My Kids Hospital Visit . . . a.k.a. Chaos in Room 360

The day after the girls arrived my mother, husband and 3 kids drove to Sacramento to visit me in the hospital and meet Natasha and Anjali. Sanj and Menaka were hanging out with the girls in my room right before my family came in. I told them that my kids would be walking in at any minute and it was about to get really noisy.

They arrived and for the next hour I was reminded why women recover at the hospital after a c-section without their kids. Don't get me wrong, I loved seeing them and I thought it was important for them to meet the girls and most importantly to see them in their dads' arms. My kids have known Sanj and George for about a year and Ruby and Preston have been very aware of the entire process of their mommy being a surrogate. Back to the chaos-

We were sitting in the room when all of a sudden the ground started to shake . . . loud voices went from muffles to screams . . . a nurse ran down the hall shouting something about a stampede heading our way . . . JUST KIDDING- my kids walked in on their best behavior (that lasted about 5 minutes). They immediately saw the babies in their isolates and went ga-ga over them. Preston was trying to hug and touch them, Ruby was smiling from ear to ear, and Sawyer had no clue where he was, what was happening and why I was there. His little eyes were wide, looking all around and you could tell he was wondering what in the heck was going on- then, he saw them . . . "Babies" he said. Rick picked him up and showed him the girls.

Everyone came over and gathered around my bed. I got hugs and kisses and we talked about the babies a little bit. Menaka held Anjali and I held Natasha so my kids could see the babies up close.



Preston, my little love bug, would rest his head on them (giving them hugs) and Ruby asked if she could hold them. She sat on the end of my bed and I handed her Tasha to hold. She just sat their for a while staring at her and loving her. She was very excited to be able to finally hold one, since she had been feeling my belly for their movements for the last few months.



The funniest part of the day was Sawyer's reaction when I fed one of the babies. I was giving Anjali some colostrum and Sawyer was not happy about it. He climbed up and sat on his dad's lap, across from me. He stuck his chin up and his bottom lip out and proceeded to stare us down. You could just imagine what he was saying in his mind . . . "Don't get to comfortable baby, that's my mommy" or "Put the Boob down and no one gets hurt" . . .

For the rest of the visit my kids were bouncing off the walls, couch, chairs, etc. It was time for them to go before I made sure every woman on my floor decided against having more kids in the future. I gave them all hugs and kisses and told them I'd see them in a few days. Rick, seeing that I was a little stressed over their behavior (and my physical inability to deal with it myself) thought he'd be funny and ask if I wanted them to come back tomorrow. "No, Thank You" I said. In my mind I was freaking out thinking in 2 days I'd be back home, still physically unable to "control" my children if they decided to take advantage of mommy's "condition". Luckily, my mother is sticking around until Friday to help out since Rick's mom is now unable to help out as planned because of a family emergency. (My poor mother, I swear, she'll be back home by at least New Year's).

Birth Story Part 2

When I left you last I was checked into the hospital, 4 cm dilated, IV in, shaved and waiting for Sanj to arrive. It's usually around a 2 hour drive from the Bay Area (depending where you reside) to Sacramento. The time flew by- for me anyway- I'm sure it was a long drive for Sanj . . . because his girls would be here that very night! Before I knew it Sanj and Menaka had arrived and George and Sanj were given their scrubs to change into. Then after signing some paperwork and some last minute explanations we were ready to go to the Operating Room.



I was taken back to the O.R. where I was about to take a trip to "Surreal, USA." I have never had a c-section so this delivery was totally different. I got up on the gurney and the anesthesiologist gave me a spinal. That hurt a bit. I guess my vertebrae are really close together so getting the needle in between bone was harder than usual. Later, George and Sanj would tell me they heard me during the process and they felt bad. It probably sounded something like this, "Ouch, Ow, Ouch, Ehhhh, Okay, Oww, Ouch, Oh God . . ." I think you get the idea. Once they had the spinal in, they laid me on my back immediately. I felt like I was going to fall off the gurney. I asked them if I was falling, they assured me I wasn't and that I was attached and couldn't possibly fall off. It was really bright, so I closed my eyes while the preparations were going on and kept telling myself, "This is it!" It's crazy, we've been on this journey for almost a year and here I was, in the O.R. being prepared to deliver their girls. I wasn't scared, the whole thing seemed surreal. I couldn't feel pain from the abdomen down. I could feel them touching and tugging and moving around, but no pain. They put up the curtain, swabbed my belly and when they were ready, they called for the parents. George and Sanj took a seat by my head and the surgery began.



