A Single Woman's Journey To Motherhood


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Name:
Location: Washington, United States

I began my TTC journey in January 2005. It finally worked with the 5th IUI and along came Eliana! I started trying for a second (T42) a little over a year later, and was thrilled to get pregnant on the second try this time. Jacob soon joined our family! Not sure if I am done at two, but come along for my journey in motherhood. If you stop by, please leave me a short note! I like to know when I have visitors. :)

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Finally home and some pictures!

Not sure if I posted here that Jacob FINALLY came home Wednesday night. He is doing well..that first day we were worried because he didnt seem to be eating as much as he had in the hospital, but we had our followup with the ped on Friday and he had gained..and is now over 8 pounds! Wow!
Here are some pics for you! :)

Minutes after getting down to NICU:
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A few minutes later, hooked up to CPAP
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Late on day 2 when they had taken off CPAP
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A few days later with the feeding tube
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Finally tube free the night before he came home (this Tuesday), with my dad.
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About to leave the hospital
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Both my kids, at home!
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That's all for now!

Monday, May 19, 2008

So frustrated

Well, I am so frustrated...I have done fairly well I think with holding up and staying positive through these past 2 weeks, but I just broke down today when they said Jacob couldn't go home because he missed his goal by something like 7 mililiters...7 freaking mililiters...They are so focused on those numbers (total mililiters of food intake) and I think it is ridiculous...and then this morning we had the nurse we dont like because she really doesnt seem to try very hard, and I can almost 99% guarantee Jacob is also not coming home tomorrow (on Friday, we were told probably Sunday or Monday, yesterday we were told probably tuesday...).

I am not sure I can take it anymore...I was just so weepy today, I want my son home and I honestly am starting to feel like they are holding him hostage at the NICU...

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Update on Jacob

Well, after I posted, I got a call from the NICU that the nurse practitioner wanted to speak with me. They are concerned that he has been running a slight fever the past few days and his platelet count is low (50). They have run all sorts of tests and have not found any infection, but they have started treating him for an infection anyways. He is in isolation now, meaning to come into his room you have to wear a gown and gloves and leave them before you leave the room. They want to run a spinal tap to rule out an infection in his spinal fluid, but that has not been run yet.

The good news is that Jacob's blood sugars have been stable the past few days and they are trying to wean him from the IV, though he still gets much/most of his feedings through the feeding tube. I suppose after he is weaned from the IV, that would be the next step to get him to eat more from the breast or bottle...

It has not been as simple as I thought, and the stress is really starting to weigh on me. Today was extra hard as it is Mother's day, plus it was the day he was supposed to be induced...

Continued prayers are appreciated.

Friday, May 09, 2008

Jacob is here!

As some of you may know, I had been quite concerned about things last week...well, went to my NST on Monday (May 5th), and within 15 minutes the nurse said, I think you are having this baby today. The OB concurred, however the problem was that I had taken my Heparin just before the NST (they were both due at 3:00pm). The OB didn't think Jacob could tolerate labour, so preparations were made for an emergency c-section. By 5:30 I was given protamine to reverse the Heparin, by 7:30 I was in the OR and at 8:04 he was born. Jacob let out a very angry cry, and then stopped breathing. There was also meconium in the amniotic fluid. The NICU was at his birth and worked on him quickly to restore his breathing. They showed him to me briefly, then whisked him down to the NICU. He was placed on CPAP to help with his breathing and since his glucose was way too low (11 I think..), they started an umbilical cord line (the medical types will know the correct term) of glucose. His blood sugar level got as level as 7 at one point...I didn't get to see him until 10:00am on Tuesday. He was off CPAP by Wednesday, but his blood sugars continue to be a big problem. He is so sleepy and he doesn't want to eat..so they started a feeding tube yesterday (Thursday). Today, he is starting to eat a tiny little bit by breast and bottle, and hopefully he will start learning to regulate his blood sugars soon and to eat...I am hopeful that he will be home by the end of next week...the doctors won't give me a timeline, so that is just my own hope. They had originally said 4-14 days...so we will see.

I am home as of tonight and trying to recover from a c-section. I wanted to avoid one at all costs and this has been confirmed LOL. I much much preferred the recovery from a vaginal delivery, but he had to come out and it had to be then. The neonatalogist at his birth told me he would not have made a vaginal delivery, so it was definitely the right choice.

I am really tired, quite sore, and heading to bed. I have some pictures but haven't downloaded them yet.