Darian Elijah Pillay
Cade Israel Pillay
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Darian - 8 week update
Our little boy is 8 weeks old. How time flies. I cannot believe how quickly it's gone, just the other day I had a huge belly and was waiting expectantly for our little bundle to arrive. And now he is almost 2 months old.
He is such a blessing to us and we cannot be more grateful.
Here's what's happened in the last few weeks.
At 6 weeks he had his immunisations. He was a trooper, but when he got his jab he cried bitterly and Daddy was right there to comfort him and give him lots of cuddles. He is smiling more and making lots of sounds. He is very interactive. He loves staring at faces and mimicking whatever you do. He loves his mummy & daddy and smiles for us everytime we enter the room or talk to him, and looks for us by turning his head to and fro to wherever we are. He is sleeping well during the day and at night. Although it's been very cold he's been good by sleeping in his cot all night. His feeds have been good too, although he hasn't kept to his 3 hourly feeds he is such a good feeder so when he's hungry he feeds well enough until his ready again. He has steadily put on about 200g a week and at his last check with Megan the Plunket nurse (Friday the 8th) he was a whopping 5.2kg's. He measures 59cm in length according to Megan and is in the 75th percentile of kid's his age. He love tummy time and plays well with all his soft toys. He loves his caterpillar, a gift from Ricki, a work friend of mine. He "talks" to his soft toys all the time and tries very hard to grab them. He successfully grabbed and held one of his little toys, Tiggah, a little rattle that Mrs Martin gave him. He loves to kick and has fun at bath time. He is so strong and stands firm and even climbs with his feet if you hold him up.
He has enjoyed his time at home with his grandparents and I am so grateful that he has had this time where he can be doted on 100% by them all.
Here are a few pics from the last few weeks of Darian:
Family visit May/June 2012
Well what can I say, the past few weeks have been quite eventful. Where do I even begin with this blog entry.
On the 11th of May Cameron's parents arrived from South Africa. They were so eager to meet thier grandson and were looking forward to an amazing holiday with all of us together again, for the first time in 4 years. We had so much planned, it was Cameron's mums 60th so we were planning an amazing family dinner and celebration, it was Bradley's 29th Birthday so we were looking forward to going out and having a night on the town, considering we had babysitters. Plus we had planned Darian's dedication considering all the family was in one place and I had planned a photoshoot with Ella to celebrate our family reunion and document the three generations of Pillay men as well as the grandparents and their first grandchild. The first week of them being here was uneventful, Cameron was still at work so we didn't do much. Mum drove them to the mall and stuff like that just to get them out and about, so they didn't get too bored. My father in law and I even went to the Chiropractors for acupuncture, he for some pain in his shoulders and hands and feet and me for backache. On the 20th (Sunday) we noticed my dad-in-laws foot was becoming increasingly swollen, at first we assumed it was due to the flight but by that Sunday knew that there was something more serious because it kept getting more and more swollen. He was also in alot of pain but kept telling us it was ok and although he wanted pain tablets all the time we didn't think the pain was as worse as we found out it was. Cameron finally convinced him to go to the hospital after he saw how big his toe had become. When the doctors at Waitakere hospital had seen him they quickly sent him for x-rays and found that the bone in his toe was being eaten away so without hesitation they transferred him to North Shore hospital as they have a better Orthopedic department. Once there they admitted him and put him onto a drip and morphine. He was in excruciating pain but never let on just how bad it was. So what we thought would be a quick fix turned out to be a full 18 day stay in hospital. When they took him into theatre the Monday morning they found out that there was a Strep infection which was eating away at the bone, they had thought they would amputate but once in they managed to clean out the infection and clear away the eaten bone in an effort to save the toe. Which was a relief to us all. The infection had gotten into his blood so they put him on antibiotics and couldn't say how long he would be admitted as they needed to keep him for observation. They were not happy with the toe so they took him back into theatre a few days later and amputated. By then Bradley & Shamini had arrived from Australia. Needless to say it was a very sombre 60th birthday for my mother in law, we merely just made a nice dinner for her and once her, Brad & Sham and Cameron got back from the hospital we had dinner together. There were no gifts, no big celebration but just a plain and simple dinner at home.
During this week we also remembered Kale on what would have been his 33rd birthday, May 26th. My darling big brother who was always there and always full of hope and happiness, I miss him dearly.
We got a huge fright with my father in law the day after he got out of surgery, he was in alot of pain and we heard that during the surgery his heart rate dropped dangerously low. When we saw him in hospital he was very sombre and looked grey with pain. It was very scary. However the doctors were happy and gave us a very good report. By the next day he was full of life and energy and was his normal self.
It was another few days until he was discharged but during this time he made wonderful friends in his ward, including the nurses, his sons also left a lasting impression with these very nurses I hear as well... LOL!!!
Here are a few pics from the day he was discharged.
