So this is the whole story, or at least what we can remember. It all started on Thursday with the pre term labor. We wrote all about that in the last entry so make sure you’ve read that first. So leaving the hospital with medicine that was supposed to stop my contractions we thought we had a while till we would see that place again.
Thursday night was tough. We called my midwife at 3am telling her my contractions were 6 minutes apart and much stronger. I was extremely uncomfortable and poor Ryan didn’t sleep well either. I kept taking my medicine, hoping it would pass.
Meanwhile, Scott and Ryan and some neighbors were getting ready for the hurricane that was coming right for us. I guess I just wasn’t that worried about it, because I kept forgetting. Friday afternoon my contractions were 5 minutes apart. I didn’t say anything about it till later because Ryan was helping people board up their windows. I felt really useless as everybody started getting ready for Hurricane Ike, and I just sat on the couch trying not to scream every 5 minutes.
My contractions stayed consistent though dinner, which was kind of awkward. I could tell Ryan was really worried about me, but I tried to play it off like it wasn’t that bad. He has enough on his mind to worry about his crazy wife and her impatient body. After dinner, Ryan called over to the hospital and talked to someone in Labor and Delivery he told them my situation and they suggested I came in for a look. I really, really, really did not want to go.
I reluctantly went upstairs and we packed an “overnight” bag. We figured they might want to watch me overnight because of Ike approaching. I packed my toothbrush, deodorant and a pair of socks. (We learned the night before that it was freezing in triage). Ryan packed a pair of clothes, borrowed a sweatshirt from Scott and other overnight necessities. Lesley made us some sandwiches and packed us some food for the night.
So, we drive to the hospital and the Emergency room entrance is the only door open. However, it’s being guarded like the king is inside and I felt really awkward walking up by myself (Ryan was parking the car). I saw security guards, doctors, nurses etc staring me down as I made the long walk from the curb to the double doors. I think there must have been 8 people there. They’re all staring me down as if I’m doing the walk of shame or something. When I get to the door they open it for me and ask me what’s wrong. I tell them I don’t want to go into labor and they relax and welcome me to the place that will be my world for the next few days. After I was in, everybody was super nice to me. Apparently the hospital was in a state of lock down, so they had to only let people in that really needed help. They were short staffed and were taking precautions for the storm. I guess people try to get in knowing that their house may lose power and the hospital would be a cozy alternative. The staff was smiling and joking that we should name the baby Ike. (As funny as that is, I think it’s more mean). Ryan joins me soon and I’m off in a wheelchair to Labor and Delivery.
I’m back to familiar triage and meet with some nurses. They do the usual stuff and I just want them to give me a shot of that stuff and go home. We’re hoping to be out of there by 10pm, before the storm hits harder.
On Thursday, I was not dilated at all. I figure not much can happen in a day so I’m not worried. They check me and…surprise! The nurse said, “oh you’re not going home. You’re going to have a baby”. Ryan and I look at her like deer in headlights. Yes, we know we’re having a baby, in a month. What’s going on now. I guess dilating to a 4 in one day is something to monitor. So I think Ryan and I are in shock. No, Ryan was in shock, I could see it all over his face. I was in denial. I asked the nurse “are you sure” a hundred times. I made a lot of jokes, you know, the – I can’t believe what’s going on so if I joke about it, maybe it won’t be true – kind of jokes. It seems like they all like my sense of humor, or they realize I’m in my own world and they’re just enjoying my entertainment because they can’t leave either.
They take me to my Labor and Recovery room. I don’t even remember walking there. The room was big and decorated nicely. I didn’t feel like I was going to leave this room a mother. And there was a chance I wasn’t. The nurses were trying to get a hold of my midwife – who I haven’t even met with under other circumstances. They aren’t sure if she can deliver me because the baby is pre-term. But the doctor that I did meet with at my clinic was on call that night so at least I knew her. There was also a possibility that I wasn’t going into labor so they would monitor that.
My contractions were getting worse and I wanted to try not to have an epidural. I thought I was being tough, turns out I was just being stupid. An hour or so later when I was dilated to a 6 I was screaming bloody murder every few minutes. Oh ya, and I started throwing up each contraction. It was lovely. So I changed my mind and asked for an epidural – best decision of my life! The delivery nurse, Bev, was exactly who I needed with me. She was older and experienced, like a mother type figure, and she was strong and supportive. She literally held my hand through a lot of the tough times I had in that room. When they called the anesthesiologist, Ryan had to leave and Bev took care of me. I was contracting and vomiting bile – yuck – and had to stay extremely still. Let me tell you, that was easier said than done. Also, the epidural freaking hurt! I thought I’d be in so much pain from the contractions that I wouldn’t notice. Ya right. I’m still glad I got it, and will probably do it next time, but yikes! Bev had to hold me and keep me from shaking. I was scared and, now I hit the shock stage. I’m surprised I didn’t jerk and have to suffer permanent spinal damage. Thank you Bev.
