Was it THAT bad?

Perhaps I was embittered when I wrote that last post (I didn't reread it) but with everyone's comments I felt like I must have given the impression that labor, delivery, recovery & post partum was the most miserable experience of my life!

Allow me to clarify. I was not pleased with the hospital personnel in postpartum and in the nursery and it was very hard to be away from John Michael for so long... but other than that I can say that it was a good experience! I'm so grateful that our little guy is healthy & strong and thriving at home. All is well and we recognize that it could have easily turned out differently. Thanks so much to everyone who prayed for us. The Lord was gracious!

Blogger is not allowing me to upload pictures (all day!) and I know how terribly boring posts without pictures are so I'll cut it off here and hope to update you more soon!

Well, it let me do ONE. Enjoy:

The Story

Well, here's the story of how our "little" guy entered the world.


I arrived at the hospital a little before seven and they started pitocin around 9:00. Labor was mild and moderate until about 11:30 when my doctor broke my water.... then the intensity began in full force!! Around noon I began having contractions about two minutes apart for a minute long each. My plan was to go without pain medication... but after about an hour of absolute intense pain I began getting nervous that this was going to go on until early evening and I knew there was no way I could handle hours of what I was handling then! I started muttering about getting an epidural and the nurses really encouraged it. I said to Johnny at one point.... "Man, its like they are offering me sweet treats and waving them in front of my face." I started (in between these incredible contractions) rationalizing why I should just go ahead an get an epidural. I don't think I made much sense at this point.

The nurses didn't want to check me to see how far along I was until I was either feeling an urge to push or asking for pain medication so I didn't know how fast things were going. I said to the nurse - "okay - this is ridiculous - I can't do this all afternoon and evening - I need an epidural!" So, she checked me in time to tell me I was at 8 centimeters and going fast. So, instead of wheeling in an epidural they wheeled in the delivery equipment, call the doctor and I had John Michael at 1:47 p.m.

So, labor was hard and fast. The delivery went okay - when I finally got him out everyone said, "Wow, that's a big boy!" We had all bet on how big we thought he'd be... i came up way short with 7 pounds 8 ounces. Johnny's dad was the weight winner with 9 pounds. John Michael was just 2 ounces short of that weighint in at 8 pounds 14 ounces and 22 inches long! Whoever said that your babies usually get bigger each time was definitely right this time. Our porucupine was only 7 pounds 2 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long.

Unfortunately things got a little crazy and complicated right after he was born. He had the cord wrapped around his neck and was very blue from being bruised in the birth canal. His apgar scores were low and the nurses were concerned he might be having respitory problems since he wasn't crying well, he wasn't feisty at all and his color wasn't good (as you can tell in these pictures). So, they gave me about 60 seconds with him and wisked him off to the nursery. At the nursery they ordered an IV and oxygen (did you know they put babies IVs in their head??? I didn't.) And that began a hard couple of days at the hospital.



Going in we knew we weren't going to be thrilled with the care at this particular hospital. However, with our new insurance we didn't have much of a choice. I'll spare you the complaints and gripes to protect my own hear from getting bitter! We didn't get to have John Michael again until late that night when he was finally discharged from the special care nursery at 11:15 p.m. At that point I began trying to nurse him and enjoy him as much as possible. He took to nursing (and still is!) like a champ but his stomach was still trying to figure out what to do with food and spitting up became a small concern. One of the nurses was "extremely alarmed" at how much he was spitting up and thus bagan hard day #2.

Here's Addy meeting John Michael.

Giving him kisses

To make a long story shorter our pediatrician came in Friday night and encouraged us that everything was fine. He had experience with the nurse that was worrying us before and kindly told us that he had reason to believe there was nothing to be worried about. We were both discharged the next afternoon and finally got to take our little guy home!



Adeline has really taken to him well. For the most part she keeps on with her normal routine but when she sees him she usually likes to give him a kiss or smack him in the face... :) She's been very clingy with Johnny & I and we are doing all we can to love on her and shower her with affection... as well as teach her that we're still in charge... hehe

John Michael is one well loved baby. Here he is with his grandparents.

