So after my visit to the hospital because of my high blood pressure, I really did try to take it easy. I slept in, I did a little house cleaning and organizing, then rested. Clean, rest, clean rest. And I felt so lazy! I didn't even make dinner that night; we went to the dining hall. (But that's really because it was staff dinner night.)
Well, that night I was lying on the couch watching Duck Dynasty while Cass was at staff meeting, and I realized that my pains were getting stronger and more frequent. I finally started timing them and they were about 5-6 minutes apart. I had been told that when my contractions were too bad to talk through they were real, so I would talk to myself through the contractions. Pretty soon the talking to myself was really just saying, "ow, ow, ow" over and over!
My pains were pretty heavy in my back and really painful, but not quite what I thought labor would feel like. I texted my mom to see if she was still awake and then called her. She said it was probably really labor, so Cass and I headed to the hospital even though I wasn't sure. This time, though, I knew it could be real so I packed my bag just in case!
We got to the hospital; they hooked me up to the monitors and checked me. I was at five and "not going anywhere," according to the nurse. They got me some pain medication, something before the epidural. It made me super tired. I couldn't keep my eyes open and kept falling in and out of sleep.
The anesthesiologist came to give me my epidural and when I sat up, my water broke. Then the anesthesiologist made a joke, telling me not to chew on my toenails, and I totally thought I was delusional. I was pretty out of it. They let me lay back down and wait for the epidural to kick in; I still had a while before it was time to push.
We did have a little scare as I got closer to pushing time. The monitor couldn't find the baby's heartbeat anymore. Then all of a sudden there were lots of nurses in the room and someone said to call the doctor. I was given an oxygen mask and they kept moving around the monitor to find her heartbeat. They still couldn't, so they attached something to her head and were able to get her heartbeat that way. It all happened so fast, but I was so scared! I'm so glad they were able to find her heartbeat again and that she was fine!
The doctor showed up shortly and it was time to push! And oh my gosh! Even with the epidural, it was the most painful thing in my life! I think I was pushing for about an hour or so and it was really hard! I really didn't think I could keep going and even started to hyperventilate a little at one point. Good thing Cass, the doctor, and the nurses were so supportive! Finally she came and they placed her on my chest. I loved her immediately and forgot all about the pain. Holding my sweet baby made it all worth it, even if she was all covered in gunk.