Heaven. That’s what I felt when the epidural took effect and I could relax again. It must have been around midnight or so at this point, I can’t remember. They gave me some penicillin because they didn’t have the results of the strep B test yet. I had only taken the test 4 days ago, but when I met with the doctor on Thursday she said I was negative. Had to have it anyway though I guess. One nurse tried to put in my IV, but I “blew”. I don’t know what that meant, but Bev told me I’d have a nice big bruise there later. I thought I bypassed that until today when, sure enough I have a nice purple area on my wrist. Bev did the IV on my right arm and we were off! I was given some medicine to stop the vomiting, thank you, and medicine to help me sleep. I still threw up, but it was better and I was able to relax. Bev or another nurse came in to check on me about every hour. Around 6am things got busy and I was ready to push.
My legs were numb, which is a really weird feeling. I would touch them and they felt fake to me. They were also heavy. I’ll spare the details at this point. Let’s just say, about an hour later – 6:55am, Andrew Nicholas Keali’i Kearns was brought into this world. He was put on my chest and the first thing I said to him was, “you’re slimy”. It was a term of endearment. He wasn’t ugly gray or purple like most newborns I’d seen on TV or something. He was beautiful.
Thursday night was tough. We called my midwife at 3am telling her my contractions were 6 minutes apart and much stronger. I was extremely uncomfortable and poor Ryan didn’t sleep well either. I kept taking my medicine, hoping it would pass.
Meanwhile, Scott and Ryan and some neighbors were getting ready for the hurricane that was coming right for us. I guess I just wasn’t that worried about it, because I kept forgetting. Friday afternoon my contractions were 5 minutes apart. I didn’t say anything about it till later because Ryan was helping people board up their windows. I felt really useless as everybody started getting ready for Hurricane Ike, and I just sat on the couch trying not to scream every 5 minutes.
My contractions stayed consistent though dinner, which was kind of awkward. I could tell Ryan was really worried about me, but I tried to play it off like it wasn’t that bad. He has enough on his mind to worry about his crazy wife and her impatient body. After dinner, Ryan called over to the hospital and talked to someone in Labor and Delivery he told them my situation and they suggested I came in for a look. I really, really, really did not want to go.
I reluctantly went upstairs and we packed an “overnight” bag. We figured they might want to watch me overnight because of Ike approaching. I packed my toothbrush, deodorant and a pair of socks. (We learned the night before that it was freezing in triage). Ryan packed a pair of clothes, borrowed a sweatshirt from Scott and other overnight necessities. Lesley made us some sandwiches and packed us some food for the night.
So, we drive to the hospital and the Emergency room entrance is the only door open. However, it’s being guarded like the king is inside and I felt really awkward walking up by myself (Ryan was parking the car). I saw security guards, doctors, nurses etc staring me down as I made the long walk from the curb to the double doors. I think there must have been 8 people there. They’re all staring me down as if I’m doing the walk of shame or something. When I get to the door they open it for me and ask me what’s wrong. I tell them I don’t want to go into labor and they relax and welcome me to the place that will be my world for the next few days. After I was in, everybody was super nice to me. Apparently the hospital was in a state of lock down, so they had to only let people in that really needed help. They were short staffed and were taking precautions for the storm. I guess people try to get in knowing that their house may lose power and the hospital would be a cozy alternative. The staff was smiling and joking that we should name the baby Ike. (As funny as that is, I think it’s more mean). Ryan joins me soon and I’m off in a wheelchair to Labor and Delivery.
I’m back to familiar triage and meet with some nurses. They do the usual stuff and I just want them to give me a shot of that stuff and go home. We’re hoping to be out of there by 10pm, before the storm hits harder.
On Thursday, I was not dilated at all. I figure not much can happen in a day so I’m not worried. They check me and…surprise! The nurse said, “oh you’re not going home. You’re going to have a baby”. Ryan and I look at her like deer in headlights. Yes, we know we’re having a baby, in a month. What’s going on now. I guess dilating to a 4 in one day is something to monitor. So I think Ryan and I are in shock. No, Ryan was in shock, I could see it all over his face. I was in denial. I asked the nurse “are you sure” a hundred times. I made a lot of jokes, you know, the – I can’t believe what’s going on so if I joke about it, maybe it won’t be true – kind of jokes. It seems like they all like my sense of humor, or they realize I’m in my own world and they’re just enjoying my entertainment because they can’t leave either.
They take me to my Labor and Recovery room. I don’t even remember walking there. The room was big and decorated nicely. I didn’t feel like I was going to leave this room a mother. And there was a chance I wasn’t. The nurses were trying to get a hold of my midwife – who I haven’t even met with under other circumstances. They aren’t sure if she can deliver me because the baby is pre-term. But the doctor that I did meet with at my clinic was on call that night so at least I knew her. There was also a possibility that I wasn’t going into labor so they would monitor that.
