| Don't know if this is a good time to finally write the story of Hannah's birth...3 kids and a school friend are jumping on the trampoline with the hose and a bar of soap, Drew is in the driveway unattended, and Hannah is tossing fitfully in her pack-n-play. But as far as a good time to blog goes...there may not be one as the delay in posting this story attests. She's 7 weeks already! Anyway, the true birth story begins about 3 days before the actual delivery. Wednesday night, Hannah got herself into a position in my belly with both feet up under my ribs. It was seriously uncomfortable. I tossed and turned and pushed and did everything i could think of to get her to move. Sleeping was impossible, which was okay b/c around 4am, I started having contractions. With both Lexi and Drew I'd been woken up with contractions at 4, so I thought for sure this was it. They came consistently until around 7, when I finally passed out. I got up an hour later feeling like I'd been run over by a truck. Also, Hannah hadn't moved since she got into that crazy position the night before, so I started freaking out. I did all the stuff they tell you to do to make sure she's alive- I even had apple juice in the fridge- but by 1030 we were in the doctor's office for an ultrasound. The far-too-chirpy ultrasound tech assured us that the baby was fine, and they sent me home to rest. I slept like the dead for 2 hours, exhausted from the emotion of it all. You'd think with #5 I wouldn't get all worked up about when she was coming or that there'd be no false alarms since I'd done this once or twice. But no, I was a wreck. I needed her to wait to come until monday! We had far too much going on that weekend for it to be interrupted by her birth, or so I thought. If Thursday wasn't enough notice for me that my body was getting ready, Friday should have been. I was in hyper-nesting mode, cleaning bathrooms and picking up toys and making food. I also was way emotional...crying at the drop of a hat, feeling extremely nostalgic one minute and like the world was my enemy the next. I think Darin was relieved when I finally went to bed that night. But it proved to be a short night. Somewhere around 3, I woke up with 2 contractions that tore through my body like fire. I knew without a doubt that even though it was about 8 days before my due date, I was really in labor this time. I downloaded at contraction tracker on my phone (only knew about those b/c my sister-in-law just had a baby) and tried to sleep through the pain. About 6 I called my doctor, my sister, and my mom (who didn't answer her phone until almost two hours later!). My stepsister came over to watch the kids, and Darin and I left for the hospital about 730. Because of the type of c-section I'd had with Grace, I had to have one with Drew, and subsequently, with Hannah. I know some women who feel different, but c-sections are far less ideal in my mind than regular deliveries. I am so thankful that with both Drew and Hannah I went into labor before the scheduled section date...I like knowing that my babies are coming on the day God ordains, not the day some doctor decides. Anyway, the pre-op stuff is not fun, though Darin and my sister seemed to be laughing a lot as nurses got me ready. :) And thankfully, despite not hearing her phone at first, my mom made it in time to see me off to the OR! They wheeled me back to the operating room, which is FREEZING. I immediately started shaking...partly from the temperature, partly from the fear about what's about to happen, partly from the pain that's slicing through my body every 8 minutes or so. (When the nursed checked me, I about was about 4 cm dialated!) As they prepped me for the epidural, I was a mess! They gave me something to help me relax so they could get the anestheisa in my spine without me jumping a mile. I was almost immediately out of it...babbling, laughing, saying stuff about not usually getting drunk. The staff in the room had a field day with that... Finally, my doctor came in and said it was time to start. I had calmed down some by then. They let Darin and Casey in, and within minutes there was a baby crying! Even in a c-section, there is still a moment when the baby first comes out that grabs me...it's so overwhelming, the joy of hearing healthy lungs, the reality that I have participated with God in bringing forth life, the relief of pregnancy finally being over. It takes my breath away. Anyway, lots of tears, pictures, and hugging followed her arrival. She was a big baby for me, almost 8 pounds. But healthy, healthy, healthy. And she latched on well right away! In the last month and a half, she has gained 3 and a half pounds, and with the help of family and friends, I have recovered from my surgery well. I feel normal now although I still am hoping to get back into my regular clothes soon. :) |
