May 2012

In the end of April and Early May Patrick really seemed to be interested in sucking his thumb. In the first pic you can see he is in the position!!! The next couple of pics is Daddy & Patrick snoozing together! This is the gift Mr. Patrick gave me for Mother's Day!!! I love my little man!!!

April 2012

Our growing boy!!! Patrick James Hummel!

March 2012

Wow, do I feel behind or what?!?!?! Here are some pics of Patrick in March. Hard to believe he was this little!

Patrick James Hummel

Patrick's 1st week pics

36 wk Check Up

On wednesday Feb. 22nd I had my 36 wk check up with Dr. Neidhart. We got in and got my weight checked and then we headed back to the room to check my blood pressure and get on with my first internal exam. The nurse checked my blood pressure and said it was high and that she would talked to Dr. Neidhart before she came in to see us. I was a little worried at first because I also had some wicked swollen feet and legs and have seen some spots in my vision. So back came in the nurse and she said Dr. Neidhart wanted to do a non-stress test to see how the baby is doing. Well they hooked me up and I had to squeeze this button when I felt the baby move...well after 10 minutes or so they unhooked me and put me back in the room so I could wait to talk to Dr. Neidhart. They checked my blood pressure again and it was still pretty high. Well about 10-15 minutes later Dr. Neidhart FINALLY CAME IN. She sat down and even before she said a word I was ALREADY FREAKING OUT...she told me she apologized for the appt taking so long but with all my symptoms ranging from my high blood pressure, my swollen feet, headaches, spotty visions and pains in my side I had Severe Preeclampsia and that we had to go straight to the hospital for an induction. Mind you I just barely got started on my bag for the hospital and Patrick's bag was as ready as it could be! Alright now my heart is racing....how could I let my self get this sick!!! So before we left she wanted to do an internal exam and do a quick ultrasound to see if he was head up or down. With a quick exam...I was completely closed up and he was head down. We quickly headed over to the hospital but before arriving we called our parents. We arrived to the hospital at about 5:30 and headed up to the birth suites and they got me in to a triage room and got me all hooked up. After about 2 hrs and several phone calls to our family and our bosses telling them what was going on we finally were admitted to our birth suite. I was most excited to use the shower....after daydreaming about it after our Tour of the hospital the Sunday before! Thank goodness we got that tour in before our induction. So they had me on magnesium to lower my blood pressure or at least try because my blood pressure was elevated the whole time in the hospital. So the next day the doctors check me and I was still closed up so they decided to put this balloon inside and eventually it would get bigger and dilate me and then would eventually pop out. A few hrs later they started the pitocin and then about 5 hrs later possibly more the balloon FINALLY pooped out. About 15 minutes later the on call OBGYN came in and checked to see how dilated I was and I was at 3...really only 3! During the next contractions...mind you I could feel them yet, he broke my water at about midnight and then I took a little snooze. After a hr or so of sleeping I finally could feel the contractions. I went about 2 hrs with contractions coming 1 after another and then I was ready for that epidural! Then the anesthesiologist came in and gave me the epidural. After I was given the epidural things started to get a little bit more scary because my back started to bleed where the catheter was put in. After all the bleeding stopped, I was finally able to get some much needed rest. I awoke about 9:30 and the nurse checked me and I was fully dilated. Thank goodness...mind you I was already exhausted since I had been in the hospital for over 30 plus hrs. Then after 2 hrs of pushing and an extra snip to help get him out...our baby boy Patrick James Hummel arrived. Patrick arrived on Friday Feb. 24th at Noon weighing 5 pds 10oz and measuring at 17 1/2 inches long. Well after weighing him and checking in on him they finally allowed me to see the little boy I had carried for 9 months. After a few minutes being able to kiss him and look at him they whisked him away to the NICU because of all the magnesium in his system. After being all stitched up...I had quite a few visitors. After about 30 minutes of visiting I needed some sleep and food but since I was still high on magnesium I had to wait 24 more hrs to eat. Neal was able to go visit Patrick while I slept. Mind you I havent ate since wed feb 22nd at 2 or so in the afternoon...so this new momma was a HUNGRY BEAR!!!! Finally at about midnight my blood pressure went down enough that I could finally eat something and drink some fluids. After a few bites of the nasty turkey sandwich and a few sips of diet pepsi I was able to finally use the restroom with out having to use a nasty bedpan. After using the bathroom I was whisked upstairs to our family care suites....mind you we werent truely a family because little Patrick was down in NICU and not with us :( The next morning I was finally able to meet and hold my little boy. He was definately worth all the pain! Sunday afternoon I was able to leave the hospital but little Patrick had a few more days in the NICU. Monday Feb. 27th Neal and I spent about 8 hrs visiting Patrick. We learned how to give him a bath, taught me how to breastfed and just gave us alot of info on our little boy. Patrick latched on right away and we have been doing very well breastfeeding since we started! On tuesday we waited for the phone call to tell us wheather or not we would be able to take our baby boy home. After noon I was too impatient and called the NICU and they gave us the go ahead to come get him! Well after a quick pump we headed over to Target to get some last minute stuff before we picked him up. We arrived to the NICU and a certain little boy was ready to eat...so we tried another round of breastfeeding before we were ready to discharge him. A few hrs later we got him ready in his cute going home outfit. So after 4 days in the NICU we were ready to take our baby boy home to meet his kitties!