My contractions were getting worse and I wanted to try not to have an epidural. I thought I was being tough, turns out I was just being stupid. An hour or so later when I was dilated to a 6 I was screaming bloody murder every few minutes. Oh ya, and I started throwing up each contraction. It was lovely. So I changed my mind and asked for an epidural – best decision of my life! The delivery nurse, Bev, was exactly who I needed with me. She was older and experienced, like a mother type figure, and she was strong and supportive. She literally held my hand through a lot of the tough times I had in that room. When they called the anesthesiologist, Ryan had to leave and Bev took care of me. I was contracting and vomiting bile – yuck – and had to stay extremely still. Let me tell you, that was easier said than done. Also, the epidural freaking hurt! I thought I’d be in so much pain from the contractions that I wouldn’t notice. Ya right. I’m still glad I got it, and will probably do it next time, but yikes! Bev had to hold me and keep me from shaking. I was scared and, now I hit the shock stage. I’m surprised I didn’t jerk and have to suffer permanent spinal damage. Thank you Bev.
Heaven. That’s what I felt when the epidural took effect and I could relax again. It must have been around midnight or so at this point, I can’t remember. They gave me some penicillin because they didn’t have the results of the strep B test yet. I had only taken the test 4 days ago, but when I met with the doctor on Thursday she said I was negative. Had to have it anyway though I guess. One nurse tried to put in my IV, but I “blew”. I don’t know what that meant, but Bev told me I’d have a nice big bruise there later. I thought I bypassed that until today when, sure enough I have a nice purple area on my wrist. Bev did the IV on my right arm and we were off! I was given some medicine to stop the vomiting, thank you, and medicine to help me sleep. I still threw up, but it was better and I was able to relax. Bev or another nurse came in to check on me about every hour. Around 6am things got busy and I was ready to push.
My legs were numb, which is a really weird feeling. I would touch them and they felt fake to me. They were also heavy. I’ll spare the details at this point. Let’s just say, about an hour later – 6:55am, Andrew Nicholas Keali’i Kearns was brought into this world. He was put on my chest and the first thing I said to him was, “you’re slimy”. It was a term of endearment. He wasn’t ugly gray or purple like most newborns I’d seen on TV or something. He was beautiful.
I asked the nurse how long I had been pushing. She said about an hour. I told her it felt like half that. She smiled and I said “time flies when you’re having fun”. A bunch of people laughed and it wasn’t until then that I realized that there were a bunch of people in my room. One thing I really liked about the hospital was that Andrew never left our sight. All the tests were performed in our room. The doctors from the NICU came to him to check him out. Although I was heavily drugged and tired, I liked knowing that he was not far from me. The doctors were a little worried that Andrew would be underdeveloped in some area, like the lungs, but he checked out with perfect health. He weighed 6 pounds 1 ounce and was 20 inches long and born with a full head of dark hair. He is very little and skinny, but is perfect.
I know I slept for a while after that. I was too tired to eat when they brought me food. Ryan slept on the “daddy bed” – a couch that folded into a bed. When I finally woke up, it was so nice to have the sleeping baby right next to me in his own bassinet. I didn’t leave the room all day. All I wanted to do was stare at how beautiful he was. Ryan and I both can’t figure out who he looks like and I think that adds to the fascination of him.
I didn’t even realize that there was a storm, well, hurricane going on outside us. We were wrapped up in our own little world of perfection. It almost is hard to believe we even had a hurricane. We’re grateful we got to the hospital when we did, otherwise we’d probably have had the baby on the kitchen floor or bathtub. Thank goodness Ryan was so persistent to go to the hospital. Another interesting fact, when Andrew was born, the eye of the hurricane was above us. Born during the peak of chaos. There’s an old wives tale that hurricanes put women into labor. I would say I’m a strong believer in that theory.
I can’t really remember the order of things after that. We were able to listen to the BYU vs. UCLA game on Saturday afternoon. Ryan and I both really wanted to watch it but the TV didn’t get the channel. Ryan taught Andrew a bit about football and I was able to relax while we listened. Oh, and BYU killed UCLA! I know we watched part of the movie August Rush and listened to Sarah McLaughlan. I had many nurses come in and take care of me. I met with two lactation specialists who helped me start to nurse. We went to a class for new parents and slept a lot. Oh, because of the hurricane we didn’t have cell phone service for most of our visit. We were able to call our moms before I went into labor and when we woke up afterwards. Then we lost service for over a day. Since we were in lockdown we weren’t allowed to invite any people to visit us. So the three of us spent those days bonding and relaxing as a new little family.
It still doesn’t seem quite real. I still don’t feel like a mom, yet I love this child more than words can describe. He’s just so cute! Many of my feelings and thoughts have changed since he was born. I was really scared to nurse, but now it’s one of my favorite times. He’s extremely funny during those times and makes adorable faces. I’m not scared to hold a crying baby anymore and I don’t feel like a bad person if he cries while I’m holding him. I know he’s still learning how to communicate and we’re learning how to respond. Ryan has been so good with him. One of my favorite memories of this whole experience was watching Ryan hold Andrew and talk to him. He told him, “You’re name is Andrew Nicholas Keali’i Kearns. My name is Ryan, but you can call me Daddy”. I have the two best boys in the world now. I am so, so lucky.
So I would like you all to officially welcome the newest addition to our family, Andrew Nicholas Keali’i Kearns! We love you!
