Conner made his arrival into this world much earlier than anticipated! I tried to post from the hospital, but their wireless signal was not strong enough. Therefore, I'll backtrack a little and give a brief synopsis of the events leading up to Conner's arrival.
I had some back pains Wednesday evening but was able to get them to go away and thought this was just something I was going to have to deal with for the rest of my pregnancy. Then while at work on Thursday the pains returned even stronger. I called the doctor's office and they told me to head to the hospital since my doctor was actually there on call. Based on my description of the pain, the nurse thought it might have been some sort of infection or possibly a kidney stone.
Wes met me at the hospital. When they hooked me up to the machines it was pretty evident that the back pains were really contractions. Then the doctor checked me out and gave us the news that my water bag had been ruptured. It was most likely a slow leak and possibly had been like that for a few days without me even knowing. I knew this was not good news, and after an emotional moment accepted the fact that we would not be leaving the hospital until we had a baby. The best case scenario was that he would hold out until 34 weeks (I had just reached 32 weeks Thursday) and they would induce at that time.
We joked with the doctor that we were supposed to be going to our birthing class on Saturday - she said we would get a crash course on Friday from a nurse. The contractions went away Thursday night and I woke up feeling good Friday morning. I took a shower and cleaned up while Wes got some things ready and was considering going into the office. As a walked back to the bed the contractions hit again - really hard this time. I'm not sure Wes believed me, but I knew the baby was coming - I could feel him. They called the doctor right away but couldn't give me anything for the pain since nothing had been called in for me. The doctor arrived within a few minutes (although it seemed longer) and said I was already 7 cm dilated and we were having a baby very shortly. She said my body most likely labored all night and I didn't know it.
Everything was pretty much a whirlwind. I was in pain and the doctor confirmed what I already assumed. There was no time for an epidural! I knew he was coming out at any minute. They wheeled me down the hall to the operating room (since he would be a preemie) and three quick pushes later, Conner Joseph Kubesch arrived. He was born at 8:25 am, weighed 4 lbs 9.6 oz. and was 17 inches long. This is just a reminder to be careful what you wish for - I had wished for a quick labor and got one - but with no pain medication!
I didn't even get to hold him. They whisked him away, but brought him back after a little bit so that I could at least touch his hand before they took him to the NICU.
Unfortunately, Conner is going to have to stay in the NICU for a little while. Their best guess at the moment is 4 - 6 weeks, but it really depends on his development. His lungs are not yet fully developed, but he is doing really well. The doctor said we are lucky he was such a big baby for 32 weeks, however, as we have said all along, we think our due date was off. He was breathing on his own right away. They placed a dome over his head that provides for a higher concentration of oxygen than we normally need. Yesterday his oxygen readings were at 36% and the air we normally breathe is 21%. We received a really good report from the doctor this morning. He was breathing better today and they lowered the concentration in the hood to 26%. When it reaches 21%, they will be able to take off the hood and hopefully we will be able to hold him.
That has been the hardest part - we have not yet held him and are not supposed to touch him. Touching stimulates his lungs which is not helpful for his breathing. Overall, he is doing well and we will keep everyone updated. Thank you to everyone for all of your kind thoughts and prayers!
