Baby Jae turned 1 month old on Wednesday, so it’s time to share his birth story with you while my memory is still fresh.
A quick update first: I’ve been taking care of the 2 boys by myself over the past few days. I messed things up quite a bit on the first day, ha! After that, things have been improving. It certainly helps that Jae LOVES to sleep, so it’s usually lights out for him by 7 to 8 p.m. Then I can spend some time with Vee and get things organised.
All right, here’s the birth story…
The Plan
My EDD was 10 Nov 2011. Since the second trimester, I’ve been communicating with Jae to arrive on 5 Nov 2011, which is a Saturday, followed by a public holiday on Monday.
The day came and nothing happened, so I celebrated my birthday in advance over the weekend. That 2 nights, I experienced slight cramps, but not regular enough to mean the real thing.
The REAL Thing
7 Nov 2011, 1p.m.: Mild contractions started after lunch. They were relatively regular, occurring at about 30 minutes interval. That day was my lunar birthday and my mum’s birthday. I’d a feeling that baby would arrive by the end of the day or the next.
3 to 5p.m.: I took an afternoon nap with Vee. Once awake, I felt the mild contractions again.
I downloaded the Contractions Monitor app on my iPod Touch. This way, I could simply press a button when contraction starts, and press it again when it ends. Then choose its strength, from “Very Mild” to “Very Strong”. The app even plots a chart showing the patterns of the contractions — hubby was impressed!
7.30p.m.: We’d dinner at home. Since the ob-gyn said I need to be admitted when there are 10 contractions within 1 hour, I waited for that time to come. Then suddenly, the contractions became rather strong and VERY frequent — I was pressing the button throughout dinner! And I realised there were already 10 contractions within 40 minutes!
Our original plan was to put Vee to bed, then go to the hospital. But I knew things couldn’t wait, so we decided to rush to the hospital first.
8.30p.m.: I caught a quick shower (cos who knows when the next shower time would be) and saw the “show”. Things were happening too fast beyond our expectations. We grabbed the hospital bag and left house. Great that the hospital is only 10 minutes away from home and there was no traffic jam.
9.15p.m.: Immediately, the nurse arranged for a penicillin injection because I’m a Group B Strep carrier. This is to protect baby during delivery.
The midwife checked and I was already 6-7 cm dilated. She estimated that baby would arrive within 2 hours. Fantastic, considering I spent 29 hours in the hospital for the first delivery.
I lied down inclined sideways and used deep breathing plus relaxation technique to manage every contraction. They were strong yet still manageable.
The ob-gyn reached and artificially burst my water bag to speed things up. The next contraction was EXTREMELY powerful and shocked me! I thought I’d the urge to push, but it was still too early.
Ob-gyn said that baby was very deeply engaged, but his face was facing front, so that could give me the false feeling to push. I mentally told baby to turn backwards.
Midwife suggested that I change from lying on my left to the right, and the following contraction was milder.
Then the super-powerful contractions came on again. Amazingly, baby has turned. This time, the midwife said that I could start pushing, so I did.
10.52p.m.: Within a few pushes, baby Jae was out. I was sooooo relieved and happy that I did it with no enema, no pain relief and no episiotomy. There was only a very slight tear and no blood loss like the first delivery.
Jae calmed down immediately and looked at me when the nurse passed him over. Priceless moment…
After Delivery
For 2 nights, I stayed with Jae in the hospital while hubby brought Vee home to rest. Breastfeeding this second time round is much easier since I know how to cradle the baby and latch him on correctly. And time flies, Jae’s already 1 month old. I’m looking forward to him growing up and playing with his brother.
Sharing time: What’s your birth story? Share your blog post link or write it out in the comments box.
Kudos to you for managing both ur kids at the same time! BTW, does Vee get jealous of Jae? My older child wants me to put Mei Mei down & play with him instead.
Ha… Tracy, I’m still learning every day how to multi-task with the 2 kids. Vee certainly gets jealous since he’s been used to having my full attention for almost 3 years. He doesn’t stop me from taking care of Jae. But when I’m busy with baby, he’d do “funny” things like climb on chair / table to get “forbidden” stuff, to get my attention. Whenever I’m breastfeeding baby, I’d invite him to sit beside me for stories. And once baby is taking a nap, I’d focus on him by playing or doing learning activities with him. Of course, give him extra hugs and cuddles whenever I have 1-to-1 time with him.
