and now we have a BABY!

So, my internal oven must be extra warm...or these babies of ours must have extra warm thermostats...because they like to try to get here at 32 weeks!  With that, Justin, Gracie and I would like to announce that...

Preston Dean Huntsman 
was born via cesarean section on Friday October 26, 2012 at 5:51 am!

He is here and doing well, all things considered. He came into this world 8 weeks earlier than planned, weighing 4 lb 6 oz and measuring 17 inches long. He has a full head of dark hair and he is as handsome as ever! As for the rest of the "birth story" I figured it might be fun to document how everything happened.

So, yesterday (Thursday) I continued to contract all day. They came pretty frequently for most of the day -- either 6-8 minutes apart or 8-10 minutes apart. They weren't unbearable but they were there. The magnesium made me feel a little off, but it seemed better this time around than it did with Gracie. I did feel that it blurred or skewed my vision and made my legs feel like a rag doll, but with Gracie I feel like the side effects were much worse. 

My contractions started to get fairly intense last night. Mom and Gracie came to visit. At one point, mom was on the phone with Marianne Cady and they were talking about the fact that the baby was breech. Marianne said that with one of her pregnancies, she would lay on her back with her legs and hips elevated -- that it was something to try to see if the baby would turn. I was ready to try anything to avoid the c-section. Right then, Dr. Cox came in to answer some of our questions regarding c-sections and risks of trying to turn the baby by version at this point, etc. He is great and has great bedside manners - definitely not a doctor that makes you feel stupid for asking any questions. Basically he discussed with us that the plan was to let me continue to contract and if I had dilated to a 5 when they checked me next, they would take me in for surgery. 

Going back to mom's conversation with Marianne Cady, I decided to ask Dr. Cox if he had ever heard of that technique to get a baby to flip and he said "of course, it's an old midwifery technique!" I asked him if I could try it and he said he had no problem with me trying it -- especially to get any pressure off of my cervix. So, I turned around in the bed and got situated. I stayed like that for about 30 minutes and decided I was feeling a little too much rush of blood to the head, haha. But it made for some great pictures!

Trying to get the baby to turn out of the breech position...Justin
thinking he is funny by testing my reflexes over and over!

 We settled down around 11:30pm when my dad called and asked if he could come over to visit. It was good to have him there - between contractions I helped him list his 4-wheeler on KSL and Craigslist, haha. Way to multitask! Dad left around 1:30am and I told the nurses that my contractions were a lot more painful. They said that Dr. Cox was in the middle of a c-section but that he was going to come in to check me between his surgeries. 

By now, it was officially Friday October 26th. Dad left around 2am (we are night owls, that's for sure!) Justin and I tried to sleep, but contractions made that a little difficult. Dr. Cox came in between surgeries to check me around 3am. I was dilated to a 4 and 100 percent effaced. He said that if I was dilated to a 5 by 5am, then we would go in for the c-section. I was able to sleep for a couple bits of time between contractions from 3am to 5 am. They slowed down to about 20 minutes apart, but they were super intense! The resident OB Dr. Johnson checked me at 5am and said that I was dilated to 5 plus some....The nurses and staff started their routine quickly and got me prepped for the c-section. Sterling's football teammate, Tanner Moore's mom Tammy was working and was awesome. She helped me make it through the spinal block - letting me lean all of my weight into her while the anesthesiologist did his job. That was NOT a fun experience. I literally felt the most nauseous I've felt during my entire pregnancy as he was doing the spinal. I thought I was going to lose my dinner, but luckily I didn't!  Once it was finally in, I was amazed at how quickly it started working! They laid me down, Justin came in next to my head and Dr. Cox and Dr. Johnson started the section. 

All suited up and ready to watch the surgery

At one point as Justin was watching (he was pretty intrigued watching the whole thing and Dr. Cox was awesome to answer the questions he had during the surgery), he looked down at me and said "don't regret any of this" - basically telling me to not stress about the fact that I had to have a c-section. I have been so adamant about having my babies "naturally" with no drugs. I'm grateful I had that experience with Gracie. As much as I wish things could have been different with this pregnancy, things happened as they did and there was nothing I could change about it. And it was the best scenario for our baby considering he was coming 2 months early and he was breech. I know that women give birth to breech babies, and that it's possible to do so "naturally" however the fact that things could have stressed the baby even more had we tried that route wasn't worth the risk. I really feel at peace knowing that the c-section was what needed to happen and that even though it's possible that future pregnancies may involve c-sections, I am completely at peace with how it all happened! (although I have talked to other women who have had VBACs with Dr. Cox as their OB...)



