Meet Meadow Ivy. Sharing her birth story while it’s still fresh in my head.
It was Tuesday morning on June 30th and I started my day out like normal. I was washing dishes and felt my water broke. I went to the bathroom to check and it wasn’t that much so I figured maybe it was the mucus plug. I wasn’t entirely sure if it was my water breaking or the mucus plug but I knew that baby girl was coming soon. I told Mr. Right that I could go into labor any day now! The same thing kept happening throughout the day and I was starting to have contractions. I started tracking how far apart they were but continued with my day working, doing chores and nesting.
Finally around 4-5:00, the contractions were getting super strong and I could barely move. I was laying in bed and felt so weak. I was almost certain I was going to pass out. We called the hospital and they said to come in immediately. The contractions were so intense that I could barely get into the car. I even left the house in my slippers!
We arrived at the hospital and I was already 5 cm dilated. Everything happened so fast. My contractions went from 20 minutes to minutes apart in such a short time. Baby girl was ready to come out and nothing and no one was going to stop her.
She came out a little over an hour after I arrived at the hospital. I couldn’t believe how fast everything happened. It was surreal. She was perfect and our hearts were so full. We spent the next few hours face timing our families. Everything was going so well. I started to nurse and she latched almost right away. I was in pure bliss.
I had a Dr’s appointment scheduled for the next day and was supposed to do the group strep B test. I was unfamiliar with this test and don’t recall doing it when I was pregnant with Milan. It’s a test to look for GBS bacteria in pregnant women. Most pregnant women are tested as part of routine prenatal screening. If you test positive, then you are given antibiotics during labor so that it alleviates this bacteria from passing to your baby. Because I went into labor the day before my test, they had to test Meadow by drawing her blood. They sent someone in to do the test which I wasn’t thrilled about, he wasn’t able to find a big enough vein because she was so small. He called a NICU nurse to help out and as soon as the nurse came in, she said something wasn’t right with Meadow. Her color was blue. She was lethargic and wasn’t breathing. I was recovering in the bed while Mr. Right was across the room with Meadow and the nurses. I was completely numb and had no idea what was happening. So many thoughts raced through my mind. How is this real?
Even after I gave birth, the doctors and nurses commented about how healthy and well she looked. So how on earth could she all of a sudden turn blue and stop breathing? I was sick to my stomach and thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. I didn’t even want to start thinking about all the possible outcomes.
They called in more nurses from the NICU to assess Meadow’s condition and said they need to take her into NICU to do more tests and to closely monitor her. I was DEVASTATED and did NOT want my baby to be taken out of my sight. I broke down when I got to hold her right before they took her into the NICU. I didn’t want to let her go. I can’t even begin to describe the heartache of having to let her out of my arms so quickly after giving birth. Luckily they allowed Mr. Right to stay with her the entire time in NICU while I recovered. I wanted to make sure one of us was always right by her side.
As I sat in the room, minutes felt like hours. Hours felt like years. I finally felt well enough to go to the NICU and when I walked in and saw her hooked up to all those tubes, I lost it. Tears ran down my face uncontrollably as I hugged Mr. Right. My heart was so broken. Words cannot begin to describe what I was feeling. To be honest, everything from that point on is a complete blur to me.
The few nights we spent in the NICU were excruciating. They performed tests after tests. Drawing her blood over and over again. It was so hard to sit and watch her go through all of this. The worst was knowing that she had to be on antibiotics to ward off any possible infection. A newborn on antibiotics is not a great situation and completely ruins the good bacteria in her gut.
All I wanted was a healthy baby with little to no medical interventions. Unfortunately things happen that are out of our control. They still don’t know why she turned blue and became lethargic. I had a natural vaginal birth however it was so quick and intense (about an hour) that the doctors think this had something to do with it. I’m not entirely convinced that this was the cause. It still makes no sense to me how she was completely healthy and fine for 3 hours after I gave birth and then everything went wrong. The doctors still don’t know why this happened.
Fortunately Meadow Ivy is a fighter and she pulled through. She continued to pass all her tests and we were so anxious to get her home. We are SO blessed that she is healthy and home now. It could have been so much worse. As much as it pains me that she had to go through all of this, we are so grateful that she’s alive and thriving.
We got discharged on Friday morning and it was the best feeling in the world. I’ve been nursing her every 2 hours and am determined to heal her gut with breast milk. She is such a good baby. She’s so calm, isn’t fussy and just an all around easy baby. How this is possible is beyond me. She sleeps and eats like a champ. We had her first dr’s appointment yesterday and she barely lost any weight which is a huge indicator of how well she’s doing. Everything checked out and we couldn’t be happier.
Despite having a baby during a pandemic and spending last week in NICU, I have a sense of calmness that I’ve never had EVER. I’m still recovering physically and emotionally but my heart is so full. Milan loves being a big sister and she’s adjusting really well.
