It really all started on Saturday, April 25th, when I started having contractions. They started out seven to eight minutes apart, and a few hours later were four to five minutes apart. And they were the doubled-over can't talk kind. We called the doctor who told us we should probably meet him at the hospital in a couple hours, or sooner if the contractions got stronger and closer together. So we got everything together, I practiced some deep breathing and relaxation, and then the contractions stopped. Fast forward to Thursday, April 30th. I was at school. I had just brought my kiddies back from lunch and we were starting math baskets when I felt a trickle and wondered if it was amniotic fluid. I left my class with Mrs. Trout and called the doctor. At first they told me to go straight to the hospital. But then they decided I could come into their office to get checked. So I called Mike, and he left Kokomo and met me at the doctor's office.
Dr. Seward confirmed that it most likely was amniotic fluid, and told us that we could go home, take our time (but not too much time) getting any last minute things together (and decide if I wanted to pack my fuzzy slippers) and then head to the hospital! Here are the very last pregnant pictures from that afternoon.
And here I am at the hospital! Still pregnant!
Hooked up to monitors and maybe pitocin, but I don't really remember... Everything falls into two categories in my mind: the Connie period and the Ruth period. They were our two nurses during the labor process. I think this was the Ruth period. I was really apprehensive about getting pitocin, because I'd heard such awful things about it, so I decided to have them give me some stadol to "take the edge off." Well, it turns out that stadol is not my friend. I hated it, it made me feel completely out of control and loopy. I don't even think it made my contractions feel different at all; it just made me feel sleepy and loopy. I think more because of my fear of pitocin and my hatred of stadol and because the girl next door was getting one, I ended up getting an epidural sometime around 8:00 or 9:00. I remember Dr. Seward (knowing I hadn't wanted an epidural) saying something about how it probably wasn't going to be much longer, which sounded like a ridiculous statement to me at that time. I was pretty shocked when they announced I was ready to push a short time later. We started pushing around 10:00, and little baby Reeves was born at 10:56 pm. I even got to help pull the baby out and hold him immediately.
And here he is!
All cleaned up with Dr. Seward.
Dr. Seward confirmed that it most likely was amniotic fluid, and told us that we could go home, take our time (but not too much time) getting any last minute things together (and decide if I wanted to pack my fuzzy slippers) and then head to the hospital! Here are the very last pregnant pictures from that afternoon.
And here I am at the hospital! Still pregnant!
Hooked up to monitors and maybe pitocin, but I don't really remember... Everything falls into two categories in my mind: the Connie period and the Ruth period. They were our two nurses during the labor process. I think this was the Ruth period. I was really apprehensive about getting pitocin, because I'd heard such awful things about it, so I decided to have them give me some stadol to "take the edge off." Well, it turns out that stadol is not my friend. I hated it, it made me feel completely out of control and loopy. I don't even think it made my contractions feel different at all; it just made me feel sleepy and loopy. I think more because of my fear of pitocin and my hatred of stadol and because the girl next door was getting one, I ended up getting an epidural sometime around 8:00 or 9:00. I remember Dr. Seward (knowing I hadn't wanted an epidural) saying something about how it probably wasn't going to be much longer, which sounded like a ridiculous statement to me at that time. I was pretty shocked when they announced I was ready to push a short time later. We started pushing around 10:00, and little baby Reeves was born at 10:56 pm. I even got to help pull the baby out and hold him immediately.
And here he is!
All cleaned up with Dr. Seward.
