Elizabeth's Birth Novella

At my 38 week appointment (on a Thursday) my doctor checked me and said I was 2 cm dilated and 80% effaced, and I had been having contractions all week so I was hoping that my water would break that weekend and we could go have our baby! Friday night came along and I was having contractions every 6-10 minutes but they only lasted at most for 30 seconds, but I called the hospital and asked what to do just in case.  They said I should just stay at home because they might continue or they might stop all together...well they stopped all together around one in the morning.  On Monday (39 weeks) I was getting induced and I had so hoped that I could go into labor before that.  Monday morning rolled around and I got a call saying to come in at 7:30 for my induction.  I thought maybe I was already at a 3 because of all the continuous contractions and we were going on 3 walks a day to get the baby to move on down. We decided that it was fine to go in at 7:30, we could put C down to bed and leave my parents with her for the night and the next day hopefully she would get to meet her baby sister. 

 

 I got to the hospital and we got to a room, I got checked to see what method of induction I actually needed, and I was COMPLETELY closed, at a -3 station, and 25% effaced.  I cried because I honestly thought I would be at a 2 still.  So I got my first 12 hour dose of cervadil around 10 pm and hoped my water would break on its own over night.  Around 10 the next morning my water still hadn't broken and I got checked again and NOTHING.  So they decided to give me another 12 hour dose of it...I cried.  I wanted to see Charlotte, I needed to eat, and I just wanted SOMETHING to work.  Around eleven pm that night I got checked again...I was at a 1.  All that work for a 1.  They decided to see if a foley bulb would work, well nope didn't work because my cervix was super closed and it wouldn't go in.  They decided then to start me on pitocin to see if that would help open my cervix more, and to check me in the morning.  At 6 a.m. they checked me and I was still at a 1.  I was beyond upset.  After a few more hours and some morphine later they checked me again and I was at 3!!!! Finally I was getting somewhere. 

I then realized that this baby was coming TODAY finally!! They still had me on pitocin and morphine to see if that would do the trick, I decided to get an epidural around 11 am because the morphine wore off and I decided that the epidural would relax me enough to let me sleep and let my body do its thing.  The doctor broke my water around 2 pm, and I felt the urge to start pushing around 4:30 so they checked me and I was at 6 cm.  They gave me another dose of epidural because I was really feeling the contractions and they hurt so bad.  A half hour later around 5:10 I felt the urge to push again and I literally felt her move down.  They checked me again and I was at a 10!! I officially started pushing at 5:16, and I just remember thinking PLEASE get out of me before 6 pm I really want Charlotte to come visit before bed.  10 minutes later Elizabeth was born! 

After 43 hours of labor, thank goodness it only took her 10 minutes to make her way out.

 

 Charlotte LOVES her little sister and tells me daily "Mommy this is my little sister" and she helps change her diaper, hold her, and always wants to give her kisses and hugs.  We are all so in love with this little girl.