Admitted

After the horrible experience of my exam and the WEIRD feeling of my water breaking, Jake wheeled me down to the labor and delivery room. I wanted to walk there, but I don't think the nurses wanted me dripping all the way down the hall. As we are going down the hall, the nurse asks me if I have had any other symptoms like swollen feet or ankles or a feeling of the baby "dropping". As I'm about to say "of course my feet are swollen" I look down...and they are twice their normal size (which is about 4 times the size they are when I'm not pregnant). I had no idea that was even a labor symptom. As for Jennie "dropping", meaning a feeling of her descending even further into my pelvic area than she already was, I definitely didn't feel that. The strange part was, earlier that week I had gone to lunch with Jake and one of his co-workers (male by the way) told me it looked like my belly had dropped. I just laughed it off- there's no way I could be dropping already because my official due date wasn't until October 3rd. I climb into the bed and my nervousness starts to set in.

9:30am- I have an I.V. put in (not so bad after all)and get all settled in. The nurse goes over everything- I've been given pitocin to speed up the labor process because once your water breaks you have 24 hours to get the baby out otherwise the risk of infection goes up. I'm allowed to go to the bathroom, but have to do it into one of the "hats" so the nurses and doctors can monitor my bodily functions. Being hooked up to an I.V. machine doesn't make the whole going to the bathroom process any easier though because you have to get all the cords out of the way- and when you're 9 months pregnant, doing anything requiring sitting and standing in a short amount of time is tough enough.

10am- I'm starving. I haven't eaten anything since dinner the night before. I ask the nurse if I can eat and she says "of course not, you're in labor...you should have eaten before you came!" How the hell was I supposed to know that?! And apparently she could tell I wasn't happy with her answer. Around that time, my parents and Jake's parents both show up and begin the process of just sitting and waiting around. The nurse checks my vitals and asks how I'm doing with the pain. Still feeling nothing, I got this! I'm still on track for my birth plan- no drugs, no c-section is the goal! (By the way, birth plans are a waste of time)

11am- No pain still. Watching the CMT Top 20. My mom cracks a joke about Jennie showing up before Jason Aldean's video for Dirt Road Anthem comes on. Wouldn't be funny to me- it would make sense :) And I'm still hungry.

12pm- The nurse comes in and tells me the doctor approved for me a liquid diet. Never have I been more excited for Jell-O and chicken broth. The nurse then asks me how I'm feeling- still not feeling a thing. I'm going to have the easiest labor and delivery ever.

1pm- Finishing my lunch, and I start to feel a little something. Not quite a pain, more an annoyance. The nurse asks if I want an epidural yet. Ummmm no. I'm not in enough pain to even feel like I need an Advil. I got this...I can do it myself.

Ha...ha...ha...

One of my friends, Emily, is a fellow blogger and she is doing a giveaway for a $25 sneakpeeq gift card! Check it the link on my blog's Facebook page (search The Cupcake In My Belly) and tell her I sent you!

We make it to the hospital...

So we make it to the hospital around 7am and we walk up to the labor and delivery unit. Actually, I waddle along behind Jake and have to make a pit stop to pee before we even make it up there (I'm pretty sure during my last trimester I was in the bathroom every 30 minutes, no joke). As I'm peeing, I can tell that it still isn't all just urine again. I didn't even bother to look this time...I was focused on getting up to the labor and delivery unit ASAP. After checking in at the desk I'm admitted to what amounts to a holding room. Because I couldn't actually tell if my water broke all the way, I was submitted to being poked, prodded, hooked up to machines and forced to pee (ok, not forced, I had to go again already) to see what my condition was- labor or something going wrong were the options. When I came out of the bathroom with my urine sample, the nurse took one look at it and said "oh hun, you ARE in labor!"- apparently I was experiencing the "bloody show". Yea, google it...it isn't pleasant. The weird part was I didn't feel any pain or anything for that matter. The nurse checked one of the screens I was hooked up to and said I was "really cranking out" the contractions but didn't feel anything. I was relieved- if this is labor, it's gonna be a breeze! Ha ha ha...good grief I was so stupid.

