Welcome Brenna Sue

Yesterday evening, we welcomed our daughter, Brenna Sue Bolton, two weeks early to the world. I spent most of the day volunteering at the NCT Nearly New Sale, but my hips and back were aching more than usual. I just thought I had overdone it on Friday. My bigger concern was that I hadn't felt the baby moving since sometime Friday evening or Saturday morning, no matter what I tried to get her to move. Despite resting once I got home from the sale, my hips and back were still aching and I still hadn't felt the baby moving.

At 5:15pm I called the midwife unit, but no answer, so I left a message.  When I called a different number at 6:15pm, the midwife I spoke with advised that I have supper (had just finished), drink a glass of very cold water and relax as much as possible to try to get the baby moving.  At 7:15pm I called back to report that I still hadn't felt the baby moving. The midwife advised that I come to the hospital to be monitored.  It's a good thing that I had finished packing the hospital bag and asked our next door neighbor, Carol, to come over to watch Ellen just before calling the midwife again.

Jeff and I left the house thinking that I'd be monitored for a while and return home later in the evening. However, on the way to the hospital, I started to feel light, but regular contractions, and I began to think that I wouldn't be returning home without a baby.  Jeff dropped me off at the midwife unit at 7:45pm while he went to park.

In the midwife unit I was eventually hooked up to a monitor, and the midwife found the baby's heartbeat, much to our relief; however, even I recognised that it was beating too fast.  My heart rate was also too fast - something was happening and the baby was in distress.  I was monitored for a while longer, all while my back pain and contractions were increasing. Then suddenly, two midwives piled my coat and purse/handbag onto the bed I was laying on and swiftly wheeled me down the corridor to the labor unit. It was about 9:20pm.

Not entirely sure what was going on, Jeff and I were surprised to see a baby warming bed in the room that I had been wheeled into.  "Oh, they must think I'm about to have a baby," I thought, still not believing I was in labour.  The midwives quickly hooked me up to a monitor and checked how "far along" I was.  4cm already?!  I couldn't believe how fast this labour was progressing (compared to being in labour with Ellen).  Because of the seriousness of the situation with the baby being in distress, the midwife asked to break my water.  Of course I said, "yes". It was 9:30pm.  Unfortunately there was "thick meconium" in the water, proving that the baby was indeed in distress and she really needed to be delivered.

Labour progressed very, very quickly from that point.  Within what seemed like a few minutes, the midwife calmly said, "Lauren, you're going to meet your baby in the next few contractions".  Seriously?! That quickly?! Is this really happening?  At 9:58pm, Brenna Sue Bolton was born. Her umbilical cord was cut immediately and she was whisked over to the examining table for the paediatrician to examin.  After working on her breathing with the aid of a baby-sized respirator for about 10 minutes, I got to hold our daughter for the first time.

Jeff and I were in utter disbelief that I had just given birth... was technically in labour for 28 minutes (from when they broke my water)... and was two weeks early.  Our beautiful daughter laid on my chest while we gazed at her in amazement and made phone calls to our family. We were so grateful to God for her safe arrival.

 

 

 

We stayed in the delivery room for a couple of hours while the midwives continued to monitor Brenna due to her initial breathing difficulty.  Jeff drove home just after midnight. I showered and then taken to a bed in a shared room in the post-natal ward.  While Brenna slept in the bassinet next to my bed, I continued texting and writing emails to friends.  I got very little sleep last night due to midwives coming in to monitor Brenna every 2 hours (though this was absolutely fine with me), midwives talking very loudly to the Polish lady in the bed opposite me, the other two babies in the room and the snoring lady next to me.

At 10:15am Jeff and Ellen, wearing her "Big Sister" t-shirt, arrived.  Unfortunately, two paediatricians were doing a routine baby examination when they arrived. Ellen stared down at Brenna, probably registering for the first time that this baby was somehow her baby sister.  After a few pictures with Brenna and playing with the "shower curtains" (the curtains around my bed), I was discharged just after noon.  Ellen was very happy when we told her it was time to go home, but she got quite upset when we continued to say, "with your baby sister". 

Welcome to our family, Brenna. We love you very much.

Swimming with Daddy

Jeff and Ellen went swimming together last Friday after Jeff finished work.  I decided I would sit out this time since my swimming suit wouldn't fit my 37-week bump (and body)... what a scary thought!  Ellen had been looking forward to swimming "on Friday"; we had been attempting to explain to her earlier in the week that we had to wait a few more days - until Friday - to go swimming.  My friend, Emily, gave us her daughter's no-longer-needed water wings earlier in the day, and Ellen was THRILLED about the water wings, since Peppa and George wear water wings when they go swimming... of course.  Ellen's confidence in the water soared with the water wings on and she LOVED the Daddy-only time in the pool.

Earlier in the day, I had introduced a toddler pillow and duvet to Ellen's cot bed, as a step toward her using a toddler bed when we move into our new house. I wasn't sure how she'd react to having something besides just her blankie, let alone new things in her bed, but she LOVED her new big girl things.  These are a couple of pictures of her trying out her new pillow and duvet.

