Welcome to the World, Ella SueAnn!
The day before Ella was born was a busy one. The house cleaner came, I had my Pre Op appointment, Parker had chess club and scouts, tanner came home early to assemble our new "purple" bed (which kind of destroyed the house which had previously been so clean) we had dinner and tried to check off all of the boxes before bed time. Parker and tanner went to Long Beach airport to pick up Kassidy and Bridger (whose flights had been delayed) and I tried to make sure everything was perfect before they arrived and we left for my parents house. How lucky we were to have Kassidy and Bridger watch Rayleigh and jack! They were heaven sent!
We got to my parents house around 10pm. We had a little snack and chatted a bit before my dad and tanner gave me a beautiful blessing. All this time I've been anxiously awaiting Ella's birth. Delivering a baby, and those first few days in the hospital are my absolute favorite thing in the whole wide world. I love new born babies! But this time around didn't go as smoothly.
We woke up around 6am and got ourselves ready to meet our daughter. We checked into the hospital around 7:15 and I was pleased to see Judi! She was our favorite nurse when we had Parker and she is hands down the most incredible nurse still! I also had a sweet nurse named Lauren taking care of me, getting my IV started, taking vitals, and simply being next to me to chat and reassure me. At 8:30 the OR was prepped, Tanner was in his scrubs, and we were ready for Ella!
The anesthesiologist, Dr. Russel, was awesome. I told him I was sensitive to the anesthesia and he was very kind and compassionate (for an ex lieutenant commander). I really felt like he was there for ME. Dr. Johnson and Dr. Lee performed the C section and were informative and detail oriented the entire time. They even let me see my placenta! At 9:06am our beautiful, precious, cherubic daughter was born! She was pink and perfect! She weighed 8 pounds 6 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. They cut the cord and had her all wrapped up before they brought her over to me. She was crying just a little bit as they laid her on my chest and oh goodness, I fell directly in love with her.
Ella had the chubbier cheeks and a full head of dark hair! Finally! One of my children is born with dark hair! She sticks out her tongue and has the most feminine little cry. Her body is tiny and her legs are skinny and long. But those cheeks make a statement! We are over the moon with our new little princess.
Tanner walked to the recovery room with Ella and as I was about to be wheeled off I started feeling sick. I threw up a little bit and Dr. Russel administered some drugs to help calm my stomach. I threw up a few times but that was to be expected. I made it longer than I ever had without throwing up!
In the minutes that past in recovery waiting for the feeling to come back into my toes, Judi and Lauren kept massaging my uterus and checking for bleeding but there was never any blood which was concerning. They called Dr. Johnson back in and she took a look and realized something was terribly wrong. Around this time, my mom and Parker walked in to see the baby. The decision was made to wheel me back into the OR, administer another epidural (even though I was still numb) and essentially have another C section to repair what was wrong. When I locked eyes with my mom she looked so scared and had tears in her eyes. That made ME want to cry when all along I felt safe and confident in the doctors hands. They were able to stay with Tanner and Ella while I was in surgery and parker got to hold Ella for a nice long time.
I was wheeled back into the OR and since I could not move anything from the chest down, was maneuvered around to get the epidural going. I was ok with any drugs that would knock me out at this point. I wasn't too concerned about being aware of what repair was taking place. I just wanted it to all be over. It took about an hour and a half to complete the procedure. Apparently, my anatomy near the lower uterine segment is not normal due to scar tissue from the previous 3 C sections. Where there should have been a 4 finger space between my bladder and the wall of my uterus, they were touching. And the wall of the lower uterine segment was paper thin. So while the repair work was being done during the initial C section, my uterus was accidentally sewn to the internal os of my cervix (basically sewing my cervix shut. No blood could get out. Ever. Even during a period.) Obviously this is bad and the fact that it was caught so early attests to the expertise of the doctors and nurses at Saddleback. It was a one in a million mistake and they could have easily dismissed it. During both surgeries, they placed 2 units of blood on hold for me in case I needed a blood transfusion. But between both procedures, I lost less blood than the average C section. So the fact that I didn't bleed too much could have been a reason to doubt any serious complication. Also, during the C section, Dr. Johnson said to be weary of 5th pregnancy but didn't count it out. During the 2nd surgery she was able to look at my anatomy with a much more critical eye and realize that my uterus and the surrounding anatomy is not as healthy as it once was due to scar tissues and another pregnancy could lead to serious or deadly outcomes.