      



Preston was born at 5:51 am, weighing 4 lb 6 oz, and measuring 17 inches long. Dr. Cox held him up over the drape for a quick second so that I could see my handsome little guy and then they quickly handed him through the window to the adjoining NICU. 

First official picture! 

I told Justin to go in with him while the Dr's finished the c-section and stitched me up. 

 

What a handsome little guy!

 I was taken to the recovery room while my spinal block wore off and then they wheeled my bed into the NICU where I was able to see more of my handsome guy. I still wasn't able to hold him but I was able to put my hand into his little bed and hold his hand!  He was put on a little bit of room air to help his sats go up, but other than that, they said he was looking great! 

A little emotional -- getting to hold his hand for the first time a few hours after the surgery

I pretty much lost it and was super emotional! He is perfect! I'm so happy that he arrived safely and that he is in good hands in the NICU. It's amazing how much love is in my heart for this new little addition to our family and also how much my love has increased for Justin and Gracie! Wow! 

Today I slept most of the day. I was soooo exhausted and it was so hard to keep my eyes open! Grandpa and Ruby stopped by this afternoon. They brought some pretty flowers as well as a gift for Preston and Gracie. Casie and mom and dad came a little while ago. It has been a long day. When Casie came by, I was on the phone with the insurance company and Norco trying to get a breast pump arranged for delivery and they were putting me through the run around. I lost it over the phone and was an emotional mess! The tears wouldn't stop flowing! Casie had to remind me that I just had a baby and the hormones and emotions were all out of wack! I'm glad she was there!  

Justin wheeled me into the NICU tonight and I was able to hold my baby for the first time! What joy! He is perfect in every way and so adorable! Justin and I loved on him for about a half hour before we had to put him back into his warm isolette. 

 

 I am so happy that Preston is here. I'm relieved that he is healthy even with being 2 months early! I know it's going to be a crazy couple of weeks/months coming up with 4-5 visits per day to the NICU to feed him as well as juggling things at home with a busy beautiful Gracie, but I feel blessed to be the mother of this perfect little guy! Gracie won't be able to physically see him until he is discharged from the hospital, which breaks my heart. But as soon as he is off his IV, we can unhook him from his monitors and bring him to the door and show him to Gracie through the window. I think right now she is trying to figure things out, especially since she can't see him yet! We can't wait for that day!

my babies must have made a pact in heaven ;)

{I realize some of my posts lately have been more on the edge of the "To Much Information" type...

however, my main goal in blogging and posting pictures is to be able to better create a family 

journal for our small family and keep my close family members who live far away informed 

with what is going on in our crazy lives! The following is kind of lengthy, but enjoy!!}

So....I am sitting here in the hospital....once again. Yesterday morning around 10:30, I thought I felt a contraction coming on. It came and went and then another one came about 12 minutes later. I decided I better start timing them just in case they decided to continue. They went on for about an hour, every 7-12 minutes and so we decided to call the midwives. 

Patty had me take a second dose of my Nifedipine and then watch to see if they calmed down for the next two hours. Needless to say, they didn't stop. They slowed down for about an hour and then picked up again. I gave her a call back, she contacted Dr. Kim Cox to consult with him, and they decided to have me come up to Labor and Delivery to hook me up to the monitors once again. She said that if there was no change with my cervix, they would just monitor me and try another medication. If my cervix had changed, then they would hook me up to the magnesium sulfate IV drip for 48 hours which is the last resort when it comes to trying to stop contractions. 

So, Justin and I quickly packed our bags and headed up to L&D (at least this time, we came with some things to do in the hospital room AND we knew where we were going!). The nurses hooked me up to the monitors where it showed my contractions and then Patty came in and checked me and told me that I was dilated to a 2 already. She talked to Dr. Cox who then came in and said that the plan was to hook me up to magnesium to see if they couldn't stop the contractions. I was on a magnesium drip for 48 hours with Gracie and it was MISERABLE! It made me extremely hot, skewed my vision, made my legs feel like a rag doll....crazy stuff! At least I knew a little bit about what to expect! 