They told us they were cutting and Sanj took some pictures of the events.

At 7:05pm Natasha made her grand entrance. I could only hear her cry and then when the nurses moved her to the station to check her out, I could see her thick black hair. She was 6 pounds 2 ounces and 17.5 inches and Beautiful!



One minute later Natasha's little sister Anjali was born. She weighed 5 pounds 8 ounces and was 17.25 inches long and Adorable!



The nurses were attending to the girls and George, Sanj and I were in awe. Multiple cameras were being used (Thank you Sanj for using mine too) and the three of us were completely giddy! It was an amazing moment. Seeing George and Sanj with their girls was spectacular! It is unlike any other feeling I've ever had. To be a part of something so special, I can't even really put it into words. All I know is that it was a moment that I will never forget.


*Recovery stories to follow*

Birth Story Part 1

It was Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and I was heading to Sacramento for my last Non Stress Test appointment before our scheduled c-section (Sunday the 30th). I wanted to stop and get some lunch since I had only had a bowl of cereal a few hours before for breakfast but I wasn't sure I'd make it to my appointment on time. I figured I'd just grab a bagel sandwich afterwards on my drive home.

At 1:00 I met George and his mother in law at the appointment. I'm hooked up to monitors and the tests go well. They do notice I am having contractions and my blood pressure is a bit elevated. They page my OB and he tells them to send me to delivery so they can monitor me a little longer to keep and eye on my blood pressure. We settle into a triage room and start making a few phone calls to find out where Sanj is in case he has to drive to the hospital (it's about a 2 hour drive). I also call my family to let them know that I may be either late or not coming home tonight. The staff takes some blood and I pee in a cup so they can run a few tests . . . let the good times begin! Taking blood sucks for me because I have little veins- heck, I couldn't abuse IV drugs even if I wanted to! Peeing in a cup, now there's something I was born to do (great aim)- no problems there.

After an hour or so they decide my blood pressure is okay but they want to check my cervix for any progress since I'm having contractions every 2-3 minutes (75% of which I can't even feel). George and Logi leave the room and the nurse checks my cervix. I'm at 4 centimeters, which is another way of saying the girls birthday will be born in a few hours, not the 30th of November. I call my family to let them know I'll be home in a few days . . . George calls Sanj and Menaka (Sanj's cousin) to let them know they need to leave ASAP because we will be going in for a c-section in a few hours (2 other mom's scheduled before me). When you have a c-section they advise you not to eat or drink several hours before and luckily for me I hadn't eaten since eight o'clock that morning and I hadn't drank anything since noon. *Personal note* by this time I was indeed hungry and thirsty but knew it would be a few hours until I could eat or drink anything.

They check me into the hospital and begin preparations for the c-section. I get on my gown, they give me some medication to slow down the contractions, they start an IV in my hand and last but not least, shave my pubes. When the nurse was shaving me I had to giggle because instead of thinking about how painful the incision from the c-section would be I was complaining in my head, "Man, this is going to itch in a few days".




So now we just wait for Sanj to arrive.

11/28/08

Thankful for Mothers!

My mother and I had this great plan- She would come up to help me with my family and house for the time leading up to the girls' delivery. We had it planned out perfectly based on my last three deliveries, she'd come up November 7th (35 weeks) and she'd stay until the 21st. That way she'd be able to help me out at the very end, be here for the delivery and maybe a few days of recovery. Of course, as you know it's now November 27th, the girls haven't arrived yet and my mom is still here. HA! So much for my perfect plan, eh?

Luckily, My mom is a realtor, so with the market totally sucking right now she has been able to come up for a few weeks . . . actually, it will almost be a month by the time she leaves December 2nd. I am so grateful she was able to come up. I even told her in October, when we were planning everything, that if she left before I delivered that her being here would still be a tremendous help. I haven't been able to bend over really for weeks and it's amazing how quickly my house gets cluttered with 3 kids, most specifically my 2 year old. Not to mention my house is over 3400sf, which means a lot of house to keep in order when you're lugging around twins and can move a little quicker than a snail. Honestly, I think by having my mom here to help me get the kids ready for school, helping me taxi them everywhere, helping me with the house, meals, etc. it's probably the reason I haven't delivered yet. With my own kids I work up to the day I deliver and don't have any extra help until relatives visit after the birth. With my surro pregnancy I was pulled off of work at 30 weeks and for the last 3 weeks, when I'd usually deliver, I've had help 24 hours a day. So really, I guess I should tell my mom it's her fault :)

