Tyler's Tale

So it was a sucky day and I'm trying not to be bummed that I'm not pregnant this month...so I was reading blogs and one of my friends wrote about the birth of her twins. So I thought I'd write Tyler's story!

I became pregnant with Tyler in May of 2008. We'd been trying for awhile and in May I was determined! I took a pregnancy test on Mother's day, but it was negative, and it was really too early to test. So the next Sunday, I woke early because I needed to go to the bathroom. I took a test, all the while telling myself that it was still quite early and it would probably be negative. I was also trying not to completely wake myself up because it was about 6 am. Not having a child at the time, I wanted to go back to bed because, well, I could back then. So I waited several minutes, squinted in the nightlight's glow, saw no second line and headed back to bed, tossing the test in the garbage.

Hours later, I got up and went to the grocery and went about my Sunday things. At some point in the afternoon I pulled the test out of the garbage on a whim and low and behold there was a second, faint, pink line. My heart skipped a beat. I stood very still for a few moments. Then, before I could get too excited, I grabbed the instructions to the test. They very clearly stated that the test should not be read after the first hour.

So was I or wasn't I?? I couldn't wait to know for sure, so I ran to the store and got a digital test. I rushed home, peed on the stick and....nothing. The darn thing was defective. I finally decided to wait until the next morning to take another test.

So Monday morning came and I craftily decided to pee in a cup and take not one, but two tests--one digital and one standard two-liner. Fast forward 3 minutes and Ta-Da! Two lines and "Pregnant"!!! I told my hubby and we celebrated, then we woke my mom (she lives with us) and we all celebrated some more! I called my sisters and my dad...we weren't waiting, we were too excited!

I got to work, ready to spread the news. Once there, I remembered that my ENTIRE department was away at a conference! I did tell one person, my friend Tracy, who was expecting twins at the time. She knew that I had been trying and periodically she'd walk by and give me a questioning thumbs-up. Usually I'd return it, then realize what she meant and say, "Oh! No, not yet!" So I told her and we got girly and excited!

So I was finally preggers! And thank God I wasn't trying to keep it a secret because the next week? MORNING SICKNESS! Morning sickness that would plague me for nearly the entire pregnancy. Nine month story short, I lost nearly 20 pounds early on and had a massive amount of food aversions. I ended up on medication so that I could function but I literally forgot what it's like to feel "fine" for awhile!

Around the 20 week mark, we had our big ultrasound. I'm a control freak, so there would be no waiting to be surprised on the sex of our baby! When the time came, I looked at the screen and said, "I think I know what that is!" The Ultrasound Tech confirmed my suspicions by labeling the picture "boy parts". So it really was a "Tyler" in there!

I was lucky, I didn't have any major problems, nausea aside. No gestational diabetes, no high blood pressure, just the normal stuff (aside from the nausea and a muscle that didn't like to stretch in my belly that would hurt if I stood too long...I rode a lot of those motorized carts that fall). Eventually my due date came and went. I was super uncomfortable and my nausea had returned full force, so I started my leave from work a little early. My doctor finally decided to induce me at about 41.5 weeks. It is a decision I regret.

So on January 26th I checked into the hospital as Indianapolis braced for a major snowstorm. Tucked away in my hospital room, I didn't have to worry about that too much, but we did end up with over a foot of snow, which was a problem for my visitors! I was started on cervidil to prepare my cervix Monday night. I hadn't slept the night before because I was too nervous. I didn't sleep Monday because it was a strange place and I was nervous. Tuesday morning they started me on petocin and inserted a balloon to help me dilate.  Later in the day I decided to get an epidural. It was the best 20 minutes of the whole experience (until he was born, of course). For some reason, the darn thing didn't work, whether that is due to my high tolerance for pain medication or bad placement, I don't know. Later they gave me another dose, but it only gave me another 20 minutes of relief. After that, I decided I didn't care anymore. With the help of my mom with breathing (it really helps!) and my hubby and sister for ice and cold washclothes, I hung in there.

I started to run a fever, so they started me on antibiotics just in case. They also got me up in my bed using a birthing bar to try to progress things. I guess I didn't mention that I had not dropped, so I did this during labor, by pushing. Unbeknownst to me, the nurses were sure I was going to have to have a C-Section. My mom says that at one point, she saw a huge change in me and it was like I had decided I could do this. I was going to do this. Now. So around 2 or 3 in the morning, it was time to push. Several hours in, I was really beat, so they helped me out a bit with a vacuum. I had been warned that there was meconium present and thanks to birthing class I knew what to expect with this. They didn't want the baby to cry right away, so he wouldn't breathe it in and I wouldn't get to hold him right away.

At last, at 6:17 am, Tyler Nicolas came into the world. It was surreal. They were checking him out, cleaning him up and making sure all was well. I couldn't see him and I just wanted someone to tell me he was okay and he was really here. It seemed like it took forever! Finally, I was able to reach my hand over and touch him. He held my finger and it was real. He was mine.

It was still quite some time before I could hold my little man. They wanted to make sure he was okay and I was somewhat (HA!) worse for ware, so it took what felt like hours to finish up on my many stitches. My doctor wouldn't tell me how many I needed, but my nurses called what I had a "vaginal C-Section" YEE-OUCH. I had fourth degree tearing (the worst category). Finally, finally after the nurse made me order some breakfast, I finally got to hold him in my arms. A few minutes later, I was feeding my son and my hubby was feeding me (I hadn't eaten since Monday night!) My mom and sister had to go home briefly, so it was our first moment as a family of three.

Shortly thereafter, we had our first dose of reality...Tyler fell asleep, so Adam and I both lay down, exhausted. I took my glasses off (in case you don't "know" me, I am blind as a bat without my specs) and nodded off right away. A few minutes later, Tyler began to cry. New-Mommy sprang out of bed, knocked her glasses off and stood their, blind and panicked. My hubby got up and helped me find my glasses and then we sort of looked at each other like, "Oh crap! We have to fix this! What do we do?"

Thank God for nurses. And thank God that a dirty diaper is an easy thing to fix.

And that is how Tyler came into this world.