Dr. Cox also talked to us about the fact that the baby is breech. Because he is still so early, they will not attempt to do any aversion (movement on the outside of my stomach) to get him to flip the right way. If they were to try and do that this early, the likelihood of going into labor is extremely high. So, if contractions continue and if the baby is indeed coming, and he DOESN'T miraculously flip before then, we will be anticipating a C-section. I've really dreaded that thought, however I think I've come to terms that whatever will be will be and getting this baby here safe (should he decide to come NOW) is really the only thing that is important. So, I guess we will see. 

 

At 4:15 yesterday, they started the mag and did a loading dose of 6 grams with 2 grams every hour after that. That loading dose was intense. I literally felt like my blood was boiling! Justin said that I didn't feel hot to the touch, but I could just feel my insides burning. Luckily, that only lasted about 45 minutes and then it tapered off. SO FAR, the 2 g/hour hasn't been bad. I haven't been hot (although Justin does have the room temp down to 50 degrees in here and he is freezing....poor guy!), but I have started to notice today that my vision is a bit more skewed and when I get up to use the restroom, I have to think about my legs. The next 24 hours are going to get interesting! They gave me a second dose of the Betamethazone steroid that they gave me 2 weeks ago. They call this dose a "rescue dose" that is given to help the baby's lungs again, just in case he comes early. Every little bit helps when dealing with possible preemies. 

After they gave me the loading dose of mag, the contractions pretty much stopped for 45 minutes. They started coming on pretty regularly from 5-6:30pm, about 3-4 minutes apart. After that they began to slow down to about 7-10 minutes apart. The last contraction I remember having was around midnight. I then fell asleep and didn't notice any contractions, at least any that woke me up. The nurse said she could see a few small ones on the monitor throughout the night.

This morning, the first contraction that I noticed was around 8:40 am. They have been coming fairly consistently since then about every 10 minutes apart. We spoke with Dr. Cox this morning -- the plan is to see where my contractions are at tomorrow afternoon when they take me off magnesium. If they have slowed down or stopped, there is a chance that they could send me home on Saturday. However, because the contractions have kept coming WHILE being on magnesium, the chance that they will stop after being off magnesium is not that good. But, it's like the nurse said -- every situation is different. They have seen everything! For this baby's sake, we will keep praying that the contractions stop so that he can have all the time he needs to grow and develop! 

Speaking of growing and developing, we received good news yesterday when the ultrasound technician came in and did an ultrasound on the baby. She said that she is measuring him at 4 lb 12 oz and measuring me at 33 weeks and 4 days. This was GREAT news!! Obviously, as she said, it's very subjective and they like to give themselves about a pound leeway and 2 weeks leeway on how I'm measuring. BUT, even if he was on the higher end of 3 and even just over 4 lbs right now, that would be a decent weight should he decide to come early! Gracie was 4 lb 2 oz and although she was in the NICU for 3 weeks, she did really well. They say that baby boys don't do as well as pre-term baby girls...they just struggle a bit more. So, the bigger he his, the better! 

Justin and I just have to laugh during all of this. We are pretty sure our babies must have made pacts with each other up in heaven before they came to join our family. Gracie probably told Preston "Okay, I'm going to give mom and dad a hard time and get to earth EARLY! Just to stir things up! You have to promise to do the same thing!" Our kids WOULD do something like that :)

Of course we are a little worried. However, we have both felt at peace on so many levels -- the fact that we know a little bit more about all of this routine -- the mag, the pre-term possibilities, the NICU possibilities. We have felt at peace with the good care we are receiving -- the fact that Dr. Cox is friends of the family and was there when Gracie was born [ALTHOUGH, he is leaving town tomorrow morning with his daughter, so he won't be around IF we have to deliver this weekend.....even at that, I feel good with the doctors that are on call. I haven't met them yet, but from what I have heard from others who know them, I feel a little more at ease]. We feel at peace with knowing that if this baby comes, he will be small and he will have to be in the NICU, but we feel that I have had a healthy pregnancy and things will happen how they are supposed to. Dad and Justin were able to give me another priesthood blessing last night and I just felt an overwhelming sense of peace and comfort! We are blessed to have the priesthood in our lives and to literally feel the blessings that it can bring! 