It has been great having her here for so long. Besides all the invaluable assistance, it's been nice for her to be able to spend so much time with her grand kids. Ruby's school even had a "Grandparents Day" that Granny Red (my mom, who's a redhead) was actually able to attend because she was already here with us! My kids are LOVING the fact she's been here so long, but I think we've all been spoiled. They're used to grandparents just visiting for a weekend, now whenever any of them come up they'll wonder why they have to leave so soon.

Another great thing was that my mom was able to meet the Intended Parents and will be around to see the girls she helped "keep in" for so long. Also, my mother in law will be coming up on the induction date (November 30th) and will stay with us until December 7th. That way, she can meet the parents and the babies and will help us out with the kids while I'm in the hospital and for the first few days I make it home with stitches and staples. At first Rick and I felt really bad about our mom's taking off work to come help out when the twins aren't their grandchildren. But they both had communicated to us that they wanted to help us because they were nervous about the twin pregnancy/birth and ultimately, we are their children and their grandchildren would need them. Not to mention my mother in law gave birth to triplets over 30 years ago and she knows the journey of multiples.

Honestly, the whole surrogacy process has gone flawlessly except for waiting for the delivery. We met great parents right away. Our transfer succeeded the first time. The parents ended up with twins. We've had 37 weeks of great reports on the girls and my health. Everything has been wonderful. The only "bummer" part in the whole process was my inability to plan my mothers visit better. But really, I swear, if she didn't come up when she did, I would've had the girls earlier, I'm sure of it. So I guess I should try not to feel bad. I know she has enjoyed herself but she also has left a husband, job and animals for almost a month and when she returns home will no doubt have tons to do. Perhaps I should start thinking of a nice Thank You gift to send her upon her return.

Kelly's Fantastic Turkey Day Twin Diet- Yours only $40!

Last Friday we had an ultrasound and they estimated the girls weight. I'm carrying over 11 pounds and 3 ounces of cargo! Baby A was 5 lbs 10 oz and Baby B was 5 lbs 9 oz, which is a great weight for twins at 36 weeks. We've passed the gestation and weight where it is very likely that they'll be discharged from the hospital before I will.

Since I'm still pregnant (I swear every blog will be my last before I give birth) I figured I better blog since it's been several days. Thanksgiving is tomorrow, so we'll see if I get to eat with my family or if I'll be eating Sutter Memorial's version of turkey day dinner after we deliver. If I am home, it will probably be the least amount I've ever eaten for Thanksgiving, ever. I should market "Kelly's Fantastic Turkey Day Twin Diet" to the world. It would be based on the fact that there is no room to really eat. I figure I could write a comedic "How To" lose weight on America's most gluttonous day brochure, have it accompanied by about a cup full of food (envision military rations) in flashy packaging and charge about $40 each. Where I think I'll fall short is the FDA approval on the 11 pound fake twins we'll need to try to have surgically implanted in the customer's abdomen. Obviously, I'll need to think this through, but as a quick brainstorm, I may have something here.

I actually do have a plan for eating tomorrow. First, we're going to eat earlier in the day to try to help avoid my nighttime heartburn. Next, I think I'm going to start at the end of the meal knowing that I'm going to run out of room. This way I can ensure pleasure of eating Pumpkin pie and not "waste" my room on green beans.

For those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving, Happy Turkey Day tomorrow. For those of you who don't, Happy Thursday.

I'll try to do another post in the next day or two since time is running out . . . . Who knows what you'll be forced to read in the upcoming months when you can't visit my blog anymore. I will make sure to post some support group information soon since I'm sure several of you will no doubt, go through withdrawals. I know at this moment, some of you are yelling at your screen, "Say it ain't so Kelly" . . . Sadly, Denial is the second step after Shock in the Cycle of Grief. Just know I'll be here for you.

In The Final Stretch

My bag is packed and hanging out in the back of my van. I'm ready to go . . . just waiting for that whole "labor" thing to begin. My family and friends are so surprised I haven't given birth yet. I am actually the most stunned- I guess I jinxed myself blogging about how early my own kids come. I thought for sure between my early births and and with twins usually making an early appearance, by today, the parents would be experts at wiping spit-up, changing their girls outfits 4 times a day after multiple "blow outs", and trying to function on minimal sleep with no showers. But here I am . . . still VERY pregnant and they are still very clean and well rested (with plans to see the new Bond movie Friday).

