Birth Story Part 2

Well, well, well.... Look what the cat dragged in!! It has been a really long time. Ella is a year old now!!!

I just realized that I never did finish her Birth Story, and I really want to! I want to do it for Ella. I want her to be able to read about her birth someday. I am a reallllyy bad blogger, and probably wont ever get any better. But I at least want to finish my Birth Story before Ella can drive. lol

So last I left you, the nurse told me that whenever I felt like I was ready to push to call her. Well the epi was kinda working, and I was feeling ok. So we were just hanging out with the family. Chatting, taking pics and thinking about what our sweet Ella would look like when she came. At some point during this time they started wheeling in all the equipment. They flipped down this GIANT light from the ceiling. I felt like I was on the set of a movie with all the lighting that was being set up! lol They also brought in the warmer and weighing station for when she was born. Along with the cart with all the tools. Yikes! Don't look at those!!

We sat around for probably 30 mins to an hour. Then it hit me... I need to push! So said "Guys, I kinda feel like I need to push. Can someone call the nurse?" That was all it took... my Father in Law and best friend Lauren were fighting over who could get out the door faster!! HAHA Everyone gave me a kiss and wished me luck and off they went to the waiting room.

My doctor had told me only 2 people aside from me could be in the delivery room, which really upset me. I wanted Brett, my mom, my mother in law and my photographer in the room. I had paid all this money for the photographer and she wasnt even going to be in the room! We assumed that as soon as the nurse came in and I started pushing they would kick out my MIL and Keri (photographer). But she came strolling in and didn't say a word!! So we didn't say anything either.

So the nurse started getting everything ready and checked me again. She said that Ella had dropped and we were gonna start getting ready to push. I had always thought that I was going to be really nervous about this part. The whole pregnancy I was so stressed about the actual delivery. But for whatever reason I was not really nervous at all. Maybe it was the adrenaline that was flowing through me, but whatever it was I am glad I wasn't nervous! Now this might start getting a little TMI but they start "stretching" you out down there so you don't tear as badly. So she started doing her thing to me, and she also taught me how to position myself and hold my legs. Then she taught Brett and my mom how to hold my legs/feet and how to count. Every time I had to push Brett would count to 10, but he couldn't count fast. I remember pushing and wanting him to count faster and she kept telling him to slow down! lol




So after some tips on how to push more effectively I was well on my way to meeting my angel. She told me not to look at the monitor to see when I was contracting, just push when I felt the need. Which did feel like it was ALL the time! HA! At first she wasn't happy with the progress I was making pushing, but eventually I got the hang of it and started pushing better. Let me just add in, Brett was soooo great during this process. He was encouraging and comforting and praising me constantly. He had one leg, my mom had the other, JoJo was up by one side of my head kinda in the corner, and my photographer was kinda walking around getting pictures from all angles (except the bad angles! ha).

After about 20-30 minutes of pushing Brett started being able to see her head! He was SO excited about that. He kept telling me, "OH MY GOD, there she is!!She is so close Leila, keep going!!" And then after I quit pushing her head would disappear. After about 10 mins of that he said her head would just stay in view even in between pushes. I will never forget the thrill and excitement in his voice. And my mom, well she was just beside herself too. Everyone was so ready to meet her. At one point my mom needed a break from holding my leg and told JoJo she could step in for a few minutes if she wanted to. Talk about getting to know your daughter in law a little better!! HAHA! She was right in there, and let me tell you. I could have cared less who was in that room at that moment, so it didn't bother me at all!

Finally after about 30-40 mins of pushing the nurse told me we were getting really close and she was going to get the Dr soon. She said when I tell you to stop pushing, stop. So I was mid-push, Brett was doing his counting thing and was at probably "6" and she said STOP! WHAT?? I have 4 more seconds and I really needed to keep pushing! Ok, I will try to stop pushing! Finally in walks the Dr, and he gets in position and we resume pushing again. By the way, let me mention there was A LOT of pain during all this. There was no epi left and I am pretty sure I was feeling EVERYTHING. I was crying a lot and screaming a little (which I don't remember much of).

I was getting really close to getting her out and Brett kept telling me how much he could see of her head. I remember him saying "Oh I can see a little curl in her hair!" The Dr gave Brett the scissors to cut the umbilical cord and I said "Does someone have the cord blood kit??". We had decided that we were going to bank Ella's cord blood, and well apparently the Dr had no idea! He said "Oh we are banking??" YES!!!! Thank goodness I said something because if I hadn't it wouldn't have been done and I would have been so mad! So they got the kit ready to bank her cord blood.

