Just a quick video of Ethan doing some press ups...
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Bubbles galore...
I couldn't resist posting these photos of Ethan's bath tonight. He adores bath time, and tonight he was surrounded in bubbles...
Things are going well in the Papps household, we have some really good days with a good balance of sleep, play, feeding and cuddling. Other days Ethan (even though he is really tired) struggles to get to sleep despite our best efforts and as the day goes on he gets more and more tired, which makes it harder and harder to get him to sleep. Those hard to sleep days are often followed by his best night time sleeps as he is soooo exhausted (last night was nearly an 8 hour stretch!!!).
Ethan still continues to grow and is now wearing clothes for 6-9 months old (he is only 6 weeks old tomorrow).
Ethan has also started smiling, and it makes my heart melt... I love it!
Things are going well in the Papps household, we have some really good days with a good balance of sleep, play, feeding and cuddling. Other days Ethan (even though he is really tired) struggles to get to sleep despite our best efforts and as the day goes on he gets more and more tired, which makes it harder and harder to get him to sleep. Those hard to sleep days are often followed by his best night time sleeps as he is soooo exhausted (last night was nearly an 8 hour stretch!!!).Ethan still continues to grow and is now wearing clothes for 6-9 months old (he is only 6 weeks old tomorrow).
Ethan has also started smiling, and it makes my heart melt... I love it!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
My one month birthday and life so far... by Ethan Papps
So yesterday was my one month birthday.. I'm going to let you know about my life so far.
I didn't really want to leave my Mummy's tummy, and the doctors and midwives had to help me along. When I arrived I was really scared as the world was so different on the "outside", in fact I screamed and screamed because I didn't know what was going on. There were strange sounds, bright lights and all sorts of things that I didn't really like. I secretly think my Mummy was pleased that I was so loud to begin with as it meant she knew I was ok following a long couple of days trying to get here. I did recognise my Mummy and Daddy's voices though and that made me feel a little better.
We spent the first three days in the hospital and all I wanted to do was sleep, my journey to get into this world was long and arduous. I needed some time to get my energy back. Mummy and I were also working really hard to try and get this feeding sorted.
Because I was overdue, by day 4 (and my first day in my new house) I was really, really hungry. In fact I had the appetite of a 2 week old baby, but my mummy only had enough milk for a 4 day old baby. I tried and tried to get enough milk and 7 hours later we were both tired, emotional and not sure what to do next.
My Mummy and Daddy decided to do some complementary feeding with formula and do lots of expressing so that I could get enough to eat and also so that my Mummy's milk came in quicker.
My Mummy also found it hard to get me in a good position to feed, so we visited a really cool lady who helped us sort out this breastfeeding thing once and for all. We got a few good hints and tricks and now I get all the food I want whenever I want it!
Lots of people have given me lots of really cool presents as well, just for being here.. there are too many to name, but I really want to say thank you!
When I was 10 days old I got to meet my Nanny, that's my Mummy's Mummy. A week later I got to meet Poppy, that's my Mummy's Daddy. They think that I am lovely. I really enjoyed meeting them and hope too see them again before I get too big.
When I was 18 days old, my Mummy got sick and we had to go back to hospital for the weekend... It was dumb, I hated it and the drugs they gave my Mummy made me feel yucky as well. I didn't sleep very much that weekend and Mummy and I really wanted to get home.
On my actual one month birthday I got to meet my Daddy's Mummy, Daddy and younger sister!!! I think they think I am a pretty cool dude.
So far in my short life I have been to the beach, a wedding, the mall, the library, the Community Health Nurse and Mummy and Daddy's workplaces. Yesterday my Mummy took me supermarket shopping all on my own, we didn't take Daddy with us this time. I really miss my Daddy when he goes to work, but as he hates supermarket shopping I think he was secretly proud that Mummy and I managed on our own... mind you we did forget a few things... like his coffee- whoops.
My Mummy gets sad when I cry, so I try not to do it much. Sometimes when she is sad or tired, I do a massive fart for her, I am really good at them and it makes her smile. I like her smile!!