Back to the packing . . . it was much easier to pack for my hospital stay this time around than when I was about to birth my own kids. I get to pack a few things I would have never packed before and get to leave several items at home. More than likely I'll be having a c-section, so instead of staying for only one day, I might be in the hospital for 2-4 days. New items I packed this time are books. With three kids at home, a teaching job, a children's boutique and a television addiction reading a book for pleasure (written for an adult) isn't usually my top priority. So, I made sure to bring two books that I've been wanting to read, When You Are Engulfed In Flames by my favorite author David Sedaris and Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach. Since I won't need to care for the twins or my own children, I may actually be able to read both books from cover to cover! Heck, with a c-section I'll have a catheter in, so having to stop reading to go pee won't even be an issue! I'm also debating about bringing my laptop. Sutter Memorial has free Wi-fi so I figured I can keep up with the blog during my "down time". I can create magical blogs in my hospital bed and later have a nurse help me up to walk around and post it from the free Wi-fi area . . . or when my family comes to see me, have them post it. Seriously, if not for the fact that this will be major abdominal surgery with a few weeks of recovery, my hospital stay has the makings of one of the best vacations I've taken in the last few years.

On the other hand, no need for me to bring car seats, the girls won't be going home with me. Don't need to pack any outfits, diapers, or any other baby gear. I also don't need to bring anything for Rick, as he won't be staying overnight with me like he did with our kids. We've discussed his "job" through all this and it doesn't need to be much. These aren't our kids, so it's not like he needs to be there during the birth. Yes, he could give me encouragement and support, but the parents will be there, and their excitement for the outcome will undoubtedly be more than Ricks, so they may be the better bet. I do think if something goes wrong, maybe I would want him there, but I hate to go there . . .

Even though it may be a downer, it is part of the whole experience, so maybe I will mention some of my anxieties. Let me preface this by saying I have a huge imagination, so there have been a few things I've thought about during this process. Ultimately, I'm very optimistic, so my overactive imagination hasn't gotten out of control. As we get closer to delivery and it became apparent that I would probably be having a c-section, some new thoughts started to tip-toe into my mind . First, I could lose my uterus but the fact is, our family is complete, so it's not like I would be devastated that a future baby wouldn't have the chance to join our family.

One of the things that does make my heart skip a beat is that I know dying during birth does happen, although very unlikely. I have thought a little bit more about this just because I've never had a c-section before, so I've devoted a little bit of time to all my what if situations. The biggest sadness I feel besides of course my children losing their mother is the thought that Sawyer is too young to remember me if I did pass. (Again, it is not my goal to freak people out here or have them to start to tear up, but I have tried to stay genuine during all my posts, and this goes for the sad thoughts as well as the funny ones). Perhaps I should insert a pooping during delivery joke here to cut the tension? Again, I'm very positive and know that everything is going to be fine, but I would be lying to say that the thoughts above never have entered my mind.

Well, it's the end of the post and I'm still pregnant- damn it! *smile*

I'll keep you posted. I'm hoping things happen soon. No one, including my OB, thinks I'll make it to November 30th (which is our induction/c-section date) but you never know. I do hope that I give birth before this Monday or after next Friday. It would suck to spend Thanksgiving without my family in the hospital. Although, it may suck more to be pregnant at Thanksgiving since more than a cup full of food seems to give me heart burn. Perhaps I need to see this in a more positive light . . . as a diet technique. I will no doubt have several pounds to shed in the next few months (or years for me) this could be a blessing in disguise, my inability to eat or enjoy Thanksgiving. Perhaps the twins should stay in longer so they can help me not eat Christmas Cookies?

Big Belly Kelly

You would not believe how big my belly is. It is crazy. I remember just bragging weeks ago (or was it days) that I'm doing so well . . . yada, yada, yada. Well, I'm changing my tune- I'm ridiculous. My friends are gasping and laughing and not under their breath or behind my back . . . to my face! Can you believe it? The nerve! :) One of my best friends said I need to update the Pumpkin Smuggler shirt picture because it's old (and false advertisement) so I'll try to take a quick belly pick today and post it.
I keep thinking about the longer these little ladies stay in for the better, but also the longer it will be until I can bend over again, shave my legs, get up from my sofa and bed without assistance. I've had some people ask me if the babies have "dropped"- I'm not sure that happens really with 2, drop where? They're taking up every bit of space in my abdomen, I don't think there is anywhere else to go, except the nearest exit and they are not rushing to get out of my uterus, that's for sure. I mean, don't get me wrong, I've said it time and time again, MY UTERUS ROCKS . . . if I were in there, I wouldn't want to leave either, but come on, there are tons of people who are waiting to meet the girls, so I think they need to pick up the pace.

