Day 4 of life!

All these posts of Charlotte have come from Matthew so I thought I'd write a few of my thoughts of the last few days. Sorry no pictures Matthew couldn't find the camera cord in the room when I sent him home for some things. It will have to wait. I get discharged tomorrow so hopefully tomorrow you will get a few more. (all of them are about the same as I don't have her in clothes yet and she's just bundled all the time)



Monday Morning-



Sunday night was a little restless. I got up to use the bathroom about every 3 hours and every time I could tell my tummy was really tight. It didn't hurt but was just tight. So we got up around 6:45, showered and noticed I had lost my mucous plug. I ate some oatmeal and a piece of toast with PB on it then we were off to my appointments. I could tell on the way that every bump on the way was way more prominent. but still I thought nothing of it.

We saw a different doctor then Dr Wu, he's on vacation visiting family in China and Japan, She asked how I was doing and felt my tummy and as she did she's like have you been contracting like this often? I say yes and then she gets me ready to check my dilation and how soft my cervix is. She says I was dilated to like 1.5 and that she'd like me to skip my NST appt and just go to L & D for monitoring to see if my contractions were regular. I thought it was a little over kill but well they know better right. I also had an ultrasound at 11 that I wanted to get to cause it was my last complete one that would get all her measurements and things. I wanted one last inutero picture of her face too. But well we got to L&D and got me hooked up and low ad behold I was contracting about every 3 minutes, not to bad but bad enough for my uterus that they said we'd be having a baby today. They also checked my cervix and I had already progressed to a 3 in a matter of an hour. So we got admitted and got ready to have a baby!


C-Section
So I still haven't decided which I prefer, Vaginal or C-Section. I guess it doesn't really make a difference as I can't ever try for a V-Back but still I can't seem to come to a good conclusion. I think the worst part of a c-section procedure is being all lucid and there to get the spinal done. I hated that for my first surgery and I didn't like the second one either. But man it worked fast and my leg did a huge jerk and made me scream and then there was no feeling at all. This guy who put in the spinal did a great job. I love first time tries that work!

Well after that worked they laid me down and started washing my tummy which I couldn't feel at all in just a matter of minutes. Then they put up the screen and they started doing what they do. I didn't feel a thing until they started pulling and tugging on things inside me. It was really the weirdest non-feeling I've ever experienced. It was like they were rearranging my insides. It took a lot longer then I thought too.

Matthew was there to take pictures of her being taken out and he actually watched a lot more of it then I thought he would. Didn't look sick at all. Just kept making jokes about things that were going on. We'll post those pictures later but some are gross so I don't know... They had us take a picture of my uterus where they did the incision for the first surgery that is quite gross. But by 12:43pm little Charlotte had arrived and was whisked through a little door way to be cleaned up and all that jazz. I was then put back together which took a really long time. They moved me to my room shortly after and I was able to move my thigh muscles but that was it. They wouldn't let me go and see Charlotte until I could move my legs and function that way. It was 5 hours later that I got to go see her. Matthew got to go see her way before me and take pictures. He said he didn't even hold her so I could be the first.

I have 2 long scars now. I thought they were going to cut in the same place but no, they went about and inch and a half lower then the first one. So no low rise bikinis for me... ha ha

I started pumping about 4 hours later and have done so every 3-4 hours. I thought yipee I'm getting some good amount of colostrum the first few pumps and then it stopped for the next day. and just last night has it started up again and I'm getting about an ounce. That is another thing I like better about a c-section is that your in the hospital long enough that your milk has a chance to come in before you go home and get so frustrated that you don't have anything to feed your baby. Everyone has been so helpful and kind and willing to help me out. I'm still getting more from one side then the other but I'm confident that Charlotte will be a good eater. I pumped through the night and let the nurses feed her the first night.

It's all about being consistent right. I go up every 3 hours to change her diaper and try to feed her. I love the skin to skin time I get with her. If it is only an hour here an hour there or even less. I've only tried cathing her once and I was not successful. I must not know my own anatomy cause Matthew did it like his very first try. We'll try again today and tomorrow until I can get it. It's probably something we'll do for her anyway. Her Urology appointment is either Tuesday or next Friday and we'll know there if it's absolutely necessary of if it's just something we decide to do or not.

So far all the nurses and docs and everyone has been so good to me. All the people we run into from the evaluation and the first procedure remember us and ask how things are and all say something to the effect of I can't believe how good her back looks or she's doing awesome just like her mom!! Ha ha I'm just that good!!

Thursday, Earth day
We were supposed to have this precious girl today at 10 but as you read earlier my body had other plans. So I've just been pumping all day just waiting to here when Charlotte is back and ready for me to hold and comfort her. It's been 2.5 hours so it should be anytime now. I will get discharged tomorrow and then Charlotte to follow on Monday or Tuesday. We'll have to stick around the Family house for that week if we can't get that Urology appointment set up for Tuesday instead of Friday. But she'll be all ours and I can hold her all I want.
For Earth day I'd like all to know that UCSF is like the most Eco Friendly hospital. Well San Fran is the same but there are garbage, compost, recycle bins everywhere and they've even started new programs for locally grown things so they don't have to transport across country in big rigs for their food and such. Save our Earth, we live here and our kids will have to deal with our garbage later if we don't.

So there are some rambling thoughts so far. I'll probably come back to this and have to add in some other thoughts and feelings and such.
Sorry again no new pictures we'll get them up soon. And to those who actually read the whole thing thanks to you too. Birth stories are actually nice to read. well I like them.