I woke up on the morning of Wednesday, Oct. 24th and got ready as usual - I was scheduled to work 6-6 and it was my last day before maternity leave, so I was excited and ready for a couple of days off! I was also excited because we had a dr appt that morning and I was excited to see if we had made any progress in getting closer to meeting our little girl!
Work was nothing out of the ordinary that morning, my co-worker Leah and I had a lot of consents to get for surgeries so we were walking all over the hospital and she joked saying that we would walk that baby out (I was very ready to be done being pregnant at this time), little did we know there was more truth to that then we realized. I had been having some cramping that morning, but nothing out of the ordinary of the last week or so, so I didn't think much of it. I left to go to the dr around 10:30 and asked another co-worker, Jen, to take my phone, told them they didn't have to wait for me to go to lunch, and I would be back as soon as I could. Joe and Bayley picked me up to go to the dr (that way Joe could be there for the appt and he liked to make sure that I wouldn't be late). When we got there, the nurse checked my vitals and told me that my blood pressure was pretty high in the 150s/90s, which might have been since I had been busy at work that morning, but they wanted me to lay down for a bit and re-check it - it didn't go down after resting, and when the dr came in and checked me, she asked about contractions, I told her I wasn't having any yet, just some light cramping which had been going on for days and wasn't even really noticeable. She said that she thought I was going into early labor and shouldn't go back to work, she anticipated we would go into labor later that evening sometime, but she wanted to do a non-stress test and monitor me in the office for a bit longer because of my blood pressure. I was already 5cm in the office that morning, and since labor had gone so quickly with Bayley, we figured it would be fast again once it started. So Joe and I excitedly started texting our parents and family to let them know that Ellie would probably be here later tonight sometime. I was hooked up to the monitor for about 40 minutes during which time I was still feeling some cramping but no contractions were even showing up on the monitor at that point. After the NST, my BP was still high so I had to go lay down again and get that checked a couple more times. At this point, we had been in the office for over an hour and a half. While laying down waiting for my BP check, I started having some stronger cramping which was coming more regularly, about every 7-10 minutes, but still nothing too intense. The dr came back in and said that she still thought we would go into labor sometime that afternoon so we could go home and wait it out. At that point, I assumed this intensifying cramping was the beginning of labor, so we decided just to run home and grab our hospital bag quickly and have Joe's mom pick up Bayley and head back up to the hospital since things were becoming a bit more uncomfortable. We left the dr office around 12:45, by the time we got out to the car and were driving home, the contractions were stronger and more uncomfortable, coming about every 5 mins. At that point, I called my mom and told her they might want to start heading out, I was in labor and we were going to head to the hospital and I would call her after I got my epidural - all I could think about was how nice that epidural would be! We got home around 1pm and the contractions were getting really strong that I could hardly walk into the house. Joe quickly rushed around to grab the last couple of things for my hospital bag and Bayley's overnight bag for Nana's house - I tried to get changed out of my scrubs but ended up on all fours on the floor in pain, trying to breathe through what had become the worst pain I had ever experienced, now coming so frequently I could hardly get a breath in between. All I could think at that moment was we needed to get to the hospital so I could get the epidural and get some relief. Bayley and Nana left and we started to make our way back to the hospital - at this point the contractions were even stronger and coming every minute, although I still had no idea how close we were. I felt every speed bump, pot hole, acceleration, deceleration and turn on the car ride. Joe was amazing and held my hand through each contraction, let me squeeze it as hard as I needed to, the whole time reassuring me that I was ok, I could do this, just breathe. I was trying so hard just to breathe and constantly praying that God would make it stop, just for a minute, just for a short rest. We made it back to Riverside Hospital in record time and as we were pulling into the parking lot the contractions were pretty much constant with no relief at all, just this constant, indescribably intense horrible pain. I thought I was going to throw up as we drove past the emergency department and around to the Women's Center. I was almost panicking because I really felt like I couldn't breathe and I was afraid I was going to throw up in Joe's car. I told Joe to just grab my bag