We went to the oral surgeon today to have him look at Mia's toungue, or more specifically the flap of muscle that connects the tounge to the bottom of the mouth. He rated it a a 6.5 out of 10 on the "problematic" scale (0 being no problem, 10 being big problems). So, on his recommendation we had him "snip" that little muscle. The actual procedure took about 5 minutes and Mia seemed no more bothered by it than she is by anything else that isn't either food or her mom.
She is immediately back to feeding, but a little confused by the improved mobility of her toungue, so she has a little adjusting to do there. The riskiest part of the whole experience was just getting from the car to the dr's front door due to the ice storm here in Maryland.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Adjusting
It's interesting how your body can adjust. We don't sleep through the night anymore, but all it takes is a short nap to feel amazingly refreshed. I can only marginally tell the difference between how I used to feel after a 9 hour night of sleep and how I feel now after a night of three 90 minute naps. Ashlei has been amazing, getting by on even less than that, and stretching those naps to even more waking hours than I.
Makes me wonder how much time I've wasted sleeping the hours away during my first 31 years... I'm sure my mom is reading this thinking, "that's what I was trying to tell you all those years when you slept until noon".
Makes me wonder how much time I've wasted sleeping the hours away during my first 31 years... I'm sure my mom is reading this thinking, "that's what I was trying to tell you all those years when you slept until noon".
Monday, February 18, 2008
Adventures in breastfeeding
The weekend came and went so fast. Mia had an interesting weekend of eating and sleeping. On Saturday afternoon and Sunday evening she just couldn't get enough to eat. Breastfeeding, finger feeding pumped milk, finger feeding formula, syringe feeding formula... she was a bottomless pit, and Ashlei was really sore. Just as quickly as a bout of apparent starvation would start, it would suddenly stop and she would sleep for 5 hours straight. It was nice when one of those stretches started late at night and both Ashlei and I got a good run of sleep in.
The lactation consultant came by again today to evaluate Mia. She said everything is progressing well, but we need to supplement a little so that she gets enough to eat, and she also recommended we call an oral surgeon to have the frenulum on her tounge snipped. The frenulum on your tounge is a little fold of tissue that attaches your tounge to the bottom of your mouth. Mia's is holding her tounge down a little too much and she can't stick her tounge out or touch the roof of her mouth. Getting it snipped should help her feed better, possibly without falling asleep so much, which should help her get enough to eat while breastfeeding and avoid the supplements. In the long run, without the snipping there is the potential for speech issues depending on how things develop, and having it snipped has the side benefit of avoiding those issues (at least as it would relate to that little flap of tissue).
We're told that the procedure is a minor 15 minute in and out type thing, but we still need to call the actual oral surgeon to get the details.
Oh, and she also sold us some special bottle for $35 to help feed Mia the supplements (we think she was gulping too much with the newborn size nipple on the normal bottle). It's like going to a mechanic and the mechanic tells you that you need a new catavoltaic belt plug or your 3-phase ejector seat will fire unexpectedly... how am I supposed to know any better? $35 is crazy for a bottle, but when the expert says you should use it, you use it.
$35 would be pretty good for a 3-phase ejector seat controlled by a catavoltaic belt plug
The lactation consultant came by again today to evaluate Mia. She said everything is progressing well, but we need to supplement a little so that she gets enough to eat, and she also recommended we call an oral surgeon to have the frenulum on her tounge snipped. The frenulum on your tounge is a little fold of tissue that attaches your tounge to the bottom of your mouth. Mia's is holding her tounge down a little too much and she can't stick her tounge out or touch the roof of her mouth. Getting it snipped should help her feed better, possibly without falling asleep so much, which should help her get enough to eat while breastfeeding and avoid the supplements. In the long run, without the snipping there is the potential for speech issues depending on how things develop, and having it snipped has the side benefit of avoiding those issues (at least as it would relate to that little flap of tissue).
We're told that the procedure is a minor 15 minute in and out type thing, but we still need to call the actual oral surgeon to get the details.
Oh, and she also sold us some special bottle for $35 to help feed Mia the supplements (we think she was gulping too much with the newborn size nipple on the normal bottle). It's like going to a mechanic and the mechanic tells you that you need a new catavoltaic belt plug or your 3-phase ejector seat will fire unexpectedly... how am I supposed to know any better? $35 is crazy for a bottle, but when the expert says you should use it, you use it.