Not the most flattering picture....but we are still smiling (and a little flushed from the mag!!) 

little brother love

Gracie doing what she does best....loving on her baby Preston :) She loves giving him loves and tickles. 

I just hope and pray that she loves him this much when he is REALLY here!!

it's hard to get mad....

Justin was a patient dad for an hour and a half....taking Gracie back to her room time after time after time when she would come out (we are working on getting her to sleep in her own room thing....we were doing fairly good and then things seemed to digress rapidly after I got put on bedrest two weeks ago). After about an hour and a half, we didn't hear any crying, and so we assumed she had given up the ghost. Justin finished up with the dishes and then went into our room to find this....she had snuck into our room, got herself under a blankie, and fell asleep next to our bed with the lights a blaring....oh sweet Gracie girl! What are we ever going to do with you?!

breech baby....blessing in disguise (at least for now!)

I had my weekly ultrasound and appointment with my midwives today. The ultrasound today showed a good picture of the funneling (that was hard to see in last week's ultrasound, even though we knew it was there). It also showed that my cervix was still less than 1cm in length. There hasn't been much change from 2 weeks ago, when I first went on bedrest, so that is good. However, it is still short and funneled. Not good! (But obviously it's not going to close or get longer!) So....the order of bedrest stands....dang it! (Not that I was expecting them to tell me I could "go off" bedrest, but it was a nice thought, no!?)

After the ultrasound, I met with Patty, one of the nurse midwives. Baby is growing well and they are pleased with all other aspects of my pregnancy, aside from the shortening cervix. This little guy is breech (he has been  for the last 12 weeks, at least...when we had our first ultrasound). I've complained here and there to Justin about the baby being breech because my upper belly is SOOOOOOOO tight and I think it's made heartburn that much worse. (I'm not sure if Gracie was ever breech, and if she was, I'm not sure when she turned.....All I remember with her is that her feet were in my ribs for the last few weeks before she came! Not that having my ribs poked and prodded was necessarily any better than a big head pushing up against them!) After talking to Patty today, she said something that I had actually been thinking just yesterday. She said that maybe it's a little blessing that he is breech right now because it means less pressure (from a big head!) pounding on my cervix. This could be the little blessing that we need right now to keep less pressure off and keep him in longer. I will deal with the heartburn and the TIGHT tummy for now....and just pray that before it is his time to join us that he WILL turn!! 

As for some more updates about what's been going on in the Huntsman household, we were blessed to have Jenn come and visit us for the weekend to keep us company! Gracie ADORES her and we think she's pretty great ourselves! (We are hoping and praying and crossing our fingers that she gets a job HERE sometime SOON!!) 

While she was here, she and Justin and Gracie took a trip to the park, ran errands, Jenn made an awesome dinner Saturday night, we played a few rousing rounds of SkipBo, ate lots of treats, watched lots of football (or should we say, watched JUSTIN watch football, hehe) and just enjoyed her company! We are so glad she's our sister and aunt and can't wait to see her again, hopefully soon!

Gracie got lots of Jenn snuggles in....and probably monopolized Jenn's phone to play with the talking kitty apps more than Jenn probably wanted :) Good things she's patient and loves Gracie! 

cheese ball baby

Some people's kids watch cartoons and eat cereal on Saturday mornings. 

Mine is watching football and eating cheese balls. Typical ;) 

Aunt Jenn came into town last night and brought Gracie the big container of cheese balls....all for herself. Gracie was ecstatic, to say the least!

my dish towel princess

Oh, the imagination....Gracie grabbed a dish towel and said "it's a princess one" and then asked Justin to tie it around her. She walked around saying "I'm a princess!" She is definitely our little princess!

our mo-jo has been thrown off!

