MY FIRST BORN IS NOW A YEAR OLD!
MY FIRST BORN IS NOW A YEAR OLD!
May 9, 2006
How fast time flies! It is a year ago when I gave birth to my most precious KATRINA YSABEL.
I remember having very painful contractions which started the Friday before that Monday –May 9 that I gave birth to her. I was even hoping to give birth to her on May 5, 2005. You know, I think it is cute to write your child’s birth date as 05/05/05 when on that format.
But May 9, 2005 that is! It was my Expected Due Date as provided by the first OB Gynecologist I had seen in the
Philippines when I found out I was preggy. Actually my real EDD was May 10 but since I gave birth here in the
US , I am in a different time zone but it was already May 10 in the
Philippines when my baby was born.
5:00 AM. I woke my hubby up and told him I could no longer take the very, very strong contractions. Imagine I have been feeling the baby pushing her way down since May 6 ’05 – two and a half days of the most uncomfortable and most painful stage of my pregnancy. But every time I’d phone my hospital –
Evergreen Medical Hospital in
Kirkland , WA , the nurses-on-duty would only advice to keep track of my contractions as they were still irregular despite all my pain. So it was a relief when that morning we called and told the nurse about my condition and she said that we come down there FINALLY!
5:30 AM. After undergoing some tests, the nurse told us to get a room as they were admitting me already. I was about 5cm. From then on, I no longer felt anxious. Although walking from the testing room to my hospital room was so hard. I just knew that I am seeing my baby in a few hours. So excitement was the only feeling I had. And I and my hubby would kid each other too. A lot.
And by the way, on the way to the hospital, I told him that I’d be having an epidural. Kind of a last minute decision as before that, I thought I’d prefer taking no pain relievers.
6:30 AM. The anesthesiologist was injecting epidural on me in my hospital room.
7:00 AM. I am no longer feeling anything from my stomach down to my feet. Thus, I continued to labor while feeling a little drowsy and sleepy.
7:30 AM. My OB-Gyne Mary Tsuang came by and checked on me. She referred to my baby as the Mariner Fan Baby as she saw me one time in April 2005 in Safeco Field having my first-time-watching-the-M’s-played. I was a couple of weeks away from my EDD that time.
9:00 AM. My doctor “broke” my water bag. I remember still not feeling anything about that. I was just busy trying to get as much rest as I could while watching Spanglish as one of the DVDs I brought with me to the hospital.
11:00 AM. My doctor said that there was no progress in my dilation as it stopped at about 6.5cm. Likewise, my baby’s umbilical cord was wrapped around her ankles squeezing them as she pushes her way down. Also, my body temp. was pretty high however hard I thought I was perfectly fine. I knew I was not having fever and that I was not nervous. In fact, I was just REALLY EXCITED to see my baby. BUT my doctor said that a C-Section would be a wise decision on that moment.
11:20 AM. I was wheeled to the C-Section Delivery Room. I was with my hubby still but then, I started feeling a little scared. He was beside me, holding my hand as the doctors (now they were a groupie! ..Of about eight members including assistants and nurses, etc.) put up a small curtain to cover my tummy so I would not see the things that they would be doing. And my drowsiness increased as they gave me a new set of anesthesia.
I tried hard not to cry as I was trying hard to be brave. But when one tear fell from me, my anesthesiologist wiped it out promptly and whispered that I should not worry and that everything is going fine. That’s when I started sobbing…real and plenty of tears.
11:36 AM. I heard my baby cried! It was the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. I was crying and laughing and blurting out: MY BABY. MY BABY.
Minutes later, I could see her as the nurses cleaned her a few inches away from my bed. And that very moment, I remembered my Mother. My baby has fair skin and I thought she must have gotten it from my Mom. I was thinking hard about my Mom and how important she is. I was even wishing she was with us as she is one of the most excited people about my baby as this is her first grandchild from her first born and from her only daughter. I am so grateful that I have a Mother like her and that because of her and my father, I am here, alive and delivering my baby.
So that is how we got the “Y” for Katrina Ysabel’s second name. It is for my Mother-Yolanda.
More minutes later, after the nurses are done with Katrina, my husband brought her to me. I was so amazed that while still sobbing, all I could still say was: MY BABY. MY BABY.
She is the most beautiful baby I have ever seen. She was 7.5 pounds. She was pink and white. She has a very cute nose. She has very thick and black hair which she must have gotten from her Daddy. And her eyes were like mine.
Days, weeks, and months passed, my Baby Katrina always delights me. Well not just me, but everyone else in the family. She always gets: OH SHE HAS VERY BEAUTIFUL EYES! LIKE THE WERE SMILING! , OH SHE HAS A PRETTY SMILE!, ETC. even from strangers.
With all her first “firsts”, we tried to capture them all in a camera. Her first thanksgiving, her first Christmas, her first Easter, her first roll-over, her first steps, etc.
She had her first trip when me and the family went to
Vancouver ,
BC in September 2005 to visit my maternal relatives while my maternal Grandmother was leaving for the
Philippines too.
She had her surgery also in September 2005. It was very hard for me and my husband to see her go through that but we were strong for her. Fortunately, she recovered well and fast.
She was baptized on January 15, 2006 at the St.Thomas More Catholic Church. And she had a reception for that in a Filipino Restaurant.
In March 2006, we went to the
Philippines when my Grandmother died. On the positive side, it was a kind of a good trip because my parents and my brother got to see my daughter and spend time with her even just for three weeks. That was Katrina’s first international trip. First ride in a plane.
Now that she is one, she still never fail to delight me. She always, always brighten my days with her own little but great ways. She even know how to show sympathy every time I am sad. She’d hug and kiss me, and smile at me.
She is the most beautiful baby. But I know I can never forgive her if she grows real fast!
PS. For her birthday, we are throwing a small lunch party on May 13, 2006 at Taste Of
Manila in
Edmonds , WA at 2:00 PM. And YOU are invited!
