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Saturday night at 8pm Jesse and I decided to go into the hospital because I thought my water broke... and when you're overdue in a pregnancy any sign of labor makes you excited and you want it checked out. Jesse and I brought our bags just in case, but I honestly thought they were going to tell me that everything was normal and that we could go home. So we went to the ER and they wheeled me upstairs to the birthing floor. This kind of made me nervous because I thought they were just going to do a quick test in the ER and send us home, but when she wheeled me upstairs I kind of though it could really be happening. The lady brought us to a room and told me to put on a gown and wait for the doctor. At this point I was really really nervous/excited/not ready/ready/anxious -- pregnancy will do that to you. The doctor came in and told me that my water did not break but that she could start the process if we wanted. I was really uncomfortable with making a decision like that, because I didn't want to speed a natural process up, but at the same time I wanted to think of what was best for Norah. Jesse and I talked about it and decided that we should start the process since I was overdue and the pregnancy can get kind of risky the longer you are overdue. The doctor came in and we told her the decision and the process began... She broke my water and my contractions started all on their own... After they broke my water Jesse went out to the car and brought up our bags (which had been packed for almost a month in advance.) =] We thought Norah was coming much earlier than she did. My contractions were pretty mild so we had to do some waiting in the hospital. While we waited we did some walking and watched "Friends" hoping to speed the process along. As my contractions increased I asked for an epidural around three in the morning. The first epidural didn't work so I had to have a second one, but the second worked perfect! After the epidural Jesse and I were able to rest in hopes that my contractions increase and that I would dilate.
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| Jesse's bed -- not comfy at all =/ |
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| Norah's heartbeat at the top, my contractions on the bottom |
As we slept we were comforted by the sound of Norah's heart tones. I was hooked up to two monitors. The top line (in the yellow) was Norah's heart rate monitor. As long as the little black line stayed in the middle of the yellow area she was doing great! Her heart tones were very comforting to listen to as I drifted off to sleep. The bottom line monitored my contractions. My contractions were not that scary looking. Jesse took a picture when the nurse was adjusting the monitor so it looks like was experiencing some pretty scary contractions, but I wasn't. =] My contractions started to space out as the night progressed so the doctor thought it would be a good idea to give me some pitocin.
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| My sweet husband by my side. |
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| Jesse was such a huge help. I could not have done it without him. |
Jesse was so unbelievably helpful and supportive. I knew he was going to do a great job, but he really helped me through. Even though he had to sleep in a really uncomfortable hospital char he was very encouraging and uplifting when I was getting nervous or anxious. I thank the Lord for such a blessing. The next morning around 7 I started feeling some contractions so I mentioned it to the nurse and she realized that I ran out of epidural fluid. She called the anesthesiologist only to find out that she was in surgery and couldn't leave and that I would have to wait until she was done in surgery. The contractions continued and it got worse. I experienced 45 minutes of very intense contractions before they refilled my epidural fluid. It was no fun at all, but Jesse was super helpful. After they replaced my fluid I was much happier, and so was Jesse. =] Throughout the night I dilated quite a bit and was ready to push by ten in the morning. So the doctor and nurses all came in and we began the process.
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| After they replaced the fluid anticipating the pushing process. |
After two and a half hours of pushing Norah Kristine Fullan was born! She weighed 9 lbs 5 oz and was 21 inches long! She was one big girl -- so big that the doctor had to use a vacuum for the last push. She came out with a ton of hair which made all of the heartburn during the pregnancy all worth it! She is the sweetest...
Our hospital stay was great. We had wonderful nurses who offered so much help. Transitioning into the world of parenting is pretty scary at points, but staying two days in the hospital to start it all out was so helpful. Jesse and I were able to get some rest and we got a lot of great advice from the nurses/consultants that came to our room.
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| Mommy with sweet baby girl. |
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| father daughter time =] |
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| After her first bath |
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| Daddy burping his little girl. |
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| On our way home from the hospital. A new beginning! |