Mama being put on bedrest has thrown off all of our mo-jo! With the re-arrangement of the furniture, our love seat got stowed away in Gracie's bedroom. She has a foam pad set up in our bedroom next to my side of the bed, and she has been sleeping there every night for the last week and a half. I think that even if we were to set up a makeshift bed in her room with the couch in there, she would still be in our room. I think the disruption in our lives has caused a little more emotional upheaval in her life than I had anticipated. Nothing that we all can't handle, and nothing that will cause permanent damage (hopefully!) but a change nonetheless! She is a tender heart and loves being with her mama and her daddy. 

Looking at these pictures makes me chuckle, thinking back on the post I wrote literally the day before being put on bedrest....So much for accomplishing all of those things. She has been sleeping in our bedroom (at least not in our bed) more than she did before. We have put potty training on the back burner as that is one thing that Justin doesn't need to be focusing on with everything else he has on his plate right now. And, I think her dependence (and ours, let's be honest!) on the binky has probably increased in the last week. Oh well. We are healthy and happy and love each other. Potty training will happen. Binkies will disappear. At least we are surviving this together! 

bedrest beauties and updates

I'm not sure I would be able to survive bedrest without this little peanut to keep me company! I'm so blessed to be her mama and sooooo blessed that she seems to adore me and wants to just snuggle on this makeshift bed in the living room! She keeps me entertained, and I'm learning that being forced to slow down is probably what I needed with her. We've spent a lot of time on this bed, reading books, watching cartoons, taking care of her babies, eating snacks. She's a trooper! 

I had an ultrasound and appointment with my midwives this morning. During the ultrasound, they basically said that things are not any worse (how's that for helpful!?). It was weird because technically the ultrasound showed that my cervix was looking "better" (longer/thicker and not funneled). But, the technician also said that the views they get from week to week are fairly subjective (depending on a variety of factors....pressure on the cervix like a fuller bladder, or a contraction or whatever it may be). Essentially, my cervix has not gotten longer or the funneling has not closed back up, it was just the view they happened to get today. The fact of the matter is that my cervix was indeed less than 1 cm thick last week with significant funneling, and so  they will go off of that. This week's pictures basically just helped everyone see that things aren't any worse (which is good!)

They said that the baby is growing right on track and that everything else looks good. I'm still on strict bedrest and still taking Nifedipine every 6 hours. Bedrest has been interesting, to say the least. So far, it hasn't been TERRIBLE, but it's just been weird. It's weird not being able to get up to grab whatever I need. It's weird watching Justin do EVERYTHING -- cooking, cleaning, taking care of Gracie, laundry, making the bed, picking up. He has been so good to just pick up where I left off. I feel guilty at times that he has this burden to add to his already full schedule with school and work, but he has not complained. In fact, he has made sure that I stay laying down. I feel so grateful for a husband who loves me and our baby so much to take on all of these extra responsibilities!

We have also been so blessed with the help and support of family and friends close by. Aunt Casie is taking Gracie Monday afternoons. Mom has her Tuesday afternoons, Heidi Payne has offered to take her Thursday afternoons and the inbetween days have filled up with other friends from the ward who have offered to help with her to make things easier on me and Justin. I'm not going to lie though -- "farming" her out to other people's houses has probably been one of the hardest things for me! Going from having her with me everyday to not having her with me everyday has been quite the transition! It's amazing how much I love her and miss her during the day when she is gone!

Other than that, things are good. I've probably spent more than my fair share time on Pinterest pinning all sorts of things (especially food that is making me wish I could get up and try some new recipes!). I started a new book series that Justin has been raving about called "The Great and the Terrible" by Chris Stewart (which is awesome!). People have come over to visit. Casie and I started the second season of Downton Abbey (looking forward to finishing it with her!)....I've got a good list of things that I need to get done via computer before this baby comes, so hopefully I can just take advantage of this time and get it all done!

My next ultrasound appointment is next Monday, so hopefully we'll have good news then as well! I will technically be 32 weeks at that appointment which is how far along I was when I started labor with Gracie. A little nerve-racking, but I have faith that this medication is working at keeping my contractions at bay and this baby will stay put longer than Gracie girl did!

kanga-woos and kanga-woo pockets

Ever since I was in the hospital last week when Grandma read Gracie a story about mama kangaroos and their pockets that they hold their babies in, Gracie has been OBSESSED with Kangaroos! I think almost everyday she has asked me where my "kanga-woo pocket" is and then proceeds to stuff one of her baby dolls down the front of my shirt or her shirt (aka "pocket").

