Welcome My Sweet, Sweet Baby Girl...

So in love...

She has only been in our lives for a little over one week, but I feel like my heart has had a place for her forever.

On Wednesday, July 17th at 8:31AM, Isabelle made her debut weighing in at 7 pounds 8 ounces and 20 inches long. We were all instantly smitten.

In my last post, I shared that I would be heading in to be induced. I had a great induction experience and labor with Natey, but I was still nervous going in this time around. The usual plan for induction - if you haven't really dilated (I hadn't) - is to get something called cervidil for the first 12 hours to make your cervix more favorable for labor and then to start pitocin - a synthetic version of oxytocin that gets the strong contractions going. That was the order of events last time and the planned order of events this time around...

Well, that night I got the cervidil around 7PM. By 9PM I was having pretty regular, strong, and PAINFUL contractions. It wasn't until I caved and asked for pain medicine around 1AM that I was able to fall asleep for a few hours - it was more like a loopy, drugged stupor but the fact that I was able to not think about the pain made it a success in my book.

Anyway, by around 5 or 6AM it was time for the cervidil to come out and I was only 2.5/3cm dilated. This totally bummed me out to the point of tears considering the cervidil had basically pushed me into active labor contractions through the night. I have so much respect for women who achieve natural childbirth because the pain was so much more intense than I remembered with Natey. I was miserable and mean to my poor hubby who tried to take my mind off of things. I didn't get an epidural until 4cm with Natey, but there was no way I was waiting any longer, so we called the anesthesiologist. And after I got the epidural I. WAS. GOLDEN.

My OB came to check me and said I was about a 3. The nurse suggested that since I was already contracting pretty strongly, that we didn't start the pitocin and just see what I could do on my own. So my doc broke my water, ran to do a c-section (which usually take about 45 minutes from start to finish), and said she would be back right after to see how things are going. Well, before she could make it back, baby's heart rate was decreasing a bit - the nurse said that this happens sometimes when there is a lot of cervical change in a little bit of time - so my nurse decided to check me and immediately said that we needed to call the doctor because I was complete. We were in disbelief. I went from 3cm to 10cm in less than 45 minutes - that is a personal best for me haha!

When my OB ran in she agreed that it was time to push. I gave my first push and she said, "believe it or not the head is out!" There was one more big push and we had our baby girl.

It was one of the best days of my life.

Our first family photo as 4

"I'm ready to hold her, Daddy, but I'm not ready to carry her..."

Immediately, Natey took his big brother role extremely seriously. He lets everyone know how they should hold the baby, what to do if she cries (give her back to his mommy), and how they need to be quiet so they don't disturb her. I'm so proud of him and I know that he is going to be her lifetime protector. And I cannot begin to tell you how gone my husband is. As soon as he saw her for the first time, he has had that love struck look on his face. He is such an amazing dad, and I am so blessed to be on this parenting journey with him. I already know she is going to be a Daddy's girl. There is so much love in my heart and in our house it brings me to tears to think about.

God is so good.

Our little Miss Isabelle

Baby J Has Been Served!

39 Weeks HUGE!

No, the baby is not here yet. I'm still pregnant. But the eviction papers have been served and this baby is coming out by tomorrow whether he or she wants to or not. I have been putting off blogging until I finished all the work for my July elective. I was hoping to get my project done a week ago, but here I am on the morning of my induction day (we go in tonight at 6!!!) and my project is done. Hey, at least its finished with half the month to spare, right?

Project done. House is clean. Bags are packed. Baby J we are ready for you! Natey told us last night that he is ready for the baby to come too because "we have been waiting a long time..." I agree. Yesterday, I got all caught up in my feelings. Little Nate is seeming so mature but so much like my baby at the same time, like even within the last week. It's almost as if he is preparing for his big kid role and making room for a new baby in the house. We [little Nate and I] have been through so much together and reflecting on the time between my pregnancy with him to now really got me all emotional. The three musketeers will become four. I still can't believe it's really happening...

Since I was put on bedrest, not too much has been going on - aside from drinking ridiculous amounts of water and reaching new heights of uncomfortableness. Being a regular person really took two weeks to get used to, but it really has been a blessing to slow down for a bit. I did my best to take it easy while staying at home with a four year old. Nate decided last week that he wasn't going to take naps anymore o_O. The baby has been doing fine and my fluid levels went back up to normal! My doc said that she wanted to keep baby cooking until at least 39 weeks, and here we are!