and the camera and lets go - he pulled up, grabbed our bag, literally tossed the keys to the valet guy and grabbed me a wheelchair. I could barely get out of the car and walk the couple of steps to the wheelchair. Joe ran through the halls, again I felt every single bump on our way to the elevators, but I felt a small relief that we were close and relief from pain was in sight. We pulled up to labor and delivery where Joe calmly told the nurses we were there to have a baby, although none of us had any idea how soon that would be. I think the nurses could tell by the look on my face and quickly started to ask me questions - "what baby is this for you?" I could barely breathe, let alone talk, but I managed to tell them breathlessly that this was baby #2, Dr. Costa knew we were coming, contractions are constant and I was 5cm dilated at the drs office, almost 3 hours ago and ask how quickly I could get an epidural. They quickly wheeled me back to a room. I managed to get out of the wheelchair and into the bathroom, Joe helped me change into a gown and he and the nurses helped me get into the bed. All I could say was "how soon til I can get the epidural?" I had no idea how close we were to meeting Ellie and I could not imagine this pain going on any longer, my body was exhausted from the pain. I assumed it would be hours before Ellie was born and I just wanted some relief, I think the hope of pain relief with the epidural almost kept me going. The nurse tried to get an IV in me, but I was so dehydrated she couldn't get a vein. Meanwhile I had another nurse check me before she called my OB, and when she did she discovered that I was fully dilated and Ellie was ready to come. The nurse finally got the IV in. I still wanted the epidural, still not registering how close we were. The nurses all kept telling me I could get an epidural or they could break my water and we could have this baby. I didn't really believe them - my mom had always told me that once your water breaks the contractions get stronger and the pain just gets worse and at that point, I couldn't imagine the pain any worse. I overheard the nurse call anesthesia who was in the OR - "Hi, I have a multip here who is fully dilated and wants an epidural" to which anesthesia replied "Really? Umm, ok I guess." I knew they all thought I should just let them break my water and get the pushing started, but I still didn't comprehend how close we were and I just wanted to be able to breathe again. Anesthesia came in and started to talk about the risks of an epidural and she explained that it probably wouldn't even have time to kick in as it took 10 minutes to start working and I would probably have a baby before that. I obviously wasn't thinking clearly, because all I could think of was, "you just don't want to do your job, you can't talk me out of this." The nurses had said that I probably wouldn't be able to sit up for the epidural and they might have to break my water so I could sit up, but the CRNA said the dr who would do the epidural could do it with me on my side and was very fast. Joe had to answer her questions because at this point I couldn't talk. She went to get the consent and told me that I would have to sign it myself because Joe couldn't sign for me. I started having a contraction as soon as she was handing me the consent so I held up a finger to motion her to wait and at that moment my water broke! It sounded like a water balloon, or so Joe said, but surprisingly I felt momentarily relief. The CRNA said "ok, well I guess you won't be needing me anymore" and she left. One nurse frantically ran to the room next door to grab one of my OB's partners to come in, but she didn't make it in time. I felt this intense pressure and I didn't even purposefully push, but I apparently screamed, twice, and Ellie literally shot out and 2 nurses caught her, before my OB got to the hospital, before the OB next door even made it in the room, 12 minutes after we arrived at the hospital, just over an hour after real contractions started. I was shocked, I couldn't believe she was here! My pain was immediately gone. She was so beautiful and perfect and we were both just so shocked! Joe cut the cord and went to check on Ellie. My OB finally arrived and was completely shocked "I just saw you an hour ago and you weren't even having contractions!" Everyone was somewhat shocked I think, they said the 12 minutes was a record! I couldn't believe she came so quickly, without medications, without pushing. After some stitches, I got up, was able to walk and got changed, into my own clothes! I couldn't believe how good I felt! I had had an epidural with Bayley and couldn't walk for a while afterwards and had a good amount of pain once it wore off, so I was just shocked that I had just had a baby and felt so normal! It was amazing to hold her - its such an odd feeling I think to hold this little baby, and wonder how she ever fit inside you for so long.
Ellie Catheryn Lohr was born at 1:48pm on Wednesday October 24, 2012. She was 7lbs 3oz and 19.5in long. She had perfect apgars of 9 and 10, which apparently is rare - she continued to amaze us, and the entire nursing staff!
