One Week Down...

A week has passed since our little Adam made his unexpected entrance into the world and I am so glad that so far he has been doing as well as is possible for how early he came. The doctors were able to remove a ventilator the first night, and if all goes well he will lose one of his larger IVs today. Doing well doesn't necessarily move up when they think he might be released, but it sure doesn't make it longer - 7 weeks is plenty long as it is. Speaking of long, here is a picture to give you an idea of how tiny our little guy is: his length and size as compared to Joe's hand.So to finally document, here is the story of how Adam came to be here in his little Isolette:

This pregnancy being more difficult than my other two has not been a secret, so there was always a concern that he could come early, but I was little prepared for it when he did at 30 weeks. Last Sunday, August 22, it was noon and we were just getting out of church. One of my friends came and touched my belly and it was at that moment I felt the first little "gush" of fluid. Given my pregnancy history I just regarded it as annoying more than as a sign that something was wrong. We went home, I got the kids lunch, I updated my blog, and I had a few more inconvenient gushes. At around 4:00PM I started to realize that I was experiencing this a little more than seemed "normal" and it was then that the idea that my water had broken first crossed my mind. My experience did not mesh with water breaking stories I had heard in the past so I got on the computer to research a little, and started to worry. Deciding to lay down for a little bit to see if that affected anything I told Joe, jokingly, that we might be having the baby today. I believed that if and when we went to the doctor they would tell me that it was just fluid around my placenta, the baby was fine, and to go home. However while laying down I experienced a much larger gush, asked Joe, on the phone with his mom, to have her come watch the kids, and headed there to be told the opposite.

A funny side note - when we got to the labor and delivery wing, I had to undress and provide a urine sample - I know, cool right? What wasn't so cool was when, in the process of changing, I accidentally knocked over someone else's sample. Aren't I awesome? At least in the stress of the moment we had something to laugh about.

So, upon checking me, a nurse verified that it was my water that had broken. We were then informed that as a result of my water breaking and because it was too soon for Adam to be born, my labor was going to try to be stopped and I would have to stay in the hospital for up to 7 weeks until they could no longer prevent the baby from coming. That idea was overwhelming to us and I should have started to panic, but I think I was too in shock to process what was really happening. The idea that the process of having this baby had started, how it was going to affect Joe and my kids, not to mention myself was just craziness.

At this point I was officially admitted to the hospital, hooked up to monitors and given medication to stop my labor. Maybe the baby knew he could endure 7 weeks in the hospital better than I could because through the night contractions started and continued to increase in strength, and decrease in distance apart. When my nurse came in around 6:00 the next morning I was checked at a 4. She called the doctor who, when she checked on me the previous night, said she would be surprised if I made through the week, and determined that this labor could probably not be stopped and to go ahead and give me an epidural.

Heaven. Ahhhh the relief I experienced with that epidural was heaven. Zheila (pronounced G-la) my nurse told me that at that point the plan was to leave me alone. They didn't want to check me anymore than they had to for fear of dialating my cervix more and really didn't want to do anything that would speed up labor. So Joe and I spent the morning talking about the ramifications of what was going to happen from here until and then after the baby was born. We had been visited by the NICU staff and told a little bit about what to expect and were really just still trying to process everything. Our kids had spent the night with Grandma McBride and they were going to stop by and visit and in the meantime I just watched the monitor show my contractions steadily moving on. Here's where the story get's good:

Around 11:45 I noticed that my contractions were coming every 2-3 minutes and I was starting to feel them - nothing too painful, but I was aware of them. At that time, Joe's mom called to say they were there and asked Joe to go meet them to let them in to say hi. Also, at the same time I felt another famous gush, and realizing that no one had checked on me for a while decided to call the nurse under the idea that it was better safe than sorry to have her come make sure everything was still fine. Joe walked out, Zheila walked in and it was then that Adam's heart rate dropped from 150 to 90.

Zheila was quickly followed by two nurses who started moving me all over the place to try to figure out what was going on with the heart rate. My doctor came in not a minute later and while they were checking my tummy, she checked my cervix. The moment she touched me I felt the baby's head come down. She said, "Oh wow, she's complete plus one, she needs to go now, unhook her and get her to the OR stat." I didn't realize doctors actually say "stat" but apparently they do because she said it several more times. As the nurses were franctically trying to unhook all my stuff, she kept saying "I said stat. She's complete plus one, we need to move her now. Stat." The nurses were not the only frantic ones. I was FREAKING out. Joe had left me, they were saying it was imperative I deliver this baby fast, they were going to move me to where Joe couldn't find me (having prearranged to have me deliver in an Operating Room so the NICU staff could be right there) and I didn't know what to do. Amid the chaos I was able to grab my phone and text Joe to "COME NOW!!!!!!!"

