Clare comes home!

I'm sorry that I have not posted an update since Clare's arrival, but we had a little bit of delay in bringing her home and I'm just now catching up. Clare stayed in the hospital's Intensive Care Nursery for an additional 7 days as a result of "dusky spells" that she had during the few days following her birth. These episodes caused her to have a low oxygen level, but she also self recovered from them. The last episode happened on Monday (2 days after her birthday) and the hospital requires a 7 day observation after the last one. She is absolutely fine now. Brian and I were very worried in the beginning but after the doctors ruled out every possible issue, it was determined that she had just had difficulty making the transition from breathing inside to being outside. We were fortunate that we were able to stay with her each night with the exception of two. Presbyterian Hospital has a "Parents' Place" room which serves as a hotel room for parent's with children in the Intensive Care Nursery. So, now all is well and we were able to bring her home on Memorial Day.

Our beautiful daughter has definitely made an impact already. I can't help but tear up looking at her. She is amazing! Right now, Brian is sitting across from me holding her while she sleeps - that too makes me cry. I am so in love and so thankful that Brian is a part of this with me. We've been home since Monday and so far we're all doing great. Clare is pretty easygoing with the exception of a few evening outbursts. We went to our first pediatrician visit yesterday. She is continuing to gain weight. When we left the hospital, she was 7 lbs. 4 oz. She was back up to 7 lbs. 7 oz. She is eating well and sleeping a ton. She does not like to sleep in the cradle in our room and has spent the last several nights sleeping on my chest while I recline in the chair in the nursery. I have slept in my bed for a total of 6 hours in 2 weeks and I'm starting to miss it.

Brian's parents and his sister, Susan, spent the weekend at our house. They were lifesavers - they did laundry, fed us, did yard work. Clare's grandfather planted a Japanese maple in our yard while they were here - it's Clare's tree! I just wish we'd actually had Clare home for their visit. Clare's grandmother and aunt spent a lot of time with me at the hospital holding her and sitting with me while I nursed her.

My sister arrived yesterday and has been cooking up a storm since she got here. She is feeding us and taking care of me. We took Clare for her first walk today. I was surprised at the amount of energy it took for me just to walk around the block.

Ana Clare Piascik has made her debut!

Ana Clare arrived by c-section on Saturday, May 17th at 12:14 AM. She weighed 7 lbs. 9 oz and is 20 inches long. I'm a little biased, but she is absolutely beautiful. I'll post more later.

No birthday today!

Today is the official due date and there is no sign of Baby P. We just spent 2-1/2 hours at the doctors office. I had an ultrasound and another non-stress test. The baby looks fine. She is measuring 9lbs. 2oz., so that raises a bit of concern because they are generally one pound more or less than the ultrasound estimate. Either way - she's big. I'm going back tomorrow at 12:30 to have one more non-stress test. She was a little uncooperative today and wanted to sleep through the whole thing.

My doctor is on call tomorrow, so I'll get to talk to her about where we go from here. I'm not dilating yet, so that limits the induction opportunities. Basically, if I'm induced at this point the chances of a c-section are very high. I told the doctor that from the beginning that induction was not something I wanted to do. I'm not miserable and don't see any need to rush anything unless it was medically necessary. Since we have a few issues - my blood pressure is still a concern, her size is a potential issue, I'm now officially overdue, etc., we'll have a little more direction once we talk to my doctor tomorrow.

Otherwise, I'm feeling okay. I've now hit the 3 week mark for bedrest and asked if I could go for a walk and was told "heck no" by the doctor, so I am back to the couch. My back is starting to bother me, but other than that, I'm just uncomfortable. I still believe that I could go a few more days.