Thursday, February 18, 2010

Eli is here!

Well, as I am sure you all know....Eli is here! Yay! I am in love...I am smitten....Eli is wonderful! It was actually, this time, one week ago that Eli was beginning to make his way into my arms. That is right, he is already one week old. They say 'time flies', and that is true. I can't believe he is already that old...and that Keith and I have been newborn parents for one week...and made it!

So, here is the brief (but actually very long) birth story. As you all heard from my last post, that I a trickle on Monday night, and an appointment on Tuesday. What I didn't tell you, is that my midwife said I probably 'wouldn't make it through the weekend' without labor (I didn't want to jinx myself). As the week progressed I became more and more anxious for the little guy to arrive. I suppose my body and mind knew that it was almost time. On Tuesday I took a nice long walk to enjoy the weather and help the process. Then, all day Tuesday and Wednesday I experienced cramping and contractions, but 'no labor'. Wednesday night I felt achy and sick, and then dreamt all night long about going into labor and having my water break. To be honest, every time I woke up to use the restroom I was surprised (and disappointed) I wasn't in labor yet. I guess, I just 'knew'. When I woke up Thursday morning, I had two 'leaks' run down my left and right leg. That was right about the time that I was taking in the winter wonderland that was outside our window.

I called my midwife who asked me to come in for an exam. She concluded that I had a 'rupture' or 'leak' and needed to get checked into the hospital. Keith thought that we had time to go home and clean the house, but that was not the case. We got to the hospital around 9am, and I was given Pitocin around 10am. The pitocin was because I was only 1 cm dilated, and basically had to be induced. I knew at this time, I would be having an epidural! I 'labored' until 2-3pm on pitocin until the midwife got to the hospital. She did an exam to discover I was still only 1cm dilated and had my bag of water. She proceeded to rupture my water, and my contractions went from 'tolerable' to 'intense'. Therefore, it wasn't long after that I was getting my epidural (just a shame that I wasn't dilated more).

Time started to fly as the day went by, the snow continued to fall, and my level of comfort slowly started to disappear. I made such slooooow progress from the afternoon into the night. I was only about 4cm dilated (I think) around 9pm. At this point things were looking dismal, and I was starting to wrap my head around a c-section. However, I was staying optimistic and really had the 'what happens, happens' attitude. Suddenly, it was midnight and the night was not nearly as fun as my day. My family and friends were very tired and worried.

It was around this 'dark hour' that I found light. I suddenly changed my 'what happens, happens' attitude, and changed to 'I am going to do what it takes'. I changed my attitude because I couldn't stand the idea of Eli 'doing his part' and me not doing mine. He was so low in my birth canal and doing such a great job, and it was my body that was not progressing for him to come out. I started saying lots of prayers, and asked for lots of advice. I spent the rest of my night pushing my body to get dilated from 7cm to 10cm, otherwise it was going to be a c-section. (See, they wanted Eli out by 7am, because they considered my water breaking at that time on Thursday). My nurse helped me flip from side to side every 30 minutes and try different positions to sit/lay in. My epidural would wear off here and there, I would get nauseous and sick, and was overall very uncomfortable and nervous.

Finally, it was 5:30am when my midwife showed up to exam me. I couldn't believe it...but I was a 10!!! I pulled it off! I was able to have Eli 'naturally'. Then it got fun...no really! Aliza (my midwife) had snuck in the back entrance, and our family didn't know she was there. So, she thought it would be fun if we 'secretly had' Eli and surprised the family. The goal was to deliver Eli without the family having an idea, and surprise them with his arrival.

So, after about 45 minutes of pushing, our Eli was here! I can remember vividly the first few things that I thought when I saw him. First, "I can't believe that baby just came out of my body!". Second, "I can't believe that baby is my son!". Third, "I can't believe he has ALL OF THAT HAIR!". It was a very special and 'aww inspiring' moment. God, is good and makes the most amazing miracles happen in life. He was born at 6:24am on Friday morning, February 12th. He weighed 8lbs and 6.9oz and measured 19in in length.

And the 'fun part'....Before the pushing started, Keith texted the family with a few excuses
to hold them at bay and not try to come in the room. The nurses had the room on 'lock down' so no one would let the news slip on accident. After Eli arrived, Keith and I had a few moments together as a 'new family'. Then, he set out to lobby filled with our friends and family. He proceeded to tell them I was about to undergo a c-section. He told them that I was positive, but wanted to see them before getting prepped for surgery. He, then, proceeded to walk them into my room, where Aliza waited in the corner with a video camera to capture the moment. As they walked in the room and pulled back the curtain, there I was laying in bed holding Eli. The look on their faces was shocked and amazed! They appreciated the surprise after the 24 hours of diminishing anticipation...although made sure to call Keith out for his 'white lie'. It was truly a great experience and fun story to have.

So...that is the story. I know it is long, but I did my best to consolidate a 24 hour day....one of the most important days of my life! I will be updating this when I can to tell you all about my life as a new mother and tell you about my wonderful baby boy. But, I can say this, at least...I love it! God is amazing! He has blessed Keith and I so much, and we have so much to be thankful for. Thank you for all of your prayers and blessings for our family, we truly feel like that have been answered.

2 comments:

KRiSTiN said...

Awwww. Great story! I love the surprise for your family! How awesome and you have it on video! That's so great. Congrats!!

Mat-n-Amanda said...

Great story. Congratulations on not having to have a c-section. You did it! What a lucky boy!