Hey!
Well, he's finally here! It was quite the journey, but we made it. Here's an overview of the last few days...
Day 1: Last Wednesday (5/6) I started having pretty strong contractions at work, so I decided to go home. I also thought my water broke, but wasn't quite sure. My contractions stayed consistently 5 minutes apart for over 2 hours so we decided to call the doctor. They told me to go on to the hospital and get checked. I was in quite a bit of pain and was getting excited that today might be "the day." I called my mom to give her a heads up so she could be ready to start driving if the doctors thought Antonio was coming today. Well...they sent me home. They said my contractions weren't strong enough yet, and they wanted me to go through this part of the labor at home. I hadn't dilated at all yet, so they said it would be better for me to be at home. They also said that since I wasn't dilated my water hadn't broken yet. I was a bit dissapointed and was still in quite a bit of pain. I knew it wouldn't be long now!!
Day 2: The next morning around 4am my contractions were becoming unbearable. I think I work up the neighbors with some of my screaming. Tony started timing them around 6am and they were still 4-5 minutes apart. The nurse at the hospital told me not to come back until my contrations were 2-3 minutes apart for at least 2 hours. I was pretty sure my water had broken this time, but I thought that the last time, so I wasn't getting my hopes up. The pain was so strong that Tony decided to call the doctor anyway. They told me to come into the office at 9am to get checked before going to the hospital.
So...off we went. I was only 1cm dilated, but they determined that my water had broken (probably the day before) and they sent me to the hospital. I was really excited, but was also a tad scared!! I called my mom and told her to come on down! She already had her bags packed and sent the dog to the boarder. We got checked into our room and I was just getting more and more uncomfortable. My friend Anisha also came with me for support. I think I scared her with some of the screaming, but I wasn't trying to hold back! Initially they thought I was progressing quickly, but then they changed their minds. They decided to give me 3 rounds of Petocin. The contractions became so painful I decided to give in and take some pain meds. My body was so tired from being in labor for at least the last 24 hours. I decided to try IV meds before the epidural, and it was such a blessing. The meds allowed me to get a couple of hours of much needed sleep. A few hours later the contractions were stronger than ever and I decided to get the epidural. I really struggled with this decision, but realized that my body was so tired I wasn't sure if I would be able to do it without getting some rest. I was terrified of getting the epidural and just remember crying and telling the nurse I was scared. Tony was there with me and they made him sit on my feet so I wouldn't move. He was so comforting and truly a blessing to have by my side.
The epidural let me get some rest, but was such a weird feeling. I couldn't really move my legs, and it was really hard to change positions. About 5:30pm the epidural became somewhat irrelavant because of the baby's positioning. I had a lot of back labor and the screaming/crying resumed!! Tony and Anisha were still there with me and I was so thankful. Anisha had been calling my mom periodically and checking to see where she was and giving her updates. The doctor told me they wanted me to start pushing around 7:30pm, and it looked like my mom was going to get there around 8:00pm. I was so disappointed to think that she might miss it.
Well...7:30 came and I was miserable. I was so ready to be done! I spiked a fever of 101, and his heartrate was sky high, so they were in a hurry to get him out of me. My mom was still about 30 minutes away. They told me to start pushing, and it wasn't so bad in the beginning! However, he was face up, and his little head wouldn't come out! Anisha was by my bed giving my mom a "play-by-play" of events until she got there. She finally arrived (after running through the halls) and made it in plenty of time. I ended up pushing for over 2 hours! I didn't think he would ever some out. But, he finally did and I realized at that second that my life would never be the same again. I finally got to meet this little person that has been living inside of me. The rest of that day is pretty much a blur. I remember being transferred to a different room and just staring at my new son. Antonio Malakai Kinsey was born at 9:45pm on 5/7/2009. He was 7lbs 10oz and 19 inches long. He was perfect.
Day 3: Recovery time! It's true that you don't get any rest at the hospital. There were non-stop staff members coming in my room. And Antonio likes to eat every 2 hours, so I was getting really tired. Day 3 is pretty much a blur too! A lot of feeding and just looking at my little man. That night they ran some tests on the baby and discovered that he was a little jaundice. He had to be put under the lights, which just about killed me. He could only be held for 30 minutes at a time, and that was his feeding times. I am breastfeeding, so it was hard to get him to eat in 30 minutes. I was getting frustrated and increasingly tired. My mom stayed at the hospital with me so Tony could stay at home and rest and take care of the dogs. It was such a blessing to have her with me. Neither of us slept very much that night!
Day 4: Time to go home! This was supposed to be our day to go home. The pediatrician came in and told me that Antonio would not be able to go home yet. There was an abnormality with his blood work and they had to do more tests. They wanted to rule out meningitis. I was so tired and I lost it. I started crying and was so upset that I couldn't take my baby home with me. The doctor told me they had to do a spinal tap on him and he would be in the NICU for at least 48 hours, but up to 2 weeks depending on the results. I was so scared for him and just wanted to hold him. Tony and my mom helped me calm down and realize that he was going to be okay. I was still discharged and it was so hard for me to leave him there. However, God showed me that I was truly blessed. The women in the room next to me was also preparing to discharge, but was complaining of shortness of breath. The next thing we know alarms were going off and doctors were running down the hallway. She ended up dying within a couple of minutes, but we're not exactly sure what happened. Her husband was in the hospital, but didn't make it back in time. To hear that family grieve was one of the most horrible things I have ever gone through. Such saddness filled the hallways. I went to Tony and he just held me, as we were both a little emotional. It made Tony upset to think about what it would have been like to take our baby home without me. I can't imagine what that family was going through, and it made me thankful, even though Antonio had to stay a little longer.
Day 5: Happy Mother's Day! I spent my first Mother's Day in the NICU with my new son. It wasn't what I expected, but I loved every minute of it. Most of the time was spent nursing him and watching him sleep. He was still under the lights so he couldn't be held for very long. It was hard to watch him laying there and not be able to hold him. The doctor did give us some encouraging news. The tests were looking good and it was possible for him to come home tomorrow! He was also able to come off of the lights for his jaundice. I was still recovering myself, so we decided to leave the hospital around 11:00pm so I could get some sleep.
Day 6: He got to come home on 5/11/2009! It was so nice to have him home. He is such an awesome baby. I can't believe he's really mine and I get to keep him! He slept most of the day, which is understandable after all of his trauma! In his first couple of days of life he had a spinal tap, an IV, had to be under the jauncie lights with a cover velcroed over his eyes, injections in both legs, injections in both hands and feet, monitors hooked to his chest and stomach, and poked and proded by numerous doctors and nurses...I'd be tired too!!!
It has been truly a blessing to have Antonio home at last. I just stare at him and wonder how I got so lucky to be his mom. I love him more than words can express and I feel like he's been here forever. I can't believe it's only been a couple of days. After looking at him it's hard to believe that he fit in my stomach! It has also been a blessing to have my mom here. She's such a good grandma! I'm still not convinced she's going back to IL. I'm not sure how long she'll be here, but we're all enjoying her time with us!
I planned on posting a bunch of pictures with this post...but it's feeding time. I'll put some up tomorrow (or later tonight if baby boy pulls another all-nighter!!!)
Reaching for the camera... 
Love that face...check out the dimples!
Hanging out at Centennial Olympic Park...
More pictures in the park
One day he'll be big enough to play in the fountains (but I'm in no rush!)
Sleeping in his crib!
Grandma time!!
Spending time with Daddy...