I had tested positive for group B strep at my 36 week appt, but since Ellie was born so quickly, there was no time to get the IV antibiotics during labor. This meant that we had to stay in the hospital for the full 48 hours after delivery so she could be monitored. The neonatologist on staff said that if she didn't show any signs of group B strep in that time that she would be fine, and she was absolutely perfect. We were able to take her home and everything was fine - she was a very content baby and we enjoyed adjusting to being a family of 4!
Just over a week after we got home, we had a scheduled weight check at the pediatrician's office. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), Ellie had not been eating overnight before the check-up. Our appt was at 10:45 and she had not eaten since about 2:30 or 3am. We weren't sure what to think and thought maybe she was just really sleepy (she had been difficult to wake up) or not overly hungry. Luckily, we were at the pediatrician's office and when we got her undressed to get weighed, her belly button had some dried blood - the medical assistant wanted the dr to come in and check that really quick, and when she came in, we mentioned that Ellie had not been eating overnight. The dr was very thorough and examined her and said she did not like what she heard when she listened to her heart - it was beating very fast, 220 bpm while Ellie was sleeping when it should have been closer to 140bpm, and Ellie wasn't really responding as she would like - she wasn't crying or protesting when the dr looked in her mouth or when they got a rectal temp. So, she sent us down to Children's Hospital and by the time we got there, she had a temp of 100.5, so she had a fever which in a newborn, is a big deal, warranting an entire work-up consisting of a spinal tap, urine cath, blood work, and an IV since she was dehydrated from not eating and also needed 3 different IV antibiotics. She also earned an automatic 48hr stay in the hospital for monitoring and to wait for the final results of the blood cultures. This was very worrisome and upsetting to us, obviously, we had taken her to the dr for a routine weight check and now she was getting admitted to the hospital and the doctors are talking about sepsis. They came into her room the next morning and told us that her blood cultures came back positive, they were assuming it was group B strep sepsis. The final result came back as group B strep and the infectious disease attending said it was probably because she was born so quickly and I wasn't able to get the antibiotics. She got a PICC (peripherally inserted central catheter) line inserted in her right leg on Wednesday 11/7/12 (Joe's birthday), and we were able to go home the following day after learning how to administer the antibiotics at home. It was a very scary thing, especially when we had to sign the consent form for anesthesia for the PICC which said that she could possibly die. Fortunately she had a great team of doctors and nurses who took amazing care of her! The nurses nicknamed her "fidget" because she moved so much all the time, and it has kind of stuck with her ;) They said she was lucky it was caught so early or it may have been a different story. She had 10 days of IV antibiotics and was able to get her PICC out without many issues. She has been doing great since then (minus some congestion and a cold)! She is gaining weight, still sleeping like a champ, and is just doing great! She is very content and pleasant and tolerant of all the "loving" her big sister gives her.
Bayley just loves to be near Ellie - its really sweet!
Rock band at Mommom & Poppop's house
She found someone's glasses!
First Thanksgiving
Ready for the OSU v Michigan game
When I think back on this first month of Ellie's life, I am still somewhat shocked at how things have turned out. From her super quick labor and birth to her getting sick and having to stay in the hospital and the IV antibiotics, it was all not one bit as we were expecting or planning it would go, and I am sure that she will continue to surprise us many times throughout her life. But when I think about everything and how it is not how I would have planned or thought, I can't help but think how much God was looking out for and taking care of us through it all! If we had been a few minutes later to the hospital, she might have been born in the car; if we hadn't had that appt for the weight check that morning, who knows how long it might have been before we got her checked out for not eating. God is so good!! His plans are often different than our own, but they are always so much better than anything we could imagine. We think back to the baby we lost just over one year ago and that was a very difficult thing to go through, but we knew then that God had a reason and a plan, and if we had not gone through that, we would not have this amazing, dramatic, content, beautiful and perfect little girl that we have now! We are just so overwhelmed by His blessings and how He continues to bless and amaze us! God is good, all the time!
