Congrats Mommies! Just got my BPF yesterday. Looking for journey friends. EDD OCT 27

[goneawry]

As promised, a post-appt update Finally got my sweep and the Dr said my cervix looked "favourable" - 2cm dilated, only 1cm long and in a medium position (so not right at the back but not quite at the front yet either). Oh and baby is engaged, although she didn't say how far. Also no problems on the CTG or the ultrasound to check fluid levels. I'm on my way home now but plan to walk as much as I can this evening and hopefully talk DH into some action later lol. If sweep fails, induction is booked for Monday at 2pm. They should just be able to go straight ahead and break my waters since I'm already a bit dilated.

So pretty positive overall. Wish me luck that something gets going over the next few hours!

 

[samsam23]

Sending u lots and lots of labor dust.
I'm glad u had a good appt and it u were able to get the sweep. Fingers crossed it works for u.
AFM sex, scrubbing the floors, walking, and the full moon failed me last night. So here I am still pregnant.... I have my appt tomorrow which is my DD so hopefully I will find out more then. I am having contractions tho just nothing no where near being consistent so I don't even say anything to OH.

 

[nmpjcp2015]

Labor dust ladies!!

 

[goneawry]

Well it looks like something finally worked for us as Zachary Fox was born at 4.01 this morning weighing in at 9lb 4oz! Labour was VERY quick, contractions started around 11pm, we arrived at the hospital at 2.30am and he was born 1.5hrs later. No time for any pain relief!! I had a little issue with slightly too much bleeding afterwards but it seems to be under control now.

Sam, all my labour dust is now passed on to you! May your labour be as quick as mine and may it happen VERY soon

I will post a pic as soon as I can xx

 

[samsam23]

Yayyyyy! I'm so happy that it worked and u had him! Congratulations. Do u think it was the sweep?
Also wow he's a good size with no pain relief. How r u feeling?

 

[samsam23]

Thank u for the labor dust ladies. I started having contractions early in the morning. After a 17 hour labor Ryan arrived at 8:20 pm on 10/29 his actual due date. Weighing 9.0 lbs and perfect. Will update more later.

 

[goneawry]

Yay Sam! Our bubs have the same bday, cos of the time zone differences. I can't believe they're all here now! Ryan was a good size, too Looking forward to hearing more.

AFM, home from the hospital tomorrow so will post pics and birth details then.

 

[samsam23]

That's right the time zones. It's funny they kinda came the same day

I ended up having a 1st degree tear so I have a couple stitches and it's still very sore to move around. We go home tomorrow morning which is Halloween. I'm glad I get to see DD dressed up and OH can take her around the neighborhood. Me and the baby can stay home and hand out candy.

I will post pics and birth stories at home as well. Hope u are feeling okay. Has ur son met the baby yet?

 

[goneawry]

Hi again ladies. I'm finally getting a chance to get on here to post my labour story and some pics. We are settling in well at home - Zac is starting to get his day and night around the right way, which is a good thing!

So as I mentioned, my labour was really short! I suppose the sweep really did set things in motion, as my contractions started at about 11pm that night. I wasn't sure if they were real to start with as although they were coming quite regularly, it took awhile for them to be anything more than just uncomfortable. I called the hospital a couple of times, and then decided to go in in the early hours of Thursday morning. We got to the assessment unit at about 2.30am, and when I was checked I was only 3cm. Since you have to be at least 4cm to be admitted, the midwife asked me and DH to go walk around for an hour or so to see if things picked up. Well they definitely did! It took a very long time for me to walk just around the block as the contractions were coming every 2-3 mins and by this stage were very painful.

We got back to the hospital reception and before we could even go back into the assessment unit, my waters broke! The nurse checked me again shortly after, contractions were coming one on top of the other and I was now 6cm! I was taken upstairs to birth centre in a wheel chair, and by the time I was in L&D, contractions were unbearable and I was feeling the need to push. I was checked again and was already at 10cm!! 3 big pushes and he was out! My notes say active labour was 27 mins, so I think they counted from when I was assessed at 6cm, right until after the placenta was out. The pushing stage was only 5 mins. I can't believe it happened so quickly, especially since with my first I was in labour for something like 16 hours.

I had a small 1st degree tear but it didn't require any stitches. As I mentioned, a little complication was that I bled a bit more than they like to see afterwards. I think I lost about 400ml, and 500ml counts as postpartum haemorrhage. I had to get a drip so they could give me something to get it under control, and luckily that worked.

So Zachary Fox H. was born at 4.01am, 29 October 2015, weighing 4216 grams / 9lb 4oz and 53cm long (just slightly smaller than his big brother). Here are a few pics

 

[nmpjcp2015]

CONGRATS ladies. I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to check in. I need a laptop!

Goneawry --- he's so beautiful. What a crazy story! I can't believe how fast it went for you! He's such a big boy, and I love his name! Will you guys call him Zach? How is big brother doing?