Mr & Mrs Martin were a wonderful couple we met, as Mr Martin shared the room with Dad. They were a loving, sweet couple. Mr Martin has Parkinson's and is paralysed fromt he waist down. He has been in & out of hospitals for 15 years and found out during this visit that he would never go home, he is to go to a home where they can look after him 24\7, dear Mrs Martin was very upset and told us how grateful we should be because at least Dad has his health and can still be the man he always was. It just goes to prove that we should always give thanks because there's always someone out there who is worse off than us.
Dad was discharged last week. And is at home now, we just received the ok from his doctors today for his travel back home. Only yesterday was the VAC machine (this machine sucks out all the blood from his wound) removed and the line that is connected to his antibiotics will be removed tomorrow. So they are looking at leaving NZ late next week. The doctors are extremely happy with his condition, his foot is healing well and although they wanted to do the skin graft here in NZ they've decided to go home and do it back in SA, which the doctors have approved.
Let's see, what else has happened, oh yes, we celebrated Bradley's birthday with a little lunch. It was an extremely cold day and we took baby out all bundled up. We had a nice family lunch, minus Dad as he was still in hospital. Here are a few pics from before we left for lunch:
Bradley and Shamini had to extend their holiday by a week due to dad's illness so only left on Saturday (9th). It was the longest they've stayed in NZ but it seems as though we hardly spent any time with them. Luckily they got to spend some quality time with Darian and so served the purpose of their holiday in the first place.
We thank God for the time we have had to spend with our family, even though it came at a cost to dad's health we are grateful that he was here in NZ with is so we could take care of him and wasn't in SA where we would have been stressed out. God is so good, and we thank him for dad's health.
Mr & Mrs Martin were a wonderful couple we met, as Mr Martin shared the room with Dad. They were a loving, sweet couple. Mr Martin has Parkinson's and is paralysed fromt he waist down. He has been in & out of hospitals for 15 years and found out during this visit that he would never go home, he is to go to a home where they can look after him 24\7, dear Mrs Martin was very upset and told us how grateful we should be because at least Dad has his health and can still be the man he always was. It just goes to prove that we should always give thanks because there's always someone out there who is worse off than us.
Dad was discharged last week. And is at home now, we just received the ok from his doctors today for his travel back home. Only yesterday was the VAC machine (this machine sucks out all the blood from his wound) removed and the line that is connected to his antibiotics will be removed tomorrow. So they are looking at leaving NZ late next week. The doctors are extremely happy with his condition, his foot is healing well and although they wanted to do the skin graft here in NZ they've decided to go home and do it back in SA, which the doctors have approved.
Let's see, what else has happened, oh yes, we celebrated Bradley's birthday with a little lunch. It was an extremely cold day and we took baby out all bundled up. We had a nice family lunch, minus Dad as he was still in hospital. Here are a few pics from before we left for lunch:
Bradley and Shamini had to extend their holiday by a week due to dad's illness so only left on Saturday (9th). It was the longest they've stayed in NZ but it seems as though we hardly spent any time with them. Luckily they got to spend some quality time with Darian and so served the purpose of their holiday in the first place.
We thank God for the time we have had to spend with our family, even though it came at a cost to dad's health we are grateful that he was here in NZ with is so we could take care of him and wasn't in SA where we would have been stressed out. God is so good, and we thank him for dad's health.
Friday, May 25, 2012
Sweet little wonder
It's hard to believe that a month has gone by since little Darian was born. But on the other hand, everyday has been such a blur that it's not too hard to comprehend. In between the feeds, baths, sleeps and nappy changes, that we've been parents for a full month.
What a joy our little boy has been. When I say I have the best baby in the world, I am truly not boasting or tooting anyone's horn. He has been such a blessing, he sleeps when he is meant to sleep, eats when he is meant ot eat and just does what needs to be done with no complaint. We've had a bit of a problem with winds but he never complains or cries about it. We've tried it all but everything seems to have the same effect and so we've just learned that even if it means sitting with him for half an hour to get him to break a wind, it's something that needs to be done. We've tried to put him into a routine and although we have a few days of him wanting to suck all day long he's been great. Deb, our midwife and our Plunket nurse are both really impressed with him and the progress he's made. He has steadily put on weight and is now a whopping 4.5kg's. We've had no issues with him at all and can't be more grateful.
I've had nights where I sleep for 4 hours but for the most part I'm getting a good 7 hours a night because he sleeps when he is meant to and wakes up every 3 hours for a feed.
Not much has happened in the last month, except of course the arrival of Cameron's parents and Bradley and Shamini who are all very besotted with our little man.
We go for his 6 week check up in a few days and this week is Deb's official last visit with us, that's going to be a hard one to deal with as we've been so attached to her for so long.
Here's the latest pics of little Darian.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Darian Elijah Pillay - The Birth Story
I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since my last blog entry, well in my defense it's been quite an eventful 2 weeks. We've welcomed into the world our son, Darian Elijah on April 16th. And we cannot be happier with our wee boy. He is the ultimate best gift in the world. Labour was not the easiest thing to endure, (and all the mums in the world say AMEN) but it definitely was worth every last minute. When I look at this beautiful face, all I can say is thank you Lord.
