Skye's birth story

FYI, bodily fluids and functions discussed, read at your own peril :)

We found out we were pregnant in January with the estimated due date of 9/11/13. My husband Nate was not thrilled with that date. All along he predicted I was farther along than the medical people said. The pregnancy went well with no problems. At 20 weeks we learned we were having another little girl! We decided her name would be Skye. We also learned that she was in a breech position. I didn’t worry too much about it since I figured she would have lots of time to move and rearrange. But it was an issue that remained in the back of my mind. In the last weeks of my pregnancy I began to ask the midwife at each appointment if she was still breech. They had a hard time telling her position by feeling my belly. They told me not to worry; she still had plenty of time to turn. At my 36 week appointment I couldn’t take the suspense any longer. When the midwife asked if there was anything I was concerned about I told her I thought it was time we figure out for sure which way this baby was lying. She felt around and was very confident Skye was head down. Whew! She suggested we do an ultrasound to confirm. Fine with me, I wasn’t about to turn down a chance to see my baby. She also said my belly was measuring smaller than it should be and she wanted to get some measurements from the ultrasound as well. This really didn’t concern me since I didn’t get huge with my first daughter and she was born a very healthy 7 pounds. The ultrasound was scheduled for Tuesday August 20^th. At the ultrasound my heart sank when the technician said she was still breech. She also said I was measuring a week smaller than I should be and would need to see the OB and come in for non stress testing. These measurements never gave me alarm. The issue that really was giving me stress was the breech position. Wednesday August 21^st I went in for the testing. Skye was doing fine and had a heartbeat like a champ. What was really concerning was the OB’s lack of interest in the breech position. Why weren’t we discussing that? What were my options? So I started peppering him with questions. Did he have any experience delivering a breech baby? The answer was no, and he told me neither did anyone in the whole practice. I told him I was very interested in the possibility of delivering this baby vaginally and avoiding a c-section. He then brought out the scary stuff, explaining doctors do not deliver breech babies anymore and are not even trained to. He said people just didn’t like to talk about even attempting a breech delivery because when it goes wrong it’s just too horrible to talk about. In my head I thought, “Well, yeah, when anything goes wrong in any type of birth scenario no one wants to talk about it.” He emphasized the point that if I stayed at this practice I would be having a c-section. No discussion, just plain as that, I would be having major abdominal surgery. I had been doing breech tilts since the ultrasound the day before and had read about an external version. At this point I was 37 weeks and knew if a version was going to work we needed to do it now. So that was my next question, when can we try a version? 39 weeks. He wanted to wait till 39 weeks to insure the baby had a few more weeks to grow in case the version led to an emergency c-section. I could feel there already wasn’t much room left for Skye to move inside me and I knew if we waited until 39 weeks I’d be signing up for a painful procedure that wouldn’t work or worst case scenario would send me into emergency surgery. As I was leaving this appointment I felt so defeated, worried, and frightened. I had seen midwives the entire pregnancy and never left an appointment feeling so down. I stopped at the front desk and asked which midwives were working that afternoon. Jaya was working and I had seen her a week or two before. I left a message asking her to call me. Then I headed to my parents’ pool to do flips in the water to encourage Skye to move. Guess what? That didn’t work either. Jaya called me that evening. I vented about the appointment with the OB. She took it all in and said she wanted to consult with the other midwives and call me back with a plan of care. Finally, some real dialogue about the situation. She called me back the next afternoon. She was confused as to why I had suddenly been switched to an OB instead of midwife. The small measurements were still well in the normal range and did not require non stress testing and a high risk OB appointment. She said she had some options and information to go over with me. So we cancelled the OB appointment that was set for the following day and set an appointment with her to go over everything. Luckily, Nate was able to get off work early to come with me to the appointment. I was so glad he was there to hear all the information first hand. Jaya explained the different breech positions, how a breech delivery was accomplished, the risks, etc. Nate and I both agreed we wanted to try for a vaginal delivery. So a game plan was created. There was an OB willing to try a version before 39 weeks and there were two OB’s who were comfortable assisting in a breech delivery. In the meantime I needed to have an ultrasound with a specialist to confirm there were no growth restrictions and to determine which breech position Skye was in. Before the specialist ultrasound I made appointments to try the Webster method with a chiropractor and moxibustion with an acupuncturist. I was determined to try everything before considering a c-section. On Sunday evening I felt a pain I had experienced in my first pregnancy. This baby was dropping. Either her butt or her head was engaging in my pelvis. The pain was so similar to my first daughter’s pregnancy I seriously thought she must have flipped and this was her