Express Delivery. A Birth Story.

Today marks the day when New Bubby was supposed to be born. It was supposed to be calm and controlled, there were to be no surprises, no contractions and no labour involved and hubby was supposed to be by my side. Oh, how things turned out differently.

The night of Saturday, June 15, I barely slept from the strong semi regular Braxton Hicks I had all night. They continued throughout Sunday but I had the same experience with Bubby and that went on for a week before I was eventually induced. The contractions were mild, didn't intensify but were fairly regular. I had to breath deeply through the contractions but I still believed they were Braxton Hicks. Hubby was to fly out to Brisbane that afternoon for one last week interstate. He asked me if I was going to give birth that night and I said don't be silly I probably have a few days so make sure he answers his phone when I call and be on the first plane back. My parents came for a visit that day and I had to ask them to stay the night because I planned on going to the hospital in the morning to be monitored and to re-assess the date for our scheduled C-section and I wasn't sure if I'm still able to drive Bubby to daycare and then myself to hospital.

After I read Bubby his bedtime stories, which was the only 15 minutes throughout that day that I didn't have contractions, I decided they must be easing and if I have to read out loud all night to stop the Braxton Hicks then I would. By 8.30 after spending sometime online researching car seats and Ergobaby carriers, I decided to have an early night. The Braxton Hicks have returned and were noticeably stronger. I layed in bed reciting and singing nursery rhymes in the hope that they will stop again but they were definitely stronger. I decided not to wait until the morning to get monitored so I phoned the hospital described the contractions to the midwife and was told to come to hospital. I asked at what point I should go in she said "immediately". Hmm, at this point I still thought that I had Braxton Hicks but was progressing much quickly than with Bubby. I called hubby (who has literally just landed) to warn him that the C-sec might be moved up to Monday or Tuesday and he should probably look at getting into the next available flight back.

By the time we were ready to go I could no longer walk through the 'bloody strong Braxton Hicks". The ride to the hospital was unbearable and it only took 10 minutes. By the time I was hooked up to the machine I couldn't talk through the contractions anymore. I was asked to put on a hospital gown. I could barely move to put it on. I was found to be 3 cm dilated and I thought that gives me at least a day based on my experience with Bubby. All this time time I still thought it was pre-labour. I called hubby to tell him I'll hold off as long as I can, still believing hubby can somehow make it. I figured, the first plane lands at 7.30, he can be here by 8, I can do it. I asked the midwife if she thought my husband will make it back in time she told me "Love, it's going to happen tonight." Throughout my ordeal that night I'm proud to say that was the one and only time that I swore.

Everyone who needed to be called in was called in. The anaesthetist came first, disappointingly still not in scrubs and with no pain relief of any sort in hand. She asked lots of questions which felt like forever as I had to keep focusing on my breathing. I asked when she can give me the drugs she said when the theatre is set up. Would I like some gas in the meantime? Hell, yes. Before she could even stand up the most intense (for that part of the night, at least) contraction took over my body with the enormous urge to push. I told the anaesthetist who called the midwife and I was found to be 7 cm dilated. Any hope I had that the epidural will hopefully slow things down so I can negotiate with my obstetrician about holding off the C-sec as long as we can so hubby has half a chance to make it there in the morning went out the window. The gas was forgotten, my obstetrician arrived and kept saying she knows this is not how I wanted things to happen and all I could think of was where is my epidural!

After what seemed like forever, they all left to get scrubbed, I was left all alone in the room. I called hubby to tell him that the C-sec was happening in about 25 minutes. I think he was stunned. I asked my dad in who I pretty much demanded to be quiet but hold my hand. I just felt like I needed to hold someone's hand and it sort of helped. I wasn't squeezing it to death or screaming like a banshee like you see in the movies. I was surprisingly very quiet, just breathing through and occasionally letting out a quiet moan as I breathed out.

