Will Garvin was the winner with a 18th due date and birth time of 3:45 PM. Price is Right rules apply, with the closest one without going over winner. Venka Dammanna and John Caruso also guessed the correct day, but were off on the time.
Baikal shares her birthday with Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones and my friend Donna Palmer. Talk about cool company!
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Sunday, December 25, 2005
Christmas Day
Decked out in holiday gear!
We didn't do christmas cards this year, but if we had this would be the Miller family Christmas photo 2005.
Great Grandmother Garvin's christmas gift to Baikal. Thanks Grandma!
Grandad and Baikal. Merry Christmas!
Friends of B
Beth and her son, Paul Thomas stop by for a visit.
Paul Thomas was also born at Crawford Long, but about a month earlier. He came back to the hospital to visit Baikal and Reilly, his two new pals. He brought us some ginger cookies and baklava. Thanks!
Rathi and Sasi came by to see what a mini Matt Miller looked like. They knew us back in our Emory days and are counting the days when they can tell stories about Matt to Baikal.
One proud Grandfather!
Friday, December 23, 2005
Pictures of Baikal
Baikal: A profile
Sleeping in Mom's arms
Enjoying the ride
Hat head
Baikal's Rocky impression
So fresh and so clean!
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Shoulders of giants
Sir Isaac Newton gave an acceptance speech once that stated that if he had seen further in his research than others, it is only because he had been standing on the shoulders of giants before him. I love this quote. Although Newton was talking about intellectual support, I find it to be true that in many circumstances I am able to do my best because of the support and love that I receive from others. I was so fortunate to have such a great support team throughout my labor. They stayed throughout the nights, they skipped meals, and they put my emotional and physical needs before their own. I love them and am humbled by the love that they showed me.
Matt was such a wonderful husband. He made sure that I ate and drank early in the labor stage to keep me from getting dehydrated. He helped monitor my contractions and coached me through my breathing. He told me that I was doing a great job. He got Baikal once I was allowed back in the hospital room and we all spent our first night together as a family.
Courtney was invaluable. When I was at the hardest part of labor, it was her that I wanted by my side. One of the nurses asked her if she was a professional doula and was shocked when she said that she wasn't.
Mom was with me during the surgery and two nights at the hospital. She helped make the transition into being a mom an easy one with her wisdom. She also welcomed Baikal into the world while I was recovering from surgery.
Matt was such a wonderful husband. He made sure that I ate and drank early in the labor stage to keep me from getting dehydrated. He helped monitor my contractions and coached me through my breathing. He told me that I was doing a great job. He got Baikal once I was allowed back in the hospital room and we all spent our first night together as a family.
Courtney was invaluable. When I was at the hardest part of labor, it was her that I wanted by my side. One of the nurses asked her if she was a professional doula and was shocked when she said that she wasn't.
Mom was with me during the surgery and two nights at the hospital. She helped make the transition into being a mom an easy one with her wisdom. She also welcomed Baikal into the world while I was recovering from surgery.
Back to the blog
I am back home! Wow. I have had an amazing past few days. I asked Matt to post the birth annoucement while I was in the hospital so that the word could get out. There are so many things to talk about, but I'll just start at where I left off....in pain at home.
DISCLAIMER: The following blog entry contains words like "cervix" and "surgery." If these items make you a bit uneasy, skip to the next entry.
I went to the labor and delivery section of the hospital around 10:00 am after laboring at home for a few hours with contractions approximately 5 minutes apart. My cervix was 2 cm dialated. The hospital will not admit you as being in labor until your cervix is atleast 3 cm. I was told to walk around the floor for an hour and I would be checked again. Walking usually increases contractions and encourages cervix dialation. As I am walking around in a hospital gown, stopping every 5 minutes to breathe through the contraction, I come across a group of 20+ perspective residents who are on a tour of the floor. They are all dressed in their interviewing suits. As they pass, I am aware that they are doing their best to pay attention to the tour guide and not the sweat-laddened woman who is gripping the hallway armrail inhaling and exhailing in a yoga-like trance (that would be me). After the hour is up, I am no further along than I was before the walking. I am given a few options and decide to go home and wait it out until I am dialated enough to be admitted. At home, Matt, Courtney, and my Mom take turns sitting with me and helping me deal with the contractions. Almost all of my contractions, from the first Saturday morning 3:00 am waker-upper to the Sunday afternoon 2:30 pm big kahuna, are felt in my lower back. While experiencing a contraction, I would get some relief if strong counter-pressure was applied directly to my lower back. Matt, Courtney, and Mom took turns with this job, often going hours at a time to help relieve my pain. They were each invaluable and they deserve their own blog entry titled, "Shoulders of giants."
