Miss Meredith Lee has arrived! (34w1d)

Our newest daughter, Meredith, was born yesterday (March 16) around 2:45pm. I am still way too groggy to be trusted to share details, so I'm just going to give you what I know to be true right now and I'll add more to the blog in the next day or so with factual details! First of all, we have NOT decided on a second name yet - of course I have chosen one for her that I love, but Brandon is still a little up in the air about it - so we're not filling out any forms in ink for Meredith, just yet anyway!

"Meredi" is doing so amazing well - we are just so proud of her we could bust! She weighed 5 lb 11 oz (a couple ounces shy of Malorie's & Melanie's weights at 33wks). But unlike Mal and Mel, Meredi scored a 9 on her apgar at one minute - and the next was done in the nursery, so I missed her score. When the neonatologist announced that she was giving Meredi a 9, my ob talked over my sterile screen while he was closing everything up and said, "Wow, neonatologists NEVER give 9's - always 4's & 5's." Then the neonatologist looked at the NICU nurses who were in the OR taking care of Meredith and said, "You don't need me here, I'm going back to help sick kids!" And with that, she went back to NICU leaving Meredith in the care of nurses b/c she wasn't a "sick kid" by the neonatologist's standards! What a rush that was to hear.

After I was finished in recovery, Brandon and I got to go and visit Meredi in NICU. She looks just fabulous. She's breathing all room air, without any assistance at all. Her blood sugars are good. They'll let her lay low until the Magnesium that I was given (to try to stop pre-term labor) works out of her system, abt 24hrs. Because it makes the baby so groggy, they don't push the baby much until they are "clean and sober" so they're not overworking unnecessarily. So she may get to try to nurse as soon as Monday (today) evening!

Long story (finally) short: Shiela is doing great, survived c/section number 5 and, although tired, she has no complaints (we'll see how she yelps when the narcotics wear off - LOL). Meredi is just our hero! I know not to put all of our eggs in to one basket - odds are Meredi will have a set-back or two while in NICU (maintianing body temp, learning to eat, etc) - but she's honestly the best (healthwise) preemie we've had. A NINE on her apgar...from Dr. W no less. She's a very good neonatologist, we met her way back with Malorie and saw her at one time or another with the other preemies, but she never struck us as "chatty or chummy" - both of which she was during the c/section. Little jokes here and there - compliments to the other staff...just a very nice, nice outgoing person. A very obvious change in personalities from what we remembered - and we like it!!! :)

We are so blessed!