After church on Sunday, October 10th, Rushing and I went to dinner with some friends. While there I started having contractions, I didn’t think much of it because I had been having irregular ones for several days. After dinner,
we headed home...well after we stopped at Kroger so Rushing could run in and buy cookie dough and milk for his pregnant wife! Once we got home, Rushing made the cookies and I am pretty sure we just watched tv. I was anxious for the next day because it was my ‘estimated due date’. I really thought I would have already had Elijah by then...let’s face it, if you saw my belly you probably thought the same thing.
I had a doctor’s appointment on Monday, October 11th, and my doctor had already said that if I wasn’t in labor by then she wanted to induce that following Wednesday. I did NOT want to be induced and we had everyone we knew praying that I would start labor on my own. By late Sunday night I was not feeling very confident that it would happen naturally.
Boy, oh boy did that change on Monday morning. :) I got up around 7 am and went to the bathroom. Something didn’t ‘seem’ right when I went so I told Rushing I thought my water might be breakingbut I wasn’t sure. He was already heading to the church and I told him that I would call him if anything else happened. I immediately called my mom and told her what was happening. While I was on the phone with her and looking up my doctor’s office phone number it happened. That ‘gush’ that you know is not normal. My water broke!!! I hurriedly told my mom that I was pretty sure it was my water breaking and that I needed to call Rushing. I called him as he was pulling into the church parking lot...so he turned around and headed home. I then called my doctor’s office and they told me to be there by 8. My doctor wanted to check to make sure it really was my water breaking...hello, I’m pretty sure I know I didn’t just wet myself :)
Thankfully, I had already put the bags and car seat in the car. All I had to do was change clothes and grab a few last minute things and we were off. Looking back now, it seems so surreal, that ride to the hospital. I thought I would have been more panicky, but in my opinion I was pretty calm if I do say so myself.
Once we arrived at the doctor’s office they took me straight back and my doctor ‘confirmed’ that it was indeed my water breaking, no kidding, right? :) I was then put in a wheelchair and wheeled to the hospital which is attached to the doctor’s office. I was then instructed to put on the hospital gown (not fun, by the way) and hop into bed. My L&D nurse was awesome, I couldn’t have asked for a better nurse. She inserted my IV and asked if I wanted any pain medication. I immediately responded that no thank you I would not be using any meds including an epidural.She was super encouraging about that and I am very thankful I didn’t have a nurse who acted like I was crazy for not wanting any medication. All of this happened between 8:00-9:00 am. At this point I was dilated to a 3. I continued having contractions and let me tell you they were not pleasant at all, but I endured. Rushing and I walked the hallways several times trying to encourage things to move along...walking the halls in a hospital gown while attached to an IV and having contractions is not fun, let me tell you. ;)
My doctor came around 12:30 to check me again. I was up to 5cm. At this point, she felt things should be progressing a little more and said that if I hadn’t progressed in a couple of hours they would start pitocin to encourage the dilation. I was not excited about this. We prayed that things would move along. We walked more, we joked, and my mom and sister and Landon arrived around 3pm. I was so happy they were there!!
Around that time, my doctor came back to check me again. I hadn’t budged a bit. We started pitocin and the contractions continued to get stronger. The nurse asked again if I wanted any medication, again I declined. She could not believe how easy going and relaxed I was at this point. I was having really intense contractions, but I was still talking/joking/fussing at Rushing :)
Around 5ish my doctor once again checked me and I had made it to a 6...barely she said. At this point she said I should be progressing about a cm an hour and that the baby’s head just was not descending. There was also meconium when my water broke, we decided to go ahead with a c-section. If I was upset about the pitocin I was really upset about having a c-section. This was not in my plan at all. I had planned to have a natural child birth without any pain medication, epidural, and definitely no c-section. Well, my plans got altered and I just had to cope with that.
The nurse brought in Rushing’s scrubs and prepped me for surgery. My mom, Rushing, Brenna (who had arrived around 3), and the nurse said a quick prayer and then I was pushed into the operating room. What an experience. I was put on the operating table. The anestheologist put in my spinal tap-which made me go numb from below the chest to my toes. I remember talking and joking alot to the nurses and doctors who were in the room. I’m pretty sure they thought I was a crazy person. The nurse went to grab Rushing and I remember asking her to make sure he had the camera. Rushing came in and sat beside me and rubbed my arm. About 2 minutes later, at 6:19 pm I heard everyone gasp and exclaim that A) we had a BIG baby and B) he had tons of hair! And then I heard my sweet boy’s first cries. Man, does that kid have some lungs! He was 9 pounds and 10 ounces and measured at 21 and a half inches long with a 15 and a quarter inch head.
I think I was in shock that we actually had a baby here! I teared up a little and then Rushing went over to see him. They had to suction out his nose and mouth really well asap because of the meconium in the amniotic fluid. Then the brought him over to me and I got to touch him and kiss his sweet little head. One thing I distinctly remember is that a doctor was holding him and he started crying. They handed him to Rushing and he immediately quieted down. Rushing took him to see the family and I got all cleaned up.
I was then wheeled back to my room and they brought our little boy in. Holding him for the first time was a life changing experience. Here was this sweet little baby boy that God has given us...it seemed unreal. We spent the next little while having skin to skin cuddle time and feeding him, it was wonderful.
That is the labor and delivery story of Elijah’s birth. We were in the hospital from Monday until Thursday morning. Someday soon I will write about those few days and then our first days home. For now, I think I hear a little baby waking from his nap. Blessings to all! :)
