And, the baby is finally HERE! We'd like to introduce Tasso Thomas Yant!
He arrived on Saturday, July 11th (8 days past his due date!) at 4:51pm and was 8lbs 4oz and 22 inches of pure joy! Mommy and daddy are so in love and everyone is doing well.
I wanted to tell the story of his birth, while it's still somewhat fresh in my mind, as it's been over 3 weeks now, but every time I sit down to update the blog, the baby starts calling my name! Welcome to parenthood :) Be forewarned, this is a long post, so I apologize about the length, but here we go!
Let's just say that my labor and delivery did not go as I had expected and/or anticipated... and no matter what anyone tells you about the actual labor itself, nothing will quite prepare you for it.
SO, it all started on Saturday morning, July 11th. I woke up around 7am and felt a gush of fluid down there. Now, mind you, I had been feeling small "gushes" for the past few days and was never quite sure if my water had broken, if I peed myself and/or if I was just slowly leaking amniotic fluid? This felt like a bigger "gush" and I was pretty sure my water had broken.
Holy crap, I thought, this is FINALLY happening... and then I started having contractions. Real contractions. Not the fake contractions that I had been having the past few weeks. Okay, this hurts, but it's not terrible, I thought. I woke up Lukas and told him my water broke and I was having contractions. He asked if I called the doctor, and I hadn't yet, as it was 7am on Saturday, and I thought I could wait a little longer, so I hopped in the shower and got the remaining items ready for my hospital bag.
We started timing my contractions and they were coming 5 to 15 minutes apart. I decided I should probably called the doctor now. I gave them a call and explained that I thought my water broke and I was having contractions, so they said to come into the hospital.
By about 8:30am we were on our way to Adventist Hinsdale Hospital, and I couldn't believe our baby boy was finally going to arrive! Yippeee! My contractions were getting stronger and starting to hurt more and more. We got to the hospital and checked in, and they sent us to an exam room. The nurse came in to examine me and determine if my water truly had broken. They did a quick test and the nurse said she didn't think my water had really broken. I said okay, well I'm having contractions and I'm in pain... I'm 41 weeks pregnant, so let's get this show on the road! She went to talk to the doctor and they determined they would "admit" me. But, if I hadn't been overdue, they probably would have sent me home, which is crazy!
At this point my contractions were coming on stronger and stronger and my real labor had begun. I couldn't sit still and needed to pace back and forth and work on my breathing. The nurse took us into the labor and delivery room and got my IV started and hooked up to the monitor. My contractions continued and we waited... and I thought... so, is this it? Do we just wait? When do I get an epidural?
I was able to somewhat "breathe" through the contractions and squeeze Lukas's hand, but the pain was getting worse and worse... the nurse came in to see how far dilated I was, and I was only 1-2cm STILL... she said they wouldn't give me the epidural until I was 3-4 cm. But, they could give me Stadol, which would help take the "edge" off a bit, but it would make me feel a bit loopy. I said okay, give me something, anything to help with the pain! They gave me the meds and I did feel really loopy... like I was out of it, and I didn't like the feeling... the pain was still there, too, maybe a tiny bit better, but not much... I didn't like the feeling.
My mother-in-law, father-in-law and sister-in-law stopped by to see how we were doing and my parents were on their way from Madison. The labor was progressing, but slowly... and I was in more and more pain... The Stadol slowed my natural contractions, so they gave me Pitocin to make sure my contractions continued. It had been 4 or 5 hours now, and the pain was becoming UNBEARABLE.
I couldn't breathe through the contractions anymore... I was crying each time a new one came and it was AWFUL... why couldn't they give me the damn epidural? This was misery. And then, my water broke (for real this time!). I felt all this pressure... and then... I thought my uterus had exploded and the baby's head popped out. It was nothing I had ever felt before, and the pain was insurmountable. That was my breaking point when I lost it. I couldn't handle the pain anymore.
I couldn't stop crying and I was gasping for breaths between the contractions, and finally the nurse said they could give me the epidural. FINALLY. I didn't understand why they made me suffer for hours first!?! I got the epidural and I felt immediate relief, except I could still feel some throbbing pain on my left side, and my contractions were coming closer and closer together. The fact that I could still feel some pain wasn't normal... so they had to come back and give me another dose of medication... and then, AHHHH, relief. I didn't feel a thing. What contraction? What pain? I felt GREAT! This whole labor thing wasn't so bad after all.
Then, the nurse checked me again, and said I was already at 5-6cm, wait I was at 8cm, no, now 9cm. In a matter of minutes I went from 2cm dilated to 9cm dilated. Wahooo! This baby was finally coming! The nurses were getting the delivery table setup and my mom and MIL were jumping for joy that it was almost time for baby boy to arrive.
And then, this in when my labor changed course. The nurse had me turn on my side, and the baby's heart rate dropped... that wasn't good... and she had me turn back on my back, and the baby's heart rate was fine. And then she had me turn on my other side, and the baby's heart rate dropped again. I didn't understand, what was going on? The nurse called the doctor in and they had me turn from side to side again. They both were acting very serious and it had me worried. This wasn't good. What was going on?
The doctor explained that somehow, when I dilated so quickly, the baby "dropped" and was now lying and/or wrapped around the umbilical cord. Hence, every time I shifted positions it put pressure on the cord and made the baby's heart rate drop. That's when they said I might need a c-section and brought in the paperwork for me to sign. I looked at Lukas, I really didn't want a c-section. I obviously would do whatever we needed to do to delivery the baby safely, but a c-section was not part of my birth plan!
