Day 5

It's day 5 in the hospital, Tracey and I spent the night at Swedish in what they call a "parent room", which is like a hotel room for parents with children in intensive care. Ethan did just fine over the weekend and today is the day for a second round of tests to see how things have progressed. Ethan had a steady stream of visitors all weekend, grandma & grandpa, Dan and Martha, Laura, and Tom & Gloria.

Baby Has Arrived

Hello All,
Ethan Thomas Youngerman arrived at 11:42pm on Wed April 25th via c-section. Tracey had an Ultrasound and Doctor's appointment on Wed, after the ultrasound and a blood pressure measurement they sent us over to the childbirth center for non-stress test. The doctor came in after viewing the ultrasound and wanted to start the induction immediately. After receiving Petocin to start contractions, about an 1.5hrs later the doctor came in, looked at the charts, and said that the baby couldn't handle the stress of a long induction period and she was going to do a c-section immdiately. Within the hour Tracey was being rolled into the OR, I walked into the OR at 11:30pm, the baby was out at by 11:42pm, and Tracey was back in the room at 12:30am! The problems started with Ethan after birth, he didn't need any oxygen right away but after a short time his pulse-ox started dropping and they had to put him on oxygen. When Tracey visited him at 4:30 am he was at 50% oxygen. The oxygen had to go even higher than that later in the morning, so the decision was made to transfer him to Swedish Hospital immediately. By the time he left for Swedish, he was down to 40%.
The reason for moving him to Swedish was that they have an echo-cardiogram machine for infants and a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) that Northwest hospital didn't have. It turns out that the ultrasound radiologist had found an irregularity with Ethan's heart and the echo could investigate that further. Ethan's right ventricle heart wall is thicker than the rest of the heart muscle, which means that the right ventricle has had to work harder than the rest of his heart recently.
I went down to Swedish on Thursday afternoon and talked to the cardiologist. He could not find a valid cause for his condition. All of Ethan's other numbers were fine, there were no heart defects and he wasn't having any trouble breathing. I talked to some more doctors today and the theory is that there is an artery that is open when the baby is still in-utero which bypasses the heart and relieves pressure on the heart because the lung are filled with fluid. This artery naturally closes after birth and they think it closed sometime before birth which caused that part of the heart to have to work harder. The heart should get back normal operation in a few days, is the hope.
Ethan was moved out of the NICU and down to the Special Infant Care Unit, which is less serious, on Friday night.

A very disappointing Friday...

Well, the induction did not work. The medicine the doctor gave me did absolutely nothing to get things started in the right direction. We spent 9 hours in the hospital and NOTHING!

Needless to say how dissappointed I am. All those emotions running through me and to be told that I was being sent home was just heartbreaking. I was not expecting to come home right away, let alone without a baby in my arms.

Ethan is doing just fine...my blood pressure was fine, but it usually is when I am just lieing on my side. So, the doctor did not see any medical reason to pursue a c-section. I have some follow up appointments next week and if Ethan still decides he does not want to come out by next weekend, I *think* the doctor will then proceed with a c-section, because I will be one week overdue by then.

I hope things will work out better this next week.

Tomorrow is the day!

If everything goes according to plan - our little boy should be arriving tomorrow. Anxious, nervous, scared, excited....all words to describe my emotions these days.

Our bags are packed, phone lists are made, car seat and diaper bag already in the car. We are ready!

We will try and post information when we can - we may not be able to post anything until we arrive home. Hopefully we'll have a picture we can share with you as well.

Induction Scheduled!

Well, at my appointment today I was told that I was making progress.... 1 cm dilated / 80% effaced / -1 station. The doctor said she could feel the baby's head.

She did schedule my induction for next friday, April 20th. So, by next weekend Ethan Thomas should have made his debut! WOW! I can't believe it. That's right around the corner. Ready or not....here he comes!!

That's all I have for tonight. I'm pretty wiped out. I'll write again as soon as there is more to report.

No Baby Yet!!

Well, I went to my appointment on the 6th and no progress had been made, although baby's head is waaaayyy down. My doctor informed me that a C-Section might be an option if things didn't progress 'down there' naturally or even with medication. She absolutely will not let me go past my due date...and depending upon who you talk to at the hospital - that's either April 20th or April 24th. So, somewhere in there Ethan will be born, whether he is ready or not.

Of course my doctor would love to see the baby come on his own, but sometimes they need a little encouragement!! I'm prepared to serve him his eviction papers NOW! =)

I will know more this friday at my next appointment. Hopefully things are progressing a bit. I have my good days and my bad days. Yesterday was a good day - I got some chores done around the house. Today, so far, just not feeling that great. So, I will be cuddling with Kona and Archie. They do a wonderful job of taking care of me - as, of course, does Tom.

We are both very anxious now. I believe we have all the 'supplies' - we just need the baby!!

Well, I will write again when I know more. Keep checking back!

Coming Soon

Hello All,
Baby Ethan should be making his debut soon. Tracey will go to the doctor on Friday to see how she's doing. The Doctor will probably induce labor next week, as she is going on vacation the following week and wants to deliver the baby herself.