Sarah's story

So, it's been almost two full weeks since we welcomed little Sarah Elgan into our family. And this is the first minute I've had free to even think about writing about it. So, here goes. There will be lots of little details that I want to remember, so if you don't want to know about them, feel free to stop reading now!

On Tuesday, April 17th, I had an appointment with my doctor, Dr. Michelle Pepperell. Wait- I guess I should rewind a few days first... Friday night I could not sleep. I was tossing and turning and just plain miserable. Turns out the baby was dropping and that was probably why I was so uncomfortable. The problem with that is the baby was pressing on the area of where the previous C-section was and it really was quite painful at times. Plus the Braxton Hicks started coming stronger and stronger. Not fun! Monday night I had a strange feeling about how things were going in my pregnancy. I had a feeling something wasn't quite right and that something was going to happen soon. Heavenly Father is great about giving me these impressions beforehand about events that might otherwise be stressful. So I stayed up past midnight that night reading about labor and delivery and c-sections and just all that end-of-pregnancy stuff that I have in my prenatal books. I love reading about it anyway, but I felt this urgency to finish up. Then I woke up around 6:30 and couldn't sleep. That is completely not like me to do. I love to sleep in!

My appointment that day was in the afternoon and usually we do the appointment then run any errands we have afterwards. Well, Mom and I decided to run our errands first so we could get the girls home for naps. (Mom and the girls decided to come along because I was having my final ultrasound and Ellie enjoyed seeing the baby so much last time.) I'm glad we made that decision. We got the last of the "supplies" for the bassinet and a baby swing and a few other random baby items. We also stopped by the hospital for a tour so that we knew where to go when the time came. The hospital is HUGE, so I'm glad we did that. Everyone on the floor was really nice and answered all my questions and it was a great experience. We told them we'd see them in 3 weeks. Our last stop was the doctor. We went in and had the ultrasound, which went well. Again the girl doing the sonogram mentioned that she could see a lot of hair on the baby. I just laughed- my girls don't have hair for at least 2 years! She didn't really say anything else while she did her measurements. Mom took the girls back out the waiting room while I had my checkup with the doctor. Well, needless to say things didn't look so good. She came in and asked how I was doing and I explained the pain and the contractions and she seemed a little concerned. She then told me a few things that were concerning her about my status.
1) the baby was transverse, meaning laying sideways. Her head was to my right and her feet to my left. Not good for a vaginal birth.
2) the pain I was feeling at the incision site was definitely a concern- usually that's the body's way of saying something isn't right
3) The strong Braxton Hicks were a concern as well, just because we had to be careful about when I went into labor so I could be carefully monitored.
4) I was already dilated to 2 cm.
5) The ultrasound showed that the baby had intrauterine growth restriction/retardation. Basically that means her head was growing at the right rate, but her tummy and legs were far behind schedule. This can happen because the placenta starts to pull away from the uterus, or the umbilical cord has started to "die" too early, therefore not getting the nutrients to the baby. There are many different reasons. But those didn't matter- what mattered was that we needed to get the baby out.

I think I took the news pretty well. Like I said, I knew something just wasn't right. I knew the baby was going to come early and probably by c-section. I just wasn't prepared to be told she needed to come out that day!!! I was fine until we started talking about setting up an appointment for a c-section and then I started crying. It just all came crashing in that I was going to have a baby that night! Three weeks early! We had just enough time to drive the 35 minutes home, drop off the girls, pack, get a blessing and head 35 minutes back to the hospital to be there by 5pm.

We showed up, I was admitted and sent upstairs to labor and delivery. Turns out they were swamped. They had 2 already in the operating rooms with emergency c-sections. I was put in a triage cubicle in a corner and basically forgotten for an hour (although a nurse did come in after about 1/2 hour and put the doppler monitors on me). There was a girl next to me (we were separated by only a curtain) that was having complications and was sent away for a c-section when her baby's heart rate stopped. Scary! I guess they got it under control but she ended up delivering the next day. I felt like I was intruding by laying there, listening to all that was going on. Mom and I were just chatting and passing the time. I was feeling contractions about once every 10 minutes or so. But they felt like Braxton Hicks to me. I've felt contractions before- you'd think I'd know the real thing! After an hour a nurse showed up to place my IV and start fluids. She then told me I was having real contractions every 4 minutes. I couldn't believe it! I really wasn't feeling them. She thought it was because the baby was laying sideways. But anyway- that scared me a little bit. I realized that had we not scheduled the c-section, I very well could have been at home having these contractions and not realize it. And worst of all, there could have been some serious complications because I'm sure I wouldn't have made it to the hospital in a good amount of time to deliver safely. Heavenly Father was definitely watching over me!