From the last blog entry I made mention of the Braxton Hicks contractions that I was getting, well in actual fact it was not just that, it was actually the start of early labour, and well, I was unaware that this was happening. I did ask my midwife and she said to me that is probably wasn't and that I should just take it easy. Well, we went through the entire weekend like this. The contractions came and went very irregularly, about every 10-15 minutes and by Saturday night they were coming in every 3-5 minutes then would go back to every 10 minutes then I would have half an hour of nothing and then it would start all over again. It was the LONGEST weekend of my life because I was in so much pain and discomfort. By Sunday I couldn't manage any longer and we got hold of Deb and she arranged to come by and examine me. When she did she noticed that I was only 1cm dilated and almost fully effaced (my cervix was down to 1/2cm) but because baby was still in a posterior position my cervix was asynclitic, which means that the position of baby in the uterus is to one side causing baby's head to not be in line with the birth canal. In other words his head was in front of my cervix, she then had to pull my cervix to the front, which I can tell you is one of the most painful things to endure! So what was happening was that I was having contractions but because baby was pushing in the wrong place my cervix wasn't dilating. Deb then told me to rest and take panadol, and lay on my left side and do things that would encourage him to get into the right position. She guessed that within the next 16-24 hours we would go into established labour. So I rested and took panadol and rested!! And prayed that baby would turn and that my cervix wouldn't go back and would stay in the right position. That night we had minimal sleep as the contractions, although still irregular were getting worse and worse in terms of pain. Cameron actually slept with a pen & pad in one hand and a watch in the other so he could time the contractions. But by morning, our position hadn't changed. Deb came by at lunchtime for another exam and although I was now fully effaced, I was only 2cm dilated. Baby was still posterior which scared me a little because I knew (and she kept reminding me) that I would have a painful back labour if he didn't get into the right position. She then gave me a herbal birth mix which would encourage the contractions and told me to come to the hospital by 6pm that evening for another exam. So I took her herbal mix, 2 drops on my tongue every 10 minutes and suffered through contraction after contraction after contraction, but they were still so irregular. By 4pm we decided to have an early dinner in case I went into labour and I then went and had a long, hot shower to help with the contractions. By 4:30pm Cameron called Deb and told her I wasn't managing with the pain and that we were gonna head off to the hospital. We live no more than 5km's from the hospital but it felt like the longest car ride I ever experienced. We got caught in peak time traffic on the motorway and got to the hospital just after 5pm. We met Deb there who told us in no uncertain terms that we were not leaving this hospital without a baby! By 5:30pm I was admitted and was changed into a hospital gown. Deb did another exam shortly after and found that I was 5cm dilated and was in established labour. She then broke my waters and got me some gas for pain relief. The contractions were still coming in hard & fast and still irregularly. Baby was still in the wrong position and that meant the contractions were "coupling", this meant that instead of having a contraction every 3 minutes I was having 2 consecutive contractions every 3-5 mins. Needless to say it was extremely painful and by 6pm I had aptly requested for the epidural!!! Sadly for me, both the on call anaethetist and obstetrician were in surgery so it was quite a wait for an examination and the drug. Let me tell you one thing about me, I am a sucker for pain, if the pain threshold went from 1-10 I would be somewhere around 1.5. I cannot take pain and labour pain was no walk in the park. The Anaethetist, a lovely Nordic lady named Mikayla, only came in to see me about 7pm, I remember her asking me if I knew what the risks were and I don't know if I was rude in my response but I said something about yes I did my research! All I wanted was the DRUGS!!! I had about 3 or 4 contractions while she was busy giving me the epidural. I remember Cameron standing in front of me and trying to keep me calm. I felt so vulnerable in that moment and all I can remember is him telling me how great I was doing and how proud he was of me. After the epidural was given I remember looking around the room and my mother was nowhere in sight, poor thing couldn't handle me in pain so quickly left the room. She came back a few minutes after and was amazed at how calm I was. I could finally talk and take in the fact that I was in labour and about to have this baby. By 19:45 Deb noticed that baby's heartbeat was dropping and quickly called in the hospital midwife and the obstetrician, it happened twice in about 5-10 minutes and they quickly got me prepped for theatre in the event I had to be rushed into surgery for an Emergency C-Section. I was so calm about it though, I wasn't afraid & I just committed it to God. I knew that I was in good hands and that nothing was going to go wrong, my mother disappeared round about then as well, she later told me she was going into the waiting room to pray every time she disappeared. Cameron stood right next to me throughout this and kept checking if I was ok, he knows me so well and thought I would be panicking with all this happening, but I was just so calm and kept reassuring him that I was good. Deb and the rest of the team kept an eagles eye on baby's heart rate and because the monitor kept moving they decided to put an internal monitor on baby's head to get a better reading on his heart rate. After the two decelarations his heartbeat got stronger and remained there for the rest of the evening. Although I was still prepped for theatre, we never got there. Deb told me to rest and sleep, which I did. The last thing I remember was telling Deb I could feel the contractions again, she then gave me a top up and I told her that I could feel the pressure to push. She examined me & I was fully dilated and ready to push, this was at 22:10. It happened so quickly. One minute I was asleep the next I was actively pushing. When preparing for the birth, Cameron would always say he would not be down the business end but come time for baby to be birthed, he was the first one to check baby's head crowing and the first one to be down there checking things out! Deb made sure he was involved in everything and really made him feel part of the whole experience, I really appreciated that. Even my mother who said she would stay in the waiting room so she didn't have to see me in pain, was right there holding the mirror up so I could see baby's head, etc. They were both so involved, it was incredible. I pushed for a full half hour and baby was born at 22:40 on Monday the 16th of April. It was THE most amazing experience of my life.
