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He has arrived!

We arrived at the hospital a little before 8am Monday morning and checked in. When they drew my blood they discovered that toxemia had set in. My blood pressure was the highest it had been, my liver enzymes were elevated, and my platlets were extremely low. To prevent me from going into seizure, the placed me on magnesium which made me feel like I had the flu. When the pitocin kicked in and I started contracting I decided it would be better for me and the baby to have an epidural because of all these complications. (Warning: TMI: David determined that when I had my headphones on there was only 1 orifice that didn't have something in it or on it! I thought was hilarious and asked the nurse if she could find just 1 more thing!) Once the epidural was in, I was better able to handle things, and even able to doze a little (the magnesium made me sluggish). I went from 5cm dialated to 10 in about 30 minutes but everytime there was a contraction, the baby's heartrate would drop to dangerous levels. Even as they were preparing for me to start pushing, there was concern of having to do a c-section because of his distress. We went ahead though and after 3 episodes of pushing - out he came!! The NICU nurses were standing by and after a quick cut of the cord by David, they whisked him away and started their duties. He received high marks (the first of many!) in his initial tests but because of his low birth weight they took him to the NICU for further observation. They let me hold him for about a minute before they took him and he just looked at David and I and was perfectly content! It was amazing! After he spent an hour in the NICU, he was allowed to go to the well baby nursery but had to stay in an incubator for 12 hours. I had to stay on the labor and delivery floor instead of going to the postpartum floor because I had to stay on the magnesium for 24 hours and could only have clear fluids since magnesium inhibits the gag reflex. After delivery my blood pressure dropped and continued to drop into almost dangerous levels - at one point it was 105/50 how crazy is that!?! The low blood pressure made it impossible to keep even clear fluids down. So after battling that for a little while, phenegrin put me out for a few hours and when I awoke, I was able to start the fluids again - cranberry juice, chicken broth, and popsicles never tasted so good!

Around 9pm a nurse brought him down in his incubator for about 30 minutes and we got to stare at him through the glass. Both Grandmothers were still here and we all cried at our little miracle. David and I decided that he would be Reed Matthew Gardner. Our dear friend Amanda was working in the well baby nursery that night and around midnight she wheeled him down to us and let David and I hold him for a total of 5 very short minutes. Up until then it didnt even seem like we had a baby since it had been over 9 hours since I had gotten to hold him last. Around 4am she was able to bring him back down and plug his incubator in next to my bed and around 5:30 I was able to assist in feeding him through the little holes in the side of his "box".

As I write, he is sleeping in his box beside me. David has gone home to get a couple of much needed hours of sleep. They will continue dropping the temperature inside his box until it is room temperature and seeing how well his body keeps a steady temperature. This should take about 3 hours which we are hoping will coincide with me being taken off the magnesium and moved up to postpartum.

From what I have observed so far, and from what Amanda has told me, he is hardly a crier (I'm sure that might change). He cried a little when he got his diaper changed (not by us we haven't got to do that yet...) and when they removed the thermometer from his skins since it was stuck with tape. But as soon as those uncomfortable activities are over, he stops crying almost immediately and goes back to observing the world or falling asleep.

God is so good - we are so blessed. Thank you so much for all of your prayers. He will be checked by EVERYONE tomorrow (pediatrician, audiologist, etc.) but so far it looks like our prayers for a healthy baby have been answered with a resounding YES! Praise the Lord! Throughout this whole pregnancy there has been one set of verses that have resounded with me. I have hung them on the wall of his nursery and brought a copy of them to the hospital with us:

If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
even the darkness will not be dark to You;
the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to You.
For You created my inmost being;
You knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,Your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.
Psalm 139:11-16

None of this went as I had planned - praise be to God for HIS wisdom!

Reed Matthew Gardner
Sept 21, 2009 @ 3:18pm
4lbs 3.3 oz
17 1/2 inches
Head: 11 1/2 inches
Chest: 10 1/2 inches

Sept. 21!

We went to the specialist today and my amniotic fluid had dropped. It was not in the dangerous level, but was borderline. We talked to my OB and she scheduled for me to be induced this Monday, Sept 21 at 8:00AM! None of these last few weeks have been as we invisioned, but we know we are loved and prayed for by so many! Please continue to lift this new life to the Creator of life. Our concern at this point is that his lungs may not be as developed as they need to be, but we are thankful for modern medicine and smart doctors!

