One Week Later...

Wow. It seems like only yesterday I was in the hospital waiting for our baby boy to make his appearance into this world. Can't believe it's been a week already... also can't believe my baby boy is already a week old. We're so proud of how much progress he has already made. 


It's hard for Jesse and I to believe we're already parents...but we wouldn't change it for anything in this world. We find ourselves driving to the hospital everyday...sometimes twice a day (once in the morning and then again late that night). Each time we go it seems like Gabe has done so much since the last time we were there. He's doing so well. We knew he was...since the doctor's all told us that he was doing remarkably well for how early and small he was. But now, we can even see the change in him. He just looks more relaxed. He's breathing completely on his own now...which is amazing! The other night, when they took the light off of him for jaundice... he just opened his eyes and just stared at us for a long time. I missed it the first time because I had left the room to go to the bathroom. Jesse came out and asked what i was doing and told me that he had been staring at him...so of course i had to hurry and get back in there! He likes his pacifier too. He's just so adorable. so perfect. I got to change his diaper for the first time last night. His little preemie diapers are so small...even too big for him now. Jesse and I look at the other babies in the NICU and at other babies we see...and it's just so hard for us to imagine that Gabriel will be that size someday too. 


Well, that's it for now. It's time to get to bed... our day's have been flying by. So before I know it, it'll be time to get up in the morning and head back down to carbondale to spend the afternoon with Gabriel :) 

6.27.2011

Gabriel Lee Schiff

He's finally here! Gabriel Lee Schiff. 2 pounds 3.6 ounces. 15.2 inches long. Born on June 20, 2011 at 12:35 p.m. He's tiny, but healthy. He's perfect! :) 


So, this post is going to be all about our hospital stay leading up to the delivery of our baby boy. I won't lie, it's going to be very detailed. Why is that you may wonder? Well, in all reality, this blog is for Gabriel. I want him to have something to be able to read when he gets older that let's him know all about the time leading up to him getting here and everything thereafter. And of course, this blog is for our family and friends to be able to stay in touch and know how things are going for us. My plan is to eventually make a book of my posts for Gabriel to have! :) I hope you all don't mind if this post is a bit long!


Our hospital stay began on Monday, June 6, 2011 right after our dr. appointment. Dr. Bishop sent us straight to Carbondale hospital as soon as he saw us. My protein levels in my urine was high, along with high blood pressure. When we headed to the hospital, we had no idea how long we'd be here for. We got admitted and got settled into our room. Things got crazy from there. We had an ultrasound to see how big Gabriel was and a biophysical ultrasound to make sure he was doing good. They also sent my 24 hour urine collection to be tested for protein. 


Dr. Bishop came into our room late that night...probably around 10:00 p.m. to talk to us about what to expect and what the plans were. My protein level was over 3,000 which was one indicator of preeclampsia. Normal levels of protein are 0-300. So obviously, 3,000, is a bit high! Along with the swelling and high blood pressure, Dr. Bishop informed us that we would be staying in the hospital until delivery. 


So far we've been in the hospital for 16 days. Gabriel was born 2 weeks to the day of us being in the hospital. 


Now...for the interesting part...the delivery. On Saturday, June 18, Dr. Bishop came into my room around 12:30 p.m. I had already had our ultrasound for the day which consisted of a biophysical and a doppler test. I sent Jesse home to go take care of Rylee for a while that day...so it was just me in the room when Dr. Bishop came in. Anyway, he informed me that there were changes in Gabe's doppler test. His diastolic flow in the umbilical cord was not flowing like it was supposed to do. In fact, it had stopped flowing. This was our first major sign that it was getting time to bring our baby boy into this big world. Dr. Bishop said that they were going to begin inducing me that day and that we would have a baby soon thereafter. I had to quit eating my lunch then and went strictly to a fluid only diet for the next couple of days. I immediately called Jesse and told him what was going on and that he needed to get back to the hospital. We then started calling our family to let them know what was going on. 


Around 4:00 p.m. that day they gave me this thing so that my cervix would begin to soften. I had it for 12 hours. When the 12 hours was up they were going to start me on magnesium and pitocin to induce labor. We figured this would go fairly fast, so we had some family come in early that morning just in case. Little did we know...this was going to take all day. I started to feel little contractions once they started the IV's...nothing huge though. So, it wasn't that big of a deal. We waited...and waited...and waited. I was on constant monitoring to make sure Gabriel was doing ok. 


