Kacie had a doctor's appointment on December 16th. She called me at work around noon and said they were going to admit her that day because he blood pressure was so high. She wasn't supposed to go in until the 19th but the doctor said they couldn't wait. So I left work in a panic to go home and pack and head to Rexburg. I didn't leave until around 1:30ish. Scott had a snow day and decided to put snow tires on my car that morning. That was definitely a tender mercy because when I got to Pocatello the roads were pretty bad and then Cole called and said I needed to take a detour because the freeway by their house closed due to a car on fire. I was so glad I had those snow tires on because I had trouble stopping once even with them on. I was so happy when I finally got to the hospital around 6:30. Kacie looked pretty good and was a little anxious about everything but holding up well. Joe and Jolene came a couple of hours later. We all hung out and then I stayed with Kacie while they went to dinner. I offered to stay the night with Kacie so Cole could get some sleep. We both agreed I have more experience with hospitals. haha! Around 4:00am they started Kacie on Pitocin. The doctor came in around 8:00am to check her and broke her water. He said she was dilated to a three or four and that he would come back around noon to check on her again. I decided to go to their house to shower and maybe take a nap since we didn't get much sleep turning the night. After I unloaded the car I tried to take a nap but wasn't able to shut my brain off so I got up and took a shower. It was a good thing I did because Kacie called me around 10:00 when I was just finishing my hair and she told me she was dilated to an eight. I couldn't believe it so I hurried back to the hospital. When I arrived she was already at a ten and ready to start pushing.
I gave her a big hug and then I waited with Joe and Jolene in the waiting area. We waited for a little over an hour and it was a very looooong wait. I think Jolene and I thought of every bad thing that could go wrong and it was torturous waiting. Cole finally texted us at 12:17 on 12/17/24, "Baby is here and healthy as far as we can tell." When I was finally able to see them I was overwhelmed with emotions. I was a little shocked by how much baby Wheeler looked like Kacie and then all I wanted to do was cry and hug her. I was so proud of Kacie. She did so good and we were so relieved that she and the baby were healthy and doing well. Baby Wheeler was born at 12:10pm and weighed 6 lbs 6 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. The doctor did a really good job of helping Kacie take her time pushing so she wouldn't tear which was a blessing especially because he was born face up or can be called sunny side up. Because of this he had a big bruise on the back of his head. Luckily they said there was nothing to worry about and that it would go away in a week or two. We are so happy our little miracle baby is here and that both baby and momma are doing so well.
Kacie wasn't able to hold him very long because they had to keep him in the NICU for observation for six hours since he was born at 37 weeks, 4 days. Kacie then tried eating a chicken sandwich and some fries; however, it didn't settle well and she threw it all up. She was pretty sick for a while until they gave her some Zofran.
Uncle Brady found out about baby Wheeler being born just as he was leaving the temple with Grandpa and Grandma Schulthies. He squealed with excitement then they had a celebratory lunch at Costa Vida.
We discovered that he was allergic to paper tape just like his dad. But we were happy he was finally off oxygen. Kacie was able to see him in the NICU for a little bit and tried nursing him before they brought him back to Kacie's room. I can't believe I'm a grandma!! I had no idea how much love and joy I would feel for this little one, that still did not have a name. haha!
We are so in love with this precious little one!
I stayed the night again with them. I don't think Kacie and I got any sleep because we were so worried about him choking. I finally let him sleep on me for half the night and then Kacie kept him the other half of the night.