I sometimes find it hard to sleep, even when I am real tired. My Mummy and Daddy have lots of tricks to help me. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. They try walking me in my cool mountain buggy, carrying me in the sling, bouncing me on the swiss ball (Dad is better on the swiss ball than mum), cuddling me and singing to me (although Mum's song repertoire is really small, she is a much better singer than Daddy). Recently my Daddy found a really cool rainforest soundtrack on i-tunes, this relaxes me and helps me sleep. My Daddy is really good at finding new ways to help me sleep.
Here is a snapshot of my life so far... pretty cool huh.
I really LOVE the bath, and its my special time with Daddy. In fact, I want to be a good swimmer just like my Dad. Every night I try to impress him with my doggy paddle, I hope he notices! I'll tell you a secret, I actually used to practice my doggy paddle kick when I was inside my Mummy's tummy, cos I wanted to be real good at it when I was born. I think all the practice has paid off!
I like sitting on the couch, hanging out with my Mummy watching daytime TV.
Have I told you about my bouncer... did you know it vibrates and plays me music???
I have these funny things called hands... I am not quite sure what to do with them yet actually... sometimes they scratch my face and hurt me... but I am getting a bit more co-ordinated with them.
Well, its a tough life being a newborn, and I must go... I need a feed and another sleep! See ya real soon.
I didn't really want to leave my Mummy's tummy, and the doctors and midwives had to help me along. When I arrived I was really scared as the world was so different on the "outside", in fact I screamed and screamed because I didn't know what was going on. There were strange sounds, bright lights and all sorts of things that I didn't really like. I secretly think my Mummy was pleased that I was so loud to begin with as it meant she knew I was ok following a long couple of days trying to get here. I did recognise my Mummy and Daddy's voices though and that made me feel a little better.
We spent the first three days in the hospital and all I wanted to do was sleep, my journey to get into this world was long and arduous. I needed some time to get my energy back. Mummy and I were also working really hard to try and get this feeding sorted.
Because I was overdue, by day 4 (and my first day in my new house) I was really, really hungry. In fact I had the appetite of a 2 week old baby, but my mummy only had enough milk for a 4 day old baby. I tried and tried to get enough milk and 7 hours later we were both tired, emotional and not sure what to do next.
My Mummy and Daddy decided to do some complementary feeding with formula and do lots of expressing so that I could get enough to eat and also so that my Mummy's milk came in quicker.
My Mummy also found it hard to get me in a good position to feed, so we visited a really cool lady who helped us sort out this breastfeeding thing once and for all. We got a few good hints and tricks and now I get all the food I want whenever I want it!
Lots of people have given me lots of really cool presents as well, just for being here.. there are too many to name, but I really want to say thank you!
When I was 10 days old I got to meet my Nanny, that's my Mummy's Mummy. A week later I got to meet Poppy, that's my Mummy's Daddy. They think that I am lovely. I really enjoyed meeting them and hope too see them again before I get too big.
When I was 18 days old, my Mummy got sick and we had to go back to hospital for the weekend... It was dumb, I hated it and the drugs they gave my Mummy made me feel yucky as well. I didn't sleep very much that weekend and Mummy and I really wanted to get home.
On my actual one month birthday I got to meet my Daddy's Mummy, Daddy and younger sister!!! I think they think I am a pretty cool dude.
So far in my short life I have been to the beach, a wedding, the mall, the library, the Community Health Nurse and Mummy and Daddy's workplaces. Yesterday my Mummy took me supermarket shopping all on my own, we didn't take Daddy with us this time. I really miss my Daddy when he goes to work, but as he hates supermarket shopping I think he was secretly proud that Mummy and I managed on our own... mind you we did forget a few things... like his coffee- whoops.
My Mummy gets sad when I cry, so I try not to do it much. Sometimes when she is sad or tired, I do a massive fart for her, I am really good at them and it makes her smile. I like her smile!!
I sometimes find it hard to sleep, even when I am real tired. My Mummy and Daddy have lots of tricks to help me. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. They try walking me in my cool mountain buggy, carrying me in the sling, bouncing me on the swiss ball (Dad is better on the swiss ball than mum), cuddling me and singing to me (although Mum's song repertoire is really small, she is a much better singer than Daddy). Recently my Daddy found a really cool rainforest soundtrack on i-tunes, this relaxes me and helps me sleep. My Daddy is really good at finding new ways to help me sleep.