Finally, everyone was back and I was wheeled out. I told my dad to go home and I'll call when it's done. You know, like it's a routine visit to the dentist. Someone asked if I wanted my dad to go into theatre with me I said no, I want hubby to be the first to see the baby. So off we went. By this time the contractions were very close together I wasn't even timing anymore. It took forever to get the needle in my spine as we had to wait for breaks in between contractions. By this stage, every contraction came with the urge to push. At this point all the wise words of my mothers' group kept entering my mind about what they'd do differently the second time around. One said she'll just let her body do what it needs to do. So when I felt the need to push I let go and it worked.

After the spinal went in I was in heaven! I was apparently 9.5 cm and the obstetrician asked me if I was sure I didn't want to deliver normally. No, thanks. People will think I'm crazy to still opt for a major operation when I made it that far without any drugs. It was in the back of my mind the whole time but the thing was I was not mentally prepared for a normal delivery despite having already done the hard yards. I had envisioned an entirely different scenario for this birth, one that didn't involve such a stressful, situation and with my husband by my side. It was going to be exciting not desperate. I think I remained pretty calm throughout the night and handled the pain well. Still, the things that went wrong during Bubby's delivery kept playing in my mind and I could not bring myself to go through with a normal delivery, especially since hubby wasn't there.

Once, the curtain was up the excitement replaced the pain and anxiety of whether I'd make it to the operating table before the baby came out. I was looking forward to the birth and thought to myself that apart from hubby not being there this is how I had played this in my head.I wasn't groggy like last time. I was completely aware of what was happening around me. I was having a normal conversation with the people around me. They were poking fun at the shape of my belly, I asked them to take a photo as I wanted to see. The assistant obstetrician joked about skypeing the birth to my husband. The mood was light and cheery. I wished my husband was there. At the very least I wished I was on the phone with him so he could have heard New bubby's first cry. Boy, did he cry. When he was lifted he was bright red, kicking and screaming. Unlike, Bubby who didn't cry for what felt like ages and had to be resuscitated this one had a set of lungs in him. I felt that it was a very positive experience and have no regrets about how the night turned out except that I wished for hubby to have been there. New Bubby stayed with me in theatre while I recovered unlike last time when I was left all alone in recovery. The nurses were there the whole time as I recovered and chatted with me. I couldn't hold the baby because I was shaking like a leaf from the spinal but I didn't care. He was there with me and he was healthy.

Hubby managed to get on the first flight back and went straight to the hospital after a night of no sleep. He got his first cuddle and skin to skin. We're amazed at how much the the New Bubby looked just like Bubby. He's just a little bit plumper and more fair. He also has grey eyes compared to Bubby's dark brown eyes that look almost black but everything else looked exactly the same. They even made the same sounds.

Well, that sounded like a saga even though the main event (arrival at hospital to birth) only lasted about 3 hours.

The really good thing about the birth is that he doesn't share the same birthday as the Kimye baby.

Bubby meets Baby Brother for the first time. He was so excited!

Stats:
Date of Birth - 17 June, 2013
Time of Birth -  0:35
Weight - 3.06 kg (Bubby was 2.7 kg)
Length - 50 cm (same as Bubby)
Head Circumference - 34 cm (same as Bubby)
Apgar 1 min - 9 (Bubby's was 5)
Apgar 5 min - 9

All About Bubby.

This has been sitting in my draft for some days and I have always intended to publish it before the new baby arrives. I now have to do it really quickly and in between some pretty intense Braxton Hicks. At least I'm hoping they're only Braxton Hicks and not real labour, hubby just flew out for one last week interstate.

In the early months of this pregnancy I felt really sad for Bubby that he won't be the centre of our universe anymore, that he'll have to share everything with another baby. As the day draws near however, I've become more excited for him to meet his little brother. I often ask him if he's going to love and take care of the baby and he always says yes. I'm not sure if he understands it all. He often hugs and kisses the bump and he tells the baby "I love you baby" completely unprompted. He refers to it as baby brother.

The other night he sang his favourite song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star softly to the baby.

It was Bubby himself who erased my fears that he will feel left out once the baby is born. I think he'll really want to be a part of taking care of the baby. I'm still worried about how he'd cope while I'm in hospital but he's proven to be very adaptable so far.

He's not always sweet, he knows how to throw a tantrum but luckily they're very quick to pass and he can be reasoned with to an extent. 

