Labor and Delivery...

Lunch at P712 before one of my last doctors
appointments...

Near the end of my pregnancy I was definitely getting antsy and looking forward to not being pregnant anymore.  Towards the end my feet were constantly swollen, I was barely sleeping and always exhausted...and I was sooo terribly sick of my maternity clothes.  I went on my maternity leave just a few days before my scheduled due date on July 3rd.  Corb and I went in for an appointment on July 5th to see if I was getting any closer and may have the baby a few days early.  The doctor said I was still only dilated to a 1 and 50% effaced.  I had been that way for 4 weeks.  Not only did that upset me, but he proceeded to tell me that he was pretty certain I would be a week over and would have to be induced on the 15th of July.  I was LIVID.  Typically my hormones don't have that much control, but pregnancy hormones are a different story.  I managed to hold it together until we were in the parking lot, and then...I burst into tears and was hysterical.  I bawled on Corb's shoulder like a baby.  All I could think about was what I was supposed to do with myself for a WHOLE week without a baby.  I thought I had planned work out so perfectly.  I just figured I'd work up until the 4th of July, have a day or two to wait around and then boom...have my baby.  The idea of an entire week of waiting seemed AWFUL.  Not ever since I was like 16 did I just have work off for a week and not be going on a vacation.  Corb got me in the car and I proceeded to tell him that while I had bawled on his shoulder I had came to the conclusion that I would just call the Salon in the morning and have them schedule me clients.  That way I could stay busy, and not be useless just sitting on my butt at home.  The time would go by much faster, and I wouldn't feel like I just wasted away a week at home waiting.  I'm sure he thought I was crazy, but he kept his mouth shut.  As we were driving home he stopped at a chevron and got me a red cream soda to cheer me up.  It improved my mood, and I continued to call my dad and give him the 'bad news'.  I'm sure he thought I was being ridiculous, but he was polite and kept his mouth shut. 

I don't remember much of that evening, but I do remember not getting much sleep.  The next morning I had figured out my plan.  Corb and I were to go hiking and hike the baby out.  We decided to hike Stewart Falls.  We packed a light lunch to eat afterwards and headed up the canyon.  We had a BLAST!  Everyone we passed would comment on my belly and ask when I was due.  It was kinda fun to say, "Oh ya know, in two days!"  Haha!  People kept saying things like, "Hope you don't go into labor on the hike" or "You be careful now".  Corb recorded me hiking part of it and we kept joking back and forth how we were determined to hike the baby out of me.  Every time I had to jump over a branch or walk downhill I made sure to jump high or bounce up and down.  I never got to experience any real contractions on the hike, but I did have a ton of braxton hicks.  We finished the hike and drove down the canyon to one of our favorite spots and had lunch.  

After lunch we headed down to my parents for something in Springville and then headed back home.  We finally got home around 6:30 that night and just planned on showering up and relaxing.  I remember being in the shower when it all started.  At first I couldn't figure out what was going on, but as the time went on my contractions just got worse and worse and there was no questioning what was going on at this point.  It was a very long night spent at home waiting for them to get bad enough to go to the hospital.  I did not want to go and get sent home.  That would have been the WORST!  So I held out all night long.  I timed each contraction with an app on my iphone.  In the meantime I managed to shellac my nails, straighten up the house, curl my hair, do my make up, and I even woke Corb up around 4 AM  and made him put on his bathrobe and walk around our neighborhood.  During all that about every 3-5 minutes I would have to completely stop what I was doing, close my eyes, and endure through the pain.  Once it stopped I would quickly get back to what I was doing, because I knew it was only a matter of a minute or two before another one would hit.  I remember laying in bed trying to doze off, when another contraction would wake me up.  It was awful, especially because Corb had tried his hardest to stay awake, but had totally passed out.  I was sooo envious, and kinda bugged that he was sleeping while I was in labor.  I mean, seriously?! Haha!  

Morning FINALLY came and I decided I couldn't take it any longer.  We got to the hospital around 7 AM.  At this point, I had been in labor 11 hours.  I hadn't slept, and was completely exhausted!  When we got there I was so nervous that they would still send me home.  When I got there I happened to be the ONLY one in Utah Vally Hospital L&D.  Which NEVER happens.  They hooked me up to monitors and said that my contractions were strong enough, but I wasn't dilating any further.  Typically if they had been busy they would have sent me home, but my nurse was literally an angel and said I could stay.  I was sooo happy!  

About an hour after I had gotten there and when I was certain my pain couldn't get any worse  my doctor came in and broke my water.  It was awful.  I didn't know how long I could take it, especially still having not slept.  I remember Corb sitting on the bed signing papers to admit me, and at the time I was having a contraction.  Just the little wiggle of him signing was enough to make me want to shove him off the bed.  He felt so bad, because there was absolutely nothing he could do to help me. I was able to go for quite a while, when my nurse told me to go ahead and get an epidural.  I had been holding out as long as I could, because I was paranoid that getting my epidural would slow me down and I really didn't want that.  Especially, because my nurse and doctor I wanted to deliver were going to be off at 6 PM, and I was going to make sure I had had a baby by then.  (At this point it was 10 AM.  I'm crazy, I know.)  The anesthesiologist came in and gave me my epidural (16 hours of labor at this point) and it was the best thing ever.  I had been scared to death of that needle, but he gave it to me right when I was having a contraction, so it didn't matter.  At that point I was in so much pain, I couldn't even feel the needle.  It worked like a charm.  A few minutes later I could breath, think straight, and enjoy the experience.  I took a little nap while Corb went downstairs and had lunch.  I wouldn't let him have it in the room, because I knew it would just make me angry.  All I could have was ice chips with some tigers blood syrup on top.  Not super appetizing, and I was starving.  

Once I was to a 6 within a half hour I was at a 10 and crowning.  My nurse called my doctor and it was time to push.  I pushed less than a hour and had our baby boy.  I was hysterical.  I was crying so hard, I could barely see past my tears to see my little boy.  I could hardly believe what had just happened.  It was the most amazing thing I have EVER experienced.  Corb was ecstatic.  He cut the cord, and followed our boy over to get cleaned up and weighed.  To everyone's surprise (except for mine and Corb's) he weighed 8 pounds 13 ounces.  I was soo happy!  Everyone in the delivery room, including my doctor said I was probably going to have a 6 pounder.  HMMM! Haha!  I always knew he was bigger.  He was 20 inches long, and born at 3:10 PM on July 7th, 2012.

Our first family photo...