Our wee lass was born on Sunday, 7/18 at 8:57 a.m. weighing in at 6 lb. 15 oz., 19" long. Quite the peanut!
I've been wanting to post forever, but somehow, we've been busy....
Her birth was amazing - 2 1/2 hours from my first contraction until she came out. I was out at a baby shower an hour from home, 1/2 hour from the hospital, the day before until about 7p.m. I'm sooo glad I did not go into labor there! I got a great night of sleep - the best in ages (I guess my body knew what was coming) - and woke up at 6:17 thinking, "Hmmmm." Uncomfortable crampiness in my lower ab, not sure if it was contractions, unhappy gut, etc. Within a minute, I realized I couldn't lie still, nor could I ignore the sensation - and was pretty sure it was a contraction.
I flipped onto my hands & knees to get ready to stand up, and felt a dribble down my leg. Definitely amniotic fluid, but just that little trickle. I woke DH, told him with a smile, "We're going to have a baby today!" "Are you sure it will be today?" "Yep. Definitely today." If only we had known!
I went downstairs, thinking I would just hang out, do some cleaning, see how things progressed. Right off the bat, contractions were maybe 5 minutes apart, tops. I was able to work through a couple of them, but by 6:45 knew that we needed to call the doc & babysitter. The doc called back by 7, said to come right in.
Not sure exactly the sequence, but at some point DH got up with DD, came downstairs, and I went back upstairs, knowing my level of pain would scare DD. I went & sat on the toilet for most of my contractions - most comfortable, and I was also expecting mess since I bled a lot with my first. Surprise - no blood this time! Anyways.
I think the sitter showed up around 7:45. By that time, Contractions were maybe...3? 2 minutes apart? At some point I was aware they were getting really intense, and I was having a hard time working my way through them. DH was downstairs the whole time, so I was by myself. Clearly this point was transition - I was sweating, hot, and also cold. And shaking, and working very, very, very hard to keep it together. I didn't lose it until the last ctx before we got in the car - I started screaming for DH to come upstairs, I just needed him there.
He walked my downstairs, we got into the car. I was in the back seat, on hands and knees, on a towel (good forsight!). We contemplated stopping twice to either recruit a local L&D nurse or one of our midwives along the way, but I had a really hard time with the idea of stopping the car - we had forward momentum, the hospital is only 1/2 hour away. About 10 min. from the hospital, my water broke fully. I had poor DH call the doc again & let her know that a) we would be coming in the ER entrance, and b) things were going FAST.
DH was amazing - he stayed very focused while driving, driving fast, keeping a hand on me & staying positive during contractions, timing contractions...I did not envy him!
Oh - and did I mention that I knew I needed to push? I resisted with everything I had, and never said a word to DH about it. I think being on my hands & knees helped a lot, which was my intent - keep pressure off the cervix, slow things down.
We got to the ER, I climbed out of the car and started walking barefoot with DH into the ER. This was funny - my mucous plug fell out as we walked in the entrance, and I was dripping amnio fluid the whole way. What could I do, right? I apologized, but only a little!
Into a wheelchair, whisked up to L&D where they had a room waiting for us, no check-in required. Thank God.
Doc checked me, said, "You can push any time, the baby is about an inch and a half away."
2 contractions later, I asked her, "An inch and a half from what?" "From your vaginal opening." I was shocked - I could not believe the babe's head was through my cervix already!
by this time, though, I was so damn tired, I didn't want to push, I had no urge to push. I wanted to be on a birthing stool, but was shaking so badly that it was all I could do to crawl onto the bed. I believe it was the huge adrenaline rush/crash of working through transition, then sustaining & stabilizing through the car-ride. I was really wiped out.
I ended up doing some coached pushing, which is just where I was at, too tired to work on my own. I really wanted to sleep. We got to the L&D room around 8:30, and she was born 27 minutes later, pushing about 25 of those minutes.
The other funny part? I roared this baby out. Seriously. With my first, I was very quiet when pushing. With this baby, I was so damn tired, that the only way I could get myself past that critical point was verbally. I knew it was cliche, but I couldn't help it. 3 roars, 2 big pushes to get head & body out. And what sweet relief - our 2nd little girl, perfect as can be!
I'm recovering great - the bleeding has stopped, no tearing at all, and our darling Norah is sleeping quite well at night.
I would not wish a 2 1/2 hour labor on any first time mama...but I'm thrilled that we made it to the hospital, and that I did not have to deliver in the ER.
