I have to admit, I am not a patient person in the slightest. With both Alexander and Jacob we never made it to the due date. Alexander was born a day early and Jacob was born almost a whole week early. With both boys, my water broke on it's own. So of course, as the days got closer I tried every old wives tale to help her come (except the castor oil...because ew! gross!). Anyway, I eventually just resorted to begging her to break my water. Well, I don't know if I was too impatient or what, but I really truly had thought my water broke in the afternoon of Monday, March 16. At about 2:30 I kept feeling like my water broke. So I called Scott, and he got off work early. We had to wait for his family to arrive so we could leave the kids with them. So we probably made it to the hospital about 5:00 pm.
Our nurse was really great. She was constantly cracking jokes and kept referring to the baby as "Baby Princess Sarah" because we had told her that Alexander would always call my belly "Baby Princess Sarah". (Side story: Shortly after we had chosen Sarah for her name, Alexander called my belly Baby Princess. We explained that her name was Sarah which means princess. Since then he has called her that, and he still calls her that now that she is a month old!) Anyway, the nurse would instruct anyone who came in the room that they should refer to her as "Baby Princess Sarah."
Just before 7:00 pm, I gladly welcomed the epidural. We did notice through the time there that her heart rate kept jumping back and forth. We didn't think too much of it though. At one point I remember it going down to 90 and another it was only 30 (that one scared me a little). Anyway, the nurse kept coming in and checking me. At around 10:00 pm, she came in to check me. I was progressing nicely and was dilated to about a 7. Every time the nurse came in she would check me and then she would have a student nurse check me right after. She wouldn't tell how far I had progressed until the student nurse told her how far she thought I was. After this last check she instructed me to call her if I felt the epidural was starting to wear off or I was getting more intense contractions because it could mean I was progressing more quickly.
Anyway, after about an hour or so, the nurse came in to check me again, and then had the student nurse check me. In the middle of the student nurse checking me, the baby's heart rate went crazy. All of a sudden, the nurse was yelling for the student to get her hands out, and then the room seemed to be flooded with nursing staff. They hooked me up to an oxygen mask and the nurse started yelling for someone to call the doctor. It was about this point I was inwardly freaking out. There were so many people surrounding me and Scott kind of sat on the bench out of reach. He must have not been too worried, but when he saw the worried look in my eyes, he came and held my hand.
It felt like only moments later the doctor came in. He checked me and said I was dilated to a 10 and encouraged me to start pushing. It didn't take long, and she arrived. When Sarah was born, the nurse said the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck and was hanging down her chest and she was squeezing it. She said our "Baby Princess Sarah" just had to come out wearing her feather boa. Luckily, as soon as she was born, everything was great. She weighed 7 pounds 6 ounces and was 18 inches long (though we suspect someone measured incorrectly because she was 20 inches at her two week check up, so who knows).
We ended up staying just one day at the hospital, and leaving around midnight of the 18th to save on the hospital bills. The boys were still able to visit us a couple of times that day. It was so fun seeing how excited they were to meet their baby sister. They surprised me so much with how gentle they both were! Jacob was super cute. He asked to hold her and didn't want to let her go. He didn't like anyone else holding her either and would point to the bassinet in the room and say, "Baby's bed!" It was a real treat to have them visit, and they continue to be great with her.
The first few weeks nursing was a little tough, but we have since worked out all the tweaks. She is truly our little princess and we are grateful to have her as the newest member of our family.
Anyway, after about an hour or so, the nurse came in to check me again, and then had the student nurse check me. In the middle of the student nurse checking me, the baby's heart rate went crazy. All of a sudden, the nurse was yelling for the student to get her hands out, and then the room seemed to be flooded with nursing staff. They hooked me up to an oxygen mask and the nurse started yelling for someone to call the doctor. It was about this point I was inwardly freaking out. There were so many people surrounding me and Scott kind of sat on the bench out of reach. He must have not been too worried, but when he saw the worried look in my eyes, he came and held my hand.
It felt like only moments later the doctor came in. He checked me and said I was dilated to a 10 and encouraged me to start pushing. It didn't take long, and she arrived. When Sarah was born, the nurse said the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck and was hanging down her chest and she was squeezing it. She said our "Baby Princess Sarah" just had to come out wearing her feather boa. Luckily, as soon as she was born, everything was great. She weighed 7 pounds 6 ounces and was 18 inches long (though we suspect someone measured incorrectly because she was 20 inches at her two week check up, so who knows).
The first few weeks nursing was a little tough, but we have since worked out all the tweaks. She is truly our little princess and we are grateful to have her as the newest member of our family.
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