He is a bit of a home-wrecker.

Cream suede leather couch and toddlers don't mix.

He's also a bit of a clown, cutie pie and generally adorable.

This is apparently a construction crane.

Always out to steal daddy's chips.

He shares his mummy's love for ballet :).

He can be the sweetest little thing as well.

 He loves to hug and kiss the baby.

This morning he came up to me while I was making breakfast gave me a big hug and said "I love you mummy." He is truly lovable.

Arts and Crafts.

Now I've never been a crafty person, in fact I sucked at art in school. As a preschooler I never liked playing with play-doh because I didn't like the texture and I hate getting the darn things under my fingernails. I never liked colouring in because I'm anal retentive when it came to colouring outside the line and you can never get it perfectly. I don't like gluing things in because glue is sticky and yucky. I hated basket weaving as I always got splinters from the material. I once sliced my finger pretty badly doing one of these crafty projects and sprayed blood all over myself, my classmates, the desks and chairs, the walls. It was like a gruesome crime scene. I probably should have applied pressure on the wound instead of shake my hand and arm like a lunatic. My sewing projects were all perfectly completed by my seamstress grandmother and were all displayed at school. How I wasn't caught out for cheating, I'll never know. The only thing I liked was connect the numbered dots and I always connect them using a pencil and ruler, and counted cross stitching because it's hard to get it wrong.

Anyway, after over two decades since I last did woodwork (oh and I broke a bandsaw and nearly chopped my hand off, lucky I stood back when it started making a funny noise just in time to avoid the blade as it snapped and flung to where my hand would have been) I embarked on a little arts and crafts project with Bubby. I wanted him to be involved in decorating the baby's room so I waddled my way to Daiso and bought a whole heap of materials without really having a clear idea what I wanted to do.

I eventually decided on a transport theme since that's what Bubby is into. I downloaded and printed out some templates, glued them on to a piece of cardboard before cutting it out.

I then traced them onto chiyogami paper. 

 Glued them on coloured paper.

 The whole idea was to get Bubby involved so I cut several extra cars and planes for him to glue on the background coloured paper which he chose.

Not exactly how I would have arranged them but this is how he wanted it.

The finished products. Bubby chose the plane and the truck to go in his room. The cars will go in the baby's room and I will make another plane for the baby. Not bad for someone who is completely artless.

Vivid Sydney.

Vivid Sydney is one of my favourite events along with Crave Sydney and Art and About. Sunday a week ago a friend and I planned to go to Vivid Sydney but the weather didn't cooperate.

The pool almost overflowed and turned into an infinity pool.

Luckily the following day was warm for a winter night and we were able to go. Now, I won't insult Vivid Sydney by posting my terrible photos. I learnt that when taking photos of light shows it's best to turn off the flash. A fancy DSLR does not make a fancy photographer. There are plenty of good photos on the Vivid Sydney website and facebook page. 

Too bad I only made it as far as the Opera House and the MCA. I really wanted to check out Walsh Bay but I really over-estimated my walking ability.

On the way back to the car we passed by this kiosk and I had to take a photo. 

Look how thin I looked. I thought it was pretty amusing especially compared to how big I really am.

I'm really glad we went that night as not only was it not cold it was also not packed and I didn't encounter any traffic on the way to and from the city. Last night was apparently really bad.

http://smh.drive.com.au/roads-and-traffic/end-of-vivid-sparks-traffic-chaos-20130608-2nxdv.html

I missed Vivid Sydney two years ago as I was a bit busy having pre-labour pains and giving birth and then last year we were all so terribly sick with the flu. I'm glad I made it this year even if I only really saw some of it. Bubby really enjoyed it and would you believe that this is the closest he's ever been to the ocean. He was quite fascinated by the water. I really hope that Bubby, Baby and I (and maybe even hubby) get to see more of Vivid Sydney next year. 

Baby Shower. Baby Buys. Other Buys.

On my last day at work I walked in to find my desk like this:

This is as close to a baby shower as I'm going to get and it was really nice. I didn't have a baby shower for Bubby or this baby as I'm just not into that sort of stuff. Yes, my desk was already a complete mess before the decorations were put up. I had a super hectic last few weeks and had no time to file anything or tidy up before rushing out in the afternoon to get Bubby from daycare on the other side of Sydney. I work in the West, Bubby's daycare is in the East and we live up North. Crazy.

