On May 10th I had a doctors appointment. At that appointment Dr. Broberg checked my cervix and told me I was still only dilated to a 1. He warned me that I could go over my due date and basically told me to plan on not delivering before my due date. Because of this, I was prepared to be pregnant for another two weeks until they would induce me.
Throughout the rest of the day I felt a couple of contractions but nothing too serious. Around 11 pm I started having consistent contractions that were very painful. I really didn't sleep at all that night because my contractions kept getting worse and worse and they continued to become more frequent. I threw up quit a few times when I would have a particularly strong contraction. I basically just layed in the bathroom on the floor, timing my contractions, and waiting. I seriously doubted for hours that I could possibly be in labor because of what Dr. Broberg said to me about not going into labor for a while. I didn't want to be one of those women who goes into the hospital supposedly in labor and gets sent home. Finally, by 4:00 am I couldn't take it anymore. I was having painful contractions about every 3 minutes and just wanted an epidural.
I woke Jared up and told him I needed him to take me to the hospital. I have never seen him jump out of bed so fast! The funny thing is that we were staying at my parents house taking care of my younger siblings because my parents were in London. I was supposed to be getting everyone off to school in the morning but that wouldn't be happening. I went down and woke Adam up and told him we were going to the hospital to have a baby. He was pretty out of it but I tried to explain that he needs to make sure Devin and Hailey get to their bus stop on time and he needed to take Jace to Cascade on his way to Orem High. Pretty sure all of my instructions went in one ear and out the other. At that point I was having another contraction and got down on my hands and knees because it sort of relieved the pain. Adam was even more confused seeing me on the floor. Looking back it was a pretty funny experience but at the time it really wasn't funny.
When we got to the hospital they took me back and the nurse checked my cervix. I was dilated to a 5! I was just so glad I had at least progressed and wasn't making up these awful contractions. I asked if I could get an epidural but the nurse said they usually monitor for an hour just to make sure the mom is actually in labor before giving the epidural. This didn't make me very happy. Then suddenly little Reese's heartrate dropped. My nurse brought this up to the charge nurse and the fact that I had already progressed so fast and she agreed that I could get the epidural early. THANK HEAVENS! I was a much happier person once I had that epidural. It made a world of difference.
At one point I turned to Jared because I realized I hadn't asked for a priesthood blessing before getting to the hospital. No one was in the room with us so he gave me a wonderful blessing ensuring that all would work out. The second he ended the blessing about 10 people rushed into my room, all of them working very quickly. Reese's heartrate had dropped into the 40's and 50's and wasn't going back up. The wanted me on my hands and knees but because of my epidural I really couldn't move my legs. Suddenly 4 different nurses were picking me up, flipping me over, and holding me on my hands and knees. It was really awkward and kind of scary. Thankfully her heartrate went back up. I had apparently had a very strong contraction that lasted about 4 minutes. Little Reese didn't respond well to this which caused the drop in heartrate. I ended up getting a terbutaline shot which slows down contractions. They wanted to allow more time between contractions to make sure baby Reese had enough time to recover. This really slowed things down significantly but I knew it was the right thing to do. I took a good nap at this point.
A few hours later my contractions started getting strong and frequent again and the same thing happened. Reese's heartrate dropped, people rushed in, flipped me onto my hands and knees and gave me a terbutaline shot. This time her heartrate didn't come back up so quickly. They suddenly started warning Jared that he needed to put on a certain gown because I was going to be taken for a c-section. I was hoping to have a vaginal delivery but just wanted what would be best for our little girl. Again, thankfully at that point her heartrate came back up so they decided to hold off on the c-section.
I kept praying that my body would be able to finish dilating but not threaten our little girl. Finally, around 2:30 pm my nurse checked me and I was dilated to a 10!!! Time to start pushing. I sort of thought that pushing would last about 10 minutes and all would then be over. No, she let me know that most first time moms push for 1-3 hours before the baby is born. Luckily I only had to push for about an hour. Dr. Rees is the one who delivered her and he ended up using the suction to help pull her out a little faster. He did this because again, her heartrate was dropping with each contraction so he wanted her out.
It was so amazing when she was finally out. Dr. Rees suctioned out her mouth and we heard her first little cry. I looked over and Jared was crying. He was pretty emotional about it all. He went over and was watching as they weighed her at 6 lbs 11 oz and said she was 19 inches long.
While they took care of her Dr. Rees delivered my placenta and he found that I had what they called a "true knot." It was a perfect little knot in the cord that had probably been there for weeks. This may be what had caused some of the heartrate drops and problems earlier in my pregnancy. He sent my cord for testing because of it.
I was so happy when they finally brought my little girl over to me so I could hold her. She was so little and precious. She layed on my chest and I couldn't believe she was mine. Jared again kept getting teary eyed which made me get emotional as well. We love our little girl.
The rest of the hospital stay was fairly uneventful. We had lots of family and friends come to visit. We have so much love and support. A few hours before going home I was informed that Reese's bilirubin levels were pretty high and I would need to be sent home with lights for her to be on. I didn't really think much of this, I knew jaundice in newborns was pretty common. What I didn't know was how much I would come to hate that bilirubin bed. I had to keep little Reese on the bed as much as possible. Essentially the only time I could take her off the bed was when I was feeding her or changing her diaper. She had to be completely naked except a diaper and strapped down onto the bed. I hated it!! I wanted to just hold my little girl! Each morning I would take her to the outpatient lab to get her blood drawn to see what her bilirubin levels were at. I kept praying they would go back to the normal range. Finally, after four days on the bili bed her levels were low enough! I was thrilled to get rid of that thing. She has been a much happier baby and sleeps much better with clothes on and wrapped in a blanket.
Becoming a mom really is an amazing thing. I still wake up and can't believe that this little tiny human is my child. Jared and I created this girl and we now get to raise her. I am so thankful we both grew up in great families with amazing parents to look up to. We can't wait to see Reese grow up and develop a personality, hobbies, talents etc. She is a blessing in our lives.
In the last 2.5 weeks since she has been born I have dragged her to a bunch of different places. She is a trooper! This is her at my little brother's state soccer game.
She is such a doll. I can't wait to hold her and snuggle her. I love those wrinkly little feet. What a cutie patootie.
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