Around 8am, a doctor comes in, and it isn't MY doctor. She informs me that my doctor had just come off the night shift, and wouldn't be back on duty til Sunday. I felt comfortable with this doctor, Dr. Khalek, from the get-go though. She said she was going to do an exam to see what was going on.

8:15am- I'm screaming in pain and crying after the exam, and soaking wet. Apparently my cervix is set far behind my pelvic bone and this exam consisted of this doctor trying to find my cervix. It felt like she was moving my lady parts around by digging, and when she shined the light on me down there, she said "yep, your water has ruptured" (at least I think that's what she said, I was crying so hard I'm not sure). After she showed the nurse my ruptured water, she continued the exam, continued digging, and then...a feeling like a water balloon had popped inside me and the bed floods. Dr. Khalek goes "yep, there it is, your water officially broke."

9am- admitted into a labor & delivery room.

Part 2...waking up Friday morning

So, I gave you an account of the couple days leading up to my labor. And now, it's time to get down to business. From here on out, I'll be giving you a play by play from early Friday morning until I finally delivered Jennie late Friday night and will also give you an idea of how recovery goes after a c-section. Time to start thinking about not reading further if you aren't ready to hear the gory details...Here goes...

5:15am, Friday, Sept. 23, 2011: Jake's alarm goes off. He hits snooze like normal while I get up and go pee (like normal; the toilet is your second home in the first and last trimesters of pregnancy). And I pee. And pee. And pee. There's no way I had that much pee in me, seeing as how I got up to go to the bathroom at 4am. Still peeing...and then it hits me- what if I'm not peeing? I start shaking and thinking to myself "you gotta look in the toilet" because for some reason I thought I may have delivered my baby right there (if only it was that easy). But I don't want to look in the toilet- what if there is a baby? If it's not a baby, then I'm pretty sure my water has broken and if that's the case, then I'm not ready. I'M NOT PREPARED! I'm pretty sure I sat on the toilet for about 15 minutes fighting and arguing with myself when I finally get the nerve to look, and I'll spare you the details- there wasn't a baby but it wasn't just pee either. Next thought- crap, I gotta wake Jake up...

5:30am- I walk into the bedroom and Jake is still sleeping so I shake him. And he doesn't move. So I shake him again and say "hun, I think I need to go to the hospital."

5:31am- Jake is dressed, sitting in the car, waiting for me.

5:33am- I go upstairs to brush my teeth and Jake comes running up.
"Are you coming?!"- Jake
"I wanna call the doctor first, to make sure I should come in."-Me
"Well call then!"-Jake

5:35am- I get done brushing my teeth and go back downstairs and grab my phone. I call the hospital and tell my doctor (who was on duty that morning...shocker!) what my symptoms are and she says to be come in. I say it's shocking that she was on duty because it doesn't matter who your doctor is during your whole pregnancy, you will more than likely end up with a different one at delivery (I did). So Jake and I get in the car and drive up to Rockford Memorial Hospital.

6:15am- All I can think about going past all the stores and restaurants in Rockford is how hungry I am. Jake is yelling at all the red lights (pretty sure he called one a motherfu**er at one point). I didn't know if I was allowed to eat before being admitted to the hospital, and I didn't want to ask Jake to stop when he was so focused on getting to there in record time so I chose not to eat. I really regretted that later...

7am- We walk into the hospital...

Here we go...

I warned you guys in my last post that I would be writing about my labor and delivery experience this week, and guess what- I'm starting now! So, if you aren't ready to hear the details, stop reading. Although this post won't be that bad :)

I had Jennie on a Friday, but I have to start with a review of my last check-up, which was on the Tuesday before. Throughout my pregnancy, my doctor had been worried about the size of my baby girl because I wasn't showing. I very well could have been one of those girls on "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant" if you hadn't known me before I was expecting. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE commented on my small size but what did they expect? I was 118lbs when I conceived. I had to do 2 more ultrasounds than what is considered "normal" just to check on Jennie's growth and both times they came back saying she was ahead of the growth charts (oh and fair warning, ultrasounds lie). Still my doctor was worried about her growth, and at my last checkup before I delivered, she told me that with her patients who are carrying smaller than average babies, she likes to deliver them earlier than 40 weeks so the baby can "thrive" outside of the womb. So at a regular checkup, she asks me if it's ok to scrape my membrane.