Here is a snapshot of my life so far... pretty cool huh.
I really LOVE the bath, and its my special time with Daddy. In fact, I want to be a good swimmer just like my Dad. Every night I try to impress him with my doggy paddle, I hope he notices! I'll tell you a secret, I actually used to practice my doggy paddle kick when I was inside my Mummy's tummy, cos I wanted to be real good at it when I was born. I think all the practice has paid off!
I like sitting on the couch, hanging out with my Mummy watching daytime TV.
Have I told you about my bouncer... did you know it vibrates and plays me music???
I have these funny things called hands... I am not quite sure what to do with them yet actually... sometimes they scratch my face and hurt me... but I am getting a bit more co-ordinated with them.
Well, its a tough life being a newborn, and I must go... I need a feed and another sleep! See ya real soon.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
A weighty tale...
Ethan is now 26 days old and is sitting in the 97th percentile for his age/weight at the moment... here are his weight stats:
All this feeding and small sleeps in between mean I am a very tired first time mum at the moment and I now have bags on the bags under my eyes hahaha. To help with my sleeping I try to get to bed straight after he's down for the night (usually around 8pm as I'm generally up again between 11.30pm and 1am).
But all this feeding means that little Ethan has now filled out those wrinkles that he was born with, see the difference below:
- Birth weight - 4.14 kg
- Day 3: Discharge from hospital - 3.87 kg (- 270 gm)
- Day 5: First home midwife visit - 4.03 kg (+ 160 gm and 40 gm above birth weight)
- Day 7: Child Health Nurse visit - 4.18 kg (+ 150 gm)
- Day 14: Child Health clinic - 4.762 kg (+ 582 gm)
- Day 21: Child Health clinic- 5.14 kg (+ 378 gm)
- Day 25: Hospital visit (just a small viral infection for Ethan) - 5.5 kg (+ 360 gm)
All this feeding and small sleeps in between mean I am a very tired first time mum at the moment and I now have bags on the bags under my eyes hahaha. To help with my sleeping I try to get to bed straight after he's down for the night (usually around 8pm as I'm generally up again between 11.30pm and 1am).
But all this feeding means that little Ethan has now filled out those wrinkles that he was born with, see the difference below:
Saturday, June 4, 2011
What a wonderful addition to our family...
Ethan is such a wonderful addition to our life, he is the sweetest little boy! We have enjoyed every day since he has been with us (12 days now), even the night when my milk wasn't quite in and we tried to feed for 7 hours straight!
Ethan is a very content baby at the moment and we love every minute we get to spend with this precious gift of ours.
Here are some of the little bits of Ethan that I particularly love:
1. His wrinkles!
2. His ears, check out the heart shape to the left of the photo, this is the beautiful sight that I get to gaze down on when he is feeding.
3. His hands, he has such beautiful elegant fingers and nails.
4. His feet... he has inherited his dads feet... very big, with long toes.
Of course I could carry on with all the little bits of Ethan that we love to pieces but I need to get back to our little man!
Ethan is a very content baby at the moment and we love every minute we get to spend with this precious gift of ours.
Here are some of the little bits of Ethan that I particularly love:
1. His wrinkles!
2. His ears, check out the heart shape to the left of the photo, this is the beautiful sight that I get to gaze down on when he is feeding.
3. His hands, he has such beautiful elegant fingers and nails.
4. His feet... he has inherited his dads feet... very big, with long toes.
Of course I could carry on with all the little bits of Ethan that we love to pieces but I need to get back to our little man!
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Introducing Ethan Kenneth Papps - Born 24 May 2011
Our little man is finally here! Here is our birth story and a little about the first few days. Sorry its going to be a long post so grab a cup of tea before you start reading haha.
So our due date was 14 May, leading up to this day I wasn't having any braxton hicks contractions, tightenings or anything so I had a feeling that our new addition wasn't going to come on his due date. I had been pretty patient leading up to the due date, but once it hit... I wanted to meet our wee baby.
Everyday I woke up hoping that day would be the day and each day there was nothing happening. I tried lots of things: hot curries, long (2 hour) walks at the beach, hundreds of squats, countless cups of raspberry leaf tea, hours of sitting on a fit ball, acupressure points - the list goes on. But no action.
