It's been a bit of a roller coaster week for me! I had been getting so frustrated b/c I had so many signs of labor this weekend that I felt like my body was just teasing me to death!! Just when I would start timing contractions they would stop. This went on Sun, Mon and Tue. I was so ready for my OB apt on Wed b/c I thought for sure I had progressed, maybe even enough that she would tell me just to head to the hospital! (Hey, a girl can hope right?!) Well, I almost missed my apt b/c I had it in my brain that it was 1:30pm when it was at 11:45 am, which I realized at 11:40!!! Thanks to Derek for calling to see what time it was b/c he thought he'd go too since he was still in town! I'm telling you this little girl took every last brain cell! Anyway, they squeezed me in at noon. She checked me and said that I was b/t a 2 and a 3. I was so bummed. Then she said since I was so uncomfortable and would be 39wks on the 16th, she'd see if we could induce on the 16th. Nope, the birth center was WAY to full and busy to schedule an induction so she said we'd just plan on Friday. I left there in tears b/c I was just so ready to have this baby. I think had I not been so uncomfortable, not sleeping, etc. I could have dealt with it much better, but I was so ready to be done!
The last thing Dr Gootjes said before we left was, "maybe this check will be all you need to get things going". Well, she was absolutely right! By 6pm that night, I was having really regular contractions and they were getting pretty comfortable, but not regular enough. By 8pm they were getting much more intense and Derek had to take over Ethan's bath and stuff. (Which Ethan gave him a pretty hard time about). I was trying to plan ahead for someone to watch Ethan the next day just in case I was ACTUALLY, FINALLY in labor. Of course, of all days, Bonnie had to report for jury duty the next day and my mom had dr's apt at 0830 for her neck/head pain that she'd had for several days and I didn't want her to have to cancel. We worked out a plan but I still burst into tears because this wasn't how I wanted it to go. I had to get over it real quick though because it was out of my hands now and I was in way too much pain! By the time we got Ethan to bed, my contractions were about 5 mins apart and almost unbearable. I finally decided to call the Dr on-call when I started feeling like a needed to push a little with each contraction. He recommended that I come in. Derek started getting everything ready and in the car almost immediately. Then I started second-guessing myself. I didn't want them to say that I wasn't really in labor and send me home, so I waited for a while to make sure that they weren't going to stop again! They didn't stop in frequency or intensity so I called Bonnie and she came over right away. Then I called the Coordinator for the hospital to make sure that they'd have a bed for me and not closet when I got there (sometimes it pays to have a few connections !), since I knew they were really busy. She assured me that I wouldn't have a closet to deliver in!
We finally got here around midnight. A few people I work with saw me and were really excited for us, that was neat! We got right up to a room and the nurse helped me right away. She checked me and said I was around 4cm, so I had progressed since the afternoon. She talked to Dr Gerard (the Dr on-call) and he said to go ahead with an IV and epidural... YAY!! I couldn't wait to get some relief from these contractions. I was finally comfortable around 0200. Everything went really fast and smooth. Then, Derek and I watched TV for a while and tried to just relax and close our eyes a little. It was hard b/c the nurse had to turn me every hour and so we didn't really get any actual SLEEP, but at least we rested for a while. Around 0450 Dr Gerard came in to tell us that everything was going really well, and Dr Gootjes was planning on coming in first thing to deliver me. Before he left, he asked if I'd been feeling any "pressure". I said that I could feel my contractions were coming really fast now and with the last couple, I felt A LOT of pressure "down there". He thought maybe he should check me so he went to get my nurse. He didn't even put his hand in, he just looked and said, "whoa, the head's right there, I think we're about to have a baby". I was shocked! My whole body started shaking. I wanted my mom and Karen to be there for the birth, but it didn't look like that was going to happen! I called them both and when he came back, he said we could wait just a few mins to start pushing, but Derek and I decided we didn't want to make our little peanut wait!!
I was a little worried about Derek b/c he had a little trouble when we were pushing with Ethan and my mom had to take over holding my leg. He assured me he'd be fine. I really wanted to see things this time so I asked for a mirror. Unfortunately, Derek could see it too, but he did a good job of looking at the wall while holding a leg and my hand. She was out in 4 pushes! Dr Gerard held her up so Derek could announce that she was a girl! It felt like it took him FOREVER to say it and her leg was blocking my view so I couldn't see!! I couldn't believe it when he said girl! I didn't want to admit it, but I was really hoping that we'd have a girl. Not that I would have been "disappointed" if she was a boy, but I REALLY wanted a girl!! Derek did just awesome and I LOVED being able to watch the birth! It was so cool! Looking back on everything, I'm also really glad that it was just us. It was a very intimate, private birth and I will cherish it!
Sorry for the book, I just couldn't leave anything out! I still can't believe that she's HERE and that she's a SHE! She's doing just amazing too, nursing is going just fabulous, she's just a perfect little miracle! Can't wait for everyone to meet her!
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