The last post left us at 39 weeks, and waiting for this little man to arrive in the world. Seth, Johnny, Joan, and Mike were all here; we celebrated Thanksgiving together, and everyone was settling in to wait. Friday came and went, Saturday came and went.... I was having contractions every now and then, but nothing that resembled labor. We were all beginning to think I was going to make my next doctor's appointment that following Tuesday!
Sunday morning, I was up early with contractions again. But just like the previous two or three nights, the contractions completely stopped after about three hours. We made plans to meet everyone for lunch, then go wander around the Festival of the Trees- a yearly holiday activity one of the hospitals puts on. It was gray and gloomy outside, and I don't think anyone was really up for going out, but we all went anyway. Afterward, S&J came back to our house with us. We were going to just veg on the couch, watch movies, and eat popcorn and chocolate covered goodies.
We hadn't been home for very long when I finally decided we should probably head to the hospital and get checked out. I'll spare you the details, but I had been having some leaking throughout the day. After consulting with a couple of my nurse friends (at almost the end of the day, of course) I told Chris we should probably go in. I didn't think what I was leaking was amniotic fluid, so I didn't want to get S&J all excited by announcing that I thought my water had broken. Instead I had to use the really vague "there's something going on, but I'm not really sure what......".
So, we had a friend come watch the kids while S&J and Chris and I headed down to the hospital. In triage, I told my nurse (also one of the friends I'd "consulted") that I still didn't think it was amniotic fluid.... And after seeing it, she wasn't sure that it was either. But guess what??? It was. lol... How long have I been doing this? 12+ years??? Just goes to show that it's not always easy to tell what is going on. Turns out, I had what we call a "high leak"; I was leaking just little amounts of fluid at a time- not enough to soak anything, or even make me feel wet. The "weirdness" I was seeing all day was these tiny amounts of fluid- but there was meconium in the fluid, which made it look green.
It was Baby Day!!!! Or Baby Night, as it was about 8pm by then.... Since I wasn't sure exactly how long I'd been ruptured, it was decided to start some pitocin. I had been leaking all day with no spontaneous contractions, so I didn't think waiting any longer would change anything. I had a great friend as my labor nurse, and it wasn't too long before we were all settled in our room. Labor room 2408, where Aiden, Paige, and Finn had all made their entrance into the world. Mia came on a day where all our rooms were full, so I didn't get to pick my room that day.... Chris went home to collect Aiden and Paige, who both desperately wanted to be there for delivery.
I was about 5cm dilated when I was admitted. My nurse and I expected my labor to progress fairly quickly after starting the pitocin. That was, after all, my history. I figured we would start the pitocin, get into a good labor pattern, get an epidural, and deliver a couple hours later. We started the pit around 10, and I was ready to get an epidural by midnight. My contractions weren't very strong, and I wasn't leaking much fluid so I was a little worried this might not be as quick as we originally thought. After the epidural, the "high leak" popped, and my water broke completely. So much for worrying about not leaking much.... there ended up being a TON of fluid in there. My nurse and I joked that the baby was probably only 5 or 6 pounds because all the fluid had to have taken up the rest of the space! But, I was still only 5cm dilated. At 2am, I was 7cm. My nurse and I started to wonder what was going on. This was not going as expected. So everyone settled in and tried to doze or sleep a little- the kids were sleeping and doing great.
At 4am, I was still 7cm. The baby was lower, and my cervix was thinned out, but I was still only 7. So, I really started turning side to side with some sitting straight up in between. My contraction pattern was good, the baby was looking great, but this delivery just wasn't happening. The next little bit of time runs together for me. The moving around was working, and I was getting more uncomfortable. I know at one point I was 8cm, then 9cm- both numbers I hadn't seen before. "Usually" I would power through from 7 to 10 with no inbetween. Finally, finally, my nurse said she was going to call the doctor in and I could push soon. I could feel the baby's head moving down, and it was getting worse with every contraction. I was shaking, and uncomfortable, and teary. This was definitely NOT the graceful delivery I had anticipated.
I looked up my delivery record afterward. They called me 10cm at 528 in the morning. Seth and Johnny, Aiden and Paige were up and ready. Chris was on one side of me and my nurse on the other. First contraction I was able to push the kiddo down to almost crowning, but it was hard!!! The second contraction was harder, but they all said his head was out. I sure couldn't tell- there was no sense of relief like I had felt before. By now, I think I was hyperventilating and I know I was crying. I couldn't breathe, and it all hurt, and the baby wasn't coming out! Turns out, he really was stuck. I was in the midst of what we call a shoulder dystocia. The kiddo's head delivered, but his shoulders were wide enough that they wouldn't fit under my pubic bone- at least not without a lot of help. Lucky for baby, and for me, the doctor who was on call that night is very good with that kind of thing. After a lot of work, and a huge amount of group effort, Baby Levi finally made his way into the world. He was quickly handed off to the NICU team who were there and waiting- both for the meconium, and now the shoulder dystocia. Before too long, I heard his sweet cry, and they told me he was okay. The doctor looked at me and said "I'm serious when I say this.... I think that baby is over 10 pounds!". I think I cried a little harder.
December 2, 2013, 534am
9 pounds, 10 ounces 21.5 inches long
My longest pregnancy, at 39.3 days. My biggest baby. One of my longest labors. Mr. Levi broke some pretty impressive records. My nurse and I looked at each other and said, "that's why this labor took so long!!!'.....
But I would do every second of it over again to bring this miracle into the world.
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