Jaundice treatment begins

Calleigh begins her treatment for jaundice today. The doctor said that it is very common for preemie babies to have jaundice and it's easy to treat. She also said that Calleigh has only a mild case and will need to be exposed to a UV light for a few hours each day.

My doctor told me today that my uterus is heart shaped instead of oval or round and this may have restricted Calleigh's growth which led my water to break. She also said that I lost a lot of blood due to a tear in my uterine wall. I will need to take Iron supplements for awhile and drink lots of fluids. My placenta was also sent out for testing. The nurse and I offered to keep it for Brian yesterday to make shampoo or eat, but he declined. The nurses in the NICU have started to call Brian the "Milkman" since he has been running my breast milk there every couple hours.

Birth Day!

Around 1 am, Calleigh's heartbeat dropped to around 90 beats per minute and didn't return to normal (around 150) as it was yesterday. Doctor Kang decided that an emergency Ceasaren would have to be performed. In minutes I was prepped for the surgery and after just a few minutes Brian and I heard Calleigh's first cry. We both cried because we were so grateful that she was okay.

Calleigh Grace arrived at 1:23 am. She weighed 3 pounds 7 ounces and is 16 inches long. Calleigh begins her stay in the NICU today and will remain here for several weeks so that she grows bigger and stronger.

Labor begins

This morning at about 4:45 am my water broke (while I was sleeping) which also happened when I was pregnant with Alyssa. My water broke at 4 am exactly while I was carrying Alyssa. I found out later that pregnant women normally go into labor before their water breaks and it is especially unusual for the water to break while you are sleeping. It figures that this has happened to me twice- leave it to me to do something unusual.

There is a problem though, I am only 33 weeks and 6 days pregnant. Babies aren't considered full term until 37 weeks. Brian called the doctor and then my Mom. Brian and I left for the hospital before the doctor ever called back since I knew that my water had broken since it had happened to me before.

I arrived at the hospital around 6 am and was immeaditely admitted to a delivery room. The nurses set me up with an IV and a fetal monitor. My doctor called the nurses that were caring for me and advised giving me the PROM (premature rupture of membranes) treatment. This consists of antibiotics and a steriod shot to help Calleigh's lungs develop quicker. Premature babies lungs are not as developed as a full term baby and will require extra care to make them stronger. After a couple hours the doctor arrived and decided to induce. Hours went by and baby Calleigh's heart beat was dropping then rising again. Doctor Fegley said that a Ceaseran may need to be performed because the baby may have the cord wrapped around her neck or she may not be strong enough to endure a vaginal birth.