Mackenzie Elizabeth

I'll get into the details on a later post, but after a LOT of prayers, tears, drugs, time, tests, and just a plain miracle, Mackenzie Elizabeth came about...

Fast forward through all the weight gain (yep, I gained a house...), ALL day sickness, and oh, 9-10 months, Mackenzie Elizabeth Lohman was born on June 13, 2011 at 1:23pm. A week before, I decided to have a c-section. Yep, DECIDED. I know, I'm probably crazy to most people, but there were a few complications thrown in for good measure so the only thing I wanted was her... HERE... NOW and before a huge mission that was coming up for my husband. There was an official date and time... I HAD A COUNTDOWN! Ok, who doesn't have a countdown while being pregnant, but you hear all of those horror stories about women being induced because they were at 42 weeks... so, yes, I had a definite countdown. I wasn't allowed to drink or eat after midnight, and, my appointment was at 3pm so, I was ALL about sleeping through not being able to eat ;) However, I got a few text messages, FB messages, and another call to ask if I had wanted to go in earlier... umm, heck. yes. I called my mom, and dear friend, Jan (both at work) to ask if it'd be ok if they could clock out early. Then, I hopped in the shower, did my hair, makeup, etc... you know, I had to look good for walking into the hospital since I had to take it all off before I got into the OR... lame I tell you, lame. ;)

On the other side of the world, was my husband, who had NO IDEA that the c-section was getting bumped up. Not that he was going to be on the computer or anything for it, but we both wanted him to have a "time" so he knew that if the internet went out he'd know she was born. As time got closer and as I was in the hospital my nerves FINALLY started setting in and I just wanted to talk to him... but of course, when you want or need to, it's not something you can just do. There was talk between us wives that we were on a blackout but we weren't quite sure-- just NONE of us had talked to our husbands in like 5hrs, which doesn't seem like a whole lot of time, but it is when they're deployed. For about 30 minutes several of my wife friends were trying to find someone who was able to chat with their hubby and find mine to tell him it'd been bumped up (by about 3-4hrs).

While all of that was going on, I was trying to stay calm while getting an IV put in. I had had MANY shots, ivs', etc but as soon as they got it in I nearly passed out. At that point I had a minor meltdown thinking that if I couldn't even make it through the iv part there was NO WAY that I was making it through the c-section... that whole part went quick though. The next thing I knew my mom had my phone (just in case someone reached him) and I was laying down on the OR table. It was just SO quick.

My mom was in the hallway on FB (at that point, she didn't have an account and had no idea how to use it, on my phone none the less, and ESPECIALLY NOT the FB chat)... somehow she flagged down 2 dr who helped her figure it out and she was talking to Caleb. When they had her walk in she screamed that he was ON SKYPE. Again, it wasn't what we had planned that he be on the computer, in case something happened, but, we went with it.

SO... while my knight in shining armor was on skype I was laying down getting sick (of course) and didn't even realize what was going on. It was SUCH a blessing to not know at this point. I just remember all of the dr and OR staff ask where he was and they kept talking to him. I looked at my mom, who was completely turned around... something just seemed off. I heard a sucking sound, remember Caleb asking if I felt the person ON TOP OF ME, but nothing. I don't remember a thing. Just Caleb telling me how great I was doing. I remember telling Caleb before that some babies just don't cry when they come out... and, Kenzie didn't, so neither of us worried. I remember them showing him (I caught a quick glimpse of her purple TINY body) but that's it. A bit after, I was in the recovery room talking to Caleb but hadn't seen Kenzie yet. They brought her in and told us that she was PERFECT now, BUT while I was being reassured by my husband thousands of miles away, Kenzie came out not breathing and had completely failed the Apgar score. Literally- FAILED. She actually has two times that she was supposedly born-- 1:20 is when she was out, but 1:23 is when she first breathed. That sucking sound? The dr was using a VACUUM to get her out. After everything when he came to check on me he had said he just couldn't believe the whole situation. "In all of my 23 years of delivering babies I've NEVER had to use a vacuum, and of ALL times I was on skype delivering a soldier who was saving MY A** and families..." Yep. Kenzie is our little miracle baby who to this day does things HER way and makes it known. ;)