36 wks Pregnant!!!

Today marks Neal and I at 36wks aka 9 MONTHS PREGNANT!!!! Scary to believe he will be here in about 4 weeks...I'm ok with going a smidge early but not too early! I have been feeling alot of pressure in my lower back, not sure what that means but I was thinking he is pushing against my spine and that is why it hurts so bad. I was busy putting groceries away today and was squatting putting the eggs and such away and then I stood up and felt this sharp pain in my lower back....boy oh boy did that not feel the greatest! I also have been noticing when I'm sitting in a chair or sitting on the floor with my babies at work....that I feel alot of sensation down yonder and lots of elbowing or kneeing. My hope is that Patrick is face down and that is why I get that sensation! I still havent had any leakage from my chest....I'm so worried that I wont make any milk supply to feed my baby boy, but I'm hoping in the next wk or so that all starts to change! Over the last wk and a half I have notice my socks and shoes are getting to be a bit tight on my feet, so needless to say my feet and ankles are starting to swell! I'm hoping the dr isnt concerned at my next check up on wednesday...b/c this mama needs to work as long as possible so we can make it when I'm on Maternity Leave! I had a baby shower this past wknd and boy did I feel special! The sweets, company & gifts were amazing! I also had a surprise baby shower at work on Thursday and boy is Patrick "almost" as spoiled as his mommy! Thanks to everyone who made it to the showers and those who gave us gifts! Neal and I recently had our Childbirth Class...I feel a bit more prepared with knowing all the breathing techniques, but I know that when the day comes I will probably forget everything I was taught! We also went to the Breastfeeding Class last monday night and boy I had no idea how difficult breastfeeding can be! I can see why so many people only do it for a short period of time and why alot of babies are bottle fed! Tomorrow Neal is getting off early so we can go tour the hospital. We meet a couple last Saturday at the Childbirth Class and we are also looking forward to spend another hr with them at the hospital. They are due 3 wks after our due date! Monday Neal is off and I am also off but have a training all day but after my training we have my Postpartum Class at the Hospital. Then on Wednesday we have our 36wk check up and my last appt that are 2 wks apart from the last one, and then we are gonna be visiting Dr. Neidhart every wk! A few hrs after our 36 wk check up we have our last class before Patrick comes...Caring for the Newborn! I think I'm pretty prepared since I've been working with infants for almost 9 yrs now but I may not know about keeping the belly button, the circumcision clean from infection and how to bath a newborn. So this class is mostly to teach Neal but also to freshen me up. So that is all I've been up to. Here are a few pics. I will take more pics of his baby room when it is all set up and clean!

Here is Patrick's Crib all set up minus the mattress and crib set.

Here is a few pics of my extra LARGE belly! Only 28 days left til we meet you!

34 wk Check Up

On Monday Neal and I had our 34 wk check up with Dr. Neidhart. We arrived just on time, but since as most of you know Pregnant Ladies have to pee all the time! So I asked Neal if he would check me in so I could quickly use the bathroom...mind you I pee'd prior to leaving the house which is only 15 minutes away! So they called my name and as usually they asked me nicely :) to step on the scale...150.4 pds....only 3 pds since my last check up appt 2 wks. Dr. Neidhart told us that she is actually on call the day of my due date...so here is hoping he decides to come into this world on that day so we can have our Ob "actually" deliver our baby! The only changes I have really started to notice is that my shoes are starting to feel a bit snug, my hands are aching more (possible swelling?), my back is aching more, my heartburn is in FULL SWING! and I'm having a hard time getting up of the couch, bed or floor! Mind you it is probably funny watching me doing a few crunches while trying to get up! Next wk we will be having the Capt. of the Fire/ EMS dept put in and inspect our carseat! Hard to believe that our backseat of our car won't be for storage use for much longer. On Saturday Neal & I have our Lamaze/Childbirth Class and it will also mark us 5 wks away from our due date! On Sunday Neal's mom is having a baby shower for me! I'm pretty excited to see all the cute gifts we get for our handsome boy! Well our next appt is on Wed. Feb 22nd @ 3:45, this will be my last 2 wks b/t appts! This appt I will be getting a Group B Strep Screen test and my 1st internal exam to tell us if Patrick is head up or head down! I can't wait for the next 2 wks to fly bye so I can find out, but I'm more excited to see him in about 5 wks!

Patrick James Hummel just shy of 35 wks!