The life of a Riley

Thomas got weighed yesterday and had his needles.. He now weighs 9 pound and a half. Little fatty he is. He is still only short at 52cm... Cant beleive how fast he is growing.. Been trying to get some smiles out of him but he just isnt ready :( Finding it so hard in comparison to Hollie..

I feel like I cant pay him any attention cause HOllie then does something to him to get the attention back on to her.. He is such a cuddly little thing and just loves to be held close...


I finally got around to typing up my diary from hospital.. Im going to just add it in here So i have it all in one spot... Its long though...

29th January 2007

Had my first ride in a plane yesterday down to John Hunter Hospital. I have preeclampsia and my kidney function is down. Having only one kidney and being under 34 weeks I had to come down here as it’s a high risk maternity unit. Lady across from me snored and vomited all night so I only got about 2 hours sleep, even with sleeping tablets.Had a scan today and bubs I about 4 pound 8.

I had one set of steroids for bubs’ lungs yesterday and the second lot today.

When I was on the plane I was absolutely terrified. It was my first plane ride and my biggest fear of all time is going on a plane. I couldn’t believe I had survived it when we had landed though. I was so proud of myself. I kept my eyes closed the whole time though. A few times when I did open them the plane was on an angle and I was looking down at the ground.. While on the plane my Bp was 165/113 and pulse was 150. The plane was only tiny and I was strapped to a bed. The roof was basically on top of me.

The plane ride was only 25 minutes. When we got there were 3 ambulances waiting for me and the other 2 patients with flashing lights. It all looked a bit dramatic.

At the airport before I left Hollie came to say goodbye. When I was still in the ambulance and was watching her I had to hold back the tears for her or I would totally melt down. They let her come on to the tarmac. She watched me get on the plane, and then she waved to me as the plane took off. Watching my baby girl from the sky was heartbreaking. She must have been so confused. Mum said she broke down lastnight and had mum in tears as well. I miss her soo much, I just want to hold her and tell her how much I love her.

I better write how I came to be sent here to Newcastle. I was at mum and dads house and we were going to go and look at the country music festival. Before we left I used dads BP machine and the reading was really high. I rang the hospital and told them and they said come and have it checked. When I got to the hospital it was high but not really high (not as high as what dads machine said it was). The registrar said I could go home but said she would do bloods just in case. She asked could I stay at mum and dads house in Tamworth the night and if something came up in the bloods she would contact me over night. We didn’t hear from her so started to pack up to go home when the mobile rang and the OB said I had to go in and have steroids and get flown to Newcastle. Talk about throw us into chaos. Jay had to go hoe and get us stuff before driving to Newcastle.


30th January 2007
Got told today by the foreign cleaning lady, that I have a beautiful smile. Was nice to get a compliment.

Bp was up a bit today. Last numbers were 150/85. Bit of protein and had more bloods taken. Renal specialists come in and said they are happy with how I am going at the moment. I also saw the anesthetist and the respitory specialist. .

Jay and I had a bit of a tiff today and I ended up back in my room crying. I am missing Hols so much.

31st January 2007
Not much happening today. BP this morning was 160/90. Protein back down to +1. Had sleeping tablets lastnight but it still didn’t help me sleep. One more sleep till I get to see my precious girl. I cant wait. Sounds like she is having a ball with mum and dad.

My tummy is so huge and tight. I am waddling so much. Feel like I just ant fit anymore baby in there. At the moment there are about 8 pregnant women in here. Babies are down the other end so not sure how many there is.

1st February 2007
First day of Feb already and I have been here for 5 days. Hold turned up today but didn’t get to stay for long. We walked down the corridor to wait for them. Hol was in the pram and started yelling out I LOVE YOU. Then she ran up and hugged me so tight. She just kept looking at us then. I cant believe how much she has grown. She is just so gorgeous.

My BP was up again today so I started BP meds. It was 150/90 this morning and went back down to 140/86 tonight. The girl in the next room had triplets at 31 weeks. How scary.

I woke at 4:30am to nurses running and one of the pg girls screaming. I think I heard them say she was 35 weeks. She has had the bub now. God im nosey, wish I knew what was going on.

2nd February 2007
I was woken again by a screaming women in labour during the night. Apparently there was a set of twins and 3 single babies born overnight.

I am feeling really lethargic and tired today. Protein still +1 and BP was 130/95 tonight. Just more sitting and waiting and hoping to transfer back to Tamworth next week.

Hollie kept saying her baby was hitting her in the stitch today. So funny. She also kept telling me not to stress.

3rd February 2007
Not much happening. Bp still wavering is 140/90 tonight so still up there even with the meds. Hol and Jay came today and by the time they left I was stressed out. I got a bit teary about causing so much chaos and our life being so unsettled. Let’s just hope we get back to Tamworth. Two more sleeps till 34 weeks.

