A Birth Story, You Say?

I actually feel kind of bad, in that Olivia doesn't so much have a birth story. The induction was scheduled and we knew when she was coming, so there was no frantic rush to the hospital or drama like my water breaking in the driveway. It was all very calm and laid back and, well, it just happened.

I slept pretty well the night before, despite my worries that I would get no sleep and be exhausted by the time labor set in. I was up by about 5:15 AM and woke Hub and FIL up as I was getting dressed and ready. I had done almost everything the night before, so it really was just a matter of walking out the door.

We made it to the hospital a few minutes after 6 and got checked in, an IV started and all of that jazz. After around an hour, my good friend Pitocin was introduced. I had a really bad experience with the Pitocin during Bud's birth, so I was really nervous, but they started me off slow; 2 drips per hour. I was contracting regularly without it anyway. I must have just needed a tiny push, because after about 1/2 hour things were in full swing, and before I knew it, a midwife and Doogie Howser Resident were in to break my water.

HOLD UP.

I had been clear about wanting my epidural prior to the water being broken, so my nurse sent them away. I was starting to get uncomfortable anyway, so it was time.

And now for the drama.....

The epidural was placed and I waited. And waited some more.....and then again. It never kicked in. It had felt weird going in, like nothing I'd ever felt. The nurse called and the gal came back to redo it, and she had the nerve to say "yeah, it felt kind of shallow for someone of your size....." WTF is that supposed to mean exactly?

Anyway, this one worked well on the right side, but had some trouble working over to the left, so I had to turn on my side to let gravity help. After 20 minutes or so they did break my water, and as before, I had immediate pressure.

I went from 6 centimeters to 9 in about 30 minutes. When the doctor left me at 9cm I knew it would only be a matter of minutes, and it was. The nurse had me do a practice push to see if I really was ready, and also to see how well I could push. She paged the doctor immediately---Olivia was coming!!

The doctor came in and had me push once, and out came the head. The most excruciating part was lying there, while she manipulated the shoulders to avoid me tearing. Afterward I told Hub it was the longest 5 minutes of my life, and he laughed and told me that it was probably less than 30 seconds, before she had me push again. Two pushes, and there she was, our new baby girl!

Hub had not cut the cord during my previous births and once again declined, but the doctor asked me if I would like to, and I did. I thought it was a neat way to make her birth a little bit different.

We were surprised when they put her on the scale and she only weighed 8 lbs 10 oz. She was the smallest of all of our babies, and the shortest as well, at 20 inches. The very best thing though was that her sugar levels were perfect. It was my biggest fear during the pregnancy, that she'd be taken away like Lucy was, but she was perfectly fine.

As soon as she was cleaned up, and I held her, she nursed right away. As far as birthing experiences go, this one was probably the best.

She was born at 12:10 PM and they took her upstairs around 1:30 or so to be cleaned and checked out etc. My epidural was not wearing off on the right side, so I was stuck in labor and delivery forever. Finally, when my nurse had a meeting, I convinced the replacement nurse that I was ok to get up, and I got in the shower. I was finally in my room at about 4:30.

The rest of the hospital stay was uneventful. The baby nursed every 3 hours, and all of my visitors came that 1st night (Hub and the kids came again the 2nd). I was home by lunchtime on Thursday.

I'm actually amazed at how easy the transition from 2-3 has been so far. Granted, I haven't taken all 3 of them out or anything, but things are going really well. She is an excellent baby, who sleeps for 3-4 hours at a time and she doesn't cry or fuss. The horrible pregnancy was worth it; she was definitely worth the wait.