I had already labored for 7 hours, was 9cm dilated and was just about ready to deliver naturally... and now I might have to have a c-section? Of course as soon as they mentioned the "c" word, I knew that it was inevitable. They had me sign the paperwork as a precaution as they watched me go through a few more contractions, and I could tell things weren't headed in a positive direction. We all stared at the monitor as I had another contraction and we say the baby's heart rate drop again... my heart fell as I knew what was coming...
"Molly, this isn't looking good, we need to move now," the doctor ordered. They threw some scrubs at Lukas and wheeled me out of the room into the operating room, in what felt like a matter of seconds. They told Lukas to wait in the hall and they would come get him when I was ready.
In a matter of minutes they literally threw me on the table and prepped me for surgery. I couldn't believe this was happening. They gave me more of the epidural and told me that I would feel the surgery, but I wouldn't be in pain. They put the sheet up and pulled Lukas into the room and quickly began the c-section.
"I can feel you. I can feel you tugging me! Is this normal?" I asked the doctor. "Yes, you're fine. As long as you don't feel pain."
I didn't feel pain, but it was the oddest sensation, to know that someone was slicing into your body and you could feel the pressure, but you couldn't feel the pain... it was uncomfortable, to say the least. Before I knew it they were shouting at Lukas to stand up, as they were pulling the baby out. Since the baby was already so far down the birth canal, they had to do some tugging, and Lukas witnessed our baby boy being born. I heard a cry and they quickly whisked him away to the table.
I was so confused. Didn't I get to see my baby? What was going on. I didn't hear anything. The doctors were talking but I didn't hear the baby... then, within minutes we heard the baby crying again. Thank god. What's going on? The doctor said the baby cried immediately and then he wasn't breathing... they were about to intubate him, when he coughed up the fluid and started crying, but he needed some oxygen to help him breathe and they were going to take him to the NICU.
The nurse asked what are you going to name him? I looked at Lukas. We had our top name, Tasso, picked out, but we wanted to wait to see what he looked like before we named him. Lukas said he looked like a Tasso, so I said okay, let's go with Tasso! We told the nurse his name is Tasso Thomas. What was that she asked? How do you spell it? HA, the confusion began :) Tasso was Greek (as we wanted to pay homage to Lukas's family heritage) and we wanted to name him after my dad, Thomas.
Okay, I had so many questions. Is the baby going to be okay? When do I get to see him? Before I knew it they said look to your right, as they wheeled him away... and all I got to see was the back of his head. I didn't even get to see my baby yet :(
I was drugged and confused and thirsty... SO thirsty. My shoulders ached with all this pressure, and my body was shaking uncontrollably. What's wrong with me? Why am I so sleepy? I asked if it was okay to close my eyes. And, all I wanted was some water. Can I please have something to drink? I asked the doctors. They said no, as I would throw up anything ingested right now. I needed to wait a while and then I could have some ice chips in recovery. Why did my shoulders hurt so much? I was in pain. They told me that when they do surgery on your stomach air gets into your body and rises to your shoulders... hence all the pressure I was feeling.
They wheeled me into recovery and put this floaty-type blanket around me called a "bear hug" that they filled with hot air to help me stay warm and stop the shaking. I was in a sleepy haze and remember asking the nurse a ton of questions... I couldn't wait until I could have some ice chips, as my throat burned, and I kept asking Lukas to rub my shoulders... I couldn't believe that I just had a c-section and our baby boy was here. It felt surreal. We realized that we had been back in recovery for quite some time and we hadn't let our families know that everything was okay and the baby was here. I told Lukas to go see the family and give them an update.
I had to stay in recovery for 2 hours and then I could go see the baby in the NICU and see my family. It felt like time dragged on and it took forever to get through those 2 hours, but finally it was time, and I couldn't wait to see my baby boy! They wheeled me into the NICU and it was love at first sight... I felt so terrible that Tasso was hooked up to oxygen and had all these tubes and monitors on him... my poor baby! But, I knew that he was a fighter and he would be okay. It was torture that I couldn't hold him or do anything for him, but I had faith that he was in good hands with the doctors and nurses.
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| First picture of Tasso Thomas |
After I saw my sweet baby, they wheeled me into our hospital room, and told me our family could visit now. My mom, dad, sister Kristin, brother-in-law Michael and my brother Austin had all drove up from Madison. I felt bad as they were en route when the turn of events occurred and they had been waiting for hours to see me and the baby. It was so nice to see my family, and I'm so glad they were there for Tasso's birth, albeit didn't quite go as planned. It was such a wonderful feeling to be surrounded by loved ones at this special time.
Lukas was able to bring back 1 person at a time to see Tasso in the NICU, so I was so thankful everyone at least got to see the baby before they had to head back to Madison. My family left and Lukas's mom and dad came in to see how we were doing. They got to see the baby and left for the night so we could get some rest. I think it was around 9 or 10pm at this point and I was beyond exhausted... I still couldn't comprehend what had happened and how the events had turned, but I was beyond grateful that my baby boy was okay! I love you my little Tasso bean!
Thankfully, Tasso was released from the NICU within 48 hours and recovered in flying colors. We were so appreciative for the wonderful nurses and doctors who helped our little boy and we are so thankful he's healthy, happy and thriving.
Here are a few pictures of our time in the hospital with our little Tasso T :)
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| My first time holding Tasso! |
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| Daddy and Tasso |
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| He was so tiny! |
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| Sleeping angel |
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| Our beautiful baby boy! |
