Tyson - January 2012

Welcome to this crazy family Ty.  I wish I had some good advice on how to handle us as the start of your very first letter, but at the moment I don't.  I guess maybe that is what the successive letters through the years are for - reminding you and me of memories from when you are too young to remember and also trying to slip in some advice here and there when it hits me.  For today though, I'm going to take the easy route and just write down the story of how you got here while it is still fresh in my mind.  It's probably going to be more information than you may want to know, but it was a pretty traumatic experience for me and your dad and if we are ever going to use it as a reason to give you a hard time then you better know the details.

I had a doctor's appointment on the 27th, and he told me that I'd be more likely to have a tax break than a New Year's baby.  I guess you must have heard him because around 1 a.m. the next morning I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep.  I ended up on the couch in the toy room playing on my iPod and having contractions here and there for an hour or so before finally getting back to sleep.  Your dad had been planning on going ice fishing that morning depending on how I felt, and I told him that he probably better stay home.

Well....the contractions went away.  Pretty much completely.  Your dad just kept looking at me like he was waiting for something to happen... and nothing ever did.  Finally that afternoon I loaded up Tess and took her for a walk around the neighborhood to see if I could get things started again.  I may have even jogged a few steps here and there.  When I got home the contractions were back and starting to be a little more regular but still nothing to be too concerned about, so we still waited.  Finally your dad couldn't take it anymore and we all loaded up and went for a ride in the truck.  That must have been the trick because by that time I'd been timing the contractions and they were about 3-5 minutes apart and starting to really make me have to stop what I was doing.  We were only home for a few minutes before I called Grandma H. to see if she would meet your dad halfway to pick up Logan and Tess.  I still didn't think you would come until much later, but I didn't want anyone driving in the middle of the night.

Pretty much as soon as your dad left I knew I wasn't going to last at home until he made it back to drive me to the hospital.  I tried to clean up a few things around the house for a few minutes before I got in the car at about 4:15 p.m. and sat there until I had a contraction.  As soon as it was over I started the car and got about halfway to the hospital before I had another one.  Not too bad considering the hospital is only 5 minutes away.  I walked in and told the girls at the desk I was having a baby and they took me right in.  To my surprise I was at a 5 when I got there and figured you'd come sometime in the middle of the night.  I texted your dad and told him to meet me at the hospital and settled in to wait for the anesthesiologist and my epidural.  They had a monitor which showed in a number value the strength of the contractions.  Baseline was about 20, and mine were at about a 40 and I was pretty sure I was going to die.  The nurses got the room set up since they said that with a third baby you can go from 5 to go time in a hurry, and your dad got there pretty soon after that.  I told the nurses that my babies have a habit of coming at shift change, about 6:45, but thought that we'd be safe with you.

About 5:20 or so the epidural man got there, and I told him how much I loved him, and he got to work.  By that time the contraction monitor was reading at 90.  Oh buddy, I know you will never experience that pain but ask your dad how to help when it's your wife's turn.  I'm pretty sure he's got a sprained finger or two from me but by that point I couldn't think of anything but how to get that needle in my back faster.  The poor guy had been flying his plane out over Zion when he got the call.  I heard him tell the nurse she was lucky he got the call at all.  He told me too that I should encourage you to be a pilot since that's what he was doing when I needed him.  I will enroll you in pilot school the minute you say the word if that is what it takes to repay that man for his lovely skill at making pain go away.  Pretty soon I was feeling much better and was getting ready to relax and enjoy some time with your dad before it was go time.

Dr. Ott came in after finishing up at the Clinic around 5:45 or so and checked me.  He said I got the epidural just in time and that I was ready to go.  All we had to do was wait about 15 minutes for my antibiotics to finish up, and we'd be set.  They finished getting the bed ready and we waited just a second for your dad to finish up on the phone with the grandparents before it was time to push.  I have NO idea how women push for hours on end.  With your brother and sister I only pushed a couple times, but that's where the trouble with you started.  I still probably only pushed for 10 minutes, but I thought I was going to die of exhaustion!  At 6:35  you made your appearance, and they put you up on my chest to meet you for the first time.  After a few minutes they took you to the warmer to clean you up, and your dad went over to take some pictures while Dr. Ott finished up with me.