At our midwife clinic appointment at 40 weeks 5 days we had to start talking induction (our hospital only lets you go 10 days overdue) and a date was set - Monday 23 May. I kept hoping that things would all come naturally before the induction date.
So the next thing that I tried was acupuncture, I had the first session which was a pre-birth preparation session, they also did a few acupuncture points to help calm my mind... and that bit worked. I started to relax a little more and enjoy each day of kicks from our wee man knowing that we had an end date in sight.
Later in the week I had a full on induction acupuncture session. The therapist warned me that it was one of the stronger forms of acupuncture around and he wasn't wrong at all... unfortunately I ended up power-vomiting all through his office (5 times). Hmmmm not a good look at all!!
As the days continued there was still no action so I started to mentally prepare for a birth different to what we had envisaged. We had hoped for minimal intervention (only when medically necessary) and now we were looking at a highly managed birth.
The Sunday before the induction date Jason and I went for a walk at the beach and I started to feel some cramps and tightenings, not a lot but I was still hoping to go into labour naturally.
Monday 23 May
6.30am: Jason and I arrived at Osborne Park hospital with a strange set of mixed feelings. I had imagined racing to the hospital already in labour but here we were just walking in as I would for a normal appointment, however this trip we were expecting to have a baby by the end of the day....
7.00am: Jason and I are in the birth suite waiting for action. Apparently the doctors were in a meeting so we were just waiting around for things to start. We met our midwife for the day as well as a midwifery student assisting her. Now I think the staff play a huge role in how a birth experience pans out and our birth story shows this. This midwife was all about efficiency, getting the baby out and doing it in the easiest way for her. She ended up making me panicked, scared and really uncertain. She told us I would be basically chained to the bed for the day and would have no control over what was happening to me. As the time wore on I was getting more and more worked up and really just wanted to leave. We were sitting there with all the monitoring equipment, bright lights, in a hospital gown and it felt so clinical, not the start of a journey to meeting our baby. The midwifery student was in charge of taking my blood pressure and she was not very skilled at all, at one stage I felt my hand was going to fall off she had ramped the pressure up that high. It truly was a frightening, disheartening and disappointing start to the day for me.
However things changed a little when the doctor arrived. He was the head of Obstetrics and had such a soothing bedside manner that started to ease my fears a little. He told us that the hospital was dealing with a couple of complicated births that morning (twins, and pre-term labour) and that my induction was to be bumped. I was really relieved at this! He did an exam and then things changed again, he said my body wasn't even ready for the induction anyway and even if they didn't have the complicated births we wouldn't induce the way it was planned anyway (artificial rupture of membranes and then syntocin drip). So the induction technique was changed.
10.30am: Jason and I were now out of birth suite and in an induction room for a gel that gets the cervix ready for the next stage. At this time I also received the first (of many) amounts of IV antibiotics as I had tested positive for a bacteria that would be potentially harmful to both me and Ethan during birth.
A short while after the tightenings/contractions started. We were advised to have lunch and go for a walk. During the course of the day the contractions increased in intensity and frequency as Jason and I walked, and walked, and walked. This walking was interspersed with regular IV antibiotics top ups and checks on progress.
5.30pm: Dinner time for me which I managed to eat between contractions. However following an exam I started a series of 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off contractions (which indicated an overstimulated uterus) for hours. I tried showering for pain relief, walking, sitting on the fit ball, any positions we were taught at antenatal class I tried. Jason was great, holding my hand, rubbing my back, comforting me, getting me water and snacks, making me take regular toilet stops, anything and everything to help me through this.
9.30pm: I was given some panadeine forte for the pain. This helped a little and I got some sleep (very patchy and only a few minutes at a time) over the next few hours. Jason was beside me in the bed and was trying to get some sleep. I was aware that he was nearly ready to drop off to sleep and then bang a contraction would start and I would wake him up.
Midnight: A midwife convinced Jason and I that a drug induced (morphine) sleep for me would be in my best interests (this proved to be the case) so that I had some reserves for what lay ahead of me for the next day. I drifted in and out of consciousness aware of the regular observations and antibiotics top ups during the night. Jason also tried to get some sleep, but a double bed, a restless pregnant wife and lots of interruptions was not conducive to his rest.
