2 Weeks Old!

Time is going by fast. Alexa lost her umbilical cord at 9 days old. There is still little pieces that need to finish drying out, but overall it looks good. On Sunday she had her first trip to church. We had to get up 2 hours early to get everyone showered, dressed & fed. Alexa slept through bible study. Margaret Ann & Marie had a great time loving on her. After bible study we changed her & I fed her. We then made it to 45 minutes of our regular church service. Alexa slept in my arms the entire time (even through the music). After the service we went to lunch with the Dieckmann's. Everyone sat and stared at her while she slept in her carseat. We then spent the afternoon watching our first family football game.

Wednesday was Justin's last day home on paternity leave. He drove us up to Charlotte to pick up Megan & Matthew. Alexa did awesome in the car. I actually had to wake her up to eat once we arrived. I was sooo excited to see Megan after 3 months and meet baby Matthew.

At Alexa's two week appointment we received a bunch of great news. She gained 9oz. since last Tuesday. After all the breastfeeding concerns I had, this was really reassuring that she is getting enough to eat. So we will be able to continue for now. :) We also found out her biliruben level went down to 11.2. The doctor said this is a great thing. We do still need to make sure she is having frequent feedings & give her some time in the sun. The doctor said everything else looks "perfect". I was given the option to bring her back next week for a weight check just to make sure the nursing is still going well.

I cant believe how much she has changed for the last 14 days. She still sleeps most of the day, but her awake time is very different. She seems to have more control of her arms & legs. She also has more of an interest with her eyes. Though she cannot really focus on anyone or anything in particular, she notices when things change.

One of my favorite things that has changed is her ability to distinguish me from anyone else. I am not sure if its through sent or touch yet, but she will instantly calm down when I hold her. I love being that comfort for her. Motherhood is everything & more of what I thought it would be. It still amazes me everyday that Alexa is 1/2 Justin & 1/2 me. I just hope time can slow down just a little bit.

1 Week Old!

Our little princess is 1 week old. I am so in love with my daughter. I cannot get enough of her. As I am typing this, she is curled up on my lap taking a nap. I spend the entire day either feeding her or holding her. At night she sleeps right next to the bed & I wake up periodically just to make sure she is OK. So far Motherhood is amazing. I love being able to know when she needs to be fed & what her face expression means. When she is hungry, she will suck on her palm & keep her mouth wide open. When she is sleepy she kicks her feet like crazy until she is swaddled. When she is awake & content she likes to stare at everything!

On Tuesday we had her first pediatrician appointment. She weighed 5lbs 12oz, which is what she did when she left the hospital. The doctor said this is a good number, since they usually lose weight in the first 4-5 days and then start gaining it back. We also had to get her jaundice level measured. They pricked her foot & then drain the blood into a vial. It takes about 15 minutes & we both hated every minute of it. Her level was 17.7! We were told to bring her back in the morning and get it drawn again.

After going through the traumatic experience of getting blood drawn again on Wednesday we were told her level went down to 15.6. This was such a relief for Justin and I. Since the number is decreasing they do not have to treat her. We will still continue to make sure her feedings are frequent & try to get her a little bit of sunlight. After the doctors visit we took Alexa to get her newborn pictures taken. She was not a happy baby. She dirtied 3 diapers & had to be fed twice. It took us 2 1/2 hours to get all her photos taken, but they turned out great. We were given the unedited photos on a CD & we posted them to facebook. We went a little over board on purchasing photos, but have no regrets. So there will be lots of photos in the mail for Grandparents, Great-Grandparents & Aunts and Uncles.

Alexa's nursing has been getting increasingly better each day. Breastfeeding is something I am really wanting to do & Alexa seems to be on board. She eats about every 3 hours. I let her decide when she wants to eat, but I never let her go more than 4 hours between feedings. She will cluster feed about twice a day (eats once an hour for 3 hours consecutively). But it seems to really be working & I could not be happier. We will work on getting onto a schedule in a few months.

Sleeping has been getting easier each night. I try to go to bed around 10pm right after feeding the baby. She will then wake up around midnight, 3 & 6. I have only fallen asleep feeding her once & she started crying so I quickly woke up. I also try to get at least 1 nap in during the day.

So that about sums up everything that is going on with our little lady. It has taken me over an hour to write todays post. Since I started writing I had to stop for 2 dirty diapers (one of which was was major blow out) and 1 feeding. Everything seems to be taking so much longer these days, but its worth every minute.