Well, I was on Facebook, and there is this Facebook page for those in Southeastern Idaho who have stuff to sell (kind of like a local Craigslist of sorts). My sister-in-law Jordon emailed me and informed me there was a woman selling a toddler Kangaroo costume for $12. I was SOLD! We picked it up while they were in Utah at the Tough Mudder and when she got back last night, it was LOVE at first sight! 

Here's a preview to Halloween. Isn't she the cutest little kanga-woo ever??!

slumber party with the parents

So, last night I had the opportunity that probably MOST 29 year old married women do not have the joy of experiencing....I had a sleepover - in my parents room - with both of my parents. Yep. We watched an awesome documentary called God Grew Tired of Us, ate sushi and just had a blast! Justin and Gracie were in Utah for the weekend and mom insisted that I stay with them, in their room, so they could take care of me while on bedrest (I have awesome parents!) 

Earlier this year, Justin signed up to run in the Tough Mudder mud race/run in Tooele, UT. 

Tough Mudder = INTENSE obstacle laden mud run!! 12 miles with around 25 British Special force-type obstacles. INSANE!!  We (Justin, Gracie and I) were planning on going down to Utah together for the event until bedrest orders were given earlier this week. Justin debated whether or not he should go....I told him I would support him either way. The last thing I wanted was for my bedrest situation to hold him back and honestly, I would be taken care of at home should he go. But I know he was torn -- knowing that he would kick himself if something were to happen to me and he was gone (I was FAIRLY confident nothing would happen to me....it would just be another uneventful day of me laying around!). Well, he decided to go in the end. I think he was excited to go down and see his Utah friends whom he hadn't seen in a long time and excited (in a weird sort of way) to run in the race. 

So, last night, Justin took Gracie along with Johnny, Whitney and Sterling and headed down to Utah. Last night they stayed at Kam & Janzyn Savages home and this morning they got up to run at 8:20am. Gracie spent the day bonding with Aunt Whitney and cousin Lexi. She seemed to have a good day! 

The boys all did amazing! Justin was a champion. His legs started cramping at mile 6 but he pushed on through until mile 11 where he physically could not move anymore (some volunteers pulled him to the side and tried to break through his calf cramps for 10 minutes to no avail :( He was pretty bummed but HONESTLY, the night before the race, it was scheduled to be only 10 miles and then the event coordinators changed it to 12 miles. So, really he went even further than he had planned on since he signed up for the race! I'm super proud of him and glad he can sign that one off his bucket list! 

The boys are on their way home right now, but here are some pics (courtesy of Lexi Adams) that she posted to Facebook. Looks intense, right?! Wish I could have been there to see it first hand!

And the madness begins!!!

Justin exiting the "Arctic Enema".....a big pool filled with ICE and a little bit of water! 

Johnny and Sterling in one of the many mud filled obstacles!

He looks so HAPPY (or cold!) 

One of the Electro-Shock-Therapy obstacles....apparently this obstacle had NOT been working very well (or strongly, should I say) for a while. I guess right as Justin was going through it, the event people got a couple of new generators hooked up to it and it went on FULL BLAST! Poor guys! Those little wires just shock you (10,000 volts) and the guys said it just knocks you to the ground like a hammer! WHOA!

Sterling and Cees trying to NOT get shocked!

Sterling trying his luck at getting up the muddy, wet and greased half pipe

DONE! What a bunch of BEASTS! 

Brothers from another mother -- so glad these two met in Iowa!! 

Gosh, he's handsome! So proud of you Justin Dean!

And as for this little one -- isn't she CUTE??? She is wearing the same jacket mom sewed for me when I was Gracie's age! It's probably one of my favorite jackets ever! 

thursday night date

Ben & Jerry's + vice presidential debate + hanging with my handsome hubby and beautiful baby girl = a positive start to a few more weeks on bedrest....thanks babe!

babies anxious for babies

Jordon and the girls came over to visit us today. Gracie and Ele had to show us their "babies" in their tummies. I think they are both a little excited to have their real baby siblings join the family in the next couple of weeks! (Little do they know how much their worlds will be rocked!) Aren't they cute?!