Tuesday 24 May
6.30am: Jason and I were again taken to birth suite... a strange sense of dejavu come over me. Here we were again, all the feelings from the previous day came flooding back and I started to feel overwhelmed... but what a different experience it was. Our midwife Jackie (20 weeks pregnant herself) was really similar to me, she was cheerful and bubbly and built a rapport within seconds. She was happy for me to be active while in labour and it was a completely different story to the day before. Yay! Jackie broke my waters for me and we got started on the drip. Every hour the drip was turned up, so correspondingly the contractions stepped up in intensity and frequency.
We also consented to a 5th year student doctor to observe the day. He was a rugby fan and we all talked various sports (rugby, swimming, canoe polo and triathlon) during the breaks between contractions. Soon I was unable to talk between contractions even as I was needing the time to recenter and focus myself for the next one. Unfortunately with the induction I had to have constant monitoring so I was unable to use water as a pain relief option. Hot packs on my lower back were a godsend for a while though and Jason was kept busy with this.
Meanwhile the drip was constantly being turned up.... harder, faster and stronger. I started using the gas to help with some pain relief but soon it all got too much and we needed an epidural. Prior to the day I was 100% adamant that I was not going to get an epidural. I was never going to go down that route. But knowing that the drip was going to just keep on getting wound up I decided to use it...
3.30pm: Shift change time which meant that we were losing Jackie. She had made it a much more pleasant experience for me and I was sad to see her go. Our new midwife Linda was quiet, but soothing. She was also really organised, writing lists on the whiteboard with all the upcoming milestones i.e. examinations, antibiotics top ups etc. I liked this as it is what I would do.
Throughout the afternoon Linda was getting a little concerned with Ethan's heart rate decelerations as I had each contraction as well as the slow progress my body was making. The doctor came and checked a number of times and I was scared that we were heading towards a c-section.
In addition to all of this, Ethan was still posterior (Ethan's spine to my spine rather than facing the other way). This is a much tougher position for birthing.
8.00pm: The doctor came in for a check and I was around 9cm dilated so not quite ready to go but the doctor was concerned enough for Ethan's well being to want the next phase to happen early. Another doctor and an extra midwife arrived as well as a number of trays of different medical supplies. I was a little worried about poor Ethan myself at this stage, but still felt that
we were in very good hands with the doctor that we had. The doctor explained that she was going to have to assist me in this process, there were two choices- the vacuum or forceps. She explained that the vacuum is easier for mum but harder for the doctor and the forceps were harder on me but easier for her. She chose the forceps, all Jason and I wanted was the safe arrival of our baby so agreed.
It was time to push for me. This was hard as I had an epidural so I had to imagine where I was to push rather than feel it but the doctors and midwives were impressed with my pushing (even though my body was not giving me the feedback due to the epidural) so I know I was doing the right thing. Not long after I could feel the head crowning. I recall being asked if I wanted to feel his head, but I wanted to meet him for real so said no. Two more pushes and...
8.27pm: Ethan Kenneth Papps was born!!!!
WOW what an experience, what a day for all three of us, but what a great outcome. Both the doctor and midwife mentioned that I got through it due to how fit and strong I was going into the birth.
Finally Ethan was on my chest and boy did he have a good set of lungs so we knew he was ok straight away. His agpar scores were 8 and 9 after 1 and 5 minutes respectively.
Here are a few of the first photos for you.
Ethan is a big boy, nearly 4.2kg (9lb 1oz in old terms) with a 38cm head and 53 cm long
10.00pm: Ethan and I had managed our first breastfeed and we had experienced skin to skin for the last hour and a half. Following this it was time for a shower and food for me, and some one on one time for Jason and his newborn son.
Well that's our birth experience, a little different from the minimal intervention plan that we had. But we got the best ever little boy from it.
Due to the positive test for Group B strep that I mentioned earlier we needed to stay in hospital for a minimum of 48 hours for additional monitoring of Ethan to ensure he was ok, and in the end I actually ended up staying in for 3 nights. Longer than I thought that I would, but I think it was worth staying as I was recovering from a pretty full on birth.
