|Disclaimer: I used to roll my eyes at these types of posts too.| 🤪 I figure I will eventually be posting Atlee’s birth story, and AJ was pre-blog. So I thought I’d flash back a couple years to tell y’all about the arrival of our sweet boy. I’m biased, but I think it’s a pretty good story!
It was September 7th 2017. AJ was due on the 26th. I was still working as a nurse and had worked night shift the night before. I woke up feeling pretty crazy, but I knew I had a lot to get done before my appointment that afternoon. I wandered from store to store picking up things I needed. I remember calling matt from tjmaxx & hardly being able to concentrate telling him “I just feel really out of it, but I know I need to get stuff done.” (I think this was my last minute nesting 😂).
First clue: My nurse checked my blood pressure at my appointment and it was high. Rechecked it. Still high. Which I knew wasn’t good because when I weighed that morning I had gained a LOT more than I should’ve gained in a week. Second clue: Someone comes in my room to recheck my BP. Then I hear my doctor in the hall saying “Has her sister’s wedding already happened?!?” & one of my nurses says “pretty sure it was last weekend. I think I saw pictures.” |Side note: We LOVE my doctor. Even then, she was worried about me making it to Summer’s wedding.| Third clue: she walks in, looks at me, and says “Where’s your husband?” Despite the clues, I was still pretty oblivious. I blabber on about how he couldn’t get off work this time and she says “but he’ll be able to meet you at the hospital, right?” I remember her saying “You’re really swollen, and this isn’t like you at all.” She tells me that I’ve developed preeclampsia & she’d like to deliver AJ before it gets any worse. And then of course I’m trying to be a grown up & not bawl my eyes out.
I call Matt, who’s like super confused & low key panicking. Also, the cell service isn’t great and I’m not totally sure if the phone is cutting out or he’s just not breathing. 🤣 I run home & meet him & grab random stuff around the house. Matt also had to unload a shelf I’d bought for AJ’s nursery that morning. It was almost as long as the car, and I’d been driving around with it basically sitting on my shoulder. Then we head to the hospital, but I beg to stop at sonic first because I NEED A BANANA. 🍌 Got it. (Who knew sonic even sold bananas? They sold one to me! 🤪)
We arrive at the hospital. They started my drip at 10PM but told me I still probably wouldn’t have AJ until the next evening. Let’s blur through that night so I don’t have to think about it again. WHEW. Survived it. It truly was a blur to matt because he was snoozing. I told him ahead of time it was fine though because I’m pretty hardheaded and insist on being independent. 😂 Finally gave in and took pain medicine at some point early in the morning. Should have taken half a dose because I couldn’t even walk. The next morning I was mean as a snake, y’all. |Sorry, Matthew|.
In the middle of fussing at Matt, my water broke & I got a nose bleed at the same time. I had developed thrombocytopenia due to the preeclampsia (flashback to my 20 year old tonsillectomy fiasco). Anyway, Matt’s in panic mode SCREAMING into the call light at this point. My new nurse walks in..and she’s my Facebook friend (She was great & I’m so glad she was my nurse…but you know the moment when someone you know sees you being a crazy person? 🙃)
Anyway, I’m waiting on my turn to get an epidural. My doctor comes in to break my water and is shocked to find out that my water has already broken. And I’m crying for my epidural and she’s really upset that I haven’t gotten it yet. All I know is that she left and like one minute later the anesthesiologist arrives. Fast forward just a little while & im sitting up doing my makeup. 🤣
My nurse gives me a peanut ball to wrap around and says she’ll be back in about an hour to help me turn over to my other side. I fell asleep and woke up to her walking into the room. And as most of you know, I’m an RN myself & I know the feeling of trying to be calm for the patient. And in that moment, I KNEW she was trying to be calm for me. (What I didn’t realize was that she was literally looking at little AJ’s head.) But she started hurrying around the room and grabbing things.
Matt was out in the waiting room with our families (eating something—that little stinker) so I text him that he needed to come now. I find out later that he didn’t quite understand my text and just thought I was fussing that he’d been gone too long (lol, I’m not clingy or anything 🤪). So he casually strolls into the room..and I do mean casually. He’s WAY calm. He comes over and leans down next to me and I’m like “can’t believe this is happening!” He says “WHAT?!?” 🤣
Eventually, my doctor came running in. Maybe 5 minutes later, and the rest is history! At 11:47 AM on September 8th, I held the absolute CUTEST thing I had EVER seen. 6 lb 5 oz. 18 3/4 inches long. What in the world would we do without our sweet Aiden James Holloway?!
OH, how I love this boy. 💙
Happy Hemlines 