On October 3rd at 2pm, I began having minor contractions. I really hadn't had any contractions or even Braxton Hicks up until that point. They started coming every five minutes. After about half an hour of this I called my Mom and asked her what she thought. She said to just track and time them for a while. As Providence would have it, Justin was off that day. :-) I tracked my contractions the whole afternoon into the evening. They went from 5 minutes apart to 2 minutes apart, but they still weren't very painful. I called the Hospital at 7pm and a nurse said she would have a Dr. call me back. Dr. McNulty called me within 10-20 minutes. Once she found out I was 11 days past my due date, how far apart my contractions were and how long I'd been having them, she said to take a shower and then come on in, but that there was no need to rush. I called my Mom to let her know she could meet us at the hospital and texted a few friends. I had been anxiously awaiting our baby girl's arrival, so of course our bags were packed and ready to go. I took my shower and off we went. The contractions got a little more intense in the car. We got to the hospital, and they put us in triage. The nurse checked me, and I was still only 2.5 centimeters. I definitely was not in hard labor by any stretch of the imagination at this point, so they still weren't sure that they were going to keep me. After they left the room, I turned to Justin and said, "I am not going home until I've had this baby!" I was also determined not to have any pitocin to speed things along. This was at about 10pm.
Within the next hour, everything changed. I became extremely restless and could not sit or lie still in the hospital bed. I could feel everything shifting in my body, and it scared me a little bit. Suddenly I became very nauseous and threw up. After that the contractions became extremely painful. Dr. McNulty came in and checked me, and I was three centimeters. They decided to officially admit us to a regular labor and delivery room at that point. They moved us into said room, got me hooked up to the contraction monitor, and my IV for hydration, and then I remember they let my Mom come back. At that point the pain of the contractions took all of my attention. I was tensing a lot when each would come and gripping the side of the bed. The nurse told me not to do that, and I rememeber thinking "Leave me alone!" :-P
At one point my main nurse looked at the contraction monitor and said, "I don't know why you're acting like these contractions are hurting so much because they're not appearing very big on the monitor. I remember gritting my teeth and thinking "Well maybe your monitor is BROKEN." ;-) My Mom told me after all was said and done that she checked the monitor several times, and my contractions never tracked very big throughout my entire labor.
At one point they had me get up out of the bed, and I cannot remember why. I remember as I was standing up, a contraction hit and when it subsided, I said "It feels like I am breaking in half." My Mom said: "Yep, that's about right." At that point the nurse asked if I wanted an epidural. I said yes, and she went to call for the Anesthesiologist. Everyone had to leave the room except for he and the nurse. I got the epidural, and the pain subsided. I relaxed and Justin and my Mom came back into the room. We talked for a few hours, and then I laid down and took a nap. I continued to dilate thankfully and at 6am, Dr. McNulty came in and checked me. She said I was fully dialted. :-D. They turned my epidural off at that point, so that I could feel to push. The shift changed at 7am, so I got a new nurse and a new Doctor. Around 8-8:30am, I began pushing. I was so excited and pushed hard for an hour and a half. Then I hit a major wall. I was so tired and felt like I had been pushing forever. The Dr. and my nurse (who was amazing!) kept telling me that Avi's head was right there and that I was so close. My response: "You keep saying that!" Justin, my Mom, the Doctor and nurse assured me that it was really true, and that I was so close. I got back to work and sure enough a half an hour later, out Avaleigh came!
I will never, ever forget how I felt when I first laid eyes on her. She was so tiny, and so beautiful and perfect. I was in love instantly. They laid her on my chest and Justin and I just cried and took her in. It was incredible. The pain and hard work of giving birth went out the window instantly. I felt wonderful and in complete awe. They bathed Avi right there next to me, and I just stared at her in wonder. There was a flurry of activity in the room, but I don't remember much of that. Avi was waling pretty good during her bath, so Justin went over and started talking gently to her. She immediately stopped crying and turned her head toward his voice. I cried again at that point!