Alexa June Cox

On a warm September day, our lives were forever changed. At 9:45am on September 16th I was officially in active labor. The doctor broke my water and started a low dose of pitocin, I was 5 centimeters. The contractions started becoming painful around 10:30am and I requested an epidural. At that time I was 6 centimeters. To receive the epidural I had to get a full IV bag pushed & a few medicines to help my stomach. At 11:15 the anesthesiologist arrived. She was AMAZING! I had a little bit of trouble staying in the position while it was getting placed. I was having regular, painful contractions & hunching over was not something I could comfortably. It took about 20 minutes for the epidural to take full effect. At 12pm I was 9 centimeters. I could not believe how quickly I was progressing. The nurses started setting up the room for the delivery. The baby warmer was turned on, blankets were laid and many people started entering. At 1pm I started pushing. Justin held my left leg & a nurse held the right. Another nurse was counting to ten three times in a row with each contractions. At first they had to tell me when I was having a contraction. I felt as though no progress was being made & requested a mirror. I was able to watch the progress, which kept me motivated. At 2pm we could see the head getting ready to come out. The doctor had to cut an episiotomy to make it possible for Alexa to deliver. I could not feel the procedure, but could hear the skin cutting. At 2:13pm I took my last push & Alexa June arrived. She immediately started crying.

Justin watched Alexa get cleaned up & then she was placed on my chest. We had a great few minutes as a family of 3. Over the next 30 minutes our room was returned to its pre-delivery state. It was surprising to me how quickly I was disconnected from all machines and we were left alone with our baby. Justin then went out to the waiting room to announce Alexa's arrival to Grandma Sandy, Grandpa David & GB (Grandma Beth). Alexa had all of her tests done in our room. She weighed 6lbs 3 ounces and was 19 3/4 inches long. Later that day we were moved to the Nesting Place. This is where we would spend the rest of our hospital stay.

The first night was very surreal to me. Justin slept more than 8 hours & I slept about 2, all of the adrenaline kept me going. Alexa stayed in the room the entire night. We struggled a little bit with the breast feeding, but she slept very well besides that. I could not stop staring at her. The nurse took her out in the middle of the night for a little while to give her a bath and Hep B shot, and that was really the only sleep I was able to get.

Friday was another great day. Mom, Dad & Beth spent most of the day with us. The Pediatrician examined her and said she looked great. We could not agree more! The nurse we had that day was great! She was very friendly and helped a lot with breast feeding. Donna & David came down to visit in the evening. We also had friends stop by. Margaret Ann, who is due on Halloween got to hear me talk down the horrifying text messages I sent while in labor. And they got us a cute "Carolina Girl" Burp cloth to remind us that no matter where we go in the world. Alexa will always be a Carolina Girl! My Dr. came by in the morning and said I looked fine as well, so he went ahead and signed my discharge papers so I would not have to wait for the on-call doctor. All we needed to go home in the morning was for Alexa to be discharged and for Justin and I to do the mandatory instructional and informational things.

Friday Night was a little scary. I got a little bit more sleep. But the nurse told us that Alexa was rated an 11.9 on the Jaundice scale. And they do not let babies go home from the hospital if they are over 12.0. They took her back for a couple hours and we are guessing they put her under a UV lamp because the score went down to 9.8. The nurse we had though was fantastic. Justin liked that she had a Masters in nursing. She probably gave me the most help and encouragement in breast-feeding.

Saturday morning went very well. She passed hearing and vision, cleared the pediatrician and was good to go. We got the cars packed up. Justin and I took Alexa to settle our new family in our home. The cats were a little skittish, but have been warming up to having a new little human. After a few hours of getting everything unpacked and settled in, we let the rest of the family come over to spend time with us. We had a good visit with everyone but we were ready to spend our first night together as a family. Alexa did pretty well, there was one 2-hour period where she was fussy, but we got her over that and the rest of the night went pretty well.

Sunday morning started out with a farewell visit from Grandpa & GB. We knew they could not stay forever, but we were sad to see them leave. Later in the morning we had visits by Donna, David, Bill, Chase & Austin. During the afternoon, Alexa & I took a nap together and then we watched football as a family. Grandma stayed with us for dinner & part of the evening. I could not have asked for a better support system. Not only has she been very supportive in breast feeding but she has kept our home clean & organized. I will miss her help & company. Sunday night was the first "challenging" night. Alexa did not want to breast feed & in turn she fused all night.