$35 would be pretty good for a 3-phase ejector seat controlled by a catavoltaic belt plug
Friday, February 15, 2008
4 am
Mia was born at 4:22 am. If you have about 10 minutes, there is an entertaining talk about 4 am at the TED website
As an aside, the TED website has videos of some awesome speeches given at the annual TED conference. I've never been to the conference itself... possibly because it's $6,000 for a ticket and they sell out a year in advance, but I eat up the videos.
As an aside, the TED website has videos of some awesome speeches given at the annual TED conference. I've never been to the conference itself... possibly because it's $6,000 for a ticket and they sell out a year in advance, but I eat up the videos.
A confusing problem...
I may have mentioned in some previous posts that the only real problem we are having with Mia is getting her to feed... she falls asleep within seconds of latching on. Well, we had a lactation consultant come by today to take a look at that and help with a few other things, and she was equally as vexed. She is going to come back Monday to check on a few things and see where to go from here. It doesn't appear to be any particular health concern, as her weight gain shows that she is getting plenty of nutrition now. It is however, a sanity concern for mom and dad.
With some frustrations during feeding being biggest problem we encounter in our first two weeks, I'll count us among the lucky.
With some frustrations during feeding being biggest problem we encounter in our first two weeks, I'll count us among the lucky.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Happy Valentines Day
Mia managed to calm our nerves today by making a remarkable recovery on her weight gain. At today's appointment she weighed 7 lbs even, up from 6 lbs 11 oz on Tuesday and 6 pounds 10 oz on Saturday.
That was a nice Valentine gift for Ashlei and I.
That was a nice Valentine gift for Ashlei and I.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Daddy couldn't stay away
Last night was a long night for us. The dr. managed to put us on edge about Mia's weight, so we meticuously woke up exactly every 3 hours to feed her (most of the time having to wake her up), and her feed for the right amount of time. It's ironic that we managed to get her sleeping longer at night, only to have to forcibly wake her up to feed.
We did everything we could to keep her awake while feeding, as her biggest problem at the moment is that she goes to sleep in about 20 seconds when she starts feeding, or at least gets very very comfortable (and stops feeding). So we used a cold wet washcloth to keep her awake, and did the syringe supplementing thing. It worked pretty well, but made twenty minutes worth of feeding take forty-five minutes.
I am not entirely convinced yet that the formula is necessary as long as we make sure she feeds long enough by keeping her awake. But hey, what's the point of a dr. if you don't follow their orders. Hopefully the rigid schedule and formula supplements will register as improved weight gain at Friday's appointment.
Also, I went back to work for a half day today, heading in around lunch time. I anticipated a few hours away feeling like a nice break, but I actually spent most of the time wanting to go back home to be with Ashlei and Mia... so I left early. We'll try again tomorrow.
We did everything we could to keep her awake while feeding, as her biggest problem at the moment is that she goes to sleep in about 20 seconds when she starts feeding, or at least gets very very comfortable (and stops feeding). So we used a cold wet washcloth to keep her awake, and did the syringe supplementing thing. It worked pretty well, but made twenty minutes worth of feeding take forty-five minutes.
I am not entirely convinced yet that the formula is necessary as long as we make sure she feeds long enough by keeping her awake. But hey, what's the point of a dr. if you don't follow their orders. Hopefully the rigid schedule and formula supplements will register as improved weight gain at Friday's appointment.
Also, I went back to work for a half day today, heading in around lunch time. I anticipated a few hours away feeling like a nice break, but I actually spent most of the time wanting to go back home to be with Ashlei and Mia... so I left early. We'll try again tomorrow.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The good, The bad, and the sleepy
The good
We had a few more visitors over the weekend. Amy brought us some of her world famous (if it isn't, then it sure ought to be) chocolate bread and some gifts for the baby and Ashlei, and Ashlei's parents brought some pre-cooked meals for us so we don't have to cook for the next couple of meals. They all bought us another opportunity to nap... woo-hoo!
We had our first full pediatric checkup today. By and large everything is going very well (see: the bad). Her jaundice peeked over the weekend and looks to be improving (the dr. didn't even do another bilirubin test), and the dr. said that all of the general physilogical "stuff" looks good.
Also, Piper appears to be settling in. She certainly isn't happy yet to share the limelight with a little sister, but she has at least accepted the fact that Mia isn't just visiting. She has stopped whining and shadowing everytime one of us is holding Mia, and has come to the pleasant realization that the stretches of time with only one person in bed at night means that she can squeeze in some on the bed time.
