The Day I Gave Birth to Nigel

I arrived at the New Era General Hospital at 8:30 a.m. It was January 20th, 2009 the same day Barak Obama, the very first black president of the United States of America was inaugurated.

My Ob-gyn, Dr. Virginia Lopez-Yarcia ( also a dear first cousin of mine) did an ultrasound to make sure the baby’s position was suited for a normal delivery. Everthing looked well so I was intravenously given a labor inducing drug called oxytocin. Only after a few minutes it was injected I started feeling painful contractions. I was taken to the hospital’s labor room.

Unfortunately, Butch, my husband wasn’t allowed inside. We just communicated through text messaging and cell phone calls.

The contractions became more frequent by the hour. I only used to hear about it from moms- the pain of being in labor. Now, I know. It’s sort of like my uterus was being wrung and bludgeoned at the same time. After 6 hours of labor, the doctor did an internal exam to see how much I’ve dilated. I could tell from the doctor’s facial expression, I didn’t do too well. After hours and hours of excruciating pain, I was only 1 cm. dilated.

It was very disappointing, my labor wasn’t progressing.

At that point, my doctor decided it was best to do a c-section.

I was trying my best to prevent this, but I guess that was the best way to go. I braced myself for surgery ( my first time to be cut open!) I said a little prayer in my mind.

Three doctors were present. The Anesthesiologist, a Pediatrician and my Ob-gyn of course. Laying on the operating table, I started to sneeze (oh man, this was just the best time for my allergic rhinitis to act up) They gave me Benadryl to prevent more allergies. They also nebulized me to make sure I wouldn’t have an asthma attack. Soon enough, both drugs side effects started kicking in- tremors and thacycardia. I was shaking and my heart was beating really fast. A couple of minutes were given for the side effects to fade afterwhich I was asked to lay on my side in a fetal position. The epidural was injected on my back. The doctors and nurses had to hold me making sure I was very still because I was still trembling a little. It didn’t take long for me to feel the numbness and drowsiness then I blacked out.

I remember waking up just for a moment. I felt that they were shaking my body or something. Then, I heared a baby crying. Nigel was fnally out! I remember saying his name over and over again while crying. I was still very much groggy so I went back to sleep. The next thing I knew, I was I think in the recovery room. I saw a nurse hooking me up to a machine. I saw my mom. Then I said Nigel, Nigel, Nigel. “Your son is okay.” My mom said. Then Butch came. I was happy to see him but I wanted to see my son. “Nigel, Nigel, Nigel … “ I said. The nurse forbade me talk saying air might get into my stomach and I would get a tummy ache.

Another nurse arrived carrying a bundle of blanket in her arms. “Here is your baby!” she said. I was too weak to hold him so the nurse just laid him beside my head. Then, I saw my son Nigel for the very first time.

The only word that came into my mind was BEAUTIFUL. He looked so beautiful to me! At that moment I couldn’t believe a being so beautiful ( and a baby of that size) came out of me! I caressed his cheeks and his eyes just looked at me as if he was studying my face. I cried uncontrollable tears. Then, he was taken away from me. He needed to be further examined or something.

Nigel came out at 8:15 pm. He weighed 8.4 Ibs. and was 51 cm. long. According to the doctor, the umbilical cord might have been wrapped around his neck and that prevented him to go down. No wonder I was still 1 cm dilated even after 6 hours of labor. Thank God the cord did not choke him!

I was taken to my room. Hours later, I began feeling the epidural wearing off. My stiches and insides began to hurt.

Despite the pain, my doctor encouraged me to move around after 24 hours of surgery. She said the earlier I try to move, the earlier I will recover. I was admitted to the hospital for induction of labor Tuesday morning. By Thursday afternoon I was discharged. It was still painful to move. But I could walk, urninate and move my bowels already. I am still recovering from the surgery. I take mefenamic acid for the pain.

Unfortunately, we were not able to take Nigel home with us. He has to stay in the NICU for a couple of more days because he is still being treated with Ampicillin (an antibiotic). He has to take this because he already pooped inside my tummy. Butch and I visit him everyday till he finally gets discharged this Wednesday.

Butch and I cannot wait to take our li’l angel home. I miss him very much. During our visits, I memorize his face so when I close my eye at night, I could picture him. I think I am in love with Nigel. I am certainly going to enjoy being a mom to him.