Here is the definition of membrane scraping or stripping from www.whattoexpect.com:
Membrane stripping. Your practitioner will use his or her finger to manually separate the amniotic sac from the lower part of the uterus to cause natural prostaglandins to be released (just as they would be released if labor began naturally).

Luckily, I read the What To Expect book religiously while pregnant and knew what she was talking about. And I freaked out- I was at 38 weeks, thought I had 2 more weeks to prepare for Jennie's arrival (and now I laugh at trying to "prepare"...ha ha ha) and my doctor wanted to start the labor process at 2pm on a Tuesday afternoon? Hell no! Seriously, my exact words to her were that...and after we both laughed, I asked if we could do it at my next appointment so I can have time to prepare myself (again, preparing...I was so dumb then!). Plus Jake hadn't been able to make it to that appointment, and I didn't want to be making any serious decisions like that without him there. My doctor said that was fine so we scheduled my possible induction for the next Thursday. Before I left, she went over all of the labor signs and symptoms with me again in case anything happened before then.

Shaking, I get into my car and call Jake and tell him that we are going to have a baby sometime next weekend. Pretty sure all he said was "cool" because he didn't understand what membrane stripping was, and didn't want to know the details (I didn't even want to know either). After Jake, I called my mom and then texted a few of my friends to let them know the news- their newest "niece" would be here next weekend.

Little did we know...

Baby whatcha got goin' on Saturday?

"Baby whatcha got goin' on Saturday?"- Jason Aldean
"A whole lot of nothing."- Me

Well, a lyric from one of my favorite songs sums what my weekend is going to be- my parents are watching Jennie tomorrow night (because they want to...only grandparents are willing to give up their Saturday nights) and Jake and I have NO plans. It feels so weird already. I'm going to guess a date night is in order for us, probably dinner and who knows what else. Although Jake did say he is going to buy me a new pair of boots this weekend since my dog decided to eat my only other pair of footwear besides tennis shoes. Probably going to be a pair of cowboy boots, which this momma is extremely excited about. But seriously, we may end up putting our pjs on at 8pm, going to bed, and SLEEPING ALL NIGHT. That hasn't happened in 5 months (more like 6 or 7 months for me, since the third trimester of pregnancy does a number on your sleep habits).

Speaking of pregnancy, I mentioned in my last post the disgusting gloriousness child birth really is, but wanted to spare you the details. Today, I received an email from a fellow blogger which featured 5 other bloggers' birthing stories. I feel like it's about time to share what I went through....but I won't do it in this post. Child birth in itself can be a whole separate topic, and starting next week, I'm going to share the story of Jennie's birth. So this is just a fair warning that those of you with weak stomachs or those who do not care to know how you got here should just ignore my posts next week :) I actually already have her whole birth story handwritten- I know it's something I want to share with her later on down the road and if I end up chicken-ing out next week, I'll still have a record of what I want to tell her.

Let me tell you the most fascinating part of this whole "pushing babies" thing out- the fact that us moms go through hours of intense pain or face painful recovery after surgery to have our bundles of joy, and still opt to do it again. For me, I know I'll be going through it all at least 3 more times. Don't tell Jake, but it will probably be more like 9 or 10 :)

Pretty sure I was watching the CMT top 20 at this point. One of the clearest memories from my birth is my contractions intensifying as that show progressed. And I got really mad because Carrie Underwood & Brad Paisley beat out Jason for the #1 spot...

