So yesterday was supposed to be the BIG DAY – we had it all planned out, lined-up and arranged with all the right people. Everything was set to go according to plan. But of course things in this life do not happen that way! All the hard that went into keeping my true due date & scheduled c-section dates completely secret from all friends & family who were not on a need-to-know basis was totally useless as only God knew Logan’s intended birth date! I find it truly amazing that no matter how much I crave & seek out organization & a plan for our lives, the Lord constantly reminds me that He alone knows what the future holds & I need to rely completely on him each day to hold the future.
Enough of that – lets get on to what’s been happening over the last couple of weeks!
On Tuesday, October 12th I went in for my regular doctor visit. It was supposed to be an easy in, easy out type of visit with the exception of the group B strep test needing to be done as well. I left Alexa at a play date with a friend & headed into my appointment. When I left there I had a 24-hr protein test I had to complete & instructions to take it extremely easy & avoid doing any strenuous tasks, shopping, long walks, extra cleaning or even lifting of anything over 20 lbs (like Alexa). I was not expecting that news at all as my BP up until then had been holding steady in the safe to good range. With Alexa I had higher BP #’s beginning already at week 30 that they were constantly monitoring & by 36 weeks the #’s had jumped high enough that I was put on bed rest as a result of them. Regardless of how I felt about it I picked up Alexa & headed home. On Thursday I brought in my 24hr test sample and let them take their blood work completely hoping all would come back as normal. My doctor was scheduled to be on vacation the next day through the weekend so I expected I wouldn’t hear anything until Monday or even my next appointment on Tuesday.
Friday morning I answered a blocked phone call only to discover that my doctor had taken the time to personally call me from home on her vacation day in order to tell me the not so great news: I needed to be on complete bed rest, no dishes, laundry or anything of that nature and rest as much of the day as possible in order to prevent my BP from going up or any other of the preeclampsia symptoms from appearing. My protein levels were in the moderate risk range & I would have to start seeing her twice a week until my surgery date. So we made arrangements for Alexa to spend time with family & I spent the next few days laying around bored as could be. Monday I had a normal check up with slightly elevated BP #’s and then I was sent for a non-stress test & given instructions to complete another 24 hr protein test.
By the time Thursday, October 21st rolled around my protein #’s had jumped even higher, my BP was quickly climbing and my headaches were intensifying to the point I was seeing dancing spots if I stood up to quickly or for too long. My doctor said they weren’t taking any chances & called my surgeon. After waiting for what seemed like hours I had another non-stress test & it was pretty clear they weren’t going to let me go home.
At 2:07pm on Thursday, October 21st Logan Eric made his entrance into the world. He as 6lbs 4oz and about 19.5 inches long. I was able to briefly hold him after he was checked out & given a good apgar score and then Micah & the nurses took him upstairs to be fully examined while I was closed up & put in the recovery room.
By the time I got upstairs I was informed that he wasn’t responding the way they wanted him to – he was very grunty and was having what they called spells where he would hold his breath for longer than they would like. From what they told me, at first it seemed he was starting to perk up and then they came back & say no, he was still concerning them. They have a very small window of time where they make their call – less than 4 hrs after he was born they had contacted the hospital in Sioux Falls & arranged for Logan to be transported there. Because he was a newborn their policy doesn’t allow for anything other than air transport due to the time it takes to get there. By 7:30 pm the airplane had arrived & left again. I’d been able to hold Logan just once more for only a few minutes before they had taken him by ambulance to the airport to be flown to Sioux Falls.
Despite a dramatic start, Logan thankfully only spent just over 3 1/2 days in the NICU unit before he was able to be released. I was unfortunately stuck in Sioux Center until Saturday noon when I was finally released so that I could go join Micah & Logan in Sioux Falls. Thankfully my surgeon & my regular doctor were both very understanding of my desire to leave & they did not make me stay the recommended length of time I would normally have been in the hospital or I wouldn’t have been able to come home any earlier than Logan had! It was a crazy beginning to our little boy’s life but despite it all we are simply thrilled to have him home & we are so thankfully he is not only okay but is doing very well! Praise be to God & God alone for keeping us all in his almighty hands!
