Nine Weeks and Excuses

Adeline is now nine weeks old. Things have been crazy the past few weeks, but more about that later. Our little Addie is growing like a weed at her last apt she weighed in at nine pounds. According to the ped she is exceeding all her milestones. She is quite good at lying on her tummy and holding her head up! Her sleep is getting better and she is doing close to seven hours each night. She is drinking 3 ounces every 3 hours and sometimes asking for an extra ounce here and there. She is also smiling and cooing which just melts your heart!

Now on to the reasons for my delay in posting. Adeline had colic from about 3 weeks until 8 weeks. The colic was extended periods of crying usually in late day early evening. Nothing would soothe her tummy. However, we have seen great improvement with nutramagen (hypoallergenic formula), gripe water, zantac for reflux, and Dr. Brown's bottles. Also, after her periods of colic she refused to sleep lying down in a bassinette..well she still has that problem, but we are just relieved she is sleeping better. Also, I was having recurring symptoms of my cardiomyopathy!Poor Gabriel has been sick on off since he started preschool/daycare. And this past week he brought home a stomach bug which landed me in the ER on Tuesday because we were concerned it could jump start my cardiomyopathy since one causes can be virus. Luckily with some nausau meds I was fine and no heart issues. And how could I forget Gabriel is still adjusting to his little sister. He has had a really hard time even though we know he loves her. Things seem to be calming down a bit. I am looking forward to some fun fall festivities with my wonderful family!

4 Weeks Old

Adeline is four weeks old today! Happy Birthday sweet baby girl! She continues to be a great baby. She is having a little trouble with her nights and days. She is up each evening from 2-4am, however, we switched her formula to soy and are hopeful that will resolve her upset tummy! She has her 4 week apt next week and I think she will weigh over seven pounds. Her PKU came back normal...so thankful for a healthy baby!

My nuclear stress test revealed insufficient blood flow to the lower portion of my heart. In two weeks I will be going for a heart catherization to determine if there is a blockage which is preventing sufficient blood flow. My cardiologist explained this is from the cardiomyopathy and cholesterol. Both of which were caused by my pregnancy. I have been very concerned about the procedure, but we decided it was a better option then a possible heart attack at 33. I am confident that the procedure will be able to resolve the problem and continuation of my medicine will help me to resolve the cardiomyopathy within the year!

Gabriel is having some adjustment issues with his new sister. He is very loving to her, but is demanding extra attention from mommy! He is starting his new preschool next week! Hooray for mommy!

Swimming Lessons and a picture of Adeline

Gabriel had his first swimming lesson today. He started out shy, but by the end of the 1/2 hour he was in the water kicking and blowing bubbles. He even made two new friends. I am very proud of him.

Home Sweet Home!

We brought Adeline home on July 19 and we could not have been happier. However, as the week progressed I was having shortness of breath and difficulty just walking up stairs or taking a shower without losing my breathe. I thought that it was from all of the pain pills I was taking due to the c-section so I stopped taking them. O was not able to sleep because it hurt to lye down. I even woke up one night thinking I was having a panic attack. I did not want to leave the baby or Gabriel to go to the doctor. But by Friday morning it was so bad I had no choice. I called urgent care and they recommended I go to the ER because I would need testing that they did not have available at their facility. So I went to the ER and they took me right away and did a million tests...my x ray came back that my lungs were full of fluid and one of my blood tests that was supposed to be at 500 came back at over 5000 (showing my heart was functioning like a 75 year old). The ER doctor wanted to admit me to the hospital for conjestive heart failure. I was crying and begging her to let me do further testing outpatient becasue I could not leave my new baby. She pulled some strings and got me in with her friend the local cardiologist for Friday afternoon. He had me come in for a heart ultrasound and consult. The heart ultrasound showed that my heart was only functioning at 40% capacity and it should be functioning between 55-75%. The cardiologist told me that I needed to be admitted to get the fluid out of my lungs and get on medication to improve the heart function. I was diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy. It basically is a weakness in your heart caused by pregnancy usually caused in late pregnancy or postpartum. The doctor said it could be why Adeline had decels the week before, but I still believe it had to due with cord compression.