Party at Jennie's crib, 12am

For two weeks, Jennie slept through the night. It was heaven. Putting her down at 8:30 and waking up around 5am felt so good. And I refused to post anything about it because I didn't want to jinx it. But it doesn't matter now- my daughter has thought midnight is an acceptable wake-up call the past 3 nights. After two weeks of getting a full night's sleep, these middle of the night parties my daughter has been throwing are harsh. Monday night, she was awake from midnight until 3 am. She wanted to have tummy time, converse with her humidifier (it looks like a cow, must get her love of those animals from her mother), and just hang out with yours truly. Would have been fine if I didn't have work in the morning, which made for a LONG day, and she was awake from midnight til about 2 am this morning, this time with a cough. It almost makes me dread even going to bed because I think it would be easier just to stay up and wait for her to wake up instead of sleeping for a couple hours only to be woken up by cries. I know it would be just my luck that the night I decide to do that, she doesn't wake up. Oh well...such is the life of a parent with a baby.
Tomorrow, Jennie will be 5 months old. How is that even possible?! 5 months ago, around this time in the evening, I was in a hospital room preparing to push out this little girl. All my nurses were saying she would be here in just 2 or 3 pushes- three hours later I'm being wheeled into the O.R. for a c-section because she was stuck. My labor with her is a whole other blog post though (and one that may never get written because only those in the medical profession appreciate the disgusting gloriousness child labor really is), but I wouldn't have traded anything I went through to have her.
5 months in, and a lifetime to go <3

All by myself

Last week, Jennie was sick. Today, Jake woke up sick. Actually, he woke up at 3am puking which of course woke me up. It was the second day in a row with a 3am wake up call (Jennie woke up that early yesterday after going to bed at 7pm Tuesday night...wayyyy too early!) Jake called into work this morning while I went in for a couple hours before I took him to his doctor's appointment. Diagnosis? A flu bug- one that the tests don't show, but the doctor is "pretty sure" the symptoms match with the flu. So glad Jake paid his $30 co-pay for a doctor to guess what is wrong with him. I coulda told him he had the flu. Oh well. So I sent Jennie to my parents' house for the night while I cleaned and disinfected our house from top to bottom so she doesn't get sick, again. After 4 hours of scrubbing, I'm ready for a nap. Or just some time out of the house. Instead I'll warm up left overs, turn on the evening news, and eat while Jake continues to sleep.

While typing this I keep thinking of a million other things I could do since Jake is out of my hair and Jennie is out of the house- go for a walk in this super nice weather, read a book, take a bath. But I know I won't do any of them because there are TWO million things I could do around the house- wash the carpets, clean the bathrooms, put away the mountain of clean laundry on top of the dryer. Alone time doesn't happen very often once you become a parent, and I'm still learning how to deal with the "guilt" of enjoying it. Part of the problem is I can't get used to the fact Jennie isn't here right now- like just a second ago the dogs started barking at something outside and I reached down to comfort Jennie in her chair so she wouldn't be scared. She wasn't there of course (that was a lot of rhyming words)...and every once in awhile I still hear her fuss or cry. I'm sure moms reading this know what I'm talking about.

I know that I'll be kicking myself next week for not taking some time to enjoy myself, since I'm sure I'll be sick. But right now, all I can think about is the dishes in the sink and the mud on the carpet from the dogs' paws. So I'll go do that. After reading this, go wash your hands or rub some Purell on your hands so you don't get sick. Take care of yourself :)

Money Monday

Some bloggers do Music Monday. I love the idea, but it doesn't always fit with what I want to get across. So I decided to start Money Monday- a way to help all you newbies, soon-to-be's, and thinking-about-becoming's get a better understanding of how much it costs to raise a child. I'll even throw in a giveaway every once in a while (who doesn't love free money, parent or not?!)

Today, I want to focus on diapers. The one question I have is- why the hell do they cost SO much? They are paper, some plastic, and just a little bit of some kinda sticky stuff. Apparently whatever absorbent material they put inside them is the expensive part. Like I have said before, a box of diapers will cost you about $20. To the inexperienced diaper shopper, that sounds reasonable- a whole box for $20? Wow good deal! To the parents of a baby, it makes your head spin how fast $20 goes down the drain (or I should say in the diaper genie). Our baby girl goes through about 8 diapers a day. The boxes of diapers we buy contain about 90 diapers. So $20 lasts about 10 days. But wait, that doesn't include the diapers we have to keep for her at the daycare or in her diaper bag.

