Abigail Frances Nguyen

Today, it will have been two weeks since Abbie was born.  It is really hard to believe.  There have been many sleepless nights, tears (mostly from Lisa), and wonderful, sweet moments in between.  This is the toughest thing we have ever done and the best thing we have ever done.

This blog may be a little long, so bare with us...we want to chronicle everything we can and there is a lot to catch up on!

Here is Abbie's birth story...
Lisa went to see the doctor on Monday the 7th (Abbie's actual due date) and had an ultrasound.  The ultrasound indicated that the fluid level around Abbie was low and so our decision to schedule her to be delivered on the 8th was the right decision.  Lisa headed home and finalized packing and getting the house cleaned for when we got back home.  We were to check in to the hospital at 10:00 pm.  Around 8:00 pm that night we got a call from the hospital and all labor and delivery rooms were full.  They were going to call us once a room became available.  The call came at 2:45 am.  So we packed up all our stuff, took one last picture of the bump (see below) and headed out to Memorial Hermann Katy.

The last bump picture before going to the hospital.

Last view of the bump before going to the hospital.

The tired parents-to-be...it was 3:00 am!

We got there about 3:45 am and by the time we had filled out their paperwork and hooked Lisa up to various machines it was about 5:30 am.  We were able to sleep until 7:00 am and then the contractions started!  Little did Lisa know she was already having them (she just thought it was the baby moving down low), but once the Pictocin kicked in it was full-on contractions.  By 9:30 am the epidural was administered and that seemed to take the edge off, just a bit.  By this time Lisa's mom, dad, and step-mom had arrived for the big day and at 2:30 pm Lisa's brother had arrived.

This must have been after the epidural...!

By about 2:30 pm Lisa had made it to 7 cm dilated, but Abbie's heart rate was decelerating with each contraction.  The nurses and the doctor thought that it was a result of the Pitocin lowering Lisa's blood pressure to very low levels (90/60 at one point) and this impacted the blood flow to Abbie.  To prevent the decelerations Lisa was moved from one side to the other to sitting straight up in bed.  By 4:00 pm it was decided that she should try getting up on her forearms and knees on the bed.  Well, let's just say this was quite the event that involved an almost somersault over the front end of the bed and almost ripping out her IV all due to her right leg being completely numb while trying to turn back over (you should ask Lisa to tell you the story).  Well, the good news is that in the 15 minutes she was in the "downward facing dog" position - as Tuna called it - she progressed from 7 cm dilated to 9 cm dilated.  The doctor was called in and the pushing was right around the corner.

After a few pushes with the nurse and Tuna helping - the doctor finally arrived.  We didn't know it at the time, but Lisa had made it to 10 cm dilated.  So she pushed with all her might and we hoped that Abbie would be delivered safely.  But it was not to be...Abbie's heart rate was still decelerating and the doctor felt that with 45 minutes of pushing that Abbie could not withstand that kind of stress.  So it was decided that a c-section was the best, safest route for both Mom and especially baby.  Lisa and Tuna had discussed just this scenario and our thoughts were conveyed to the doctor prior to delivery.  We had decided that we would not fight the doctor if she recommended c-section.  It was clear to us that the nurses and doctor had done everything possible to get Abbie here safely via a vaginal delivery and that a c-section was the only option left.

Things happened VERY quickly once the decision was made.  Tuna was given scrubs, Lisa was prepped and wheeled into the OR and from there on out it was like an out-of-body experience for her.  People were bustling around the room getting things ready and then finally Tuna was let in to the room.  He was able to stand-up and watch the procedure from the first cut into Lisa's belly.  The procedure was a very odd experience for Lisa.  It was as if she could feel everything except pain.  Pulling, tugging, pressure, everything but pain.  At one point Lisa looked at Tuna and he gave the thumbs up.  Lisa thought this meant it was a boy...as this was right around the time the baby was being pulled out.  But at 5:26 pm the doctor announced that it was a "big girl" and that is when Tuna lost it.  He was able to see her, but due to the screen Lisa had yet to see her.  Finally, the doctor held her up over the screen and Lisa saw her for the very first time!  Then it was Lisa's turn to lose it!  Tuna then went over to where Abbie was being cleaned up and cared for by the nurses while Lisa was being sewn back up.  As it turns out, the cord was over Abbie's shoulder and she was not aligned properly so that shoulder with the cord over it was being pushed into Lisa's hip bone - thus the heart decelerations.  Below are some pictures from the c-section (warning...some of the pictures might be a little graphic).

Tuna waiting to go into the OR.

The first picture of Abigail Frances!

Showing her to Lisa over the curtain.

Daddy Tuna holding his baby girl for the first time!

And then there were three...

The ID bracelet all 3 of us wore.

 
Lisa was sent to recovery and Tuna stayed with Abbie.  He actually took her out to the waiting room to meet the family!  Everyone was excited to find out that we had a girl!  Of course, we hadn't decided on a name at this point, but The Chickpea was finally here!  Abbie and Tuna then went to the nursery where she was cleaned up and the family was able to take pictures.  Here is a great picture of Abbie and Tuna (credit to Jace):

Lisa finally made it to a room by 8:00 pm where it took another 45 minutes to get settled and for Abbie to get there.  Then the family was able to come in and see Lisa and hold Abbie for the first time.  We told them the middle name was going to be Frances.  It is a name that has been in Lisa's family for 4 out of 5 generations now.  For some reason, no one in Lisa's generation was given that name.  Up until now it has been used as a first name (this is Lisa's mom's given name...although most know her by Frankie).  Abbie will carry on the tradition by having it as her middle name.  Of course, we still had the task of deciding on a first name!

