Sometimes when I think back on the day Elliott was born, I still can't believe I actually had a baby. My baby. He was inside of me for 9 months, and then all of a sudden, he was here and I was holding him and he was so beautiful. It was such an incredible day, and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. So many of our friends and family were praying for my labor and delivery, and I want to thank you all for lifting me and baby up in prayer during that time. I know that those prayers truly made a difference, and God was faithful to give us a safe labor and delivery, and a healthy baby boy. God is good! Here is the story of how Elliott came into the world!
The last week of my pregnancy, I had a couple of nights of false labor. I would have contractions for a couple of hours, that were about 15 minutes apart. It was always at night, and the contractions would radiate through my abdomen and my back. I would try to sleep through them, but the back labor was painful and I could never sleep through the contractions (by the way: anyone who has been able to sleep through early labor, kudos to you! I have no idea how you did it!). So I had a couple of sleepless nights. I had contractions friday night, the night before Elliott's due date, from about 11 PM until 6 AM. I was thinking it would finally be time to go in to the hospital, but they tapered off and I was exhausted and disappointed. I spent Saturday going between naps and nesting urges to suddenly deep clean our house. I cleaned out the fridge, scrubbed our bathtub raw, and worked on finishing up those baby shower thank you's I never got around to (sorry friends . . . those last five still haven't gone out in the mail). Martin came home from work Saturday night at about 9 PM. Around an hour later, I started feeling contractions again, and figured I would just be in for another late night of false labor. I told Martin about them, but thought nothing of it, so I told him to just go to bed and I would join him when they subsided. The contractions were still anywhere between 15-30 minutes apart, so I decided to watch The Office in between contractions. They were more painful than the ones I had during false labor, but since I had never experienced labor before, I just assumed they were going to keep getting worse until I couldn't stand them, and those would be true labor contractions. I also figured we were still at least a week away from when he would arrive, since I kept being told to expect to be overdue with the first baby. I was having back labor as well as front labor, and could not sit still because of the pain. With the onset of each contraction, I would get up and walk around the table, focusing on my breathing. I remember getting to a point around 1-2 AM, that with each contraction I would think I couldn't stand the pain anymore, and as soon as I got to that point, the contraction would start going down. In between each contraction it truly felt like I forgot the pain and could make it to the next one. That break between each contraction is what would help me get through til the next one!
My contractions began getting closer together in the early morning, about 8 minutes apart, and at about 5 AM I finally woke up Martin because it seemed like this was going to be the real deal. He was a little delirious, and since this wasn't the first time I had contractions all night, he seemed uninterested getting out of bed at first. Until I told him my contractions were now between 5-8 minutes apart, then he was alert and making coffee ;) We called my OB after Martin woke up, and he said we could go in now or wait til they were consistently 5 minutes apart, since that is considered true labor and go time! By 6:30 AM, my contractions were consistently 5 minutes apart, so we grabbed our hospital bags and drove out to Los Robles.
We arrived at the hospital at about 7 AM, and I was admitted to the biggest delivery room I've ever seen. After I put on my hospital gown, our labor & delivery nurse Veronica came in and introduced herself and did a cervical check to see if I would be admitted. I was 3 CM dilated and 70% effaced, so she said I was definitely in labor and would hopefully be having a baby that day! I tried not to get stuck on the idea of having him that same day, since I knew labor can vary so much in duration. I just knew this was finally happening, no matter how long or short it would be, we would be seeing our baby boy soon! Being at the hospital and really being in labor was so surreal to me. I kept telling Martin "this is really happening!" I was so excited to finally meet our boy!
After getting hooked up to the IV and getting the fetal monitor & contraction monitor set up, Veronica told me I was free to move around and labor however felt most comfortable. Laying in the bed was the most painful with back labor, so I got up and would walk around the bed, or sit and sway on the birthing ball during contractions. We had worship music playing in our room as well, which was comforting to me during labor to focus on the lyrics of the songs and remember that God would be faithful to care for me and baby, no matter what labor & delivery would be like. My contractions started to get closer together and the pain intensified, and no matter what I did I couldn't find relief. Martin would rub my lower back for counter pressure, I would sway next to the bed, or sit on the ball, but it was still only a minuscule distraction from the pain of the contraction. Around 10:30 AM, Veronica came in and told me unfortunately the baby's heart rate was dropping with each contraction I had while standing up or sitting down, so I would need to get back into the bed. They suspected the umbilical cord was to blame, so decided not to break my water to allow for more of a cushion around the baby until it broke on it's own. Because back labor was pretty much excruciating when I couldn't move around, the nurse asked if I would like the epidural at that point. I had wanted to wait til I was 5 CM dilated, but when she checked, I was 4 1/2 and decided it was close enough. Especially if I was going to be stuck in bed for however long we would be there.