So that was quite the ordeal. I was worried about starting over with the recovery process. It takes me longer than normal to metabolize the drugs they give me and it's super frustration. I'm thirsty and hungry and it's annoying not being able to move. But thankfully I was able to regain feeling in my toes by the end of the second surgery. They were sewing me up and I was starting to move my legs. All the nurses were so compassionate and kind to me. The pain was much worse this time around. Mostly from gas which had settled all over my abdomen and was hard to move around. But Ella is so sweet. She nursed like a champ from the moment we first tried and she is my first baby to not lose over 10% of her body weight in the hospital!
That first night was a blur. We were all exhausted. We snuggled down the best we could and we're relieved the next morning when my IV, catheter, and foot pumps could finally be taken off. I took a shower and felt so much better. Then another scary thing happened. Our knock knock burglar came back!
I got a notification on my phone that someone was at the door and it was a suspicious looking man. I called 911 but since we were in Orange County they told me to call 411 to get the riverside country sheriffs office. So I did all that and tanner talked to the deputy and was able to email over the footage of the would be criminal. Apparently he'd hit about 5 other homes in eastvale before casing ours. All he did was walk up to the door and walk away. I don't know if he heard the kids inside or saw that we have signs stating he was on camera. But he left and I hope and pray he never comes back. That really threw me threw a loop and made it hard to bask in baby delight.
But a little while later Kassidy and Bridger came with Rayleigh and Jack and they were able to meet baby Ella for the first time. Jack was tired and a little confused. But Rayleigh was so happy!! She loves Ella so much and was so thrilled to give her kisses and hugs and tell her she loves her. It was the sweetest thing. They kept their visit short and tanner took them to lunch while my mom and Parker stayed with me. I slept for a super long time which I really needed. It was nice having my mom there to take care of me and the baby. There's nothing like a mother's touch.
Later, cami brought jessi by to meet the baby. But I happened to be feeding her so they didn't get to hold her. But it was nice to have them come by! And my friend Taylor from way back to Valencia had a baby girl, Poppy, the day before I had Ella! So she walked over to my room to say hi and meet Ella and then I walked over to her room and met her baby! That was so fun and such a neat experience! Taylor is so cute and fun! She's always been such a great friend! So fun to experience this special time of life with someone you've known for almost your entire life!
Saturday was a better day because I was finally able to pass that gas! I know that sounds gross but the gas pains were FAR worse than the incision pains. I didn't want to take the pain meds because they slow the peristalsis action in your bowels which would make passing the gas harder. But then I was in SO much pain that I couldn't hardly walk around or do anything to get the gas to move on its own. It was rough. But we got through that!
Tanner felt compelled to go home and check on the kids and the house so while my mom was with me, he ran home. Robyn came over and brought me the cutest clothes and a Nothing Bunt Cake. She's the best! Kari came too and had a sweet little visit with the baby. Taylor walked over again with her mom and Poppy and so we were able to have a little visit with our moms and our babies! 3 generations each! What a wonderful experience! Things were looking up and we were given the option to return home Sunday evening. But I still wasn't feeling totally strong enough to do that.
Sunday was nice. It was calm and peaceful. I was feeling better and enjoying my new baby girl. My mom came over after church and tanner was able to slip away and get something to eat. We rested and relaxed and basked in new baby bliss. Sunday evening, my mom and dad and Parker came over and we had a really nice visit with them. Jon and Laura were able to squeeze in just before visiting hours were over and meet baby Ella too. She is a very loved little girl!
After everyone had left for the night and we were settled in, the nurse came in to remove my staples and once again we ran into a problem. My incision had opened up about 10cm in length and was bleeding. We had to call in the doctor on call and do a minor procedure to suture up the layers that had opened up. Clearly this set us back a bit and more pain was headed my way. We weren't sure at this point if we would still be able to go home the next morning. But we got lucky and we were cleared to take our new baby home!