We had been toying around with the name Darian Elijah for months now, we knew we wanted the name Elijah as a middle name but couldn't decide on a first name. A few months ago we came across the name Darian and loved the meaning, "Upholder of the Good". And we kept saying it over & over & over again so by the time he was born we both knew that this was the name for him. I remember after I got the epidural and was calm, I kept saying to Cameron is that his name, are we gonna spell it "Darian" or "Darien" which has a whole different meaning, "Gift". By the time I was fully dilated Cameron said "A-N, we're gonna spell it DARIAN" so when he was born we already knew what his name would be.
Darian was 3.545kg's at birth and was 52cm in length. And UBER-CUTE!!! The moment Deb placed him on me I cried, I cried for what seemed forever. It was so hard to believe that after all this time, after all that pain and discomfort, he was here, in my arms.
I was then moved to the ward and stayed for a few nights. When Cameron left that night I cried, it was the first time we'd spent a night apart and it was scary. Not because I was alone with baby but cos I hated being away from Cameron, called me a baby why don't you!!! LOL! But I didn't sleep a wink that night, although Darian did, he slept soundly and was a real champion with the breastfeeding. It took me a few time to get it right but he knew exactly what he was doing and by morning I didn't have to call the hospital midwives to help me with getting him latched. Everything was going well but Deb asked me to stay one more night just as a precaution, but the midwife on call that night said to me that she was happy and that if I wanted to go home that morning they would arrange it with Deb. So that morning I called Deb told her I wanted to go home and she came in to discharge me. Both mum & Cameron were excellent help for me and they took turns each day that I was in the hospital to come spend time with me so that I could have a moment to go shower or sleep. I think the first night when Cameron was there, I slept while he watched baby and he stayed in the same position with baby until I woke up, it was priceless! We got home on Wednesday morning, and he looked so cute in his capsule (car seat).
He actually was so well behaved in the car seat, he slept all the way home (we still stopped at the pharmacy for a few things we needed for him & I) and when we got home he was so peaceful we actually left him in there a few minutes before taking him out. The feeling of bringing him home was so overwhelming. I mean when I left there was no guarantee that I would come back with him (until we got to the hospital and Deb gave it to us) so actually coming home with him just took my breath away. And the fact that I wasn't on that uncomfortable hospital bed and had two extra sets of hands to hold him and take care of him while I took care of myself was the best.
Mum then gave him a good bath and a rub down and he was all settled in.
Our first few nights were a bit rough, he just wouldn't settle and I would take him to my mum in the middle of the night for her to break his winds and settle him and would have a little sleep while she sat up with him. But other than that, and that's mostly due to him not being able to break his winds and me not being able to do it properly every time, he has been amazing. Once we got into his routine he has been feeding every 3 hours and sleeping in between, he wakes up just before his next feed is due and once he's had a nappy change is ready for his feed and another sleep. The nights have been much better too, I've been having a good 3-4hour sleeps at night and am getting used to the bouts of sleep, so much so that I am wide awake through his feeds, the first few days I would battle to stay awake through his feeds and would rouse Cameron so that he could talk to me while I fed baby and wouldn't fall asleep. But honestly, we have been blessed with an amazing little boy and cannot complain. The last few days he has been really struggling with his winds and for the life of me all the pharmacies and supermarkets in Auckland have run out of gripe water (problems with the manufacturer/wholesalers) so we've stuck with Infacol (suggested by Deb) and my mother's Dutch medicines, which I have just recently stopped as I don't want to over-medicate him with different things.
We now are looking at arranging his dedication in a few weeks, so that we can have it done while all the family is here. So that's my next organising project. Cameron's parents arrive in less than 2 weeks (May 10th) and Bradley & Shamini arrive on the 22nd. So we are so looking forward to Darian meeting his family, and my first Mother's Day on the 13th.
In the past 2 weeks Deb has come round to see him quite often, at his first weigh in post-birth, he put on 180g and from that weigh-in last week til this week, he has put on a whopping 310g, placing him at 3.880kg's. He is filling out so well and is so strong, that Deb's suggested starting tummy time for a few minutes a day so he can work on his strong neck muscles. He is feeding very well and as a result has a nappy change every 3-4 hours (in between feeds and naps). He has really long bouts of awake periods where he is getting accustomed to his surroundings and our voices. He loves music and is very responsive to singing or music playing (Loves his Daddy's singing). He also loves his baths although hates being naked(go figure). The minute you take his clothes or nappy off he starts crying and moaning but once he is on the water he is calm and happy.
