On Sunday, May 19th I drank the dreaded castor oil. It's a way that midwives use to induce. I had an appointment the next morning to schedule an induction because it was a full week past my due date and the doc didn't want to go much longer because baby was getting big. I was already going for stress tests on baby 2-3 times a week because they wanted to make sure everything was okay in there and it's best to get baby out before conditions start to deteriorate.
Anyways, I figured I didn't have anything else to lose and I didn't want to have a medical induction.
I took the castor oil early in the morning and then took a nap. I had a few contractions but nothing consistent. In the mean time, I sent Jonathan and Jack over to my Grammy's to deliver her meds. After they left, contractions started to pick up a bit, about every 10 minutes. Nothing really painful, but noticeable. I was starting to thing that if things continued, this might be it. I then get a phone call from Jonathan that the code on Grammy's med box had changed and he couldn't find the attendant that was supposed to be there. I was beyond pissed! No only are we paying someone to be there for those hours, but how could that code be changed without telling the person who deals with it???
Jonathan was frustrated, I was beyond pissed off and in labor, and Jack was getting antsy. After about 2 hours of looking for the attendant, I started making phone calls. After about 4 calls, I finally got in touch with her case manager. Contractions were 5-7 minutes apart and that guy got an ear full. I rarely yell at people but I unleashed on that guy. I have never had someone try to get off the phone as fast as possible before. Looking back it's kind of funny, at the time it was not funny at all.
Anyways, Jonathan and Jack went to a splash pad and I stayed at home cleaning something. Contractions continued. I called my dad to let him know that something was going on and that we may call him in the night to come stay with Jack. It was getting harder to talk through contractions.
The boys got back later that afternoon and contractions almost completely stopped. I was so bummed! I though for sure it was actually starting but they went back to every 15-20 minutes or so and seemed to be stalling. We fed Jack, gave him a bath, and I was preparing myself to schedule an induction but to try to get the doc to give me a few more days. Then we put Jack to bed and contractions started back up again almost immediately. 8 minutes apart and getting closer.
By about 10 that night I knew this was it. I sent Jonathan to bed for a few hours (on the couch) and I labored in the bedroom and bathroom while snacking occasionally. At 1:00 AM I tried to wake Jonathan because contractions were becoming really painful and I was ready to call my dad so we could head in when he go here. I was shaking Jonathan and all he did was snore. I decided to give him another hour. Contractions were 2-3 minutes apart and strong! I wasn't worried about waiting too long because my labor with Jack was 27 hours total and things had only been intense for about 4-5 hours at that point. At 2:00 I was able to wake him and we called my dad. He was here by 2:30 and we were off to the hospital.
Contractions slowed down a bit when we got there, which I was actually thankful for. A break from the intensity was good. They took us to an evaluation room and before they even checked me I told them that I wasn't leaving!!!! One way or the other, I was having a baby. At that point I was 3cm (was only 1cm at the appointment on Friday) which was at least progress. They got us a room and I continued to labor.
The contractions were only every 5 minutes or so. Still intense, but I had my tens unit on my back, I was leaning over a yoga ball propped in a laundry basket, and Jonathan was putting pressure on my back. Between contractions I would sit on the side of the bed and we would chat with the nurse. They put a "wireless" monitor on me so that I could move around a bit. I had to drag a battery pack and an IV poll around with me, it was a pain.
By about 7 AM I wanted drugs! It was shift change so we waited until we got a new nurse and then asked for the epi. Contractions were awful at that point and back to every 3 minutes or so. I remember it taking a long time to get it, but the doc was great and the epi worked perfectly. It didn't hurt at all going in (mine with Jack did a bit) and I could actually still move my legs pretty well. I needed some assistance rolling from side to side, but at least I could do a lot of it.
After the epi they checked me and I was at 5 cm. As soon as she was done I felt a Pop! And my water broke. There was muconium in the fluid so they had to take a few more precautions when she did arrive.
At this point we called everyone and then decided to rest a little. Every once-in-a-while the nurse would come in to help me roll over. They have you roll every 30 minutes or so because if you don't switch sides then the meds from the epi will wear off on one side. It's not fun. That happened with Jack and it's very weird to feel labor on one side of your body but not the other!
Shortly after 11 I rolled and then felt something. I asked the nurse to check me and she told me that I still had lots of time and she would be back in a bit to check. I tried to adjust and get comfortable but I was feeling too much pressure. I asked Jonathan to call the nurse back in because the baby was coming and I needed her to check NOW. She did and her head was right there, fully dilated. She asked me to do a practice push but as soon as I started, she told me to STOP and that she needed to call the doctor ASAP!
She ran out of the room and Jonathan and I looked at each other and I started to freak out! I was actually having a baby. AHHHH! The doc got there super quick and 2 pushes later Maggie was here. All 9lbs 6oz of her. She looked like a 1 month old because of how plump she was. The doc cleared her mouth and didn't find any signs of meconium so she was totally healthy and fine.
We snuggled and nursed and the whole time we were at the hospital they kept checking her blood sugar because of how big she was. It was always perfect though so I even managed to convince them to let us go home the next day.
I will write more about what life has been like since Maggie finally decided to arrive. To sum it up though, we are tired, everyone is adjusting well, and since we got the projectile vomiting/reflux issue settled a bit, everything is dandy.
Here are a few pics that I haven't shared on FB yet.
Her first bath at home!
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Both kiddos with their Grammy.
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And Grammy is totally in love with this girl. It's actually really enjoyable to visit her lately because she is so excited to see the baby.
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