Hadley's Birth Story!

Ok, MIL is getting some Hadley time, so here is your birth story!!! :) Sorry, my kitty dying is intermingled with this story because it's part of the day's events.

On the morning of Black Friday (November 26th), I woke up around 2:30 AM with contractions. They weren't painful, but were coming at regular intervals between 7-20 minutes apart. I went downstairs and watched TV, etc so I wouldn't keep Gregg up. After a bit, I realized that I hadn't yet seen my kitty that day - she was not looking good the night before (breathing funny & just not being herself) & I actually cried at that time (Thanksgiving night) because something in me just told me it was the beginning of the end. I checked her usual spots & couldn't find her anywhere. I laid back down on the couch for a while, read, watched TV, etc & for some reason, though to check for her in the basement. As soon as I saw her lying on the concrete (something she would never normally do) and she didn't respond when I said her name (I didn't get close enough), I knew that she was gone. I was so, so sad. She was only 7 years old & she was a dating anniversary gift from Gregg for our 2nd anniversary. It was around 4:30 AM at this time & I ran upstairs to Gregg & woke him up: "Baby - um, two things...I think Faithy died and I'm in labor" - according to him, that was not the way he had planned on waking up that morning.

He went down into the basement and confirmed that she was gone & then texted his mom & dad so that they would call when they woke up. I continued with contractions throughout the morning until his dad called back. They were shocked at the news of Faithy passing & his Dad came over to take care of her. I wanted to see her to get some closure, but her eyes were open (according to G) and they could not be shut again, so I didn't get to see her. We drove over to G's parents' house & she was buried in their "pet cemetary" behind their house. G had basketball practice, so I stayed at his parents' house and continued laboring while he was gone (yeah, I know, I told him to go to practice...LOL). His mom and one of his sisters (Mel) timed my contractions all morning/afternoon. They were continuing to get stronger throughout the day & definitely becoming more regular. When they were about 7 minutes apart, I texted my mom and told her that I thought it was the real thing (after G's mom felt my contractions in my stomach and confirmed that this was most likely true labor).

We went home & I got showered & then we called the doctor around 3:30 when my contractions were about 5 minutes apart. Gregg had to take the call from the doctor when she returned our call (it goes to the answering service first) because I was busy throwing up. Despite the fact that my contractions were 4-5 minutes apart at this time, they told us to wait an hour and then leave for the hospital. My contractions were definitely stronger at this point & I was SO upset that we weren't able to go to the hospital yet. I was face-down on my exercise ball with a heating pad on my back, or with G rubbing my back constantly. We determined that my parents were about an hour away, so we waited for them to get there & then we left immediately.

The car ride was not a fun one & it seemed to take forever with lots of curvy, windy roads, despite the fact that it was only about 25 minutes. When we got there around 5PM, we went to L&D to get checked in & they told me that I needed to wait in the waiting room because they didn't have room for me. I was SO upset, I'm surprised I didn't cry. I ended up kneeling on the floor in front of one of the waiting room chairs, with my face in the chair, while mom or G rubbed my back and I breathed through all of the contractions, which were gaining in strength and frequency. To make matters worse, there were some annoying kids in the waiting room and I think I remember telling my mom that I was going to kill them - LOL.

After FORTY FIVE MINUTES (5:45pm) of laboring in the waiting room (there were about 4 other pg women there, but none as obviously into labor as I was), I was finally taken back into a triage room. A midwife came in to check me and immediately said, "whoa! We've got an active one - she's 8cm!" We were shocked! I knew the contractions were strong, but I was breathing through them and didn't think they were THAT awful. The doctor came in and I pretty much had to decide on the spot whether I wanted an epidural or not. I told her that I felt really good, but I was worried about the pushing part. She said, "I won't lie, the pushing is intense, but you're really going to feel that part either way" so I decided to tough it out (which is good since the anesthesiologist never got around to seeing me anyway, which they're supposed to do either way). They moved me to an L&D room & checked me again maybe half an hour later (6:30) and I was 9cm. The doctor broke my water & an hour later, I was 10 cm. I really didn't notice a difference in the strength of my contractions until the very end (right before I was checked at 10cm) - the nurse told me that if I felt the urge to push, I should take a deep breath in and breathe out in spurts like I'm blowing out candles - those were the hardest ones by far.

