Avery Ann
August 12, 2011
10:50pm
8lbs 14oz
21 inches
Avery's entrance into the world was nothing like we expected, to say the least. The outcome was fantastic, obviously, but the ride was wild.
I'm not sure that there was much else that I wanted or looked forward to more than going into labor. Every twinge I felt I willed to turn into a real contraction. Unfortunately, I had about 2 contractions on my own, total. Every week we'd go to the OB and I would cross my fingers and toes when he checked me out, only to hear, "Nope, no progress." At my 39 week appointment I was thrilled to hear that I was finally at 1cm, and at my 40 week appointment, just days before our scheduled induction, I was super bummed to hear I was still at 1cm.
So, on the evening of August 11th, Sam and I had our last dinner as just a couple at Chili's and headed to the hospital. As we were walking into the hospital the outer part of the wheel on our suitcase flew off. We laughed that this labor and delivery was clearly going to be "wheels off". If only we knew!
Things did not start off well. It took 4 people and 8 sticks for them to finally start an IV. Miserable. It was nearly midnight by the time they were able to insert the Cervadil and we were able to get some sleep. The next morning we started the Pitocin bright and early. At this point I was so hungry I literally begged the nurse for a cracker. It was not my finest moment, but she consented, and there has never been a more delicious saltine on the face of the planet.
So, the Pit started up and they increased it slowly. I handled the contractions pretty well until around 2:00pm. At that point they were coming every minute, and I felt like I could not get a break. The nurse checked me, and I was at a 5 so I told her I wanted to hold out for another 30 minutes to see if I would progress. 15 minutes later, I was all, errr, how about we just give her a buzz now. Sweet relief!!
The next few hours are a complete blur. I literally could not tell you what we were up to. The Rangers were on, and Sam felt strongly that this baby would be born before the game was over. The nurse checked me again a couple of hours later, and I was still at a 5, so we decided to change positions to see if we could get things moving. I rolled over to my left side, and all I could hear was the heart rate monitor dropping like a rock. My mother and monther-in-law (both nurses) chose that moment to re-enter the room. Cue the scariest few minutes ever. Luckily a bit of shifting brought her heart rate right back up, but we had to turn off the Pitocin for an hour. Lame.
At 7:00pm the nurses changed shift, and our new nurse was rockstar. We changed position every 15 minutes, but by this time it was 9:20pm... and I was still at a 5. I was starting to panic a little, and Brandy says, "Look, the doctor is not hear yet, and until he shows up we're not giving up." Literally 2 minutes later, in walks the doctor. Brandy, the nurse, and I looked at each other, and I knew the jig was up, but I so did not want to hear it.
The doctor checked me, and confirmed what we all knew. He broke the news that it was time for a C-Section as gently, but firmly as possible. And I lost it. My poor doctor. He knew that I was terrified of having a C-Section, and that was, I think, the last news he wanted to give me, but it was the right thing to do. I respect him so much for that. Sam was fantastic as well and remained completely calm and collected, which was the only way I made it through.
After that everything happened really quickly, and we were in the OR. Sam and I said a quick prayer together, and I kept mumbling the lyrics to "Great is Your Love" to stay calm, and the next thing I knew I heard Avery's first cry from across the curtain. Then I'm pretty sure I said something to the effect of, "Holy crap, Sam, that's our kid." Because I'm classy like that.
So, while this was not the birth story I had hoped for, and there are definitely things I would have done differently, I can now honestly say that I'm okay with what happened. Avery brings such joy to us every day that I'm able to let go of it a little more every day.
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