On Monday night, the 27th, I was sitting in bed watching Bones and surfing the internet and felt a little trickle down there. I thought I had peed on myself a little, because being super mondo pregnant, it happens... a lot! So I went to the restroom and nothing else leaked out so I was sure it was just urine. I went back to bed and turned Bones back on and BAM! Ok, not bam... more like EEK! I could feel it start trickling, so I jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom as fast as a fat pregnant woman can run and managed to make it to the bathroom just before my water broke EVERYWHERE. I yelled for J and got cleaned up and we got dressed to head to the hospital.
After calling and speaking to one of the midwifes, the decision was made to stay home for 12 hours or until contractions started and picked up a bit. Janelle came over so that she could take us to the hospital and be my second support person (thank GOD for her). We watched some more Bones and we all got some sleep, not nearly enough, but a couple hours atleast. Nothing happened... just some measly (sp?) little menstrual like cramping. Around 6:30am we called my mom and asked if we could come hang out at her house until it was time for us to head to the hospital... I really wanted her to braid my hair to keep it out of my face, she's a french braiding pro LOL.
Finally, around 9:30am on the 28th we headed to the hospital. We were so excited, a little bit nervous, but incredibly excited. They checked my progress in the L&D triage unit and I wasn't having any contractions, and the nurse couldn't get a sample of my water because it wasn't trickling anymore... however when the midwife came in to check my cervix it was DEFINATELY leaking again. I was 3.5 cm dialated so they admitted me and started me on pitocin to kick start my contractions.
The beginning of my contractions were totally manageable. My goal was to have a natural, drug free labor, with the exception of the pitocin ofcourse. However... sometimes your plans change. The regular contractions were painful, but I was handling them really well. Then a couple of hours into labor I started having terrible back labor... horrible, painful back labor. I can't even describe to you the pain I endured, they were lasting a minute or more, were a minute apart. I had no time to breathe, no time to relax, no time to get a grip and deal with the pain. It was continuous... and even in that tiny 1 minute break, the contractions would stop but the back pain never went away. I asked about alternative pain medications... if you don't know me very well, then let me tell you... I am horribly afraid of needles. I was terrified of getting an epidural or a spinal... absolutely terrified. They offered me a drug (I can't remember the name of it) that would help me relax between contractions, however, after talking to Janelle we realized it wouldn't be the best choice for me. Apparently a lot of people that use that do rest between contractions, but because they rest so deeply they end up feeling like they have one endless horrible contraction... and never realize that they did in fact get to rest in between pains.
I chose to have an epidural, I was around 6.5 cm dialated at this point... this was after all that back labor, trying heating pads, the water tub, etc etc. I was so scared, I was crying in pain, crying in fear... and I was so incredibly blessed to have my amazing hubby and amazing friend Janelle there to support me. They loved on me, and reassured me the entire time. I got on the bed and into position to get the epidural and I was so afraid that I wouldn't be able to hold still during my contractions. Janelle and J stood infront of me, Janelle prayed over me and held my hand, J held my hand... and I cried. It was over with pretty quickly, but I can assure you that that moment was the most terrifying moment in my life.
The nurse got me laying down in the bed and the epidural kicked in almost immediately... thank goodness! I was finally able to rest, and ONE HOUR later I was fully effaced and dialated and ready to push! I believe they said that I pushed for one hour, seemed a lot shorter than that to me... it was incredible. I thought that getting the epidural would mean I wouldn't be able to feel anything. I was wrong though! I was tingly and definately numb, but I could feel her moving down and crowning.
At 9:07pm, on December 28th, 2010 my beautiful baby girl was born! She had the cord wrapped around her a couple of times... and she had a little bit of trouble breathing at first... but she found her bearings and cried beautiful cries. Janelle cut her cord and they handed her off to me and she had the most beautiful big blue eyes! She was 5lbs 13 oz, 18.5 inches long... and BEAUTIFUL. I only needed 2 stitches to repair a tiny tear, the epidural wore off pretty quickly, and by 12am we were moved into a mommy/baby room ready to start our lives!
J was amazing, he was so supportive and loving. I couldn't have wished for a better husband, God definatley had his hand in choosing him to be my life partner and best friend. Janelle was my rock, she was incredibly supportive and I believe I made the BEST choice in choosing her and her husband to be Boogie's godparents. My midwife, Dolly, was incredible... she never stopped praising me and letting me know how well I was doing and that I was making good decisions. The nurses were amazing... and despite the horrible back labor, I had an AMAZING birth experience. I know what to expect when we decide to have more children, and I'll know what to do if I have back labor in any other birth experiences in the future!
Boogie is a wonderful baby, she sleeps a LOT, is latching and feeding pretty well, and she makes the most precious faces. All of her grandparents are thrilled and adore her.... Uncle Josh and Uncle Pickle are smitten... and mommy and daddy are head over heels!