We cleaned up and packed up and stepped outside only to find the world shrouded in shadow! A rare solar eclipse which only happens every 90 years was happening at the exact time we were exiting the hospital! Talk about divine timing! We made a joke that Ella's presence eclipsed even the eclipse! It was a unique and phenomenal thing to witness though and made for a very eventful discharge!
Ella did great on the journey home. Thank goodness she likes the car! Kassidy and bridger had to leave before we arrived home to catch a cruise from Long Beach but they left the house immaculate and we cannot thank them enough for taking such good care of our little ones while we were away and under such sensitive circumstances. My mom brought Parker home and they were all there waiting for us, coloring a welcome home sign, when we walked in. I got settled upstairs and then we let the kids come up and see their baby sister. Rayleigh is smitten, Jack is thoughtfully aware, and Parker is thrilled. I love being home in my nice new bed which is much more comfortable than the hospital bed. My mom and tanner took care of everything while I rested upstairs. Courtney brought dinner. I am blessed with an extraordinary village.
This delivery did not go according to plan by any means but we are all healthy and happy. The priesthood blessing I received truly gave me strength. Ella is perfect from head to toe and I am healing quickly. How grateful I am for modern medicine. And for the miracle of life. I love nothing more in this world than snuggling a new born baby fresh from heaven. Truly there is nothing better in heaven or on earth. I love how she snuggles her head against my neck and I can hear her tiny breaths in my ear. I love her full head of soft dark hair and alert bright eyes. I love each and every one of her long fingers and toes, her cute button nose, and her soft pouty lips. Her cheeks are full and her legs are strong and long. Her skin is soft and beautiful. I could not love a tiny human more. All 4 of my children are precious gifts from God. They are all unique and individual and have each come with a specific and divine mission. They have each been endowed with gifts and talents to use while on earth to bless their families and those around them. I am so proud of each and every one of them and feel so deeply indebted to my Heavenly Father for sending them down to me to rear and raise them in righteousness. My arms are full and so is my heart.
We got to my parents house around 10pm. We had a little snack and chatted a bit before my dad and tanner gave me a beautiful blessing. All this time I've been anxiously awaiting Ella's birth. Delivering a baby, and those first few days in the hospital are my absolute favorite thing in the whole wide world. I love new born babies! But this time around didn't go as smoothly.
We woke up around 6am and got ourselves ready to meet our daughter. We checked into the hospital around 7:15 and I was pleased to see Judi! She was our favorite nurse when we had Parker and she is hands down the most incredible nurse still! I also had a sweet nurse named Lauren taking care of me, getting my IV started, taking vitals, and simply being next to me to chat and reassure me. At 8:30 the OR was prepped, Tanner was in his scrubs, and we were ready for Ella!
The anesthesiologist, Dr. Russel, was awesome. I told him I was sensitive to the anesthesia and he was very kind and compassionate (for an ex lieutenant commander). I really felt like he was there for ME. Dr. Johnson and Dr. Lee performed the C section and were informative and detail oriented the entire time. They even let me see my placenta! At 9:06am our beautiful, precious, cherubic daughter was born! She was pink and perfect! She weighed 8 pounds 6 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. They cut the cord and had her all wrapped up before they brought her over to me. She was crying just a little bit as they laid her on my chest and oh goodness, I fell directly in love with her.
Ella had the chubbier cheeks and a full head of dark hair! Finally! One of my children is born with dark hair! She sticks out her tongue and has the most feminine little cry. Her body is tiny and her legs are skinny and long. But those cheeks make a statement! We are over the moon with our new little princess.
Tanner walked to the recovery room with Ella and as I was about to be wheeled off I started feeling sick. I threw up a little bit and Dr. Russel administered some drugs to help calm my stomach. I threw up a few times but that was to be expected. I made it longer than I ever had without throwing up!
In the minutes that past in recovery waiting for the feeling to come back into my toes, Judi and Lauren kept massaging my uterus and checking for bleeding but there was never any blood which was concerning. They called Dr. Johnson back in and she took a look and realized something was terribly wrong. Around this time, my mom and Parker walked in to see the baby. The decision was made to wheel me back into the OR, administer another epidural (even though I was still numb) and essentially have another C section to repair what was wrong. When I locked eyes with my mom she looked so scared and had tears in her eyes. That made ME want to cry when all along I felt safe and confident in the doctors hands. They were able to stay with Tanner and Ella while I was in surgery and parker got to hold Ella for a nice long time.
