On May 11th, we woke up and went to the hospital at 7:30am for our scheduled induction. Yes, it's true, I was induced at 39 weeks and 1 day. I was also induced with Kiersten at 39 weeks 6 days and was helped into labor with Annika at 40 weeks 6 days. So really, I am not sure if I would ever go on my own, but I didn't care to wait and see either! Judge if you will, but you won't get any apologies here.
When we got to the hospital they were ready for us and took us to our room (which by the way was over twice the size of the room we stayed in when I had Annika in St. Paul). We went through the routine of answering about 30-40 minutes of questions. I can't imagine having to go through all of that while in full labor either...what are they thinking with all of those questions?
Around 8:15 or 8:20, Dr Lines came over and broke my water. She asked if I wanted to start pitocin to start my labor. I was actually having non-painful contractions about 6-8 minutes apart anyway (these started at 13 weeks of pregnancy though). I turned it down and said I wanted to walk the halls and get things going instead. This worked really well with Kiersten and I had her within 4 hours of getting my water broken so I wanted to try it again. Actually, with Kiersten I only went down the hall and back one time and was in full labor with strong contractions right on top of each other so I thought maybe it would be the same.
It wasn't quite the same as with Kiersten's birth. We had to walk the halls for about an hour and a half. At that point we went back to our room and the nurse hooked me up to the monitors and I was having contractions 2 minutes apart. She asked what my pain level was and I said it was maybe at a 2 with 10 being the highest. She said, "Okay, I'll call the anesthesiologist to come up to give you an epidural then". I couldn't believe that she was calling her already but she said, well, if you know you want one, you only have to endure as much pain as you want. Plus, sometimes it takes them a while to get up there. By 11am I had an epidural, still with only a few somewhat painful contractions. The nurse checked me after my epidural and I was dilated to 5 cm. I was at a 3 when I arrived so I was making progress at that point.
Around 12pm the nurse put me on pitocin because every other contraction of mine was not very strong. They were still 2 minutes apart. Dr. Lines came back to check on me at 12:15 or so. Funny thing, when she walked in the room she started laughing because I was sitting there looking at the hospital menu deciding what I wanted to eat when I was done! When she checked me at that point I was dilated to a 6+. At that point the nurse began to set up the room for delivery. She mentioned that I would probably go within the hour. This kind of surprised me because I felt great still.
Around 1pm I rang the nurse because I was starting to feel funny and almost a little sick to my stomach. I honestly can't fully describe the feeling....kind of an adrenaline rush. I thought I maybe needed a boost on my epidural. She came quickly saying I was probably just getting ready to go, and in transition. She checked me and I was maybe at an 8. She had me roll on my side to help me finish effacing. I did and at 1:10 she came in and at that point told me not to move at all because it might cause me to start to push. She looked slightly rushed which I could tell meant this was close. She went out to call Dr. Lines. When she came back in, she said that Dr. Lines was with a patient (the clinic is across the street) and was coming. I got a little nervous because I felt like I was going to start having a baby right then. Luckily Dr. Lines was there within a few minutes. She had me roll back onto my back again. I missed the first push because for some reason we all started laughing about something that Craig said (thanks Craig). So, when the next contraction came around I could start pushing.
Britta was here within 1 1/2 contractions at 1:20pm! Right away Dr. Lines had me reach for her and pull her up to me. It was AMAZING to hold her tiny warm body up to mine. I didn't hold Annika or Kiersten quite that quickly without them being all wrapped up in blankets. What an awesome experience to hold your baby instantly like this! Not something I can put into words. She was so beautiful! Right away she was wide eyed just looking at everything.
Britta weighed 7lbs 11oz (Annika was 8lbs 8oz and Kiersten was 8lbs 11oz). She was 20 inches long. She had a lot of hair and it was kind of a golden color, just like Kiersten when she was a baby. She didn't cry very much either. After about 10 minutes I called my parents and talked to Annika first. She was so excited and said "Okay great, we're on our way!". She handed the phone to my mom and I guess she and Kiersten ran and put their shoes on instantly and were ready to go! I love that they were so excited to see their baby sister!
We called our other family to tell them too. We took a few pictures and then the nurses did everything they needed to do with Britta. Then, around 2pm my parents were there with Kiersten and Annika! It was so much fun to see their excitement. A week before they went to the Big Brother/Big Sister class at the hospital and had gotten a tour of the maternity ward which was so nice because they knew exactly what to expect. They got to hold Britta and we took our first picture as a family of 5. After about 20 minutes I realized that I was absolutely exhausted and so they left.
Because of my adrenaline, I couldn't nap, but that's okay because I got to just enjoy looking about beautiful Britta. Oh yeah, and I finally got to order lunch. I had been dreaming for about 9 months of eating food again and enjoying it. Finally I could! Horray for no more morning sickness!
Britta is named after a relative of ours in Sweden. She still lives in the house where my great grandpa was born. The summer before my Junior year in high school, I was able to go to Sweden and stay with her and her husband Richard for a week with my parents. Her daughter, Gunnel has been to the US many times and brought along her niece, Linnea to come to our wedding. They have been a wonderful connection to our family that is still in Sweden.
Her middle name is Laine. This is after Craig's little sister Samantha Laine Barker. Samantha came to be Craig's sister 6 1/2 years ago after her parents had both passed away of cancer and his parents began to raise her and her brother, Matt. Samantha was also the flower girl in our wedding 10 years ago! She is very special to us. When Craig talked to her on the phone when we were at the hospital, he shared with her that our prayer for Britta is that she grows up to be as amazing of a person as Samantha is. Samantha is an incredible 15 year old!
We are so thankful for our family of three fantastic girls! We can't wait to see what's in store for all of their futures!
3 comments:
What a great post. :) You had me in tears. I love that Britta's name means something to you. That's really special. Thanks for sharing this beautiful story.
My doctor was Dr. Lines, too, and I, too, was surprised when she had me reach and pull her to me. Zane had the cord wrapped, so I was the last person to hold him. But the first to hold Libby. Love the story about Britta's names.
Thanks for sharing your story! I KNOW about that question stuff! I come into the hospital at 8cm every time, barely able to stand and they are saying, "could you fill out this form." Usually, I don't have to until after!!! Your words just brought funny memories! Congrats again!
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