Hols new name for the baby ( besides Trevor) is Jessie. She is such a funny kid full of so much personality. I love just watching her playing her games and pretending she is different people.

Feeling a bit lonely and sorry for myself stuck in here. Feel like I shouldn’t be here and the dr was just being over cautious.

5th February 2007
Got transferred back to Tamworth today. You would think I would feel more at home but I feel lonely as ever. The good thing is I got to come home in the car with Jay. I was free for a few hours. I just wanna go home with Jay and HOls. Im so homesick.

Hollebone has already put my BP meds up to 3 a day. Doesn’t look like Ill be going home anytime soon I don’t think.


6th February 2007
Another day down. Feeling really lonely. Didn’t get to see Hols or Jay today. Spent most of the day sleeping with a headache.

Bp is up and down again. Last reading was 135/92.

Hol told Jay tonight that she would “dream of mummy”. Made me cry…


7th February 1007
Still sitting around waiting. Feel like a big fat heffa at the moment.

BP was and down again today. One reading was 146/95. HOllebone has put me up to 6 Bp meds a day and that he wants to get me to 36 weeks but doesn’t think I will get any further then that. He said I wont be going home till baby is born..

Im missing Hols so much. I have spent 10 nights away from her. The longest I have ever been away from her before this was 3 nights. Feel like I have lost my little soul mate. Feel like she doesn’t need me.

8th February 2007
What a day!!! Woke up this morning and HOllebone said I could go home. BP stable on 6 tablets a day. So got excited and packed my stuff.. THEN…. Had BP take it was sky high so I thought I wasn’t going home, then they did it with a different machine and it was ok so they said I could still go. Was ready to go and then a dr appeared telling me Im not going anywhere. My bloods weren’t good. Kidney function not good and platelets are low.

Hol came up for a little bit today. Hope she understands whats going on. Tonight when Jay asker her about it she said “Mummy has to stay in hospital for baby”….

Its so busy in here all of a sudden. All the beds are taken and there are babies everywhere.


9th February 2007
Well I might be having the baby tomorrow. Having bloods in the morning then the decision will be made. Im totally freakin out. My kidney function isn’t great. I had a scan this arvo to check on bubs. Its in a weird position with back on mine legs up. Bub was apprx 2.2 kilos which is roughly so it hasn’t really put on much weight in a week and a half. I cant believe tomorrow I might be having my baby.

Hol and Jay came for a visit today. Hol told me she loved me which was nice to here.

10th February 2007
No baby today. Bloods weren’t that much worse today so baby stays in another day.

I got to go out for a few hours this arvo and went to mum and dads to hang out. As I sat and watched Hol in the pool my heart just broke for her. I just want to be with her getting her ready for the baby. I feel so guilty for leaving her. I just want to hold her.

Earlier on in the day when mum and dad bought Hollie up, she wrapped her hands around my neck and just sobbed her little heart out cause she wanted to stay with me. I just wanted to break down but I knew once I did I wouldn’t stop.

11th February 2007
Another boring day in jail. HOls and Jay came and spent some time with me and that was really nice. I cried myself to sleep lastnight. I just miss having my last Pregnant days at home with Hollie. Its been 2 weeks today that I have been in hospital.


13th February 2007
Another exciting day in paradise. Im so over it. I just want to know what is happening. Today the renal guys came in and said I was booked for a ceaser for tomorrow so I spent all arvo trying to find out if I was or not. I found out about 6pm I wasn’t.

I was allowed to duck out for 20 minutes with mum to go down the shopping center tonight. Wasn’t allowed out any longer then that..

Missing my girlie like crazy. I just want to cuddler her and tell her I love her. Cried myself to sleep lastnight. Just feel like im missing out on 3 whole weeks of her life.

18th February 2007
Oh wow what a few days it has been. On Tues (13th feb) I started to get pains at 11pm and kept quite about them for about an hour. I then told the midwife who told me to just watch them for another half hour and see what happens. They continued so I got moved around to the labour ward to be monitored and have my stitch out. OUCH its was the most painful thing. I got stuck into the gas but it was so friggin painful. Jay wasn’t even there yet to hold my hand..When he turned up at 2am Hol had to sit there with us for half hour till mum came and got her.

I was given pethidine to see if it would stop the contractions but they continued all night. So at 7am Dr H came in and said we were having a ceaser at 8:30am. So off I went to get prepared,was trying to act calm and cool but I was freaking out. Just before I went in Hollebone told me that my baby might have to be flown away cause we didn’t know the condition of it and its weight was a bit low.

I had a spinal this time and was freaking out that it might wear off but it didn’t. Thank god. Kept asking poor anesthetist if he was positive it wouldn’t.