We moved rooms around 9:30 that night over to labor and delivery. I had a terrible headache that would not go away and I just felt miserable. They informed me that Dr. Bishop would most likely come in to break my water since nothing had happened yet. When they moved me into my new room, my nurse told me to keep my eyes closed so that the bright lights through the halls wouldn't make my headache any worse. I did just that. We made it to the room, I switched beds and laid there. I had oxygen on me the whole time as well. Did I mention that I felt miserable!? My mom and Jesse worked on moving all of our stuff from our old room to this new room. I was also starving...seeing that I hadn't ate any food except jello and popsicles since the day before at noon. 


At around 10:30 p.m. Dr. Bishop came into the room and broke my water. We knew we'd have a baby sometime soon now! I got up one last time to use the bathroom on my own and then laid back down. And then...the lovely contractions started. I won't lie, they were terrible...and they weren't even that bad yet. But man, were they painful. Jesse sat beside me holding my hand and my mom was on the other side feeding me ice chips in between the contractions. We had called our families to let them know what was going on. My brother, Josh, was on his way from St. Louis and my Dad was on his way from work. Rachel was also on her way. Anyway, my contractions were getting stronger and I was getting more miserable, so Jesse went to find my nurses to tell them I'd like the epidural. I had to receive fluids for about an hour before they could give me the epidural. That was not good news. So, we sat there for that long hour and kept doing the same thing...holding hands and ice chips! 


Finally, the fluid was done and before I knew it, the anesthesiologist was in my room ready to give me my epidural. I was a little nervous about this big needle going into my back, but Jesse kept assuring me it would be worth it and I wouldn't feel it. So, they kicked my mom and Jesse out of the room, and within 5 minutes the epidural was in. Another 10 minutes and I could feel it kicking in. Slowly my legs started to lose feeling. It was amazing...and weird. Amazing that I could no longer feel the contractions that on the monitor looked to be getting worse! I was relieved...and I was a new person! My nurse stayed there for 30 minutes and then they let Jesse and my mom back in. 


Shortly after Josh, my dad, and Rachel were all there. Things were going good. I couldn't feel the contractions. I was hungry so I sent Jesse for some Jello. While he was gone for no more than a few minutes, I told my mom I felt sick. Moments later I was throwing up all of the fluid that I had drank. It was everywhere. Jesse walked in, confused. Everyone was helping trying to get towels and such. We called the nurse and she came straight in and helped us get cleaned up and helped me get into a clean gown. Afterwards, I felt fine. It was about 4:00 and I wasn't dilated very much. Mom, Josh, and Dad all went to the truck to try to get some sleep and Rachel went home for awhile. we figured it was going to take some time before Gabriel decided to make his appearance. So, it was just me and Jesse in the room for a while after that. Neither of us could sleep. So we sat and talked for awhile...since we hadn't had much alone time to talk about things. It was nice to get t9o spend some quality time together then! :) 


The nurses kept checking me every 2 hours to see how much I was dilated. I was dilating about 1/2 cm every couple of hours. By about 8:00 a.m. I was about 4.5- 5 cm dilated. However, we knew we'd have a baby by that night. They quit checking me every 2 hours for fear of infections after that. I was still amazed that I couldn't feel any contractions...they were huge according to the monitor. However, around 11:00 I was slowly beginning to feel the contractions...and they grew stronger each time. We told my nurse and she had the anesthesiologist come back in and give me some more medicine for the epidural. They gave me a higher concentrated formula and said to give it about 30 minutes. Unfortunately, that did not work. My contractions were getting worse by the minute. Jesse was right there by my side, holding my hand through each one of them. Both he and my mom were feeding me ice chips in between each contraction. Jesse called the nurse and told her that dose wasn't working and that I needed another one. She called the anesthesiologist, but she was busy so it was going to be awhile before she could come back in. I started crying for a few minutes because I was in so much pain. Jesse and mom both told me to stop crying because it was going to make it worse. So, I put my oxygen back on and just kept breathing through each contraction. It was one of the worst pains I've ever experienced. My nurse, who was amazing, came in to check on me. By this time it was a little past 12:00 p.m. and Jesse mentioned that I hadn't been checked since 8 a.m. and asked if she could check me and see how far dilated I was. When she did she said, "Oh, that's not the epidural wearing off... you're ready to have a baby!" 


