Introducing baby Colin Patrick!!!

4 pounds 12 ounces; 17.5 inches long

On January 11, 2012 at 4:50 am we welcomed Colin Patrick into the world! After 46 very long days in the hospital I went into active labor mid-morning on Tuesday, January 10th. I was 34.3 weeks pregnant at the time and throughout the day we were trying to mentally prepare ourselves for the fact that our baby would likely spend some time in the NICU. A neonatologist came to speak with us and to tell us what to expect and we were told that Colin would probably spend one to three weeks in the NICU and also that they would automatically give him IV fluids since I was less than 35 weeks pregnant. I also was required to deliver in the operating room just in case anything went wrong. Labor was definitely no walk in the park but I was so relieved that my pregnancy was coming to an end that I think I could have handled just about anything at that point. I guess I'll give a quick account of his birth story for anyone that is interested (and because if I don't write it down, it is very likely that I will forget!).

About a week before I went into labor I was sent from my regular hospital room to the Labor & Delivery floor for a few days because my heart rate started to spike up to the 140s while resting. While in L & D, I was kept on a heart rate monitor continuously and had several different tests peformed on my heart. The doctors never did figure out why my heart was doing that and all of my tests came back normal. The theory is that more blood clots could have moved into my lungs causing the increased heart rate and respirations. Because I was already on blood thinners (to treat my other clots and pulmonary embolisms) it was not worth performing another Spiral CT. The doctors decided it would just be best to monitor me and they also made the decision to discontinue the medication I was taking to stall labor. Within two days my contractions increased in both frequency and intensity and I was once again sent to L & D for a few days. Even though I was having contractions every 5 minutes or so, I was not in "active labor". I was basically miserable and making no progress at all. How frustrating! I continued in latent labor for about a week and on Sunday, January 8th Colin gave me a big scare when his heart rate started decelerating during some of my contractions. This is the same reason I had an emergency c-section with Aidan so I was terrified. Thankfully, his heart rate stabilized the nurses continued to monitor him closely. My doctor said that if he had any more heart decelerations or if anything else happened with me that I would be sent to L & D and would remain there until Colin was born. I did not want that!! I loved my nurses and I loved my room and I was just done with the whole thing. Monday, January 9th, I was in so much pain from the contractions (that still didn't seem to be doing ANYTHING) that I was given a low dose of morphine to help me to relax a little bit. I had not slept or been able to eat anything for days and it was definitely taking a toll on me. I was an emotional wreck and I did not understand how could be in THAT much pain and yet nothing was happening. My mom spent the last few days and nights at the hospital with me so Alex could still go to work (thanks mom) and she tried to make feel better the best she could but I know I was probably frustrating...

Tuesday, January 10th while I was having my daily non-stress test (to monitor contractions and Colin's heart rate), he began to have more heart decels. My doctor was called and just as promised I was sent to stay in Labor & Delivery until Colin decided to be born. I was not a happy camper but I was praying that it wouldn't be for very long. After just a few hours in L & D I was FINALLY in active labor and I could not have been more relieved...

This is what Alex was busy doing while I was in labor :)

I labored all day and through the night and after only about 20 minutes of pushing, Colin was finally here!! Much to our surprise, he was doing so well that we were able to spend about 15 minutes in the delivery room with him before they whisked him away to the NICU and he was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!

There is no better sound than the sound of your baby's first cry - especially
when you aren't sure if they will be able to breathe on their own. It was music to our ears...

We were so thrilled that we were able to hold him before they took
him to the NICU!!

Proud daddy :)

After we spent some time with him in the delivery room, he was taken over to the NICU to make sure everything checked out okay. I had to spend more time than normal in recovery because of my blood clots and everything so I wasn't able to feed him for several hours. By the time I was able to go visit him he had a feeding tube placed down his nose because his blood sugar was low. The nurses had tried giving him formula while they waited for me but Colin wanted nothing to do with it and he was throwing up everything they had given him. It was so sad to see him with that tube down his nose and he HATED it but I know that things could have been much much worse.

His incubator was under a heater and he loved to stretch his legs out towards the heat. It was so cute :)

After I was able to nurse Colin a few times his blood sugars improved drastically and his feeding tube was taken out when he was about 30 hours old. He was even released from the NICU so he could room in with me and we went home after just two days. He is our little miracle!

This is right after they took his feeding tube out! Yay!

Look at this hairy baby...

Looking at his daddy - this is one of my favorite pictures :)

We are so thankful to have such a healthy baby but another thing I am beyond thankful for is the fact that for the first time in 217 days I am no longer constantly nauseated and dizzy. I have a long recovery ahead of me but my night and day sickness is gone. What a wonderful feeling! Colin is the perfect addition to our family we are beyond blessed to have two amazing boys to call our own.