Jason spending some time with Ethan at the hospital.
Awwwwww what a little cutie.
While we were at the hospital we gave Ethan his first bath, which he enjoyed after his initial trepidation... a future swimmer perhaps??
Finally, thanks to all for the lovely flowers I received while in hospital- Jason, Jason's parents, Sandy and Nathan and both mine and Jason's work.
Well if you are still reading- thank you. But I did warn you it was going to be a long one :-)
So our due date was 14 May, leading up to this day I wasn't having any braxton hicks contractions, tightenings or anything so I had a feeling that our new addition wasn't going to come on his due date. I had been pretty patient leading up to the due date, but once it hit... I wanted to meet our wee baby.
Everyday I woke up hoping that day would be the day and each day there was nothing happening. I tried lots of things: hot curries, long (2 hour) walks at the beach, hundreds of squats, countless cups of raspberry leaf tea, hours of sitting on a fit ball, acupressure points - the list goes on. But no action.
At our midwife clinic appointment at 40 weeks 5 days we had to start talking induction (our hospital only lets you go 10 days overdue) and a date was set - Monday 23 May. I kept hoping that things would all come naturally before the induction date.
So the next thing that I tried was acupuncture, I had the first session which was a pre-birth preparation session, they also did a few acupuncture points to help calm my mind... and that bit worked. I started to relax a little more and enjoy each day of kicks from our wee man knowing that we had an end date in sight.
Later in the week I had a full on induction acupuncture session. The therapist warned me that it was one of the stronger forms of acupuncture around and he wasn't wrong at all... unfortunately I ended up power-vomiting all through his office (5 times). Hmmmm not a good look at all!!
As the days continued there was still no action so I started to mentally prepare for a birth different to what we had envisaged. We had hoped for minimal intervention (only when medically necessary) and now we were looking at a highly managed birth.
The Sunday before the induction date Jason and I went for a walk at the beach and I started to feel some cramps and tightenings, not a lot but I was still hoping to go into labour naturally.
Monday 23 May
6.30am: Jason and I arrived at Osborne Park hospital with a strange set of mixed feelings. I had imagined racing to the hospital already in labour but here we were just walking in as I would for a normal appointment, however this trip we were expecting to have a baby by the end of the day....
7.00am: Jason and I are in the birth suite waiting for action. Apparently the doctors were in a meeting so we were just waiting around for things to start. We met our midwife for the day as well as a midwifery student assisting her. Now I think the staff play a huge role in how a birth experience pans out and our birth story shows this. This midwife was all about efficiency, getting the baby out and doing it in the easiest way for her. She ended up making me panicked, scared and really uncertain. She told us I would be basically chained to the bed for the day and would have no control over what was happening to me. As the time wore on I was getting more and more worked up and really just wanted to leave. We were sitting there with all the monitoring equipment, bright lights, in a hospital gown and it felt so clinical, not the start of a journey to meeting our baby. The midwifery student was in charge of taking my blood pressure and she was not very skilled at all, at one stage I felt my hand was going to fall off she had ramped the pressure up that high. It truly was a frightening, disheartening and disappointing start to the day for me.
However things changed a little when the doctor arrived. He was the head of Obstetrics and had such a soothing bedside manner that started to ease my fears a little. He told us that the hospital was dealing with a couple of complicated births that morning (twins, and pre-term labour) and that my induction was to be bumped. I was really relieved at this! He did an exam and then things changed again, he said my body wasn't even ready for the induction anyway and even if they didn't have the complicated births we wouldn't induce the way it was planned anyway (artificial rupture of membranes and then syntocin drip). So the induction technique was changed.
10.30am: Jason and I were now out of birth suite and in an induction room for a gel that gets the cervix ready for the next stage. At this time I also received the first (of many) amounts of IV antibiotics as I had tested positive for a bacteria that would be potentially harmful to both me and Ethan during birth.
A short while after the tightenings/contractions started. We were advised to have lunch and go for a walk. During the course of the day the contractions increased in intensity and frequency as Jason and I walked, and walked, and walked. This walking was interspersed with regular IV antibiotics top ups and checks on progress.