Then it hit.... the RING OF FIRE. For those of you who don't know, its what we mom's experience when the baby is right on the verge of being born. It feels like what it sounds like. Intense pain!! Well the Dr said I am going to give you a little shot to numb you. I just assumed it was because she was almost out and he was going to do me a favor. Well apparently he decided that I needed some assistance and he gave me an episiotomy, which I did NOT want. Remember my Dr was out of town and she knew what I wanted and didn't want. This Dr didn't know anything about me and didn't bother to ask! I didn't know until way after Ella was born that he had cut me, but once he did it, she came right out!! At 10:05 pm Ella Lynn Thornburg entered the world. 50 minutes after starting to push and almost exactly 14 hours after my first contraction of the morning. Wow.






Let me tell you, it was pretty much the most indescribable, unbelievable moment in my life when they laid her on my chest. Like the entire world just stood still when I looked at her face. She opened her eyes and that was it... I was gone, I was in another world... Ella's World. I had told the Dr that unless something was wrong with her I didn't want them to take her from me. I wanted to keep her on my chest for as long as possible. (I had read that having that initial contact with mom and baby is very important and I didn't want them rushing her off to clean her and weigh her). Thank goodness they didn't take her. What was odd was she wasn't really crying. They listened to her and said she sounded ok, but she just was kinda quietly whining. So they started hitting her under the arm to try to get her to clear the crap from her lungs and start crying. She eventually cried a little but never really went into full on crying.








They cleaned her off while she was laying on my chest. And there she stayed for probably 45 minutes. The Dr did his thing and got me cleaned up and the nurses finally asked if they could take her to weigh her. I guess... I don't want her out of my arms!! I finally let them take her and they weighed her, 7 lbs 2 ounces and 19.25 inches long. Brett was in awe of her as much as I was. We shared many kisses and tears during the first hour of her life. Thankfully JoJo was videotaping during this time because its kinda like your wedding day. It goes by so fast and then in the end you can hardly remember anything!








Watching Brett hold Ella for the first time is a moment I will never forget. I bawled like a baby. It was a dream. We had tried for almost a year to have her, and then here she was. It was unreal. The my mom and JoJo took turns holding her. Watching my mom hold her was another great moment... she has wanted a grandchild for a VERY long time. And now she had one.








She came out a hungry girl so I tried to breastfeed, but she didn't latch on immediately. Apparently my family in the waiting room was about to tear down the door to get in there. Nurses were coming in telling us that they were going insane and getting impatient. So we decided to let everyone in and then try to feed her again after that. Come on in and meet ELLA!!

A rush of people came in. First to my bed was my dad, my sister in law Ashlie and my father in law Al. They were all beyond excited. Ashlie and I cried together of course. We grew VERY close during my pregnancy and the moment when she saw Ella will also stay in my mind forever. The list of family members that were there were: My Grandparents from Iran, my Aunt Effy and her husband Todd, Lauren and Richard, Andrea, and of course my parents, Brett's parents and Ashlie.





















After everyone got their turn with her people started slowly leaving. I worked on feeding her again and she latched right on!! Thank goodness. And what a weird feeling!! Eventually I got up and used the bathroom (something they make you do before you get moved into your postpartum room). And we got everything moved over to our new home for the next 2 days. I WAS STARVING. Richard and Lauren were nice enough to go get food... Whataburger!! HA! My mom, Lauren and Richard, and Ashlie were the only ones who stayed with us until we got moved to our new room. It was late and everyone had to work the next day. I am still so thankful that everyone stayed out past their bedtime to experience the first moments of Ella's life with us.

She is the most amazing thing in this world... cant really put into words the feelings I have for her. Now at a year old, she is into everything and driving me crazy. But I wouldn't change anything!! She is running around the house, talking up a storm (she has a vocabulary of a 2 year old! lol the Dr is highly impressed)and is pretty much running every one's life that is around her!

Ella Lynn, your Mommy and Daddy are so very thankful for you. We thank God for you every single day. Thank you for completing our lives.

Birth Story Part 1

Wow... its been three months!! I'm a bad blogger! Sorry to anyone who actually tries to follow this thing :)As you can imagine there isn't a lot of time to blog now that I have a 3 month old, but I am going to try to get back into it again. I'll only be able to do it while she is napping and in between loads of laundry and working from home. That's right... I get to work from home 2 days a week! I have the greatest boss (thanks dad!) that wants me to be able to spend as much time as I can with Ella so I work in the office on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and home on Tuesday and Thursday. Its perfect!!