Joe meanwhile had met his mom and our kids at the door and turned around to come back in. The receptionist informed him he would have to wait because they were dealing with an emergency and it was then he got my text, asked what room the emergency was in and, upon giving my room number 4509 to the nurse, was told to run.

At 11:59 I was wheeled into the operating room as Dr Lesser changed her clothes. The nurses started debating whether to move me to the operating room or to leave me on the bed. I was watching everything still in shock. Dr. Lesser entered the room told them to leave me on the bed, and get the stirrups up.

Now with my two other deliveries my pushing experience was really rather calm. I was told to push, told I had done well, to take a break, and to push again in what now seems like a very relaxed, peaceful manner. Calm is not a word I would use to describe this experience. As soon as the doctor was ready, four nurses surrounded me, pushed me into a ball, held my legs and started screaming at me to push. "Push! Push like your life depends on it! Push like you have never pushed before!" Not one of them was staying silent, and as I would pause to take a breath they continued: "Push again! Push HARD! PUSH!" Luckily I didn't endure the screaming very long as less than a minute later and about 10 seconds after Joe made it into the room, Adam was born at 12:05PM.

My baby was immediately handed off to the NICU staff and my tears just as immediately started. The relief of being done was overcome with the anxiousness of wanting to know if my baby was okay. Joe went into watch as they started resuscitating him and I lay there helpless wondering what was happening to my little boy. The only thing I could do was pray, fervently, that he would be okay and allowed to live. I was transfered back to my room where minutes later I was told that Adam was stable and that they hoped he remained so. As I mentioned at first he has done as well as possible from there on out.

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A week in, the road has been stressful. Between trying to take care of my kids at home and getting to visit Adam at the hospital and dealing with the emotions that accompany leaving your child in a hospital, I have definitely experienced ups and downs. I am so grateful that, if Adam had to come early, that he is doing well. I am so grateful that we have felt so much love and support from friends and family. I am so grateful that I have a Heavenly Father that hears and answers prayers and, while this is not the road I wished for, will continue to bless us to be able to make it through this experience and get Adam home safe and healthy.

Adam Wesley McBride

Note to self - Never end a blog with: ... like I am tempting something to happen. Like when I ended my last post with the thought that'd we'd see if I would make it to another post before the baby came, and I went to the hospital an hour later - yeah. Good times.

So the story of his arrival is a good one, but I don't quite have the energy to share it quite yet. Another day. For now I wanted to post some pictures of our cute little guy.

Adam was born at 12:05 PM Monday August 23, 2010

3.7 lbs, 16 inches

He came off the ventilator the first night and has been doing well. They estimate he will be in the NICU for about 7 weeks. We are definitely praying that will go fast!We appreciate all the love and support we have received and are grateful for such wonderful family and friends

Updates of a Slacker Mom

I could give several excuses, like we purchased a new computer, life has been busy, I'm trying to accomplish non computer related items in advance of the baby's arrival...the truth is I have just been lazy. I sit down at the computer with the intention to post, and then just don't want to. No more delays from this slacker though - here is what has been happening in the McBride home lately:

Dad:

Work Work Work. Joe is currently working a rotation of graveyard shifts. This really isn't as bad as it sounds as he is generally up for the day just after Noah gets up from a nap and then doesn't go to work until the kids go to bed. We end up getting to see more of him on this shift than a 9-5 day would normally allow. When he isn't working he has been great about trying to plan fun activities with the kids and has tried to make time to take himself fishing as well. One thing he wouldn't make time for - posing for a picture that I could post of him here!

Mom:

Ugh. I'm exhausted. To say this pregnancy has been much different than my previous two would be a complete understatement. Take the fact that getting larger and less mobile makes having to deal with two other children at the same time more difficult, add to that periods of mind numbing, dry heave inducing pain, and it is definitely not the pregnancy I thought I was signing up for. I wouldn't trade it(him) for the world though. Here is my (Chloe took the picture and missed my face, which I think is really better for everyone involved) baby belly at 30 weeks:

Ten more weeks give or take to go!

In addition to doctor check-ups and ultrasounds I have also been able to go to girls camp with the young women of my church, go on a ward camp out, and just this weekend camped with our family. I know, camping while pregnant, fun right?! My mom just reminds me that she did it nine monthes pregnant while having her food supply attacked by racoons. My experiences weren't nearly as bad and were in fact very enjoyable. Now that the baby's arrival is drawing near I also need to finally decorate Noah's room which he will share, so I have been constantly on the look out for great ideas. Other than that, and resting (ha) whenever I can get the chance, there is not a whole lot else to report with me. Super exciting, right?

Chloe:

Chloe is finally getting better at letting me experiment with her hair. She insisted I take and post a picture of our most recent try: Curling it with a flat iron. Other news in Chloe's world:

* Chloe started preschool this last week. I am still kicking myself for forgetting my camera. She has a new teacher, Ms. Halladay, this year, and she thinks she "might be friends with some of the kids in her class."