Love 'n hugs to you all!
I've been wanting to post forever, but somehow, we've been busy....
Her birth was amazing - 2 1/2 hours from my first contraction until she came out. I was out at a baby shower an hour from home, 1/2 hour from the hospital, the day before until about 7p.m. I'm sooo glad I did not go into labor there! I got a great night of sleep - the best in ages (I guess my body knew what was coming) - and woke up at 6:17 thinking, "Hmmmm." Uncomfortable crampiness in my lower ab, not sure if it was contractions, unhappy gut, etc. Within a minute, I realized I couldn't lie still, nor could I ignore the sensation - and was pretty sure it was a contraction.
I flipped onto my hands & knees to get ready to stand up, and felt a dribble down my leg. Definitely amniotic fluid, but just that little trickle. I woke DH, told him with a smile, "We're going to have a baby today!" "Are you sure it will be today?" "Yep. Definitely today." If only we had known!
I went downstairs, thinking I would just hang out, do some cleaning, see how things progressed. Right off the bat, contractions were maybe 5 minutes apart, tops. I was able to work through a couple of them, but by 6:45 knew that we needed to call the doc & babysitter. The doc called back by 7, said to come right in.
Not sure exactly the sequence, but at some point DH got up with DD, came downstairs, and I went back upstairs, knowing my level of pain would scare DD. I went & sat on the toilet for most of my contractions - most comfortable, and I was also expecting mess since I bled a lot with my first. Surprise - no blood this time! Anyways.
I think the sitter showed up around 7:45. By that time, Contractions were maybe...3? 2 minutes apart? At some point I was aware they were getting really intense, and I was having a hard time working my way through them. DH was downstairs the whole time, so I was by myself. Clearly this point was transition - I was sweating, hot, and also cold. And shaking, and working very, very, very hard to keep it together. I didn't lose it until the last ctx before we got in the car - I started screaming for DH to come upstairs, I just needed him there.
He walked my downstairs, we got into the car. I was in the back seat, on hands and knees, on a towel (good forsight!). We contemplated stopping twice to either recruit a local L&D nurse or one of our midwives along the way, but I had a really hard time with the idea of stopping the car - we had forward momentum, the hospital is only 1/2 hour away. About 10 min. from the hospital, my water broke fully. I had poor DH call the doc again & let her know that a) we would be coming in the ER entrance, and b) things were going FAST.
DH was amazing - he stayed very focused while driving, driving fast, keeping a hand on me & staying positive during contractions, timing contractions...I did not envy him!
Oh - and did I mention that I knew I needed to push? I resisted with everything I had, and never said a word to DH about it. I think being on my hands & knees helped a lot, which was my intent - keep pressure off the cervix, slow things down.
We got to the ER, I climbed out of the car and started walking barefoot with DH into the ER. This was funny - my mucous plug fell out as we walked in the entrance, and I was dripping amnio fluid the whole way. What could I do, right? I apologized, but only a little!
Into a wheelchair, whisked up to L&D where they had a room waiting for us, no check-in required. Thank God.
Doc checked me, said, "You can push any time, the baby is about an inch and a half away."
2 contractions later, I asked her, "An inch and a half from what?" "From your vaginal opening." I was shocked - I could not believe the babe's head was through my cervix already!
by this time, though, I was so damn tired, I didn't want to push, I had no urge to push. I wanted to be on a birthing stool, but was shaking so badly that it was all I could do to crawl onto the bed. I believe it was the huge adrenaline rush/crash of working through transition, then sustaining & stabilizing through the car-ride. I was really wiped out.
I ended up doing some coached pushing, which is just where I was at, too tired to work on my own. I really wanted to sleep. We got to the L&D room around 8:30, and she was born 27 minutes later, pushing about 25 of those minutes.
The other funny part? I roared this baby out. Seriously. With my first, I was very quiet when pushing. With this baby, I was so damn tired, that the only way I could get myself past that critical point was verbally. I knew it was cliche, but I couldn't help it. 3 roars, 2 big pushes to get head & body out. And what sweet relief - our 2nd little girl, perfect as can be!
I'm recovering great - the bleeding has stopped, no tearing at all, and our darling Norah is sleeping quite well at night.
I would not wish a 2 1/2 hour labor on any first time mama...but I'm thrilled that we made it to the hospital, and that I did not have to deliver in the ER.
Love 'n hugs to you all!
Follow Mothering