Ok so where did I leave off?? That's right... contractions 5 mins apart and lots of pain. So as you can imagine that was it! Brett got home about 12:45 PM or so, showered and grabbed a sandwich to eat on the way to the hospital. He loaded up our car and was shocked by how much stuff I insisted on bringing. Hey, I had no idea what to expect so I just packed everything I could even imagine we might need! lol

We got to my Dr's office about 1:30 and I got checked by some Dr I had never met. Remember my Dr was in California at a triathlon. Bummer!! So they checked me and I was at a 3. They said, we are sending you upstairs to be admitted! YAY!!! I was so thrilled... I had told Brett that if I wasn't at least at a 3 I was going to punch the Dr in stomach! lol A nurse walked Brett and I up to labor and delivery and they started the process of checking me in. Let me tell you, they need to figure out another way check in women in labor. Why are you making me fill forms out and sign like 100 things like I am buying a house?! I AM IN LABOR!! Its hard enough to remember to breathe and now you want me to read and sign all this stuff? Yeah Right!

I have to thank my L&D nurse friend Lauren ... she told me to bring chocolate for the nurses because they LOVE that. So we had a basket of ghirardelli chocolate for them. Boy was that a hit! Every nurse and Dr hit up the chocolate...and I am convinced it made them want to come to my room to check on me more often :)Thanks for that advice Lauren!




Anyway, we called all our family but told them to stay at home for a little while until I was totally checked in. Of course that didn't last long...my Mom was about to pass out excited so we went ahead and told everyone to head up to the hospital. Brett went down to move the truck and start bringing in all of our gear that we brought.

After they got all the monitors hooked up and my IV in (OUCH!) they checked me again and I was at a 4. The nurse told me that there were like 5 other women in labor at that time so if I wanted an epidural I should go ahead and say so cause it would be a while before the anesthesiologist would be able to get to me. So I said well I am ok now, but if its gonna take him awhile to get to me put me on the list. 45 mins later I was in some really good pain and the nurse checked me again... I was at a 5. Ok where is that dude with the pain meds?! I really want my epidural now!!!

Finally about an hour after I asked for it the first time he came in and gave me the epidural. Its not nearly as painful as I thought it would be. Seriously not that bad. I sat on the bed and hunched over and stayed as still as I could. He put the numbing stuff on my back and then it was over! After the needle goes in it feels like a glass of ice water is being poured down your butt and your legs. I actually asked him if something had spilled cause it sure felt like it! He said it was just the meds flowing through my body. Weird!!




WOW...talk about amazing! I felt so great now! No pain, just enjoying being in labor and the thought that I was going to be holding my baby girl sometime that day! We hung out, chatted with family and just relished in the moment. I was shaking quite a bit and the nurse said it was just a side effect of the epi, but it was weird. I was shaking uncontrollably. Not in any pain though. But then it came... one of the things I was worried about. Nausea! Crap, I don't want to be in labor and throwing up! But I couldn't help it... I needed a barf bag. Dang it! I threw up once during this time. I think it was because of the ice chips. I had been munching down on them and I even drank the water once the ice melted. That was what did me in I think. I need to back off the ice and water!

About an hour and a half went by and I started feeling cramps and contractions again. Not super strong but I told the nurse so she could get the doc in there to give me some more meds. They call it a "bolster". So 20 or so mins later he came in and gave me some more magical meds but nothing changed. Actually it got worse. I was now in some serious serious pain now. So I told the nurse and the doc came in really fast and gave me another bolster. This time it numbed my left leg but I was still feeling each and every contraction. And I was at an 8 at this point. And for those of you who don't know the phases of labor I was in the "transition phase". This is the phase you go through right before you get to a 10 and start to push. Contractions are back to back and you really don't have time to relax between the contractions. Brett was awesome, he wouldnt leave my side. He held my hand almost every contraction and let me squeeze as hard as I needed to. But on top of all this pain I was feeling nauseated again. I threw up 2 more times during this painful period. Can you imagine being in insane pain AND throwing up... not fun!!







