Introducing Isabelle Faith Knowles
I laugh when I read my last blog post because I seriously thought that our girl was going to be born on Jan 23 or 24. Little did I know!
Jan 23: I was admitted into the hospital for an induction on Jan 23. They started me right away on one drug to try to induce labor. 8 hours later, the drug wasn’t working. I was having contractions, but they were not “labor effective” and I honestly couldn’t feel them. So they added another drug to the mix to try to make my contractions strong and try to start labor. By midnight it still wasn’t working so they took me off both drugs to try to clear my system and try again in the morning. Here’s where Luke and I started counting how many births we heard during our stay on the labor floor: Hospital 3 births vs. Maisie 0
Jan 24: In the morning I was given a second dose of the first drug to get my contractions starting again. They started and continued throughout the day, but still I couldn’t feel them. The doctor’s report was “Your contractions look fantastic. If we could give each person on the labor floor a four hour block of your contractions they’d all have their babies by now… so I don’t know what’s going on.” Maisie’s response…”The entire floor has had their babies already!” Around 8pm I was given a second dose of the second drug. By now the score is: Hospital 5 births vs. Maisie 0
Jan 25: Around 1am in the morning, I start feeling uncomfortable contractions. Is this it? By 5am we were sure it was it. By the time I was 5cm dilated I asked for the epidural. (I had heard the screams of women delivering without the epidural, so I was scared out of my mind!) By the way, it’s really not pleasant to have a contraction right when they have the catheter up your spine but no drugs working yet…you can feel the pain straight up your back. I slept for the rest of the day, thankful for the pain medication. Score: Hospital 6 births vs. Maisie 0
Jan 26: Around 1am in the morning it was time for me to start pushing. Just about 4 hours later Isabelle entered the world. It took quite a long time because her head was positioned a little funny. After delivery I heard from the nurses that the doc came close to sending me in for a c-section. However, I’m very thankful that Isabelle finally cooperated. The first time I saw Isabelle I couldn’t believe that a little person had just came out of me and she was beautiful! I cried out of sheer relief that labor was over, pure exhaustion and joy over seeing Izzy’s face for the first time. Score: Hospital 7 births including Maisie’s 1!
Isabelle’s Vital Stats:
- Date of Birth: January 26, 2008
- Time of Birth: 4:46am
- Weight: 7 lbs, 1 oz
- Length: 20 inches
I want to thank Paula (the nurse) and Luke who both stood for 4 hours supporting me during the final stage of labor, all 5 nurses who watched over me during my stay at the labor floor, and especially Dr. Boulting who has been an amazing doctor throughout this pregnancy and was patient enough to avoid major surgery.
D-Day + 7
As expected, I’m still pregnant! However, since I’m now at 41 weeks our little girl has given up the right to decide when she wants to be born, and we are deciding for her. Tomorrow morning around 7am I go to the hospital to be induced. I’m a little nervous because induction means that contractions will be stronger and closer together than natural labor. However, I’ve heard that the upside is that labor tends to be shorter when induced. I’m just praying for the energy and strength to be able to deliver a healthy baby.
It’s a little strange to know that life is going to be drastically different after tomorrow. We’re going to have a little person that we’re going to have to care for 24/7 and get to finally hold and love on. There are so many questions that I have that I’m excited to find the answers to. What’s she going to look like? What’s her personality going to be like? Will she take after me or Luke more? How will Samson react to not being the “only child” anymore?
Stay tuned for answers to these questions and pictures. We’ll try to post pictures within a couple days of her birthday, and we’ll also announce what her name is!
D-Day + 5
Alright….seriously….why won’t she just come out?! Each day I wake up thinking, “Maybe this will be the day!” and yet here I am, still huge and pregnant. I’m a pretty patient person, but this is starting to drive me crazy. I know everyone’s excited about meeting this little girl, but no one will be more thrilled than me when I actually do go into labor. When I first got pregnant I never imagined that I’d go this far past my due date, or even need to discuss the possibility of being induced. Little did I know…
Tomorrow I go in again for the final non-stress test. Tuesday will be my last visit with the doctor where we’ll schedule me for an induction on Wednesday morning. There is an end in sight. I’m still hoping for the end to come sooner, but we’ll see! This girl seems to have a mind of her own and is in no hurry to go anywhere!
D-Day + 2
We just returned from the doctor’s office. Here’s the update. Still no baby, however I’m dilated 1-2 cm, so things are progressing, just very very slowly. The doctor says that usually with first time pregnancies women don’t dilate all the way until they’re in active labor, so he’s not expecting me to continue dilating.
I’m going back to the hospital tomorrow to do the non-stress test again. If that test is turns out fine and if I don’t go into labor by Tuesday we’re going to induce on Wednesday morning. One way or another, she’s coming out in the next week!!
Belly Week 40 (D-Day)
Today is Due Day, but still no baby. We just returned from the hospital from my non-stress test. Everything is normal. The ultrasound revealed that our baby has plenty of fluid that’s keeping her nice and cushioned and warm. Perhaps that’s why she doesn’t want to come out! The ultrasound also showed that she has hair! I’m guessing she’ll have lots of dark hair when she’s finally born. While hooked up to a monitor we noticed that I was having contractions but they’re not regular and they are rather far apart. So far they haven’t hurt, even though the nurse said that the contractions looked rather strong on the monitor.
My next doctor’s appointment is Thursday. If our baby hasn’t made an appearance by then we’ll start talking about inducing. I’m hoping and praying that she’ll come before we have to induce though!
39+ Weeks & Still No Baby
Today was yet another doctor’s appointment. Bad news is that I’m not dilated at all, however the baby has dropped into position. The doctor has asked me to go to the hospital next Tuesday (my due date) to take a Non-Stress Test. This is where they will check to make sure the placenta is still providing enough nutrients to the baby and to make sure there’s enough amniotic fluid in there to keep her nice and cushioned. If all is well, then I’ll continue to go back for the same test every 2-3 days until I deliver. However, if I make it a few days after my due date then the doctor suggests we make plans for inducing labor. He says that having a baby after 41 weeks increases the risk of infant mortality.
All that to say, even though there’s still no baby, there is an end in sight. Whether it’s on her terms or mine, she will make her way into the world. Luke is extremely excited to meet her, probably more so than I am, since I’m just anxious and impatient, wanting to get this little girl out into the world. Continue to check in on our blog. We will post as soon as things start to happen and will try to keep everyone as up to date as possible.
Belly Week 38
I feel HUGE! But I really don’t know how huge I am until we take pictures of me from the side. Because I’m so big now, I feel exhausted all the time and it’s even harder for me to get a good night’s sleep. I’ve also noticed that I’m getting spacier by the day. It’s like my brain can only process so much. Good thing I have Luke and Michelle to help me remember things!
The doctor says that I’ll probably one of the women that is still pregnant on their due date, delivering on the due date or shortly after. It’s a little sad for me to hear, but I know that it will come to an end eventually. I’m just anxious to meet my little girl and see what she looks like!