Adventures in Drosche Land: Arrival

Well, we are finally home from the hospital! Amy and Stella were discharged this morning and we can finally get settled into our new lives and routines. As I type this, everyone is asleep (for the moment) and the house is quiet (for the moment).

The other day I announced Stella's much-anticipated arrival via pictures. I promised a rundown of the entire adventure and now that we're home and the excitement of the hospital is behind us, I have a free moment or two to recount it all. I've honestly been looking forward to posting this as remembering it is sure to bring a smile to my face! Ok, flashback time! It may get a bit long so you might need a break and a snack. It was an eventful day! But make it to the end and there's a payoff! More pictures because you know I've been snapping away!

Saturday night. 11:30(ish) pm. The boys have been asleep for a while and Amy and I have been vegging out, working our way through the DVR. She's miserable, as has been the case for a few days. We decide to turn in for the night but she only makes it through about 10 minutes of tossing and turning before giving up. She tells me she's having some contractions and not feeling well, both have become regular occurrences, and is heading downstairs. I opt for bed as I'm sure she'll be back in a little while.

Sunday morning. 5:30 am. Amy wakes me up. She's just gotten out of the shower and tells me to get up and get in the shower. She was up the previous night until 12:30 before entering a restless sleep until she was awoken by bad contractions at 2:30. This happens again at 4:30. She tells me it might be labor and I need to get moving. Honestly, I think it's yet again another false alarm, but I do as I'm told. But I do it leisurely. I shower, shave, fix my hair, get dressed. All during this time the kids wake up and we're timing the contractions. They're regular, about 7 minutes apart. Maybe it isn't so false after all?

6:00 am. We call the doctor. Come in. So I frantically pack myself and the boys while Amy calls her mom. We'll drop them off to her on the way to the hospital. Maybe this is the real thing? Get moving!

7:00 am. Arrive at the hospital after a rough, I mean rough, car ride. We don't need to ask anyone for directions at the hospital. Everyone who sees Amy simply says, "Labor and Delivery, that way". We get to the room, they're waiting for us. Amy and Stella get hooked up to monitors. Lo and behold, they are contractions! And now they're about 5 minutes apart, and getting stronger. Guess I was wrong. Looks like it's go time! Amy's doctor isn't at the hospital that day but no worries, the doctor on-call has delivered the babies of some of our friends. She's good.

9:45 am. I'm given my scrubs and call my mom. It's the real thing. We're about to head to the OR when the doctor comes in and informs us that another woman has just arrived. She's 9 cm dilated and is going the "no meds" track! We'll have to wait. No worries. In this time my parents arrive and my mom is over the moon! Amy's contractions are getting worse but she's not dilating. This labor thing is new to us. She never went into labor with the boys. Now she's realizing what a blessing it was that she didn't.

12:00(ish) pm. The fire alarms go off. Lights flash. The doors lock down. No loud sounds though so that's good. Turns out it's a false alarm on another floor, due to the renovations and construction going on. It's almost our time.

12:30 pm. Oops. While we were waiting from the 9 cm lady and the fire drill, another C-Sections grabbed our OR. Seriously? Amy's contractions are about 3 minutes apart and strong. Yikes. Luckily our super awesome nurse, Angela, calls the doctor and anesthesiologist and pleads on Amy's behalf. Woo hoo, the epidural is put into help with the pain and expedite the process.

1:00 pm. Go time! Officially! Amy's wheeled into the OR and it's a while before I am let in. She has some nausea/dizziness again (after previous bouts with the IV and epidural) so they want to stabilize her prior to my arrival. But all is soon ok.

1:32 pm. I arrive and take my seat by Amy's head.

1:35 pm. Stella arrives! 7 lbs, 5 oz, 18 inches long! She cries. Amy cries. I cry. It's beautiful. They don't bring her to us immediately which unnerves us. We listen for more crying but only hear some loud gurgled cry/screams. Turns out she has swallowed quite a bit of amniotic fluid and is having a bit of trouble breathing and getting it all out. She'll have to visit the NICU to stabilize. No shock to us as both boys were in the NICU (Braeden for blood sugar issues, Jack because he wasn't breathing and was intubated). We're bummed but know that she'll be well taken care of. I travel to stabilization with Stella after saying goodbye to Amy. Here she's put on oxygen, given through a big plastic dome that I referred to as an astronaut helmet. They wheel her out and we travel to the NICU, along the way meeting my mom, dad, and aunt for the first time.

That pretty much culminates the adventures of the day. She only ended up staying in the NICU for the required 6 hours since she bounced back and recovered very well. The next two days she spent with us in the hospital room and now we're all home together.

So, there you have it. The full story. Stella's arrival was dramatic and eventful, just as the pregnancy had been. It really should have come as no surprise to us that she would make a grand entry into our lives. We'd expect nothing less from her! So far (dare I say) she's proved to be a content and happy baby. The only time she gets fussy (and she lets you know for sure!) is when she's hungry. She's a great eater (the boys never were) and a great sleeper (again, the boys never were). Each of us is wholly infatuated with her. She is beautiful. She is amazing.

These past few days have really made it evident to us that God has truly blessed us. Obviously with the arrival of a healthy baby, but also with the outpouring of love and support from family and friends. Text messages, calls, hospital visitors, Facebook messages and comments, and replies to the blog. Wow is all I can say. Thank you so much to everyone for the love and support, not only shown to us with Stella's arrival, but also through the roller-coaster that was the pregnancy. It was an amazing adventure. Admittedly, one we're glad is over, but amazing nonetheless! Now a new adventure begins!

All is well, baby makes 5, in Drosche Land.