Her official due date was Sunday, February 24, 2013. A few weeks before that I had started having Braxton Hicks contractions. They were mild, random, and only happened a few at a time. I thought, "If this is what contractions feel like, I've got this!" Hahaha... Wow, was I wrong.
I did have one small false alarm moment one evening a few days before her due date, where I had 5 or 6 contractions in a row within an hour. I looked at Lane and said, "You know, this could be it!" Well, it wasn't. The contractions completely stopped and we went to bed, another night to sleep all the way through. :-)
Since McKenzie did not arrive on her due date I went in for one last OB appointment on Monday, February 25. I was 1 cm dilated, but not having a baby yet. We decided to schedule an induction for Thursday, February 28 and we went home to wait some more.
Now, on to the fun part of this story.
On Tuesday, February 26 I woke up around 6 or 7 in the morning with contractions. I couldn't fall back asleep because they just kept happening. They were still fairly mild and pretty random, but enough to keep me up. So, I went downstairs and waited with a cup of coffee to see if this would turn into the real thing.
Around noon they stopped. About 6 hours of random contractions and they just stopped! I went back up to bed to get some more sleep. I know. I said I was on the fun part, and it's coming up.
Once I finally got out of bed later that afternoon, Lane and I went on about our day. Lane went to the store to pick up some things to make for dinner, and I stayed home pretty much being lazy. I was exhausted that last week before she was born.
Lane made some delicious smoked sausage with sour kraut. Yum! We ate dinner around 10 in the evening. We've always been late eaters. After I finished my plate, I settled into our sofa chair to watch a little Netflix and drift off to sleep.
Then, around midnight I felt a contraction!
It really wasn't all that exciting. It felt exactly like all the other ones I had felt so far, and after what I had gone through that morning I was not at all expecting it to be the real thing.
We went up to bed, and I started timing the contractions just in case they did do something special. They were all over the place. I would have one that was 1 minute long then another one 10 minutes later that lasted 3 minutes and then 25 minutes would go by before the next one that would only last 30 seconds. They stayed completely random and still didn't really hurt, and even though I was not at all concerned about these "FAKE" contractions sending me to the hospital, they did keep me up.
Then, around 3 AM they changed. They went from being slightly uncomfortable to slightly painful, then to ouch ouch I can't move. They still stayed completely random in length and timing though. So, I didn't wake Lane up, and I did not want to call the hospital until I was sure.
"Sure" meant contractions that lasted about 60 to 90 seconds and came at 5 minute intervals. Yeah right!
I finally woke Lane up around 6 AM because the contractions were getting more and more painful. They were random and I was still having some contractions up to 15 minutes apart. I did not care. I told him I wasn't sure if this was it or not, but I wanted to call the hospital anyway. If it ended up being false labor then so be it. I knew I wouldn't be the first or last woman to have that happen, and I knew it was ok if I went to the hospital and they just sent me home again to wait.
I finally called the hospital around 6:30 and spoke to a nurse. She said that she would have the on call physician call me back in a few minutes. When the physician called back, she asked me how long my contractions were lasting, how far apart they were, and how they felt. She then told me I could either come in right then or wait till my OB's office opened at 8 so they could check if I was actually in labor. I opted for the first one.
As soon as I got off the phone, Lane and I scrambled to get ready and get all of our things together to go to the hospital. Well, Lane scrambled while I moved very slowly having to stop with each contraction to sit and breathe.
We got to the hospital around 7:30 that morning and I was triaged. Pretty much, I was put in a temporary holding room with a gown to put on and a bed to lay in until a nurse determined whether I was in labor or not. The nurse came in about 15 minutes later, checked me out and sure enough I was already 4 cm dilated! I got to upgrade to my own personal labor and delivery suite. Woohoo! We were going to have a baby!
 |
| I am wearing this oh so beautiful gown by Le Hospital while waiting on the nurse. |
 |
| My labor and delivery pedi and my lovely swollen cankles. |
My contractions still weren't regular up to this point. They were as random as ever, but they kept getting more and more painful. So, all of you soon to be mommas out there, just know that the whole "5 minutes apart, 1 minute long contraction" thing doesn't always happen. If I had tried to hold out for that to happen, it probably never would have and Lane might have been delivering our baby at home. So, I am glad I went with my gut, or my uterus to be more precise.
I had let my nurse know that I definitely wanted an epidural. So, when we got into our room, she set up an oh so lovely IV in my left arm to give me fluids. I DO NOT like needles.
My contractions kept coming randomly and painfully. With each contraction I would turn up on my side and grip the bed rail for dear life. Yeah, it was that bad, or maybe I just have a low pain tolerance.
Finally at 8:30 the anesthesiologist came into my room to stick a huge needle into my back and make the pain go away. Hmmm... That makes a lot of sense. Actually, the needle wasn't as huge as I always thought it would be, and I would take being poked in the back over my contractions any day. I did end up having to feel the needle twice, because he missed the first time. Ouch :-(
Within 15 minutes I was as happy as I could be. I could't feel any pain below my waist and I was going to meet my baby girl sometime that day!
 |
| Very obviously after my epidural. I am happy and pain free! |
My nurse started a Pitocin drip on me to even out the timing of my contractions and then my Dr broke my water for me. She told us it probably would't be too much longer now. We all guessed we would get to meet her some time that afternoon.
 |
| Mmm. Grape popsicle! |
 |
| Yep. All I could eat. :-( I was so hungry. |
Several hours and a couple of yummy popsicles later, I was 10 cm dilated and it was time to start pushing. It was 3 PM when my nurse started guiding me through each contraction, telling me when to push and for how long.
McKenzie was already in the birth canal and I could feel the pressure every time I had a contraction now. There was still no pain though. Yay for epidural! Lane saw her head crowning and asked me if I wanted to see. I did! So, they wheeled a big mirror in, and I got to see the top of my little girls head full of hair for the first time!
About 15 minutes before she was officially here, the nurse had to tell me to stop pushing because my doctor wasn't there yet and my contractions were pushing McKenzie out without any help from me. I think she was ready to see the world.
My Dr arrived a few minutes later, just in time to deliver a healthy beautiful baby girl at 3:42 PM. Quote of the day from my Dr, "Wow! She looks really Asian!" Lane and I absolutely loved my OB by the way.
 |
| One of the nurses wrote this for us. |
Lane got to cut the umbilical cord as we saw McKenzie for the first time!
My Dr handed her to the nurses to get cleaned up and checked out to make sure everything was looking good.
 |
| Weighing in at 8 lb 10 oz and measuring 21 inches long she was a bit bigger than we had expected. |
 |
| She wasn't too happy about being poked and prodded out in this bright new world. |
Finally, I got to hold this amazing baby girl!
 |
| Exhausted but I am so happy I can't even tell. |
 |
| Lane is one proud daddy! |
 |
| Staring at my amazing baby girl in absolute awe. |
Lane, McKenzie, and I could not have asked for a smoother labor and delivery experience. My Dr and all the nurses that helped in bringing McKenzie Ellyse into our arms were absolutely awesome. They were all so kind and helpful, and I could not thank them enough for helping to make that day the best day of my life!
McKenzie opened and forever changed my heart and soul that day and has continued to do so every day since then.