Sam congrats on your little bundle as well. I can't wait to see him.

Here's an updated picture of my bub.

How are you ladies doing physically? I'm sure you're already sleep deprived. Are you breastfeeding? Hope to check in more often

 

[flipporama1]

Yay! Congrats Sam! Congrats goneawry! BIG babies! I'm glad all is well and your labors went well!
I'm sorry I haven't been checking in, I've had a bad couple of weeks. But things are starting to look better. I promise I'll check back in soon & with more details. Timmy is well, I'm just getting put through the ringer lately...

 

[samsam23]

Hi ladies. Welcome back flip. I hope whatever that's going on gets better soon. But I'm glad Timmy is doing good.

I am breastfeeding. The first couple of days were rough with it but we both got the hang of it and my milk started coming in a lot so I'm happy. He's such a good baby too. Last night he actually slept 7 hours straight. No quite sure how that happened. I'm just loving life with him here.

I'm not sure how to upload a picture but I will keep trying. But here is my labor story. Sorry it's so lengthy I just wanted to have something that I can remember later on as I didn't write one for DD.


I've been having braxton hicks contractions a lot all throughout the week. And I felt like every time one hit I thought "okay this is it. It's starting!" I always kept it to myself tho because I didn't want to sound like a drama queen.
On Wednesday the 28th my mom and I were walking around the mall looking for last minute things for Haley's Halloween costume. Around 3 I started getting contractions that would take my breath away but we're still manageable to handle. They were coming regularly every 7 minutes for about an hour. I texted Joe at work and let him kno but told him it was probably nothing. They stopped being regular and I thought there was no chance.
We stayed up late watching tv and didn't go to bed til about 1am. At 1:45 I was woken up with a painful contraction but managed to fall back asleep for a few. At 2:25 bam! Painful contractions!!! About every 9 minutes lasting about 40 seconds, and omg those felt like the longest 40 seconds lol. At about 4:30 they were 4-5 minutes apart so I woke Joe up and told him that we should go to the hospital. He feel back asleep but woke up a few minutes later. I was all ready to go but was doubting myself thinking it's false labor and this was all in my head because it was due date. Thankfully my mom had been staying with us for a couple days waiting for baby. We left the house but I didn't wake her and let her kno because I thought for sure we would be back.
We arrived at the hospital at 5 am and I was put in a triage room so I can be checked. I kept thinking they are just going to send me home. To my surprise I was almost 5 cm. That's when I knew this was real and the nerves kicked in. The dr. came in and said that I am going to be admitted and moved into a labor and delivery room until I had the baby.
I tried walking around a bit until I couldn't take it. I ended up getting the epidural at 8 am. I had Joe leave and go back home to let my mom kno and send Haley to school. At almost 9 am I was already at 7 cm. and was certain the baby would be out by lunch. NOPE! That's when things slowwwed way down. It took til about 7 pm for me to get to 9cm. The last couple of hours pain had gotten so bad, I even started to cry. I just wanted it to all be over! Finally at 8pm I dilated to a 10 and was ready to push.
I pushed for dear life. I think I pushed through about 10 contractions and he was born 20 mins later.

Ryan Joe Martinez
9.0 lbs 21inches
Oct 29 2015 2020hrs

 

[goneawry]

Yes, we will call him both Zachary and Zac

We are breastfeeding too. It's going pretty well, although he's cluster feeding in the evenings, which is taking a bit of getting used to as Tristan never did that. He's sleeping pretty well most nights, although last night he would only sleep next to me!

I think I am recovering pretty well. Only a couple of pounds to go and I will be back to my normal weight. I realise I am very lucky in that sense! I think Zac's cluster feeding is sucking the weight off me, as I have definitely been lacking energy by the end of the day.

Sam, thanks for sharing your labour story - you're the same as me in wanting to get it written down before it all becomes a fog! Hopefully you can share a pic soon

Audra, I hope things are settling down for you and that Timothy stays well! Thanks for checking in with us

nmpjcp, Sam is just beautiful! A month old already! Does it feel real for you yet? I still can't believe I have 2 boys now!

 

[samsam23]

Hopefully this works.

 

[samsam23]

Yay it did. So this is Ryan. He's doing so good. Can't believe it's been 8 days already. It's funny how these days fly yet the last few weeks of pregnancy dragged so much. I haven't stepped on a scale yet. I still have a little pouch I want to get rid of. When is it okay to start exercising?

I'm glad the breastfeeding is going well. So is mine. I'm pumping too and storing for when I go back to work next month. Even tho I'm already thinking to myself how in the world am I going to be able to leave him. I just love him so much.
DD has a cold so I'm trying to not let her get so close to the baby which is disappointing to her. So tonight me and her have a little movie date. I don't want her to feel like it's all about baby.

How is Tristen liking being a big brother?

