Clara's First Week

I apologize for the terrible writing in this post. I am beyond sleep-deprived and exhausted. Words are not coming easily!

Breastfeeding:
Clara was a natural from the beginning. She latched right away and has already gained an ounce! She eats about every 3 hours during the day and a little more at night. Although nursing is pretty painful, it's a beautiful experience. Locking eyes while she nourishes herself is magical.

Sleeping:
Mom and Dad are still figuring out her patterns. She sleeps a ton during the day and seems to be most wakeful at night when her mom has her. I love the bonding time but would appreciate it more during the daylight, when I'm not as desperate for sleep. We are now on 6 hour shifts at night and react to her needs during the day. We have taken our turns with the 8-2am shift and then the 2am-8am one. I am completely exhausted from getting up to feed all night. I feel that I'm still playing catch up from the birth. We plan to initiate a sleep schedule at her 2 week mark. I am a bit anxious about how things will play out once Andrew goes back to work.

Clara
Clara is the best thing in the universe. She has a relaxed, chill temperament- just like her father- and seems to adjust easily to everything. She began tracking our faces and lifts her head during tummy time. She is such a good, sweet baby. Her cries are pretty startling. She goes from 0-10 in an instant. She shrieks loudly and then becomes calm once we figure out what she needs. She only seems to cry when she's hungry, wet, uncomfortable, or gassy. The funniest thing she does is staring at the ceiling, fans, lights with wide-open eyes. She sits completely still and stares! We can't stop laughing at this.

Her dad
Andrew is a naturally amazing father. He jumps at her every distress, talks so calmly and sweetly to her, loves everything she does, and still finds time to compliment and love me. I am amazed at how easy fatherhood comes to him.

Her mom
Thinking about my new family leaves me beyond words. It is everything I dreamed and hoped for. She is perfect. I am trying hard to relish in this sweet time. I know how fleeting it is.

The Birth Story

Here is the story of how the worst day of my life turned into the best day of my life.
1:30 January 18th, 2011
We arrived at my doctors office for the beginning of the induction process around 1:30pm, where I received a Foley catheter. Immediately after, I was hooked up to a fetal monitor and began having contractions. We left the office around 2:30, and I continued to have consistent contractions that lasted about 45 seconds every 10 minutes. When we got home, I took a walk around the neighborhood stopping to rest during each contraction. I labored at home until 2:30 am when contractions became extremely painful and closer together. I called my doctor (who took 2 hours to get back to us) and decided to head to the hospital. We arrived at St. David's around 4am and were admitted into Labor Room 1. Although it took major concerted effort, I felt in control of the contractions most of the time. By this time, I had been in active labor for 17 hours. The doctor finally came to checked my dilation at 7am, and to my surprise I was at 8 cm (the Foley bulb was suppose to fall out once I reached 4 cm so we were certain I hadn't made it past that). I thought that was it. We called my mom and sister and began to prepare for the end. I read in all the childbirthing books and classes that 8-10 cm was the hardest but the quickest part of labor. Wow, was I wrong! I settled into the room and was resolved to finish this labor naturally. 10 am was the next time I was checked. The nurse, who was new to the hospital, told me I was now at 9cm and only had a tiny lip to overcome. Although I was in excruciating pain and had averaged 3 hours of sleep for 4 days prior and no sleep the night before, I was determined. Then things took a nasty turn. I was given a hep lock for fluids if I needed it. The nurse missed twice in one arm, almost making Andrew faint, and then another nurse finally secured the vein in the other. Almost immediately I started feeling nauseous and began dry heaving. My sister suggested to the nursing staff that I was dehydrated and needed some fluids. That's when they hooked me up to an IV, and I started to feel better. I heard that "transition" was the hardest and throwing up was a sign that pushing phase was near, so I wasn't that bothered by it. The new doctor on call arrived shortly after this and checked my dilation again. She left the room and then came back. I sensed something was wrong. She told me that I was still only 8 cm. The nurse guessed wrong! This was 24 hours into labor! I was exhausted and needed relief. Plus I couldn't stop vomitting. I begged for an epidural and nobody argued. The doctor decided I needed pitocin to progress past 8 cm, so she started me at a tiny dose. This made contractions stronger and more frequent. Before I received my epidural, the nurses had to drain an entire IV bag of fluids into my system. This took an hour of terrible contractions. Well, the lady who administered the epidural missed! I felt a shooting pain down my leg, which was absolutely terrifying. After an hour and 2 bolsters of more epidural later, I felt no different. They decided to bring in a new anesthesiologist to give me another epidural. Unfortunately, I had to wait another hour for another bag of fluids to fill my system, all the while, suffering through excruciating contractions, bouts of vomiting, and a sharp flank pain. This epidural took, sort of. I still felt contractions and a knife-like pain in my side. They called back the anesthesiologist who gave me 2 more shots of the epidural. I begin vomiting violently and couldn't focus on anything but the flank pain. I was given some anti-nausea medication and antacids. The anti-nausea meds seemed to calm me although did nothing for the nausea. I was still hovering around 8 cm this entire time. The doctor assured me that with enough pitocin I could achieve 10 cm and deliver this baby vaginally. Finally, around 6pm, I felt an overwhelming, desperate need to push. I alerted the nurse, begging her to let me. I felt that the baby was coming out! Unfortunately, I was told that the doctor was delivering another baby! I had to hold back for 35 minutes! It was inhumane!! The nurse talked me through 7 contractions that I had to fight pushing. I think this was the hardest pain I have ever experienced. I thought I would never make it out alive! Finally the doctor showed up and gave me the ok to push. She said that I needed to focus and make the first push count, however, she was extremely distracted during my initial pushes for about 3 contractions. She kept dealing with drama about some nurses and typing on her iphone. I kept begging for her attention, knowing that the first push was the most productive. I was given oxygen and kept transitioning in and out of reality. I could feel every single contraction and every painful push. However,an hour later I ended up delivering the most beautiful, perfect little girl in the world. After 29 hours of labor, I couldn't think of anything but Clara Jane Duhan. Born January 19th at 7:25 pm. 7lbs, 90z and 19.75 inches long. Perfect.