When Amber and Kayla informed me within weeks of each other they were expecting, I knew I was in for a buckle your seat belt and hang on kind of year. It proved to be an eventful nine months and everyday was a new opportunity to send me into a mental meltdown while pretending I wasn't a bit concerned, solely for the welfare of the soon to be moms.
I was hoping Amber and Kayla had received the birthing gene from my side of the family. The women in my family have babies rather quickly and with no complications. After about four hours of labor and a couple of pushes, my first baby was born. The doctor said, "You did great! You could have a baby everyday!" Uh, yeah right... except for the small print that says after birth you are expected to take the baby home with you!
Amber has never been known for her high pain tolerance. I tried to convince everyone that her epidural should be administered immediately after the pregnancy test proved positive. It would have been better if for 8 1/2 months Amber had been numb from the waist down.
Amber had morning, afternoon, evening and midnight sickness, not to mention just about any other pregnancy related ailment. Just when she thought things might be looking up and the green tint in her face was starting to subside, she would be hit with it again.
Kayla although suffering from pregnancy induced nausea too, didn't quite have it to the extent that her sister did. But in Kayla's third trimester, her blood pressure started to creep up and a glucose tolerance test showed she had developed gestational diabetes. She had to start monitoring her blood pressure and her blood glucose levels.
I was worried about Kayla having to prick her finger several times a day for her glucose testing because she has always been afraid of needles. Kayla really surprised me and met the challenge head on. She kept her blood sugar under control with diet and never had to go on insulin. Even the doctors where amazed. Kayla controlled her diabetes so well, she didn't gain any pregnancy weight and was thirty pounds lighter when she delivered. This is not a diet regimen I would recommend.
On Kayla's last doctor visit, the doctor said because of the diabetes we might be looking at a large baby if we let the pregnancy go any further. So an induction was scheduled on the next Monday, three days earlier than her due date.
Kayla labored for almost eight hours. When the doctor broke Kayla's water, there was meconium in the fluid. Now there was a chance the baby would aspirate the meconium, so the neonatal intensive care staff would need to be at the delivery.
The next problem was the anesthesiologist had trouble keeping Kayla's epidural in effect. He did all he could, but Kayla was still in extreme pain. She was finally checked for progress again and she had dilated to 7cm, but the baby had not come down at all.
The decision was made to perform a Cesarean section. I suited up and was next to Kayla when the doctor lifted Kyla's head out and had to remove the umbilical cord that was wrapped twice around her neck. We didn't know it at the time, but it was a blessing that we had to do a c-section because if Kyla had tried to come down, there would have been a true emergency.
Kyla was rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit within minutes of birth, so they could regulate her oxygen levels. It was heart wrenching to see that sweet 8 pound 4 ounce baby under oxygen, tubes and cords attached to her and not be able to hold her. For the first day Kyla was not even fed, so oxygen would not be taken away from her organs and used for the work it took for her to feed.
Kyla was strong and bounced back quickly. The first words the neonatal nurse said to Kayla was her baby was very feisty! I am totally not surprised... I know her mother.
Kayla wasn't the only one that decided to have a dramatic birth experience. Amber couldn't let Kayla's delivery go unrivaled so she had to top hers. Amber's blood pressure also continued to rise until she was diagnosed with pre-eclampsia. She was ordered to quit work and go on bed rest at 37 weeks, to try to get her blood pressure down.
On Amber's last visit to the doctor her blood pressure reading was at a dangerous 210/110. They took her directly over to the hospital and admitted her. The doctor said he wanted to get her to 38 weeks, but we would have to wait and see what happened.
The next morning, Amber sat up to eat breakfast and her blood pressure shot up again. The doctor said he had been thinking about it all night and thought he should go ahead and get the baby delivered. Since Amber's blood pressure had been so high, not knowing how it would react to labor, a c-section was decided on.
Amber was trying her best not to lose her composure, but everything was happening so fast. She had gone from the doctor's office to being admitted to the hospital, then from eating breakfast to having your baby delivered within minutes, was taking it's toll on Amber.
Ryder was born within a couple of hours of the decision. He was a tiny 5 pounds 2 ounces. The doctor said it was a good decision to go ahead and take him. All the problems Amber had during her pregnancy, had made a hostile environment for the baby to develop in. Ryder could not get everything he needed to grow like he was supposed to, so he would do much better out. His lungs were developed enough so he could stay in Amber's room and didn't have to stay in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Kayla delivered on July 2nd and Amber delivered on July 20th. Within eighteen days of each other, we had two very eventful births. I wouldn't want either of my girls to go through it again, but the end result was two of the sweetest and most beautiful babies I've ever seen.
Happy birthdays my babies... now the fun begins!
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