Birth Annoucement

Wow, I really suck at blogging. I promised I'd blog all through the pregnancy w/updates but working at the new Toys R Us Express really sucked up a lot of my time since I ended up working 8 hour shifts 5 days a week, then of course preparing for the baby, sleeping, squeezing in as much of a social life as possible, and other tasks. So it's understandable I didn't have the time to type up a blog. There wasn't much of interest to post anyway; my pregnancy was the easiest & most inconsequential pregnancy ever. Nothing happened. I found out it was a girl, I got a bigger bump, she moved around a lot. But the delivery is quite a story, so here I am finally blogging.

So Shannon was due on the 23rd. Everyone had bets on when she'd actually be born. My mom wanted her to come on her birthday, the 21st. The most popular prediction was Christmas Eve. Even a psychic my mom sees regularly said the 24th.
The 23rd came & went. So did the 24th and I got through Christmas Day without a twinge. Then at about 1230 in the morning on the 26th I got up to pee & had bright red bloody show. A mild cramping soon followed & we headed to the hospital. While I was under observation for about an hour/hour & a half they became definite contractions, not very intense but regularly spaced 5 minutes apart. However, my cervix didn't dilate at all and I was still at only 1cm so they sent me home to wait out the early labor stages.
Now a massive blizzard was heading down to us later that day, so we were dreading that my labor would intensify during the worst part of the storm. I took a warm bath and shower and was able to doze a little, but the contractions continued to come. They weren't so bad early in the morning - like menstrual cramps, maybe a little more painful, something I could easily grit my teeth & wait out, but as the day wore on and the snow started falling they gradually got more uncomfortable. The pain didn't get worse but the pressure against my rectum and pelvis were tough to sit through. I was contemplating whether I would be able to wait it out through the night & go to the hospital the next day during the tail end of the storm. So far, my water still hadn't broken and there was no sign of further dilation. Finally, more bloody show was appearing and the contractions were so uncomfortable that we braved the storm and headed to Winchester. The roads were treacherous & visibility very low, but we made it there safely & as soon as I was checked I was 3cm dilated. Finally things were moving along.
I was hoping I'd be able to hold out & have a natural birth, but the combination of pain & pressure from the contractions were getting to much and I broke down & got the epidural. I'm so glad I did. It made it so I didn't feel a single contraction and I was able to sleep. Well, I would've been able to sleep if I didn't have this thing where I never sleep well in other beds (I never fall completely asleep at hotels either). But I dozed enough. They had pull-out bed for Wig & he slept like a log the whole night.
My cervix continued to dilate steadily throughout the night but my water never broke. At about 7AM Monday morning the doctor broke my water and I began to try to deliver my daughter. It was tough. Sometimes I could feel the pressure and need to bear down w/the contractions but other times I had to go by the doctor reading the monitor that said when I had a contraction. I was pushing well, and I was expecting Shannon to come out any minute but after an hour of pushing the doctor checked her head position & said her head was not able to pass through the pelvic bone & molding was starting. On top of that there was meconium & I had a low-grade fever & infection so all those factors led to csection. I was wheeled into the OR and prepped. Wig looked so adorable in his scrubs. He was so fascinated with the whole procedure and the fact that I was so numb I didn't feel a single thing while they rooted in my wide opened stomach cavity. Then at 9:48AM, Shannon officially came into the world kicking and screaming, weighing 7lb 12oz and 20 3/4 inches long.
They wisked her away to Special Care to treat her w/antibiotics and it took me neary 4 hours to finally see my little girl. But it was worth the wait. Everyone sees a little bit of someone else in her. I think she has Wig's nose & ears, others say she looks like me or my sister. Some say she has my mom's chin. She already has quite the personality. I'm so glad I have her. She's the best Christmas gift I ever got.

Price is Right Birthday Exravaganza

Today for my birthday Wig and I went down to Foxwoods to see The Price is Right Live. It was hosted by Growing Pains star Alan Thicke. It was basically the same as the TV version - you sit in the audience, you got a big price tag shaped name tag and if they call your name you get to go up and bid to win prizes. The difference though was while on the TV show, the remaining three people when the first winning bid went up onstage got to stay and bid again the next round while at the live show four new people were called up each time. Also on the TV show, each person who wins a pricing game gets to spin to win a chance at the showcase. Instead, the live show called up different contestants to spin the wheel and different contestants for the showcase and there was only 1 showcase instead of one for each contestant. This way, more audience members got the chance to win something. They were also giving away $25 Lowes gift cards to either 20 or 25 people - they'd call 5 names between rounds - and a $100 Macy's gift card at the end of the show. My name was never called, despite the fact that it's my birthday and I totally deserved it. But the show was still highly entertaining. It was fun to be able to shout out suggestions for real than at a TV, Alan Thicke and the announcer who was a local Connecticut weatherman were hysterical, and they also show clips of classic Price is Right through the year including hysterical bloopers and prizes from different eras. After Price is Right Wig and I ate a Hard Rock Cafe. While I was originally planning on eating at Tavern on the Square (3 locations in Harvard, Central and Porter Squares in Cambridge) ever since I saw it on Phantom Gourmet, the fact that Hard Rock was right there and neither of us had been in years, it seemed the right thing to do. We were properly seated in the corner with Godsmack memorabilia since Wig was wearing a Godsmack shirt and the waitress was telling us how Sully Erna always comes to Foxwoods to gamble and eat hot wings at Hard Rock. I got a delicious fruit girly drink where you get to keep the glass and the food was delicious. It was pricy but not more so than Texas Roadhouse or Cheesecake Factory and the atmosphere was worth it for hard rock fans like us. Also visible from our seats were memorabilia from Anthrax's Scott Ian, Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi, Everlast, Offspring, Hoobastank, and Foo Fighters. And there were some good music videos playing too. We didn't stick around Foxwoods to gamble, but we'll be going back when we have the money to stay for a weekend, cuz there's so much to do there. Traffic on the way back was a little congested in some places since we were hitting the tail end of rush hour but it was more or less smooth sailing both to and from since it was straight down 95.
When I got home my gift from Flav was waiting for me. Her gift was actually purchasing and coming into contact with something Star Trek themed LMAO. (she really can't stand Star Trek) it's an ID/business card/cigarette case with Spock groping a topless woman (it's a collage of sorts) and the caption "Spock attempts the first Vulcan Breast Meld" It was one of my favorites on Etsy for quite a while and it'll come in handy to hold my business cards and such these upcoming cons. Other than the delicious Hard Rock Cafe meal with souvenier glass, Wig is getting me the new AC/DC Backtracks boxset and I got a $50 gift card from my parents and a combined $250 from my grandparents and aunt (which is mostly going to bills).
Now Wig and I are relaxing and watching Ninja Warrior while my kitten Frankenstein continues to stare at my Sprite. It's been a good birthday. Except for the fact that I'm a quarter-century old and still gone nowhere...:(