We are so proud to announce the Olivia Sue Troxel arrived on Saturday evening and is doing well in the NICU.  She was born at 7:36 p.m. weighing 4 lbs. 2 oz. and 18 inches long.  She was a pretty good size for being at 31 weeks gestation.

I am sure this will be a lengthy blog, but there is just so much to tell.  So, here's the details  On Friday night I went to bed with some mild discomfort at my IV site.  By the next morning my am was puffy and very painful.  My IV has become infused so it was no long pumping my magnesium into my bloodstream.  I had basically gone all night without it.  The nurse changed my IV site and restarted the mag, but I was already contracting.  I had a bad reaction to the magnesium since I had a night off of it.  I had a terrible headache, along with a burning sensation behind my eyes and across my chest.  Then my contractions started to pick up and became very painful.  They kept bumping up my magnesium but we could never get ahead of the contractions.  I was dilated to 3 cm and when they check an hour later I was at 5 cm.  So, we knew that it was time.  I had told Chris not to come to the hospital because I felt so horrible all day, but luckily I changed my mind and decided he should come.  He got there in time to change into scrubs for my c-section. 

The c-section went great and Olivia came out nice and pink and giving out a few little cries.  She was taken to the NICU and assessed.  Chris was able to go up and see her after a few hours, but I had to wait for my spinal to wear off.  Finally at 3 a.m. I was able to go see our daughter.  Although she was breathing ok, they decided to put her on the ventilator so they could give her more lung steroids.  They were preparing for this when I arrived for my visit so I was able to hold her that night! 

The girls were able to meet Olivia on Sunday and they were both so excited.  Avery was a lot more interested in her than Mia and actually visited her three times that day.  It was cute to see her excitement.  Both of the girls were concerned that Olivia didn't have any clothes on though.  It is funny to hear the things that bother them like that.  They both can't wait for her to come home!

Olivia is doing very well so far in the NICU.  She was taken off of the ventilator this morning and is doing great on just a nasal cranula (the two prongs up the nose).  However, she has developed phnumothorax on her right lung.  This is where there is a tear in the lining of her lung that then leaks oxygen into the surrounding membrane.  As this air gets trapped, it puts pressure on the lung, making it harder to breath.  They have put in a catheter to pull this air out, allowing the hole to repair itself.  Olivia's bilirubin is a little high as well, so she was put on light therapy and has to wear special goggles to protect her eyes.  Overall, she is doing quite well, although we expect her to be in the hospital for at least a month if not longer. 

I was released from the hospital today and was finally able to return home after almost 7 weeks!  I will admit, it was very odd.  I couldn't believe how different things looked and how huge our house seems.  It was a shock to my senses in lots of ways and it will be quite an adjustment.  I seem to be healing well, but still cannot do anything for another two weeks.  So still no lifting, driving, or walking around.  Hopefully my recovery will be quick