She's Here!

Faelyn Audrey
June 10, 2008
7 pounds & 19¾ inches

Monday morning (6.9.2008) I had my 40 week appointment at 9:45am. Kathrine stripped my membranes (probably around 10:15am or so - we got to the appointment a bit late). I had been having menstrual-y backache for the past two days so I was hoping that labor was already trying to slowly start. Maddox and I went over to my mother's house for the day and I was really crampy and losing small amounts of my mucus plug. I didn't feel as icky as I felt the first time (5.29.2008) Kathrine stripped my membranes, but definitely a lot more than the second time (6.2.2008). Clayton picked us up later and I slept fine Monday night.

Tuesday morning I was still crampy and Faye was moving all over the place. She had flipped into some weird positions over the night. When I woke up, she was very long vertically on my right side and late on, she dropped back down to belly button level but something had risen up into my left rib. It felt like she back was along the top of my uterus.

Maddox and I hung out all day, played, etc. I was having "contractions", but just the like ones that I had on 5.29 and 5.30. They weren't very strong, were only in my back and pelvic area and were very irregular. As the day went on they got more intense, but no more regular, no increase in the length of time they lasted, just started to be a little painful. Maddox and I baked cookies (I asked him if he wanted to take a walk or bake cookies - silly questions!) In the evening I went online and looked up stripping membranes and irregular contractions and from what I read, a lot of people reported having intense, irregular contractions for hours after having their membranes swept. I was assuming that maybe that is just what happened when you had your membranes swept and my internet search concluded.

Clayton and I watched the second half of The 40 Year Old Virgin on TV and than I decided I was going to go to bed because I was having "contractions" very frequently and they were kind of hurting. Still they were just in my pelvic area (nothing above my pantyline) and back, and very irregular. I'd get one when I went to the bathroom, when I would move positions, etc. so it seemed as though I was causing myself to have them vs. my body being in labor and spontaneously having them.

We both went to bed around 10-10:15pm and around 10:30pm my water broke! I was completely shocked and called my midwife to see what she thought. I told her that the contractions that I've had all day had been all over the place - any where from every 4 minutes to every 15 minutes but never the same distance apart in a row, where I was getting them, etc. She suggested I try to go to bed and asked if I thought a hot shower would help. I didn't want to take a shower, not long before putting Maddox to bed I had taken a bath. I said I could probably get to bed and tried to lay back down but the contractions got more painful.

Around 11pm the contractions were very close together and almost unbearable. I was completely freaked out that I was not going to be able to handle labor this time around. I was thinking if my contractions hurt this much right now, how would they feel when I was in transition labor. I was freezing cold when I didn't have a contractions and sweating while I was having a contraction. I had 2-3 more and had to go to the bathroom. The end of this pregnancy had completely constipated me, so I really needed to go (you're welcome for the TMI). I had another contraction after that and then felt like I was going to vomit.

I hung over a bucket swallowing the hot water that my cheeks were spilling (a sure sign of puking for me), but I never puked. While I sat there I told Clayton that if I felt like I was going to puke, we needed to go to the hospital. He got all our stuff together, but the next contraction that I got I *kind of* felt like I had the urge to push, but it wasn't too bad - not like when I had the urge with Maddox. I couldn't move while having a contraction and the next one that I got was only about 30 seconds after. I had 2 contractions where I felt like I had the urge to push and I had Clayton call Kathrine and tell her that my contractions were almost on top of each other and that it felt like I had to push. I was on all fours next to the bed and had Clayton put down a towel under me *just in case*. Kathrine asked if we were going to come to the hospital now and I couldn't think very well. I said I didn't know - mostly I didn't know if we would actually make it there. I thought "it's only 10 minutes away" and said we would be leaving right away and would be there in about 15 minutes. Kathrine said she's meet us there.

I had another contraction and then another almost immediately after and then finally managed to stand up after that. I walked to the bathroom because I felt like I had to go poop again, but not like I was getting the urge to push at all and I wasn't having a contractions. I got to the bathroom and sat down and as soon as I did, I got a contraction and the urge to push was fierce. I yelled for Clayton to come in and said that I had to push and I couldn't stop it. I felt like she was coming out, Clayton said he could see her head, and I put my hand down there to feel and felt something really soft and squishy. I thought her umbilical cord was hanging out and felt a bit panicked. I looked down and saw that the squishy was NOT the color of an umbilical cord, it was almost black and was a bag of something. She kept on coming out and I stood up so that she wouldn't drop into the toilet. We were both looking at her come out and realized that her head didn't look like her head and that it was a butt! Her butt came out and her feet came out and Clayton grabbed her around her waist. I watched her back slide down and her shoulder blades were arching back and that it when it REALLY hit me that she was indeed breech.