Well they got you cleaned up and the doctor was still working on me.  Then your dad handed you back to me to try to feed you, and he was still working.  He kept asking for light and pretty soon they were asking for more gauze and then more gauze.  Then they started asking for my vitals every couple minutes, and I could see the doctor and nurses starting to look a little more frustrated.  It was a little comical to me because one of the nurses had this HUGE flashlight and she kept trying to put it where the doctor needed it, and then he would move his head so it was right in the way again.  It looked like a funny dance.  I also kept looking at your dad who kept asking me if I was okay, and I kept telling him not to worry that it was no big deal.  A few minutes later I had to ask him to take you because I was getting lightheaded.  As soon as that happened they dropped the head of the bed and put oxygen on me, and I'm pretty fuzzy on the details there with the exception of your dad's face.  I have never in my life seen such a look.  I felt so bad and tried to keep it together because there he was standing next to me holding this tiny baby with a scared shitless look on his face, but I remember telling him once or twice I was too tired to answer his questions, and I just wanted to take a little nap.  By that time it had been an hour and a half or so since you had been born and they couldn't stop the bleeding I was having.

The doctor explained that he didn't have the light he needed to be able to find and stop the bleed, so he was going to take me to the OR where he would have better light.  I remember feeling better by that point and understood what was going on and wasn't nervous, but your poor dad still was.  By that time your Grandma and Grandpa Veater had gotten there, and I'm so glad they did because I don't know how well your dad would have done alone.  They took me in the OR and gave me another dose in my epidural along with some blood.  That was the thing that weirded me out the most - seeing someone else's blood going into my arm through the IV, but I was still pretty calm and not worried about the whole ordeal.  I was in the OR for about 3 hours.  They gave me just a light sedative, so I was awake on and off throughout that time and chatted here and there with the anesthesiologist.  At one point he brought your dad to the door and said, "Kim, tell your husband hi and that you are okay," which I did.  After they were done I heard them doing the sponge count and the anesthesiologist and nurse were kind of joking together about how many sponges there were.  The nurse said she was about done counting and had just gotten to 45.

They took me to my room, and your dad looked a little better by that point.  They brought you back in and I was able to hold you, and I had your dad take a picture.  It seriously makes me laugh every time I look at it.  I look absolutely horrible, but you look adorable!  I LOVE this picture.

My face is so puffy, and I have an IV in each arm, the heart monitor on my finger, blood pressure cuff on my arm, and various bandages from needle sticks.  Pretty quick they added some oxygen too.  I was seeing double and so, SO tired.  I was hungry and thirsty and tried to eat some ice chips but even that ended up coming back up.  I don't remember a whole lot about that night.  I know I tried to feed you and wanted you with me as much as possible, but I did get some sleep that night.

The next morning I still wasn't feeling great and was looking forward to breakfast, until they brought it.  I was so hungry and all I got was clear liquids.  Jello, cranberry juice, and chicken broth.  I ate the jello and that was it.  I was still so nauseous and afraid I was going to lose that too.  They made me get up and try to walk to the door and back and I took my throw up bag along just in case that short journey was enough to do it.  I was still seeing double and feeling crummy so they gave me 2 more units of blood and let me eat a decent lunch.  It's amazing the difference the blood and some food made because I've been feeling back among the living ever since.  It was funny to go to the hospital with you yesterday to get our blood drawn.  The girls at the lab were so excited to see me with color back in my face and a few other people we saw from the ward and the Clinic couldn't believe how pale I looked.

Day 2

When I asked Dr. Ott how many stitches I had he said too many to count.  Apparently your head came out just fine but you decided to put your elbow up when your shoulders came through and that is most likely what did all the damage.  You've also got jaundice just like your brother and sister (under the lights as I type), so between the two of us with our lab work and medications and what not this definitely has been a more difficult transition from 2 kids to 3 than expected.  We are so, SO glad you are here though.  In all reality the complications I had were nothing.  I would much much rather the complications be with me than with you, and  I feel incredibly blessed that I have had 3 healthy babies.  After a couple extra days cuddling you in the hospital (did I mention your dad got sick with the flu, so we stayed an extra night?  Poor guy!), I was feeling ready to have a handful more kids.  There's something about a brand new baby snuggling up on your shoulder with that beautiful new baby smell that really can't be beat by much in the this world.  Your dad on the other hand says he is 110% sure that we are done having kids.  I think maybe that was your plan - if you caused enough trouble coming into this world you knew your dad would make sure you were the baby of the family!

That's a long story I could have made shorter (I could have made it longer too!), but I want to remember.  Maybe it's knowing how fast the other 2 have grown up, or maybe it is knowing you are my last, but I don't want this time to fly.  I want it to crawl.  No doubt it is a hard time.  It's stressful, it's tiring, it's chaotic, it's emotional, and it's painful, but I don't ever want to forget it.

Thanks for the things you've shown me this past week - the experience we had taught me a lot.
Love you baby Ty,

Mom