Theo the Great and Powerful

It's been 12 weeks since that little man Theo has come into our lives. I swore that I would write his birth story faster than I wrote June's but that was clearly a lie. So here is a quick version of his swift entrance into the world.

On Monday, April 15 I felt like crap. I woke up feeling like I hadn't slept (I probably hadnt) and like I had the flu. I think Thomas took June to my mom's that morning to let me sleep a little longer but I felt like I needed to hibernate. I honestly dont remember much from that day other than napping, having really bad stomach problems and eating pasta. I was in somewhat of a daze all day. Thomas picked June up from my mom's at 5pm and came home to me laying in bed, contracting. I had texted several friends who had gone into labor on their own because I really didnt know what it felt like beside contractions. They all said not to worry too much since I was only 38 weeks. My contractions got closer together pretty fast. By 630 I was suspecting labor. They had been coming about 5 minutes apart for an hour but I didnt want to jump the gun. Thomas got June bathed and in bed and by 730 we started timing the contractions. 5 minutes apart, each lasting  for a minute. I breathed through them and while they were painful, they werent unmanagable. I didnt want to talk and was eerily quiet. By 9pm I was having contractions every 4 minutes but still wanted to make sure they were real.  I decided to take a shower but that didnt slow them down. Finally at 10pm I called my doctor unsure of the protocol because I was scheduled for a c-section a week later. He said to go get checked out. I didnt want to bring our bags because I was sure we would be sent home. Thomas brought them just in case. My mom came over to be with June and we were on our way. To be completely honest I dont remember anything from the drive. I was pretty focused on just breathing and dealing with the contractions. When we got there I was hooked up to the monitors and sure enough, I was in active labor. The nurse checked my cervix and to my surprise I was already 4cm dilated and 100% effaced. My poor body was doing all of this for naught. I dont know why I was so shocked when they started to prep me for surgery but I remember turning to Thomas and saying, holy shit, we're having a baby! We joked that we needed to wait until midnight so he could share a birthday with his Uncle Clint and it kind of scared me when the nurse said we may not make it because I was progressing so fast! I had to have two IVs because of my bleeding risk and the anesthesiologist had to out them both in because my veins were being jerks. I was prepped and ready to go so fast that we didnt even have time to call our doula. Thomas ended up talking to her right before going into the operating room but she was attending another birth!

As I got my spinal the doctors kept talking about the music - some crappy radio. We laughed because they played a BeeGees song and then No Doubt. I impressed them by knowing every song that came on. Thomas was brought in and they started. I felt a lot of pressure and very nauseous. I asked Dr Man to tell me everyhing he was doing as he was doing it but dont really remember hearing it. As they reached my uterus, at 103am,  Celine Dion's "I'm Your Lady" came on and Thomas said it was mine and Theo's song. They cut in and pulled his head out and before he was out the wnole way he was crying. It was a deep, gasping cry that didnt sound right. Dr Man pulled him over the curtain for me to see. My first thought were - he's a square! He truly was a bowling ball baby with no neck.

Before I really knew what was going on they had him wrapped up, let me kiss him and took him to the NICU. There I was.  still open and alone. Thomas went with Theo and I was still in surgery. I felt sick and sad. I could hear the assistant surgeon saying to Dr Man, "this is incredible. What a miracle." I was stapled and stitched and taken to recovery. I didnt know how big he was or if he was okay until I had been in recovery for at least 30 minutes. Finally the nurse got his stats and kept confirming I was really only 38 weeks. My bowling ball was 8lbs 11oz and 19.5in!

In the next hour I learned that Theo's lung was partially collapsed. It could have been from many things but their best guess was that he was very squished and in an awkward position thus collapsing his lung. I also found that I did indeed have placenta accreta and that my uterus had formed this weird tunnel and that is where the placenta had embedded itself. The assistant surgeon had been so shocked because I was millimeters away from rupture. Had I labored any longer and put the uterus in more stress I would have ruptured and one or both of us would not be here today. Dr Man could feel his hand through the wall of my uterus, that is how thin it had gotten.

I wasnt able to see Theo until the next morning at 830. They made me get out of bed and walk around but I would have run a marathon to see my baby. Thomas wheeled me up to the 5th floor and I got to meet my boy. He was gorgeous. Fat, squishy and perfect. It would still be another 24 hours until I got to feed him and yet another 17 days until we were home as a family but my Theodore Louis is a strong and beautiful boy!

Theodore Louis
April 16, 2013
8lbs11oz 19.5in