And then there were FIVE!

Viewer discretion is advised!

Maylee Rayne Stock
Tuesday February 3, 2009
1:49 pm
5 lbs 1oz 18 inches
She shares a birthday with her daddy!

The Birth:
Skylar and I made our way to the hospital Tuesday morning two hours before my scheduled c-section. I had my IV put in and blood taken, then got to sit for about an hour before the surgery people started coming in to introduce themselves to me and explain what was going to happen. Everyone was really nice and my anesthesiologist was especially good. He explained what he was doing and why, but I still ended up getting poked twice because I wasn't getting numb on my right side. The worst part of the whole experience is getting the spinal, but after that, its a breeze.

This is me hanging out while the doctor does his thing. I felt some tugging and pulling but it feels like getting a strange stomach massage so I was quite comfortable. This was my third c-section and so far :) it was the best! My doctor made conversation during the whole surgery, either to me or to his surgery crew, and it helped take my mind off of everything.
There she is! I guess my doctor thought it was funny to give me a cute smiley face flower marker tattoo. The nurses say its his signature and they all know who did the surgery when they check out the incision during post-op. Anyway, the ring that you see is called a "baby slide". This is the first time I've had this and it was awesome! It goes around the uterus and acts as a barrier so my intestines don't have to be moved around so much which makes it less painful later on. I always know when the baby comes out because they push REALLY hard on my chest and I can hardly breathe for a few moments. When Maylee came out, I didn't hear any crying but it usually takes a few minutes for that to happen, so I waited.

I waited and waited but couldn't hear anything! I could hear suctioning and gurgling and finally I heard a small squeak. That was pretty much it. My doctor asked the nurse how the baby was doing, and she said that the baby had thick fluid in her lungs and was having a hard time breathing. Apparently she came out purple, but Skylar told me later that her color eventually came back which indicates that she was getting enough oxygen.

The nurse brought her over to me so I could see her before she had to take her to the nursery. She explained what was going on with her breathing and assured me that she will be well taken care of. We were able to get a picture with her before she was taken away. Her breathing was awful! All she did was grunt as she tried to get air. I thought she was so beautiful and felt that she would be okay. I had to sit in a post-op room for two hours while I was being monitored but the nurses were really good at updating me about Maylee so it wasn't horrible. My parents were there as well as my mother in-law, who was able to experience the birth of a grand baby for the first time! I'm sure it was somewhat nerve-racking with the baby's condition, but I'm happy that she came. She had a baby on the same day, 27 year earlier.

Don't you think she looks like Skylar? And Slade and Daisy? :)

I wasn't able to see her until late Tuesday night because I wasn't able to walk until then and she wasn't allowed out of the Level 2 nursery. I couldn't hold her until the next day and it wasn't for very long. She ended up having low oxygen levels so she was put under an oxygen hood. They also stuck a long straw down her nose and into her lungs to help suck out the mucus. She had an x-ray done which showed her lungs were functioning properly and they were able to see exactly where the mucus was. They decided that she would be able to expel the rest of the mucus on her own, and she did! She didn't get any food until late on Wednesday and when they gave her formula, she would spit it all up. They allowed me to try nursing and within a few feedings, I didn't have to try to supplement with formula! It was awesome. They were amazed at how well she nursed and so every three hours I got myself out of bed and headed to the nursery. I fed her, changed her and loved her, then I headed back to my room to try to sleep for two hours before returning to her. She would cry every time I left the nursery and I loved that! She improved so quickly but had to stay in the nursery because she was on antibiotics and they had to monitor her while she was on them. She came into my room for the first time on Friday morning, just a few hours before we were discharged.

The Name:

We had such a hard time choosing a name for her! We would call her a name but it just didn't fit. We decided to just pick a name and go with it because her look will change and it just might fit her eventually. I have always liked the name Maely but Skylar didn't like the spelling of that, so he chose to spell it as Maylee. Skylar chose the middle name, but had it spelled 'rain'. I didn't love it that way so I changed it to Rayne. That is how we came up with Maylee Rayne Stock.

Home:

We were finally headed home at noon on Friday. It felt so good to be bringing her home with me! The kids had been playing at the park with my mom before we got home, so she had them take a bath before seeing the baby. They could hardly contain themselves and were SO excited to see their baby sister. They wanted to hold her immediately and kiss her all over.

Daisy was especially excited to hold Maylee, as you can see.

She didn't want to let her go!

She is going to be such a good helper :)

Its good to be home and its going to be interesting on the days Skylar has to work! We are very grateful for all of your thoughts and prayers throughout this whole pregnancy.

Verdict:

My doctor told me that the placenta was very hard, disc-like and small, so he sent it to a lab to be looked over. He is blaming the placenta for her being growth restricted because she is absolutely perfect. I was informed that having kids close in age doesn't have anything to do with what was going on with her. Because I do have c-sections, I always check with my doctor before getting pregnant to make sure my body is ready. My doctor knows I want more children, and he said I can have has many kids as I want! During surgery, he said he made my uterus pretty so I could endure having more kids. He really is a great doctor. Maylee was born weighing more than expected, but still considered pretty small. I continue to compare her to Daisy who was born at 34 weeks weighing 4lbs 14 oz and Maylee was born at 37 weeks, 5 lbs 1oz. There is only a 3oz difference although Maylee was born three weeks later than Daisy.

She is doing great and LOVES to eat. She has such a cute cry, I actually like hearing it. She is very alert and looks around all the time. She is such a joy to have around already.