5.30pm: Dinner time for me which I managed to eat between contractions. However following an exam I started a series of 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off contractions (which indicated an overstimulated uterus) for hours. I tried showering for pain relief, walking, sitting on the fit ball, any positions we were taught at antenatal class I tried. Jason was great, holding my hand, rubbing my back, comforting me, getting me water and snacks, making me take regular toilet stops, anything and everything to help me through this.
9.30pm: I was given some panadeine forte for the pain. This helped a little and I got some sleep (very patchy and only a few minutes at a time) over the next few hours. Jason was beside me in the bed and was trying to get some sleep. I was aware that he was nearly ready to drop off to sleep and then bang a contraction would start and I would wake him up.
Midnight: A midwife convinced Jason and I that a drug induced (morphine) sleep for me would be in my best interests (this proved to be the case) so that I had some reserves for what lay ahead of me for the next day. I drifted in and out of consciousness aware of the regular observations and antibiotics top ups during the night. Jason also tried to get some sleep, but a double bed, a restless pregnant wife and lots of interruptions was not conducive to his rest.
Tuesday 24 May
6.30am: Jason and I were again taken to birth suite... a strange sense of dejavu come over me. Here we were again, all the feelings from the previous day came flooding back and I started to feel overwhelmed... but what a different experience it was. Our midwife Jackie (20 weeks pregnant herself) was really similar to me, she was cheerful and bubbly and built a rapport within seconds. She was happy for me to be active while in labour and it was a completely different story to the day before. Yay! Jackie broke my waters for me and we got started on the drip. Every hour the drip was turned up, so correspondingly the contractions stepped up in intensity and frequency.
We also consented to a 5th year student doctor to observe the day. He was a rugby fan and we all talked various sports (rugby, swimming, canoe polo and triathlon) during the breaks between contractions. Soon I was unable to talk between contractions even as I was needing the time to recenter and focus myself for the next one. Unfortunately with the induction I had to have constant monitoring so I was unable to use water as a pain relief option. Hot packs on my lower back were a godsend for a while though and Jason was kept busy with this.
Meanwhile the drip was constantly being turned up.... harder, faster and stronger. I started using the gas to help with some pain relief but soon it all got too much and we needed an epidural. Prior to the day I was 100% adamant that I was not going to get an epidural. I was never going to go down that route. But knowing that the drip was going to just keep on getting wound up I decided to use it...
3.30pm: Shift change time which meant that we were losing Jackie. She had made it a much more pleasant experience for me and I was sad to see her go. Our new midwife Linda was quiet, but soothing. She was also really organised, writing lists on the whiteboard with all the upcoming milestones i.e. examinations, antibiotics top ups etc. I liked this as it is what I would do.
Throughout the afternoon Linda was getting a little concerned with Ethan's heart rate decelerations as I had each contraction as well as the slow progress my body was making. The doctor came and checked a number of times and I was scared that we were heading towards a c-section.
In addition to all of this, Ethan was still posterior (Ethan's spine to my spine rather than facing the other way). This is a much tougher position for birthing.
8.00pm: The doctor came in for a check and I was around 9cm dilated so not quite ready to go but the doctor was concerned enough for Ethan's well being to want the next phase to happen early. Another doctor and an extra midwife arrived as well as a number of trays of different medical supplies. I was a little worried about poor Ethan myself at this stage, but still felt that
we were in very good hands with the doctor that we had. The doctor explained that she was going to have to assist me in this process, there were two choices- the vacuum or forceps. She explained that the vacuum is easier for mum but harder for the doctor and the forceps were harder on me but easier for her. She chose the forceps, all Jason and I wanted was the safe arrival of our baby so agreed.
It was time to push for me. This was hard as I had an epidural so I had to imagine where I was to push rather than feel it but the doctors and midwives were impressed with my pushing (even though my body was not giving me the feedback due to the epidural) so I know I was doing the right thing. Not long after I could feel the head crowning. I recall being asked if I wanted to feel his head, but I wanted to meet him for real so said no. Two more pushes and...
8.27pm: Ethan Kenneth Papps was born!!!!
WOW what an experience, what a day for all three of us, but what a great outcome. Both the doctor and midwife mentioned that I got through it due to how fit and strong I was going into the birth.
