The Story of Alethea's Arrival (Sorry it is long)

Here is my labor story and what we went through before we finally got to meet our beautiful little girl:

As I think pretty much everyone knows, I was past due with the pregnancy, and when she finally decided to arrive she was 8 days past the original due date (whatever that means).  I had honestly come to grips with the fact that we would most likely be induced later on in the week.  However, once Friday night came, I began to wonder.  I started having really bad back pain and cramping on Friday night that continued into Saturday morning.  Then by Saturday afternoon I was having fairly regular contractions in addition to the cramps.

Since it was my first experience with all this, I was pretty sure heading to the hospital was imminent, but I wasn’t going to bet on it so I didn’t disappoint myself.  However by about 10pm Saturday night contractions were 5-8 minutes apart lasting about a minute and then by 2am contractions were 2-5 minutes apart lasting about a minute.  I was really nervous to call the doctor, but they tell you to call when the contractions are consistently 5 minutes apart, lasting a minute each, for about an hour so I did.  The on call doctor said to monitor them for another hour and if they stayed that way to go ahead to the hospital.  So basically at this point I knew we wouldn’t be going to church, it was just a matter of when we would head to hospital. 

Not wanting to be sent home I endured the contractions until about 5:45am and then finally told Ben that I thought we should probably head to the hospital since contractions were still so close and were getting more intense.  I was still nervous that they would end up sending us home, but I wanted to be on the safe side and get things checked out.

We arrived at the hospital at 6:30am and went through all the checking in and such.  Nerves were crazy at this point, but since they had already immediately hooked me up to the machines, I at least knew I wasn’t imagining the contractions. J  It was in the middle of change of shifts when we arrived so we had to wait until the 7am nurse arrived so that it was a consistent person measuring cervical dilation.  When she arrived and checked me, I was still only 2.5 cm dilated, but I was 100% effaced.  They contacted the doctor and she said they would monitor me over the next few hours to see how I progressed and then decide whether or not we needed to stay.

The doctor came in about 2 hours later and I had only progressed to 3.5 cm, but she basically told us that since I was over 41 weeks by that point and progressing at all, they were going to keep me there.  She said she would expect a cm dilation an hour, but she also understood our desire to go natural so we would hold off on breaking the water until the last possible time.  So at this point the excitement set in because I knew we wouldn’t be leaving the hospital until our little on arrived.

Unfortunately my body, though having plenty of contractions and walking around a ton, was not progressing as much as they would have liked.  I got to about 6cm dilated by 3pm (very slow progression) and then was still there at about 6pm so we went ahead and made the decision to break the water in hopes that would progress things.  Unfortunately by 9pm we were still at about 6.5cm dilated even though by this point my contractions were no more that 2 minutes apart and lasting for at least a minute each.  So through a lot of tears and frustration, we made the decision to use a small dose of pitocin to see if that would get things going.

The pitocin did seem to bring contractions slightly closer together and more intense, but unfortunately no significant progress and I was starting to have the shakes and really no time to recover between contractions.  Plus at this point I had already been up for 36+ hours without sleep so I was incredibly exhausted and knew that I needed something to help if I was going to make it through such a slow labor progression.  So I decided to use a little bit of nubane which I was told would dull the pain.  Yah right!  All it did was make me loopy and sleepy.  Definitely won’t ever use that stuff again.  So it got to be 3am and the doctor came in to check me one more time and I was still at only 7cm dilated.  At this point I was pretty much at my wits end and didn’t know how much more I could take because I was lucky if I was getting a minute break from contractions that lasted 1 to 1.5 minutes each.  After the doctor left, I was talking with Ben and my parents and through a lot of tears and prayer and with their counsel; we made the decision to request a c-section.  At this point I had been up for almost 48hours, I had been shivering for the past 6 hours, having intense contractions with little break between them, and I wasn’t sure that I would even have the strength to push if my body did finally progress to where it needed to be.

As much as making this decision tore me up, I knew it was the one that had to be made, and I felt at peace with it (at least as much as you can when all you can think about is the pain of crazy contractions).  We wanted things to be all natural, but really after almost 48hours of labor, 21 or which had already taken place at the hospital, each decision we made was necessary. 

It was quite the experience getting prepped for the c-section because there wasn’t much break between contractions and they can insert IVs and spinal numbing meds when you are in the middle of one. I have never been so glad to have almost my entire body numb.  When put the spinal block in that was the first time in days, I had been free of back pain and contractions and it was amazing.  Ben was laughing to himself because as he was watching the surgery, he couldn’t believe how laid back I was, but I was in pain-free heaven and knew that my little one would finally be there very soon.