head causing the pain. On Monday morning I went to the acupuncturist. After discussing the pelvic pain, he suggested waiting to try the moxibustion till the ultrasound confirmed her position. He did not want to risk flipping a head down baby to a breech position. Neither did I. That afternoon I went to the chiropractor for a second visit. Tuesday August 27^th I went to the specialist for the ultrasound. Big surprise, Skye was still breech. At this point I started to accept the fact that she was not going to turn on her own. The ultrasound confirmed she was growing fine and also had a head full of hair. I had my routine weekly appointment with the midwives scheduled for the following day but decided to move it up to that afternoon. At the appointment Jaya and I went over the ultrasound results and continued to discuss options. A version had been scheduled for the upcoming Friday. She informed me that I could schedule to be induced on a day when one of the two breech comfortable doctors were on call or l could just hope I went into labor when they happened to be on duty. I did not feel good about being induced and felt much better leaving the timing of everything in God’s hands. Jaya brought in two midwives who both had recent experiences delivering and assisting with breech deliveries. They really encouraged me and made me feel safe. I wasn’t crazy for pursuing a breech vaginal delivery. Skye was frank breech, a very favorable position to attempt a vaginal delivery. I had a proven pelvis since I delivered my first daughter without complications. I didn’t have huge babies. All of these factors made me a good candidate for a vaginal delivery. I am so grateful these women were honest with their experiences and encouraged me to go with my instincts. I left that appointment feeling empowered and confident that whatever happened Skye and I were in good hands. That evening around 10 pm I tried the moxibustion as the acupuncturist had suggested. Then I showered and went to bed. After having been asleep for a few hours I shifted positions and felt like I had wet my underwear. Figuring it was a bladder control issue, I went to the bathroom, changed underwear and went back to bed. Soon I was woken up by a dull contraction but since I had been getting those off and on for a week or two I ignored it and went back to sleep. Then another woke me up. I still didn’t worry about it, just got up and went to the bathroom again. As I was headed back to bed I thought, “Wait a second, I’ve had a few of these contractions, maybe I should start paying attention to them.” I decided I would start timing them if I had anymore. The next one was a big one, one that left no doubt in my mind that this was the real deal. It was about 3 am. I woke Nate up to take over timing as I gathered a few things and called the midwife. We both got pretty excited at this point. Finally time to meet our baby! Stephanie was the midwife on call that morning. I told her I was having strong contractions about 3-5 minutes apart and we were coming in to the hospital. She asked if I was sure I didn’t want to labor some more at home. I told her I’m pretty fast and this baby was breech. Then she asked, “Oh, is this Elise?” This made me laugh. Jaya had made sure everyone was up to speed on my situation. Then I asked her which OB was on call. She told me it was the OB I had seen at the clinic. My heart sank, but only for a moment. Okay, I thought, I’ll just have to go in there prepared for a fight.  We got to the hospital about 4 am. Stephanie checked me and sure enough I was already at an 8 or 9. Then all of these people started rushing me with forms to sign. Consent forms for surgery, for anesthesia, and who knows what else. Stephanie then asked me, “What’s the plan?” I told her we wanted to deliver vaginally. She left to talk to the OB and when she returned she said “He knows you are here, he knows you don’t want a c-section, and he is not happy. Are you sure this is what you want?” This is when the moment of doubt stepped in. I looked up at Nate, panicked and asked him, “What do I do? What do I do?” Calmly, he replied, “Stick with the game plan.” Wow. What an amazing man I married.  Once he said that I knew I could do it. I turned to Stephanie and said, “No c-section,” and she replied, “Okay, let’s do this.” She called one of the OB’s comfortable assisting and they agreed to come in. The pushing seemed to take forever and go on and on. I was really focused on pushing really well during the contractions and trying to rest in between. During one of these breaks Nate pointed out the shirt he chose to wear, an “In and Out Burger” shirt. Message understood! Also during one of these small breaks Stephanie yelled out, “Push! I need you to push now!” This startled me because Stephanie’s nature is very calm and mellow. She told me the baby’s heart beat was dropping and she wanted to make sure we were able to get it back up right away. She assured me everything was okay and it’s normal for baby’s heart rate to go up and down with contractions. Finally Skye’s butt started coming out and I could feel Stephanie help the legs be delivered. I had my eyes closed during this time. I was sure if I looked down and saw half a body I would panic. Then everyone started cheering for one more big push. The OB came over and helped deliver Skye’s head. And whoosh! Finally that great sense of relief came and the let up of extreme pressure. Skye Marie was born at 7:12 am August 28^th, 6 pounds and 3 ounces. After a quick check to confirm she was okay she was placed on my stomach, skin to skin. Looking back I could not have gone through this experience without the fabulous support of my husband, family, and wonderful midwives willing to listen and be my advocate. I’m so glad I was encouraged to believe in myself, my baby, and my body.  

