The Keogans: Sophie Elysia Keogan Arrived at Last

Sorry this has taken me a little while to post...

I think for the last several entries I was expressing how I thought Sophie would come much earlier than we had expected. Well, she showed the rest of us a thing or two about just how much we know when babies will arrive.

I completely expected her to arrive a couple weeks ago at about 38 weeks since I had been having contractions since I was 34 weeks along. We never would have thought we would be having her on her due date.

Here is the story of how it all went down...

Tuesday morning was my 40 week checkup, which I never expected to be going to, anticipating a baby being here already. So you can imagine how disappointed I was to actually be seeing the Dr again at her office and not at a hospital. I asked Mom and Dad if they would watch Sydney while Gabe came with me to this appointment since I was sure we would be discussing options about what to do if Sophie went even longer than her due date.

My appointment was at 8:30am and we arrived there and were in a room by 8:35. The Dr came in within a few minutes and she said humorously, " You're still here, huh?"

And I said with a sigh, "Yes, I am..."

We chatted a minute and then I asked what our options were from here on out and she started to explain that they would do some minor tests and an ultrasound if we rolled around to a 41st week and that we could be induced if we wanted at anytime. We said we would think it over and get back to her...

then she checked me and said, "you know, you are already at 4 centimeters..."

"Really!?" I said.

"Well, we could send you on over to the hospital and get you a room reserved because they are busy today."

"Wait, we could have the baby today?"

"Yes, we could start a little pitocin just to get your labor kick started. Otherwise you could go into labor any day now and it would probably be really quick and I know you wanted an epidural."

"Yes, I do. I was thinking that my labor this time would be short since I have been having contractions for weeks. I do want to have time for an epidural."

"Alright, I'll call over to the hospital and tell them you are coming."

And that was that. We ran home and asked Mom and Dad if they had any plans for the next two days and we grabbed our bags and left Sydney with them and Celia, who was visiting for the holidays.

We arrived at the hospital, got hooked up and admitted and they started the pitocin around 10:30 or 11. I can't remember the exact time. I got the epidural, which was a breeze, but I ended up needing two extra boosts of the numbing stuff because the left half of my torso was aching sooo bad by the time I was at an 8, while the rest of my lower body was still completely numb, and then when I was at a 10 my entire pelvis area was just constantly aching. I thought since I was at a 10 that I could just get through it without anymore, since I really wanted the numbness to wear off asap, but once the Dr walked in and saw that I was in tears, they gave me more. Even though I was completely numb from the waist down, I didn't have to push long. I didn't really know if I was pushing or not, but the good coaching from the Dr and Gabe helped me know when I was doing what I needed to.

I had to push a little longer with Sophie than I did with Sydney. Sydney I pushed twice and that was it. With Sophie... 4 pushes.

Sophie was born at 5:29pm. She weighed a whole 8 lbs 6 oz. A whole pound more than I thought she would. They put her on my chest so I could get a good look at her before they cleaned her up. She was beautiful. Different from Sydney though. I think they have different noses, but everything else was very much the same. I think people will be able to tell that they are sister. She also has lighter hair than Sydney does and Blue eyes. All of which can change. Sydney's eyes were really dark and I could tell that they were going to be brown, but with Sophie, I am still not sure.
They took Sophie to the crib thing to clean her up and Gabe went with her. I kept watching Gabe's face while they cleaned her. I have never seen him cry or even tear up except for when Sydney was born, and I wasn't going to miss it this time either. Sure enough, he had a few tears. Gabe thinks it funny how I don't watch the baby during that time. I just tell him that I will have plenty of time to look at the kids, but only one chance to watch his face right after they are born.

Sophie is a really good eater. She is also really mellow. I'd say more mellow than Sydney if you can believe that. She sleeps well, eats well, does... everything else REALLY well. Lets say diaper changes are frequent. She is like a little alarm clock because she will let you know when she needs a diaper change, with a nice loud... I won't go into details ;)

We stayed in the hospital for two days. The post partum section of the hospital; I delivered at John Muir, is now in the new part of the building and it is sooooo nice. Comparing the room we were in with Sydney with the one we were in with Sophie is like a motel compared to a luxury hotel suite. The room was 3 or 4 times bigger, there was a closet, dresser, a large private bathroom, tv and ipod speakers, a larger bed for the Gabe, chairs for guests, the hospital beds were still uncomfortable as always. They seriously need to do something about those. Having your rear end falling asleep half the day while sitting on one of those is a little annoying. Sophie passed all her tests and weighed 7 lbs 14 oz leaving the hospital.

We got home around noon on Thursday and jumped right into a routine for the next week. We have actually gotten decent sleep and I haven't felt dead during the days at all. But when it hits 8pm I am pretty much ready for bed. We are trying to get to bed by 10 so that it gives Gabe a good 8 hours, minus an hour or so for feeding Sophie and changing diapers, for him to sleep before work. Last night, he didn't need to get up at all. I really don't want him to get up if I can do it on my own. Weekends, well that is a different story, ha, I'll let him help me there. Luckily Sydney sleeps all through the night most nights, so we don't have to worry about taking care of both of the girls at the same time.

I love saying that now... "my little girls..."

Sophie had her 1 week check up yesterday and she is doing really well! Back to birth weight in a week.

Stats:
Born
Weight: 8 lbs 6oz
Length: 21 inches

1 Week Old
Weight: 8 lbs 7 oz
Length: 21 3/4 inches

Just Born!!