Birth Story: Final Chapter

The first moments with our little girl are hard to put into words.  Here I am holding this precious being in my arms all the while doctors and nurses are scurrying around the room.  Stitching me up, taking in my stats, the baby's stats, cleaning her off...  I remember looking up at Chris, he had tears running down his cheeks.  He was one proud papa.  We were now a family of three!  We were asked, "Does she have a name?"  We looked at each other, Chris said, "We don't know, there are a couple we liked."  I remember saying, "Well, she has dark hair, I think she is Eva Joyce."  Chris said something along the lines of "You think so? Yep, her name is Eva Joyce Smith."

Eva didn't waste anytime initiating me into motherhood.  She pooped all over me while I was holding her for the first time.  Honestly, I didn't even realize until the nurse pointed it out.  Eventually, they got her cleaned up (as well as myself).  I got her back into my arms, and she proceeded to pee all over me.

The next couple of days at the hospital were a whirlwind.  Doctors, nurses, family, and friends in and out of the room.  We have now begun a new chapter in our lives as a family of three.  I am looking forward to all that is to come.

Birth Story: Part Three

Things were moving fast.  I'm not sure how to determine how long labor had been.  But, technically, I wasn't in labor when we arrived at the hospital.  I would say labor didn't really start until about a half hour into getting induced.  The contractions began coming more frequently and slowly were beginning to get more intense.  I had gone from 2.5 cm dilated to 6 cm in 2 1/2 hours.

At about 4 PM, since contractions were longer, stronger, and closer together I asked again if the portable monitor was available.  No, the person using it was walking the halls.  The nurse suggested some alternatives and I continued to push through the pain.  Chris was a great support.  He was there for each contraction. He rubbed my back, kept a wash cloth cool, and had a calming presence.

Around 6 PM I had begun feeling pressure and I was checked again.  I was 9 cm dilated.  The nurse said when I felt the urge to push to let her know.  It wasn't five minutes later I called them back in saying I felt pressure.  I was now 10 cm and it was go time.  I remember asking the doctors if they were sure I was ready.  I felt like everything had happened so fast.  Little did I realize pushing was actually a god send.  By this point the contractions were highly painful and I was having difficulty breathing through them.  Pushing, although VERY difficult and still painful, felt a million times better than the contraction.  I pushed for a little over an hour and at 7:19 PM our little one entered the world.

I can vividly remember seeing the doctor hold the baby up.  The cord was blocking the important parts (remember, we didn't know the gender of the baby).  As they pulled to cord away, I was able to announce, "It's a Girl!"

It is amazing how in a few quick moments you can go from being in the most pain you have ever experienced to feeling more joy than one can explain.

The first weeks of motherhood...

Wow, I can't believe little Eva is two weeks old today.  It seems like she has been part of our lives a lot longer.  It is also hard to believe I have officially been a mother for two weeks.  Although, I felt semi prepared for motherhood, it is amazing all the things I didn't know.

Things I have learned in the first two weeks...

• Newborns sleep A LOT (a lot more than I thought).
• Newborns can spit up brown junk.  Apparently this is totally normal because they may have swallowed amniotic fluid or blood.
• There can be a bloody discharge due to hormones from the mother.
• Newborns not only spit up, but can projectile vomit and be perfectly fine. 
• Sometimes newborns want to eat all the time.
• Everyday is different, from sleeping, to eating, to crying.
• My husband is an amazing dad.  He is a great diaper changer, comforter, and over all great support for both me and baby!

Birth Story: Part Two

To my surprise, we were headed upstairs to labor and delivery.  I had been informed the doctor felt it was best to get the ball rolling.  This meant I would be getting induced.  In order to get labor started I would be given Pitocin.  Pitocin makes the body mimic real labor.  I wasn't sure what to think.  The thought of being induced didn't really cross my mind since the doc had said she didn't think I would need to be induced.  I began to think about my birth plan.  Honestly, I didn't really have a plan other than I wanted to do everything as naturally as possible.  Knowing my body, I do not respond well to needles or narcotics.  I asked about the side-effects of Pitocin.  The mid-wife made a little chuckle and said "Labor."  This was a bit of relief.

At this point, it was about noon and we had been at the hospital for a little over 4 hours.  As we got settled into the labor and delivery room the nurse began asking a TON of questions. Again, I was hooked up to the monitors and continued being assessed.  By now, I was pretty hungry.  Luckily, I was allowed to eat a little before I began receiving Pitocin.

At around 2 PM the nurse started the Pitocin.  Things felt about the same for the first hour.  Contractions were about 10 minutes apart and not very intense.  Chris and I were enjoying watching some Friends re-runs and playing cards.  Around 3 PM true labor contractions had begun.  I asked Chris to turn the TV off, the glare was bothering me.  He then plugged in the iPod and the soothing music began.  My dear friend, Jessica, had put together a few CDs for me.  They were great, calming and soothing.  I was able to breathe through the contractions and things were still progressing.  At this point I also asked if I could get in the shower to help ease the pain.  Little did I know, if you are receiving Pitocin you are required to stay hooked up to the monitors.  The hospital only had one portable machine and it was being used.  Around 4 PM the doctor came in to see how things were going.  She asked if I wanted to be checked.  Honestly, I didn't because it was highly uncomfortable.  However, while we were talking, a contraction began and my waters broke.  The doctors were unsure, but it appeared the baby may have had a bowel movement in the womb (very common for late term babies).  I decided she should probably check me out. I was now 6 cm dilated, only 4 more to go.  Things were moving fast.