It turns out that we definitely made a good decision because it would not have mattered how many hours I labored, our little one was not coming out vaginally.  The doctor said our baby was facing my right hip and that is why it was so hard for me to progress and why the baby could get no farther in the birth canal, baby was stuck.  All that labor could seem like it was a waste of time, but it was real personal spiritual growth experience as well as a time to grow closer to Ben and my parents.

It was all a bit of a whirlwind in the end, but they tipped down the curtain to show me our little one and asked Ben to tell me what it was and he was like “it’s a girl!”  Yay we had brought a beautiful little girl into this world and at this point none of the labor mattered and I could care less how she came in the world.  All I knew was that she was healthy and she was our little blessing.  They got her all cleaned up and then I got to meet her briefly before Ben went off with the nurses to clean her up and give her a little massage while they finished my surgery.  What an amazing experience and an even more amazing result. 

Alethea Lenora Hill took a long time to get here, but man was it worth it!

7lbs 15oz, 20.5 in. of beauty arrived at 4:07am Monday, February 21st, 2011

40 weeks and 5 days...update on the lack of progress

Sadly, there has been no progress since Tuesday.  We went in today to check up on the baby and my progress.  We got to have an ultrasound done to check the fluids around the baby to make sure that was still sufficient.  It was fun to be able to see the baby again and we were able to see its chubby little face.  Super cute!  As far as the fluid goes, we needed to be in the range of 5cm to 20cm of fluid and there was 14cm so we are well in the range of healthy fluids for baby.  They also hooked me up for the non-stress test which showed that everything is looking good from that aspect as well.  Baby’s heartbeat was 145bpm, and as far as my stats, nothing has changed.

So of course, since Saturday will be 41 weeks, we had to have the induction discussion with the doctor.  We told her, as we have stated all along, that we do not want to induce until the last possible time unless there is a risk to the health of the baby.  She told us she has scheduled us for an induction next Friday for sure because they will not let us go past that point, but she proceeded to tell us all the scary complications that could happen if we do wait until that point.  So it was tempting due to fear, as well as impatience, to take her up on her offer that we could induce tomorrow if we wanted, but we are opting out of that since there is no sign at this point that the health of the baby is in danger.

We will go back in on Monday for another non-stress test and then a doctor’s appointment on Tuesday to check on the baby’s and my progress.  But up until that point we are just supposed to continue to track fetal movement and make sure that it doesn’t decrease.  If we make it to Tuesday, then we will probably end up back at the office on Wednesday or Thursday for another non-stress test as well because they have to keep monitoring.  We are choosing to trust that this baby will arrive in God’s timing, even if that may mean some fears and anxieties.  Thankfully, I have a bit of comfort as well in the fact that my pregnancy has been so similar to my mom’s pregnancies and she had all 3 of us 2 weeks late.  All of us turned out just fine and this baby will too.  We don’t want to rush anything with our little one either. J

40 weeks and 3 days...no signs of any progress...hurry up already!

The doctor walked in today and said, “what are you still doing here?” We all got quite the laugh because he had told us 2 weeks ago that he didn’t expect to see us back in the office.  Ooops!  The appointment went well (at least healthy), all of my stats are looking good, and the baby’s heartbeat is beating a strong 152bpm.  Dr. Day said that the baby’s head is well down in the birth canal still and that the stats really haven’t changed.  I am maybe a slight bit more effaced, but still only about 1.5cm dilated.

We are scheduled to go in on Thursday to have an ultrasound, a non-stress test, and several other tests done to check and make sure all is still well with the baby.  We have made it clear that we want to do everything as natural as possible as all he said was that they get nervous at 41 weeks and really nervous at 42 weeks.  So I guess after Thursday comes and we are able to get a better picture of how everything looks so we can make sure that everything would be okay, then we will make decisions about induction from there.  Our preference is all natural, so as long as they will let us, I would imagine we won’t be inducing until late next week sometime.  BUT, hopefully our little one will finally get tired of being in my belly and decide to come out before we have to make that decision, and even better would be before next Monday so my parents can be here for it. J

40 weeks...Come on baby, don't you realize you are due!

Today is the big day or at least the day that we have been telling people for months that our little bundle of joy is due.  It will be interesting to see when the grand entrance is, but I am pretty sure it won’t be today.  My prediction simply because I want to make a guess to see if I am going to be right is that we will be welcoming our bundle of joy on February 17^th. J

My parents arrived yesterday so we have been enjoying some quality time with them as we are all anxiously awaiting labor to begin.  My mom keeps reminding baby that they can go ahead and come out now that she is in town.  We are simply praying that the grand entrance occurs before they have to leave on Monday Feb. 21^st.  So we technically have 9 days left, but obviously the sooner the better!

