I spent the evening eating pizza and watching The Jetsons movie with Cora while Ben rested for work. I made an induction smoothie (pineapple, banana, dates, etc) and Baby was moving around a lot, but I was making sure to get lots of rest and have a lazy evening. Around 7:30 I was walking to the bathroom to start a bath for Cora so we could go to bed early and I felt a small gush of wetness thinking maybe I peed my pants... spoiler alert: I didn't. I hollered for Ben to wake up cause my water broke and I stood in the shower with fluid gushing everywhere. We called my mom to come over and get Cora while I quickly packed my hospital bag, packed Cora's bag, loaded the dishwasher, washed my hair, and ran around like a crazy person. I spent a couple small moments slow dancing with Cora and cuddling (our nightly routine) as I said goodbye to life with one child. I talked to the doctor and they told me to come in to get checked out, so the three of us (me, Ben, and my Mom) quickly figured out logistics. Ben needed to leave for work soon so he dropped me off at the hospital to get checked in while my Mom dropped Cora off at her house and joined me at the hospital.
I had a couple small contractions but not much else was happening. My mom and I got a little bit of sleep before Ben arrived around 3 in the morning and the doctor came to check on me. There was no change so they suggested to start pitocin and do it every 30 minutes. We compromised on doing it every hour. I was hoping for a drug free birth, but was not against the drugs if it was necessary. Since my water broke we were on the clock and I felt pitocin was reasonable. With my last birth, I learned that knowing as much as you can about the process will help with decisions like this. The pitocin induced contractions weren't too bad at first but eventually they got unbearable. (this is what Ben said I sounded like whenever there was a contraction and we couldn't stop laughing about it afterwards)
Around 10-10:30, I asked for someone to come check me and see if I had progressed. If I was close, then I felt like I could make it through labor, but if I wasn't then I would want the drugs. There was no real change except for the spacing/intensity of contractions, so I decided to get an epidural. The anesthesia people came pretty fast, but it wasn't working. My legs were numb but my torso was not (exactly what happened during Cora's birth). I was annoyed that there was more medicine coursing through my body, but it wasn't helping. They tried a different medication and I felt soooo much better! I was able to open my eyes (they'd been closed in pain for hours), I was in a much better mood (which the nurse even commented on), and I was able to get some rest. I miraculously still had some control of my body, but was not feeling the pain. All the medicine did make me throw up, which was conveniently right when my dad decided to swing by to pick up our keys.
About an hour or so later I was feeling some pressure and contractions in one spot (particularly my hip that had been bothering me all pregnancy) so they checked and started rushing around getting the room ready for the delivery. I started pushing around 1ish. Since I delivered at a teaching hospital, the room was full of people and my nurse asked if some more nursing students could come watch. They said it was a slow day and I was the only one actually giving birth during that shift and they wanted the students to see a birth. Since there were already a bunch of people in there, I figured a couple more couldn't hurt. I pushed for about 2 hours and the 'audience' was awesome. They were cheering me on and really encouraging me... Even if I'm pretty sure there wasn't a good push they still made me feel strong and capable. I always pictured one of those quiet serene births, but it turns out a crowded room full of people was actually pretty great too.
One of the nurses got a call and they were asking how long she'd be. I jumped in feeling like I was almost there and said "I don't know, let's say 10 min!" Then, everyone started placing their bets. Someone in the crowd said "I bet two pushes" so I asked "two pushes or two sets of pushes?" and a doctor said she thought it'd happen in the next set of pushes... So being the competitive person I am, it got done that next push.
It was so amazing to see her right away (with my csection I didn't get to see my baby for a couple minutes) and I started feeling emotional. I was so excited to meet her and was relieved that I had a successful VBAC (something I had my mind set on). Ida was placed on my chest, they wiped her down a little, cleaned me up, and there was a lot of bustle going on to get everything finished up. Most of the people cleared out of the room and Ben and I cuddled my little Ida bean.
Ben stayed pretty mellow throughout the labor. He was supportive and helpful whenever I asked him to do something (even when I was a complete witch). He helped hold my legs when I pushed and he was an encouraging presence in the room. I loved watching Ben meet Ida and watch this big man turned to a puddle of mush over this little 6lb baby.
It was my brother's 30th birthday. When he found out my water broke, he texted me around 10 O'clock that evening and jokingly told me to hold that baby in until after midnight so they could share a birthday... So I pretty much just gave him the best birthday present ever. One of my favorite parts of becoming a mom has been watching my siblings become an Aunt and Uncle.
Ben and I cuddled Ida and watched the amazing sunset out our window before he headed off to work again. Despite not having really slept for quite a while, I stayed up late watching her sleep, eating almost the whole pizza, and enjoying the quiet. It was a great/challenging 24 hours, but I was so excited to finally have my Ida in my arms and see her sweet face.