At this point there were a ton of people in my room. I was in so much pain and crying at almost every contraction. (I don't remember this that much but I was told I was crying) My husband was AMAZING during the whole labor, but I remember thinking that I just could not take all the people in my room. They were all talking and being loud and I just wanted to concentrate and try to survive the contractions. Brett could see it in my face that I was annoyed and asked me if I wanted everyone to leave. YES PLEASE!!!! So he kicked everyone out except my Mom. That was a nice break, but I was still dying in pain. At this point the left leg numbness was even gone and I could feel everything. I mean EVERYTHING! I bet this went on for ohhh an hour or two. My Dad and Brett's parents & sister came in and out a few times.... they couldn't stand to sit in the waiting room for that long. So as long as they stayed quiet I didn't mind them being in there. My best friends Andrea and Lauren came in for a little while too. Everyone took turns being at my side holding my hand and feeding me ice chips. I had a really great support system that I will forever be grateful for.






The nurse checked me and I was at a 9, and I assumed that it was too late for any more magical numbing medicine. Apparently I was wrong... in walks the anesthesiologist. He says that the catheter in my back has probably moved which is why the meds weren't working. He wanted to take it out and REDO the whole epidural right then. Really?? I am at a 9 and having contractions like every 30 seconds!! How am I going to stay still for that long to take it out and put a new one back in?? Ok lets do this! So everyone left and they raised the bed all the way up so I was like chest level with the Dr laying on my side. I had a death grip on my nurses hand and squeezing like hell. She was wonderful at keeping me focused and breathing. It seemed like it took like 5 times longer than it did the first time. I even asked him "Is everything ok??" he said "Yes, why?" "Because its taking you FOREVER!!". lol I actually started feeling like I was going to throw up while he was doing the epi, but I never threw up. I don't even want to think about how bad it would have been if I had thrown up during that moment.

Finally he finished and I could feel it working almost immediately. There is that ice water being poured down my butt again. Thank the lord! I told Brett that he could go get the family and friends and let them all back in now. I could still feel the contractions but not too much. It was totally doable! Somewhere in there my photographer showed up... yes that's right I had a birthing photographer. I didn't want to miss any photo opps so the same lady that did my maternity pics was there. I think she actually showed up when I was at like an 8 before the 2nd epidural but I didn't notice that she was there. Now that I was feeling better she started snapping some pics. She snapped some when I was in serious pain too, but I had no idea until later! lol



The nurse checked me again and said I was 100% effaced and almost at a 10, but Ella was still kinda high. So he had me sit up a little more to see if gravity could help us out. I would say about 30-45 mins later she checked me and I was at a 10 but Ella still needed to move down a little more. She said when I felt like I needed to push to call her.





Well Ella has been napping for about an hour now, so she should be waking up soon. I am going to go shower before she wakes up. Stayed tuned for Part 2 where I talk about the "ring of fire" and getting to meet my precious baby girl!!

I think this might be it!!

Alright things are definitley getting more intense!Contractions are averging about 5 mins apart and they reaaally hurt! I called Brett and he is on his way home from work. I called my nurse and she said to come on in and let them check me. If I am dilated more then they will go ahead and admit me :)

Contractions are so intense I cant think about anything but breathing through them. They have also started to go into my lower back. Ella has been pretty quiet today. She has moved a little but not like usual... thats another good sign.

I'll keep updating as I can!!

Update....

So yesterday I had my last Dr appt!!! He checked me and said I was just a little over a 1. WHAT?? I have been at a 1 for like 2 weeks! lol He also said I was 90% effaced and -1 station. For those of you who arent sure what station is it goes like this:
-4 = she is still floating around
0 = she is fully down into the boney pelvis
+4 = crowing and she is about to come out

So EVERYTHING is right except I am not dilating! He said my cervix is "favorable". Meaning all we need is some good contractions to dilate me. He said he was going to stir things up to see if he could get things going. Basically the same thing my Dr. did last week. On my way home I had some MAJOR cramps, but once I got home they pretty much went away. I had a normal day of irregular not intense contractions.

Late last night and this morning I woke up several times to some cramps but I was half asleep and just thought it was what I call "poo-poo cramps". Then about 8 this morning I got up to try to go poo and realized they were not poo-poo cramps, but contractions. And boy are they real ones! I have been charting them since about 8 this morning, and they are averaging about 7 mins apart. Some are closer some are farther...but 7 mins is the average. They are more intense than ANY other contraction I have ever had. I have to stop what I am doing and breathe through them.

Could this be it??? I dont know... but I am going to shower and get ready just in case it is :) Check back, I will try to keep yall updated on if things progress, or slow down!