The nice thing is that I have been feeling great so far this week.  It’s a bit crazy to think that I am actually 40 weeks pregnant already.  We have been doing lots of walking to keep things healthy and hopefully help the process along.  Other than that, it’s not been much different than any other day. J  No more counting down for now, simply just awaiting the big day now. J

We took what we hope to be our last bump pictures this morning and just for fun we took a front and back photo just to show how crazy it is that you can hardly tell I am pregnant unless you look at me from the side.  This baby has treated me very well during this pregnancy, let’s just hope the weight loss is as easy as everyone thinks it will be!

from the back... 

...now the front...

...oh yah there's the 40 week belly!

No baby yet...

We made it do our doctor’s appointment this week.  The doctor this week chuckled a bit when we told her that Dr. Day said we wouldn’t make it too this week’s appointment and she said, “he is always the optimist”.  I guess it was a little bit of false hope, but probably good for us to be prepared daily for the possibility that our baby could arrive any day now.

The appointment went well today.  All of my stats were looking good which is always a praise.  Baby’s heart beat was 152bpm, strong and healthy.  It was however interesting to find out that in Dr. Day’s notes it said I was almost completely effaced (even though he told us I was completely effaced last week).  So, basically not much has changed since last week.  I am still 80% effaced and now I am dilated to 1.5cm.  Dr. Stroud was not going to make us any promises, but she did say that everything is still progressing well and she hopes that if she sees us again that it’s in the hospital before next Tuesday.  That works for me!

Baby has cooperated quite well so far.  We were able to have a fun game night this past weekend with friends from church, then go to watch the Super Bowl with good friends old and new from Cedarville.  Plus I was able to watch Glee on Sunday night and most likely tonight as well! (Yes I know I am a dork, but I was really hoping to watch those episodes baby-free.)  Now the only thing left is that my parents request baby not arrive before they get here this Friday, but at least by Feb. 20^th so they can still be here for the birth.  I guess we shall find out very soon when the big day will be!

Mixed Feelings...

I definitely have mixed feelings about the doctor’s predictions.  It’s been a few days since the appointment and now the reality of what he said has had a chance to set in.  I am thankful that things have begun progressing and that he gave us the heads up, just in case I do in fact welcome our little bundle of joy before my next appointment on Tuesday. However, it has also changed my mindset.  Prior to the appointment, I was completely content and had accepted the fact that the baby would probably arrive late.  And with this mindset, I was okay whenever the baby decided to arrive, no anxieties at all.  Now, I feel like it is a day-to-day “what if” situation.  I am constantly wondering today is going to be the day, I mean the doctor said it could be any day so he is right, isn’t he…  I guess it’s good that Ben and I have a game plan with each individual day, but I still miss the anxiety free-ness I guess.

All that said, I am trying to adapt a new more peaceful mindset.  I know God has a greater plan and His hand is at work through this entire situation.  Yes, the baby’s head is dropped, I am completely effaced, and I am at least 1 cm dilated, but that still doesn’t mean that I will be delivering this baby any sooner. It could be weeks (according to much of what I have read) before I even get dilated enough to need to go to the hospital.  That is the same reality that I was fine with before so I am trying to be fine with it now.  It’s still hard, given the excitement that surrounds the possibility that the doctor could be right.  But I am trying to find peace and patience in the waiting period.  We will get to see our little bundle of joy before we know it and all that matters is that it will be in God’s timing which is always the right timing.  :-) 

38 weeks, 3 days and baby just might arrive sooner than expected!

Today was a wonderful doctor’s appointment.  Going in to the doctor I was a bit nervous since my last appointment had been so stressful.  However, God was good and all went well.  My weight gain was satisfactory, my blood pressure was great, and the baby’s heartbeat was at 146bpm.  Yay for all good stats!

Then the doctor had to check to see if there was any progress toward labor.  And, it looks like the ball is already rolling.  When he checked, we discovered that the baby has indeed dropped (which definitely explains a never-ending need to pee), my cervix is completely thinned (which I think is called fully effaced), and my cervix is dilated 1cm.  He basically told us that he doesn’t expect us to be back for another appointment next Tuesday because most likely the baby will arrive any day now.  Craziness!

Obviously he could be wrong and I could stay minimally dilated for a while, but it’s pretty crazy to think that the baby could be here within a week.  I was definitely completely prepared for baby to be late.  I guess we will just have to wait and see when the grand entrance will be.  God has a plan, even if that doesn't fit into my timeframe or the timeframe in which family was already planning on coming.  Only time will tell!

38 week belly

The crib is all ready for whenever baby decides to arrive. :-)