The anesthesiologist was in our room within 15 minutes, and began setting up to give me the epidural. Right around that time, I started shaking uncontrollably, like I had the shivers. I asked the nurse why that was happening, and she said my oxytocin was kicking in again and progressing my labor! The epidural needle did not bother me at all, and I felt relief from the contractions within 10 minutes. It was perfect timing, too, because almost immediately after receiving the epidural my contractions were consistently 1-2 minutes apart and incredibly strong! Martin kept watching the contractions on the monitor and saying "wow, it's a good thing you can't feel THAT one!" ;)
I was given an oxygen mask to give a little extra boost to ensure Elliott's heart rate would stay regular. I laid in bed and drifted in between sleep and waking, all the while feeling the pressure from each contraction but not the pain. It's a funny sensation, really; to feel a pressing against your abdomen and yet it doesn't hurt at all. We watched the World Cup games to pass the time, and Martin was able to get a nap in as well while I was going in and out of sleep. I am so thankful for that time of rest, since I had not slept the night before, and had terrible sleep that friday night as well. Veronica was a wonderful nurse and kept coming in to check on me and make sure I was comfortable. She would always tell me I was doing so well and she was so happy to see me progressing so quickly. I honestly couldn't have asked for a better nurse!
By 4:00 PM that same day, I was 10 CM dilated and my water had not yet broken. Veronica called my OB, and told me we would wait to start pushing until my water broke. I couldn't believe it was already time; it seemed like labor progressed so quickly! I'm glad I was mentally prepared for the long haul, because it made the news of a speedier labor a nice surprise and not something I was expecting. Around 4:20, I was having a strong contraction (again, couldn't feel the pain but could feel the pressure) and I could tell the baby was very low and ready to go! During that contraction, I suddenly heard a "POP!" and felt like a water balloon had exploded between my legs! I called for Veronica and told her I was pretty sure my water broke, and sure enough, it had. She did a cervical check to see where the cord was positioned around Elliott, and discovered it was in fact wrapped around his neck. My OB came in at that time and said to start pushing now so we could get him out as soon as possible. Veronica told me that because I hadn't had time to labor down naturally, I would likely be pushing for a couple of hours, so to be ready. I didn't even care at that point how long it would take, I had a sudden burst of adrenaline and was focused on getting my baby out safely.
I started pushing at 4:30 PM and they quickly discovered that with each push, Elliott's heart rate was once again dropping significantly. Veronica decided to have me push every other contraction and focus on deep breaths in and out between pushing, to help bring his heart rate back up between pushes. It was scary to hear his heart go from a steady rhythm, to a very slow blip, and I kept thinking "I need to breathe for baby, I need to breathe for baby", so I wouldn't get caught up in what was going on. My OB came back in around 5 PM, because Elliott's head was now visible. Because of the situation with the cord, my OB wanted him out ASAP and told me he was likely going to have to use a vacuum. I trusted my doctor and knew that whatever had to happen to keep Elliott safe and healthy was his focus. He didn't end up needing the vacuum after all, because right after he shared that with us, my next push had Elliott's head out! The doctor quickly unwrapped the cord and pulled him out the rest of the way. He was born at 5:18 PM on June 15th, Father's Day. As soon as I heard him cry, I lost it. I was crying hysterically.
The long weeks feeling nauseated and exhausted during pregnancy, the months of dizzy spells and feeling overheated; the sleepless nights from back pain and contractions; the hours I was in labor all led up to that incredible moment where I heard my baby cry for the first time and knew this was all real and he was finally here. They immediately placed him on my chest, and I kept crying and saying how perfect he was. As soon as Elliott heard my voice, he stopped crying and stared at me. It was the most precious moment.
He was with me on my chest for about 30 minutes before they took him to get weighed and warmed up. Martin and I were both still crying and everything felt like a dream.
After they wrote down his weight, 7 lbs 12 oz, they gave him back to me and everyone left the room except for Martin and I. We had about 2 hours of just us three, and it was perfect. We couldn't be more in love with our son, and I couldn't take my eyes off of him the entire time. Our sweet baby boy was the perfect gift from our loving Father. While I was pregnant, I wondered if I would love him right away, or if it would take some time. I was a little afraid I might not have a connection with him since pregnancy was not my favorite. But I don't think my heart was ever as full at any other point in my life thus far than it was in those first hours with Elliott. I wanted time to stop, and just be there holding my son and thanking God for him.
