We love the town of Astoria, Oregon and we loved the day trip we got to take there when we were engaged. (Where Goonies was filmed.) Valentine is the name of Derrick's paternal Great Grandpa; he was a...pastor? (I think is the title?) who married Derrick's parents. He was born February 14 and went by Val. Valentine's Day is my very favorite holiday, so the name was for both of us.
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Astoria's pregnancy was harder in many ways-- feeling sick to my stomach or headachey almost every day was rough. Then the back pain and hip pain was really difficult. My sweet friend Molly texted me and said she had set up a prenatal massage at her usual place and I just needed to call and set the appointment. That was the best thing ever. It made an immediate difference, and the pain was manageable from there on out. (hallelujah!)
My blood pressure was good or low the whole pregnancy, unlike the last week of growing Jeremiah, so we were planning on just following the Dr's guidance that she'd be taken out near the end of December.
Because I had gestational diabetes (grrr, thanks a lot, placenta) I had to get non-stress tests twice a week. At the first hospital it was fine; they were nice and sweet and it was relatively quick. The second hospital (because of insurance drama which I should write out for my own sanity sometime) was a lot more difficult. They didn't listen to me when I said where they could find her (always, always way higher than they were attempting), and made the bands ridiculously tight, which made them slowly slide up or down. (Y'all really don't know what to do with a little extra flesh, and it shows.)
I had one of these non-stress tests on December 19, which was ridiculous. The nurse was not listening to me and Astoria kept moving away from the sensor. The nurse finally just took some vitals and said my blood pressure is a little elevated but baby seems fine.
I had been having prodromal labor, which is basically real contractions that don't do anything. They don't progress. About three days prior to her birth I had such strong and rhythmic contractions that I started timing them at like 3 a.m., about 1 minute long every 7 minutes or so...they lasted for about an hour but never got anywhere, obviously.
So we went to the appointment with my GP/OB the next day, December 20, and assumed it would finally be the conversation when we'd find out if we could finally schedule the c-section with the hospital for December 27, like we'd hoped (because of wanting to get it all done before the end of the year and beginning of a new insurance deductible) or December 30, like he preferred.
I had had a bad headache the day before or the day before that, but didn't think much of it. I gained weight and got swollen a bit suddenly, but not too bad. I just kinda assumed all was just par for the course.
Our doctor asked questions, and typed a bunch into his computer then sat back and said, "I want you to meet me down at the hospital." Um, what?! I asked, "Like right now? (Like an emergency thing?)" and he shook his head and said "No." *phew!* Relief. Ok, all is well. "Let's say at 12." Ummmm...it was like 10:30. That's pretty much "right now" in the grand scheme of things.
We let my mom know what was going on, as she had Jeremiah in her car and had offered to watch him while we were in the hospital. She picked us up from the doctor's office and brought us back to the house to quickly finish gathering our things in a few bags while she ran to Costco for food items, as everyone was going to be staying at their house around Christmas / Caroline's wedding.
One final bump picture before heading to the hospital...
We got to the maternity wing of the hospital and they took us right back to a triage room. They had instructions from my doctor of what he wanted tests for, so they had me gown up and started an IV just in case. They drew blood and did all sorts of tests on it, I guess. It went very quickly, but I guess it was a couple hours later that the charge nurse came in and said that my test results were all good, so they were now waiting on my doctor to confer with the perinatologists and decide what they wanted to do. Derrick and I chatted and both said we would love if we could just do it right then and meet her.
Soon the charge nurse came back and said, "It's a birth day!" and that they were going to do the c-section that afternoon, and I was scheduled for surgery at about 4:30.
Relief and excitement that turned to nervousness and panic as things flew into motion. Derrick gathered my belongings as the nurse walked me down the hall into our temporary room. It was a blur of people and signatures on paperwork for a little bit, as they got all the legalities down. I was started on meds through my IV because it was decided I did indeed have preeclamsia (yikes), and then I had to drink the stuff to settle stomach acids so I didn't throw up and inhale it. (Super tart. Like eating the stuff at the bottom of a big bag of Sour Patch Kids.)