This brings me to another point- Target diapers are AWESOME! No endorsement is behind that, although some one get me the number for Target advertisers because I would love to say how much I love their diapers, in exchange for them being free. Jake and I got lucky because Jennie is able to wear any diaper without a bad reaction to any of them. And the difference between a box of Pampers or Huggies and a box of Target diapers is about $5. That adds up fast when you buy a box a week! On a side note- we personally hated the Walmart diapers and wipes. But don't take our word for it. You may end up liking them and I do know many parents that swear by them.

So there's my first Money Monday post. Hopefully you learned something. If you didn't, then that probably means you are an experienced parent :) Don't forget to enter the giveaway I have going on with fellow bloggers- you may earn enough to pay for half a box of diapers for yourself or a friend ;)

"That" face

Every parent knows their child's facial expressions like the back of their hand from as early as 6 weeks (before then, babies just have that "I'm not sure I wanna be here" look most of the time). And every parent knows "that" face- the one that happens when your child is hurting or scared. Jennie makes that face whenever our two dogs bark loudly and startle her or she gets hurt. Jake and I had to see "that" face again on Wednesday when we took Jennie to her 4 month check up and of course had to do vaccinations. Three of them to be exact. So we prepared ourselves and each of us grabbed one of Jennie's little hands while the nurse administered the shots into her thighs. Between "that" face and the screams, it's enough to make even the toughest parent flinch. When Jennie makes that face, her whole mouth turns down and her forehead gets all wrinkly from frowning. At her 2 month check up when her vaccinations started, she stopped crying immediately after I picked her up off the doctor's table. We weren't so lucky this time- she cried the whole time getting her dressed, into the car seat, waiting for the (impossibly slow) secretary to write a receipt for our co-pay and all the way out the door. This may just be me being a parent, but I would think there has to be a different way to get these vaccines into children. I'm definitely a supporter of them, but just wish we as parents didn't have to watch our kids suffer like that. Oh well...one day, hopefully Jennie's kids won't have to make "that" face, or any face, when they are getting vaccinated. But knowing that Jennie is healthy and protected from preventable diseases is all that matters. I'll watch her make any face, as long as she is around to do it

Wordless Wednesday- One year ago today

One year ago today, I found out I was pregnant <3

Help

One word but it means so much to a new mom (or any parent)- help. But few will ever actually ask for it. Something happens after you have a child and even if you had no problem asking for help before, now you feel ashamed or embarrassed or any other synonym to those words when you feel like you even need any help. Perfect example: my mom will text me sometimes "hey I'm at Target/Walmart/etc. Do you need diapers or anything?" and even if we were completely out of all baby supplies, I would still say no. I feel like it is our responsibility to provide EVERYTHING for our baby girl. People ask my all the time if Jennie needs any clothes or if they can buy her an outfit they saw at the store and even then, I usually say no- They are just trying to be nice! But no, I feel guilty.

So here is a tip to friends of people with kids: don't ask. JUST DO IT. My friend Erika who picked me up before the concert Saturday night came in with a box of diapers and 3 outfits. That box of diapers saved Jake a trip to the store by himself with Jennie while I was gone because she was nearly out of diapers at that point. It isn't the first time Erika has done this, and again, thank you :)

This isn't a subversive cry for help from Jake or I either. Just remember that while you are trying to figure out how to buy that new pair of shoes you have had your eye on, your friend with a child is trying to figure out how to come up with that $50 to buy food and diapers for their baby. All help is appreciated but never expect your friend to ask you for it. Also remember what goes around comes around, and some of my friends will have a ton of stuff coming around when it is their turn to have a baby!

Music Monday

Love the idea of doing a Music Monday post every week, as music (particularly country music) is my life. And this is Jason Aldean's new single, released to radio just a short while ago, and I heard it live for the first time on Saturday night. It's about the beauty of living in the Midwest...square cornfields and all :) Youtube "Jason Aldean Fly Over States" and you won't be disappointed. Still trying to figure out how to embed the video onto my blog post...lol

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Tonight is the night!