Finally Ethan was on my chest and boy did he have a good set of lungs so we knew he was ok straight away. His agpar scores were 8 and 9 after 1 and 5 minutes respectively.
Here are a few of the first photos for you.
Ethan is a big boy, nearly 4.2kg (9lb 1oz in old terms) with a 38cm head and 53 cm long
10.00pm: Ethan and I had managed our first breastfeed and we had experienced skin to skin for the last hour and a half. Following this it was time for a shower and food for me, and some one on one time for Jason and his newborn son.Well that's our birth experience, a little different from the minimal intervention plan that we had. But we got the best ever little boy from it.
Due to the positive test for Group B strep that I mentioned earlier we needed to stay in hospital for a minimum of 48 hours for additional monitoring of Ethan to ensure he was ok, and in the end I actually ended up staying in for 3 nights. Longer than I thought that I would, but I think it was worth staying as I was recovering from a pretty full on birth.
Jason spending some time with Ethan at the hospital.
Awwwwww what a little cutie.
While we were at the hospital we gave Ethan his first bath, which he enjoyed after his initial trepidation... a future swimmer perhaps??
Finally, thanks to all for the lovely flowers I received while in hospital- Jason, Jason's parents, Sandy and Nathan and both mine and Jason's work.
Well if you are still reading- thank you. But I did warn you it was going to be a long one :-)
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Update from Perth
Just a quick update as we have been getting lots if questions...I am now 4o weeks and 5 days pregnant with no real signs of this baby coming any time soon. It is just way too comfortable in there I think. Both Jason and I are itching to meet Baby Papps!!!
Earlier this week I was a little more frustrated and ready for action so I saw an acupuncturist to try and naturally assist bringing on the labour process. He didn't do a full induction session as he wanted to do a pre-labour session first. He did put a needle in my forehead, with the aim to calm me down and relax and I swear it worked. I was nowhere near as frustrated that evening (or since) which was good. I have another acupuncture session on Friday.
In other non-baby related, but exciting news Jason has recently received a promotion in his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, he is now a white belt with a black tip. Very exciting!!
Not much more news from Perth at the moment and here's hoping the next blog post is to introduce a new member of our family.
Earlier this week I was a little more frustrated and ready for action so I saw an acupuncturist to try and naturally assist bringing on the labour process. He didn't do a full induction session as he wanted to do a pre-labour session first. He did put a needle in my forehead, with the aim to calm me down and relax and I swear it worked. I was nowhere near as frustrated that evening (or since) which was good. I have another acupuncture session on Friday.
In other non-baby related, but exciting news Jason has recently received a promotion in his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, he is now a white belt with a black tip. Very exciting!!
Not much more news from Perth at the moment and here's hoping the next blog post is to introduce a new member of our family.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Jason's had a haircut...
So after months of begging me to let him shave his head again Jason finally got his way... apparantly long hair was just too much work for him. He was needing it cut every 2 weeks to keep it looking good.
Here is the before and after shots for you... (He did try to look serious and scary in his photo of the newly shaved head).
Here is the before and after shots for you... (He did try to look serious and scary in his photo of the newly shaved head).
39 weeks
Here is the 39 week pregnancy belly... Not much change from 37 weeks really. Just a week to go until our due date now. Now its just waiting, waiting, waiting to meet our little baby.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
High tea
On Sunday Jason and I were treated to a lovely high tea by our friends Melanie and Michael, awesome scones (and you all know how much I like scones), tea cake, petit fours and sandwiches. Melanie and Micheal even went out of their way to get some special tea for me (known for its properties in getting a woman ready for labour). It was a great way to spend the afternoon.
I forgot to take the camera with me, so these shots were taken on Jason's i-phone, but I couldn't resist getting Jason with the beautiful, delicate china tea cup!
I may have mentioned it before, but I think that high tea is a wonderful invention, one of my favourite ways to spend an afternoon. Thanks Melanie and Michael!!
I forgot to take the camera with me, so these shots were taken on Jason's i-phone, but I couldn't resist getting Jason with the beautiful, delicate china tea cup!
I may have mentioned it before, but I think that high tea is a wonderful invention, one of my favourite ways to spend an afternoon. Thanks Melanie and Michael!!
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