Monday started our first day getting into a routine. Justin ran errands most of the day & I stayed home with Alexa. My Mom spent her last day helping us out and enjoying time with her Granddaughter. Alexa had her first bath at home. She then spent most of the day napping. Overall it has been a great few days. We are looking forward to spending the next 10 days together before Justin has to return to work. We cannot believe how in love we both are with our new daughter.

38 Weeks

We have officially met every goal that was set for us in terms of keeping the baby in. Justin and I are both hoping for Alexa to arrive any time now.

Yesterday was our 38 week appointment. I weigh 121.8lbs! Alexa's heart rate was 154. My fundal height was 37 centimeters. My blood pressure had to be taken twice. The first time it was 140/100 and the second time it was 140/94. This is borderline concerning to them. So they planned on checking it again on Friday morning. The doctor said my cervix was 3+, 80% effaced & the baby was at +1 station. So there has not been any notable changes from last week. He did say I had "bulging membranes." This basically means that the baby is low and pushing the amniotic sac through the cervix. This does not mean anything more than my water will more than likely break on its own when I do go into labor. I also had my membrane swept. This is an aggressive internal exam that separates the amniotic sac from the uterine wall. We are hoping that it will help bring Alexa into the world sooner rather than later. Sometimes people will have immediate responses (I did not) and sometimes it does nothing to progress things.

Around 9pm I had a huge burst of energy, it was almost concerning. Then within an hour I felt as though every bit of energy left my body. I thought I was going to be sick, so I moved into the bathroom. I ended up getting very dizzy & sitting on the bathroom floor until Justin came in. He immediately called the doctor who told us to get to the hospital ASAP. We arrived at the hospital just after 10pm. My blood pressure was about what it was at the office, but we were able to lower it by having me lay on my left side. Dr. Nwanagu checked me & said I was the same as I was in the office. He wanted to keep me for a few hours to make sure the blood pressure was not as issue. At 12am I was checked at 4 centimeters & at 2am I was 5 centimeters. It was decided that I would be admitted to labor in delivery.

Full Term (37 Weeks)

We are once again amazed that another week has passed. Alexa is now considered "Full Term." If labor were to start, then it would not be stopped & she should be able to enter the world with no age related complications. Most doctors prefer babies to stay in as close to 40 weeks so they can gain more weight (about 1/2lb a week) which will help them maintain body temperature and make eating a little easier. So we are not in a rush to meet our baby girl quite yet. The average 37 weeker is around 6 1/2lbs and 20inches.

This past week has been relatively slow. I knew the bed rest was coming to an end & should enjoy it while it lasts. On Wednesday I had my 37 week doctor visit. I am now 120.2lbs, 120/92 blood pressure & everything else looks good. We had a NST & passed with flying colors. There have been no changes in the contractions or dilation. The doctor told me he will see me in another week. He does not think I will go into labor before then (neither do I). I was also taken off of ALL restrictions. I am looking forward to swimming & taking nightly walks with my hubby. We are no longer considered high risk. Yah Alexa!!!

36 Weeks

We made it to the doctors goal. This week has been as expected. I laid in bed and prayed for Alexa to stay put a little while longer. On Sunday we had our church baby shower. It was a lot of fun. I was really happy with that I decided to go. Alexa was once again spoiled with adorable outfits, decorations for her room & other items.

Wednesday was my weekly doctor visit. I was given a NST(Non-Stress test). Alexa like always did great & even put on a kicking show for all of us. My contractions were showing 3-5 minutes apart and lasting around a minute. This is when things got a little grey. At 35 weeks 6 days the doctors still would prefer the baby to stay inside, but there is no guess on the best approach for this. I was told to go home, get some lunch & rest. I returned for my follow up visit at 2pm. The doctor then decided that my cervix was progressing from the morning visit so he sent me to the hospital.

I was put on an initial high concentrated dosage of magnesium sulfate and then a continual drip for 21 hours. The contractions were gone! I could not believe it. It was the first time in over 2 weeks that I went more than 15 minutes with out a single contractions. I was taken off the magnesium to see what happened. It was not until 8pm that I noticed any change. As the night went on my contractions returned.

At 4am my nurse came in to do a cervical check. She said my contractions were once again 3-5 minutes a part and I am now 3 centimeters dilated.

At noon my doctor came by. He determined that my labor was not progressing to the point of needing more medicine to slow it down. We were given an ultra sound to verify that Alexa had enough fluids and then we were sent home. I will remain on bed rest until 37 weeks!