I was wheeled back into the OR and since I could not move anything from the chest down, was maneuvered around to get the epidural going. I was ok with any drugs that would knock me out at this point. I wasn't too concerned about being aware of what repair was taking place. I just wanted it to all be over. It took about an hour and a half to complete the procedure. Apparently, my anatomy near the lower uterine segment is not normal due to scar tissue from the previous 3 C sections. Where there should have been a 4 finger space between my bladder and the wall of my uterus, they were touching. And the wall of the lower uterine segment was paper thin. So while the repair work was being done during the initial C section, my uterus was accidentally sewn to the internal os of my cervix (basically sewing my cervix shut. No blood could get out. Ever. Even during a period.) Obviously this is bad and the fact that it was caught so early attests to the expertise of the doctors and nurses at Saddleback. It was a one in a million mistake and they could have easily dismissed it. During both surgeries, they placed 2 units of blood on hold for me in case I needed a blood transfusion. But between both procedures, I lost less blood than the average C section. So the fact that I didn't bleed too much could have been a reason to doubt any serious complication. Also, during the C section, Dr. Johnson said to be weary of 5th pregnancy but didn't count it out. During the 2nd surgery she was able to look at my anatomy with a much more critical eye and realize that my uterus and the surrounding anatomy is not as healthy as it once was due to scar tissues and another pregnancy could lead to serious or deadly outcomes.
So that was quite the ordeal. I was worried about starting over with the recovery process. It takes me longer than normal to metabolize the drugs they give me and it's super frustration. I'm thirsty and hungry and it's annoying not being able to move. But thankfully I was able to regain feeling in my toes by the end of the second surgery. They were sewing me up and I was starting to move my legs. All the nurses were so compassionate and kind to me. The pain was much worse this time around. Mostly from gas which had settled all over my abdomen and was hard to move around. But Ella is so sweet. She nursed like a champ from the moment we first tried and she is my first baby to not lose over 10% of her body weight in the hospital!
That first night was a blur. We were all exhausted. We snuggled down the best we could and we're relieved the next morning when my IV, catheter, and foot pumps could finally be taken off. I took a shower and felt so much better. Then another scary thing happened. Our knock knock burglar came back!
I got a notification on my phone that someone was at the door and it was a suspicious looking man. I called 911 but since we were in Orange County they told me to call 411 to get the riverside country sheriffs office. So I did all that and tanner talked to the deputy and was able to email over the footage of the would be criminal. Apparently he'd hit about 5 other homes in eastvale before casing ours. All he did was walk up to the door and walk away. I don't know if he heard the kids inside or saw that we have signs stating he was on camera. But he left and I hope and pray he never comes back. That really threw me threw a loop and made it hard to bask in baby delight.
But a little while later Kassidy and Bridger came with Rayleigh and Jack and they were able to meet baby Ella for the first time. Jack was tired and a little confused. But Rayleigh was so happy!! She loves Ella so much and was so thrilled to give her kisses and hugs and tell her she loves her. It was the sweetest thing. They kept their visit short and tanner took them to lunch while my mom and Parker stayed with me. I slept for a super long time which I really needed. It was nice having my mom there to take care of me and the baby. There's nothing like a mother's touch.
Later, cami brought jessi by to meet the baby. But I happened to be feeding her so they didn't get to hold her. But it was nice to have them come by! And my friend Taylor from way back to Valencia had a baby girl, Poppy, the day before I had Ella! So she walked over to my room to say hi and meet Ella and then I walked over to her room and met her baby! That was so fun and such a neat experience! Taylor is so cute and fun! She's always been such a great friend! So fun to experience this special time of life with someone you've known for almost your entire life!
Saturday was a better day because I was finally able to pass that gas! I know that sounds gross but the gas pains were FAR worse than the incision pains. I didn't want to take the pain meds because they slow the peristalsis action in your bowels which would make passing the gas harder. But then I was in SO much pain that I couldn't hardly walk around or do anything to get the gas to move on its own. It was rough. But we got through that!
