Okay, so a lot has happened since the last post. We got over the flu. We went to Texas for Spring break. Paul finished two classes. We had a baby...yeah, a lot has happened. We'll just talk about the baby since that's probably the biggest event that has happened!
Warning: birth story
So, I have contractions from about 20 weeks. They're not just Braxton Hicks, but I get those a lot too.I'm like one big Braxton Hicks contraction for the last few months of my pregnancies. When I started my every-week-appointments my doctor and nurse practitioner would say, "you're [this much dilate] but this is your fourth pregnancy, so things could change really fast. You could have this baby any moment". I would then have dreams at night of going into labor while driving home from appointments, while taking care of kids without Paul around, or just doing random things that would warrant some time of chaotic event. Anyway, Paul's mom was flying in Tuesday the 6th, and we decided to do an induction because I was dilated pretty good, my contractions were pretty consistent, and we knew we'd have Grandma around to watch kids. Dr. Decker first scheduled it for Tuesday morning, and I thought he said Tuesday evening. Then he switched it to Wednesday morning, but switched it again to Tuesday evening. So I drove to Phoenix to pick Paul's mom up at the airport Tuesday morning. We got home and I was so tired. I figured I'd have a long night ahead of me, so Grandma took the kids to play at the park while I slept. I got all the bags packed and ready. Paul got home and we decided to go on one last date. We went to dinner and then Wal-Mart to make sure we had everything we needed. We thought about going to a movie, but all the movies ended after we were supposed to be at the hospital. So, we drove to Tucson and walked around the park we used to live by. We got to the hospital around 9:30pm. It took them a while to get everything all going. I really wanted to do this one without an epidural since with Elin it only worked on one side. We got an orienting nurse and a senior nurse. The orienting nurse started an IV. She blew my vein the first time. It hurt really bad! I'm not one to complain about pokes since I had been poked so many times with the twins, but this hurt! So, the senior nurse put the IV in and it still hurt really bad. I was kind of bummed because I didn't want to be hooked up to anything. I wanted to sit in the rocking chair, go to the bathroom without having to take the stand in, I wanted to do it by myself. They said it was "just in case". I was then given a drink every two hours to help things move along. Nothing really happened all night. They'd give me the drink, tell me to rest, and then come in every 15 minutes to move me so they could get a better read on the baby and contractions, which I was having every minute or so. They asked me several times what my pain level was, 5 being crying. My contractions were hurting, but I wasn't crying. Paul says that wasn't a good scale for me. He would look at my face during them and say it was probably worse than a 5. At 6am, they changed staff. Dr. Decker came in and checked things out. He said he'd be in at 7 to break my water and that things would go pretty fast after that. He decided to give me a little pitocin. I was once again bummed because I'd be hooked up to something, and that wasn't the plan. We once again got an orienting nurse and a senior nurse. Around 7:30, Dr. Decker came back in and broke my water. He said, "At any time you would like an epidural or something to ease the pain, let us know. And, that's all I am going to say about that." We had talked several times in his office about doing an un-medicated delivery. He was great about it, and had no concerns with my heart issues. Before he left the room, he mentioned that he had to go down to Nogales at 1:30pm and would like to deliver this baby before he had to go, but he promised to deliver my baby ;). Things were still progressing slowly, but the contractions were getting a lot stronger. I tried to lie in the bed and pretend I was jello. I used the bathroom several times. I tried to rest while watching ESPN. We chatted with the nurses about the kids and all that stuff. Around 9 I decided to go walking or do something. The nurses brought in the birthing ball. I bounced on that for 45 minutes, and then they checked me. I was at a 6. So I bounced on it for a little while longer while Paul rubbed my back and held my hand during contractions. They started coming really really fast and hard. They kept coming, one on top of another. The nurses wanted to check things, so I got into the bed. It had been 20 minutes since they checked last. I was now at a 9 3/4. It hurt too much to lie down, so Paul held my hand while I leaned forward. I got a little teary and kept apologizing for hurting his hand. I apologized to the nurses for being too loud, and for crying. Paul said I didn't really make a much noise except for saying, "Oh my goodness" and "Whoa." Dr. Decker came in, they got all the stuff ready, and then it was time. I have to say that the shot they give just in case you tear is more painful than anything in the entire world! Pinch and a burn...my left knee! He's lucky I didn't kick him in the head! Then I pushed. It's a lot different to be able to feel everything. I could actually adjust the way I was pushing because I could feel when things weren't quite right. With an epidural, I just kind of held my breath while everyone said that I was doing a good job! Half-way through one of the contractions, I finally asked for the epidural. Everyone laughed...? She came out with a lot of dark hair, and a good cry. What a relief! They laid her on my chest while they did all the other important stuff. I got to hold her for a few minutes, and then they cleaned her up and cleaned me up. It was nice that I could feel my legs right away, but being able to feel the nurses knead my stomach was not that pleasant. It was a very neat and wonderful experience. I may do again without an epidural. Let me get passed the first six weeks...! We are so grateful to have Esme in our family! Four girls...! Crazy! Side note: Ewan is absolutely in love with her, and loves having another little sister. Although, he still says there's at least one brother waiting for him!
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