Thank you for all your well wishes and prayers. Love you guys. XO
Hi Annie,
Congratulations on Meadows arrival. I completely understand your story, had a similar experience with my son, he came out so quickly and he ended up swallowing the mucus plug and about an hour or so after he was born the nurse realized something was wrong with him, his whole left lung wasn’t working because the plug had gone in there in the birth canal is all the medical staff could figure. He spent a week in the NICU. Now he is the happiest, funnest, healthy ten year old. Wishing you and your family continued health and happiness!
Congratulations!!!!! She is absolutely beautiful and strong like mama and big sis too!!
That’s so scary but a beautiful beginning for of you. I love her name and am so excited for you and your family.
Congratulations!!
She is a beautiful baby with a beautiful name!!!
Sending many blessings and hugs to all of you!!
Congratulations on the birth of Meadow Ivy, Annie! She’s so precious. What a scary and nerve wracking first few days. I’m so happy that she passed all the tests and had a good follow up visit. I’m so very happy for you and your family!
So happy for you! You take care.
Congratulations Annie and Mr Right! Gorgeous baby girl. She has a beautiful BIG sister too!
Congratulations! And thank you for sharing your birth story online. I just wanted to comment that I went through something very similar. Had a “quick” (meaning 30 minutes of actual pushing) vaginal birth, delivered a healthy full-term baby girl, had a blissful first hour with her before the staff came in and saw something was up — her skin tone was grayish and she was taking very shallow quick breaths. She ended up in the NICU for 19 days. The first week, they were just trying to figure out what was even wrong. She went through a whole battery of tests — cardiology tests, spinal tap, EEGs. They finally determined that she had a stroke (they couldn’t tell me when it happened or why it happened) and that she was suffering from constant internal seizures that were affecting the part of her brain that controlled her breathing. She was on 5 anti-seizure medications at one point. We couldn’t touch her for a week because they said it was spiking her seizure activity. She is a lively, healthy almost 3-year-old today, but it was terrifying for a while and reading your account of that first moment Meadow was taken away from you brought back flashbacks. I’m glad she is on the mend. Sending you and your family well wishes!
Congratulations on Meadow birth! Annie, you had me getting all teary eyed reading all you went through 🥺. I am so happy for you, Mr. Right and Milan!
How scary! My water didn’t break with my 2nd baby. After the doctor suggested breaking my water for me at the hospital, my little man came out 30 min later! So glad you didn’t have to spend too much time in the NICU. She’s beautiful! Best wishes for a happy and healthy life to you and your new family!
Congratulations. That baby is beautiful. Your family is blessed.
I totally get your worries, my son was born addicted to my heart medicine and was in the NICU for breathing and heart problems. He was born c section and I didn’t hold him or see him his 1st 8 hours. This will just become a part of the story for you. Cherish the babies and your new life.
Blessings
God bless you all, what a time you had. I already wrote to tell you how beautiful she is and congratulations to All. Continue to think about you and family, best wishes and prayers! Stay strong new Mom, Big Sister and Dad.
So happy for you and the Meadow. Congratulations for been such an strong woman!!! God will bless your family and Meadow is a beautiful baby!!!?
Annie I am so happy for you all and that Meadow is thriving! God bless you, Mr. Right, Milan and baby Meadow!
That sounds…dramatic. I had a similar experience – my daughter was born at 35 weeks. She was doing great when she came out and had a high Apgar score, but she struggled to breathe a couple hours later. She spent 2 weeks in the NICU, and I was grateful for every second she was there. The antibiotics they gave her definitely didn’t ruin her gut; breastmilk helps heal for sure.
Congrats to your family!
Congratulations! She’s absolutely beautiful! Stay strong mama. I, too, just had a baby in May during this pandemic and my baby girl was in the Neotal Progressive Care Nursery for 12 days. So happy for you guys! 👶💗🥰
Oh my goodness…I was so emotional reading your post today! I could feel all the ups and downs with every word. So thrilled that everything turned out well for little Miss Meadow. (Love the name, BTW!!) So happy for you, Mr. Right and little Miss Milan. You are a lovely family of four now!!
Just to let you know, I’ve been following your blog for about a year now–just before you started opening up about your life. I told you back then I would pray for you. Believe it or not, I am still doing that each day.
I wish you and your family all the best. We all look forward to future posts, although we understand you will be super busy for a while. Take care of yourself as best you can!!
Congratulations! I love your blog. Best wishes to you and your family. Enjoy every minute it goes fast.
Congrats Annie!! I am glad all is well and that you are all at home, healthy, and safe. Enjoy the newest addition to your family.
Congratulations!! She is beautiful!! Glad she is doing well.
I am so sorry you and Mr. Right had to go through so much, but, I am overjoyed that all has turned well. I am very happy for everyone and wish you the very best.