The bad
Mia didn't gain enough weight between our Saturday visit and today's visit to the pediatrician. There are no theories yet as to why, because our description of her feedings sounds exactly as it should according to the doctor. My theory is that we probably aren't explaining it accurately, proud parents with rose colored glasses maybe...
He told us to supplement with 1/2 oz of formula from a syringe prior to breastfeeding, which we'll start on this afternoon. The syringe will ensure that we do not disrupt the breastfeeding mechanics. We are also going to have a lactation consultant come by to make sure everything is as mechanically sound as we think it is during the breastfeeding.
We have another weight check on Friday morning to see how things are progressing, so hopefully things will improve.
The sleepy
Through some deliberate attempts, we think we have flipped Mia's sleep patterns so that her long stretches come at night instead of during the day. For the past two nights we've had two three hour stretches of everyone sleeping. All we did was open up our blinds during the day to get more light in the house (thanks Matt and Lisa) and consciously try to stimulate her more during the day. Both have resulted in Mia being awake for much longer stretches during the daylight hours.
We had a few more visitors over the weekend. Amy brought us some of her world famous (if it isn't, then it sure ought to be) chocolate bread and some gifts for the baby and Ashlei, and Ashlei's parents brought some pre-cooked meals for us so we don't have to cook for the next couple of meals. They all bought us another opportunity to nap... woo-hoo!
We had our first full pediatric checkup today. By and large everything is going very well (see: the bad). Her jaundice peeked over the weekend and looks to be improving (the dr. didn't even do another bilirubin test), and the dr. said that all of the general physilogical "stuff" looks good.
Also, Piper appears to be settling in. She certainly isn't happy yet to share the limelight with a little sister, but she has at least accepted the fact that Mia isn't just visiting. She has stopped whining and shadowing everytime one of us is holding Mia, and has come to the pleasant realization that the stretches of time with only one person in bed at night means that she can squeeze in some on the bed time.
The bad
Mia didn't gain enough weight between our Saturday visit and today's visit to the pediatrician. There are no theories yet as to why, because our description of her feedings sounds exactly as it should according to the doctor. My theory is that we probably aren't explaining it accurately, proud parents with rose colored glasses maybe...
He told us to supplement with 1/2 oz of formula from a syringe prior to breastfeeding, which we'll start on this afternoon. The syringe will ensure that we do not disrupt the breastfeeding mechanics. We are also going to have a lactation consultant come by to make sure everything is as mechanically sound as we think it is during the breastfeeding.
We have another weight check on Friday morning to see how things are progressing, so hopefully things will improve.
The sleepy
Through some deliberate attempts, we think we have flipped Mia's sleep patterns so that her long stretches come at night instead of during the day. For the past two nights we've had two three hour stretches of everyone sleeping. All we did was open up our blinds during the day to get more light in the house (thanks Matt and Lisa) and consciously try to stimulate her more during the day. Both have resulted in Mia being awake for much longer stretches during the daylight hours.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Settling in
We went to our first pediatrician appointment today. Being a Saturday, it was hard to judge the waiting room experience as they were lightly scheduled (they don't take regular appointments on Saturdays), so we'll have to wait for the next visit to see how that part goes. One interesting experience during our short (5 minute) wait was Ashlei's first chance to fill out a form that asks for "Child's Name"... I'm sure there will lots of little moments like that, but they are still cool. Also interesting was the effort it took to remember our home phone number since we hadn't had our morning nap yet and had basically been up all night on "Mia time".
The nurses did the normal checks for weight and length, with both having made appropriate progress since our discharge from the hospital. Then the Dr. checked on the jaundice that motivated the earlier than planned visit. He said it did not look out of the ordinary, but they took some blood to check the bilirubin levels just to be sure. Those levels turned out perfectly fine, and we don't even have to go back for a follow-up until the next normal weight and length checks on Tuesday.
Our friends Matt and Lisa spent the afternoon at the house with us and did all of the Mia sitting as well as getting us lunch. This gave both Ashlei and I a chance to recharge a bit, which helped tremendously. It's amazing what even a short nap can do. Matt and Lisa were the first of our close friends to have children. They are great friends, and a fountain of knowledge that I'm sure we will tap regularly in the coming weeks and months.