Looking Back

Well, the time has come, Baby Smith (now known as Eva Joyce) has arrived.  The human body is amazing in how it can create, nourish, and grow a little human being.  Here is just a little look back at the past 9 months!

 

Birth Story: Part One

Little Miss Eva Joyce Smith arrived into this world at 7:19 PM on Monday, May 12, 2014.  Here is her story...

I had been experiencing contractions since week 39.  They were little and infrequent but, still there.  At my appointments the doc noted that my cervix had already started to efface and I was beginning to dilate.  Obviously, this meant nothing in regards to when Eva would arrive, but it did mean my body was preparing for her arrival.  The doctor did comment she didn't think I would go too far past my due date and that I probably would not need to be induced since things were already beginning.  Well, I did go past my due date and I was induced!

It was Mother's Day, May 11th (two days past my due date).  I was experiencing LOTS of contractions. I was feeling anxious and thought it would be neat if our little arrived on Mother's Day.  However, my contractions never became longer, stronger, or pattern like.  The day came and went and still no baby.  On the morning of May 12th I woke up to a little bloody show (sorry for the details, but this is the story).  I wasn't concerned because everything I read said it was normal.  But, about an hour later there was still more blood.  This didn't seem normal, so we made the trek to the hospital, St. Joseph's in downtown Denver.   Being in Colorado and the middle of May, there was a big spring snow storm occurring.  The drive to the hospital would normally have taken 20 minutes, instead it took about 45 minutes.

To the surprise of the mid-wife (the message was never delivered that we were on our way) we arrived at the hospital around 7:30 AM.  The mid-wife patiently listened to our concerns.  She said she would check me out, but thought there weren't enough symptoms to warrant true labor and I would probably be going home.  She hooked me up to the monitors and began assessing the situation.  Baby's heartbeat was good and yes, I was having contractions, but again not enough.  She also checked my cervix.  I was about 90% effaced and 2.5 cm dilated.  There was more blood than normal, but not enough to be concerned.  She then proceeded to check my amniotic fluid levels. Again, my fluid levels were a bit lower than desired (4.7 cm instead of 5 cm), however I had one good pocket of 2 cm which is deemed to be medically okay.  With this information the doctor decided he wanted me to stick around for a bit to see if things would begin to progress on their own.  A couple hours later the mid-wife checked me again.  At this point I had begun having more contractions, but there were still about 10 minutes apart.  Again, she said I'll probably be sending you home.

A few minutes later she came back in.  At this point I was convinced we were going home.  I was feeling a bit sad, I was eager to meet our little one, but at the same time I thought "well, if I go home I can at least eat!"  To my surprise she announced the doctor wanted to move me upstairs and get things going in order to have a baby.  He figured I was already past my due date and there were too many irregularities that he didn't want to take the risk of something potentially going wrong.

It's a...

On the evening of May 12, 2014 Chris and I were honored to meet our little one.  We also finally find out the gender of our offspring!  We are happy to announce it's a...GIRL! She arrived fashionably late (3 days past her due date)!  I will take the time later to write her birth story. For now, enjoy a little snapshot of her beauty!

Stats:
Born Monday May 12, 2014 at 7:19 pm
Weighed 7 lbs 14 oz
Measured 19.5 inches long
Beautiful (we could be biased, but I highly doubt it)!

Thoughts

As the time approaches for Baby Smith to enter this world it seems natural to be reflecting on the past nine months.  I started my maternity leave early in hopes to get some rest and relaxation in before our sweet little one arrives.  Of course, my first day off I had horrible allergies and was a bit miserable, but not as miserable if I were to have been at work.  Today, is much better.  I have spent time watching The Chew (my favorite daytime television show), reading, taking a nap, going to the grocery store, going for a nice walk around the little lake behind our place, and taking pictures.  I am trying to get use to all the gadgets on my beautiful camera my family got me for my birthday/Christmas.  I have a feeling it will being getting used a lot!

Looking back, Chris and I have had many changes since finding out we would be welcoming our first child into our lives.  The beginning started will torrential rain storms in September with the flooding of our basement.  We spent days trying to control the water levels.  And then the following days trying to dry everything out.  It was shortly after we decided to look into selling our home.  We then began the process of getting our home, for the past five years, ready for the market.  Come January, we were under contract looking for a new place.  We quickly (I mean quickly, we had 18 days to find a place and move) found a place and moved!  We have since settled in.  We have acquired the essentials for baby's arrival, gotten his/her room ready, and are now just patiently (well trying) awaiting arrival.