More soon - I couldn't finish this yesterday due to a 12 hour power outage!!

pictures now - stories later!

John Michael Hamstra is ON HIS WAY!

As it turns out all of this pre-labor has yet to turn into true labor and we've found ourselves facing the date of a scheduled induction.

Not exactly the way I'd hoped and prayed this day would arrive... but its hard to be disappointed when I'm waking up on the day (hopefully!) I'll deliver a precious baby boy who is sure to be loved and adored by countless friends and family.

So, induction is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. this morning.

Please pray for a safe and healthy delivery without a C-section, that nursing goes well and that Adeline adjusts well to the new baby.

Ladder Golf and Doctor Update

Ladder Golf is sweeping the nation and my toddling monkey has adopted a passion for this new yard game.

She hasn't figured out that the bottom rung is worth only one point... but she does know the bolos are supposed to be on the rungs!

I'm curious. Are ladder golf games and other yard games (bean bags, bocci ball) as popular in other parts of the country as they are here?

I don't know why but I love pictures of Addy in her car. :)

John Michael Update

After a trip to the doctor this morning I discovered that I am about three centimeters dilated. After examining me she said that I should be very aware of the possibility of my water breaking - it seems "on the verge". Hopefully we'll have an "I'm in labor" post soon!

Pre Labor, Steak & Shake & Ojitos

Well, since my last post I have been experiencing a daily (or more) bout of "pre-labor". For those of you who aren't familiar with that term its basically the same thing as the beginning of regular labor but instead of making progress and getting stronger it usually fades away. Fortunately it isn't all in vain. I'm hoping that this past week of "pre-labor" has helped my body to prepare for true labor leaving me with less work to do once I get to the hospital... especially because all this pre-labor stuff is pretty uncomfortable!

Here are some pictures of Adeline at Steak and Shake. She really does not like hats. Here she is throwing a fit about the Steak & Shake hat... and not throwing a fit over GG feeding her whipped cream. I think this little girl has a sixth sense for sweets. As soon as they are out she zones in on them and begs like a dog until she gets some (or gets corrected... :))


"Ojitos" are blinks or winks. It might be a Mexican thing but its definitely a family thing. Every little one in my mom's family was trained thoroughly on how to make "ojitos." Its really quite cute. Here is Addy enjoying practicing her ojitos at Jalapenos, a local Mexican restaurant (how appropriate)


Hope everyone had a great weekend. We'll let you know if/when this pre-labor drops the pre. :)

adventures with GG

GG brought gifts galore (as usual!). Addy wasn't real sure how much she liked the hats but I figure its just a matter of training.. :)





All done!


Now THESE are some shoes!!


Getting ready for GG and John Michael. Mommy's little helper.




And first fruits from the mad crazy garden. I'm not exaggerating when I say that the garden is OUT OF CONTROL! We have beans galore, cucumbers, peppers, zuchinni and the tomatoes and squash won't be long! Thanks Grandfather for your green thumb. Its making for some tasty dinners!

John Michael update

Well, clearly I have not had the baby or I wouldn't be posting about cucumbers and hats... BUT there is good news! I went to the doctor today and found out that I am between one and two centimeters and about 60% effaced. That should mean that it won't be long!! WOO HOO!! Come out and see us little guy!!

A couple of weeks ago at the zoo

Addy has loved going to the zoo this year. Here are a few more pictures of her at her favorite places.

The petting zoo by far surpasses the rest of the zoo for Addy. Especially since the zookeeper at the time let her play with those germ infested, nasty brooms they use to sweep up poop. I was loving that... . But even through my cringes ahd really did love it!


The dolphin case was a close second on this trip. It was the first time we ventured out there but you can bet we'll be back! She could have spent at least another 20 minutes watching them swim by, turn over and circle back around. She kept pointing and talking in gibberish with delight.


But all that animal loving left us with one tired girl.

WIPED OUT!!

snack time

Most of you who read this blog know Adeline's long term love affair with food. Althought toddlerhood has increased her "pickiness" she still LOVES her snack time. Here are some shots of her with her favorite snacks.

Yogurt.





Watermelon.




And when all else fails....


No solved shower mystery yet! I'll keep you "posted".