The nurses did the normal checks for weight and length, with both having made appropriate progress since our discharge from the hospital. Then the Dr. checked on the jaundice that motivated the earlier than planned visit. He said it did not look out of the ordinary, but they took some blood to check the bilirubin levels just to be sure. Those levels turned out perfectly fine, and we don't even have to go back for a follow-up until the next normal weight and length checks on Tuesday.
Our friends Matt and Lisa spent the afternoon at the house with us and did all of the Mia sitting as well as getting us lunch. This gave both Ashlei and I a chance to recharge a bit, which helped tremendously. It's amazing what even a short nap can do. Matt and Lisa were the first of our close friends to have children. They are great friends, and a fountain of knowledge that I'm sure we will tap regularly in the coming weeks and months.
First Days At Home
Our first two days at home have gone pretty well. As with our stay in the hospital, Mia is still on a backward schedule sleeping all day and restless all night, but we are coping with that. We try to nap when she does, which works a lot better without the nurses doing their checks.
Piper's reaction has been interesting (Piper is our dog). Everyone told us that she would be jealous, and maybe ultimately protective. We've seen the former, and are waiting for the latter to kick in. She basically just whines a little more, and shadows whoever has the baby in their arms. The funny thing is, she probably gets even more attention than she did before because we are pretty vigilant about not leaving her out. At the moment, all she notices is the new competition.
Just prior to calling the pediatrician to schedule Mia's first wellness checkup we noticed a little bit of yellowish-ness in her eyes. Just to be safe, they made the appointment for Saturday morning instead of Monday so they could check the jaundice. 9:45 am... that's usually right in the middle of our morning nap to catch up from the previous night.
Piper's reaction has been interesting (Piper is our dog). Everyone told us that she would be jealous, and maybe ultimately protective. We've seen the former, and are waiting for the latter to kick in. She basically just whines a little more, and shadows whoever has the baby in their arms. The funny thing is, she probably gets even more attention than she did before because we are pretty vigilant about not leaving her out. At the moment, all she notices is the new competition.
Just prior to calling the pediatrician to schedule Mia's first wellness checkup we noticed a little bit of yellowish-ness in her eyes. Just to be safe, they made the appointment for Saturday morning instead of Monday so they could check the jaundice. 9:45 am... that's usually right in the middle of our morning nap to catch up from the previous night.
At The Hospital
First, to wrap up the arrival... Mia Torin was born at 4:22 am on February 5th. She was 19.5 inches long and weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces. Interestingly, February 5th was her exact original due date, it was only after the first sonogram that the docs changed it to February 10th. Thankfully, she gets her punctuality from me or she may not have been born until March ;)
Following the birth, we spent the next 2 days at the hospital in a room significantly smaller than the spacious delivery room. Lots of people came by to visit, which was great (you know who you are... thank you again), and we got a complimentary Stork menu meal through some family friends (again, you know who you are... and thank you very much), and several people sent or brought flowers and candy. We were also lucky enough to have great parents that took care of everything outside of the hospital for those two days so I could stay with Ashlei and Mia. As uncomfortable as the hospital was, I couldn't imagine having to leave Ashlei and Mia there to go take care of the dog, or pick up some clothes we forgot. So, to our parents, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
When not showing off our new bundle to visitors, we spent most of the time learning our way around a baby, including breastfeeding, changing a diaper, dressing a squirming baby, and the art of the swaddle. We're still perfecting that last one. All in all it was a very smooth first few days, which was apparently the exception in the Maternity Care Unit of Howard County General for that week, as apparently they had a run of c-sections that were keeping the nurses busy.
The much talked about sleep deprivation that comes along with a baby wasted no time in making itself known to us... but interestingly not always due to the baby. Mia's clock was backwards, so she actually slept most of the day when not feeding, but was much more active at night. To avoid a total lack of sleep, we simply tried to napped when the baby napped. This would have been a perfect solution if the routine checks by the nurses had coincided with Mia's bizarro schedule. Since they didn't, our morning and evening naps were regularly interrupted. Don't get me wrong, the nurses were great. They helped us a lot in the first few days when we had stupid questions (you mean you're actually going to let us just walk out of here with a baby...just like that?), but the regular checks definitely left us a little worse for wear.
After 2 days, Mia had passed her hearing test, been given her first vaccine shot (Hep B), and both her and Ashlei were discharged with clean bills of health. We were excited to finally take our baby home. We got everything packed and ready to go, put Mia in the car seat and she promptly wailed like a banshee. After a short delay so that Ashlei could feed Mia, we were finally on our way home.