I spent the weekend in the hospital. I basically cried from when I was admitted Friday night until they released me on Sunday. I was given a bunch of medication to remove fluid and get my heart back to speed. Eveytime I stood up I was dizzy and nasuous and I could not eat. I missed Gabriel and Adeline terribly. Lucklily my parents stayed at our house to help Hubert so that he could come visit me. It was a really difficult weekend.

I was released yesterday and could not be happier. I have not cried since I left the hospital so I hope that means and postpartum sadness has left me. Now enough about me, the purpose of this blog was to update on the kids. Adeline is the sweetest baby. The girl loves to eat and is very content. She has straight dark hair and the prettiest eyes I have ever seen. She is very alert and seems to be able to hold her head up. She is active for a newborn!

Gabriel is falling into the big brother roll. It is so cute to hear him talking to her. I feel as though he grew up even more over the weekend. I love them both so much and I hope to not have to be away from them again!

Welcome Ms. Adeline

Hi, everyone!

Wednesday I went for a routine doctors apt. The doctor identified a deceleration in baby's heart rate. This is the same doctor who saved Gabrel's life by doing my rescue cerclage at 20.5 weeks. She sent me for monitoring at maternal fetal medicine. They identified a small amount of decelerations. They checked me into labor and delivery for four hours of monitoring. The doctors decided to keep me overnight and move my amnio to first thing Thursday am. Baby's strips were great at labor and delivery. My amnio revealed she was ready to be born. So Friday, July 16, 2010, at 9:34 am Adeline Brooklyn Villareal was born. She is perfect and tiny. She weighed in at 5.5 pounds and 19 1/2 inches. At birth she was very tangled in the nuchal cord, it was 3 times around her neck, around her body, and her ankle. The doctor also said her cord was thin which may have caused the entanglement and a lack of food to her that is why she was so small. I need to do some research on that. The ultrsound only revealed she had a scarf type nuchal cord that would not cause decelerations. It is so scary that her situation was worse than anyone knew. I think maybe doctors knew on Wednesday, but did not want to alarm me so they just admitted me. God is good, we are so thankful that our baby girl was born healthy!

I will get pictures up soon. We are in the hospital until Tuesday. I am recovering well and the baby is passing her tests with flying colors and is eating great. She already put on a little weight.

37 Weeks

Happy 37 weeks! Well Gabriel came the day I turned 37 weeks, but I have no indication that this little girl is coming anytime soon! I almost feel like she might stay in as long as possible.

Monday the cerclage was removed. It was painful, but I did it with no meds! Since I had been discussing an early delivery with my ob due to the nuchal cord she agreed to an amnio on Friday and possible Monday, July 19 delivery. If baby girls lungs are developed on Friday she will be here on Monday. If not I have to wait another week until Monday, July 26. I spent the last few days obsessing about the amnio, but I spoke to the head of Maternal Fetal Medicine (Dr. doing procedure)at the hospital and assured me that it is a simple procedure. Please pray for mature lungs. I am not sure how much more I can take of the Comfort Inn and eating out every night with a 3 year old.

I will update facebook if I spontaneously go into labor.

36 weeks

I am now 36 weeks. Gabriel arrived the week I hit 37 weeks...one week from today. I am not feeling so great, lots of contractions and discomfort, but I am so thrilled to have her continuing to grow inside me.

Bags are packed and car seat is ready. After my cerclage removal on Monday I am checking into a hotel near the hospital. Hubert will then go home and pick up Gabriel. He will be staying with my parents on that day. Then the count down begins until my scheduled c-section of July 26. Since the baby still has the nuchal cord we wanted to be close to the hospital in case my water breaks which is sometimes the case after cerclage removal. The water breaking also preceding my labor with Gabriel.

I am really nervous and excited all in one. Please keep our baby in your thoughts and prayers!