We are so blessed with our little Darian and have enjoyed every minute of every day we've shared with him.
Here he is at 2 weeks old...
From the last blog entry I made mention of the Braxton Hicks contractions that I was getting, well in actual fact it was not just that, it was actually the start of early labour, and well, I was unaware that this was happening. I did ask my midwife and she said to me that is probably wasn't and that I should just take it easy. Well, we went through the entire weekend like this. The contractions came and went very irregularly, about every 10-15 minutes and by Saturday night they were coming in every 3-5 minutes then would go back to every 10 minutes then I would have half an hour of nothing and then it would start all over again. It was the LONGEST weekend of my life because I was in so much pain and discomfort. By Sunday I couldn't manage any longer and we got hold of Deb and she arranged to come by and examine me. When she did she noticed that I was only 1cm dilated and almost fully effaced (my cervix was down to 1/2cm) but because baby was still in a posterior position my cervix was asynclitic, which means that the position of baby in the uterus is to one side causing baby's head to not be in line with the birth canal. In other words his head was in front of my cervix, she then had to pull my cervix to the front, which I can tell you is one of the most painful things to endure! So what was happening was that I was having contractions but because baby was pushing in the wrong place my cervix wasn't dilating. Deb then told me to rest and take panadol, and lay on my left side and do things that would encourage him to get into the right position. She guessed that within the next 16-24 hours we would go into established labour. So I rested and took panadol and rested!! And prayed that baby would turn and that my cervix wouldn't go back and would stay in the right position. That night we had minimal sleep as the contractions, although still irregular were getting worse and worse in terms of pain. Cameron actually slept with a pen & pad in one hand and a watch in the other so he could time the contractions. But by morning, our position hadn't changed. Deb came by at lunchtime for another exam and although I was now fully effaced, I was only 2cm dilated. Baby was still posterior which scared me a little because I knew (and she kept reminding me) that I would have a painful back labour if he didn't get into the right position. She then gave me a herbal birth mix which would encourage the contractions and told me to come to the hospital by 6pm that evening for another exam. So I took her herbal mix, 2 drops on my tongue every 10 minutes and suffered through contraction after contraction after contraction, but they were still so irregular. By 4pm we decided to have an early dinner in case I went into labour and I then went and had a long, hot shower to help with the contractions. By 4:30pm Cameron called Deb and told her I wasn't managing with the pain and that we were gonna head off to the hospital. We live no more than 5km's from the hospital but it felt like the longest car ride I ever experienced. We got caught in peak time traffic on the motorway and got to the hospital just after 5pm. We met Deb there who told us in no uncertain terms that we were not leaving this hospital without a baby! By 5:30pm I was admitted and was changed into a hospital gown. Deb did another exam shortly after and found that I was 5cm dilated and was in established labour. She then broke my waters and got me some gas for pain relief. The contractions were still coming in hard & fast and still irregularly. Baby was still in the wrong position and that meant the contractions were "coupling", this meant that instead of having a contraction every 3 minutes I was having 2 consecutive contractions every 3-5 mins. Needless to say it was extremely painful and by 6pm I had aptly requested for the epidural!!! Sadly for me, both the on call anaethetist and obstetrician were in surgery so it was quite a wait for an examination and the drug. Let me tell you one thing about me, I am a sucker for pain, if the pain threshold went from 1-10 I would be somewhere around 1.5. I cannot take pain and labour pain was no walk in the park. The Anaethetist, a lovely Nordic lady named Mikayla, only came in to see me about 7pm, I remember her asking me if I knew what the risks were and I don't know if I was rude in my response but I said something about yes I did my research! All I wanted was the DRUGS!!! I had about 3 or 4 contractions while she was busy giving me the epidural. I remember Cameron standing in front of me and trying to keep me calm. I felt so vulnerable in that moment and all I can remember is him telling me how great I was doing and how proud he was of me. After the epidural was given I remember looking around the room and my mother was nowhere in sight, poor thing couldn't handle me in pain so quickly left the room. She came back a few minutes after and was amazed at how calm I was. I could finally talk and take in the fact that I was in labour and about to have this baby. By 19:45 Deb noticed that baby's heartbeat was dropping and quickly called in the hospital midwife and the obstetrician, it happened twice in about 5-10 minutes and they quickly got me prepped for theatre in the event I had to be rushed into surgery for an Emergency C-Section. I was so calm about it though, I wasn't afraid & I just committed it to God. I knew that I was in good hands and that nothing was going to go wrong, my mother disappeared round about then as well, she later told me she was going into the waiting room to pray every time she disappeared. Cameron stood right next to me throughout this and kept checking if I was ok, he knows me so well and thought I would be panicking with all this happening, but I was just so calm and kept reassuring him that I was good. Deb and the rest of the team kept an eagles eye on baby's heart rate and because the monitor kept moving they decided to put an internal monitor on baby's head to get a better reading on his heart rate. After the two decelarations his heartbeat got stronger and remained there for the rest of the evening. Although I was still prepped for theatre, we never got there. Deb told me to rest and sleep, which I did. The last thing I remember was telling Deb I could feel the contractions again, she then gave me a top up and I told her that I could feel the pressure to push. She examined me & I was fully dilated and ready to push, this was at 22:10. It happened so quickly. One minute I was asleep the next I was actively pushing. When preparing for the birth, Cameron would always say he would not be down the business end but come time for baby to be birthed, he was the first one to check baby's head crowing and the first one to be down there checking things out! Deb made sure he was involved in everything and really made him feel part of the whole experience, I really appreciated that. Even my mother who said she would stay in the waiting room so she didn't have to see me in pain, was right there holding the mirror up so I could see baby's head, etc. They were both so involved, it was incredible. I pushed for a full half hour and baby was born at 22:40 on Monday the 16th of April. It was THE most amazing experience of my life.
