How to Have a Baby...

....Make a to-do list for the next day :-)  And have that to-do list include taking a belly picture for week 39.5, hehe.  I hardly ever make to-do lists but Tuesday night I decided I would make one for Wednesday.  Little did I know that we would be admitted to Labor and Delivery that day...And so the story goes...

    Wednesday September 7 at 10 am Zach and I went to Aurora for our weekly ultrasound appointment.  During the ultrasound it was discovered that Holly wasn't moving like the doctors would have liked to see.  The docs/nurses consulted for a few minutes and then came back to tell us that Dr. Hayes decided Holly would be happier out of the womb than in at that point.  What a surprise!  We honestly thought the nurse was joking when she said we were heading over to Labor&Delivery and we would have our little baby that day.  It was a whirlwind of phone calls to mine and Zach's family and we were admitted, given a room and I was told to change into my hospital gown.  Craziness.
   I was given a pill that is supposed to start contractions, but nothing really happened.  Around 1:30 am on Thursday, Dr. Anderson broke my water (nastiest feeling in the world, gross!).  The contractions that started were only evident on the monitor paper; never felt a thing except some tightening in my tummy now and then.  Later that morning, I was given an IV with pitocin.  Contractions got stronger very quickly.  It was unlike anything I've ever experienced before- an indescribable feeling.  I found my comfort spot in a rocking chair.  Standing and swaying or lying in the bed was awful!  Absolutely not where I could be when the contractions started reaching their peak.
   Around 2 pm, I was uncomfortable everywhere, so I decided to try standing and "dancing" with Zach.  I regretted moving at the start of the next contraction.  The pain felt unbearable, and I started getting loud, haha.  However, the nurse advised me to stay in tha position for the next couple contractions because they usually increased then decreased after a position change.  I was in my own little world of concentration, breathing slowly, and telling myself to relax, but apparently that's when the action started because the monitors could not find Holly's heartbeat any more no matter where they positioned the monitor.  I was ordered to get into the bed so they could do a fetal heartrate monitor via insertion through my uterus attached to her head.  (Come to find out later, Holly had been stuck in my birth canal for several hours).  The pain was outrageous and I sounded like a gunting, groaning beast.  Even though I wanted to go au natural, I ordered the epidural in a panic because I couldn't shake the thought of being in labor for 3-4 more hours with the pain just getting more frequent and more intense.  Are you kidding me?  Thankfully, God was in control and I dilated so fast that the anesthesiologist coudn't get there in time (I went from 7 cm to 9 cm in a matter a few minutes)...I started feeling the urge to bear down, and so I did.  Oh yes I did.  I wasn't even dilated 10 cm yet, so the docs asked me to try not to start pushing yet.  Oh that's funny.  Somehow I managed to do what they said.  And then I hit 10 cm and I was able to let loose. 
   If you don't know anything about labor, every contraction should get about 3 good pushes and a woman can labor for up to 3 or 4 hours- contractions at that point come about every 1-2 minutes.  Anyway, I pushed for 30 minutes and shot out that baby like a rocket (I guess Dr. Anderson almost didn't make the catch).  In the process I managed to give myself a nasty labial tear that took two packs of sutures to repair the damage (also came to find out later that Dr. Anderson couldn't find the source of the bleeding and my mom said it seemed like she was on the verge of panic).  All in all, I was fixed up (though it took so long that the topical numbing shot wore off and I nearly climbed off the back of the bed when those stitches were going in.  Ouchie!
   Most amazing feeling in the world of accomplishment when I held Holly for the first time.  I did it!  Me.  Whoa!  I did it without pain meds.  And I did it in 30 minutes.  Dang!  I couldn't have done it without my wonderful husband letting me squeeze the life out of his hand, amazing mom helping do whatever crazy request (or command) I made, and Nurse Kristin coaching us through every contraction.  Not to mention, my dad being there the entire time anxiously waiting in the hallway, enduring every one of my yells and grunts and groans.  Awesome experience....and yes, I will be doing it again, though probably not for at least a year..... ;-)

Holly Noel Holm born 9/8/11 at 2:37 pm

Skin time with Mama right away

6 lbs 14 oz 19" long

1st Adorable Baby Outfit