Ella’s here!
So, it’s been a while since I last posted anything on this blog. I tried posting picture updates but tumblr kept rejecting the post 😔
Anyway, since my last post…Ella Angelie Javier was born on February 16, 2012 at 6:31AM at Sharp Mary Birch hospital. She was 6lbs 2oz and 20 in long (except when we went to the pediatrician she shrank to 18 in…we think it’s her long cone head that caused her to be so long at birth…she was in that canal for a while).
As for her delivery….it was the best day of my life (next to our wedding day). I would love to re-live it over and over and over again. It all started in the middle of the night on February 15. I had been experiencing Braxton Higgs contractions throughout the last part of the pregnancy but never at night while I was resting/sleeping. That night/early morning…this pain was different. It felt like she was moving lower down in my pelvic area. The pain was also a little sharper than the Braxton Higgs I had been experiencing. I tried to sleep through the pain but couldn’t. By 3:30AM I woke Zar up to time my contractions. It took a while for us to get to 5-1-1 (contractions 5 minutes apart lasting 1 minute for an hour). In the meantime, I took a shower, we hung out downstairs, got gas for the car, and paid the mortgage (haha). by 9AM we decided it was time to go to the hospital.
When we got to triage I was only 1.5-2 cm dilated. It wasn’t enough for me to get admitted into the hospital so they has us take a 2 hour walk around the hospital. We decided to get a bite to eat at the hospital cafeteria and walk around the campus. 2 hours later…I was 2.5-3cm. Still not enough to get admitted. So we went for another 2 hour walk. This time we walked over the 163 bridge and over to K sandwiches. My motivation to make it to our destination was boba! It was worth it but the pain was getting more and more severe. Finally when we got back from the 2nd walk they admitted me. By this time it was close to 4pm.
Sometime between the time I was admitted and 530/6ish the doctor came in to check on me. Sure enough, I was still only 3-3.5 cm. So…he popped my water bag. It was a warm gush of water. After that…boy did the pain get more intense!
By 630PM (15 hours after the intial pain started) I couldn’t handle it anymore. I was shaking/shivering in between contractions which made it very difficult to relax. I knew I had a long night ahead of me so I decided to ask for the epidural so I could rest. The anesthesiologist came in and by 730 the magical medicine kicked in. I still couldn’t rest though. The shivers became more intense. By 11pm or so I was 6-7 cm. I was progressing but very slowly. By 1:30am I was 9.5 cm. I was very close and very excited!!!!! But that last 0.5 cm didn’t want to budge. Around 3:30am the doctor decided to give me pitocin. Even with the epidural it really hurt. I was trying not to push the button for extra epidural so that I could feel when to push…but it hurt! So, I hit that button a few times. By 5:30am it was time to push. The pitocin helped push the baby a little further down, so I only had to push for 52 minutes! It was an amazing experience. I told Zar I would do it over and over and over again.
And then came the postpartum experience. I didn’t realize how hard it’d be and how much time and attention breast feeding would require. Zar and I were both very exhausted because we didn’t get much sleep the two nights before she was born, so our first night was tough. I was not producing any breast milk yet, so I was up every 2 hours feeding her. The 2nd night was worse. Ella had jaundice so she had to do phototherapy for 24 hours. That must have been the most painful 24 hours (for Zar and I). I cried when they told me we couldn’t pick her up or hold her unless it was to feed her. She was naked under the light, wore a mask over her eyes and we had to give her a pacifier. We also had to make sure she ate regularly, so Zar and I had to feed her using an “sns” technique. We didn’t want her to get nipple confusion and my breasts still needed to be stimulated so we had to put her on my breast but snake a catheter tube into her month near my breast so we could slowly give her formula from a syringe. This process took 20-30 min each feeding. Then I had to sit there and pump (the little that I could). It was very time consuming and eventually frustrating. I cried the first few nights in the hospital and at home. I was tired and I’ll admit…I was sad that Zar’s attention had shifted from me to Ella. It was evident I was no longer the baby. It sucked because I was center of his attention for 9 months and now Ella was. It was a quick and hard transition. Still getting used to it. I shouldn’t complain though. We are blessed with this adorable healthy baby girl and our delivery was complication free. We were very luck. Thank god!
Well Ella is now 12 days old. She’s breastfeeding well. She sleeps pretty good though the night. She only wakes up to feed every 2-3 hours. She doesn’t cry unless she’s hungry or needs to be changed. Zar and I are able to sleep a decent amount. My mom is also here for a month to help us with Ella. She’s watched her a few times so Zar and I could go out on our own. So far we’ve gone to dinner for Boy’s birthday and plaza Bonita for errands and maternity bras (for me). We’ve also taken Ella out on a few field trips …so far she’s been to target, babies r us, tj maxx, home goods, the doctor’s office, sushiya, tapioca express and John and Dar’s house. Overall, she’s been a great baby! Hardly ever fusses. She’s been spoiled though…she likes to be carried. Between all of her guests, my mom and her dad…she’s in someone’s arms 80% of the day. Hopefully she’ll learn to self soothe herself and not always want to be carried. I guess we shall see…
Love ya my baby girl…your smile absolutely melts my heart. I don’t care that you don’t let us sleep and need a ton of attention. You are the most adorable thing and you mean the world to us! Mama loves ya!
