Hudson Thomas, you have our attention!

As I sit here writing this, I have a precious baby boy laying on my chest.

Best. Feeling. EVER!

((Snuggle time!))

I had written out a highly detailed version of Hudson’s birth story, but when I re-read it, I realized how long it was! So, here is the breakdown of events as I remember them. If you aren't interested, just scroll to the pictures! =)

Friday, September 30

1:00 PM – Regular 37 week DR appt and sono with Kathy & Co! Amniotic fluid levels down from 13 to a dangerously low 4.5 in a week! Off to the hospital for our weekly visit - ha!

2:00PM – Checked in to hospital to receive what I thought would be bags of fluids to get my levels up!

2:15PM – Kathy walks in the hospital room and tells me we will be inducing TODAY! Hudson is safer out than in at this point (my amniotic fluid levels, gestational diabetes and preeclampsia mixed together = no bueno)!

2:16PM – We freak out and start making calls!

4:00 PM - Cervidil is in, fluids have begun and the waiting game is in effect!

Saturday, October 1

4:00AM – After practically no sleep, Cervidil comes out and I’m dilated to a 2 and 75% effaced. I take a shower, do my makeup and try my best not to freak out. I couldn’t believe I would meet Hudson soon!

4:30 AM – Pitocin begins!

((This is when the time gets a little fuzzy!))

10:30 AM – Contractions are pretty intense and I’m “a 3”, so I relax with Nubain!

12:00 PM – Woken up by the nurse telling me the anesthesiologist is coming in for my epidural. I began freaking out again – the epi was my biggest fear! It was NOTHING but greatness! I’m a happy (but dizzy from Nubain) pregnant woman in labor! Kathy starts moving me around to get the meds running through my body.

12:30 PM – I was feeling nauseous so Kathy told me I was likely dilated to a 6! You should have seen her face (and ours) when she checked me and said I was “a 10”! Kathy goes to get ready while I start practicing pushing!

1:31 PM – Our precious, beautiful 6lb 4oz, 18in long baby boy, Hudson Thomas Moore, is born (with a head full of hair) and lets out a loud scream. We thought that was a good thing but he had inhaled some fluid on the way out, which led to difficulties in breathing, along with the fact that his lungs were immature and he was lacking surfactant (which also contributed to his breathing difficulty). We had some skin to skin time before they took him to see if they could regulate his breathing.

((My first few moments with my boy. Excuse my crazy look - I had just delivered a baby, ha!))

Sometime fairly soon after he was born, they decided to transport him to the Med Center of Lewisville because he had a spot of what they thought was pneumonia from the inhalation of fluid. They brought him to me in an incubator and on a stretcher hooked up to a breathing tube, feeding tube and all sorts of other wires ready to be transported in an ambulance. This was when things became very real and I think everyone broke down. He was so tiny and helpless. I will never forget seeing him like that. It broke my heart like you would not believe. Mark and his parents and aunt and uncle went with him. I asked to be transported to Lewisville, but it was too much trouble, so staying in Denton to recover was best.

((Our sweet, sweet baby still hooked up to all of his tubes!))

Monday, October 3

10:00 AM – After having to stay for an extra day because of some issues, I am released from the hospital! Mark and I leave and head home to change and shower, then head to see Hudson. At this point, he only had oxygen in his nose – he was doing really well! Before we left, they actually took the oxygen off and he was breathing completely on his own. It was so good to see him. Two days old and I was truly meeting my son for the first time.

((Hudson just hooked up to oxygen!))

The Med Center of Lewisville gave us a courtesy room so that we could be close to him, so we went down for all of his feedings (every three hours)! We were able to spend quite a bit of time together, which was nice. It's okay that I missed his first bath, his first bottle, etc because he was alive and getting better and that was all that mattered. Still, I was an absolute wreck. We both were.

Hudson would be in the hospital for nine days (seven for the antibiotics and two extra because of a breathing complication earlier in the week).

Monday, October 10

11:00 AM – We complete the discharge papers, hug all the wonderful nurses and take our baby boy home.

((Buckled in and home bound!))

The nurses told me that they enjoy having babies like him in the NICU because he wasn't a worst case scenario baby - compared to all the others, he was big and healthy! Many different nurses told us multiple times that he was just making sure that he had our attention. That, he most definitely does!