Some explained but not much changed

Went to the OB today. She better explained the amnio results. In order for his lungs to be considered mature he needed to score a 55 and a "positive" in another category. As of last Friday (when the test was done) he scored a 20 and a "negative". I guess these numbers can change pretty rapidly and that caucasian males tend to develop their lungs later between 37-39 weeks (and today we arrived at 37 weeks). She expects the specialist to do another amnio tomorrow or early next week. She gave me her cell # to call her with the results so they could schedule an induction based on the results. We explained to her that we were in no hurry as long as it was ok for the baby we would wait as long as he needed. She seemed to relax when we told her and she said that we would wait then to schedule the next appointment based on the next two visits to the specialist. I am now dialated between 1 and 2 centimeters and about 75% effaced.

Second verse same as the first

Went to the specialist today. The baby has gained 4oz over the last 10 days. Normally in the last weeks of pregnancy a baby gains 8oz a week. The specialist seems to have decided that the baby is probably just a small baby - he said that no one was going to stop me if I went into labor, but we may do another amnio early next week and decide where to go from there. I go to the OB on Thursday and the specialist again on Friday. Thanks for all the prayers! Please continue lifting the sweet boy up!

Amnio Results

We got the results of the amnio test this morning and it turns out that his lungs are not fully developed so he gets to stay in longer! One of the good things about this result is that it tells us he is not under stress. It also tells us good or bad, that he is a slow developer whether because he is just going to be a slow grower or because of some developmental problem which we will only be able to discover after he is born. For now, things will continue as they have, thank you for your continued prayers.

The future is cloudy - but the fluid is not!

Is that TMI? :-) We went to the specialist today. He said the baby looked great on the ultrasound and he wanted to do an amnio. The amnio would tell us one of two things: (1) The lungs are not developed - implications: he is a slow developer and we will do another amnio in another week; (2) The lungs are developed - implications: he is developed enough to come out and the decision to induce would be up to my OB. When we did the amnio, the amniotic fluid was cloudy and the tech told us that the cloudier the fluid, the more developed the baby was. We hope to hear the results back this afternoon, but it takes about 4 hours and the specialist's office closes early on Fridays. I should be hearing from the person on call, but you know how those things go...Once I hear from the test results, I call my OB and tell her the results, then she makes the decision from there. We could have a baby sometime this week - or not! God, as He always has been, is in control. I really don't know which way to pray anymore and am glad He knows what's best for the baby.

Thursday OB update

Met with the OB this afternoon. They did another ultrasound and even though she told us to ignore the weight # since it hasn't been long enough (10 days) to have a good solid result, he measured at 3 lbs 13 oz which would be a possible gain of about a quarter pound. The OB was very reassuring saying that everything looked good and it just seemed he was going to be a little one, but she is deferring to the specialist. We go to the specialist again tomorrow and we will see what he says. We've made it to 36 weeks today and are praying that we can make it to 37 or beyond!

No significant update

I went to the specialist today. David wasn't able to go with me but I am glad that my mother-in-law was able to accompany me. They did another ultrasound where they checked the flow of the umbilical cord, flow through the brain, and flow from the kidney to the heart. He scored 8/8 on his BioPhysical Profile and all of the flows were great. Amniotic fluid was at a great level. They didn't measure his weight because they like to wait 10 days between measuring weight. I, on the other hand, have dropped one pound and my BP was 112/60! We go to my regular OB on Thursday and back to this specialist on Friday. The nurse practictioner that we saw today mentioned that the specialist might discuss doing an amnio to check for lung development. Please continue to pray that he gains weight and please pray that we won't need to do an amnio. Thanks!

Update on Baby Gardner

We went to my OB this morning for a follow up. My BP was still a little high 130/90. They did another ultrasound and the baby had only gained about 5oz. My Dr called a Fetal Specialist and spoke to him because the weight of the baby at this point (35wks/3 lbs 9oz) fell under the 3 percentile and she was a little concerned. She said everything about the baby looked normal but she didn't know why he was small, he just didn't seem to be getting enough nutrients even though, from the ultrasound, the placenta and cord looked good. We saw the specialist this afternoon who took another more diagnostic ultrasound (and my BP which was 112/73 - how crazy is that?!?!)and he concluded the same. They don't have any physical reason why he isn't getting bigger. They both prescribed modified bed rest (I can get up to do menial tasks like go the bathroom or get a glass of water) and are going to keep a close eye on things (I have an appt every day but Wed. next week) and hope that he can make it to 37 weeks. If he is ok to make it to 37 weeks, then they will induce. They are preparing us to have a premie baby and that he may need to spend a few nights/weeks in the hospital. Right now, all signs look good that I will not need a c-section, but that, of course, is subject to change depending on the baby's situation. I will keep you posted...