She’s Here!

We had Ruby Lucille Carmella at 10:28pm on January 28th.  She weighed 7 pounds, 5 ounces and surprised us all with a beautiful head covered in blonde hair –not red like David’s or brown like mine.

Does the internet need another birth story? I’m not really sure, but I’ll add mine to the pile anyway.  If this sort of thing grosses you out, feel free to skip on down to the pictures.  On Wednesday, 1/26, I went to my 39 week midwife appointment and had an ultrasound because I was measuring large.  The ultrasound said that I was carrying a giant baby–9 1/2 pounds, they estimated!  My midwife offered us a c-section, which we declined, and then told us we could try induction that night and just go home if it didn’t work.  That sounded reasonable to us, so we were scheduled to start the induction at 9:30 that evening.  We checked into the hospital that night, feeling excited and hopeful that we might leave there with a baby!  This is where the avalanche of complications began.  The room with the birthing tub was occupied and I had to get an iv started and be monitored, since we were inducing.  I was disappointed, but okay.  Next, they took my vitals and my blood pressure, which had been normal that morning, was high.  I figured I was just feeling nervous and asked if they would take it again in a minute.  It was even higher.  Finally, after several hours and dozens of blood pressure checks, I was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia and my normal, healthy pregnancy was now high risk.  There was no “going home” option if the induction failed.

All day Thursday, I had mild contractions, but made very little progress, even after my midwife broke my water, which was a very weird sensation.  Early the next morning, they put me on an iv of Pitocin, which is a stronger way to induce labor.  This made the contractions way worse and much closer together.  I labored this way for about 11 hours.  Contractions were bad, but I was relaxing through them and David and my mom were helping me a lot.  The nurses were pretty sure I was close and set up the baby area and I was starting to feel like the end was in sight.  I was wrong about that one.  My midwife came and checked me and I was only 5 cm dilated.  You can’t push till you’re 10.  My blood pressure was still very high, so she wanted to increase the Pitocin and get the baby out soon to avoid a c-section.  At that point, I decided to get an epidural.  I hadn’t slept or eaten since we checked into the hospital and I was very discouraged to only be halfway dilated.  So I got the epidural and they cranked the Pitocin up as high as it would go.  The pain relief was instant, but short lived.  It gave me the break I needed, though.  At 6:30, my midwife checked me again and told me I could start pushing.  The epidural had worn off by then, so I was ready to start pushing and get the labor over with!  You guys, it’s hard for me to describe what pushing felt like, but it was pretty much the worst thing ever.  And it lasted for 4 hours.  It seemed like it would never end.  I kept asking, “Am I closer??!” and the midwife would say, “Well, you’re closer than you were last time!”, which is the worst answer, because it basically means no.  Finally, another doctor came in and told me that I had three more  chances to push and then I would have to have a c-section.  I told her I would need a new epidural.  On my next push, she was out.  I was shocked that it was over and immediately felt like it hadn’t really been that bad after all (although I now realize that it was, in fact, that bad).  The doctor put Ruby on my chest and I was surprised at how warm and soft she felt–not slimy at all, like I had imagined she might be.  David cut the cord, which reminded me of calamari, and after a few minutes, they took her away to get some antibiotics and be observed, since she had such a dramatic entrance into the world.  David  went with her and my mom stayed with me.  They were so great during the whole labor and delivery–they never let on how tired, frustrated, and worried they were feeling.  There was a lot of love in that room and it really helped me get through the hard parts.

David and I ate turkey melts and fries from the cafeteria that night and Ruby rejoined us around 4am.  We stayed in the hospital for another two days and were finally discharged at 10:00pm on January 30th.  I now feel mostly recovered and Ruby is doing great–she has already gained a pound (probably because she eats all. the. time.) and changes every day.  Transitioning from “couple” to “family” has been weird, wonderful, and overwhelming.

On to the pictures!

Brand New Ruby!

Tiny Feet

Funny Faces

Sleeping Beauty