By 5:00 PM the group was in agreement, it was time to go in and be checked. I had to be more progressed after 5 additional hours of contractions. Turns out we were wrong. Not to be dismayed, the doctor recommended medicated rest. This where they knock you out for a few hours, so that your body can relax. The result should be an increased likelyhood of cervix dialation. They put me on a morphine drip and monitored me for 8 hours. I continued to feel contractions but was able to get two hours of rest. At 1:00 AM they checked me again: no further dialation. My contractions continued every 4 minutes on until the morning.
By 1:30 PM I was still at 2cm. The goal was 10cm, but I would have been happy with 5cm. The nurse and doctor agreed, what I needed was more frequent and more intense contrations. I thought I needed a break. I was put on pitocin and the intensity of the contractions increased. At 2:30 PM I was at 3cm and my water was broken. My contractions went from barely manageable to an out of body experience. I believe that I was speaking in tounges. It was at this point that I requested some pain relief. The order was put in place, and I was counting the minutes until the epidural arrived. When the nurse arrived she explained to me that my white blood cell count was high and that they needed to take a blood sample to the lab before I could be given the epidural. One hour later, an angel appeared bearing gifts of pain relief. Debbie, the nurse anesticist, administered the epidural and once it kicked in I considered naming my child after her.
At 6:30 PM I was at 5cm. Slow and steady as she goes. They increased my pitocin to the maximum dose and we hoped that would do the trick. My body was experiencing labor, but I couldn't feel it. It was wonderful relief. Around 7:00 PM my fever had elevated to 105 and Baikal's heart rate was near 200 bpm. The decision was made for an emergency cesearian: we had been through enough and were starting to be in physical distress.
I was allowed one person in the ER and asked my mom to accompany me. They administered more drugs so that I was numb from the neck down. A side effect of the drugs was that I was shaking uncontrollably. They strapped me down and quickly ran me into surgery. Baikal was born at 7:19 PM. After they checked her out, my mom brought her over to me. She was sticking her tounge in and out and occasionally smacking her lips. She was so cute. They took me to the recovery room and mom went with Baikal to the nursery. It was over. I was so relieved. Baikal and I were OK. After approx. 39 hours of labor for both of us, it was time for us to rest.
Me in the recovery room. I was numb from the chest down at this point, and although it may not look like it, I am giving my best Paris Hilton over-the-shoulder pose right now.
Me and B after a bit of rest. I lost a lot of blood and fluids during the surgery. Believe it or not, I am wearing a good bit of makeup in this picture to make my skin look a bit less vampire-ish. Maybe I should have gone a little heavier on the blush and under eye concealer.
DISCLAIMER: The following blog entry contains words like "cervix" and "surgery." If these items make you a bit uneasy, skip to the next entry.
I went to the labor and delivery section of the hospital around 10:00 am after laboring at home for a few hours with contractions approximately 5 minutes apart. My cervix was 2 cm dialated. The hospital will not admit you as being in labor until your cervix is atleast 3 cm. I was told to walk around the floor for an hour and I would be checked again. Walking usually increases contractions and encourages cervix dialation. As I am walking around in a hospital gown, stopping every 5 minutes to breathe through the contraction, I come across a group of 20+ perspective residents who are on a tour of the floor. They are all dressed in their interviewing suits. As they pass, I am aware that they are doing their best to pay attention to the tour guide and not the sweat-laddened woman who is gripping the hallway armrail inhaling and exhailing in a yoga-like trance (that would be me). After the hour is up, I am no further along than I was before the walking. I am given a few options and decide to go home and wait it out until I am dialated enough to be admitted. At home, Matt, Courtney, and my Mom take turns sitting with me and helping me deal with the contractions. Almost all of my contractions, from the first Saturday morning 3:00 am waker-upper to the Sunday afternoon 2:30 pm big kahuna, are felt in my lower back. While experiencing a contraction, I would get some relief if strong counter-pressure was applied directly to my lower back. Matt, Courtney, and Mom took turns with this job, often going hours at a time to help relieve my pain. They were each invaluable and they deserve their own blog entry titled, "Shoulders of giants."
By 5:00 PM the group was in agreement, it was time to go in and be checked. I had to be more progressed after 5 additional hours of contractions. Turns out we were wrong. Not to be dismayed, the doctor recommended medicated rest. This where they knock you out for a few hours, so that your body can relax. The result should be an increased likelyhood of cervix dialation. They put me on a morphine drip and monitored me for 8 hours. I continued to feel contractions but was able to get two hours of rest. At 1:00 AM they checked me again: no further dialation. My contractions continued every 4 minutes on until the morning.
By 1:30 PM I was still at 2cm. The goal was 10cm, but I would have been happy with 5cm. The nurse and doctor agreed, what I needed was more frequent and more intense contrations. I thought I needed a break. I was put on pitocin and the intensity of the contractions increased. At 2:30 PM I was at 3cm and my water was broken. My contractions went from barely manageable to an out of body experience. I believe that I was speaking in tounges. It was at this point that I requested some pain relief. The order was put in place, and I was counting the minutes until the epidural arrived. When the nurse arrived she explained to me that my white blood cell count was high and that they needed to take a blood sample to the lab before I could be given the epidural. One hour later, an angel appeared bearing gifts of pain relief. Debbie, the nurse anesticist, administered the epidural and once it kicked in I considered naming my child after her.
