This was the day of my much anticipated c-section. Everything went pretty smoothly that day. I wasn't allowed to eat anything after midnight the night before, but I had Seth go to the gift shop at the hospital and buy me some life savers candies, so I snuck a couple of those in before the surgery. I remember being really nervous as I walked to the c-section room at 11:00 am and all the nurses that I had gotten to know so well over the past 7 weeks cheered me on. My favorite nurse, Sarah, was present at the c-section and that was wonderful having her there. Seth had to wait outside the surgery room as I was given my spinal for anesthesia. I remember sitting up on the table with my back exposed, feeling a small prick in my back, and then a sensation of warmness filling my body. Then I was laid down on the table and my stomach was cleaned and prepped for the c-section. At that point Seth was allowed to come in and stand by my head. It was so wonderful having him there to support and comfort me. A drape was placed above my chest so that I couldn't see what was happening. Luckily, the anesthesia had kicked in at that point and I felt no pain. I remember feeling a lot of pressure and pulling, so I knew something was going on, but fortunately nothing hurt. At 11:23 am we heard the first cry, and this was baby A, our sweet Madeline, born at 4 pounds and 12 ounces. It was so wonderful to hear her cry. I caught a quick glimpse of her as she was carried past my head to her isolette to be examined by the neonatologist and nurses. The second cry we heard was from baby B, our precious boy, Caleb, at 4 pounds 4 ounces. I couldn't see him but Seth was able to see him from his position and assured me that everything looked okay. And last but not least, at 11:25 am, our darling baby C, Mischa, was born weighing 3 pounds and 4 ounces...our little peanut! At first I did not hear any crying and that made me so nervous. Luckily, after a little bit of suctioning and oxygen, we heard her sweet cry. All throughout the pregnancy, baby C had always made us nervous. She was the one who the doctors monitored closely, so we knew that she was the smallest. I could never feel her kicking quite as much as her brother and sister, so we hoped that she was going to be okay. We learned after Mischa was born that her umbilical cord was slightly twisted, possibly contributing to her small size. Seth and I realized that all our prayers had been answered and our 3 healthy babies had finally arrived. I always tear up when I think about this special day. All the weeks of bed rest really paid off and we knew that we were so blessed! Here are a few pictures from that day.
Madeline Naomi Klein - born at 11:23 am, weight 4 lbs, 12 oz, length 17.25 inches
Caleb Kainalu Klein - born at 11:24 am, weight 4 lbs, 4 oz, length 16.5 inches
Mischa Irene Klein - born at 11:25 am, weight 3 lbs 4 oz, length 16 inches
Here are a few videos Seth took from the delivery. Hope you enjoy! :)
This video was taken immediately after the babies were born.
This video shows the babies a little while after the delivery.
At Saint Mary's hospital where the babies were born, they have a tradition of having the fathers push a button in order to play a nursery rhyme that is heard throughout the hospital whenever a baby is born. Here is a video of Seth pushing the button 3 times!
After the c-section was complete, I had to stay in the recovery room for about one hour to be monitored. Seth was able to go to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and visit with our new babies. I was so thankful he was able to take a lot of pictures and even a few videos since I was not able to be there to see the babies. Once my recovery was over, I was wheeled down to the NICU in my bed to see the babies. I was allowed to hold Madeline because she was 100% stable. Here is a picture of me holding Madeline for the very first time with Seth.
Seth wearing the blue scrubs he was given prior to my c-section. He wore these scrubs the entire day and refused to take them off. I guess he felt like a doctor!
This is Seth's mom, Irene, and my mom, Sue, standing over Caleb and Mischa's isolettes as the nurses took care of our babies.
Poor little Mischa had jaundice and had to be under phototherapy lights. Here is a picture of her wearing her stylish sunglasses!
A few hours after the delivery, Madeline was discharged from the NICU and allowed to come to my hospital room on the postpartum unit. I just remember being really sleepy and groggy from the delivery and Seth telling me that Madeline was going to be staying with me. I thought I was dreaming because all along I had mentally prepared myself for the possibility of all 3 babies spending an unknown amount of time in the NICU. I was so happy to have Madeline there with me. I was sad that Caleb and Mischa had to stay in the NICU but Seth and I both knew it was best for them and that they were receiving great care from the doctors and nurses. Both Caleb and Mischa required feeding tubes which were placed in their noses. Here are a couple of pictures of them with their feeding tubes.
Caleb in the NICU
Mischa in the NICU
Stay tuned...I will be posting pictures of Madeline coming home from the hospital in the next post. Thanks for stopping by! :)
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