The most special part of the whole event was when I heard the registrar, Alex say “Hello little darling” while he was still inside me. It melted my heart that someone so caring was the first person he saw. I couldn’t believe it was a boy. I kept saying to jay, it cant be a boy, I was sure it was a girl. He came out screaming with apgars better then Hollies. They were 8 and 9.He weighed 2225 gram and he is 42cm long.He is so tiny.

He spent 2 days in the humidicrib but I couldn’t go to see him as I was still hooked up to everything. It broke my heart. He had his drip taken out on day 4, which made it much easier to cuddle him. Those few days following his birth were a bit of a blur. I was so drugged up I couldn’t even contemplate a name. So he went 3 days without one. I had a reaction to the morphine which made me scratch nonstop, it nearly sent me out of my mind.

He is being tube fed and boob fed. He is doing really well with it but just gets tired sucking. He dropped back to 1995 on day 3, but had plenty more he could have lost before we would worry. He got his drip out yesterday (thankgod it was so annoying).He will be 5 days old tomorrow and 36 weeks.

Ive been so afraid I wouldn’t bond with him, but it was hard cause I hadn’t really been able to spend any time with him…

Im so homesick I miss my girl like crazy. I just wanna go home.


DAY 6 19th February 2007
Today was the day I was booked to have my ceaser. Hard to believe he is 6 days old. Today we had a weigh in but he hadn’t gained any weight. They checked his stomach content after 10 minutes sucking and he only had 2 mls in there. Should be 40mls. Im so upset.WE will never get home at this rate.Im just missing Hollie sooo much and wanna go home and be a family. I miss my pregnant belly so much and I miss my little boy too, feels like I am so far away from him even though it is just down the hall.

I watched him have a bath today. He has no fat on him. Looks like a little skinned rabbit with his ribs sticking out. I cant imagine taking him home to our family. I cant imagine being a mum of two..

DAY 8 21st February 2007
My baby is a week old today. He had a gain today taking him up to 2235. He was pretty sleepy most of the day, but had a beautiful boob feed tonight. We used a nipple shield which made such a difference.

A baby was born today that couldn’t breath. The NETS team came in and Flew him to the childrens hospital . The poor mum couldn’t go because she had had a ceaser. I was devastated for her.


DAY 9 22nd February 2007
The drs think I have a clot in my lung. Yesterday I had blood taken from my artery which was sooo painful. Today I had scans done on my lungs and calf. I will have the results tomorrow. When I got to the scan the guy told me I couldn’t breastfeed for the next 12 hours. Made me so mad he didn’t tell me before so I could have expressed some milk off. So I have to express and dump what a waste.

Jay and Hol came over tonight for a short visit. I miss them so much. How is our life ever going to get back to normal..

Another baby got flown out by the NETS team this morning. She had really tiny lungs. How scary for the parents.


DAY 10 23rd February 2007
Weight gain of 65grams today, brings him up to 2295.


DAY 12 25th February 2007
Weigh in Today. I was a bit disappointed. Thomas had only put on 15 grams. So he is now 2310. I guess it’s a gain and not a loss. Jay and Hols came today and helped bath him, which was nice to do as a family. Then I went out to mum and dads for the day for dads bday. It was so nice to be out of here but it felt so strange not having Thomas in my belly and not having him in my arms either.

Hol has grown up so much while I have been gone. I feel like I have missed an important part of her life. Im so scared of going home.


DAY 14 27th February 2007
Weigh in today and we have put on 45 grams. He is now 2355. I think he is starting to wake up a bit more finally. He had 2 really good breast feeds today and the rest tubes. The ob registrar came and spoke to me today and said the nurses were worried about my mental state. Surely it would be totally normal for me to a bit emotional after being here for so long and what I have been through.

Hol and Jay came over tonight. She is such a cutie. She was telling me that when she wakes up she says “why, why, why all day”.. She didn’t have to tell me that I know she does. LOL.

DAY 16 1st March 2007
Thomas weight in at 2390 today. A gain of 35 grams. Pediatrician decided he needs to be pushed so we are moving from alternate breast and tube feeds to try all breastfeeds. If he doesn’t wake for a feed then we do a tube. He hasn’t had a tube since 4am yesterday. How exciting. He roomed in with me last night which was a challenge.

Hollie came over today and had the day off so we could go do a few things, but everytime I got in to a shop the hospital rang cause Thomas was shouting and wanted to feed. I had my haircut which felt awesome…

DAY 17 2nd March 2007
Peadiatrician said as long as there is a weight gain tomorrow we can go home. So Thomas will room in with me tonight and be weighed in the morning.. YAY



Day 18 3rd March 2007
WE are going home today. We had a weight gain of…. 15grams. But its still a gain..