Words could never adequately express how incredible it has been to become a mother, and I am incredibly humbled and grateful that God has given us the incredible blessing of our Avi Grace. Becoming her Mama has been pure joy! <3 p="">
Within the next hour, everything changed. I became extremely restless and could not sit or lie still in the hospital bed. I could feel everything shifting in my body, and it scared me a little bit. Suddenly I became very nauseous and threw up. After that the contractions became extremely painful. Dr. McNulty came in and checked me, and I was three centimeters. They decided to officially admit us to a regular labor and delivery room at that point. They moved us into said room, got me hooked up to the contraction monitor, and my IV for hydration, and then I remember they let my Mom come back. At that point the pain of the contractions took all of my attention. I was tensing a lot when each would come and gripping the side of the bed. The nurse told me not to do that, and I rememeber thinking "Leave me alone!" :-P
At one point my main nurse looked at the contraction monitor and said, "I don't know why you're acting like these contractions are hurting so much because they're not appearing very big on the monitor. I remember gritting my teeth and thinking "Well maybe your monitor is BROKEN." ;-) My Mom told me after all was said and done that she checked the monitor several times, and my contractions never tracked very big throughout my entire labor.
At one point they had me get up out of the bed, and I cannot remember why. I remember as I was standing up, a contraction hit and when it subsided, I said "It feels like I am breaking in half." My Mom said: "Yep, that's about right." At that point the nurse asked if I wanted an epidural. I said yes, and she went to call for the Anesthesiologist. Everyone had to leave the room except for he and the nurse. I got the epidural, and the pain subsided. I relaxed and Justin and my Mom came back into the room. We talked for a few hours, and then I laid down and took a nap. I continued to dilate thankfully and at 6am, Dr. McNulty came in and checked me. She said I was fully dialted. :-D. They turned my epidural off at that point, so that I could feel to push. The shift changed at 7am, so I got a new nurse and a new Doctor. Around 8-8:30am, I began pushing. I was so excited and pushed hard for an hour and a half. Then I hit a major wall. I was so tired and felt like I had been pushing forever. The Dr. and my nurse (who was amazing!) kept telling me that Avi's head was right there and that I was so close. My response: "You keep saying that!" Justin, my Mom, the Doctor and nurse assured me that it was really true, and that I was so close. I got back to work and sure enough a half an hour later, out Avaleigh came!
I will never, ever forget how I felt when I first laid eyes on her. She was so tiny, and so beautiful and perfect. I was in love instantly. They laid her on my chest and Justin and I just cried and took her in. It was incredible. The pain and hard work of giving birth went out the window instantly. I felt wonderful and in complete awe. They bathed Avi right there next to me, and I just stared at her in wonder. There was a flurry of activity in the room, but I don't remember much of that. Avi was waling pretty good during her bath, so Justin went over and started talking gently to her. She immediately stopped crying and turned her head toward his voice. I cried again at that point!
Words could never adequately express how incredible it has been to become a mother, and I am incredibly humbled and grateful that God has given us the incredible blessing of our Avi Grace. Becoming her Mama has been pure joy! <3 p="">
3 comments:
So beautiful, Mel! Birth is amazing. I'm so grateful that God has given us mothers a part in His creation of new life. And of course, I'm crying as I type this! Love you!
This is beautiful. You will never forget this event in your life. I cried with joy for you reading this even it being a year old. I remember when you were about 8 or 9. I remember so many things that we did when you were growing up with our families. I remember going to Mexico and there was a little girl there named Avaleigh. If I am not mistaken I remember you saying that you were going to name your first little girl after her when you had a daughter. I also remember thinking, hmmmm I hope your hubby agrees with it. It is so neat to see you grown up and raising your family now. God bless you.
Thank you, Alison! You are right Mrs. Symons. I first heard the name Avaleigh when we went on our missions trip to Mexico in 1995. I was twelve at the time. There was a girl on the team from Canada whose name was Avaleigh. I remember thinking what a beautiful name that was, and always wanted to name my first daughter Avaleigh. :-)
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