Tufts Tidbits: Ella's Birth Story

At my 37 1/2 week appointment, my OB checked everything out and assumed I wouldn't be going into labor before my appointment the following week. Each time I went in, I had no changes happening, so this wasn't a big surprise. It was amazing that I had made it past 37 weeks with no Braxton Hicks Contractions and no complications. What a blessing! However, I was starting to wonder if I was ever going to start progressing and how far past my due date (Feb. 13th) Ella was going to be :) I was really wanting to have her before Valentine's Day. She did tell me that my cervix was starting to soften slightly, so at least a tiny bit of change was starting to happen.

37 weeks pregnant

With only 2 weeks left until my due date, we thought it would be fun to plan a weekend of hanging out with friends (since we knew those times were not going to be happening as often soon). We hung out with the Guinn's on Friday night and had a great time together. Julee is also pregnant (15 weeks behind me), so we always have fun sharing pregnancy stories and info. We went to "happy hour" at McCormick & Schmicks and the guys enjoyed a couple drinks while us pregger ladies enjoyed the food :) Saturday afternoon, I got to hang out with Melissa & Bethany and watch old movies and do some girl chatting. On Saturday night, we met up with the Schapperts, a couple of their friends, & Julee for dinner at Thistle Cafe. I hadn't been able to hang out with Paul & Melissa in a while, so it was nice to catch up. After dinner, we went over to the Schapperts to play some games. We had such a good time and I laughed all night. At one point while playing Buzzword, I got so tickled at an answer Julee threw out there ("whisp"), that tears were pouring out of my eyes because I was laughing so hard. As we headed home, I told Mark that it wouldn't surprise me if I went into labor soon because I had laughed so hard that I was having to hold my belly :0 I was totally kidding!!!

Julee & me with our baby bumps

We got home around 11:30 and I got ready for bed. Mark wanted to watch a little bit of SportsCenter, but I was tired so I told him only for about 10 or 15 minutes because I hate being woken up when he gets into bed after I'm already there. I got into bed about 11:45 and got comfortable. That's when I felt a small gush...I went into the bathroom thinking it can't possibly be my water breaking; I've had no signs of going into labor at all! So, I stood on the bathroom mat for a while wondering what was really going on and what I was supposed to do at this point because Mark was in the media room and I couldn't leave that spot in the bathroom. Luckily, he took to heart my warning of only watching TV for a few minutes and came into the bathroom. I told him I think my water broke, but I'm not sure. He laughed because it was completely obvious that is what had happened. He called the on-call doctor who told us to come on in to the hospital. At this point, I was still unsure of really being in labor because I hadn't had any contractions yet. Everything I read told me I was supposed to have contractions for a long time at home before going to the hospital and then my water would break. This was not the way I imagined it. We spent the next hour packing and getting ready for our trip to the hospital. We arrived at St. David's at 1:30am on January 31, 2010.

Once we checked in, I was assessed and quickly hooked up to an IV. My water had definitely broke (as if that wasn't obvious by this point), but I still wasn't having contractions. I had an occasional minor cramping sensation, but it was even less intense than a light menstrual cramp. The doctor decided I needed to be given Pitocin to increase the intensity of my contractions. We were told to try to sleep for a few hours. Mark was able to nap, but I couldn't. All the anticipation was too much for me to be able to relax; plus I was starting to feel the cramps get stronger. After about 3 hours, I finally started feeling the contractions as much more than just cramps and they continued to increase in frequency, duration, and intensity. Luckily, I was still able to concentrate and breath through them. At 8am, I was dilated to a 3.5 and started thinking about my epidural. I knew it took some time for it to be administered and take effect, and I didn't want to wait until I was miserable. Within an hour or so, I had received the epidural and was a much happier momma-to-be. That's when the family started to arrive. I still couldn't sleep, so we just hung out and talked about how exciting this adventure was. The little girl I was afraid wouldn't make it here before Valentine's Day wanted to be born in January!

After the epidural :)

The waiting game has begun

Making the most of their long wait for Ella's arrival

The Pitocin continued in my system and eventually had to be increased because I wasn't progressing much. The doctor expected me to have the baby before the sun went down. At about 3pm, he checked me and said I was at a 9 1/2 and it shouldn't be much longer. However, I stayed at a 9 1/2 for the next 3 hours. He finally decided it was time to push at 6pm even though I wasn't fully dilated. So, with Mark & the nurse's help (I couldn't lift my legs-they were completely numb), I started pushing. This was the point where Mark started to feel a little sick and had to take a backseat to all the action. Luckily, my mom was in the room too and was able to take over. After a few rounds of pushing, the doctor came in and said he had a guest with him (not a time you really want a visitor in your room). I looked over to see my OB with him and she was going to take over to deliver little Ella. What a wonderful surprise!!! I had been sad that she wasn't on-call when I came in because she's been such a blessing through my whole pregnancy. Dr. Harris got ready and took her place. At 7:21pm, about an hour and 15 minutes later, little Ella was here!!! My mom cut the umbilical cord and Mark made his way over to us to celebrate this new life.

Fast forward through all the stitches and clean-up. Dr. Harris put Ella on my chest and I was finally able to see this amazing little girl that God blessed us with. She was so alert and content. I couldn't believe she was actually here; outside of my belly for me to hold on to. What an incredible blessing! I'm still in amazement over the whole process of pregnancy and childbirth. What amazing things God can do in us and how perfect his plan is. Mark and I couldn't take our eyes off her. We now joke that we were having too much fun laughing out here and Ella wanted to join in on all the fun. What a wonderful way to start the entrance of her life into this world; surrounded by friends, family, love, and laughter!