Tanner felt compelled to go home and check on the kids and the house so while my mom was with me, he ran home. Robyn came over and brought me the cutest clothes and a Nothing Bunt Cake. She's the best! Kari came too and had a sweet little visit with the baby. Taylor walked over again with her mom and Poppy and so we were able to have a little visit with our moms and our babies! 3 generations each! What a wonderful experience! Things were looking up and we were given the option to return home Sunday evening. But I still wasn't feeling totally strong enough to do that.
Sunday was nice. It was calm and peaceful. I was feeling better and enjoying my new baby girl. My mom came over after church and tanner was able to slip away and get something to eat. We rested and relaxed and basked in new baby bliss. Sunday evening, my mom and dad and Parker came over and we had a really nice visit with them. Jon and Laura were able to squeeze in just before visiting hours were over and meet baby Ella too. She is a very loved little girl!
After everyone had left for the night and we were settled in, the nurse came in to remove my staples and once again we ran into a problem. My incision had opened up about 10cm in length and was bleeding. We had to call in the doctor on call and do a minor procedure to suture up the layers that had opened up. Clearly this set us back a bit and more pain was headed my way. We weren't sure at this point if we would still be able to go home the next morning. But we got lucky and we were cleared to take our new baby home!
We cleaned up and packed up and stepped outside only to find the world shrouded in shadow! A rare solar eclipse which only happens every 90 years was happening at the exact time we were exiting the hospital! Talk about divine timing! We made a joke that Ella's presence eclipsed even the eclipse! It was a unique and phenomenal thing to witness though and made for a very eventful discharge!
Ella did great on the journey home. Thank goodness she likes the car! Kassidy and bridger had to leave before we arrived home to catch a cruise from Long Beach but they left the house immaculate and we cannot thank them enough for taking such good care of our little ones while we were away and under such sensitive circumstances. My mom brought Parker home and they were all there waiting for us, coloring a welcome home sign, when we walked in. I got settled upstairs and then we let the kids come up and see their baby sister. Rayleigh is smitten, Jack is thoughtfully aware, and Parker is thrilled. I love being home in my nice new bed which is much more comfortable than the hospital bed. My mom and tanner took care of everything while I rested upstairs. Courtney brought dinner. I am blessed with an extraordinary village.
This delivery did not go according to plan by any means but we are all healthy and happy. The priesthood blessing I received truly gave me strength. Ella is perfect from head to toe and I am healing quickly. How grateful I am for modern medicine. And for the miracle of life. I love nothing more in this world than snuggling a new born baby fresh from heaven. Truly there is nothing better in heaven or on earth. I love how she snuggles her head against my neck and I can hear her tiny breaths in my ear. I love her full head of soft dark hair and alert bright eyes. I love each and every one of her long fingers and toes, her cute button nose, and her soft pouty lips. Her cheeks are full and her legs are strong and long. Her skin is soft and beautiful. I could not love a tiny human more. All 4 of my children are precious gifts from God. They are all unique and individual and have each come with a specific and divine mission. They have each been endowed with gifts and talents to use while on earth to bless their families and those around them. I am so proud of each and every one of them and feel so deeply indebted to my Heavenly Father for sending them down to me to rear and raise them in righteousness. My arms are full and so is my heart.
Thursday morning before we left for the hospital
And just like that, she's here!
Parker was able to hold Ella for a nice long time while I was in surgery. Then he and my mom went shopping. My mom was so nervous about me. She wanted Parker to be happy and not worried about me either...
Finally!!! Let the cuddling commence!
Everyone was tired after a long day
I have 4 kids!!!!
Ella SueAnn and her Nanny SueAnn. They are bonded.
It was so awesome seeing Taylor and meeting her sweet baby girl! What a treasure to share such a sacred experience with someone I've known most of my life!
First office play date for Ella and little Poppy!
She loves her Nanny.
Tanner spent most of the time in the hospital with ants in his pants or being sleepy. ha ha
Best big brother!
And the other best big brother!
The Solar Eclipse!
Time to go home!
What a unique way to enter the world and see the sun for the first time! My little Ella is truly something special!
The Welcome Home sign the kids colored. So sweet!
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