She came out up to her arm pits and then I pushed like hell - not wanting her head or shoulders to get stuck up. Her arms popped out and her head came out pretty easily. Clayton grabbed me a towel and I wrapped her up and rubbed her down. I had him grab me the nasal aspirator and suctioned her out and sent him to go all 911. She didn't cry too much. She whimpered and squeaked and her breathing was good. She was pink, except her hands and feet and was warm. Her nose sounded like there was mucus in it. Everything that came out of her throat and nose with the nasal aspirator was clear, but I was still nervous that she wasn't suctioned out good enough. I rubbed her back really good with the towel again. Clayton his mom call 911 and she came down and was telling me everything the dispatcher said to do and I had already done it. The dispatcher said to just sit tight and wait for the paramedics than. While we were waiting, Maddox woke up and we asked if he wanted to come in and meet his baby sister. When he walked into the bathroom, his entire face was lit. Eyes huge, big smile on his face with his tongue hanging out (lol). He said she was cute!

It only took about 5 minutes for them to get there. The guy asked me in a very condescending tone "did you plan to have a home birth?" He clamped the umbilical cord and cut it with a little plastic scalpel and we wrapped her up in a few more towels. They took her and she was perfect. Apgar of 9. They put her on a warming pack and Clayton brought her upstairs. I had to tuck everything (umbilical cord and yuck) into my pants and walk upstairs. I don't remember anyone asking if I needed help or anything, but I've been made fun of several times for just getting up and walking up the stairs and getting on the gurney on my own. I had no thoughts of it at all and tried to grab Faye's diaper bag too, but one of the paramedics insisted she carry that instead.

Faye and I rode in the ambulance to the hospital and Clayton followed us in the SUV. My mother-in-law and father-in-law brought Maddox in their car. I got to nurse Faye in the ambulance on the way there. She was rooting like crazy and I had wanted to have her on my chest and nurse as soon as possible if she had been born in the hospital, so I took the opportunity to do it then.

We got to the hospital and my midwife was waiting there. We joked around a little, I apologized to Kathrine that she didn't get to deliver Faye, but she said she was so happy that I had her at home because they would have taken me in for an emergency c-section. They checked out Faye, Kathrine delivered my placenta, and I got a shot of pitocin in my arm after to keep my uterus contracting. After that, we mostly went through a lot of questions (allergies, addresses, names, etc) to get me registered, etc.

Maddox was very excited. They had Clayton cut the rest of her cord off and someone (I think it was my father-in-law) held Maddox up to watch. He was telling the nurses, etc that it was going to turn a different color and fall off in the bath. Maybe it won't actually fall off in the bath, but they were all very impressed with his knowledge of babies. He thought she was "sooo cute" and was telling everyone that she was his baby, etc.

We stayed in the labor and delivery room for almost 2 hours and I got to nurse her again. Kathrine, my midwife, helped me with positioning this time. We did fine in the ambulance, but I figured with all the issues I had with Maddox, I better have her show me. Then finally were able to move to a postpartum room after that. My in laws left shortly after that and then my mom and sister took Maddox to my sister's house to play with his cousins (who were all sleeping because it was close to 3AM by the time they left). Apparently he managed to talk them into stopping at McDonald's on the way and got some chicken nuggets and fries LOL.

Faye slept really well the first night. From 3AM to 6AM. I was a bit miserable because I was starving and breakfast wasn't until 7:10am.

Maddox came back to the hospital around noon-ish. He was very excited. He brought his "baby sister Faye" a balloon and wanted to hold her all the time. The first time he held her that day, he lifted her up in his arms and said "ooooh she's big!" After several times of "can I hold my baby sister?" and then giving her up for a little big shortly after, he decided that he didn't need to ask any more and just started grabbing towards her while chatting away to everyone else in the room. He was pretty entertaining. He's been at my sister's house since Wednesday morning (you know.. 3AM) and I miss him a ton.

Faye has been a little boobie monster. We are just starting to be able to get a good latch down, so I'm quite sore. She likes to use me as a pacifier. She's looking a bit jaundice and I'm sure that has a lot to do with the -falling asleep as soon as she is on the breast- bit, but other wise, nursing is starting to go really well. She didn't start out as much of a crier, but she's getting the hang of it. She gets very upset about not being on the breast, she detests diaper changes, and isn't too keen on sleeping by herself.

She is beautiful and I am completely in love!