today, so maybe that's a sign. Things intensify with the walking for sure, so I think there will be little sitting around today.

Contractions

I woke up this morning experiencing very irregular contractions, I was getting more frustrated & grumpy throughout the day. At 2pm we went for a walk, and shopped for a bit. We walked for over 2 hours & got home around 4:30. I was experiencing some cramping while we were out. At about 5pm, things started to get a little more regular with timing.

Things are still in the early stage of labor. It is now, almost 11pm & contractions are about 20-25 minutes apart. We are hoping they get closer together & don't stall out overnight. Currently we are doing some last minute packing & getting the camera ready just in case. My mom is coming to spend the night, so that if we end up having to go to the hospital in the early morning, that we don't have to wake Owen & take him with us. I'll feel bad, if things stall out & we didn't need her to come up tonight, but we'll see. Plus, I think it's better for her to drive up now instead of the middle of the night.

I'll try to update if things progress anymore. I'm probably going to keep walking around, & using the exercise ball. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is for real.

Soon?

Last night around 11pm, I noticed quite a bit more blood. I called Labour & Delivery because I wasn't sure how much blood was considered OK. I figured I was over-reacting, but it was better to be safe & check with the nurses. The nurse on duty seemed to think that it is the beginning of labour & things will likely happen within 24 - 48 hours. She never mentioned that it could take up to 2 weeks like the O.B did yesterday. From what I have read it does usually happen within days, but can be longer for some people.

I surprised myself & was able to sleep from 12 until 4. Then we were up discussing if Gavin should go to his friends wedding today , he's in the wedding party. Because any contractions I was feeling were not strong enough to keep me awake, or regular enough, it was determined that he would go to the wedding & I will call if I need to have him come home. He is not far away, only about an hour or so. I decided it was best for me to stay home today & rest with Owen, in hopes that if delivery is tonight or tomorrow, that I am a little more rested.

Today, there has been a little more bleeding but not as heavy as last night. I'm hoping things do progress over the next day or two & this baby doesn't wait that much longer. Things are definitely moving forward though!

Dr Appointment Update

Warning TMI ahead, if you are bothered by pregnancy/birth "stuff" just stop reading.
So, some possible signs that things are progressing are 1) increased energy level on wednesday, some slight nausea, very active baby. 2) Thursday i was exhausted, increased nausea, very painful hips & groin, very active baby, 3) this morning I lost my "mucous plug" had "bloody show", increased nausea, overall not feeling well.

The Dr. explained that things are progressing well & on time. The loss of the mucous plug, can happen up to two weeks before, & while it is a positive sign of progression it doesn't mean that labour is imminent. He will check my cervix at next weeks exam on thursday, if I am not in the hospital before that. Besides that there is nothing more than to wait for regular (5min apart) contractions that last for an hour, my water breaking or bright red blood. Any of these signs mean to get to the hospital. My O.B will allow you to go a week - ten days over due before an induction date is set. With how I've been feeling the last couple of days, I don't think it will get to that point but you never know.

39 Week Belly Picture

With only 7 days until our due date, I think the reality of another baby coming has finally hit Gavin. He was able to leave for work today later than usual, so he took the time to pack up some things for the hospital. I kept telling him he could pack his bag after work, but he insisted that it needed to be done now.

No definite signs of labour so far. I spent the day cleaning & keeping busy yesterday, hoping to start things. After being busy I am certainly more "crampy", but nothing that amounts to anything. I'm really hoping the Doctor checks me tomorrow & can tell if I am progressing.

39 week belly picture


I wasn't going to post exposed belly pictures on the blog...but here it is. This might just be the last week of belly pictures. I thought I was lucky & got away without getting any stretch marks. I noticed a couple on my sides at 38 weeks, then Gavin pointed out the few under my belly button that I couldn't see. Thanks honey!

Chuc Mung Nam Moi

Mary an adoptive mom hosted this years Tet party (Vietnamese New Year), & what a wonderful party it was! Complete with crafts for the kids, gifts for the kids, a pinata, dragon dance parade, tons of food, & fireworks at dark. We missed out on the fireworks this year, it was getting late & I thought Owen had partied enough. Truth be told, I think we were all worn out from chasing Owen around the party!

There is a fundraiser every year to help Vietnamese families in Vietnam. This years fundraiser helped to purchase a water buffalo for a needy family in Vietnam. Money raised went to the TDH water buffalo project. What a perfect fundraiser for the year of the water buffalo.

I was a little hesitant about the party being so close to my due date for fear I would go into labour. Good friends of ours Julia & Danny offered to drive with Owen & I, & also be a second and third set of hands to help out with Owen. How could I resist?
I think Danny was surprised by how "active" Owen can be, at one point he said " Owen doesn't have a dimmer switch does he? he's either on or off!" Very true Danny!

Owen sure enjoyed the food!


Dragon Dance Parade


The children waiting for their Tet presents. (Owen went & sat at the front of the group. He didn't want to miss out!)


Water Buffalo (This years Tet present, that Liz brought back from her trip to Vietnam)


Thanks Mary! we are already looking forward to next years celebration.

Nice Surprise

This afternoon I received a nice surprise e-mail from a friend. Attached was a great photo of Owen taken last friday by a waiting adoptive parent. I think the photo is beautiful. My boy looks so grown up in the picture. Thanks Leslie!

Baby Update

We've had a very busy week with a NST on tuesday, ultrasound wednesday & O.B appointment today. It was amazing to see how much bigger the baby was on the ultrasound. The baby is so squished in there that it is hard to identify the body parts. The ultrasound confirmed that the head is down & the baby is in the anterior position which is the best position for birth. We had a great ultrasound technician, she actually told us before we left "don't worry the baby is fine". It was so nice to hear that! usually they don't tell you anything.

At my O.B appointment today we were told that the baby is healthy at approximately 6.5 lbs. It was explained that if you took 100 women all with the same due date that 65% of the women would have a bigger baby. The placenta, size of baby, & amount of fluid are all within "normal" range. Next week I will have another NST, & O.B appointment on friday. I am hoping that they will do an internal exam to see if things are progressing.

In the meantime I am going to try to get things moving along with some natural ways to induce labour. I'm thinking more along the lines of walking, cleaning & eating lots of pineapple :)

Oh & my hospital bag is finally packed! all that is left to do is pack a few things for Gavin & finish washing some baby clothes.

Big Baby :)