 

 (She wasn't asleep here)

 

Ellen loves to draw and color and is very good (for now at least) at not drawing on anything besides paper, though I did walk into the lounge a week or so ago as she was coloring on her books (on the shelf). Luckily it was only a colored pencil.  However, I did walk in the other day to green marker-covered lips; she had used her dark green marker as lippy.  I tried to get her to look at me, but of course, to no avail. 

As we all know, Mommy becomes chopped liver when Daddy gets home from work. Most evenings after supper you can find Ellen and Jeff having a picnic in the lounge with her tea pot and tea cups.

Bathtime

Ellen enjoying bathtime with Daddy, while Mommy works her last late-night shift before going on maternity leave!

Huge Scare

Ellen suffered a febrile convulsion on Saturday evening while we were visiting friends in Gloucester. She had a sudden fever on Friday afternoon, but she wasn't acting too unlike herself. We decided to go ahead with our plans to visit friends in Gloucester since we wouldn't have a chance after this weekend with Baby #2 due in just over a month and then moving. Ellen was feverish, but was still acting ok. We arrived at our friends' (the Harrises) house at 17:00, had supper, then were talking in the lounge. Ellen fell asleep in my arms, but woke just after 19:00. She commented on their cat coming into the room, I gave her a drink of water, then suddenly her convulsion started. Her limbs stiffened and her eyes rolled back. Then she stopped breathing. She turned a pale greeny-grey colour and her lips turned purple. I thought my baby was going to die in my arms.  My friend tried pounding her back on her shoulder to try to get any water out that may have become caught in her throat, though we weren't sure this what was causing her to stop breathing.  I gave her a few breaths just to try to get some air in her.  After a 2-3 minutes (we think) from the beginning of the convulsion, she started to take very shallow breaths. I could see her lips going back to pink, then her face.  We were so relieved. During all of this, our friend called 999 and a paramedic showed up VERY quickly.  He did numerous tests on her and wrote down what had happened.  The ambulance arrived a little while later. Ellen laid in my lap completely dazed and non-reactive, which was very normal after a convulsion. Ellen and I rode in the ambulance to the emergency room. Jeff followed in the car.  We saw a nurse straight away, but the wait to see the paediatrician began.  Ellen ran around and was basically back to normal. Once we got to see the paediatrician, he diagnosed Ellen with tonsillitis.  To make sure it wasn't a bladder infection, though, he wanted a urine sample.  Despite our best attempts - Ellen hadn't drank very much since lunch - after 2 hours and a bottle of Amoxicillan, we and the staff gave up and discharged us... it was 1:45 in the morning. We drove to our friends house (the Gilmores), arrived about 2:00am.

Since then, we've been concentrating on keeping Ellen's temperature down by keeping her dressed coolly, taking her temperature loads, giving her Calpol (paracetamol) when able and making sure she drinks as much as possible.  She was much better today, but still has a slight temperature.  The fever could last a couple more days, but she needs the Amoxicillan through Saturday.  Lesson learned: Babies and young children can't regulate they're temperature until they're 6 or 7 years old due to the hypothalamus being underdeveloped until then.  I need to be much more vigilant with fevers, take her temperature often, give her paracetamol and/or ibuprofen regularly and keep her as cool as possible, even removing clothing, giving her cool drinks and a cool bath. Febrile convulsions can last 5-6 minutes (I really don't know how long it lasted for Ellen), but it felt like an eternity.  It is very unlikely that they'll stop breathing according to the paediatrician at the hospitl and our paediatrician friend.  If this happens to your child, cool them down immediately by removing clothing, go to a cool room or even outside, put a cool cloth on her neck and turn them on their side to help with breathing.  Unfortunately, it's more common than I ever knew and terribly frightening... but now I know more. 

Making Eggs

Ellen loves to cook in her kitchen: soup, chocolate cake, toast... and last night, eggs.

Bump at 32 Weeks

Believe it or not, I'm 32 weeks pregnant!  Baby Girl is already different from Ellen.  I noticed early on how much more she moves and kicks then Ellen did; I love feeling her little movements.  However, she doesn't tend to respond to music the way that Ellen did.  She's also a big baby.  I started receiving comments about my bump and questions about how far along I was around 22-24 weeks.  During my whole pregnancy with Ellen, I was only asked twice about being pregnant.  At my midwife appointment a week and a half ago, my bump measured large, so I was scheduled for a scan last Monday.  At the scan, her head and legs measured just above the 50th percentile, but her tummy was above 95%!  She also weighed approximately 4lbs, 14oz... and I still have 2 months and lots of growing to go!  Due to her size I went for a glucose tolerance test on Tuesday morning, but thankfully my blood results have come back completely normal, ruling out gestational diabetes.  So, she's just going to be a bigger baby, taking after her daddy, who was 10lbs, 1oz. when he was born.  I'm hopeful that her weight will help induce labor this time and aid in delivery... hey, I can always hope!

 Ellen was showing off her tummy like Mommy.  We couldn't persuade her to stand next to me and stick out her tummy... would have been a cute picture.

 Kissy with Mommy

Singing Nursery Rhymes

Having a mommy and daddy who enjoy singing, it's no wonder that Ellen also loves to sing. She sings on the changing table, in the bath, in the car, while dancing, in the supermarket... basically any time.  Here she is singing the songs in her nursery rhymes book with Daddy.