Surviving week 1 ...

... Is much easier with a hug.

Family of Four

Baby girl!

Our baby girl, Claire Adele, finally arrived!

June, 14, 2012

8lb 1oz & 20-1/2 inches

My birth story:

My due date was Friday, June 15th and all week I had been having on/off contractions especially when we would go for evening walks. I kept thinking this was it, timing contractions, but they would stop and another day would pass. My water broke with Wesley, but I was sure this time I would go in with normal contractions.

Nope! At 3 am, I was lying in bed trying to go back to sleep after lugging myself to the bathroom when trickle, trickle ... my water broke! (Again! With Wesley it broke at 4:45am). I called to Matt sleeping in the next room with Wesley and he appeared looking pretty dazed and confused. Here we go again! We got everything in order, my parents came over to stay with Wesley, and the two of us headed for the hospital at 4am.

We got set up in Triage with a wonderful nurse who got my IV in with 1 poke and checked me at 1.5cm - even though I had really good contractions. I was upset I wasn't further along. She was really supportive of my natural birth plan - probably after knowing I did it the first time, they take you more seriously. We were in our room by 5:30am and the walking began, round and round the Labor and Delivery floor. By 8:30am, the doctor (same one who delivered Wesley) checked me at 2cm and put me on a low dose of pitocin. I told him I was holding off on the epidural for natural, and he said, "OK." (This was the man who didn't talk to me through Wesley's labor because I was natural ... maybe someone spiked his coffee?). My mom arrived at that time and we all walked halls together, I labored in the room watching TV, listened to my iTunes-- all the while my contractions were all over the place and they kept raising my pitocin (finally to an 8). Then things started really moving and when I got checked at Noon, I made a guess I was at 4cm and was right. Active Labor had begun.

And it was active! We went back to the halls where our nurse told us to show everyone what "real labor" was like. Oh we showed them all ... every contraction I had to fall into Matt and moan (Bradley training). It got so frequent and intense that even some nurses stopped to make sure I was okay. At one point one of the OBs had to tell her, "She's just having a contraction ... and bonding [with her husband]." Probably not a usual site to be seen on the floor where most women are strapped to their beds. Anyway, things got super rough. I went back to the room to labor on the birthing ball and use Matt to hold me up so I wouldn't roll off. At 2:45pm, I decided to get into the showers and got checked at 7-8cm -- I went from Active to Transition in less than 3 hours! 

In the shower, it was brutal - the pain was so intense! The nurse kept saying, "this is going to go so quickly! Tell me if you feel rectal pressure and we'll move to the bed." She wasn't leaving us - she knew this was it. I was only in the shower for 5 minutes before feeling pressure and getting back on the bed over a birthing ball - at every contraction they would rock me and apply counter pressure to my back but I was going crazy!  I couldn't center myself the contractions were so intense that I kept on screaming - "Help me!" I got checked again when I felt too much pressure and her head was right there but I had just a small lip of cervix left and that was the pain - she was bearing down on it.

they called the doctor right away and when he got there I felt calmer because I knew this was it. At 3:06pm I was complete and at 3:14pm she was born - maybe I pushed 2 times it was that quick!

They raised her up and put her on my chest immediately and it was pure love at first sight. Matt kissed me, everyone was happy and all that pain was forgotten.

39 weeks 5 days ... Waiting game

What to do with a 39w pregnant belly:

39 weeks 1 day

This is the longest now I have been pregnant. Wesley was born at 39 weeks. I thought for sure I would have this baby pretty early too, but all my last appointments have been disappointing -- not dilated, not contracting ... My 39 week appointment was particularly enervating because the doctor told me that if I come in at 40 weeks then they will schedule an induction. The last thing I want is an induction -- they have a higher risk of leading to C-sections and there is no way a true induction can be done au natural. I was "technically" induced with Wesley - i.e. I was on pitocin because of my water breaking - but it was a "whiff" according to the nurse. So I managed it without an epidural. I guess we just wait and see when this baby will be ready ...

I am pretty ready - I was looking at my list of things to do and get from my Getting Ready for Baby post:

• Swing - got it from a friend
• Co-sleeper - found one for $80 at a kids consignment shop (down the street from me, what could be better?)
• Booster chair - for Wesley. Just bought one.
• Stroller - the double we bought a while back off Craigslist for under $200, and my mom bought us the Uppa Baby rumble seat.
• Nursery - Done! It's been painted, decorated, and our office is now in the closet.

Bags are almost packed ... any day now ...

Bedhead

So, do you think we need to get our little man a haircut? This is what he looks like when waking up from a nap - curly, disheveled, fly away hair. Just like mommy & daddy's at that age (we were both curly top toddlers).