I thought the color execution was impeccable ;-) Thanks Mom!

On Saturday, my mom threw us an awesome shower to welcome the new addition. Sidenote, she should really go into event planning because she made our little messy yard look like a clubhouse haha... The oh-so-true theme was "Ready to Pop" and the colors were pink, blue, and yellow (see pictures). A lot of my friends from school came up to show their love and even one of my friends from college (Her 5-year-
old daughter came too, and she and Natey were hilarious all weekend). Even though I have been feeling totally drained of energy, it was a great day and it will definitely be one of my favorite memories of this pregnancy.

This morning Natey and I are just taking it easy and enjoying our last morning alone. I think God really wanted me to get my project done because not only did Nate take his first nap in two weeks yesterday, but also he slept in until 8AM which allowed me to knock out the last few pages of my paper. Praise Him.

Friends!!

Keep us in your prayers, I will update you with the stats of our new bundle as soon as I feel up to it!

My sweet boy...

And....It's Time for Superwoman to Have a Seat.

Photo Credit

...Because she was put on bedrest this morning.

The fluid around baby was a little on the low end today so my doctor thought it would be best for me to take it easy and drink lots and lots of water until delivery. Everything ended up being fine, but I'll go back Monday to recheck. This baby might be making an earlier debut than anticipated...

My OB reassured me that this is a pretty common occurrence with the residents that are have babies - being on your feet all the time and the stress is sometimes blamed for low fluid. It helps that I am somewhat familiar with all this now too so it's less distressing. I'm not worried. God is in control and Baby J will be fine :-)

Naters gets back from my mom's house this weekend, and then he will be home with me until it's time for him to go back to school in August. Kind of bummed because I had all these big plans for our last hoorah as just Mommy and Natey (zoo and museum trips, long walks, hanging out at the park), but now I'm going to have to chill on that a bit :-/

And don't get me started on how NOT ready I am for a baby to get here soon. I need to run walk slowly out to Target and get some crib sheets, and onesies, bottles, and Dreft. And now would probably be a good time to pack my hospital bag... The blessing in all this is that I was only two days away from the end of my rotation and the start of my official vacation from school, so this doesn't set me back at all or leave me with a bunch of time I'll have to make up when I go back.

Any good books or movies you recommend? Who am I kidding... I need to get working on my personal statement again. So much to do, so little time...

I've only been on bedrest for 6 hours now and I am already bored. Oh boy...

Reflecting on My Clerkship Experience: Obstetrics & Gynecology

This is looooong overdue, but better late than never ;-) Since I did an additional month of OBGYN in June, I am going to include the details of that too...

From the AAMC Careers in Medicine Clinical Evaluation 

1. Name and Location of Clinical Rotation: 

• Indiana University Hospital High Risk Obstetrics & Benign Gynecology 
• Ambulatory Obstetrics & Gynecology: IU Hospital & Wishard Hospital 

2. What did I like most about this specialty?

• The patient population. Women's health is awesome and all women patients is definitely my favorite...sorry guys!
• The variety. It is a great balance of ambulatory care, surgery, and even inpatient management.  
• The longterm patient relationship. I love the idea of keeping up with my patient's lives and having them remain a part of my practice for years...
• Being a part of such an intimate and unforgettable moment in a family's life. Delivering a baby is an experience that has not compared to anything I have experienced during my clinical years.
• The subject matter. Being an extrovert can really help you in the medical field, but I think that my openness with sexual health and subjects that others may be less comfortable discussing is another big reason why I love this field. 
• The hours. OBGYN has such a bad reputation historically with not being family-friendly and not having time for a life outside of the hospital - which used to be true. I really obsessed about speaking with all of the moms that I worked with during my rotation (and thankfully, there were many!). Each physician was very candid about how balance can be a challenge, but they also had great insight on how they made their hours work for them. 

3. What did I like least about this specialty?

• Miscarriages and loss of term pregnancy. It is so heartbreaking :-( But I will say that I am glad that I feel capable of supporting my patients when they go through such a terrible experience. 

4. Did this clinical rotation give me a good sense of what practice in this specialty would be like? 

Yes, for sure. I got to experience regular obstetrics, maternal fetal medicine (high risk), benign gynecology, night float (5PM-8AM) and even urgent care. I also worked with a lot of different physicians, so I was able to see the different ways one can practice OBGYN as well.