 

[goneawry]

Oh yay, there is Ryan! He has so much hair! He looks very cute and content there. Glad to hear he is going so well. You're right, those last few weeks of pregnancy just drag and drag, and then once baby is here they speed up like you wouldn't believe!

It's hard to balance and share your attention between kids. How old is your DD again? Your movie date sounds like a great idea, I hope you both enjoyed it . Tristan seems to be having fun being a big brother. I am making sure to really praise him when he is gentle around Zac or when he is especially helpful etc. He is such a happy boy anyway so the new baby doesn't seem to have phased him much!

I think re: exercise you can do gentle stuff as soon as you feel up to it, but higher impact/tougher stuff such as running or sit ups, you're supposed to wait something like 12 weeks!

 

[flipporama1]

Hopefully this works.

What a Beautiful baby Sam!!

I'm finally starting to feel better and get into a good routine. After the c-section I was really, really tired from the blood loss from the placental abruption. Then I was retaining blood clots and I was put on something to cause contractions to get the clots out of my uterus. well the side effects were horrific and it gave me migraines so bad it hurt to open my eyes. as soon as that was over I had one of my back molars break and I had to get it extracted It felt like I just couldn't get a break! Timothy is doing perfect. he's 9 lbs 3 oz as of today. Almost a 3 pound weight gain since birth(6lb4oz)!!! I'm breastfeeding and it's going well. I had some supply issues because of the retained blood & clots but a couple of weeks on fenugreek & mothers milk tea and my supply is perfect again.

Has anyone heard from Mrs. Holland? I hope she's well.

goneawry- I'm lucky like you, I was back to my normal weight 9 days PP. now I'm actually 5lbs less but Timmy is also cluster feeding like crazy at night. It gets easier the older they get. I BF my oldest boy for 13 months and he got pumped milk till he was 21 months.

nmpjcp2015- I hope you're well! check in when you can!

 

[samsam23]

Audra I'm glad ur finally feeling better. I don't think I would be able to go thru all that and take care of a newborn. Hats off to u girl! How is ur DH enjoying daddy hood? I bet he's still over the moon.

Gonearwy DD is 4 1/2. So she's old enough and understand what's going on. I like ur idea on really praising when the kids are gentle. I'm going to try that.

I had Ryan's first check up on the 10th. He's up to 9.4oz. During week 1 while I was seeing the lactation specialist he went down to 8.2 then 4 days after that up to 8.12 and another 4 days he was 9.4. It reassures me because sometimes I'm worried that he's not getting enough milk from me. I'm glad to know he is. I think as a parent it's only natural to doubt yourself and worry about everything. Especially when the last time u tried it was almost 5 years ago.

Hope everyone is doing good. Looking forward to updates soon.

 

[goneawry]

Oh Audra, what a beautiful pic. Timothy looks so peaceful! You went through so much, I'm so glad you're on the other side of it now and starting to feel better. What bad timing with your tooth!!

I haven't heard anything from Mrs Holland and have been wondering about her too. I hope she is doing well!

Sam, Ryan sounds like he is gaining really well now. Well done!

I'm a bit worried about my supply. I had to combi feed Tristan as he lost a bit too much weight at the beginning and needed formula top ups. I'm really trying to nurse Zac as much as possible and I've made some lactation cookies. I'm might try some fenugreek as well. He's gaining weight but maybe not as quickly as I'd like. My last check up was on Wednesday and he'd regained his birth weight, but only just. I have another check up on Thursday so here's hoping he's made some good gains so I can relax a bit.

So DH goes back to work on Monday We've been lucky that he got 2 weeks paternity leave from his work. It's going to be weird not having him around anymore! Luckily my parents are coming to visit next week, so I have a little longer before I'm completely on my own during the day.

I just want to say it's been so nice to share this journey with you ladies It's so fun to see how far we've all come and how well we're doing now with our beautiful babies I know the chat probably won't be as regular anymore, but I hope we can keep each other updated.

 

[nmpjcp2015]

I typed a post yesterday but it got deleted before I could submit it, but here goes nothing...

Audra --- I'm so happy you're feeling better. I'm glad to hear you're breastfeeding and your supply issues are being resolved.

Goneawry - We should definitely keep updated. Once I'm back at work Tuesday it will be a lot easier for me to sit at the computer and keep my posts updated. I can't believe I already have to go back. 6 weeks sped by. I did get my boss to let me work 24 hours per week until January and then 32 hours per week. I'm going to miss Sam every second though I am excited to be around adults. It's just been me and him at home all day.

Sam - again, congrats on breastfeeding. You can do it! Just trust your body. I thought breastfeeding was going to be a lot easier. Lol. It's not, but it's getting there. I've been struggling with oversupply and engorgement, but I hear things get smoother.

This may be TMI but Dh and I finally DTD 5 weeks postpartum... is it supposed to be so painful and un-enjoyable? It made me really sad that I couldn't enjoy it because it hurt!

Anyway, I will check in again next week. XOXOXO