On Friday, July 11th, I went to my regular weekly check up. I was feeling miserable. I felt like I had the flu coming on. I was light headed and dizzy. I had hoped my trip to the Dr's would be brief, as it normally was. Unfortunately, this was not the case. I was measuring a bit small, so the Dr. was worried the baby might be growth restricted. He sent me to get an ultrasound and it was confirmed that the baby was measuring a bit on the small side, and I didn't have as much amniotic fluid as I was supposed to. The Dr. then had me to a NST, to check baby's heart rate. She passed with flying colors and I was sent home after making several appointments to retest on Monday afternoon.
The whole weekend was miserable. I was feeling very nauseas. I wanted to make sure Brian and I did something fun, as I didn't know if this would be our last weekend "alone." So we went shopping, out to dinner, to get a slushie and watched a movie. The next day, I was exhausted and very uncomfortable at church. I could hardly concentrate on anything that anyone was saying. I was in a complete daze.
After church, we dinner hopped. First to my in-laws and next to my aunt's to see my mom. I started getting super grouchy around 9:30 and we left.
That night I had a dream I was walking in the dark in a creepy city and out of nowhere- someone shot me in the back. I awoke from my dream and had a sharp pain in my lower back. I was having, what I now realize was one of my first contractions. Brian says, "I was a trooper." as I waited as long as I could to go to the hospital. I had contractions from 12:30- 9:45 when my water broke and I had the scary realization that this was go time!
We got to the hospital and I was put into a big room. They tried several times to put an IV in my arm and failed (I have tricky veins) and it wasn't until 2:00 that I started receiving my fluids and antibiotics. They told me that the anesthesiologist would be in about 45 minutes as he was finishing up with a surgery. I was happy about that as I needed some time to mentally prepare. The epidural was something I had been terrified of since the day I found out I was pregnant. Not two minutes later, the anesthesiologist walked in and I started balling. I was so scared. The Dr. joked and said, "You're crying that I'm here now.. but when I finish with you, you will be smiling from ear to ear I promise."
He was right.
My Dr. came to visit me during his dinner break and did an ultrasound to make sure that the baby was still head down. He gave me a hug and then left. He really is the sweetest Dr. ever.
After that it was just a ton of waiting.
I went from a 4 to a 9 in less than 2 hours. We waited for the Dr to finish with another birth in the room next to mine, meanwhile they started to prepare the room. I thought, "Holy Crap! This is real talk now!!" My mom held one leg as my nurse held the other. Brian sat behind the bed and gave me massages in between contractions and helped to support my neck while I pushed.
I was pushing for 2.5 hours when the nurse said, "maybe we should taper off your epidural, I think it would help you tell where you are supposed to be pushing."
I was like, "No! Ok, I'll make you a deal. You give me two more tries of pushing and if I'm still not pushing properly, then taper me off."
She gave me a funny look like, "yeah right as if that's gonna work." and relented to my request.
My next contraction, I focused so hard on the push and guess what?! I shocked them!
"Yes! Keep doing that!" She and the Dr. exclaimed. (That's how I had Rylan pain free)!
After 3.5 hours of pushing, the Dr. worried about me becoming too exhausted and the baby was stuck behind the pelvic bone. Her poor face kept scraping up against it, and she was stressed. He suggested I think about using forceps to get the baby out in the next 5 minutes. After discussing the pros and cons and potential risks and benefits. We decided we would do it.
Baby Stats:
Name: Rylan Eve Campbell
Born: July 15, 2014
Time: 12:45
Weight: 7 lbs 3 oz.
Length: 19.5 inches
Hair: Strawberry Blonde
Eye Color: At time of birth dark blue/grey. They are getting greener everyday.
When she was finally born, I felt like crying for joy, but instead I just couldn't stop smiling. They placed her on my chest. She was all slimy and smelled kind of gross but I didn't care. My little baby girl was here. She cried and cried and snuggled up against me. She was so warm and snuggly.
Afterwards, the Dr. told me she was beautiful and gave me a hug.
I have to say birth was not as scary as I thought it would be. I think that was a blessing. If it had been a traumatizing experience, I would've had to seriously think about getting pregnant again in the future!
Honestly, the two night/three day stay at the hospital afterwards was torture compared to the birth! I wanted to get out and do things, but couldn't because I was confined to my little hospital hotel room. I also couldn't sleep at night because every three hours they would come to check my vitals and every four hours they would come in to check Rylan's. I was going insane!
My dad bought me beautiful flowers.
My dad bought me beautiful flowers.
I could not get ready fast enough when both my OB and Rylan's pediatrician discharged us.
We are now happy and comfortable at home. While Rylan still has her days and nights confused, we are enjoying spending time with our new little stinker. We have lots of pet names for her already.
Including: Squirt (she has huge eyes and reminds me of the baby turtle from Finding Nemo), Lady Bug, La Jefa (The boss), Peliroja Peligrosa (the dangerous redhead) and baby cakes.
It's so bizarre how quickly you can fall in love with such a little person.
Before she was born, I couldn't believe she was coming. After her birth, I can't believe there was ever a time when she wasn't here with me.
I love my little girl.