Nate's Birthday Present

So Nate did something really cute a few nights ago. We were sitting at the table once Melody had went to bed and he suggested we write a family menu. Sort of what we'd serve if we had a restaurant, all of our favorites. It was a really fun and cheap little date. A fun idea for a Family Home Evening activity.

So I decided to type our menu up and get it printed for his birthday. We'll hang it in our kitchen. Would you mind proof reading it for me? Leave a comment with any typos you find.

You're super.



I think you can view it on Flickr for larger type.

Gerber Photo Contest

So we've entered Melody in a photo contest from Gerber. I really don't have any hope that she'll win because there are so many entries! But it would be nice if she got a couple of votes here and there. Click HERE for the link to the photo gallery. You can find her photo by using the search option. Her entry # is 102257.

Melody Rae

Melody. My sweet sweet Melody.

I can't believe she is 3 months old. So much has changed in my life in the last 3 months. All for the better. One night as I was nursing and rocking Melody to sleep I couldn't help but smile at the little and big changes our home has made since welcoming this kiddo.

I love the toys. I love the clothes. I love the blankets. I love being a mom. : )

Nursery Project

The baby's nursery is finished!!! Thank goodness. I had a lot of fun brainstorming for ideas and working on projects for the room but I am so glad it's all said and done with. Here's some pictures from the whole process.

Bare Bones of the room







Paint samples. I discovered the coolest thing. At Home Depot they have these cute little bottles of paint testers you can buy. I wanted to buy 10 of them!!



Mom and Brianna were such a help! Thanks you two!





Here's the room in it's finished form!



Mom re-did the glider. We got the fabric and supplies real cheap thanks to Hobby Lobby's coupon. I'm going to use my childhood desk as a changing table. Funny how things cycle.
Mom also helped me project and paint the Trufulla trees. Nate approves.



Dad cut the letters out for me so I could chose the font I liked. I used the font "Kristen" or maybe it's "Kirsten" through out the room. I first downloaded a free Dr. Seuss font but I didn't like how it was all caps and it's wasn't cute enough.

The crib is from Ikea. I bought it in Tempe while we were there for Justina's marathon. As the fates would have it Brianna and Jaocb were spending a fun filled weekend in Phoenix and graciously offered to tote it home for me in there truck. So awesome to have good friends.

Nate and I have a long standing joke about Ikea's instructions for assembling their furniture. The directions are all pictures with no accompanying text. I happen to think their fun and easy to understand. Nate's opinion differs. So half the fun of setting up the crib is making fun of Nate's inability to cope with "Directions made for a woman." After a few swear words (just kidding!) we managed to get the crib together and feel confident that it would safely hold our baby girl.



Horton was so fun to paint and I'm very pleased with how he turned out. Unfortunately the picture is too small on here to read the words I painted. It reads, "A person's a person no matter how small." Ah, warms my heart each time I read that phrase. How can you not love Dr. Seuss?

These next pictures represent my favorite project from the nursery. Not coincidentally, this was also the simplest project. I found some vintage Lorax game cards on Etsy, 8 cards for $1. I found some junkie frames at Savers and the ReStore and painted them white. Have you ever tried shopping for white frames in a size bigger then 5x7? Well let me save you some time, they don't exist. At least not that I've found. I still need to hang the other one next to it's partner.





And finally the most frustrating project, the dresser.



Thanks to Vinyl Silhouettes for the custom lettering! This project was supposed to be super easy. My mom printed out the fish on a nice ink jet printer and then I very carefully cut away everything but the details. I began to modge podge them to the surface once the vinyl lettering had been applied. I've never modge podged anything before. Blah. The modge podge was not sticking to the surface of the laminate on the drawers. What a pain. After some sobbing in despair Mom came over and we peeled off the layers of modge podge I had applied, carefully managing to keep the vinyl lettering in place and not mangling the fish too much. A quick sanding job did the trick, thank goodness. We're guessing that the surface of the drawers was just too slick. What would a girl do without her mother? I'm so glad my mom lives so close and I can call her for anything and everything. And I often do. For instance she's not surprised to hear my call and ask, "What temperature do you cook your enchiladas at and for how long?"

Anyway, that is the nursery! It is finished, and all it needs now is a baby.

Cheese Balls Rock

Ouch, judging by the date of the last entry I don't think I need to tell you what type of semester I had...

A Sweet Gesture

Yesterday my husband did something really thoughtful. It's a funny story so I'd thought I'd share it. Maybe a month ago I accidently bought two TresEmme conditioners when I thought I was buying a shampoo/conditioner combo. Trying out new hair products is an indulgence I give myself. TresEmme was cheap and I thought I remembered using it years ago and liking it, so I gave it a try. Well of course after discovering my mistake I had to make an additional shopping trip to pick up the shampoo. I hate this stuff! It has caused my hair nightmares. Even though everytime I'd get out of the shower I'd be cussing at myself for my mistake, I wasn't just going to waste all that stuff by simply throwing it away. I have been accused of being a wasteful person so this was my chance to redeem myself. I was just going to have to stick it out and use all of the crapoo. In the meantime I had received a free sample for Aveeno's new hairline and fell in love with the pricey stuff. It was settled, as soon as my yucky experiment shampoo ran out I was going to run out and buy this stuff. (I'm always checking wal-mart for free samples, why not?) Yesterday my husband calls me at work and says, "Guess what I just did?" He like making me guess, sometimes I just don't have any guesses left in me, "What?" "I threw away all your shampoo and conditioner, guess you'll have to go buy that stuff you like on your way home from work." So excuse me for being crazy in love, but isn't that the sweetest?

Anyway, I got the Aveeno Nourish+Revitalize Shampoo and Conditioner. It rocks. My hair loves me once again.