We are all so excited our sweet Ellanore Mae is here!! I can't even tell you who is the most excited. Olivia and Walter are so good to her, it melts my heart!
It is amazing how every birth story is so different. I was so nervous about Ellanore's birth, it was a new hospital and new doctor and I had no idea how things would turn out. It wasn't exactly what I had hoped for but it was so very special.
On Tuesday morning I woke up at 6:45am having contractions. They were weak but consistent. This was the second time this had happened. ( Last Tuesday morning I had contractions for 4 hours, 6 minutes apart and 50 seconds long. I got really excited but then they stopped right when the kids woke up.) I didn't want to get my hopes up again. I got up with the kids and we started our day. The contractions became really inconsistent (some times 4 minutes a part then randomly 15 minutes would go by and then they would be 8 minutes a part) so I bathed the kids and we went on a 2 1/2 mile walk around our little lake at 10:30am. We found enough change to get a donut to share and we took our time collecting sticks and watching the geese and ducks. After our long walk we went to lunch with Michael. They started to become more consistent again. The kids fell asleep on the way to get Michael for lunch so when we got home they didn't want a nap and I desperately did. It was a long afternoon, the contractions were still coming but they would be consistent for an hour then inconsistent the next. They were strong but nothing I couldn't handle. I called my mom on my walk to warn her this may be it. Around 4:30pm she made her way to our house.
Michael got home from work and we had breakfast for dinner and went to his softball game. Michaels team happened to be playing the "mormon" team so a sweet sister in my ward was at the game. Her kids played with Olivia and Walter and we chatted. By the end of his game the contractions were stronger and a little more consistent. My mom pulled into the parks parking lot just as we were leaving and followed us home.
The kids enjoyed Oma for an hour then we put them to bed. Michael was very anxious all day and asked me to call the hospital and see what they thought. I called and told them the situation and they told me to call when I couldn't breath through the contractions, it was 9:30pm. 10 minutes after I called they called me back and asked what Walters labor was like and said since he came quickly they wanted me to come in just to be safe, they didn't want another baby born in the car on the way to the hospital. I knew I wasn't ready but we grabbed our stuff, Michael gave me a beautiful priesthood blessing that helped me feel the spirit and remember Heavenly Father loves me then we headed to the hospital.
I was excited but knew I wasn't close enough. We got there and they hooked me up. At my doctors appointment the day before my doctor had told me I was dilated to 2 1/2cm and 60% effaced and her head was -2 in the cannal. When the nurse checked me she told me I was 1cm dilated but she would be generous and say I was a 1 1/2 and I was barely 60% effaced and baby's head was +2 in the birth cannal. It was a little frustrating having her tell me all that. She was kind but seemed annoyed that I came in. She suggested we walk the hall for an hour or we could go home. We walked the hall and everything started to become consistent. Every time we reached the end of the hall I would have a contraction that I had to stop and concentrate on. It was working when I walked. To stay entertained Michael tracked everything. We walked over 1 mile, my contractions were 3 1/2 minutes apart, they lasted around 45 seconds, and it took 150 steps to get from one side of the hall to the other. We went back to the check-in and I laid down to get monitored again and everything stopped. They sent me home and on the discharge papers it said I was in false labor and the doctor on call's advice was an ambien. I was mad. I didn't want to sleep through my contractions and they assumed they were going to stop. The nurse could care less about what I had to say.
We went home at 12:15am and things continued to progress and get extremely painful as I walked around the house. I was exausted by now and everyone was asleep. I continued to track my contractions which were inconsistent but extremely intense. I tried every position to help me get through them. It was frustrating because this wasn't how Walt's labor was at all and his perfect labor and delivery was all I could compare this one to even thought it was turning out to be more like Olivia's.
At 3:30am I couldn't handle the contractions any more so I woke Michael up to call the hospital. They impatiently told us to come in again. I was still annoyed they sent me home with the diagnosis of false labor and how cranky the nurse who helped me was. I kept trying to tell myself to suck it up and try to get my contractions more consistent but a contraction would happen and I would wish I was at the hospital.
