We didn't have a huge party this year but the day was still very nice! Connor got tons of presents thanks to Grandma Kelly who came over and spoiled him big time. Of course, we got him a few gifts too! I bought him a couple of Cars and yet another Thomas the Train set. They had Tidmouth Sheds at Toys R Us the other day and it was 20% off so I couldn't resist. Now, Connor has somewhere to park his plethora of Thomas trains.
I took a couple other photos of our busy yet quiet birthday party for the little man. It's hard to believe he's already three years old. It sometimes feels like he was just born. I thought it'd be fun to post a birth story I wrote a couple days after he was born. So here are a couple more photos from his 3rd birthday and then his birth story which I wrote exactly three years ago today.
 |
| The cupcakes that I later decorated and took to his daycare to share. |
 |
| New train set! |
 |
| Aleena having yet another tantrum. |
 |
| Connor getting ready to blow out the candle on the cupcake! Bigger isn't always better! |
Connor's Birth Story
September 19, 2008
Last week was a very difficult week for my whole family. My uncle had passed away very suddenly in an accident at work. My family is very close and this was very stressful for everyone including myself! Here is his obituary Obituary and the newsstory about his death. News Story
He passed away on Sunday. I was still working last week and had planned on working until my due date which was supposed to be today. I had an OB appointment last Tuesday where my doctor told me that nothing had started progressing yet and I wouldn't be having my baby this week. I didn't mind as the funeral was on Saturday and I was a week and a half away from my due date anyway.
On Wednesday, Jeremy and I went to our first breastfeeding class put on by our local health district. I felt very sick before the class started and spent the first few minutes in the washroom clearing out the system. I won't get into details about that part! I thought it was because I ate KFC for supper...we'll call that my last pregnancy craving.
Everything else was normal for the rest of the night. I felt much better, we made it through the class and I went home to find a message asking if Jeremy and I would help out at the funeral. I called back and said we would since the doctor seemed to think I'd be waiting awhile yet.
At about 2:30 am, I woke up to go to the washroom as per usual and felt some cramping. I didn't think much of it. I just thought it meant I was starting to finally dilate and labour would still be a week or two away at least. I tried getting back to sleep but couldn't. That morning, I thought about calling in sick to work but my replacement was coming in and I didn't want to miss the chance to speak with him. I am a teacher and I love my students and wanted to be sure they'd be taken care of properly once I was gone.
Throughout the morning, the light cramps continued and I still didn't think much of it until around noon when I was starting to feel a bit wet. I went to the washroom and noticed I was very wet. For the next hour, I knew it was my water breaking. I was somewhat in denial as there was no other evidence that I was in labour before the water broke. I told my principal I wasn't feeling well and he told me to go home. He asked my friend to take me but I insisted I could drive as I thought it would be awhile before I'd actually be in labour. As I drove home, the cramps (aka contractions) got stronger. I called Health Line and asked a few questions as I didn't want to waste my time going to the hospital if I was going to be sent home right away. The nurse told me to get checked out as it sounded like my water had indeed broken so I called my Jeremy. She also asked me to time my contractions and I discovered they were already 4 minutes apart. I felt kind of silly thinking it was just cramps but that's how it felt.
Jeremy took me to the hospital where I was admitted right away. I was checked and was already 3 cm dilated and 75% effaced. This was at 1:30 pm and I had left work around noon. I spent the next couple of hours walking around the hospital and dealing with the contractions which were all wonderful back pain. It became excruciatingly painful and I asked for an epidural. My nurse was awesome and had the anesthesiologist giving me the epidural within a few minutes. I went from nauseous and ready to pass out to a blissful oblivion. I felt almost no pain immediately and Jeremy and I spent the next while doing an acrostic puzzle in a puzzle book. My parents drove from Lanigan to Regina and spent time with us too. My Mom actually watched the delivery which I had never intended initially but when the situation arose, I wanted her there and didn't care where she was in the room. The fact that Jeremy passed out during the epidural made me think I might be on my own during delivery so I wanted a backup. I would just like to add that Jeremy was wonderful during the delivery and has been ever since. I think it was just a needle thing but it made for a funny story and he received a bit of razzing about it. When I got the epidural, I was a "good 3 cm" dilated. An hour later, I was at 8 cm. Apparently, the epidural sped things up very nicely. Over the next couple of hours, I just waited for the contractions to get stronger and was told to tell them when I felt like pushing. It's really interesting how you still feel that need to push even though half of your body is numb.
Around 8:00 pm, I told them I was ready to push so they checked and I was fully dilated. The baby's heartrate was fluctuating a lot and they wanted to get him out as fast as possible so I agreed to let the doctor use a vacuum. I really wish it hadn't been necessary but there was a real risk to pushing a long time when the baby was in distress. So, literally about 15 minutes of pushing (or possibly less), Connor was welcomed into the world. They put him on me and I believe my words first were "He's so cute!!" I was so relieved and happy to have a healthy baby in my arms. There was an increased risk for Down's Syndrome and it had been in the back of my mind all along. We chose not to do an amnio as I was quite far long when this all came to light and our genetic specialist also recommended against it as he didn't feel the risk was that high. Of course, the fact we even had to see a genetic specialist freaked me out.
So, after five days in the hospital, we finally came home and it's been tiring, exciting, emotional, and wonderful all at the same time. Connor had jaundice because of the bruising from using the vacuum. We are still waiting for the swelling to come down completely. We have to take him for another blood test today to check the jaundice levels but he hasn't needed lamping since Monday so we're hopeful that it's cleared up. The doctor just want to see that the trend is improving I think.
As for the funeral, obviously we didn't make it but my family was thrilled and delighted to have something positive happen in the midst of such grief. I will always remember my uncle and have a special place in my heart for him especially since Connor was born during this time. I honestly believe that the stress of everything is likely was prompted a somewhat early delivery but I don't mind in the least!
So, Connor was 6 pounds 9 ounces at birth and born at 8:33 pm on September 11th.
Here's some pics of our little guy...
