Happy Birthday Alexandra

Today on the Feast of St. Lucia, we are celebrating the birth of our daughter Alexandra. She was born 3 weeks early, a week before my scheduled c-section in the midst of a horrendous ice storm. I developed pre-eclampsia, and missed a Dr.s appointment due to being trapped by the ice storm, when the highways cleared enough to attempt the trip to OKC, i insisted Ben take me in.

He thought we should sit tight, because i was scheduled to deliver in another week, but i knew something was really wrong with me. I had never felt so strange(ha-ha) in my life.

Bobbi Sue not only insisted i pack my bag, and take it with me, she went with us to my appointment. They took my blood pressure, 4 times with-in 10 minutes, and then my Dr. said you are going straight to the hospital...

I had the most horrendous nurse, she insisted there was nothing really wrong with me, and if i laid completely still, on my left side, they could lower my blood pressure, and i just needed to go home, and stop taking up space for the really sick people...

My dr. ordered the 24 hour urine collection, but my nurse did not bring the equipment in for 6 hours, at shift change she brought it, my Dr. almost had the stroke, she was furious...

Bobbi Sue and the nurse got into an argument, Ben and the nurse got into an argument, my head hurt so bad i couldn't open my eyes or sit up....to the nurses chagrin my Dr. wrote orders to keep me...

They decided to perform my c-section at 8:00 p.m.on the 13th so Dr. Nanda could attend her daughters Christmas program, We called the children, and they were loading up the van to have the family at the hospital before my surgery...

A little before 5:00 2 nurses came running in my room, they started grabbing my i.v., pulled the sides up on my bed and were racing me to the OR. I had no idea what was going on, and I thought they were, at the least nuts, at the worst, had the wrong patient.

It turns out my blood pressure had spiked so high, i was in critical condition, and my surgery had to be performed immediately...

The nurses never prepped me for surgery during the day, so everything was done in the ice cold operating room, in full view of everyone...i was alert enough to be irritated. They gave me a spinal so they could begin immediately, and this was a difficult section. I had significant scar tissue, and it took forever to reach her. She was also very high up and they had to use a vaccum extractor to bring her down far enough to pull her out. My dr. used a new tool, it cut and cauterised at the same time. I almost threw up, from smelling the burning flesh since it was mine...they gave me something for nausea, and after i saw and heard my read screaming dark haired, dark-eyed daughter, they put me completely out...thank God!!!

I rejoice today that we came through the ordeal with no ill effects, she is a happy healthy little girl, I am tired...

Today we celebrate Alexandra Rose with pink cupcakes, dinner, ice cream and punch. She is loved, she is cherised, we are grateful.