* Chloe is officially 4 1/2, not at all too soon to start planning her official first birthday party at age 5. Invitations have been created several times over and this little girl cannot wait for the big day!

* Chloe has a "boyfriend". She has recently started calling the little boy that used to live across the street from us her boyfriend. When I asked her what made him her boyfriend, her response was "We just have a lot in common."

* Chloe is making the switch to big big twin sized bed this week! She wanted a carriage bed, or one with princess crowns all over it, but we ended up agreeing on a plain white bed that will last her a lot longer.

* Chloe will start soccer in a couple of weeks, the only activity that she has thus far been excited about trying.

* Chloe has been a sweet big sister and watching her and Noah play together are most often my happiest moments of the day!

Noah:

If only he always acted as sweet as this picture would lead you to believe. Make no mistake, this little guy can be the sweetest kid on Earth, but he is developing a little temper lately. That aside, when I am having a rough time he is generally the first to try to make me feel better with a hug or kiss. Other Noah items:

* Noah's vocabulary is growing and growing. His favorite word right now is actually. No I didn't end the sentence too soon, it is actually the word actually. As in "Actually you call it Boondock's mom." "Actually I just tooted" "I don't want to take a nap "actually". Cracks me up every time"

* Noah is sad he is not going to preschool this year and continues to ask when his turn is

* Noah can't enter Old Navy without busting out some break dancing moves. I don't know what it is about Old Navy, but the moment we walk in the door, both my kids start dancing, irrespective of the fact that other people can actually see them (normally a huge deal breaker for them). He gets right onto the floor and starts working it. One of these days I need to document this.

* Noah is starting to get used to the idea that the potty chair is something he might want to try out one of these days. We are trying to get him excited about the idea, but I'm not so sure it's working quite yet.

* Noah thinks we should name the baby "baby brother" Other brilliant ideas: Pickle ice cream head, Tooter, and Cantalope smiley face. All keepers.

Speaking of baby brother...

Baby boy McBride, is really making his upcoming presence in our lives known. I mentioned some pregnancy difficulties, and here is an update - again this is where the slacking makes me feel bad as I probably should have posted some of this much earlier. In a previous post I mentioned a scare and while nothing has come close to that I have had a few other pregnancy related issues.

First, I have had pain, horrific pain, that I could not find any rhyme reason or link to. When the pain hits, I have trouble moving, breathing, or carrying on a conversation. When it hits, if I take tylenol immediately, the pain decreases after about 30 minutes, but almost always lasts about 2 hours. At first I was told this was ligament pains, but I always found this hard to believe.

Then, when I had a screening test, the test came back showing there could be a problem with the baby. When I went in for my targeted ultrasound they looked closely and determined the baby was developing perfectly fine, but my placenta was a question mark. There was quite a bit of extra blood (which set off the false positive for the screening test) and a large clot. The placenta was attached "enough" and might not cause any problems, but I was told that, although I would not be placed on bed rest or restrictions of any kind, they had no idea what would happen and would have to watch me more closely. They did conclude that all the extra blood is proabably what has been causing my pain.

So, I have had to go in for extra ultrasounds and had to endure pain that I never know when will hit, but with continued checks have been told that they baby is still growing great, in fact is a bit ahead for growth, and I have made it to the point where if the baby is born, it will most likely survive!

All that aside, I do feel good if not great most of the time. I just have no idea if the baby will come in 10 weeks or ten days. I laugh, that it will be funny when he is actually born late. He is a great little mover though, and I love feeling that movement inside of me. I can't believe the time is coming so fast. Let's hope I manage another post before then...

SlippinSlidin

Our kids had two different reactions to the slip 'n slide we pulled out to play with today:

Chloe was happy, excited and enjoyed every minute of the wet fun

Noah, not so much. He whined about trying and when Joe "helped" him, still wasn't a fan

Good times

Let Freedom Ring

With a recent schedule change in Joe's department, he was left with five days off. Due to some pregnancy things and plans we opted out of planning a vacation, instead going for a stay-cation of sorts. We loved the freedom of not having to worry about work and just go play together.

Monday was the quietest day of the week where we just played games in the sprinklers and went out for ice cream. On Tuesday we went on an adventure into the mountains. We are blessed to live so close to so many mountainous areas and really should take advantage of day trips like these more often. We packed up some hobo dinners and some s'mores supplies and headed to the Smith & Morehouse area where we set up shop in a campground there. This place was beautiful!

We hiked down to the river - risking life and limb at extreme heights over tree trunks and...okay well the tree trunk was only like two feet off the ground, but still - the kids thought is was brave!

Our home is just down the street from this same river, but even and hour and a half away the kids enjoyed watching and throwing rocks into it. They also managed to survive a few pictures.