We had been toying around with the name Darian Elijah for months now, we knew we wanted the name Elijah as a middle name but couldn't decide on a first name. A few months ago we came across the name Darian and loved the meaning, "Upholder of the Good". And we kept saying it over & over & over again so by the time he was born we both knew that this was the name for him. I remember after I got the epidural and was calm, I kept saying to Cameron is that his name, are we gonna spell it "Darian" or "Darien" which has a whole different meaning, "Gift". By the time I was fully dilated Cameron said "A-N, we're gonna spell it DARIAN" so when he was born we already knew what his name would be.
Darian was 3.545kg's at birth and was 52cm in length. And UBER-CUTE!!! The moment Deb placed him on me I cried, I cried for what seemed forever. It was so hard to believe that after all this time, after all that pain and discomfort, he was here, in my arms.
I was then moved to the ward and stayed for a few nights. When Cameron left that night I cried, it was the first time we'd spent a night apart and it was scary. Not because I was alone with baby but cos I hated being away from Cameron, called me a baby why don't you!!! LOL! But I didn't sleep a wink that night, although Darian did, he slept soundly and was a real champion with the breastfeeding. It took me a few time to get it right but he knew exactly what he was doing and by morning I didn't have to call the hospital midwives to help me with getting him latched. Everything was going well but Deb asked me to stay one more night just as a precaution, but the midwife on call that night said to me that she was happy and that if I wanted to go home that morning they would arrange it with Deb. So that morning I called Deb told her I wanted to go home and she came in to discharge me. Both mum & Cameron were excellent help for me and they took turns each day that I was in the hospital to come spend time with me so that I could have a moment to go shower or sleep. I think the first night when Cameron was there, I slept while he watched baby and he stayed in the same position with baby until I woke up, it was priceless! We got home on Wednesday morning, and he looked so cute in his capsule (car seat).
Friday, April 13, 2012
4th year anniversary & Week 39
Cameron and I celebrated our 4 year anniversary yesterday. It's hard to believe that we are married for 4 years already but when I think about it, it seems like just yesterday that we made our vows to love, honour and cherish each other til death do us part. We've really been through so much over the past 4 years, immigrating, leaving our family, losing loved ones but we've also have gained so much, bought our first home together, having our first baby and growing closer and closer each and every day. We have been truly blessed over the past 4 years and we are so grateful to God for all that he has given us and all that He has planned for us. And after 4 years of marriage I still feel so in love and so grateful to God for my husband, he is truly amazing and I love that I get to grow old with my best friend!
Anyway, enough of me going gaga over my husband... because we were a mere 4 days away from baby's estimated due date we decided we wouldn't do much celebrating so we just stayed home this year, which is very weird for us!!! Although I got the most beautiful bunch of roses...
... and we had a lovely dinner at home, Chicken Tikka with spicy rice, mint & cucumber riata and a green salad...
We had dinner for 3 as my mum is with us for a few months for baby's birth but it was an anniversary celebration nontheless.
This week marks 39 weeks of pregnancy, we're days away from baby's due date and we're starting to get really nervous and REALLY impatient. Both Cam & I really want this baby out now... me because I am so highly uncomfortable and him because he just wants to meet his child and well, we're both eager to see who this child will look like more! I'm sure all new parents go through this. The Braxton Hicks contractions are becoming really intense and today was the first day that I timed them, this morning they were coming about every 10-15 mins and last for about 40-90 seconds. But this afternoon has been quite "uneventful", I've only noticed 2 contractions in the past 3 hours. I had a scan today too, Cameron couldn't make it because he is trying very hard to finish off his work in case baby comes next week and so mum accompanied me to the scan. She was so excited to see baby's heartbeat and face and spine, etc. The sonographer estimates baby's current weight at 3.8kg's, a whole kilo more than the last scan a mere 4 weeks ago. But baby is growing well (oh no, here comes a contraction... I spoke to soon)... and we can't be more happier that all is going well.
(Sorry I've tried so many times to upload this pic but it doesn't want to come out the right way round, so this is the best view I could get, you can see baby's face and an outline of the eyes.)
