It's Empty Again........Our little boy is here

Things had been going better since last Monday (Nov. 15th), until Wednesday.  That morning my contractions started getting more intense and more frequent.  They tried giving me a mag bolus, but that barely touched them.  I also got a dose of nubain, which had helped before, but wasn't much help this time.  So things continued to progress and Dr. Bemenderfer came to check on me around 3 pm.  She did an ultrasound to check on Luke, and then tried to check my cervix, but all she could feel was my bag of water.  Since labor had already progressed to that point, she said it would probably be best to have a C-section to avoid the possibility of complications.  Matt and I both called our moms and told them that it was time.  So they started prepping me for the O.R.  My nurse for the day, Chrissie, who was supposed to go home at 3 pm, insisted on staying until I delivered, even though I told her she should go home.  What a great friend.  The whole time they were prepping me for the OR, my room was full of other nurses who just come in and wish us well and make sure we were ok.  I love the people I work with.

They took me back to get my spinal in, which turned out to be quite an ordeal.  The CRNA was having trouble getting it in because I had to lay down instead of sitting up to avoid breaking my water.  They finally got the spinal in after about 45 minutes and then went to get Matt.  Shortly after he arrived they started the surgery.  My leg had been pulled up with my knee bent in the air when it went numb, so the whole time I felt like it was in that position even though they had straightened my leg and laid it down again.

Once Dr. Bemenderfer got into my uterus, I think Luke changed his mind.  She kept trying to pull him out and he kept trying to go back inside.  I couldn't see anything, but Matt said he saw his feet sticking out 2 or 3 different times, but they kept disappearing.  So they had to cut my uterus a little more, vertically this time instead of horizontally like the first incision.  This ensures that if we have any more children, I will be having a C-section.  Then she was able to get him out and they laid him on my chest to suction his mouth and nose before the NICU people took over.  They immediately started to intubate him and check his heart rate and temperature.  They had a little trouble getting the tube into the right spot, but eventually got it in and got him stabilized.  They did an awesome job!!!!!  Matt was bouncing back and forth between me and Luke the whole time trying to make sure both of us were ok.  While they were working on him, we heard him let out a few small cries.  It was amazing!!!  Once the tubes were in and they had checked his breathing, they quickly took Luke from the room and upstairs to the NICU.

The official time and stats were:

Lucas Matthew Healy
Born: 5:13 pm, Nov. 23, 2011
1 lb. 13 oz. - 13 inches long

Then Dr. Bemenderfer finished stitching me up and they sent me back to my room.  We had a wait of about 2 hours before anyone could go see Luke, with not a lot of updates.  We just kept being told they were working on his IV and feeding lines and getting his breathing and heart rate stable.  Finally around 8:30 or 9 Matt was able to go up and check on Luke.  After both sets of grandparents were able to go up and see him everyone headed for home or hotels around 10.  I was feeling pretty good after the surgery, so Matt and I went up to see him around 11.

So far he is doing well.  He is really bruised from the delivery, but his skin color is improving daily.  He was  black, blue and purple from head to toe Wednesday night, but is starting to turn pink in his chest, hands, feet and even a little in his arms and legs today.  His heart rate and blood pressure are doing well along with most of the other levels that the NICU is monitoring.

This morning when Matt and I went up to see him, they let Matt take his temperature and change his diaper (Matt's first ever).

Right now we just hope and pray that our little guy can keep going strong and slowly improve with each day that passes.

We really appreciate the thoughts, prayers and support that all of our family and friends have given us this far and we know they will continue to be there as we move forward.