Jeremiah's birth surgery was so mentally traumatic (I really kept hoping I could fall asleep or faint or zone out so I didn't have to be part of it. I hated it so much.) that I was really nervous for going in for surgery again.
Soon it was time! The head nurse walked me to the OR, and had me sit on the operating table and explained how to curl up my spine so the anesthesiologist could give me the spinal block. She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and held my head to her chest and spoke quietly in my ear the whole time I had the large needing poking around. She was everything I needed in that moment. That nurse calmed every over the top anxiety I had because of my previous surgery experience.
Other than bumping a nerve with the needle and making my leg kick (such a weird feeling, hahaha), the spinal block worked well and quickly. I laid back on the operating table and got strapped down and felt as ready to go as possible.
My doctor came in and I think Derrick came in all dressed up in his hairnet around then, too. I don't remember him being there until I was all prepped, but I could be wrong about that timing.
Although I felt the spinal block was starting to work quickly, I wasn't convinced I was numb enough for them to slice me open because I thought I could feel my whole body. I was wrong, haha. They poked and asked if I could feel it, but I felt nothing. They began cutting my body wide open and I wiggled my feet around, which is a completely bonkers thing.
Derrick was able to stand (maybe sit?) at the left side of me, at my head, while the anesthesiologist was at my right. As the surgery got underway Derrick was instructed he could stand up and take pictures, which I love. I'm a weirdo, but getting to actually see the insides of me in super fascinating, and getting to see Astoria actually getting pulled out is so cool.
When Story was born the anesthesiologist said, "It's a healthy boy!" Oh...uh... I had a split second of disappointment and then acceptance and excitement. Derrick corrected him, I think. Then he said, "Oh." haha
Astoria gurgle cried and I was glad to be able to hear her. They moved her over to an area to my left and Derrick was able to be right there with her and I could turn my head and see her a little bit between people. With Jeremiah they barely lifted him up enough for me to catch a glance, then took him into a different area so quickly, that I didn't get to see him for several hours, so I was very happy to be near Astoria while they worked on her.
Things seemed...tense. I was nervous. Very nervous. Too many people around her. Too much happening. No one telling me anything. I asked if she was OK and Derrick said they were just helping her get some air. Then he brought over a picture he took of her hair. We had so many conversations about if maybe she'd have blond hair like MyMy (and I did) or if she'd be dark like her daddy. Derrick told me she had dark hair after all.
I was still so nervous. Still too many people around her. Too much going on. She was purple and floppy. They worked on her for what seemed like forever, in reality it was a half hour. A really long half hour.
They brought her over so I could meet her and they had a teeny tiny oxygen mask over most of her tiny face. That scared me so much. I was so glad to get to see her and give her kisses and be with her on the outside after being with her for so many months.
They took her away to the NICU and Derrick went with her while I tried to just zone out while the rest of the surgery happened. I found out later from the nurse that he pulled my uterus up out of my body cavity at one point. So, uh...that's a thing.
The doctor assisting my doctor in the surgery started asking his opinion on a situation with a different patient, which helped me zone out.
Eventually the nurses wheeled me back into the previous room, where I struggled to stay awake. Even though I hadn't been in labor for days before the surgery, like I had with Jeremiah, I felt like I hadn't slept in about 72 hours.
I think I answered some texts, but I'm honestly not quite sure. I think I fell asleep for a few minutes. I also started scratching my face SO MUCH. The nurse told me it was the magnesium that I had in the IV line that was making me so itchy and tired.
Derrick FaceTimed me from the NICU, and I got to see my sweet Astoria Valentine all hooked up.
I cried.
I later learned she had had the cord around her neck and the pathology report on the umbilical cord showed complications from preeclampsia (like blood clots in the cord? I think?). So despite her troubles of fluid on the lungs and difficulty breathing and her initial floppy response, it was the right choice to get her out early.
And that is the story of her birth day. I didn't get to go to her that night, but I finally got to go up there the next day.
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