For Celestia's birth story I really have to start at conception. After three years of trying and two losses, including her angel brother Gaby, we went through two rounds of IVF. We still had two fertilized eggs that were frozen and decided that financially and emotionally we just could not go through another round, but decided to do a frozen embyro transfer (FET) to "bring our last two babies home." So we transferred two on March 30, 2007. One stuck.
Three weeks later, I was finally able to breast feed her (she had been gavage fed with my milk since birth) and she took to it like a champ. When I got discharged 4 days after her birth, it was the hardest day of my life to leave her at the hospital. For the first time since the whole thing began, I sobbed in the shower (so my hospital roomie couldn't hear me) and felt like my heart was ripped out. But I knew she was in the best hands possible. I cried all the way home. Three weeks later, after going to the hospital every day and then rushing home to pick up Tyler from school, she finally came home, November 15, 2007, one week before Thanksgiving. Now, a year later, she's still breastfeeding and eating most foods (she LOVES to eat!) and walking and talking and is PERFECT. Our miracle baby, beloved by us and her brother Tyler.
The pregnancy was pretty rough with morning sickness and fatigue but I was happy because that meant she was strong and growing. My due date was my birthday, December 10.
On October 13, 2007 we were 31 weeks pregnant and went apple picking. After spending a day pumpkin and apple picking we thought it would be fun to paint my big belly like a pumpkin. It was a great day and we laughed all day long.
On October 20, a week later, Tyler got sent home sick from school and at 7:00 at night I was at the pharmacy searching for cold medicine for him and all of a sudden I felt a gush and discovered my water broke. We rushed to the hospital where we had planned on giving birth, only to find out that I was going to be sent 45 minutes away by ambulance to a hospital that had a NICU unit. Tyler was sent to my neighbors to spend the night (we thought) and Al met me at the hospital, which was across the river from our town, about a 45 min. drive. The hospital admitted me and gave me a steriods shot to help Celestia's lungs to develop and drugs to try to stop labor. They worked but I was still leaking amniotic fluid and told I would not be discharged until I either stopped leaking or gave birth. So I was put on bed rest and told that they would perform a c-section not before 33 weeks, so I was stuck. In the meantime, Tyler, at my neighbors house, was getting sicker. Turns out he had bronchitis, so Al had to stay home to care for him while I was on bedrest at hospital almost an hour away. I had nothing with me, no shampoo, no robe, no charger for my cell phone, nothing...and I was so devastated I could not be with my son while he was so sick. I was scared and lonely but knew that I was in a hospital where Celestia would have the best chance.
On October 28, a Sunday, ONE DAY before my 33 week mark, and a scheduled c-section, I was watching my favorite NASCAR (Go Junior!!!) and looking forward to a day of rest before Celestia's birth, when low and behold, labor started again, and bad. The doctors really wanted to do a c-section because they didn't want to chance her heartrate being low or any added trauma, so they told me to get my husband there ASAP. Well, I called him and he was in church and hung up on me, saying he would call me after church. I called him again. Before he could hang up again I told him to get to the hospital ASAP if he wanted to see his daughter being born. An hour later, he still wasn't there and so I called him again. He was trying to get the car seat installed. LOL. I told him the baby would not be coming home today and HE NEEDED TO GET TO THE HOSPITAL NOW!!!!! Another hour later, they were prepping me for the surgery and couldn't wait any more. I was alone and again scared and 5 MINUTES before they wheeled me to the OR, he comes RUNNING down the hallway. JUST in the nick of time!!!! 45 minutes later, at 4:59 pm, they pulled her out. I was busy throwing up from the anesthesia and didn't hear her cry and was out of my mind worrying....and then I heard the mewling. They brought her over to me all wrapped up and then they snatched her to the NICU unit. Apgar was 8 out of 8.
I first held her in my arms the next day, after struggling to get out of my hospital bed and get to the NICU. She weighed 4 pounds 11 oz and was 17 inches long. For the next week, she dictated to the doctors her care, first dislodging her CPAP from her mouth, telling the docs she was breathing on her own fine enough. Then it was the IV fluids she didn't want.
Three weeks later, I was finally able to breast feed her (she had been gavage fed with my milk since birth) and she took to it like a champ. When I got discharged 4 days after her birth, it was the hardest day of my life to leave her at the hospital. For the first time since the whole thing began, I sobbed in the shower (so my hospital roomie couldn't hear me) and felt like my heart was ripped out. But I knew she was in the best hands possible. I cried all the way home. Three weeks later, after going to the hospital every day and then rushing home to pick up Tyler from school, she finally came home, November 15, 2007, one week before Thanksgiving. Now, a year later, she's still breastfeeding and eating most foods (she LOVES to eat!) and walking and talking and is PERFECT. Our miracle baby, beloved by us and her brother Tyler.