I was both relieved and scared when she said that. It was about 12:15 by this time. They had my mom, dad, and brother, Josh, leave the room. My nurse called Dr. Bishop, who was at his office at this time. She also got other nurses in the room as well. It was amazing how fast they got things together. It was no more than 10 minutes and Dr. Bishop came walking in the room. I remember them asking me if I could somehow lift myself up so they could get something under me... I couldn't feel my legs from the epidural...so that was hard to do. Anyway, they got everything situated. I was still feeling the contractions...trying hard not to push. I was scared and looked at Jesse and started crying...he assured me that everything was going to be ok and calmed me down. We prayed together and before I knew it Dr. Bishop told me to push. My nurse told me to stop pushing that time because not all of the nurses for Gabriel were in there yet. On the next contraction we were good to go. Dr. Bishop said to push, I did, and Gabriel was out, just like that. It was instant relief when he came out. I couldn't believe how easy it was. I started crying. Jesse started crying. It was amazing. Our little boy finally made it here. Jesse said he had his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck when he came out...however, it was off within seconds...that's how good Dr. Bishop is! :) We finally got to meet our baby boy, Gabriel Lee Schiff. He was 2 pounds- 3.6 ounces, 15.2 inches long. Born at 12:35 p.m.

Moments later we heard him crying and Jesse walked over to see him and take pictures. I was still crying...I'm not sure why this time...but I was full of emotions. Gabriel was perfect. My nurse was so sweet throughout the whole thing...I couldn't have asked for anyone better. Dr. Bishop came up and gave me a hug and kiss on the forehead and congratulated us. We were all so relieved and happy that everything worked out. We had all worked hard for the 2 weeks were in the hospital to keep myself and Gabriel healthy... we had did it! Everything was wonderful! 


I was amazed at just how fast he got here. It was literally about 20 minutes from the moment we had everyone leave the room to the moment he was born. I had always heard stories of how people push for hours...I was so thankful that it took 2 pushes for Gabriel to get here. My family came back into the room. We were all so happy and I felt so much better. Though he was small, we knew that Gabriel was going to be just fine! 


We had to wait about an hour before they would let us go see him in the NICU. I was told I may have to wait a little longer because of the magnesium I was on, as well as waiting for the epidural to wear off so I could get myself up! However, my nurse helped me get cleaned up and ready so I could go see him. He was so tiny and precious when we went into the NICU. They told us he was doing remarkably well for how early and how small he was. I knew in my heart it was because so many people had been praying for us and that God was watching over him. I was so happy to hear that he was doing so good. Each of our family members that were there came in one-by-one to see him. My brother Josh, my mom, my dad, Rachel, Jesse's brother Josh, James, and Shelly were all there. I had to leave the room after about 10 minutes because I was still on the magnesium through the IV. With pre-eclampsia the risk of having seizures are very high for 24 hours after delivery. So, I wasn't yet in the clear of the pre-eclampsia. The magnesium helps reduce the risks of seizures though. They moved me back to the room I was in prior to labor and delivery...room 251. Thank God for my wonderful family and friends that were there... they moved all of our stuff from one room to the other for us! 


I was exhausted and kept falling asleep right after delivery. I didn't realize how tired I would be. Everyone stayed for awhile once we got back to our room. My parents got Jesse and I nachos from Moe's. We ate our food and then we both passed out. Yes, we were sleeping by about 4:00. We were both exhausted from a long day. My brother Benji, Nicki, and Emeri all came later that evening to see us. Jesse took Benji and Nicki into the NICU to see Gabriel. I couldn't go in still because of the magnesium, of course, and also because it was such a chore to get me up and ready. I wasn't suppose to be up and walking unless it was to go to the bathroom. My legs felt like jello at times too. A few friends also came in that night to visit...bearing flowers, balloons, and new flip-flops for me! After everyone had left, we both passed out again. It was hard for me to get a good nights sleep though because I was slowly beginning to feel some pain and I constantly had to go to the bathroom. However, pain medicine was amazing for me at this time. It definitely help to keep me comfortable throughout the night. I had to wake Jesse a few times to help me walk to the bathroom. Again, I didn't realize how tired and weak t I would be. 


The next day they took me off of the magnesium a little after 12:00 p.m. They then moved us over to the Mommy and Me side. We got to go see Gabriel any time we wanted. I never wanted to leave his side. He was so precious. Even with everything hooked up to him, he was still so handsome. It's hard to imagine loving someone so much, but we do. I hated seeing him hooked up to everything...but the Dr's and nurses kept telling us how well he was doing. So we knew that we just need to keep praying that he'll get strong and healthy soon. Jesse and I spent some quality time together that evening. We laid together and talked about our new baby boy and everything about the future. Our life had changed so much in just a day, but we are so thankful and blessed. =)
 

Gabriel Lee Schiff 

30 weeks...we made it!

