Happy Birthday!

I just sent an e-mail to my husband, reminding him of what we were doing 3 months ago today. It went a little something like this:

1:30 am: It's no secret that very pregnant ladies have a hard time sleeping, but it was not the usual aches and pains that woke me this time. After half an hour of timing my discomfort, I was convinced that we would be meeting our little girl soon. I woke up my husband, who's response could be summarized as "Cool. Snore." Not his fault, to be fair. The last time we went through this, my water broke on Tuesday, but the baby did not make it out until Thursday, so in his opinion, no reason to rush.

10:00 am: After spending a couple of hours at my office tying up loose ends (better than fielding phone calls between pushes), I tackled my backlog of laundry-folding while timing my contractions. I had an irritable conversation with my husband about when he should come home from work, and my father about when he and my mom should drive up to pick up my son. When will people ever learn not to disagree with a woman in labor?

12:50 pm: There's a lot of pressure on pregnant women to self-diagnose their labor. What is the level of your pain, a 3 or a 6 or a 9? Can you talk? Can you walk? And in the face of these questions, a question of our own, how much worse is this going to get?! Well, my husband finally convinced me to call the dr. Unfortunately, it was during the closed-for-business lunch hour, prompting me to leave a nasty message. No, I'm not proud, but can't one nurse eat at 1 pm so someone is available to talk to crazy pregnant ladies?

1:10 pm: I finally got through to the nurse practitioner who directed me to go to the hospital. Hooray!

2:15 pm: After a lot of running around, we arrived at the hospital. We checked in at information, and were instructed to head straight up to the L and D ward. I declined the wheelchair they offered, figuring the walk could only help.

2:45 pm: AAAAGH! Our hospital was remodeled after our son was born, and part of the remodel was to add a 1/4 mile hallway to connect the new and old buildings. Why did I refuse the wheelchair again? We finally got to L and D, where they whisked us to our huge private room. What excellent service!

3:45 pm: After an hour of monitoring, and an exam to check my progress, I was officially declared still in early labor, and was encouraged to "go home and relax". The perky young resident actually said "You know, often the body will contract and then stop, so you may not progress into active labor for a few days anyway!" Just the sort of encouraging news I like to hear! Rather than kill her, my husband and I decided to figure out what to do next. Home was NOT an option at that point, as my parents and 3 year old were there. Nothing says "relaxing" like my son bouncing all over me, and my mom asking if I'm okay every 5 minutes. Fortunately, my husband is brilliant, and called around to some local hotels to find us a room close to the hospital. Unfortunately, I had to walk down the hallway of death again.

4:30 pm: I was sitting in the car outside the cluster of hotels closest to the hospital as my husband (prince that he is) was touring rooms at several hotels to find the one that would be the most comfortable and relaxing for me. After a quick huddle with me, he booked us a suite in the Comfort Inn, with a kitchen and a big, big tub, perfect for me to labor in peace. By this time, my contractions were really getting painful, so it was an awkward walk through the lobby, but worth it when we got into our room.

4:55 pm: My husband ran out to get some supplies and snacks. I stretched out on the bed to watch Meet the Parents and POP! Yep, my water broke, right there in the Comfort Inn. Back to the hospital! The hotel gave us a refund :)

5:55 pm: They put me in the same room I'd just vacated, and which someone had just finished cleaning (sorry housekeeping!), and hooked me back up to all of the monitors. As my doctor had warned, my contractions were much closer together now, and I was really feeling them, unlike my first pregnancy, where I'd had the epidural early on. The nurse was incredible, and coached me through the contractions, telling me to "sink into" them. Sounds strange, but it really works! She asked me if I wanted to have an unmedicated birth, and I said "Hell no, get me the epidural!" They checked my cervix and I was at 4 cm, plenty of time to get an anesthesiologist.

6:30 pm: Still no anesthesiologist, and the contractions were getting longer and closer together. I was actually surprising myself, breathing through the contractions with the help of my husband and the nurse. Even though it wasn't as bad as I'd imagined, I was still looking forward to the drugs. Last time, I pushed for 3 hours, and did not want to do that again without a little relief.

6:45 pm: Still no drugs, but the nurse heard something in my breathing that made her call in my dr. Dr. Hansen came in to check me again, more to humor the nurse than anything else. Imagine everyone's shock when she announced "she's right there, let's go!" Of course, this is the moment when the anesthesiologist showed up, determined to ask her clipboard of questions instead of plunging a needle directly into my back. The nurse pushed her out of the way and told me there was no time, the baby was coming, and I had to push NOW!

7:05 pm: Our baby girl was born! My husband and I looked at each other and just laughed hysterically. Really?! That was it?! We were in a strange kind of shock at how quickly everything had gone, but she was perfect and she was here. Truly a miracle.

Happy birthday, little girl. I love you!