I’d to thank all those who prayed and supported Butch and I throughout the pregnancy. My family, our JOHIA family and of course, my co-bloggers who read about my journey to motherhood. Thanks and I am happy to say that NIGEL IS FINALLY OUT!!!

Today is my due date

I woke up at exactly 6 a.m. Although I told myself I was just going to relax for today, I had nothing better to do but walk. And so I did for about 2 1/2 (with lots of breaks in between of course). Today was supposed to be my due date but I did not feel a single tinge of labor contraction. All I felt was just the same old useless pathetic Braxton Hicks contractions.

In the afternoon, I texted my Ob-gyn about my condition and asked her what was our next action. She asked me to have myself admitted to the hospital tomorrow morning. This is it! I thought. The waiting game is finally over. This baby is going to come out tomorrow (hopefully). I am going to be induced.

I posted these reminders on our door so Butch and I won’t forget.

This waiting game seems to be wearing me out.

I am always hungry. I am tired of eating green leafy veggies. We were supposed to go walking again this afternoon. But I told Butch I wanted to stay home and rest for today. I want to rest my legs. At night, I would feel it hurting because of all the walking.

I am trying not to think about it much and I am thankful that Butch was allowed by his office to get his paternity leave started. But I still can’t help but be a bit sad. Two days ago I thought I already had the “bloody show”. I was expecting labor pains to start yesterday but felt nothing. I read about it and found out it was just probably because my Ob-Gyn forced 1 cm dilation during my check-up. The blood was because of that and was not a sign of impending labor.

If I do not go into labor own my own by Wednesday, my doctor would have no choice but induce it. Then, a c-section will be done to deliver the baby. The baby has gotten too big for its gestational age. I am only 39 weeks pregnant now but his size is that of a 40-41 week fetus. My doctor said I could still deliver normally, if I could handle it and if the baby’s head will not be bigger than my pelvis.

I can’t help but blame myself for this. None of it could have happened if I was careful with what I ate.

I try to relax and stop thinking about it too much.

Butch’s new toy: a Nikon D40 DSLR Camera

Now, we are ready to document Nigel’s coming and his growing up years. Just yesterday, Butch got his very first DSLR camera, a Nikon D40! As many of you know, Butch loves to take pictures. His former camera was a Fujifilm Finepix 6500fd. Though it also took good pictures and Butch knew how to manipulate its settings to come up with a good shot, it was only SLR-like. It had lots of limitations that got into his nerves sometimes. So he opted to get a DSLR camera. Here are some of the Nikon d40’s features that Butch loves

• 6 megapixel DX format CCD (1.5x FOV crop, as D50)
• Nikon Image processing engine (as D80 / D200)
• 3D Color Matrix Metering II, 420 pixel sensor (as D80 / D50)
• New Multi-CAM530 three area AF sensor
• ISO sensitivity range 200 - 1600 plus HI 1 (3200 equiv.)
• Custom Auto ISO (selectable maximum ISO, minimum shutter speed)
• 2.5 fps continuous shooting (as D50), unlimited in JPEG
• No status LCD, new LCD monitor based status / settings screens
• Help suggestions on LCD monitor (eg. scene too dark, try using flash)
• Large 2.5" 230,000 pixel LCD monitor
• Bigger viewfinder view (x0.8 magnification, 95% coverage)
• Short shutter lag and viewfinder blackout
• Support for SDHC (SD cards over 2 GB in capacity)
• In-camera retouching
• USB 2.0 with PTP and Mass Storage device support
• Very compact, light body (smaller, lighter than D50)
• Improved menu user interface (as D80 / D200)
• New EN-EL9 Lithium-Ion battery (7.2V, 1000 mAh)
• New 'Version II' AF-S DX 18-55 mm kit lens

Source: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond40/

He was tinkering with it the whole day yesterday. He is still learning how to use its features and manipulate settings to get good shots of Nigel. I will definitely share some of his shots in this blog.

Thank you Lord for the camera!

And have more fun taking pictures, Butch!

Have a safe delivery, Mari!

Mari, a blogger friend of mine and expectant mommy like me is going to be admitted to the hospital to deliver her baby girl. I am praying that she would deliver normally and have a healthy baby. Mari and I became pregnant around the same time so our pregnancy progressed at the same time too. I would read the posts in her blogs and see that we are going through the same things! During our last trimester we both found out that our blood sugar is too high. I was advised to go on a no sweets diet meanwhile Mari had gestational diabetes. Though my due date is earlier than hers, Mari’s doctor wants to induce labor already. This will be done so that the baby will not get too big inside her.