On the way to the hospital I almost had Michael turn the car around but I had a few contraction that changed my mind. I was afraid they would tell me I wasn't progressing and send me home again.
We got back to the check-in room and the same nurse helped me. She was totally annoyed I was there again. She hooked me but and I kept asking if I could stand to get through my contractions but she told me I had to lay down. Surprise surprise, the contractions stopped when I laid down. As she filled out the paperwork again I told Michael how stupid it was that my contractions had stopped again but then I started to feel one come. I rolled to my side took a deep breath and as the contraction started my sweet little angle kicked and gush!!! My water broke!! I was relieved! This was happening!! (3:45am)
I told the nurse and she looked at me like I had no idea what I was talking about. She checked and sure enough my water broke! Annoyed, she said well it looks like you will be staying now. She walked out to tell the head nurse and I looked at Michael excited that we were having a baby. When the nurse walked in she looked at me and told me not to smile. I was shocked with how rude she was. The contractions started to come and I asked for an epidural. I had been up more than 24 hours and I knew I had a while to go.
We got to the room and she set up my IV. I was group b strep positive so she started to give me the antibiotic and it killed. My arm was on fire and my contractions were strong. I had to have the whole dose of medicine and a whole bag of fluid before I could get the epidural. Finally I was able to get the epidural. I was shaking a lot now and he started to work. He gave me a shot to start the numbing process and it worked instantly! Then he had a hard time getting the epidural in. He kept hitting veins and having to start over but I felt none of it luckly! The epidural was in by 5:20am. I was exausted and was struggling to keep my eyes open.
My nurse started to be nicer and was more supportive which was a switch. She let me rest for an hour and then I had the need to push. When she came back in I told her and she said she would check me. She didn't think I would progress very fast so she hadn't checked me since we got back to the hospital. It was around 6:30am and when she checked I was dilated to 9cm! The nurse panicked and started setting the room up for baby. At 7 she called the doctor and she came in and checked me around 7:30am.
The on call doctor casually walked in and checked me. Right away she told me I was not at 9, I was a 7 if that and I was swollen and baby was sunny side up. You could see the nurse feel silly. I was really frustrated that everyone had been telling me different things. The doctor told the nurse to put me on pitocin, have me lay on my stomach, and put this long stick in that truly measures contractions. The doctor left and a new nurse walked in. The nurses switched information and by 8 I was on my side/stomach with a very little amount of pitocin to help the baby turn around.
For an hour I laid on my side/stomach I had oxygen and I did all I could not to push and endure the extreme pressure. The pressure was intense by now and I was exausted. My doctors office is in the hospital so my doctor stopped by to check on things before she headed to the office. I was relieved that the doctor on call wouldn't be delivering my baby and that it was now Wednesday and my doctor was at the Laguna Hills office on Wednesdays.
Around 9 my nurse came back in and I told her I wanted to push! It felt better when I pushed, it relieved the pressure. She agreed to support me in my decision and after 2 contractions of pushes she told me to take it easy so she could call the doctor. She told my doctor to hurry over and in 10 minites she was walking in putting on shoe covers. I had a contraction and pushed. Then I took a few breaths and the next contraction came and I pushed again and her head popped out! Everyone was telling me to stop because my doctor didn't have her gloves on to catch the baby. I pushed again and my doctor put her other glove on and caught the baby.
Ellanore Mae was born at 9:14am. She weighed 7lb 3oz and was 20in long.
It was a beautiful birth. I felt most everything and felt accomplished. The spirit was strong and I know that I was able to endure because I prayed for help and a very loving Father in Heaven blessed me with strength. I'm grateful for the priesthood and the strength that it also provides. I am also so grateful to have my sweet baby girl here and that Olivia and Walter love her so much already. I am so extremely grateful for Michael and all his love and support!
