December 11

Welcome to the world
Lucy Evelyn
6lbs, 8oz, 17 1/2 inches

Labor is tiring for the men (?)

• At about 3:45am yesterday morning, I thought I had wet my pants (while sleeping - stranger things have happened!). Then all morning I was lightly leaking some fluids, but nothing that made me think I was in true labor. I figured I was still in early stages of labor (which can last weeks). I think I was also in some denial. About 8:30pm last night, Clay told me to call the doctor and get her opinion. She told me to go into the hospital, so we left the kids at home with Grandpa and Lulu and headed to the hospital to find out if my water had broken. I didn't even pack on overnight bag (still in denial).
• We arrived at the hospital around 10pm. It was amniotic fluid that had been leaking since 3:45am, which means my water had been broken for 18 hours. I was 3cm dilated. They put me in a labor and delivery room and we were on our way! I was given an antibiotic to prevent infection.
• Around 11:45pm the anesthesiologist gave me an epidural. I have had one with each labor, but this is the first time I got one when I wasn't having contractions and it hurt alot (probably the hardest part of this delivery).
  
• Soon after I got the epidural, they started me on pitocin because I wasn't having regular contractions on my own.
  
• Pat and Rick arrived around 12:15am and we all hung out in the room waiting... dozing (the men), and waiting some more.
  
• At 3:30am the nurse checked me again and I was 5cm dilated. I asked her how long she thought it would be and she said probably a couple more hours. She was wrong!
  
• At 4am I was feeling tons of pressure (with Kat and Elliott's deliveries I was so numb, I never felt the urge to push). This time I felt it. The nurse checked me again and I was 10 cm dilated (that's 5cm in 30 minutes!). She called the doctor.
• At 4:15am I told Clay that I could feel the head moving down. It felt like my bones were separating and I literally could feel the head descending. Not terribly painful (thanks to drugs), but a TON of pressure! Pat and Rick left the room.
  
• A couple of minutes later I told Clay that I could feel the head coming out. The nurse checked, and the baby's head was out. She jumped into action and Clay got to assist her since there wasn't anyone else in the room. She asked him to pull a cord from the wall that alerts the nurses to come ASAP. Clay had to grab a sterilized kit from a drawer so the nurse could get the baby delivered. She asked me to push, which I never had time to do. The baby literally just came out on its own!
  
• We got our Lucy! She was an unexpected pregnancy, 5 weeks early (she didn't wait for my castor oil date), and she came out on her terms. I think this little lady is going to be a dynamo!