hello friends! this post is going to be a little short because i currently have an IV in my right hand. I don't like it and it makes it difficult to type. so to reduce my amount of complaining, its best i use this hand as little as possible. :)


anyway, yesterday i was officially 30 weeks! woo hoo! we made it! when we first arrived here at our new home (a.k.a.- memorial hospital of carbondale) the goal was to make it another week! now the goal is to make it to 31 weeks! the longer Gabe can stay inside me...the better! we're told that for everyday he stays in shaves 2 days off of his hospital stay once he's born. 


so, latest news... saturday we had a scare. i had to be put on oxygen because our baby wasn't cooperating and doing what he was supposed to do. so, in order to help him they put me on oxygen. thank goodness that eventually worked. this was also the night they decided to put another IV in just in case. my worst nightmare. i absolutely HATE Iv's. anyway, my protein levels have gone up to 7000. so now, like before, we're just taking it day by day....hoping to get at least another week.


how's baby boy doing? he's just fine. he's been passing all of his tests and moving like crazy. i don't think he likes being monitored because he doesn't always cooperate when we're hooked up! can't say i blame him...i'm not a fan of it either! He's getting much better at practicing his breathing. seems like every day when we get our ultrasound he always has his hand or foot in front of his face. the other day he had his toes in his mouth! we've been lucky enough to get a lot of pictures of him while we're here. we do ultrasounds everyday so along with that we get lots of pictures! we have tons of 4D pics as well! :)


alright, that's it for now. my hand hurts! :(

Baby Boy

Gabriel Lee Schiff. Yes, that's is our baby boy's name! Gabe, for short! :) 


So, not to much to update on here right now. Other than our baby boy's name. He's still doing good. Doctor says that we're going to still try to wait at least another week before delivering, if not longer! The goal is to keep Gabe inside as long as possible, that way he can grow healthier and stronger! We got our own private room tonight! It's nice! :) 


Jesse and I definitely appreciate all of the thoughts and prayers from everyone. Also, everyone that has already come to visit in the  2 1/2 days that we've been here. It's all so much appreciated. 


So, what are my plans to stay busy? Well, i'm going to start crocheting my baby boy a blanket! My IV got taken out today, so I got full function of my right hand again! yay!! I also have lots of magazines to read, the internet, and some crosswords and sudoku to work on! All of that should hopefully keep me busy for awhile! 


Jesse's been great throughout all of this! He hasn't left my side unless it's to go home or to go somewhere and get me something. The Dr. told him that he needed to stay here....not like he wasn't planning on it anyway. He's slept right next to bed every night so far...in a chair that can't be comfortable at all! But, i'm very thankful that he's here. 


Now, that's about it for tonight. I don't have much to say right now! I'm going to leave you with a few pictures! We got a few 4D pics of our baby boy today. The lady was nice enough to do them for us... they just got the machines here in the hospital to do the 4D and they haven't trained on them yet...so she did it for practice and fun! I was sooo excited when she said she'd do it and give us pictures! Enjoy!  :) 

*27 weeks (sorry this pic is a bit late)*

*Gabriel Lee Schiff- 4D*

*Our Baby Boy again*

*Flowers from our church- SIWC*

*Roses from Josh &  Shelly Schiff and their kids* 

28 & 29 weeks...and then some

Hey friends. as most of you probably know, i'm writing this blog to you all from the comfort of my own room in carbondale hospital. I apologize i haven't posted more this past week. Looks like i'm going to have even more free time on my hands for awhile, which should make updating a bit easier. I'm going to start by doing an update on what's going on and then finish with a baby update for my 28th and 29th week combined! 

My, my, where do I start? well, as i said in a previous post, I was put on bed rest over a week ago...exact date, Thursday, May 26, 2011. The dr. told me to go on bed rest until my next appt...10 days later. So, under strict orders from Jesse, I was only allowed to leave the bed when i had to go to the bathroom or eat. I was restless and bored by the end of it. Actually somewhat looking forward to getting to go back to work...i think i was just wanting something else to do. In those 10 days, i watched a lot of netflix. I actually managed to watch all of the seasons of army wives within about 5 days. Yes, I was bored. When we went to my next appt on June 6th, the doctor immediately told us we were going to the hospital. My blood pressure was still high and the protein in my urine was still high as well. 

