Meet Our Little Princess!

Brinley Eve Moser

Born July 26, 2010
5:52 pm

6lbs 2oz.- 19 inches

This is my sweet daughter Brinley. Brinley came into this world on HER terms!.

My due date was August 1st. She was born on July 26th. The week previous to the 26th I had had a doctors apt, where I was dialated to a 3. I thought AWESOME! She is going to be here before I know it! That doctors apt ended up being like 2 hours long hooked up to a monitor measuring her heart rate....seems my little girl did not want to wake up...they brought me juice to see if anything had changed....her heart wasn't doing what they wanted it to, so after being hooked up to that thing for 2 hours they gave me an ultra sound...she was just lazy lazy girl, but everything seemed to check out. The doctor did express some concern about a possible umbilical chord problem that wouldn't be detected on the ultra sound, she told me that if I don't feel 10 kicks in 2 hours to go to call, if it was after clinic hours to call the labor and delivery wing of the hospital. I said okay.

So I went home ate lunch, went on a much needed date with the hubba, saw a movie.....I was distracted, because I hadn't felt her all day, not once since the doctors office, We went to dinner and I drank like 3 cokes hoping that would hype her up so I could sleep that night......nothing. I went home feeling a little uneasy. It was 10pm (my apt that morning was 10:30 am) I had hardly felt a thing, I didn't want to be one of those crazy moms that just goes to the hospital just to get sent home...but I was starting to worry a little, so I called the nurse told me to go drink a huge glass of juice and lay in my room for 1 hour and if I don't feel at least 6 kicks to call her.
So I did, in the course of that hour I felt one kick and one shift, so I called her back, and she told me to come in right away. I got to the hospital, they hooked me up to that machine again, same story as my apt. my girl was being lazy, so they brought in 4 grape juices, and a sierra mist (okay, mind you I have had 3 cokes and huge cup of apple juice before I got there.....and when they brought all that in.....I was about to puke) I drink all of it......I was practically in a sugar coma! But going to the monitor, still NOTHING...they had me get in a couple different positions, this made it so we could here her shifting (thank heavens) but her heart rate was still not doing what it should, so they brought in the ultra sound technician.
He spent the next half hour inputing little codes in the computer...but his whole guide line was try to get her to move twice in a half hour. well the first 20 minutes, nothing, they would zoom up one of her legs, and he would press to try and get her to move it....she wouldn't he pushed harder.....nothing, harder...(HURTING) nothing...after 20 minutes he did it really hard again, and she budged like a centimeter.........she did move one more time in the last couple minutes....so they were satisfied with that.....at 2:30 in the morning they let me go home with instructions to call my doctors office in the morning, well the next morning I felt her all over the place! Just tired I guess!
Well a week goes by and July 26th I went to my doctors apt, fully hoping/praying/expecting, to be dialated more and hopefully have him send me on my way! Well at 10:30 am he checked me, and I was still at a 3 and she was still pretty high up there (no change from the week before) I went home super bummed out. Just ready to get this girl out ya know!? at 11:30 we walked out of the doctors office, went to Subway, got home at around 12:30.....well at about 2:00 I started feeling some contractions like 20 minutes apart I shrugged them off...I had contractions really early on in my pregnancy with Cohen so I wasn't expecting anything....well by 3:20 my contractions were averaging 5 minutes apart.....my doctor told me that it needed to be that way for about an hour or hour and a half and then to call and go to the hospital...
well they were fluctuating between 5 minutes and 8 minutes for over an hour at like 4:40 though they wern't getting CLOSER together the contractions were getting significantly stronger. Jerry called the hospital. They said "We typically like to see those contractions closer together before coming in...but if they really are getting stronger, bring her in and we'll check her" We get in the car.....still timing....but I really did not want to go just to be sent home....on the way there I had contractions that were 15 MINUTES apart....um...Im thinking...they are gonna send me home...lets just turn around.....(but the contractions I WAS having were so strong, so we kept going) I got to the hospital....I'm in tears as we go to the E.R. Jerry got the wheel chair and they brought me up to labor and delivery...I had a contraction in front of the nurse and she said "Sounds like labor to me!"
She gave me my clothes, to change in the bathroom, by the time I was dressed and put into the hospital bed it was 5:20pm. The nurse started going through some paper work....my contractions were getting ridiculous, she checked me right then and she goe.s.."oh......you are at an 8. Excuse me" and she ran out of the room. What she said was "you are at an 8" what I HEARD was "You are not getting the epidural" I was doing pretty well with my contractions till that realization....I had not mentally prepared for having this baby naturally let alone finding out in the full throws of labor....I panicked......the nurse came in with a few other people, one of them the doctor (my doctors partner actually) she got there lickity split....impressive.....the contractions were on top of each other lasting what felt like forever it wasn't my finest half hour I will tell you that....I was not so nice and not so calm and collected. They were all rushing to get my IV in which they didn't even have time to do anything that way..they put an oxygen mask on and that frustrated me....i took it off and they put it on saying the baby's heart rate was dropping.....It was time to push, I was freaking out...and finally the nurse on my right got right in my face and was like "Shannon....STOP screaming and look at me" she was very blunt very forceful and very much EXACTLY what I needed to concentrate on.
I can't remember everything she said but I was able to concentrate over the pain, and I was able to get that baby out in 2 pushes. Like I said I got in that hospital bed at 5:20, she was born at 5:52. She came out with her umbilical chord wrapped around her neck twice (hence the heart rate issues the week before) She didn't cry when she came out and that scared me. They didn't put her on my lap like they did when my son was born....they took her away, The doctor assured me that she was fine- that some baby's are just stunned at first, that I was lucky because had this not been a fast labor or even had I done the epidural I would have most likely had to end up having an emergency c-section because the umbilical chord was not only wrapped around her but it was a short chord and if it had happened differently she would have been stuck in the birth canal longer with her heart rate dropping quickly. So I guess that experience was a huge blessing in disguise. Anyways, I had ripped (not an episiotomy but inside and up into where I pee- I know you wanted that visual) and after the baby was born...they gave me some drug through my IV that put me on a different planet completely. It was weird. but they had to sew me up which was not so pleasant...but eventually the experience was over...my mom and my sister got there and were like....are you kidding? We missed it?

