Kendall came
2 ½ weeks early and while I am glad she came early I was really hoping for
another week or so to get ready, but we are glad she is here! So, here is the
birth story for anyone interested…
I woke up
that morning with light cramping, but didn’t think too much about it. I went
about my day taking the boys to school and running errands. Mid-morning I
noticed I was spotting and called labor and delivery and they said to watch it,
but it didn’t necessarily mean I was in labor. The cramping starting feeling
more like contractions as the day went on. My water broke with both boys so
this was all new to me. I called Steve at work to tell him today might be the
day, but told him there was no need to come home. I called my Mom too (who had
just flown home the night before) telling her she might have to make a return
trip faster than she thought.
That evening
Steve got home from work and we took the kids to Costco to buy milk and get
hotdogs for dinner. By now the
contractions were getting more intense and I didn’t have much doubt that I was
going to have her that night. I called L&D on the way home, around 6:30 and
they told me to come in. By then it was an hour until bedtime and we wanted to
get the boys to sleep. We got them down and had a friend come over to stay with
them and arrived at the hospital around 8:00 pm.
I was in
triage for about 45 minutes before I was checked and was 4 cm dilated. I told them repeatedly that I have babies
VERY FAST and that we needed to get things moving. That my last son came in
less than 3 hours and that I wanted a epidural this time. They said they’d
admit me right away and call for the epidural. At this point the contractions
were very uncomfortable, but I had enough time in between to still be feeling
okay.
It took
about another half hour before I was taken to my room. When I got to my room
the nurse was ready to admit me and give me an I.V. The anesthesiologist was
also there ready to administer the epidural. By this point it was one
contraction on top of another and I was in a lot of pain. I asked the nurse to
check me first before she admitted me. She did and was shocked that I was 8 cm.
I went from a 4 to an 8 in a half hour. She was flustered trying to get me an
I.V. and the anesthesiologist was still willing to do the epidural and was asking
me questions. I couldn’t respond and told her to talk to Steve. I knew by this
point I was going so fast that there was no way I was going to get that
epidural and was begging the nurse to hurry and at least get me some fentanyl,
but my I.V. was still not in.
5 minutes
after checking me I told her that I felt a lot of pressure and my body was
starting to push. My water broke and I
started to push. She said it wasn’t time to push yet (while she was putting in
my I.V.) and I reached down and could feel Kendall’s head. The doctor was
called in immediately, the anesthesiologist said goodbye and left and the
doctor told me to push. I screamed loud (there might have been a few
obscenities in there) and pushed once and felt her head, I screamed again and
felt her shoulders, then one more scream and the rest of her came out. It took
10 minutes from the time when the nurse checked me and said I was an 8 to
Kendall being delivered. After she came out the doctor asked how I felt and I
was very dizzy. The nurse laughed and said that she hadn’t realized that the
baby had been delivered and pushed the fentanyl after Kendall came out. So
funny.
Kendall was
born at 9:40 pm on October 22, 2013. She was 6 lbs. 9 oz and 19 inches long.
She is absolutely perfect. We are thrilled to have our baby girl. Her brothers
are so excited she is here and constantly want to hold her and love her. They
are so excited to tell anyone and everyone about their new baby. At Carson’s
request I have printed out several pictures for him and Luke to take to school,
church and kids club at the gym. Carson is almost
old enough to be a helper and is very sweet and gentle with her. Luke is
starting to test his limits with her (i.e. how hard can I push her nose before
she starts getting upset or Mom yells at me.) They are both a little emotional,
more so Luke, and clingy to their Mom. Having grandmas around has not helped
the need for Mom to be around all the time and for Mom to do everything. Luke
is still not sleeping well in his big boy room. He has been more exhausting for
us at night then Kendall.
Kendall
latched on right away and is a very good nurser. She is a week old now and so
far hasn’t been too fussy and has been sleeping very well at night. Hopefully
she stays like that! My Mom came out for 5 days and Steve’s Mom is here right
now for 5 days. My Dad is going to come next week for a few days, which is more
for the boys. They are Grandpa boys. After he leaves Steve is going to do half
days for 2 weeks, which will be wonderful. I feel good. My recovery has been
quick. (The blessing of no epidural and a fast delivery I think.) As long as I
can get a nap each day I’m great. We’ll see when/if I fall apart. Carson in
school 5 days a week and Luke twice a week really helps. So do meals delivered
by fantastic friends and friends helping with carpools and play dates. I feel
extremely blessed and so lucky to have a wonderful husband,
parents/parent-in-laws and 3 beautiful kids. Life is good.