We left the doctor's office, headed across the street to the hospital, and checked in. Luckily, we were given on our room! Our Dr, Dr. Bishop, came in to see us that night. Now, when we checked in I had a 24 hour urine sample to give them. When Dr. Bishop came in he informed us that my protein level was very high. Normal is less than 300...mine was over 3,000!!! Needless to say, Not good! I had many tests done that night. He explained everything to us very thoroughly and answered any questions we had. He diagnosed me with mild Pre-eclampsia. I won't go into details, but basically: I'm more than likely staying in the hospital until the baby is born. I'm under constant monitoring with tests being done everyday. The goal is to prevent this mild pre-eclampsia from advancing to severe pre-eclampsia. If it advances to that it is simply called: eclampsia! 

We weren't aware at just how serious this is. We were reassured when he told us that if was nothing that we had done to cause this. It's more common in first time mothers and you can't really see it coming until it arrives. A lot of the signs coincide with normal pregnancy symptoms, so it's hard to distinguish until the protein and blood pressure start to show serious signs of concern. 

This is our second night here in the hospital. My protein levels in my urine are still pretty high, but luckily my blood pressure has continued to go down. At first we were told that we would more than likely have to deliver this baby this week! As you all know, it's verrry early for him to be here. However, our Dr. has been on the phone and in close contact with an OB at the StL hospital and they are working together on my case. Both agreed that with constant monitoring that we could more than likely hold off delivery for at least another week! We're thrilled about this! So, hopefully everything will continue to go well. 

Now, I'm sure most of you are wondering...why in the world are you still in carbondale and not at the St. Louis Hospital!? I assure you, we took this under careful consideration. Our Dr. is one of the best and we have full confidence in him. He has tons of experience in working in cases of pre-eclampsia and he also has lots of experience delivering baby's early, with a very, very high success rate. He is on our side in the whole matter, and agreed with us that if we decided or if he decided that StL was definitely the best option, he would transfer us there. However, we're happy with our choice of staying here in carbondale. We're positive we're receiving great care. Our doctor has been by our side every step and checks in on us at least twice a day! 

So, I seem to have a case of insomnia since being in this hospital. I can't sleep...at all! It's frustrating! With constant monitoring and just not being able to get comfy, it's hard to fall asleep! Hence the reason i'm blogging at 1:30 in the morning! 

You may be wondering about Rylee! It breaks my heart that we have to be here and she can't be with us! Jesse is under my strict orders of going home once a day to play/visit with her! I know she's just a dog...but like i said before, she's my dog and i love her very much! :)

I'm sure there's tons of things that i've left out but for now i'm going to finish with an update on baby. I'm going to do this update a bit differently, seeing that I don't have my baby books with me. However, in the past few days, I've learned a lot about his development so I feel like I have a better insight into how he's actually doing. 

Size of Baby Schiff: Our baby boy is a whole 2 pounds and 14 ounces (as of June 7, 2011). So, obviously he's a bit too small to be delivered now! We're hoping and praying that he'll grow and develop a lot more before he has to be delivered. 

Baby Schiff's development: His lungs aren't quite ready to work on their own. I received 2 shots to help with the development of his lungs the past 2 nights. That way, if he does come as early as we're expecting, his lungs will hopefully be able to function on their own. We're praying that this works. He's also began to practice breathing while in the womb. We're told that at this early in the pregnancy, the fact that he's already practicing this is a veryyyy good sign! 

Other news about Baby Schiff: The first night we were admitted into the hospital, his heart rate was 146. It has continued to stay within the 145-160 range th

roughout the time we've been here so far. He's definitely a little mover inside my belly...moving all the time and kicking! He's also been getting the hiccups some lately. It's funny, because the monitor that I'm hooked up to will pick this up! Poor guy! Also, during one of our sonograms (we get one daily now) he was playing with his umbilical cord. It made it hard for us to get the info we needed....but we managed! :) He's very active...which is good! 

Message to Baby Schiff from Mommy: As much as we want to meet you my boy, we also want you to be big and strong when you come into this big ole world. That's why we're trying everything we can to help you stay in there a bit longer. So, my boy, stay in there as long as you'd like. I promise I will do everything I can on my side to stay healthy and well so that you can stay inside there and get healthy and strong. We love you so much! <3

We've officially decided on a name for our Baby Boy! Once we let all of our family know... I'll fill you all in as well! 


I'm going to finish tonight's post with a poem that Pastor Melissa from our church read on Mother's day. 

A baby asked God, “They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?”

"Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in Heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile and to be happy."

God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"

God said, “Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak.”

“And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?”

God said, “Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray.”

“Who will protect me?”

God said, “Your angel will defend you even if it means risking it’s life.”

“But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore.”

God said, “Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you.”

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, “God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel’s name.”

“You will simply call her, ‘Mom.’”