I have been having contractions for a few weeks now and at night I notice them a lot more. However, they are not consistent . . . usually anywhere from 8 to 15 minutes apart . . . then nothing. We'll see if anything happens in the next few days, or hours. One thing that is a little different getting ready to birth someone else's babies is that I have not noticed any "nesting instinct". Before all three of my kids I went through this uncontrollable urge to clean, fix, prepare various things. We will see if it ever happens (like in the next week or so) but I kind of doubt it. I do have to prepare for my absence and the recovery from a possible C-section but nothing "uncontrollable".

I'll try to post more in the next few days, since it's coming to an end, so keep checking back . . . you never know when I'll be going in for the big push (or cut).

Memory Lane #3

Okay, we've reached the time for Sawyer's birth. Can you tell I'm afraid of running out of time before the birth of the girls? I'm tossing out new posts like it's going out of style!

It was September of 2006 and I was 36 weeks along with my third pregnancy. I was teaching only once a week at American River College that semester. One day after class I went to the hospital to get checked out quickly since I was having contractions. I arrived, they hooked me up to the monitor and found my contractions were every 8 minutes. However, with a cervical check or two in an hour or so it was shown that I was not progressing, so they sent me home. Two days later my contractions were about every 6 minutes or so apart, so I figured I should head in to get checked out. I live about an hour and a half away from my hospital so I thought it would be better to play it safe.

They hook me back up to the monitors and since my contractions were consistent and I lived far away, they checked me into a room on the High Risk Maternity floor (only available space) and monitored me overnight. I was told my OB would be in to check on me first thing in the morning. Well, around noon, with no progression but still tons of contractions I called over to my OB's office because he never came over. Get this, no one ever called over to tell him I was there! So he heads over, tells me that since I'm not dilating to go home. He gives me some medication to help me not notice the contractions and puts me on bed rest, telling me to come back the next Friday, when I'd be 37 weeks and if I had progressed at all, he'd keep me.

That next week I take it easy and take my medication. I don't really notice the contractions that much (which scares me since I'm so far away and don't want to deliver in my van) - but I do make it to Friday. I go teach my class and head to my OB appointment. Dr. Knight checks my cervix and nothing! That means I have to go back home and freak out over contractions for who knows how long and maybe waste more gas coming back to the hospital in hours or days. As I'm walking back to my car I call Rick and my mother in law to tell them it's a "no go". After I hang up and I'm bitching to myself about the predicament I'm in, I notice this weird heavy feeling in my vagina as I walk. All of a sudden my water breaks right there in the parking lot! I call my Doctor's office and since I just left 5 minutes earlier they ask if I left my purse. I told them that my water broke, they laughed and said, go to the hospital.

I realize I have Rick's car, he has the van in case I had to stay. I pop open the trunk to see if I can find something to sit on, since my pants are wet and more amniotic fluid is making it's way out of my body. Lucky for Rick, he had a Valley Yellow Pages towel from a Hawaii contest he won laying back there. I make a beach towel diaper, get in the car and drive over to the hospital. They test me to make sure it is in fact my water that broke versus me peeing my pants (which happened to my friend one time when she thought her water broke)- once they determine it is not urine, they check me in. I call Rick and let him know and tell him we probably have a few hours because I'm still hardly dilated.

Of course I get an epidural (I'm sure you're still chuckling over Ruby's birth) and hang out drinking Cranberry juice waiting for Rick to arrive. They start the Pitocin and I settle in for some TV. This is my third birth, so it seems like we're just going through the motions and not much excitement. I just want to give birth and go back home so I can be with my family in the comfort of my own home.

At 12:33 am on Saturday September 23, 2006 Sawyer Orion was born weighing in at 7 pounds and 11 ounces.

Later that day my mother in law brought Ruby and Preston to the hospital to meet their new brother and it was the most awesome experience ever. To just sit back and see my family, finally complete, there are no words to describe it!