Once I was able to push, it was actually a great relief - fighting the pushing was definitely the worst part of labor. I began pushing around 8:15pm. There was definitely a learning curve in learning how to push, but the doctor and nurse were both great with encouragement & G was there the whole time with my ice chips, rubbing my back. After about an hour of pushing, I started to get really frustrated because I felt like I was doing it wrong or that it should be going faster, but the dr. assured me I was doing an amazing job. I remember both she & the nurse saying that they seriously should have made an educational video about laboring on me because they never ever would have guessed that I didn't have an epidural - I was one of the best "breathe through it" patients they ever saw! They encouraged me to change pushing positions (on my side) and those really helped to bring her down. Just before 2 hours, they switched me back to my back and I knew it must be time because they took off the bottom of my table, put up the stirrups & the dr. put on her gown. About 5 pushes later, I felt her head come out & another push or two came her shoulders & she was out! I did not even feel the "ring of fire" that so many women talk about - I honestly don't remember any pain during the pushing process - it was just exhausting...I think my nerve endings must be dead down there or something! :) And I was so proud of Gregg, he watched the whole thing and didn't pass out or get sick or anything (HUGE accomplishment for him)! Hadley Rebecca Scholl was born at 10:08PM, 19 inches long, weighing 6lb, 8oz! She had dark blue eyes and a little bit of brownish hair. They put her on my chest and it was all just so surreal - I almost felt like it was happening to someone else - some kind of out-of-body experience.

H was whisked away to the nursery (G went along) because they wanted to check her breathing (she was "grunting" a bit), but everything was fine. I delivered the afterbirth & was stitched back up for my 2nd degree tear & then I ended up watching What Not To Wear on TV alone in the room for 45 minutes while G was gone, even though I had asked the nurse to go get my family, which they never did. Our parents, G & H all ended up coming back at the same time and stayed with us until about midnight. I was so glad that both sets of parents could be there to see her right away. Though we hadn't planned on it, we ended up sending H to the nursery that night because we were both so exhausted and needed to get some sleep...of course I couldn't sleep anyway due to worrying about her, plus being on the adrenaline high, but that's a whole different story!

My doctor was amazing throughout the whole thing - before coming to me, she had only had an emergency c-section & then I was her only patient. She sat on the bottom of my bed the entire time - there are about 10 doctors at the practice and if I could have chosen, she would have been the one that I wanted, so I was SO happy when I knew she would be with me.

We texted Becki to tell her the good news and she cried when she heard the name - she said it was just perfect and she couldn't wait to meet her!

In the end, we said it's almost as though Faithy (our kitty) was like our filler baby - one angel left us just as the other came into our lives...

39 weeks!

Here is me on Thanksgiving day with the animals protecting Hadley...one day before she was born...
Here I am at my in-laws' house the day that Hadley was born. Gregg was at basketball practice, so his mom and sister were timing my contractions while he was gone. Max, their dog, has always been my little buddy, but this goes to show that dogs really do have a sixth sense. During a contraction, he jumped up on the couch and put his paw on my belly!

Here is me at 39 weeks, in the hospital (at 8cm dilated) just about 4 hours before Hadley was born! We had just been checked into a room after laboring in the waiting room for 45 minutes (and at home all day!)

38 weeks!

Today, I am officially 38w4d - holy moly! I had an appointment and everything appears to be great. My blood pressure was good & my weight has seemed to reach a plateau with exactly 25lb gained. Hadley's heartbeat sounded great & the nurse even commented on how active she was (as always)! We also found out that I'm about 1-2cm dilated, 40-50% effaced, and my cervix is soft & high - all good signs that my body is preparing itself just like it should! As the nurse practitioner said, I'm getting a lot of the leg-work of labor done ahead of time, which is excellent since all of my contractions have been non-painful!

So now we just continue to wait...and wait...and wonder if today is the day that little Hadley will finally decide to make her appearance! I've been bored out of my mind at home, so going to the doctor is actually a great distraction, which I'm thankful for! I'm so glad that G will be home for 5 days in a row to keep me company!

Next appointment scheduled for next Tuesday!

Christmas!

Can I just say how much I LOVE Christmas? I love everything about it and I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve already broken out the Christmas music a time or two, much to the dismay of my husband (but hey – at least I listen to it privately since I know how much it irks him to listen to it any time before Black Friday)!

This year is especially exciting for us because it will be the first Christmas in five years that will NOT be marked by sadness, emptiness, and longing for a child. Don’t get me wrong, I always managed to find a way to enjoy the holiday season (it is, after all, my favorite time of year), but I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge that there was always something missing – that Child-like wonder that comes with Christmas is hard to find when a) all you can think about is having a child to share that joy with and create family traditions with and b) a very special baby IS the reason that we celebrate Christmas in the first place.