Abbie and Grummies (Lisa's mom)

Abbie and Grandpa (Lisa's dad)

Abbie and Uncle Jace (Lisa's brother)

Abbie and GG (Lisa's step-mom)

Abbie and Great-Aunt Bonna (Lisa's aunt)

 The first night was rough as nurses kept coming in to check on Lisa and the baby, so sleep was pretty much non-existent.  The hospital has in place what they call "rooming-in" where the baby stays with mom in the room throughout the stay.  While this, in theory is a great policy, we believe that it would have been much better for Abbie to have been in the nursery the first night.  Lisa was locked down in the bed with inflating leg cuffs and was being awaken every hour, for 4 straight hours, all through the night and had been up since 3:00 am the previous morning.  To say that we were exhausted would be an understatement.  We are quite certain that our care of Abbie that night was not the best and we were zombies the next day.  We would also like to add that this idea of taking advantage of the services that hospital offers and the down time it provides was not what we experienced.  Everyone that worked there was so nice, but it was a constant barrage of necessary and well-intended interruptions (like the cafeteria staff calling at every meal if Lisa hadn't ordered anything).  But overall, the hospital staff was very, very nice and caring.

Wednesday we finally decided upon a name for the baby.  The issue was kind of forced when the hearing test lady came in and asked her name.  As many of you know we had 3 names that we couldn't decide between.  Tuna was always certain about Abigail, but Lisa liked the others just as much.  But after a little chat earlier in the day Lisa just stated that Abigail was her name and Tuna just smiled.  Tuna had always liked Abigail - Abbie in particular.  We felt like the name was timeless and all-American and was a perfect fit for our little girl.  We call her Abbie, but her given name is Abigail.  We will teach her both names and eventually she will decide which name she prefers.  And that is how we decided on the name, Abigail Frances. 

We want to thank everyone who came and visited us during our stay.  It meant so much to us that you took the time to visit us, and by us we mean Abbie!  :)  We got a picture of almost everyone who visited and one day will be sharing those with Abbie.  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

We couldn't wait to check out of the hospital.  Lisa's doctor would have discharged us on Thursday night, but we weren't prepared.  But that had to have been the longest 4 days...we couldn't wait to get home and start getting settled.  When we were finally discharged on Friday morning we got Abbie in the "coming home" outfit and loaded up the car and off we went.

Getting Abbie dressed in the outfit.

Abbie and Mommy...ready to go home!

Abbie and Daddy

First car ride...home from the hospital.

Lisa's mom met us at home and we took a few pics and spent some time getting settled.  Lisa's mom began a cooking extravaganza that lasted through Monday.  She cooked lunches and dinners each day and a few meals were frozen to eat at a later date.  What a lifesaver she was and when we get to the meals that were frozen we will be so thankful!  Thank you, Grummies!

Grummies and Abbie on her first day home.

A close-up of Abbie in the coming home outfit.

Yup...we went there - prom style pic!

Mommy, Daddy, Grummies and Abbie.

And thank you to everyone who has come to visit us since being home.  It means the world to us.  We would also like to thank Guilford, (aka GG) for also making and freezing a few casseroles for us to have during the coming weeks.

Some have asked about how Rosey is adapting and she seems to be indifferent to Abbie.  Although, she did look at us the other day with an "isn't this thing going away" kind of look.  Sorry Rosey, she is here to stay!

Since we have been home it has been tough!  We knew it be difficult, but it has been even harder than that!  To us, it is like each day is a puzzle and we have to figure out the right combination of things to solve the puzzle.  When Abbie is crying, and we have seemingly taken care of all of her needs, it can get very frustrating.  Luckily we tag team quite a bit in the evenings and that has helped a lot.  A LOT!  The hardest part is not knowing how to help her when she is feeling frustrated too!  But we will get through it!

A couple of milestones...
We believe Abbie had a her first documented smile on Monday, May 14th.  Many people say it is "gas", but when you look at that picture it is hard to believe that is not a genuine smile.  So we are counting it as the first!

Abbie is so happy in the arms of her daddy!

 She also lost the majority of her cord on Monday the 21st.  There is still a little scab left, but a big chunk of it is already gone.

She had her first visit to the pediatrician on May 16th.  The pediatrician was pleased with her progress.  She had already gained back the weight babies lose after birth.  This typically takes two weeks to do, but our little precious has done it in one.  We must have a healthy eater on our hands...  She goes back to the pediatrician on Friday the 25th.

She loves bath time!  Although at this point it is just a sponge bath, she never cries or gets upset.  She seems to love it!

After the first bath...of which she enjoyed!

Well, that is all of the news for now...we will keep updating as time goes on.  And thank you again, for coming on this journey with us!  It seems like yesterday that this blog was started and we shared the news of our family growing.  Wow...

xoxo,
Tuna, Lisa & Abbie

PS - Here is one of our favorite pictures...

Tuna snapped this one early one morning.