Memory Lane #2

Continuing with the former birth series, we have arrived to Preston's birth. I'm sorry to say it won't be as funny as Ruby's, which also means no poop, but I'm sure you'll find it wonderful or at least cleaner.

Well, it was a hot day in June and I had just taken Ruby swimming. We got home, I put her down for her nap and took a shower. During the shower, I noticed I lost my mucous plug. Even though I had given birth before (just shy of 2 years) I couldn't really tell if the "tightness" I was feeling was actually contractions or not. So, I call Rick at work and let him know I might be having contractions and I lost my plug. I told him no need to rush home, but we may be giving birth in the next day or so and that I'd keep him posted on my progress.

I kept track of my possible contractions well into the late afternoon and I even called a few friends to have them "remind" me of when I should venture to the hospital. Remember, with Ruby my water broke, so going to the hospital was a no brainer. I guess I didn't want to be one of those women who goes to the hospital only to be sent home.

Around 5:00 pm I start to think that maybe this really is it. I call Rick at work and tell him that I think I'm in labor but no need to drop what he's doing . . . just finish up and come home so we can go to the hospital to see for sure. He tells me okay and then asks if I can go pick up his dry cleaning. Yes, you read right! I laughed at him and asked if he was joking . . . he told me that he figured if I gave birth and he wasn't around for the next day or so that he may not have a chance to go get it before the weekend. That's when I reminded him that I was in labor and would not be driving to get his DAMN dry cleaning while having contractions and bringing along my 20 month old. I asked him to finish up and come home.

By 7:30 pm, he was still not home so I called him. He was still at work! He told me that he just needed to finish a few things and reminded me that I told him to finish before coming home. I decided to CLARIFY in my best "get your ass home right now" voice. Within 35 minutes he was home and we were on our way to the hospital. Besides J Street having several construction closures, we made decent time to the hospital. When we arrived I told the nurses in the Maternity Ward that I thought I was having contractions, about 15 minutes or so apart. They put me on a moniter and we found out that I was having contractions every 2 minuntes. (I'm so in tune with my body, eh?) They checked my cervix and reported that I was already 5 cm dialated.

They asked me if I wanted an epidural and using a scale of 1-10 (I assumed 10 was giving birth to Ruby without any drugs) how much pain was I in. I asked them which answer would get me an epidural. They let me know that any answer would suffice. I told them about a 2 and urged them to page the anestisiologist now (we all know what happened last time).

I can really summarize the rest . . . I received my epidural (rainbows, fairies and bubbles) and the labor was 100% different than Ruby's. They told me I should rest, get some sleep since I'd be pushing soon. I laughed thinking, sleep? really? This was soooooooo different than Ruby's delivery! A little while later they woke me up and we found out I was almost 10 cm and they said I'd be pushing soon. I started to feel that pressure you get in your butt and told them they need to "top off" my epidural because I knew what that pressure meant. (Pain, cussing and pushing coming up quick!)

At 2:54 am on June 18, 2003, about 2 weeks early, Preston Xavier was born. He weighed in at 7 pounds and 8 ounces.

Shaved Legs and Memory Lane #1

As of tomorrow, we have reached our goal of making it to 35 weeks with twins. So, pretty much any day/week now we can deliver. With delivery being, well, whenever, I've decided to try to do a few more things to get ready for the big day. One of these things was shaving my legs. It is no easy task to shave your legs when the largest part of your midsection has grown to about 52"! Yeah, you read right . . . that makes me about 12 inches taller than around-YIKES. But I still have gotten no where near where I thought I'd be!

I've been getting a lot of people asking about how I think the delivery will go and we keep discussing my last 3 birth experiences. I thought, in order to prepare you for this birth and the marvelous write-up of that will no doubt follow when I return from the hospital, I'd get you warmed up on my past experiences. So here you go-

Memory Lane # 1 (Not quite short, but definitely shorter than I usually tell it)!

Ruby was due November 22nd so it was quite the surprise when my water broke 4 weeks early. They always tell you that most first pregnancy's go up until, if not past the due date. That night was like any other. Rick and I ate some spaghetti and hung around the house. At one point I had him feel my abdomen, "Wow, that's really hard" he said. "I know", completely oblivious. I watched about an hour or so of Maternity Ward (which is the worse show to watch when you are pregnant) and made the decision I would definitely be using an epidural during the birth. I didn't need to be a super hero and after watching this women scream for 30 minutes, then be as calm as a cucumber after she received her epidural, I was sold.

