INTRODUCING ISAAC JAMES SINKS!!!

Sorry it has taken us so long to get this post done. Isaac's early delivery threw us all for a loop! Last Sunday, in the wee hours of the morning, I awoke to what I thought were cramps, until I realized my abdomen was rock hard and it was actually a contraction. It woke me out of a dead sleep. This wasn't the first time I'd had a contraction here or there, so I got up and went into the bathroom and got myself awake a little. Then, within a few minutes, I had another one but it didn't hurt as bad. Then, a few minutes later another one that didn't hurt so bad. Then, I had one that hurt really bad. I casually woke up Wayne and said "I'm having these cramps and I suppose there is a chance I'm in labor." I didn't really think I was serious at that point. So, we started paying more attention to them and timing them. I had 3 or 4 more, all between 10-15 minutes apart. I got up again, went to the bathroom and my water broke. So, we started throwing things together and making arrangements for the kids. It was only 4:30 AM at this point, so I felt terrible waking up the neighbor, but she was very helpful and had us bring the kids over to her house.

We left for the hospital around 4:50 AM. It usually takes about an hour and fifteen minutes to get there, but Wayne made it in about 50-55 minutes. I had to close my eyes went we went around the curvy mountain roads because I was a little afraid at times!! When we left, my contractions were 10-12 minutes apart. About half way there, they were down to 4 minutes apart. When we arrived in Asheville at the hospital, they were only 2 minutes apart and I was hurting pretty good. As soon as I got there, the nurse checked and made sure that my water had indeed ruptured. They called the doctor and he arrived about an hour later. Because I was a repeat C-Section, I wasn't allowed anything for the pain until my spinal, which really stunk. I did pretty good with the labor until the last 3-4 contractions. Then, as Wayne put it, I got "a little grumpy." At 7:45 or so, they took me back to the surgery room and got my spinal in, which was a HUGE relief.

Isaac was born at 8:12 AM. He was 7 pounds 5 ounces and 19.5 inches long. He is amazing and gorgeous! He has a head full of hair, which we were not at all expecting. It was very dark when he was first born, but it has lightened up a bit since then. He is such a good baby so far. Not at all fussy. He even slept most of the night last night, only getting up to eat once. The kids are loving him and are helping to take very good care of him. Isaac tested positive for the Coombs test, which put him at risk for high bilirubin levels, so the doctors are keeping a very close eye on that. Apparently it is because my blood (which is o+) and his blood (which is A+) were not compatable and at some point in the pregnancy there was a crossover and our blood mixed. They said it was most likely due to my having a placenta previa for much of the pregnancy. The poor little guy has endured 12 heal sticks in just 6 days. His feet are so red and sore. Right now, he is using a Wallabe, which is a blanket-like unit which puts off ultraviolet lights on his skin to help him break down his excess red blood cells. His billirubin has come down over 2 points in the past 48 hours, so that was great. He goes again on Monday for more tests and hopefully we'll get rid of the Wallabe soon. As soon as we get his billirubin levels down for good, he'll be fine. His weight was down to 6 pounds 13 ounces today, which was actually up 1 ounce since Thursday. So, he seems to finally be stabilizing his weight too.