We went in to the hospital as scheduled at 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 18, 2012. We were excited and nervous at the same time. But we were both ready to get things rolling.
The plan was for the nurse to give me cervadil and then for me to sleep through the night and then receive pitocin (sorry for my spelling) in the morning and wait for my doctor to come break my water. Here we are, after cervadil and getting ready for bed.
Things didn't go exactly as planned. My body was very ready and while they did give me the cervadil as planned, that's about it. Instead of sleeping through the night, I was in active labor by 4:00 a.m. I was surprised, but thrilled. So from 4:00-6:00 a.m. I just tried to manage my contractions and stay comfortable. David was fantastic and with me every single step of the way. By 6:00 a.m. I was in a lot of pain and dilated to about 4 cm. By 7:00 a.m. I was at 6 cm and my nurse suggested considering getting my epidural soon. I couldn't believe it and wasn't sure if I should get the epidural yet. I hadn't even seen my doctor! She was supposed to come and break my water and start my pitocin! That was the plan! But my contractions were so painful at this point that I went for it and told my nurse to bring on the drugs.
After getting the epidural, which I was extremely nervous about and shouldn't have been, I felt so much for comfortable. I was actually able to try and sleep for a little bit. I would recommend to anyone to get an epidural. My experience was fantastic.
About half-way through my epidural nap, my water broke on it's own. By the time my doctor came by we were well on our way and she said to just carry on! I stalled out a little bit at 7 cm, so they gave me the minimum amount of pitocin to try and regulate my contractions and get me over the hump. Unfortunately, Abigail didn't take to well to the pitocin and her heart rate didn't recover especially well in-between contractions. This all happened over the course of multiple hours. It was decided to just take me off the pitocin and the next time she checked me (around 1:45 in the afternoon), I was at 10 cm and ready to push!
After they brought all the baby gear in and got me set up for pushing, we were on our way. I started pushing around 2:10. Pushing was amazing. I always wondered if I would know how to do it in the moment, and it turns out you just do. In total, I pushed for about an hour and a half. I pushed every other contraction as well so that Abigail's heart rate could get back to baseline each time.
I have to pause here and talk about David. He was so faithful during the labor. He waited on me, he checked on me, he held my hand, kissed my head and took care of me selflessly. During the pushing he was my counselor, my encourager, the "counter," and the reporter of what all was going on. To imagine doing this without him is impossible. There is no better husband than David and experiencing this together, just the two of us, was the most special thing we have ever done. I will never forget a moment of it. I'll never forget him telling me that I could do it when I was pushing as hard as I could or his face when our baby girl was born.
At 3:34 p.m. Abigail Jane Rainwater entered the world screaming as loud as she could. She had pooped before she came out and needed major cleaning up but was perfect in every way. I immediately cried and David went to check on her in the warmer right beside the bed. I could hear her, see her, and watch everything going on. In what seemed like a matter of seconds, she was on my chest. The best moment of my life. Hands down. You can't compare it to anything. She weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces and was 19 inches long. I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story...
Moving rooms...
Pastor Steve and Mary came by to visit.
Dear friends Jay and Katherine came by. Abigail and Caroline are almost exactly 1 month apart.
Time with Pops and Gammy...
Going home!
Thanksgiving day walk...
For some reason Sooie came along. She has NEVER done this. Very odd. You can see her on the right of the picture.
We are blessed beyond belief. Much more to come!
2 comments:
Congratulations Dave and Rachel! She is beautiful!
Yeah Congrats! Good thing you didn't take the ambien :) I'm so excited for you both. It is such a wonderful, busy, rewarding time to see them grow and change. Love!
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