As you can see baby is still in a posterior position so we really need to work on getting him/her to face the right way round and get into an anterior position, also baby's body is on my left side and the legs and arms are out on my right side, which is WRONG! S/he should be the total opposite way round!!! Laying on my left side isn't working and being on all fours isn't working either, so I'm open to any ideas or comments on how to get baby into the right position. Deb says if baby is still in this position when I go into labour we will deal with it then, I am praying though that baby turns before then and if not while in labour at least, so that we don't have any medical interventions like ventouse or forceps and my ultimate nightmare, a C-Section, and so that no pain medication like an epidural is needed (if baby stays in a posterior position, I will have a very painful back labour which is not what I want).
This is a picture Deb showed me of the different positions babies take in utero and our little munchkin is in the ROP position so right occiput posterior. And note to self, DO NOT GOOGLE POSTERIOR BIRTHS.... OMG just scared the life out of me!!!
Okay, last time I blogged that I was diagnosed with SPD and my apologies for not explaining what that is exactly. Babycenter.co.au explains Symphis Pubis Dysfunction as "The two halves of your pelvis are connected at the front by a stiff joint called the symphysis pubis. This joint is strengthened by a dense network of tough, flexible tissues, called ligaments. To help your baby pass through your pelvis as easily as possible, your body produces a hormone called relaxin, which softens the ligaments. As a result, these joints move more during and just after pregnancy, causing inflammation and pain."
Read more: http://www.babycenter.com.au/pregnancy/antenatalhealth/physicalhealth/pelvicpain/#ixzz1rtaCV0I4
It's really really painful and is more intense when I've been lying down or sitting for a long period and then get up or try to move. It's hard even putting pants on because having to balance on one leg puts added pressure on the groin area which is very painful and walking itself is really uncomfortable. I can only minimise the pain by wearing a pregnancy belt which is so highly expensive and considering I know no-one who's had this there's no one to borrow one from, and as we only have a few days to go it seems crazy to have to spend that much money on one for such a short time. So yes, I am being very strong trying to get through this pain!!! Anyone feel sorry for me yet!!! LOL!!! Anyway, I guess labour pain will be 10 times worse so this is like practice for it!!!
We've taken another belly pic to commemorate this week, I've tried putting together a collage of all the belly pics but alas my file got corrupted and I need to start again and well, being on the computer for too long doesn't help the Carpel tunnel and numbness in my hands so I will try my best to do that when I can.
Please mind the stretch marks!!! LOL!!!
So with 3 days to go we're hoping and praying for a complication free labour and birth and praying that this baby decides to come sooner rather than later, but I have to keep reminding myself that it's all in God's perfect time so I need to be patient!
Who knows, maybe in a few days we will have a little boy or girl in our arms or even next week this time!! All in all, we thanking God for this time in our lives.
Until the next post.... ciao!
Anyway, enough of me going gaga over my husband... because we were a mere 4 days away from baby's estimated due date we decided we wouldn't do much celebrating so we just stayed home this year, which is very weird for us!!! Although I got the most beautiful bunch of roses...
... and we had a lovely dinner at home, Chicken Tikka with spicy rice, mint & cucumber riata and a green salad...
We had dinner for 3 as my mum is with us for a few months for baby's birth but it was an anniversary celebration nontheless.
This week marks 39 weeks of pregnancy, we're days away from baby's due date and we're starting to get really nervous and REALLY impatient. Both Cam & I really want this baby out now... me because I am so highly uncomfortable and him because he just wants to meet his child and well, we're both eager to see who this child will look like more! I'm sure all new parents go through this. The Braxton Hicks contractions are becoming really intense and today was the first day that I timed them, this morning they were coming about every 10-15 mins and last for about 40-90 seconds. But this afternoon has been quite "uneventful", I've only noticed 2 contractions in the past 3 hours. I had a scan today too, Cameron couldn't make it because he is trying very hard to finish off his work in case baby comes next week and so mum accompanied me to the scan. She was so excited to see baby's heartbeat and face and spine, etc. The sonographer estimates baby's current weight at 3.8kg's, a whole kilo more than the last scan a mere 4 weeks ago. But baby is growing well (oh no, here comes a contraction... I spoke to soon)... and we can't be more happier that all is going well.
(Sorry I've tried so many times to upload this pic but it doesn't want to come out the right way round, so this is the best view I could get, you can see baby's face and an outline of the eyes.)
As you can see baby is still in a posterior position so we really need to work on getting him/her to face the right way round and get into an anterior position, also baby's body is on my left side and the legs and arms are out on my right side, which is WRONG! S/he should be the total opposite way round!!! Laying on my left side isn't working and being on all fours isn't working either, so I'm open to any ideas or comments on how to get baby into the right position. Deb says if baby is still in this position when I go into labour we will deal with it then, I am praying though that baby turns before then and if not while in labour at least, so that we don't have any medical interventions like ventouse or forceps and my ultimate nightmare, a C-Section, and so that no pain medication like an epidural is needed (if baby stays in a posterior position, I will have a very painful back labour which is not what I want).