Been waiting over four months for tonight...I'm going out for the first time since having Jennie! All of you helped me win tickets to see Jason Aldean in Champaign, IL, and I can't wait to spend some quality time with one of the coolest girls around- Erika. We met through Jason's fan club (yes, I refer to Jason Aldean as just Jason. I feel it's ok because I have seen him live 27 times. Make that 28 after tonight. We know each other. Or he just knows me as Stickers. I digress...) and have been to countless shows together. This is a picture from the last concert we saw together. I was 7 months pregnant and she was engaged, and she surprised me with an impromptu baby/bridal shower :)

But as excited as I am, I will have two things weighing on my mind. Of course, I'll be having a minor nervous breakdown the whole night because Jennie will be home with Jake and I'll be worrying about whether or not she is ok. I shouldn't have to worry though- Jake is the best father and caretaker I could ask for for my child. The second thing weighing on my mind? Back in October 2010, my friends Lori and Christine embarked on a 3-Jason Aldean-shows-in-3-nights adventure with me, also known as a triple header JAcation in the Aldean Army vocabulary. And Champaign, IL was the first stop on our trip. But just a couple months ago, Christine was diagnosed with breast cancer and her surgery is on Monday. We only spent 3 days in each other's company, but 3 days spent entirely in a car, in a hotel room, or in the pit of a concert force you to get know each other very well. Those three days were some of the best of my life, and my heart is heavy knowing Christine is facing the most terrifying battle of her life. I'll be thinking of her all night. But I also know she is strong- please keep her in your thoughts and prayers on Monday, and feel free to join the Aldean Army in wearing pink on Monday in support of her!

This is Christine, me, and Lori with Rich Redmond, Jason Aldean's drummer :)

So here's to having an awesome night! Love to you Christine...let's hope we have at least one more JAcation in our future! <3

It has already happened...

What has happened you ask? This evening I had to switch my agenda for tomorrow night. Jake and I were going to bring Jennie to Olive Garden for dinner with some friends. Remember a previous post about what happened at Olive Garden? Yea, so didn't want that happening again. This is the third night in a row that Jennie has been a c-r-a-b-b-y baby. I really hope it's just a tooth at this point, because her 4 month check up is Wednesday so I know we won't get in to see her doctor anytime before then. I don't think there's anything else wrong other than a possible tooth coming in. Still no fever but her cheeks are really rosy and kind of puffy and all she wants to do is gnaw on everything. It's been nearly a week of the same symptoms, but I still don't see a tooth yet...I need experienced parents to answer- how long does it take to cut the first tooth? I'm so not a fan of google-ing these things because the first thing that will pop up for a cranky baby is cancer. Or some other implausible diagnosis. Seriously, any help is appreciated!

Anyways, so instead of going out to dinner with friends, our friends are coming to us. Jake will be making lasagna, and after hearing of my daughter's fussiness one friend volunteered to bring wine. If only I drank...and so it has happened. I guess we are lucky that it took more than four months before our new roles as parents interfered with our social life. Not that it's a bad thing- saving money and making sure an entire restaurant full of people don't have to hear my daughter's cries are definite pros to a night at home with friends. Can't wait to see everyone...oh and if you're reading this and haven't got an invite yet, c'mon over :)

Have an extra $50 a week?

Everyone says having a baby costs ALOT of money, but nobody actually tells you how much it costs. So here ya go- $50 a week, just to feed and diaper your baby. A can of formula costs about $25 and right now a can is lasting Jennie about a week. A box of diapers is $20-25 and a box of diapers lasts us about a week between taking some to daycare and leaving some at home. Am I missing anything in that calculation? Oh yea, clothes, doctors appointments...and that doesn't even count once your baby is old enough to start needing cereal, baby food, etc. Don't even get me started on how much baby gear costs- strollers, carseats, cribs, bouncy seats, swings, walkers, jumpers, toys. Just those several things alone can cost anywhere between the $500 to over $2000 range depending on how fancy you want to go. I got really lucky because I received tons of help from other families and had a HUGE baby shower and received way more things than I ever thought possible (seriously, I had at least 100 people at my shower!).
So do you have an extra $50 a week right now? Jake and I sure didn't at the time, but you learn to budget, meaning you go without things you thought you just "had" to have before. And I started couponing- yep, I'm officially a crazy coupon lady now, trapper keeper and baseball card holders for them and all. And to help you out, I have teamed up with fellow bloggers to offer a Paypal cash giveaway! Give them a "like" for your chance to win :) Thanks for reading!