Alexander is HERE!!!!

Ok so let me tell you our story that has happened since the last time we have posted. Star is back in school and just waiting for Alexander to come into the world. On 10th of September while Star was in class, she felt a "gush" and so we decided to investigate it by going to the hospital and talking to our doctor. Test were taken, and nothing was out of the norm so we went back home disappointed. Little did we know that Alexander had a plan up his sleeve, Star took her test the following day and passed it only missing 3, and then we came home that Friday night and celebrated Star passing her test.

The following morning we slept in till about 11, woke up had breakfast, and got ready for our to do list for the day. At about 3:30 while we were walking out the door, Star felt another "gush" and then another one about 10 min later. We decided that on our way to go do our "to do" list we would stop by the hospital and see if this was "Normal". On our way to the hospital, we were laughing, joking, singing songs and living it up.
(Star here to type some) Ok so on our way I had yet another "gush" and had to scramble to keep the seat and my pants dry because it was such a big one. We thought this might be something but I was having no contractions and was in no pain and with all the other false labors and what not knew that we would get there and they would say the line I have heard a thousand times that this was all normal. So we didn't really pack a lot of stuff and left the stuff we had packed in the car because I thought we would be in and out. Well....we go in and they do their little test (a pH strip) and it was blue, which meant my water had broken. So the nurse is talking about starting pitocin and starting the contractions and I was looking over at mike shocked and terrified that this was it...we were going to have the baby. I all the sudden didn’t feel ready and kind of wanted to leave. Weird.
Well they stick on IV in my hand (OUCH- the bruise is just now fading away a week later), and start the drip. I guess the policy is to start pitocin at a 6 and you can raise it 2 every hour (I think) and 20 is the max. So yeah 7 hours later and bored out of my mind it was maxed to a 20 and I was waiting for the contractions so my body would start dilating. It was not long after that I heard a "pop" and nearly got knocked to the floor with pain. We called the nurse in and she made it just in time for the next one, she helped me breathe through it and asked if I was ready for the epidural which I quickly let her know I was. So 15 min later I am pain free and so super grateful for modern medicine. Well I guess the contractions (that I could not feel :)) were compressing the umbilical cord and stressing the baby so they stop the pitocin and have me lay on only one side and give me oxygen. After everything was calmed down me and mike decided to get some sleep while we waited.
So an hour and a half later (1 am) the nurse comes in the check me and I have gone from a dilation of a 3 to a 9 almost a 10. They want the baby to move down more so again we just chill. Around 3 am the nurse comes in to do some practice pushing. I do one and she stops me and mike asks if that is the head. Well I was told not to push till the doctor came in. So the Dr comes in and they bring in a mirror so I can watch (AMAZING) and 3 pushes later Alexander is out and getting cleaned up. I was so happy there was no episiotomy or stitches. They said he was 5 lb 13 oz and I was shocked by how little he was. Oh and he was 18 inch long. They do the APGAR test and he gets an 8 then a 9. Then they hand him to me and the moment feels like your dreaming. I was looking at the face of the little guy that had been growing in me.

(Mike again)

As soon as Star is pushing to get the baby to drop with the help of the nurse, I notice that there is a little grey thing that I can see and lo and behold it is the head of Alex. I was like “Star I think that is his head”. In response she says “What does it look like, and what color of hair?”, and I respond “Grey”. Soon after the doctor comes in to get ready for Alex and then about 10 min later Alex is born!!!!! As soon as he comes out, they get his umbilical cord ready and the doctor lets me cut it which was a really cool experience for me. They then rush him away to clean him up and then they pass him to star and that was one of the best moments in my life was to see my wife/mother hold our son. Star then passed him to me and I was in shock and an instant love for the little guy that I was holding in my arms. I didn’t want anything to happen to him from that point on and never knew that I could love my child as much as I love him.

Star fell asleep and they took the baby to the nursery to get him all cleaned up. A couple of hours later, star wakes up and is then escorted to the bathroom with me one side and the nurse on the other (her legs were like Jell-O and she had to walk like Frankenstein). Star is then moved over to the post partum room. A little while later the pediatrician came in and gave us an update on Alex, come to find out his temperature was low, and so was his blood sugars which meant that there might be a chance that Alexander has an infection or something in him so they started to do a bunch of tests (CBC, Spinal Tap) and put him in the special care unit.

For the next 2 days, we were up every 3 hours to go and feed him, and waiting for the “ok” from the doctor to send Alex and us home. On Tuesday all the tests came back negative, and they attributed his issues to his size (he was now regulating his temp and sugars well) and we were free to go. Two days later we had a doctor’s appointment for Alex and he said that he is doing amazing and has only lost 1 oz from his birth weight. Star and I attribute it to the 3 hour feeding sessions that we were having for the past 2 days.

(Star here) Yeah Xander and I are still learning the ways of the cow so feeding sessions are a little lengthy but we are getting better. We are up about every 3 hours and feeding is now down to about an hour. I was supposed to get right back into school, but things were not as easy as I thought they would be, so I am taking a leave of absence from school for one month (I still have a couple tests that I have to do and what not but no lecture – yippee). We are loving our time with Xander and are in awe of him every day and how handsome he is. He has been a calm peaceful baby so far which has been wonderful for us. We feel like we learn more everyday about the challenges of having a baby but are enjoying the adventure. It is crazy how much you can love a little child and how worried you can be for them from the first time you see them. Well sorry for the length….hope you all enjoy the pics. (I wish I had makeup on in more of them :))

Love you all!

Star and Mike