This is a picture Deb showed me of the different positions babies take in utero and our little munchkin is in the ROP position so right occiput posterior. And note to self, DO NOT GOOGLE POSTERIOR BIRTHS.... OMG just scared the life out of me!!!
Okay, last time I blogged that I was diagnosed with SPD and my apologies for not explaining what that is exactly. Babycenter.co.au explains Symphis Pubis Dysfunction as "The two halves of your pelvis are connected at the front by a stiff joint called the symphysis pubis. This joint is strengthened by a dense network of tough, flexible tissues, called ligaments. To help your baby pass through your pelvis as easily as possible, your body produces a hormone called relaxin, which softens the ligaments. As a result, these joints move more during and just after pregnancy, causing inflammation and pain."
Read more: http://www.babycenter.com.au/pregnancy/antenatalhealth/physicalhealth/pelvicpain/#ixzz1rtaCV0I4
It's really really painful and is more intense when I've been lying down or sitting for a long period and then get up or try to move. It's hard even putting pants on because having to balance on one leg puts added pressure on the groin area which is very painful and walking itself is really uncomfortable. I can only minimise the pain by wearing a pregnancy belt which is so highly expensive and considering I know no-one who's had this there's no one to borrow one from, and as we only have a few days to go it seems crazy to have to spend that much money on one for such a short time. So yes, I am being very strong trying to get through this pain!!! Anyone feel sorry for me yet!!! LOL!!! Anyway, I guess labour pain will be 10 times worse so this is like practice for it!!!
We've taken another belly pic to commemorate this week, I've tried putting together a collage of all the belly pics but alas my file got corrupted and I need to start again and well, being on the computer for too long doesn't help the Carpel tunnel and numbness in my hands so I will try my best to do that when I can.
Please mind the stretch marks!!! LOL!!!
So with 3 days to go we're hoping and praying for a complication free labour and birth and praying that this baby decides to come sooner rather than later, but I have to keep reminding myself that it's all in God's perfect time so I need to be patient!
Who knows, maybe in a few days we will have a little boy or girl in our arms or even next week this time!! All in all, we thanking God for this time in our lives.
Until the next post.... ciao!
Monday, April 2, 2012
Mum's 62nd birthday
Today we celebrated mum's birthday with her. We've missed a few of her birthdays with us being away from home so we had to take the opportunity to celebrate with her this year.
To start the day her & I went for breakfast at the little cafe around the corner from home called Fuze. We thought we'd do a bit of shopping but the weather has been quite depressing over the past few days with Tropical Cyclone Daphne running rampant in the Pacific so we've been dealing with strong winds and rain for a few days. So we didn't want to take a chance driving to the mall and then just came home and spent some time together. We ended up just relaxing at home and chatted all afternoon, like old times! We then went to Lone Star for dinner once Cameron got home from work. We had a blast... laughed and joked and talked for hours and then made our way home.
We really had a fabulous evening celebrating with mum, Happy birthday Ma, here's to another 62 years.
To start the day her & I went for breakfast at the little cafe around the corner from home called Fuze. We thought we'd do a bit of shopping but the weather has been quite depressing over the past few days with Tropical Cyclone Daphne running rampant in the Pacific so we've been dealing with strong winds and rain for a few days. So we didn't want to take a chance driving to the mall and then just came home and spent some time together. We ended up just relaxing at home and chatted all afternoon, like old times! We then went to Lone Star for dinner once Cameron got home from work. We had a blast... laughed and joked and talked for hours and then made our way home.
We really had a fabulous evening celebrating with mum, Happy birthday Ma, here's to another 62 years.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Oldies
My mum brought a few old photo's with her which really stirred me up. Although I do have some old baby pics of me it's so nice to see some of my favourites, and because I want to actually have a few collages of me & Cam as a baby along with our babie's pics it was a nice little gift that mum thought of.
Here's a few that she brought. these are my faves...
This is from my first birthday, my aunt (mum's sister) Elaine is carrying me here.
Here I was about 3 years old and it was Christmas at my mum's parents house. I'd just got this doll as my christmas gift and was too chuffed about it.
And this is a pic of my brother Kale with my granny (mum's mum) at our house in Newlands East, don't know if it was a special occassion but it's such a beautiful picture.
I love old photo's. Wish I could have more. I remember we had tonnes of photo albums at home & I would page through these all the time looking at all our baby photos and I'm so grateful I have some to add to my own albums.
Thanks mama for the wonderful gift.
Here's a few that she brought. these are my faves...
This is from my first birthday, my aunt (mum's sister) Elaine is carrying me here.
Here I was about 3 years old and it was Christmas at my mum's parents house. I'd just got this doll as my christmas gift and was too chuffed about it.
And this is a pic of my brother Kale with my granny (mum's mum) at our house in Newlands East, don't know if it was a special occassion but it's such a beautiful picture.
I love old photo's. Wish I could have more. I remember we had tonnes of photo albums at home & I would page through these all the time looking at all our baby photos and I'm so grateful I have some to add to my own albums.
Thanks mama for the wonderful gift.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)