I’ve convinced him that if he disturbs baby’s sleep and he becomes fussy, then I’d have less time for him. If he lets baby sleep peacefully, we can have special time together. This way, he’s more than happy to co-operate and help me let baby sleep in peace.
Aww congrats!
I have two…
First: http://mamakalila.wordpress.com/2009/01/04/kalilas-birth-story/
Second: http://mamakalila.wordpress.com/2010/05/01/just-in-time-2/
Thank you for sharing your birth stories, Kalila! 🙂
Thanks for sharing your story. All 3 of my kids were delivered via c-sec so my story is quite different. Basically it was just a lot of waiting for the appointed time, then waiting for doctor to delivery the baby, then more waiting for my wife to be stable before being brought back to ward.
All the waiting’s worth it! 🙂 And kudos for having 3 kids! I hope to have 3 too.
By the way, just read your posts on vegetarianism. I’ve been a vegetarian through my first pregnancy and breastfeeding Vee.
This time, I catered vegetarian confinement food again. Super yummy-licious!
When there’s a will, there’s a way.
So blessed to have a smooth delivery. Take care and enjoy your newborn 🙂
Thank you, Dee. I feel very blessed indeed. 🙂
Glad to hear all went well. Sounds like you’re already taking things in stride at home, too. Congrats on the arrival of baby Jae! Look forward to meeting him soon.
Ha… Shen-Li, I’m just going with the flow at home now. It helps that Jae is a much more easy-going baby, perhaps due to the Shichida pre-natal education / communication I did with him. 🙂
It’s amazing how you cope with two. You’re a supermum!
I’ll be having my second in Mar next year and am quite nervous. My first will only be 18 months at that time.
I’d like to ask if you’re getting any nurses for home visits? Im thinking of getting someone to come over especially because i want help with the breastfeeding. I did not successfully breastfeed my first and i’ve really regretted it. Reading about your breastfeeding relationship with Vee makes me even more determined to breastfeed the second, so i’m trying to get prepared, even looking for some ante-natal classes i go to.
Hihi Gina, congrats on expecting #2!
I’m still learning the ropes, definitely not super at all if you see how I mess up daily. Haha!
Yes, I’d home visits by nurse for Vee (twice in the first week, then weekly, then monthly until almost 2 years old). Having the same for Jae now.
I’ve been using Jenlia Maternal Services (KL). The nurses are good at assisting with breastfeeding too. I get the nurse to see me on Day 3 once we’re home, to check on the latch and any potential issue with baby. Then another visit a few days later to ensure that milk has come in well.
For breastfeeding knowledge, a good ante-natal class certainly helps. I attended that by Mamalink by Christine Choong (KL). She’s a lactation consultant.
I also read Breastfeeding for Dummies.
To breastfeed successfully, the basic is to master the perfect latch on within the FIRST day, to prevent sore / cracked nipples. Get the lactation consultant in the hospital to guide you asap.
Then latch on on demand 8-12 times round the clock. It’s tiring, especially on Day 3-4 if baby’s body reserves has been used up and milk has not come in quickly enough. Baby may keep fussing and this is when people start to suggest supplemental feeding and some mums give in or give up. To overcome it, just got to keep latching on. Once the milk is in, baby will settle down and be happier.
Wish you all the best! 🙂
Thank you so much for the information. There weren’t many people i could go to for advice. Alot of my friends didnt breastfeed too.
I’ll get in touch with Jenlia Maternal Services and Mamalink. I’m praying i’ll be successful this time around. Will keep you updated. Btw, enjoy your blog very much. Keep up the good work!
Greetings of the Season and Best Wishes for the New Year!
Thank you for your encouraging words, Gina. You can do it! 🙂
Welcome to the world Baby Jae!
Thank you, prince n princess mum! 🙂
Congratulation 😀 my gal just turn 6 mths old, it was my first child. But BF doesn’t gone too well as she is premie 4 weeks & i had a c-section. I really felt very sad on this point which i intend to BF her.
I think mayb 2nd one probably i can be better like u 🙂
Hihi Julianne, thank you! Motherhood is full of unexpected challenges. That’s why it’s such a great experience, right? 🙂 All the best when second baby comes along. I know a Mummy whose baby is 2 months premature and she managed to express milk and bring it to the hospital every day. Really salute her perseverence.
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