Welcome Little C

****FYI...this is a labor story, and while it is not graphic in anyway, if things of this nature make you queasy....just skip to the last few paragraphs or breeze over the middle part :) ****

Little C's journey into this world was a whirlwind!  As many of you know it all started very early (12:15 AM) on Thursday morning.  I awoke to contractions and quietly kept track in the dark.  They were about 10 min apart so I decided to go downstairs to watch a little TV and try to relax.  At 4 AM they were about 7 min apart so I went upstairs to shower.  S woke up at this point and I filled him in on what had been going on.  By 7 AM they were 5 min. apart for well over an hour, so I called my sister L, who is a labor and delivery nurse.  She suggested I call the office at 7:30 when they opened.  I did and they asked me to go straight to the hospital (2nd babies tend to come quickly :)). 

My mother met Z, S and I at the hospital at about 9AM.  I told Z that I was going to see the doctor and that he would be spending the day with his Neene and Chi Chi....he was so excited about this. S and I walked into the hospital and checked in and at this point my contractions were about 3 min. apart.....I was so hoping to deliver by 1 PM (wishful thinking!!)  When she checked my cervix I was only 3 CM :(  3 CM....the exact spot I got stuck at when I was in labor with Z.  I was stuck there for hours (as you may recall if you read about my last labor) and I was back here once again.  They suggested I walk around the halls of the unit for a few hours and then they would check me again. 

S and I spent two and a half hours walking up and down the hall, making small talk and breathing through contractions.  When they went to check me again....yup you guessed it, I was 3 CM!!!!  I burst into tears and the resident didn't know what to say.  She checked with the doctor and said that I could take a jacuzzi tub if I wanted to so that I could relax and then they would check me again.  In desperation I took her up on this and S and I headed to one of the empty rooms.  They did my blood work while in the tub so that if they did have to send me home, I'd be ready for my epidural when I came back.

After an hour in the tub they checked me again.......3 CM!!!!!  It was time to go home and I was crushed.  The doctor said I'd probably be back in about 12 hours, when I was in "active labor" and that they would send me home with Ambien to sleep.  While waiting for the Ambien (we waited for 45 min), S watched the fetal monitor like it was his new favorite show.  "Here comes a big one!" he'd say with so much excitement......and as I waited to be released, they did get bigger and stronger.  Little did anyone know that as I left the unit at 3:30 PM, I was in active labor!!!!

The 20 min car ride seemed an eternity as my contractions intensified.  Z jumped all over me as I walked through the door and as happy as I was to see him.....I was in so much pain.  I just wished that they had let me stay.  By 5:30 I had the shakes and very intense contractions.  I called my sister in tears and explained what was happening....she said it sounded like the transition phase of labor and told me to call the hospital.  I begged S to call from the car and off we went.....back to the hospital during rush hour. 

I have never been so uncomfortable in the car and prayed that we would make it back in time for the epidural.  At 6:30 PM we arrived back at the hospital and in the hallway I had a HUGE contraction....I felt like the baby's head was sticking out (it was my bag of waters).  The staff smiled at me when I walked in and I know they were wondering if there would be any change.  My same nurse hooked me back up to the machines, while S went to park the car.  As soon as S left my water broke in the most intense contraction....the resident came in to check me just as S came back in the room.  Her face said it all....9 CM and almost 100% effaced.  "Not again!!!" I screamed and I thought of how many times I told her that day that I didn't want to have to get my epidural at 9 CM like I did with Z.  She looked at me with dread on her face and told me that there would be no epidural but they would give a little something to take the edge off.  "What????" I cried, I had to do this all on my own???  I have never been so scared, I am so afraid of pain. 

S called my sister and told her the news and she jumped in the car.  My contractions were now 30 seconds apart and they struggled to get the the IV in me as I contracted.  I told my nurse that I had to push and she told me to "blow the contraction away".  I did (I loved my nurse) and they worked on getting me a room as quickly as possible.  As I was being wheeled down the hall to the closest available room, my contractions were unbearable. 

They called NICU on our way to the room (meconium) and wheeled me in.  They asked to move me to the bed and I asked if we could wait for one more contraction.  The room was filled with people (3 nurses, NICU, a resident, a med student, the doctor and who the heck knows who else...housekeeping??). As I moved to the labor bed, S looked down and saw the head crowning.  I was in the bed for 30 seconds, let out one agonizing scream and with one big push out shot Little C....25 minutes after I had arrived back in the hospital!!!!  It was like a scene out of a movie....everyone was shocked with how quickly she arrived....the doctor was still fixing her gloves as the baby slid out to meet her. 

"It's a girl!" they announced and a tear rolled down my face.  I was the mother to a little baby girl....6.1 oz.  They cleaned her up and showed her to me while I was being sewn up (I tore my scar from last time).....she was beautiful!  I couldn't believe it, we were a family of four.  My heart was so full of love, the most powerful kind of love.  S leaned down, kissed me and told me how proud he was of me.  The nurse said later that she had been really worried about S, his face showed so much pain as he watched me go through the craziness that was C's labor.  He was a wonderful labor partner and was bursting at the seems with pride as he looked at his little girl....daddy's little girl (and she already has him wrapped around her little finger!) :) 

"What is her name?" everyone asked.  S and I looked at each other and smiled.  We told them that if it had been a boy, we had a name ready.  This little girl had 3 names picked out and we would need some time to name her.  My sister ran in during this discussion, shocked that she had missed the birth.  My mom came in soon after and both looked completely amazed to see a baby and not a woman in labor :)  Late that night, after everyone had gone home....S and I talked about her name.  Was it C, M or E???  After looking at her little face, we knew she was C, our sweet little C :)

Z came to the hospital the next morning and was greeted by S in the lobby.  I gave my sister K the baby and sat on the couch waiting to give him a big squeeze.  He walked into the room very intimidated and quietly checked out the little baby in Auntie K's arms.  This was his little sister....he gave a little smile and ran to me for a hug.  We were a family of FOUR....it was a magical and emotional moment. 

It was a crazy ordeal but so worth it in the end....we love our little one and are so grateful that she is happy and healthy.  When we think of all that could have happened if we hadn't left when we did or if traffic had been worse.....we cringe.  Can you imagine if my brother in-law (a police officer in the town that the hospital is in) had to deliver me in the car??  I don't think I would have ever been able to look him in the face again :) 

Many people have asked me what it was like to get the epidural at 9CM vs going naturally (because in both cases I did most of the hard work without drugs).  I would say that the recovery and empowerment of delivering without drugs is wonderful (I thought of a recent post of MommyBrain ) but because this labor experience was so quick, dramatic and not at all what I had expected, the shock and emotion of it all really stayed with me. If we go for a third....I am not sure what I will do. 

If you have made it this far, thanks for reading :)  I didn't want to shorten this entry because it was important for me to reflect back and have a record of what happened.