I'm just glad I didn't get stuck in traffic. That could have been interesting in the car. People ask me now that I've had one with the epidural and one without which I prefer.....and well....I was definitely a lot calmer with the epidural....labor was a breeze, but it took longer for me to recover from the drugs.....I think had i been EXPECTING to go natural, and not just go in and find out when i'm 20 minutes away from having the baby....I think I could have focused easier and not panicked as much if I had to do it again at least I know I could and how to get in my zone a little better....but I think I still prefer the epidural....yeah....definitely :)......Jerry was so sweet....listening to him recount it now is funny...he was telling someone the other day.."Man, with Cohen...I thought I was like the best labor coach in the world. But this one, she kept saying "it hurts" I'd say I know I know...and she'd go "YOU DON"T KNOW!!!!" lol....he was like...."Thank goodness for the nurse!!!!" She hardly wanted me to touch her! I can hardly even remember.....

I passed out going to the bathroom for the first time....drugs and lots of blood loss...I guess not an awesome combination.....
But they moved me into the post partum wing and after 4 hours they finally brought in my new baby girl. I know this next picture is really hot of me....it was the only one I'd let Jerry take of me through the ordeal :)lol. YOU CAN SEE WHY!!!!! I was pretty drugged at THIS point and had been put through the ringer!

Her blood sugar was low along with her temperature...so they told me I would have to supplement with formula till my milk came in. But Jerry and I got some quality time with our new precious addition. She has so much hair!!!! Her and Cohen don't look a single thing alike!!! It's pretty funny.

She is our little angel.


All in all we are both healthy...all happy and were so excited to take her home on Wednesday the 28th.