Callie's Arrival - Chapter 2

The snuggle session was short lived as the nurses took her to the side to get her cleaned and measured.  Callie was 35.6 weeks the day she was born, just over a week shy of being considered “term.”  She was very quiet and from what I could see was just laying there as they hovered around her running tests. There are so many possible risks with having a premature baby and I was all too aware of each one. Josh and our moms were busy snapping pictures and gawking over how cute she was but I felt uneasy.  They weighed her at 5 lbs 7.9 oz and 19 inches long and then handed her to us for a moment to hold.  It was very short lived... The nurse quickly stepped in and said that she needed to take Callie to the nursery to run some tests because she was “grunting.”  

The next hour was filled with family and friends congratulating us and lots of tears of joy being shed.  They moved me into a recovery room and the waiting game began.  Each minute that passed by without Callie’s return was longer and more overwhelming than the one before it.  At one point Josh called down to the nursery to check on her.  The nurse answered the phone and said that they’d call us back.  Callie was the only baby in the nursery and had been gone for two hours now... The aching in my stomach bubbled over.  Around 8:45 the pediatrician walked in the room with a concerned look on her face.  She continued to tell us that Callie was showing signs of respiratory distress and that she felt her needs could be better met at a more equipped hospital.  A huge lump built up in my chest and I lost the ability to speak.  All I could do was lay there and cry silent tears.  My precious baby was being taken away from me.  

Josh and I were able to go into the nursery to see her before the transport team arrived.  Nothing could have prepared us for the sight of our baby girl lying helplessly on the table.  She was hooked up to monitors with tubes and wires all over her body and a vent hood over her tiny head.  Those little arms were lying lifelessly next to her body and with every breath a tiny whimper would escape her lips.  Second to the sound of my mom’s scream the night my dad died this was the worst moment of my entire life.  

Around 11:30 they wheeled her into our room to say goodbye and whisked her away to Cook Children’s Hospital leaving Josh and I by ourselves in a cold, dark and very empty hospital room.  Despite being utterly exhausted and the aid of ambien, sleep did not find me that night.  

Callie's Arrival - Chapter 1

Over the next few posts I wanted to write about one of the most incredible experiences of my entire life... The birth of our little girl, Callie Marie.  I hope that you enjoy the journey as much as we have.  My posts tend to get a tad bit lengthy so I'm breaking it up a bit for you.  Thank you for your constant prayers and support!  

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      This past week has been the most incredible whirlwind of my life.  Miss Callie Marie Morgan was born on May 14, 2012 at 6:15 pm weighing in at a whopping 5lbs 8oz and 19 inches long.  Here is the story of her very unexpected birth and the eventful week that followed.  :)

Monday morning started like any other, I woke up and got myself dressed and ready for school.  Most days I hit my alarm and snooze for another 10 minutes or so but that morning, for some reason, I was up at the first buzz.  As I was driving to school I had this overwhelming feeling that things were a little too calm so I made my morning phone call to Josh a little early and said, “Babe, I don’t know why but I have a feeling that this morning is the calm before the storm.”  I couldn’t explain to him what I was feeling, just that something was eerily different.  He told me he loved me, to have a wonderful morning and that was that.  

Around 9:00 I was in the middle of teaching a math lesson.  As I was reading a question my vision went hazy and I lost all sense of where I was.  My knees collapsed and I fell straight to my tush right in front of 19 fourth graders.  I looked a little like one of those toys that completely collapses with the push of a button.  When my vision returned the kids were all standing up, one of my boys said, “Mrs. Morgan, why are you purple?”  With that I sent him to grab the nurse.  She came in and took my blood pressure - 138/86 - which for me is actually quite high.  I called my doctor and let one of the students take over running the review.  Upon hearing what had happened they asked me to have Josh pick me up from work and bring me in to check on the baby.  

Josh showed up in no time at all and whisked me away to the doctor.  I have to thank my school for being so quick to help - I am very blessed to have such wonderful co-workers!  I started feeling really sick on our way there, light headed, hot, and completely out of it.  I even stumbled into another car as we made the walk from the parking lot.  Once in the doctor’s office I explained to him what was going on and told him that I simply didn’t feel right.  He began to check me for what seemed like an eternity and then looked down at his watch and back at us...  With that he said, “How does May 14th sound?  You’re 5 cm dilated.”  Josh and my eyes met and completely bugged out of our heads.  We went straight to labor and delivery and were admitted within 30 minutes.  

{The picture we uploaded to Facebook saying, "Guess who's having a baby!"}

I sent out a few texts to close family and friends that read, “Looks like I’m having a baby!”  Within the hour Josh and I had three of my best friends, both moms and my stand in dad (Gary) all crammed in a tiny room that was simply buzzing with anticipation.  When they hooked me up to the monitors my contractions were 5 minutes apart (which if you have been following my pregnancy you know is not uncommon).  There happened to be a high number of mommies in labor that morning so we waited quite a while before they moved us to a delivery room.  We were admitted around 11:30 Monday morning and by 4:30 that afternoon they had me in the delivery room.  My doctor came in and broke my water to get things progressing a little faster (which holy cow.... I did not realize so much fluid could fit inside of one’s body).   Before I received my epidural they gave me some pain medication to help with the pain of contractions which made me INCREDIBLY sick.  There’s nothing like having a room full of friends and family and laying in a bed puking your guts out! 

The epidural wasn’t quite as bad as I thought it would be.  Yes, it was painful but the thought of relief was enough to keep me going.  I laid my head against the nurses chest and prayed over and over, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength...”  The only way I can think to describe the feeling is that my legs felt like heavy stumps of flesh completely wrapped in plastic.  My right leg was the first to lose sensation shortly followed by the left.  Unfortunately the epidural didn’t make my nausea go away which meant the bouts of barfing continued.  Within one hour I had gone from 5cm to 10cm dilated and ready to push.  

I had a slight panic attack right as I hit 8-10 cm and remember looking frantically at Josh saying, "she’s coming out!!!"  I turned to him and touched his chest saying, “I’m tagging you in now, you know like in wrestling... your turn.”  This made the entire room of loved ones laugh and eased a little bit of my anxiety, but I was dead serious.  The reality that I was about to shove a human being out from between my legs was just a little overwhelming.  

My doctor finally arrived and everyone was kicked out except for Josh and our moms.  It’s amazing how many people are needed to deliver ONE child.  There were three nurses, a doctor, my mom, Josh’s mom and the two of us.  Ya lose all sense of modesty when all you want is to get the pressure to go away.  Within minutes I was holding onto the back of my legs pushing with all I had.  Three contractions and ten pushes later (yes, I know - high five, Nicki!) our little girl was taking her first breath.  

{Josh's first time to hold a baby ... And it was his daughter.  Needless to say I was balling my eyes out.}

I wish I could explain the feeling that overcame my soul at that very moment.  Josh and I gazed through tearful eyes at the miracle God had given us... our little girl was absolutely perfect.  Josh cut her umbilical cord and the doctor placed her slimy little body on my chest.  I remember not being able to catch my breath because I was so overcome with emotions I had never in my life experienced.  The moment she cried my heart stopped and our world was forever changed.