Anyway, so I go to sleep and at 1:40 am I wake up and look at my clock. Right then my water breaks. "No", I said as I got up. "No way", I told myself as I paced around the room with more fluid making its exit. I was freaking out. I still had one more day of work before my maternity leave and Ricky and I had put up the crib, but that was about it because we thought we'd have 3-4 weeks of maternity leave to get things settled before little Ruby Q made her entrance. So, I wake up Rick and let him know. We call the hospital and they tell us to come in. We get out the list of what to bring to the hospital and start throwing things in a bag. I run upstairs, call in for my substitute teacher (I was teaching high school at the time) and created and faxed over my sub plans.

We go to get into my Tribute but our roommate is parked behind me. We grab the baby seat and toss it into Ricky's car. It's on Empty. We drive to the nearest gas station (it's about 2:15 am now) and go to fill up. He left his wallet at home. I break out my card and pay while adding some snacks, a banana and suckers the list tells me to bring to the hospital and we're off . . . well, first we go back home and get Rick's wallet. Now, we're off! It takes us about 45 minutes to get to the hospital (it's across the Bay) and we arrive and get settled into our room. They give me pitocin, to help along contractions since my water broke and you're supposed to deliver within 24 hours of water breaking to prevent infection. The nurse asks me if I plan on using drugs. I tell her, "Yes, but I want to see how far I can make it without" . . . . famous last words!

Well, we find out the pitocin works really well for me, because fast foward a few hours and I'm doubled over in pain, asking for my epidural and told that I was now 10 cm and couldn't get it. "Excuse me?", I say, "My aunt is an anesthesiologist and I know for a fact that I can get it any time I want, it just makes it more difficult for you" . . . SILENCE FALLS IN THE DELIVERY ROOM . . . Ricky swears he sees a tumbleweed roll across the floor as the western duel music plays in his head. The nurse, who I now will call Nurse Ratched, tells me that by the time the anesthesiologist gets here, that I will have already had the baby.

I'M PISSED (to say the least). Once I become very aware that I will not get any drugs and this will not be going as smoothly as I hoped I kicked everyone but Rick out of the delivery room. I figured my mother in law and sister in law do not need to see me this way. After all, I could very well say something that will haunt me for years to come. My nurse, who is not feeling my pain and has no sympathy (just a horrible attitude) has become enemy #1. Now, for those of you who don't know (sorry to be the one to tell you but) sometimes when women are giving birth, they will also poop. I have now decided that my new goal for this delivery (besides delivering a healthy girl) is to crap as much as possible because it is Nurse Ratched's job to wipe it off the table. GAME ON!

So I'm contracting, pushing, screaming, cussing, and all along smiling knowing I'm doing a great job on the feces front. I ask Rick, "Am I pooping?" He confirms, I smile and say "good". (Now, some of you may be mortified reading this now. All I can say is it's a good thing you haven't taken the college class I teach because I tell this story and act it out!)

At 8:05 am on Tuesday October 30, 2001 Ruby Quinn makes her entrance weighing in at 6 lbs 10 oz. Nurse Ratched says, "See you didn't need drugs" . . . it is 7 years later and I still hate her.

The Ads on Clustrmap.com do not reflect the views of Kelly, her uterus or her blog!

I have moved our map that records our site visitors to the bottom of our page. Why, you ask? Well, I guess whoever does their Ad Space will take money from anyone, as long as they pay enough. Unfortunately for me, the current ad is in support for Prop. 8 . . . which goes against EVERYTHING Kelly, her uterus and her blog stand for!

Proposition 8 (or as some of us call it Prop Hate) is unfair, unnecessary and wrong. Prop 8 would eliminate the fundamental right for same-sex couples to marry. Whose right is it to tell me my children can't marry whoever they love in the future? Again, Prop. 8 seeks to eliminate fundamental rights for one group of people. I trust you agree that eliminating fundamental rights - from anyone - is just wrong.

I have already sent in my absentee ballot and you can bet that I darkened in the NO on Prop 8 bubble as much as I could.



I am saddened that I even have to blog about this here . . .

**UPDATE- the ad has been removed and replaced by Tylenol SInus. Not sure if it was because of me and numerous others emailing about it or if it's a "new day/new ad" thing. I'm just glad today's ad is sinus medication and not some ad the KKK paid for!