Thursday, March 26, 2009

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Kaden's Birth Story















It was two and half weeks before our big due date. It started as a usual Tuesday. I went to school just like usual and spent the day with my 24 second graders. Since it was the week of Valentine’s Day I stayed late to get some activities ready for the next day. By the time I got home around 7:00p.m. I was pretty exhausted. Brian and I ate dinner and settled on the couch to watch the UK vs. Florida game. Around half-time I got up to go to the bathroom for the 100th time that day. As I walked across the living room I felt a huge kick in my lower belly. I blurted out an “ouch” and continued my journey half asleep. Once there, I began to feel a trickle of water that I was sure was just pee. Brian, hearing my “ouch” from before, came to check on me. After several minutes of curious expressions and confused conversation, we decided it was best to call my sister to see what she thought. Thank God for sisters. My sister said. “I think your water just broke. Call the hospital.” Brian nervously sought the tiny card labeled “What to do if you think your in labor” and called the on-call doctor. “Bring her right in” were the words he heard. Since our baby was in a breech position, time was of the essence in our situation. With wide eyes and a mixture of excitement and nervousness Brian and I raced around the house to finish packing my hospital bag. Brian and I were pretty sure it was just a false alarm but we didn’t want to risk it. It was then, though, that I started to feel the tightness of the first contractions. Whewww! What an uncomfortable feeling.

It was a little after 11:00 p.m. and we were on our way to the hospital. The first thing that popped into my head as we drove down the narrow country road was Brian’s parents. I turned to Brian and said, “Oh no, your parents are going to just die!” You see, Brian’s parents were with his brother on a cruise in the Caribbean. Before they left his mom said “Now don’t have that baby without me.” I reassured her over and over again that this baby wouldn’t be early. I even joked that this baby wouldn’t come until March. Brian and I imagined how disappointed they would be if we really had our baby this night.

With Brian in the driver’s seat and my sister on the phone keeping track of contractions, I felt thankful I had them to help soothe my pain. My contractions were mostly in my lower abdomen and bottom. They were quickly becoming closer and closer together. It was around midnight when Brian drove the jeep up to the hospital’s entrance. He dropped me off at the door and quickly found a parking spot. We slowly made our way to the labor and delivery ward and got checked in. It seemed like my contractions were right on top of each other at this point.

The nurses scrambled to get paperwork completed and monitors hooked up to my belly. The nurse checked my cervix and found that I was 2 centimeters dilated. She also checked the position of the baby. Unsure if she was feeling the baby’s head or bottom, she called in another nurse. After that nurse checked, they finally called in the doctor to be sure. Dr. Guiller performed a quick ultrasound to determine the baby’s position. Sure enough, she was still breech. It was then that he turned to Brian and me and said, “It looks like we’re having a c-section tonight. Since there’s no one else in line, you’re up. We’ll have this baby out in 30 minutes.” A huge surge of emotions raced through me. I could tell the same was true for Brian. It was all happening so fast.

It wasn’t long before the hospital staff was wheeling me down the hall. It was there that Brian and I saw my sister and mom rushing to catch us. They made it just in time!

As I got prepped for surgery I finally felt relief with the epidural. The pain medication relaxed every part of my body. After a few minutes Brian came in dressed in scrubs and stood by my side. The doctor and nurses, each with their specific roles, carefully worked together. Brian watched as Dr. Guiller reached in and pulled two little tiny legs out of my abdomen. In a blink of an eye the rest of her body was out and she was laid on my belly. The whole time I watched Brian’s eyes in an effort to see for myself this amazing event. At 1:45 a.m. on February 11th our little girl made her entrance into this world – healthy and perfect in every way!