At 8pm I was wheeled into the operating room and things began to roll. Mom was given scrubs to change into while I was prepped for surgery. Now let me explain exactly what happens when you have a planned c-section. First of all I was given a spinal block. My anesthesiologist was great. He was really nice and relaxed and just very confident. I was given the spinal block (like an epidural, only it's a one-shot deal- no tubes left in because you only need the one dose that lasts about 4 hours or so.) Then I layed down on the operating table and the real fun began. It is really a bazaar feeling to be on that table. You're completely exposed, your arms are stretched out to the sides for IVs and blood pressure checks, and there is no modesty to be found! It's a good thing they put up that drape and you can't feel much of anything! My surgery ended up taking 1 1/2 hours. There was so much scar tissue left behind from my last c-section and Dr. Pepperell took the time to clean it all out for me. Turns out scar tissue had attached to my bladder and part of my rectum and that explains why I had strange pains in my abdomen. She cleaned that all out then went for the baby. I wasn't feeling any pain, but I could feel them moving things around and tugging and pulling and it was just a strange feeling. But then Sarah was delivered at 8:38pm and I was a new mom! It was an incredible feeling. I watched them take her over to the warmer and wipe her down and suction her and convince her to breathe (she had lots of fluid in her lungs and didn't want to breathe for them- I guess that's very common with c-section babies). She was so tiny. Her cry was so tiny. Everything about her was just... tiny. But that hair! Two weeks later I still can't get over how much and how dark her hair is! She weighed in at 6 pounds 1 1/2 ounces and 17 1/2 inches long. What a sweet little angel arriving from our Heavenly Father. It is the greatest feeling to be around a spirit that is so close to that veil.

Then came the uncomfortable part. The cleaning up and getting stitched. Almost immediately after Sarah was delivered I started to have pains under my ribs. I guess this is common as well. As soon as the baby's weight is removed from the stomach gas bubbles start to rise and therefore causing pain. The pain was excruciating. I felt like I couldn't breathe it hurt so bad. They gave me another pain killer and that helped a little bit. Then with the doctor cleaning me out (kind of gruesome to think about...) and stitching me up I was really uncomfortable. I don't remember it being that painful last time. But, that probably accounts for why I never healed correctly! This time they did two sets of internal stitches instead of one. The doctor made sure she did all in her power to give me the best healing experience she could. After seeing how I healed last time she could better gauge what would be best for me. I am grateful they took that extra time to do it. I guess most surgeries last just 45 minutes, so they definitely took their time with me.

Then it was off to recovery. Steve called and I was able to tell him all about Sarah and the delivery and it was wonderful to talk to him. It was obviously a bummer not to have him there with me, but for all intents and purposes, I couldn't have asked for a better experience. The hospital I delivered at is OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois. It is the leading children's hospital in the area. (I guess everyone at church was concerned when they heard I delivered there just because people around here only deliver up there when there are issues with the baby.) I was then wheeled off to my room. Sarah was able to come in to nurse, but she had a hard time keeping her temperature up, so I was not allowed to keep her in the room with me. That worked out fine anyway- I was exhausted! It was actually a couple days before I got to keep her with me. Sarah also was losing a lot of weight and was getting jaundiced. We ended up supplementing her with formula. Normally they don't recommend supplementing, but since she was so little, we didn't want her to lose too much weight before my milk came in. I made sure we supplemented with a syringe instead of bottle so we didn't end up with nipple confusion problems. She thought the formula was great. Funny girl. But I must say- she's been an awesome nurser as well. I'm blessed that she picked up on that right away.

My stay at the hospital was incredible. My nurses were awesome and attentive and I really couldn't have asked for a better stay. I was supposed to go home on Friday, but my insurance wouldn't cover the home health nurse visit on Sunday (to check her weight and temp to be sure she was keeping both up), so instead they paid to have me stay another full day in the hospital. Insurance companies really make sense, huh? I didn't mind- one more day of having someone else take care of Sarah at night except for feeding... nice.

The girls love having a new little sister. Ellie holds her at every chance she gets. Katie wants to touch and poke and pull so she doesn't get much time with Sarah :) She's a great little baby. She sleeps and eats and doesn't cry much. These are three things I never had with my other two girls, so I'm basking in the joys of this little girl. My recovery has been going well. Mom is taking extra good care of me and isn't allowing me to do much of anything. I go upstairs in the morning and spend time with the girls all day then back downstairs once we get the girls to bed in the evening. My job is to take care of Sarah. Mom has been taking care of the other two girls for me. It's been a huge relief and already I can tell my recovery is going a million times better than last time.

Sarah is growing already. We head back to the doctor on Wednesday for her 2-week appointment and I'm anxious to find out just how much she's grown. I know that we went last Monday and she had already gained 4 ounces. With as much as she eats...

On a side note... remember how Ellie abandoned potty training as soon as Steve left? Well, as soon as Sarah came home Ellie decided she was a big girl and refused to wear pull-ups. She hasn't had an accident in a week. I guess everyone was right- she had to decide when she was ready to start back with the potty.

Okay- time to be a mom again. The girls have all awakened. I'm sure I forgot to mention things and when I remember I'll write more. I finally found time to post some fun pictures if you haven't seen them yet. I have three little girls... wow!