Oh, and as for all of those preparations I mentioned in my previous post:
(1) the phone list - I left it in the car and never used it. I had to wing it with stealth inquiries into my cell phones phone book (cell phones are supposed to always be turned off in the delivery room).
(2) bags - we packed several bags: snacks, entertainment, and clothes. We barely touched the snacks, and never required much entertainment. It sure would have been a lot less to lug around if we had just bought clothes... rookie mistake.
(3) Ashlei off of work - this was one we timed perfectly.
Following the birth, we spent the next 2 days at the hospital in a room significantly smaller than the spacious delivery room. Lots of people came by to visit, which was great (you know who you are... thank you again), and we got a complimentary Stork menu meal through some family friends (again, you know who you are... and thank you very much), and several people sent or brought flowers and candy. We were also lucky enough to have great parents that took care of everything outside of the hospital for those two days so I could stay with Ashlei and Mia. As uncomfortable as the hospital was, I couldn't imagine having to leave Ashlei and Mia there to go take care of the dog, or pick up some clothes we forgot. So, to our parents, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
When not showing off our new bundle to visitors, we spent most of the time learning our way around a baby, including breastfeeding, changing a diaper, dressing a squirming baby, and the art of the swaddle. We're still perfecting that last one. All in all it was a very smooth first few days, which was apparently the exception in the Maternity Care Unit of Howard County General for that week, as apparently they had a run of c-sections that were keeping the nurses busy.
The much talked about sleep deprivation that comes along with a baby wasted no time in making itself known to us... but interestingly not always due to the baby. Mia's clock was backwards, so she actually slept most of the day when not feeding, but was much more active at night. To avoid a total lack of sleep, we simply tried to napped when the baby napped. This would have been a perfect solution if the routine checks by the nurses had coincided with Mia's bizarro schedule. Since they didn't, our morning and evening naps were regularly interrupted. Don't get me wrong, the nurses were great. They helped us a lot in the first few days when we had stupid questions (you mean you're actually going to let us just walk out of here with a baby...just like that?), but the regular checks definitely left us a little worse for wear.
After 2 days, Mia had passed her hearing test, been given her first vaccine shot (Hep B), and both her and Ashlei were discharged with clean bills of health. We were excited to finally take our baby home. We got everything packed and ready to go, put Mia in the car seat and she promptly wailed like a banshee. After a short delay so that Ashlei could feed Mia, we were finally on our way home.
Oh, and as for all of those preparations I mentioned in my previous post:
(1) the phone list - I left it in the car and never used it. I had to wing it with stealth inquiries into my cell phones phone book (cell phones are supposed to always be turned off in the delivery room).
(2) bags - we packed several bags: snacks, entertainment, and clothes. We barely touched the snacks, and never required much entertainment. It sure would have been a lot less to lug around if we had just bought clothes... rookie mistake.
(3) Ashlei off of work - this was one we timed perfectly.
The Arrival
A quick recap to get you up to speed...
Ashlei started going into labor around 6 pm on Monday the 4th, and her water broke around 9:00. We called the OB's answering service since it was after hours and got a quick callback with instructions to head to the hospital. We had prepared everything ahead of time: made a phone list of who to call and when, packed several bags with the things we thought we would need for a 2 day stay at the hospital, and Ashlei was already off of work. With all of the preparation, it still felt frantic from the excitement.
Thankfully the hospital is close to our house, and we were checked into a delivery room by 9:30 pm. After a quick initial exam it was pretty obvious that the baby was most definitely on its way. By 11:00 pm Ashlei was 8 cm dilated (she was 3cm at check-in), but in tremendous pain from virtually non-stop contractions. We didn't really take any visitors due to the constant contractions, other than parents poking their heads in as they arrived.
It was around 11:30 or so when Ashlei opted for an epidural, fearing she wouldn't having the energy to push when the time came. So many people say they want to deliver naturally, but my lesson from this is that there is no way you can proclaim that ahead of time, you just don't know how things are going to go. The epidural helped tremendously, and quickly turned the delivery room from a no-go zone into a lounge. Everyone was able to come in and hang out... yep, hang out. I have to admit, it was a bit odd to see everyone lounging around in the delivery room like it was a cocktail party while I watched contractions go by on the hospital monitors (Ashlei could feel them, but only enough so she knew they were happening, not so much that it even changed her mood). At some point, I'm not exactly sure when, the OB did an exam and told Ashlei it was time to start pushing.
