Amaya's Birth!

I was told by my doctor that I would need to come in on the 14th of April to most likely be induced into labor.  Mentally I was ready and had all my stuff packed for the hospital.  When I came in to do a check up with the doctor, she told me that I needed to have the Foley balloon placed inside me.  After I had that done, they put me in a room.  I was very lucky to have a room by myself and a more updated private bathroom.  The room was so nice and I can't believe that I was able to just have it all by myself and did not have to pay for it.  On the first day things were moving very slow.  Nothing was happening, so Leos was able to go home at night.  The next day was VERY hard.  I went through a lot of pain and nothing was happening.  There were three really nice nurses, but unfortunately on the shift where I had the most pain, there was a very rude nurse on duty.  She didn't make things pleasant at all. My water broke and the liquid stayed in me for over 13 hours.  That is probably why I developed an infection.  I wanted to give birth naturally, but that didn't happen in the end.  I was given extra hormones to hopefully get things going, but it didn't help.  It got to the point where the doctor finally said I needed a C-section.  I got the epidural, then anesthesia to knock me out and finally Amaya was born on April 16th at 14:01.  The process from when I had the balloon inserted in me and when she was finally born was around 52 hours.  Then Amaya needed oxygen, so she was placed in the ICU (intensive care unit).  Leos saw her more than I did on the first day.  I only got to visit her in the ICU and had to stay in my room, which was on a different floor.  Four days after she was born, I moved to the ICU floor and finally got to be in the same room as her. I stayed another two nights in the ICU room because Amaya was still getting antibiotics.  I was starting to go crazy from staying in the same building for so long, so one of the doctors told me that I could go out with Leos for lunch. It was so nice to finally be away from the hospital and back into the real world.  We went to SAPA and picked up pho.  It was so crowded because it was Easter Sunday and everyone had the day off. After we picked up the pho, we ate it just outside of the hospital.  It was so nice eating different food.  I had just eaten the hospital food and I was getting quite sick of it.  The only good thing about just eating the hospital food is that I was able to lose 12 kilograms in 10 days! Amaya lost a bit of weight after being born and one doctor almost didn't want us to leave.  Luckily, there was a really nice nurse who could see that I really wanted to leave so she told me not to worry.  After 8.5 days, I was FINALLY able to leave the hospital with Amaya. 

                                                             approaching the hospital

                                                        a tree with both pink and white blossoms

                                                                    my room

                                                                    private bathroom

                                                                another angle

                                                                        my balcony

                                                                    super pregnant

                                                                    1st meal in the hospital

                                                                    I had a tv in my room

                               wild mouflon that were outside my window at least once a day 

                                                                    dinner at 4pm

                     I was given chocolate by a nurse because they needed Amaya to move

                                        
                                                                        birthing room
                                        

                                                              breakfast after giving birth

                                               the first amount of milk I was able to produce

                                                          so many trees were blossoming 

                                                       much more milk than the first time

                                                      I had to go to the ICU to nurse Amaya

                                                    my legs were so swollen! 

                                                                    such small fingers!

                                                   

                                               explaining to my dad how to get to my room

                                                                flowers from Laura

    

                                                        

                                             I was taught how to use an electric breast pump

                                                     this pigeon liked to stay outside my room

                                                                what a joke of a dinner!!

                                                                   Easter breakfast

                                                                        Easter lunch

                                                       I moved to the ICU room with Amaya

                                                                            dinner

                                             breakfast, looks similar to dinner the night before....

                                           the hallway I had to walk through for so many days

                                                                  so crowded in SAPA

                                                such a beautiful tree in front of the hospital

                                                    finally different food!!! delicious pho!!

                                                                the ICU room

                                                      double doors to keep it nice and quiet

                                                                        last meal
                                                      
                                                                    finally we get to leave!!

                                        photo Leos made with AI  (Dana Point in the background)

Last Meal Before Hospital Stay

I was told that I would need to go to the hospital on the 14th to check up on things with the baby and that there would be a high possibility of having my delivery induced. The doctor told me to bring everything I needed and there was a high chance of having to stay at the hospital until I gave birth. Since I knew there would be a very good chance I would have to stay in the hospital, I wanted to go out one last time to a restaurant because I wouldn't know when the next time I would be able to go to one. I wanted my favorite chicken and waffles dish.  When we arrived to the restaurant, all the tables outside were occupied.  We were a bit worried that we wouldn't be able to get a table.  However, there were several tables inside the restaurant that were available. The food took a bit longer than usual, but the quality was the same.  It was so nice to get exactly what I wanted before the craziness that I would have to endure the next week and a bit. 