I remember last year being particularly depressing because, for a short time, we had been pregnant & the thought of family Christmas cards joyously passed through my head, but then our loss shattered all of that & I was once again feeling bummed that we were just sending out plain, generic Christmas cards….friends encouraged me to send them out as a family of two, but it just didn’t seem right to me given that we had no big event to share with everyone.

So this year, we’re very excited to actually make Christmas cards to announce the birth of our precious little miracle, Hadley. I’ve been browsing the cards on Shutterfly and there are so many options, my head is spinning! I think these two are my favorites & once we get our pictures done and see what we have to work with, I’ll be able to make a better decision, since I need to figure out the wording & how much we’ll be able to fit in! And once she’s big enough, I’ll take pics every month & make photo calendars for Christmas gifts, too! ☺

Check it all out! There’s a new promotion where Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly http://bit.ly/sfly2010 !!!

37 weeks!

Here we are! 37.5 weeks and no sign of baby H anytime soon (despite the fact that I predicted her to come tomorrow)! We had a bit of a scare on Friday night when I was getting some close contractions & having some pain throughout my middle where I was having trouble breathing deeply & I couldn't comfortably sit or lie down...that lasted about half an hour & left as quickly as it came! All has been quiet since then!

Friday was my last day of work and the parents of my 4-year-olds threw me a little shower/ice cream party for the kids. They each gave me a book & a very generous gift card to Target, which I'm sure we'll find many ways to spend! It was really bittersweet to tell you the truth - I do love my job, but I couldn't cry because I'm so excited for the work I get to do at home very soon! My boss cried as I handed over my keys and another co-worker/friend cried, too...I promised the kids I would be back to see them graduate at the end of the year, though!

My parents came over the weekend & my dad finished up some handy-man things in the nursery for us - we got the quilt hung that was a gift to Hadley from our nieces. My dad also hung the over-head light, the blind, and the shelf for her "collectibles" (My poor dad always has a running to-do list when he comes!)

I had my 37w appointment today & everything looks good. The doctor said that my group B strep test came back negative (woo hoo!), her heartbeat sounds great, my blood pressure is excellent & based on the ultrasound a few weeks ago, H is measuring in the 33rd percentile (little bugger!). I also opted for the internal exam today (SO not as bad as the horror stories you hear - unless maybe my dr. was gentle??) & found out that I'm 1cm dilated...which basically means nothing, but at least now I know!

Pictures, pictures!!!

36 weeks!

Wow! 36 weeks! I can't hardly believe it! Let's see what's happened since I last wrote...

On Thursday, the parents of my 3-year-olds threw me a surprise "Books for Babies" shower - it was really cute and I got some very nice books (and a couple other little goodies) for baby Hadley! It was so sweet and certainly not expected.

Then, on Sunday, G & I got up to get ready for church as normal. I wasn't feeling completely like myself & I ended up throwing up right before we left...I assumed it was pre-labor or something like that, but as I ran out of the sanctuary (completely missing communion) for fear that I wouldn't make it in time before throwing up (which I did - but just barely), I started thinking that I was actually sick instead. As we headed home, it was confirmed as I only made it to the front porch railing before becoming sick a third time! Let's just say my Sunday was awful & involved me unsuccessfully trying to suck down liquids all day & 3 phone calls to the on-call doctor to make sure that baby would be ok (I also had a fever up in the 101s). I took yesterday off of work since I hadn't eaten, drank, or slept in over a day. I was dehydrated big time, but the doctor assured me that "baby gets what baby needs" and that it was just me left feeling miserable.

Today, I returned to work & had a nice surprise little shower with the daycare kids! It was so sweet - they all made cards and got a neat toy for Hadley! After our staff meeting, I then had a doctor's appointment & everything looked great. Gregg came along with me, so he got to hear the HB & they also did the group B strep test (I'll get the results at my appt. next week). The doctor offered to do an internal since she was already down there, but I opted against it since I didn't want to deal with any of the spotting or anything that COULD happen. This is the first of our weekly appointments from here on out, which is exciting and scary at the same time!

My parents are coming for a visit this weekend & Friday is my last day of work, so I've got lots to look forward to (although it sure will be weird not getting up and going to work next week)!

And some pictures...the first is our nephew Max looking for the watermelon....

35 weeks!!