The nurse did some quick preparations, and ran through the process (which, as good educated parents we already knew from our classes... more on the classes later). It would likely take 1 1/2 to 2 hours of pushing, and the baby would be delivered. So, Ashlei started pushing... having never given birth before, we relied on feedback from the nurse on how the pushing was progressing, which is where the epidural comes back into play. The nurse was giving feedback on things to do, but because of the epidural Ashlei couldn't really apply what she was saying to any specific muscular instructions... so we started a process of trial and error to find something that worked. After about an hour, nothing was working, and we started to consider turning off the epidural and letting it drain out Ashlei's system a bit so she had a little more control. That's when the nurse did another exam and found part of the amniotic sac had not fully ruptured and was blocking the baby from coming out. The OB came in and took care of that, and combined with the discovery of a pushing position that worked, pushing was finally working. After about half an hour, the nurse called in the OB for the final delivery.
Only those that have experienced the moments that follow can truly understand the emotions that come over you as you see your baby for the first time. She has blood all over, is covered in "the cheese" (vernix), and generally just looks weird... but at the same time is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen.
I'm not a particularly emotional person, and actually pride myself on being able to be rational in most situations... but this was not one of those situations. As soon as Mia delivered, a wave of emotion that I cannot even explain came over me. I hugged and kissed Ashlei, and cried. I don't recall ever shedding tears of joy, and have never even truly understood their existence, but yet there I was... crying like a baby.
Ashlei started going into labor around 6 pm on Monday the 4th, and her water broke around 9:00. We called the OB's answering service since it was after hours and got a quick callback with instructions to head to the hospital. We had prepared everything ahead of time: made a phone list of who to call and when, packed several bags with the things we thought we would need for a 2 day stay at the hospital, and Ashlei was already off of work. With all of the preparation, it still felt frantic from the excitement.
Thankfully the hospital is close to our house, and we were checked into a delivery room by 9:30 pm. After a quick initial exam it was pretty obvious that the baby was most definitely on its way. By 11:00 pm Ashlei was 8 cm dilated (she was 3cm at check-in), but in tremendous pain from virtually non-stop contractions. We didn't really take any visitors due to the constant contractions, other than parents poking their heads in as they arrived.
It was around 11:30 or so when Ashlei opted for an epidural, fearing she wouldn't having the energy to push when the time came. So many people say they want to deliver naturally, but my lesson from this is that there is no way you can proclaim that ahead of time, you just don't know how things are going to go. The epidural helped tremendously, and quickly turned the delivery room from a no-go zone into a lounge. Everyone was able to come in and hang out... yep, hang out. I have to admit, it was a bit odd to see everyone lounging around in the delivery room like it was a cocktail party while I watched contractions go by on the hospital monitors (Ashlei could feel them, but only enough so she knew they were happening, not so much that it even changed her mood). At some point, I'm not exactly sure when, the OB did an exam and told Ashlei it was time to start pushing.
The nurse did some quick preparations, and ran through the process (which, as good educated parents we already knew from our classes... more on the classes later). It would likely take 1 1/2 to 2 hours of pushing, and the baby would be delivered. So, Ashlei started pushing... having never given birth before, we relied on feedback from the nurse on how the pushing was progressing, which is where the epidural comes back into play. The nurse was giving feedback on things to do, but because of the epidural Ashlei couldn't really apply what she was saying to any specific muscular instructions... so we started a process of trial and error to find something that worked. After about an hour, nothing was working, and we started to consider turning off the epidural and letting it drain out Ashlei's system a bit so she had a little more control. That's when the nurse did another exam and found part of the amniotic sac had not fully ruptured and was blocking the baby from coming out. The OB came in and took care of that, and combined with the discovery of a pushing position that worked, pushing was finally working. After about half an hour, the nurse called in the OB for the final delivery.
Only those that have experienced the moments that follow can truly understand the emotions that come over you as you see your baby for the first time. She has blood all over, is covered in "the cheese" (vernix), and generally just looks weird... but at the same time is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen.
I'm not a particularly emotional person, and actually pride myself on being able to be rational in most situations... but this was not one of those situations. As soon as Mia delivered, a wave of emotion that I cannot even explain came over me. I hugged and kissed Ashlei, and cried. I don't recall ever shedding tears of joy, and have never even truly understood their existence, but yet there I was... crying like a baby.
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