As for me, I am still waiting. My due date is on the 19th of January- a couple of days more. I would only need to really induce if I am still pregnant beyond that date. Meanwhile, Mari is expected to deliver tomorrow, January 13!

God bless you, Mari =) I can’t wait to see baby Gwenks!

Adorable Iris

This is Iris, my sister’s daughter and Nigel’s cousin. We just adore her! At age 2 she is very sociable and can easily learn words.

One day, I was sitting down and she approached me. She lifted my shirt exposing my big tummy and said “Hi Nigel.” It just melted my heart.

Iris likes to copy what adults around her are doing. Like her mommy, grandma and aunties, she likes putting on lipstick and nail polish (we let her do it with adult supervision of course). She calls lipstick “itik”. The word “itik” in Filipino means duck!

She also likes pretending to be a doctor (copying her auntie Amy who is one). Wearing lipstick, she would slip on Jenny’s high heeled shoes and ask for Amy’s stethoscope. Again she would pull up my shirt and pretend to be “doctoring” Nigel by trying to listen to his sound with the stethoscope. I bet Iris and Nigel will be playmates!

Our Last Days Alone

For the past days, I’ve been so pre-occupied with encouraging labor to begin. Last Friday Butch and I went to Greenhills and Trinoma (malls)). I walked for five hours! Besides the excitement of finally seeing and holding our li’l angel, Butch and I both have other reasons why we want Nigel to come soon. Butch wants to go straight to his paternity leave right after the long holiday vacation. As for me, I miss eating regular food and I still do not like pricking myself after meals.

I was praying to the Lord that I wanted to go into labor soon. But a voice told me this.

“There’s nothing you can do to make this any earlier. The day of your son’s birth has been decided on. Don’t you realize that when you start to get the contractions there’s NO MORE STOPPING. You will be a parent and you’re life will be completely changed…”

Those words astounded me.

I realized that after Nigel comes, everything will be a roller coaster ride. I will be walking on unfamiliar ground. A new chapter of my life will begin. And as I wait for his coming, Butch and I are given the chance to enjoy our last days alone. I’ve been enjoying our walks together in the mall. Also, I got a comment from a reader which I think was the best advice I got from my previous post “Walking and other ways to induce labor naturally”. This was a comment from Laane…

The best way is to give nature all the room she needs.
Meaning: relaxation... especially of the mind.
Some people are so willing to start labor that they release stress hormones which prevent it...

Thanks for the comment Laane, I needed to hear that!

I guess it’s just like trying to get pregnant. The more you fuzz and stress about it, the more it won’t happen. I experienced that too when Butch and I were still trying.

I’ll just patiently wait and enjoy my last days alone with Butch. I know for a fact that I will not be overdue. I know it like I knew from the very beginning that the sex of the baby will be male. By the way, next Tuesday, January 13 will be our 2nd wedding anniversary! Hmmm I wonder if Nigel’s going to be around by that time.

A Delicious All- Vegetable Sandwich

I never liked eating vegetables even as a kid. But for health reasons, I am forced to. My eldest sister Ivy made us this all-vegetable sandwich and I was surprised how tasty it was even without meat! Ever since I went on a diet to control my blood sugar, I’ve been eating this everyday. It is also very filling. I use wheaten instead of white bread. It’s healthier that way.

It has the following veggies:
2 slices of cucumber
3 slices of small pickles
3-4 rings of onions
3 small slices of tomatoes
A heap of lettuce leaves
Mustard, cheese and light Mayonnaise

I toast the wheaten bread to make it nice and crunchy. I don’t know how many calories this has but I am pretty sure it doesn’t have much and veggies are always healthy. I think what gives it flavor is the onions, mustard, pickles, mayonnaise and cheese. The onions give it that “kick”, the mustard a tangy taste that compliments the sweet/sour flavor of the pickles and of course the mayo and cheese contributes the creamy and salty taste. Together with the varying texture of the other veggies and crunchiness of the toasted bread, it’s a real guilt-free delight! If you’re looking for a very healthy and filling snack, try this All-Vegetable Sandwich. I never knew veggies could be this appetizing.