I felt like a ticking time bomb for weeks. I was dilated to 4cm and 90% effaced. I was having regular, time-able, mildly painful contractions for weeks. The problem: they weren't intense enough to do anything. So I waited and waited and waited, very uncomfortably.
One other problem: I tested positive for Group B Strep.
Translation: I needed to be on IV antibiotics for 4 hours before I delivered to protect the baby from picking up the bacteria which could potentially make him very sick.
My labor with Preston was only 4 1/2 hours long. That included over an hour of pushing. So, if my doctor was right and I had a faster, easier labor this time with much less pushing I was not going to have enough time for the antibiotics.
So you can see why I was nervous about the whole situation.
On February 9th, at 2pm I had my 39 week doctor's visit. She told me I was 4+ cm, "paper thin"and as close to going into labor as anyone could be. Because of the Group B Strep it was not safe for her to strip my membranes as many doctors will to "help things along." But she could be "less gentle" when she checked me. We both hoped that would be enough. She said that she was on-call at the hospital that night and that if I was able to get my contractions regular enough she would do everything in her power to keep me there.
I left the office and started walking. At 2:30 I went over to the hospital to visit my dad who had just had knee surgery. I walked the halls near his room for a while until I was too uncomfortable to stay any longer. Around 3pm I went home and asked Dan if he was ok having the baby that night. He said it was ok with him so I continued to walk laps around my house. I'm surprised I didn't wear a path in the carpet. The contractions kept getting more intense and closer together.
At 4pm I called my niece, Anika, to come over to babysit for the remainder of the afternoon and kept walking. When I was on my feet my contractions were more intense and practically on top of each other (about 2-3 minutes apart, lasting well over a minute) but when I sat down they eased up (much less painful and only 5-7 minutes apart). I wasn't sure if they were painful enough yet since I could still talk through them, although I wasn't very nice to anyone who tried to talk to me :)
Dan started loading my stuff into the car and I gave Anika some last minute instructions about dinner. I kept walking. By 5 pm I finally got to the point that I couldn't walk or talk through the contractions. I said those infamous words,
"Honey, it's time."
I waddled out to the car and waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Time goes very slow when you are in labor and Dan about lost his life in his effort to grab "just one more thing".
We made the quick drive to the hospital, and I was able to walk, slowly and painfully to Labor and Delivery. They hooked me up to monitors, checked me : 5cm. A quick call to my doctor confirmed that I was in active labor and could stay!
We were settled into our own room by 5:30. They quickly hooked up my IV and started my antibiotic. I felt so relieved! Next the anesthesiologist came and gave me my epidural.
More relief.
The four hour countdown began. Unless the baby showed signs of distress they were going to leave us alone for 4 hours to let the antibiotic do it's thing. Time flew by as we visited with family and listened to music. Soon it was 9:15 and the nurse came in to check me. I was only at a 6. But not for long. A few minutes later my doctor came in to break my water. We all knew it was down hill from there.
They waited 20 minutes before checking me again; 8cm. One contraction later I was 9cm. They started prepping the room for delivery. By the time they were done I was completely dilated and ready to push. It was all so surreal. I couldn't believe I was about to have a baby! It took about 3 contractions (about 10 minutes) to push him out.
He was so tiny and calm. I was a little nervous because he wasn't crying very much. (Preston screamed his bloody head off, so that's what I was expecting). I looked around at the doctor and nurses, who did not seem concerned at all. So I took the cue from them and relaxed. They laid him on my chest for a moment while Dan cut the cord. Then he was whisked away to be cleaned off and measured.
Once he was diapered they brought him back and I snuggled him skin to skin.
It was lovely.
Pure heaven.
It was obvious he wanted to eat. The problem (for other people) was that he didn't want to stop eating. We had family waiting to see him, and I made them wait outside the room for a tortuous 45 minutes while he ate and I snuggled.
(Sheeby and Cheryl waiting in the hallway calling the rest of the family)
Finally, their waiting paid off, and they were able to come in and have some snuggle time of their own.
The whole experience is a wonderful memory.
Things could not have gone better.
He is a sweet snugly baby and we are so in love with the little guy.