I can't believe we're already at 35.5 weeks! WHOA BABY! My belly is getting bigger by the minute, I swear - even my co-workers can't help but comment how much I've grown each weekend when I come back to work on Monday. In general, I still feel pretty good & I don't seem to have as much of the back/belly-spot pain that I had been having - now it's more of just a hip pain while I'm trying to sleep. Once the tylenol wears off, I just can't seem to get comfortable again.

Otherwise, there isn't much new news to report. Hadley's still been moving around like a mad-woman at night, making me wonder if I've eaten something she did (or didn't) like. I go back to the dr. next week for my group B strep test & my regular check-up & then my weekly appointments start (if we make it that far). I haven't been having a ton of braxton hicks contractions or anything, so I would be surprised if we found out that I was dilated at all (if they even do an internal exam).

Here I am in my Halloween costume for preschool at 35 weeks exactly!

And here is Hadley's homecoming outfit (sorry it's a bit blurry - it was with my phone)

34 weeks!

I got chastised by my loving husband last week for posting the 33 week update the day before I became 34 weeks, so I decided to get on top of things & take advantage of my day off of work to post on time this week!

I had my ultrasound this morning to check on Hadley's growth (since I had lost weight last week & she was stuck at 31w, according to the fundal measurement). Everything looked perfect. All of the measurements came back between 33w4d & 34w5d (I think). She is still a girl (LOL), weighs about 5 pounds and is head-down! The u/s tech commented on how active our little bugger is & I think that means we're in for it when she gets here since so many ultrasound techs have told us that - I figure they see babies all the time, so for her to mention something, H must be extraordinarily active! The tech actually saw my stomach bulge as she stuck a foot out the side! LOL! What a crazy girl!

I go back to the dr. in 2 weeks (Nov. 9th) for my 36w appt and my group B strep test. I got the OK to stop my baby aspirin & folic acid - wow, we are really nearing the end of this! I'll update later with pics from the wedding we went to over the weekend (for my 34w belly shot!) and next week's post with pics of me in my Halloween costume for preschool :)

33 weeks!

The weeks are just flying by now! I can't believe that little Hadley will actually be here in (most likely) less than six weeks!!! We are so excited, but still in that surreal, this-isn't-really-happening-to-us, state of mind. Her room is all ready to go, my bag is packed (G's will be after this weekend) & basically all that's left to do is get the car seats installed in the car (which we will do after next weekend since G's going to a Penn State game & his seats will all be used)!

I had a shower with my (former) cheerleaders last week & that was a lot of fun! They are doing such an amazing job this year & I'm sad that I have to miss it, but also very realistic in knowing that I just don't have the time (or energy) for it this year! They "surprised" me (they didn't know that I actually knew about it) with a little shower after one of their practices. Five of the girls gave gifts & 11 others contributed toward the squad gift of a high chair & outfits. They are so excited to meet her - I promised she would come to a basketball game (and maybe a competition?) this winter, decked out in a little team onesie!

My co-workers also threw me a shower last weekend at a cute little tea room near where we work. It was so special & I had such a great time. I'll have to see if I can get a few pics from it to put on (someone printed out pics for me, but I have no digital ones of my own).

Work has been interesting - I decreased my hours starting this week, so it has been nice to sleep in (when I can actually sleep) that extra hour...even if I don't sleep, though, it does help to alleviate a little stress, knowing that I don't have to rush around so much in the morning. My kids are doing well, for the most part & my replacement is starting to pick up a lesson or two here & there, to get the kids used to her. I just finished progress reports, so now I feel like whenever I leave, I've finished all of the big things that I needed to do.

Apparently, there is some sort of drama going on amongst the moms of my 4-year-olds - and if you know me, I am SO NOT into drama, so I'm interested to see how it all pans out. According to my boss, 2 of the moms took it upon themselves to plan another shower for me (yes, that makes shower #5!). The only problem is that they aren't working together to do it & neither one of them wants to relinquish control to the other, so it sounds like one big mess! Maybe Hadley will decide to come before they get the chance to do it???? Ok, not that I really want that to happen, but you know...