I love this one of my three favorite people

Not sure why Noah did so great with dad but not so much with Mom...
Another shot of our green and lovely spot

Notice the blue sky in the above picture? Too bad that didn't last. After our river adventure we headed to the lake to fish a little where it promptly started to rain. We headed back to the campground and, because it let up a little, decided to stick it out, start a fire, and cook our hobo dinners. The kids were not as up for the play in the rain plan as I would have hoped so they ended up with a movie and snacks inside of the car.

With wet picnic tables, hobo dinners got the car treatment as well.

We did get them out long enough to get them smelling like smoke and sticky from yummy s'mores and are greatful that the weather dried out long enough to enjoy at least that part of our evening. The rain really didn't ruin anything though, as the kids immediately asked if we could do it again tomorrow.

We also enjoyed a BBQ with a couple of Joe's works friends and their families where we swam and visited. I really like this group of people and my kids loved playing with theirs. I think Chloe might have stayed in the pool for three hours straight! Thursday brought date night. Joe and I went out with friends to see a movie and I loved getting the break. On Friday we enjoyed another BBQ - this one following a softball game between the Riverdale Police Officers and Firefighters. Better luck next time RVPD - the food was good though!

With the 4th of July falling on Sunday this year, Utah decided to do it's celebrating on the third. We enjoyed a parade, and watching dad work at it, swimming, a BBQ with my family, and fireworks. The day was great! On Friday night Chloe told me, when we were discussing getting to go swimming at grandma's the next day:

"I've been thinking about it all day and I think I am ready to jump off the diving board by myself tomorrow." I know there are many kids, including my cute 3 year old nephew Riley, that are swimming and jumping off boards solo at this age, but still I was suprised my sometimes shy little girl was ready to make the leap. As soon as she got done letting me take this picture:

She ran straight to the diving board without hesitation. Documenting her first solo jump:

Her proud post jump face

Jumping from this board was what she did for the rest of the time we swam - here are some still shots of the jumping

Another video, this one of her now running and jumping in one smooth move


There are some perks that come with being in a law enforcement family. One is VIP parking at the fireworks. Another is getting the rare chance to drive there in daddy's police car. The kids thought this was the COOLEST!

I'm always wary about keeping the kids up late for things such as this, knowing I will pay for it the next morning. They had such a great time though that it made it worth it!

Best shot I could get of Noah's slightly freaked out face from the fireworks:

So today is the actual Independence Day and after all of our weeklong activities we have so far enjoyed a relaxing day of church (not so relaxing, but done by noon), naps, and yummy BBQ leftovers. As I think about all we were able to experience this week I am grateful for a day to celebrate the opportunity we have to live in this free country, to do what we desire and to live as we choose in this beautiful land. I hope we never take for granted the freedoms that we have and the blessing it is to be American citizens. God Bless the USA!

More Kidlet Pics

I think these are two of the most adorable faces I have ever seen. Here are some more pictures taken by Aunt Wendy!

www.wendymcbridephotography.blogspot.com

Kids Day For Dad

Being that their day was full of activity, I really think the kids enjoyed this Father's Day more than Joe did. They were so excited to do all the projects that they had come up with that for Joe their enthusiasm was gift enough.

Joe had to work a Sunday shift, but he stopped home regularly (one of the huge benefits of moving to the city in which he works), and each time he did a surprise awaited.

First we made cards. Nothing fancy or professional, but perfect.

Here is the inside of Chloe's:

Noah drew on his, but because he picked orange as his writing color, whatwe wrote didn't show up well on camera (ok, maybe it's just my bad photography skills, but we'll blame it on the orange). The message he wanted me to write for him to his daddy was too funny:

Lightning McQueen

Doc Hudson

Flowers

I Love You

Fire Hat

Diego

Love, Noah

When Joe stopped home next later that afternoon, he came home to this surprise...

Or at least that's what they were supposed to look like. Chloe found this recipe in Family Fun magazine and has been wanting to do this for weeks. Unfortunately, and I will spare the long story, we were unable to buy some of the decoration pieces, so ours ended up looking more like this...
Bubble gum replaced carmels, grape fruit rolls replaced frosting, and they actually ended up turning out better that I thought they might.

We were unable to visit our dads due to Noah's lovely cold, but that allowed for one last surprise, making one of dad's favorites - homemade macaroni and cheese. This was also a miracle that we were able to pull something together as, prior to Sunday morning, we assumed Noah would be better and we would be eating with family. The time together ended up being relaxing and perfect. Being the wonderful dad he is, the kids were rewarded with some great father-kid playtime for the rest of the evening and they giggled it away.
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I am grateful to have been blessed with wonderful fathers, from my own, to my father in law, to the father of my children, and love this day we have to honor them!