Due date...comes and probably goes...

Well today is my official due date. July 19th...I don't think its going to be Ella's birthday. I keep telling her its her birthday and to get out, but she isn't listening. Maybe I should start telling her I DON'T want her to come, and she'll do the opposite :)

Just a little update on my progression... Last Tuesday after my Dr stripped my membranes I had a lot of cramping and a lot of contractions. I also went walking around walmart for 2 hours to help get things going (its too hot to walk outside). That night some of the contractions were pretty intense so I thought it was going to work. Then I lost my mucus plug the next day on Wednesday (sorry, its gross I know) so I really thought that it would happen by the end of the weekend.

Well, the contractions became more infrequent and less intense. Then Thursday evening I thought maybe I was leaking water because of some symptoms I was having. So I called the Dr and they told me to come in so they could test it. So Friday morning I went to see the on call Dr (since mine is still out of town). He ran the tests and said it was negative, that I wasn't leaking water. He also checked me and guess what?? I was still only dilated to a 1!! WHAT?? After all the progress I felt like I was making and nothing has changed since Tuesday? He told me not to be disappointed cause she would come whenever she was ready, and I could go from a 1 to a 10 in hours.

So I decided to remain as positive as I could. And that's where I am now! I am staying positive! We made it through the weekend without much to report. Still had a bunch of random contractions, some intense some not so much.

Today I am having a lot more contractions than usual, and most of them are on the intense side :) Hopefully that means that something is happening and tomorrow at my Dr appt he will tell me that I am dilated a little more. Right now I am sitting here watching my stomach roll around... she is just going wild in there :)

Oh and some more exciting news...today was my last day at work!! I went in for a few hours this morning to get some things done and now I am at home doing some work stuff from home. Its nice to be able to work from home, now that I am giant and its 100 million degrees outside. Gotta love Texas! Anyhow, that's about all I have to report for now! Check back soon, hopefully I will have good news tomorrow :)

Cutest nursery ever, for the cutest baby ever!

Well since Ella is still chillin' and not ready to come out yet I thought I'd post some pics of her nursery since its the cutest nursery EVER!!

When we found out she was a girl, I started prowling the Internet for cute, non-baby looking bedding. I am not a fru-fru pink girl...as most of you know I love purple. So naturally I decided to go with purple as the room color. I didn't want anything cartoony looking if that makes any sense, I wanted something more...well modern. You know what I found out?? Its NOT an easy thing to find! Its like the world expects you to do pink if you are having a girl! Didn't you hear me? I don't want pink! lol There was just not a lot of options when it came to finding modern looking purple bedding.

Then I found it... it was perfect! But it was also pretty expensive! So I started searching and found a lady that sells this designer on ebay for a discount, and the package included more than I had originally planned on buying for less than the basic package! SCORE!! So after going back and forth on whether or not to buy bedding online without laying my hands on it (to make sure the quality was good) I finally just clicked the "buy" button and hoped for the best!

A week later it came in the mail, and it was perfect!! Even cuter then it was online! YAY!! So now we needed to paint. Of course we just bought this brand new house, and the walls were already painted a neutral color...were we going to be brave enough to paint the walls purple?? My hubby was a little scared since we don't have a lot of painting experience that it was going to end in disaster.

So we went to home depot and chose our colors... purple and green. My in laws were at our house that day so we decided to get started with them there....





After we did the little accent walls in green we realized, hey we are pretty good painters! My inlaws left, except my sister in law and we decided that we should just go ahead and do the purple wall too.








I had been saying I wanted to hire a muralist to come over and paint the flowers from the bedding on the walls that we didnt paint. My mom said she had just the person to do it, and that would be her present to Ella. So we called up Beth, my moms friend that she used to work with...and man that was the best decision ever! Beth was amazing! She spent 2 days straight painting up a storm and the outcome is just simply amazing! Ella will have the cutest nursery in the world, and it will last for years to come, since its not a baby-ish theme.







Of course we have added several things since these pics were taken... my glider, area rug, and some stuff on the walls. But you get the idea, although pics do it NO justice! I got her furniture from JC Penny's and it was on sale. Score again! Its a conversion crib, so it turns into a toddler bed, and then a full size bed. So it should last a long time!

I am so in love with her room, and I go sit in there and just rock in the chair sometimes :) I cant wait for her to be here so she can see her awesome room!

Oh I forgot my photographer took some pics of her room when she did our maternity pics (I'll post those soon too). Here are the ones she did...