5. Did my interests, values, skills and/or personality "fit" with this specialty? If yes, in what way did they "fit"? If no, why might they not be compatible? 

YES! As far as personality, my attendings and residents have all been very laid-back, open, and approachable. Most days it is a very happy place to be and they celebrate with their patients, and when there is loss, they mourn with their patients too. Regardless of the circumstance, I can see that they love what they do and they love to teach.  I think I would fit in well. The whole time I was on this service I felt like I was with "my people".

And I actually enjoyed studying for this exam because it was all so interesting to me. Even now, with no exam to study for, I find myself reading journals and genuinely interested in learning more and more. Other doctors tell you that you just have that feeling when you know you found your niche and I feel it for sure. I'm so excited!

Photo Credit

6. What are the possible practice settings for specialists in this field? Which of these settings interest me and do I know enough about them? 

All of my exposure has been in the academic field, which I think I would like because I enjoy teaching - even now, it is fun to work with the third year medical students and help teach exam technique. It's funny because that was me like a month ago, but I feel so much more comfortable and capable now. I would like to spend some time in more of private-practice model just so I can see how the two differ.

7. What information do I still need to find out about this specialty? 

How soon can I start? LOL

8. Has my perception of this specialty changed based on my clinical rotation experience? 

Yes, see #2 when I talk about the hours...

9. Did my clinical rotation experience influence the likelihood of choosing a career in this specialty? If yes, how did it influence me? 

For sure. I had a feeling that I would enjoy OBGYN, but I had no idea that I would end up loving it so much!

10. Right now, on a scale of 1-10, how interested am I in this specialty as a career option? 

10!! This is it!

11. Other comments or reflections about this rotation or specialty: 

• This experience has made me seriously consider Maternal Fetal Medicine (high risk obstetrics) as a career option. I enjoy the gynecology part of the specialty, however, so now I need to start figuring out if this is something I would be willing to part with in my pursuit of MFM. 

• Also, as a fourth year I got to participate in Residents' Day - it is the day that fourth year residents graduate, so all the residents have the day off for events. This meant that the MS4s were able to act as the interns (first year residents). I was first assist on a c-section and a vaginal delivery that day. It was nerve wrecking because I was actually in charge, but I loved it! (OK, our attendings were the bosses, but nurses were calling us first...)  Definitely gave me a good taste of what it would be like when things were official :-)  

Things Natey Says: Summer Vacation Edition

Me: Come on, Nate, we're going somewhere...
Nate: Are we going to Target?!
Me: Nope.
Nate: The dollar store?!
You would think we don't take him anywhere -_-

Nate: I don't want to go to camp!
Me: A lot of your friends are going to camp this summer after school gets out.
Nate: Not L---, he's going to Florida.

Walking in on his dad reading the manual to the car:
Nate: Is that your Bible?

Nate: How is the doctor going to get the baby out of you?
Me: Mommy has to go to the hospital so the doctor can help her and I am going to push the baby out.
Nate: Oh, how did you get that baby in you?
Me: Well, when mommies and daddies love each other they can make a baby.
Nate: But how did that baby get IN you?
o_O I didn't think I would be having this conversation so soon!

After seeing a commercial for Gymboree on the TV:
Natey: Hey Mommy, we can take my baby there!

I'm going to teach my baby how to read!

We have been working on sight words and reading. One day in the middle of the lesson...
Natey: Mommy, I love when you teach me how to read.
Me: Me too Nate, I love teaching you to read. And you are doing so well, how do you remember all this stuff?

Summertime!

Natey: God tells me.

In the car with his Dad:
Nate: I know everything. Ask me a question.
Hubby: (there is a blimp in the sky) Hmm...How do blimps fly?
Nate: Well...that is a very good question...They use hot air
Haha good to know he pays attention in school ;-)
~~~~~~~

15 MINUTES into our drive to New Orleans:
Nate: :long sigh: Ugh...this is such a long trip!

6 hours into the trip and way past his bedtime:
Me: Natey, you should try and go to sleep.

Nate: I don't want to go to sleep because I don't want to miss anything exciting!

Nate: What is there to do in Tim Horlins (New Orleans) again?

Walking into the hotel room and opening the curtain:
Nate: This is so nice!

After hearing someone cuss in the French Quarter:
Natey: We aren't allowed to say "damn", right daddy?