                                                    the BEST chicken and waffles 

                                                                beautiful blooming trees

Sakura Pastries

I really enjoy Sakura flavored items, so I was pleasantly surprised when I went to the event at Tokyo Bakery and saw so many Sakura items for sale.  It was quite expensive, but it only happens once a year when you can get this flavor.  There was a Hanami Festival at a brewery next to the castle, so we wanted to check it out since we have been to it before.  This year was such a huge let down.  They didn't have as many stands as they did in the past and there were hardly any Japanese people.  The ambassador wasn't there this year and it reflected in the quality of the event. The good thing about the event, is that it made us go out and enjoy the nice weather.  Otherwise, I would not recommend the event to anyone. From now on, I will only attend Japanese events that are sponsored by the Japanese embassy. When we were walking back home through Petrin, we saw some people dressed in cosplay.  It was strange to see them dressed like this in Petrin.  I felt it would've been completely fine if it was in Harajuku, Japan but to see it in Prague was just odd. 

                                                           so many sakura flavored items

                                                         strawberry melon bread sandwich

                                                                    HUGE disappointment 

                                                     these costumes have got to be expensive!

Unexpected Hospital Stay

When I did the hospital check in on Monday, I was told that I needed to do a check up on my heart to make sure everything would be okay for the delivery.  I messaged my doctor and was able to set up an appointment a few days later. I went to my doctor and was told that my blood pressure was a bit high and there was protein in my urine.  I was instructed to go to the hospital the same day to make sure everything was okay.  I had several things planned to do, so I thought I could do everything done in one go. I figured that I could go to the hospital really quick and afterwards I would go for lunch and then meet with my student.  Things did not go according to plan when I got to the hospital.  I thought that I would go for a quick check up and then they would release me.  They informed me that I needed to stay at the hospital so they could observe me.  I didn't have lunch and was so hungry.  I didn't have anything with me because I didn't expect to go to the hospital, let alone stay at the hospital.  I was finally given food at 4pm because that's when dinner was served.  It was so strange to have to stay at the hospital.  They gave me some pills to see if my blood pressure would go down. Luckily, I was given a private room. I guess it was nice to see what the room would be like when I would go into delivery and to think about all the things I would need for my hospital bag.  In the evening, when they were monitoring me, the alarms kept going off because of my baby.  I had to be given a saline solution through an IV.  It was the first time I was ever given an IV and it hurt!!  It was definitely not comfortable, but luckily the saline solution worked and the alarms stopped.  It was a hectic day.  The next morning, I heard some noise outside my window and was pleasantly surprised to see some wild goat.  I was then given breakfast which was a joke at 7am and then at 11am I was given lunch.  Thankfully, I was discharged at 1pm and Leos was able to take me home.  It was a crazy 24 hours at the hospital.  (FYI, the hospital stay for 24 hours with monitoring, medicine, lunch and a private room cost me= $0! because I have the regular health insurance.)

                                                                    

                                                                    my room

                                              bathroom shared with the room next to mine

                                                                free wifi and tv in the room

                                                                    dinner at 4pm

                                                       can't believe I had to spend the night

                                                                        my first IV

                                                                    just outside my window

                                                                    breakfast?  what?

                                                            had to get a photo with the IV

                                                                         lunch at 11am?!

My Birthday

Since my birthday was around 2 weeks before my due date, I didn't want to plan anything big.  The past two years, Leos has surprised me with a trip for my birthday (France and then Bahrain), but this year there was no way we could go anywhere just in case I would go into labor.  Laura took me to dinner the day before my birthday and Leos took me out for dinner on my birthday.  It was nice to just relax and have good food. I would've loved to have something a bit bigger planned, but it would've been too much.  Little did I know that it was good to conserve my energy for what would come in 2 weeks time

                                                                    yummy dessert

                                                                    mini cake Laura got me

                                                            delicious matcha melon bread

                                                                    scallops

                                                                    grilled squid