Finally, I had my 34 w appt yesterday. The HB sounded great - we could actually hear Hadley moving on the doppler, the little acrobat!, but my fundal measurement is coming up almost 3 weeks behind (it was 31 at the last appt & now 31 at this appt)...the nurse practitioner was not at all concerned about it, but wanted me to go for an ultrasound since I had actually lost half a pound since my last appointment two weeks ago & my fundal measurement had not changed. She wanted me to go for the ultrasound in two weeks, but I wasn't happy with waiting that long, so they managed to squeeze me in next Tuesday instead...I'm not really worried about it, but at the same time, I would be lying if I said I wasn't slightly concerned. I've been trying to load up more on my calorie intake (who has to worry about LOSING weight DURING pregnancy???) and drink, drink, drink! At least we have a wedding to travel to this weekend, to keep our minds off of things!

I'll keep you posted! Please keep our little girl in your prayers!!

This is me at 33w, after the breast cancer 5K (walk)!

And if I can figure out how, I'll upload the 7sec video that G took of our little jumping bean in my belly!

32 weeks!

I honestly can't believe we're at this point - I'm 2 days shy of being 33 weeks at which time, I'll have 7 weeks left until my due date and only 4 weeks left of work (if I make it to either of those dates). I truly cannot believe that we're almost at the end of this pregnancy, that we'll really get to meet our little girl very soon! It's all so overwhelming, but still so incredibly surreal. I have to remind myself DAILY (even with the aching back & bulging stomach) that I'm actually pregnant & that our long and drawn out dream of becoming parents is actually going to become a reality very soon...

I still feel like I have so much to do, even though we've really done almost everything we can to prepare. I just have a few odds and ends to tie up...progress reports at work, shower thank-yous, finish packing our hospital bags, make my ipod list for labor (I'm hoping it's a viable distraction) & getting the car seats installed in our cars. All of the shower gifts have been cleaned & put away, all of the nursery items have been purchased & we've even picked out Hadley's home-coming outfit! Now all she needs to do is stay in there and cook for at least another 5 weeks!

I had my second shower this past weekend & I had an awesome time! My mom threw an amazing shower & everyone was again so generous! Time for pictures!

31 weeks!

These past few weeks have really been flying by! Last week was particularly exciting because I had my first shower (something I never thought I would get to have)! People were so amazingly generous to our little Hadley - our living room was filled to the gills when we brought it all home from my in-law's house! I had a good time the next day, putting everything away, doing laundry, etc.

This past week, pregnancy has really hit me hard & for the first time, I really FEEL pregnant. I have a pain in my back that just will NOT go away & a pain just below my ribs in the front that seems to be here to stay for the duration, as well. The doctor basically said it's from stretching and there's nothing that can be done about it besides Tylenol, which stinks, since I hate to medicate unless I REALLY need to. I was hoping that there were some stretches or something that would help, but so far, I haven't found anything that eases the pain.

I had my 32w appointment yesterday. My blood pressure looked good, my weight was up to 124 (up 21lb from the start) & Hadley's HB was right in the 140s-150s, just where it should be. He didn't give my belly measurement, but said that it looked good & I got my flu shot, as well!

I just looked at my calendar and realized that I only have 25 more days of work to go - um WOW! I have another shower this coming weekend back home with my family & friends there - I am SO excited :)

Pictures...

30 weeks!

Whoa, baby! 30 weeks is here & I can't believe that our little one will be here within 10 weeks (most likely)! I've continued to feel pretty good, though I have to admit that I can feel the tiredness/exhausting beginning to set in. I've been sleeping ok for the most part, though last night I woke up after just an hour of sleeping & had a hard time falling back to sleep. Hopefully I can get to bed early tonight.

I've been having a spot of pain in my back that seems to directly correlate with a tender spot on my front, at the top of my belly, where my belly & ribs meet. It's the same spot that first started to become numb around 12 weeks, but the PA basically said it was nothing...I think I'll be asking about that again next week at my appointment. It's actually so tender at times (feels like it's bruised actually) that I've had to put a heating pad/bag on it here or there).

Over the weekend, we took Hadley to her first unofficial Penn State game! It was a great (but boring) game! This weekend is my first shower & I'm SO excited :) Yay!!

28-29 weeks!

I CANNOT believe we're swiftly closing in on the BIG 3-0! I can honestly say that I'm feeling great and I have no complaints. I'm sure the 3rd trimester will kick me in the butt in the next 2 months or so, but for right now, I still feel like I must be in the 2nd tri because I feel great! All of the moms of my students can't get over how tiny my belly is and how good I'm still looking/feeling. After such a struggle to get here, I can honestly say that I can't get over it either - this pregnancy has been nothing short of a miracle from start to (so far) finish! Let's hope that L&D go just as smoothly, right?

A few picture updates are in order - 28 & 29 week belly pics & nursery updates below..