At 6:30 PM I was at 5cm. Slow and steady as she goes. They increased my pitocin to the maximum dose and we hoped that would do the trick. My body was experiencing labor, but I couldn't feel it. It was wonderful relief. Around 7:00 PM my fever had elevated to 105 and Baikal's heart rate was near 200 bpm. The decision was made for an emergency cesearian: we had been through enough and were starting to be in physical distress.
I was allowed one person in the ER and asked my mom to accompany me. They administered more drugs so that I was numb from the neck down. A side effect of the drugs was that I was shaking uncontrollably. They strapped me down and quickly ran me into surgery. Baikal was born at 7:19 PM. After they checked her out, my mom brought her over to me. She was sticking her tounge in and out and occasionally smacking her lips. She was so cute. They took me to the recovery room and mom went with Baikal to the nursery. It was over. I was so relieved. Baikal and I were OK. After approx. 39 hours of labor for both of us, it was time for us to rest.
Me in the recovery room. I was numb from the chest down at this point, and although it may not look like it, I am giving my best Paris Hilton over-the-shoulder pose right now.
Me and B after a bit of rest. I lost a lot of blood and fluids during the surgery. Believe it or not, I am wearing a good bit of makeup in this picture to make my skin look a bit less vampire-ish. Maybe I should have gone a little heavier on the blush and under eye concealer.
Monday, December 19, 2005
Baikal has arrived!!!
Born on December 18th at 7:19pm. Weighed 7lbs 10oz at birth. Already working on her golf swing....
Mom is recovering at Crawford Long hospital.
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Holy Mole
It is now 7:00 and I have been up since 3:00 am with sporadic contrations. If you don't hear from me by later this afternoon it is because I am at the hospital. Of course, this could be just another "false labor" situation. Hard to tell at this point. YEAOWSA! Sorry, I had to break for another contration. That was a big one. I'm off to wake up Matt.
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Spicy Eggplant, Full Moons, and Natural Disasters
There is a restaurant in Atlanta called Scalini's that offers up a deal. They claim that if you eat their eggplant parmesan dish within 48 hours you will be in labor. If it does not work, you get a coupon for a free entree. Interesting.
I have also been told that labors tend to be more frequent on days with full moons (which happens to be tonight, the 15th) and during times of natural disasters (does our current ice storm qualify?).
Not quite yet
Yesterday Matt and I had a bit of excitement. I experienced "false labor" for the first time. Of course it didn't feel false at the time. I immediately called the hospital and left a message for the on call nurse. Was this it??? Was this the real deal??? We ran around the house frantically packing our bags and making sure that we were ready to go to the hospital. When I finally spoke to the nurse my symptoms had stopped.
"Do I need to go the hospital?" I asked.
"Have you been having contractions 5 minutes apart for over an hour?" she said.
"No."
"Then you do not need to come to the hospital."
"Oh, um, Ok."
Matt and I began to calm down and relax. We had been through our first labor fire drill. I made myself a hot fudge sunday, took a shower, and then had a great nap.
"Do I need to go the hospital?" I asked.
"Have you been having contractions 5 minutes apart for over an hour?" she said.
"No."
"Then you do not need to come to the hospital."
"Oh, um, Ok."
Matt and I began to calm down and relax. We had been through our first labor fire drill. I made myself a hot fudge sunday, took a shower, and then had a great nap.
Sunday, December 11, 2005
I'm not sure where you're going, but you can't stay here
I woke up this morning and found a seven day eviction notice taped to my abdomen. Baikal is going to need to start packing her stuff and heading out soon. Most tenants leave their rental units in bad shape after being evicted. I hope she is a little more considerate.
Friday, December 09, 2005
Ten Days to go!!!!!
Ten days until my due date, December 18th! Of course, I have been told that I could go at any time before or after my due date. Time to place your bets! Email me the date and time (hour and minute) that you think Baikal will be born at erin_miller@bellsouth.net and the closest one without going over will get their name displayed on my blog and receive a prize! Exciting stuff!
Thursday, December 01, 2005
One Big Happy Family
Courtney added her photoshop talent to the mix. Here we have a rendering of what our girl and boy will look like. One happy family!
Our progeny
Isn't photoshop great? I have morphed a picture of Matt and I to produce what Baikal should look like when she is 28 and a half. Lookin' good!
Apparently, I've done this before
I came across this picture from 1984. Apparently, I've already had a baby. Of course, it was when I was eight. I've heard about a chemical that your body releases postdelivery that, as a side effect, helps women to forget how painful labor was. Since I don't remember this labor at all, I must have been producing bucket loads.
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