We are pretty much set for the baby, there are only a number of things I still need to get. I have bought the new baby some new clothes and bedding just so he's not going to be in hand me downs all the time. I still have to get:

1. A baby carrier. I have decided on the Ergo Baby carrier but can't decide which design to get. I really want this but hubby will probably say no as it's a 'girly' colour. Hello, I'm the one who's wearing it. But then maybe he'd want to wear the Ergo too. I doubt it.

I also thought this zebra one is very fashionable:

but I can already hear his reaction to that idea and it's really not very nice. He really shouldn't use language like that even if it is just imagined in my head.

This is the third option:

It's not as fun, I like the colour but I don't really like the stars. I wished it was plain except for the insert pattern.

I'll probably go with boring khaki at least it's not black and it will match the Bugaboo Bee which Bubby is still using.

Source

Speaking of the Bugaboo Bee and Bubby, I thought I would just get a skateboard attachment for Bubby and but the baby in the pram but Bubby can't be trusted not to run off as he has done a couple of times. Plus Bubby's daycare has no parking so we park on the street and walk, I can picture him running away and I'll have to abandon baby in pram to chase Bubby. I'd rather have free hands to hold Bubby and his bag. The daycare also has lots of stairs so I can't bring the pram anyway.

2. A second video camera for the baby monitor. Some people say a baby video monitor is a waste of money and I couldn't disagree more. It would be at the very top of my list of baby must haves. In fact, I think the video baby monitor is the only baby item that I still use now and will probably continue to use until he moves out. I'm dead serious.

And those are pretty much the only two things I still need for the baby. I've already even stocked up on newborn nappies.

And now on to the Other Buys. I had to buy new shoes as during this pregnancy I went through 3 pairs of shoes. I know I've been literally dragging my feet a lot what with the hip instability and all but 3 pairs of shoes!

They're from Diana Ferrari and ended up being 50% off retail price. Too bad Myer didn't have this style as I had lots of Myer gift cards. I usually shop around before buying things but I didn't have the energy. Anyway, who can go wrong with Chanelesque, quilted two-tone with patent leather toes and a bow? Everything good in the one pair of shoes. I haven't had a chance to tell hubby that I bought new shoes. Now he knows. Just so you know, babe, my last pair of cream shoes has a hole in the sole which explains why my foot got wet when it was rainy.

I also got this navy cardigan from Target. It's nice and soft, and better still, marked down from $35 to $3.71. That's less than what you'd pay for a mocha. 

I also got this dress also from good old Target. Also 50% off. This is obviously for when I return to pre-baby size. 

This is current size (37 weeks). I have a loooong way to go before pre-baby size.

The Real Maternity Leave Starts Now.

Well, yesterday really. I took the car in for servicing and went to the city for a spot of retail therapy. I was hungry so I had to have breakfast:

I've been craving big breakfasts like this lately.

I then took care of some business for the upcoming hotel hospital stay.

You know what it's like when you have official forms to fill in but only have pink or purple pens. No? It's just me?

I didn't end up buying anything but it was still nice to be able to window shop even if it was a quick one. I did try on these shoes in various colours.

There's just something about patent leather and bows. 

Then I had to have lunch.

Don't be fooled. This was my dad's lunch. I couldn't force myself to eat if I wanted to after my big breakfast.  I nibbled on some of his chips.

Finally took Bubby to ride on a carousel. He was going "Wee!" as it went round and round. He didn't want to get off but I managed to convince him that other kids need to have a turn too. Luckily, he's a pretty good kid. Most of the time. 

I tried to catch up on Game of Thrones but didn't know how to work this.

Damn you, stupid smart tv.

Hubby is home and he showed me. So now you know what I'll be up to in the next few days. Game of Thrones, Mad Men, Breaking Bad and whatever else is on Netflix and Hulu. In between shows I probably ought to wash the baby's clothes and bedding and cook big batches of food to fill the freezer with.