Congratulations!! She’s beautiful and I wish you a fast recovery. Scary story but I went thru a similiar situation with my son. During labor, he came out in 10 mins which he ended up swallowing a lot of blood on his way out. He wasn’t blue but all that was stuck in his stomach which gave him an stomach enlarged. The doctors couldn’t figure it out and was transferred to NICU…. I was crying so much and couldn’t hold myself together. Long story short, now he’s 4 years old and thriving!
SO HAPPY FOR THE 4 OF YOU
Meadow Ivy is beautiful! The pictures with Milan & Daddy are just precious. I’m so happy y’all are doing well and are at home. Thank you for sharing your story and pictures with us.
Congratulations and May Jehovah God bless her and all of you 🙏🏻🙏🏻
Congratulations! She is perfect!
So happy for you. What a beautiful family.
Congratulations to you and Mr. Right!!
Congratulations! And so good to hear you’re home healthy and safe. She is so adorable and your whole family looks so happy! You can also give her baby probiotics to help repopulate the bacteria in her gut!
My husband and I also spent a week in NICU after literally being an hour away from taking our daughter home. Seeing her hooked up to tubes and monitors after thinking everything is just fine is almost more than your mama heart can take. Like you, I’ve never cried more tears in my life. I’m glad everything is okay and your baby girl is home and thriving. Congrats!
Wonderful news! So glad your little angel is doing well now and Milan looks super happy to be a big sister!
Dear Annie,
Congratulations on Meadow birth! She is an angel…
Glad she is doing great… Wish you and your beautiful family health & happiness.
Xoxo
Thank God Beautiful baby Meadow is doing well. Praying for you and your family
@livelife4christ
Did they think you had IUGR? Baby is tiny!
no def not – she is just the right size and weight given how petite I am. She is almost exactly the same size as Milan when she was born. They couldn’t figure out why it happened but she is all good now!
What a terrible situation you have created for yourself.
* You got pregnant with a man you barely know (anyone you reads your blogs will see you just got divorced a year ago).
* You had a baby with a different father so now Milan has to compete for attention with a new kid that’s biologically related to your “new dude” while she is not
* Good luck with the disaster on your hands
What a horrible thing to say to Annie! You don’t even know ANYTHING about her or her life. Keep your stupid comments to yourself. Shame on YOU for coming on her site to bash her. You obviously have too much time on your hands and a jealous bitch!
Don’t listen to this nonsense Annie! Congratulations to you and your cute family! screw the HATERS
Just look at Christine and Ant Anstead…I called that divorce immediately. Can’t wait to read about Annie bashing “Mr Right” a year from now and calling him a narcissist too. She’s a terrible example for her daughter. I guess your values are okay with a mother having a child with a man she barely knows out of wedlock instead of focusing on her daughter which is what a loving mother would do. Annie actions show she’s only thinking about herself. #smug #selfish
Hi!
I’m new to this blog and I just found it while scrolling through the internet. I think I might know what happened… Keep in mind I’m not a doctor and I’m not even sure I’m correct. Well, anyway, here is my suspicion:
There is a liver disease called cholestasis, and long story short, it affects you in mid to late pregnancy. The main symptom is being very itchy during pregnancy. It can cause preemie birth, stillbirth, and… Sudden onset of lethargy and having trouble breathing in babies. I don’t know that much about it, but if you want to know more I recommend looking up Colleen Ballinger’s youtube, for she had this and didn’t find out until much later.
Hope this helps, Adriana
Hello Annie,
You had a tough experience and had to go through intense feelings within just a few days.
It is great to see that Meadow Ivy is doing good now. What a relief for you!
I read she is sleeping well and hope it stays like that for you.
Nevertheless I have an offer for you and would greatly appreciate your feedback.
I just launched my healthy baby sleep audio course and am looking for support and creating a following, to help as much mummies and little ones as possible, to find the sleep desired.
Please let me know if you would support my course and if I can support you in any way.
The website is healthybabysleep.com and it grants free access until August 8th.
In case you need more time, just let me know. 😉
I will follow you to observe Meadow”s development and growth as she had such a fast and hard start into life.
By the way I love to see you are breastfeeding her 😍
All the best and much love.
Johanna Mandelmond
This brought me to tears! I had my little Luna Girl on June 23rd and she a month early. She spent 2 weeks in NICU but because of Covid my husband and I couldn’t visit her at the same time and we definitely couldn’t stay overnight with her. The most we were able to do was visit her every three hours. When she was born it was an emergency c section so I didn’t see her for the first hour of her life and then I was able to hold her for 20 minutes and then I didn’t get to see her for 24 hours. That was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with in my life! I’m so happy that your little one is okay! If you’ve never been a NICU parent you just don’t fully understand those feelings and how scary it can be. Your little one is gorgeous! I hope you and your family Stay safe and well!!