We found out we were pregnant in June of 1997. We were concerned because this was only three months after having a miscarriage. It was determined that I had a progesterone deficiency, and I was on progesterone therapy for the first ten weeks. At seven weeks I had placenta previa, which corrected itself after only a few days bed rest. At 19 weeks we had our third ultrasound, during which we found out we were expecting a girl! The pregnancy progressed uneventfully until at the beginning of the third trimester, when a small placental seperation gave us a little scare, but that also corrected itself after about a week.
Olivia was due on February 12, and we were hoping she'd arrive on Valentine's Day. In January the Braxton Hicks contractions began. At about the second week of January, my ob decided to check and see if I'd dilated yet, although he said he didn't think I would. Surprise! I was dilatd 1 cm. We got all excited, only to stay at 1 cm for two weeks. The last week of January I had progressed to 2 cm. I stayed at 2 cm until the last appointment before my due date. I was then at 2-3 cm. My ob said that at my next week's appointment, I'd be a few days past my due date, and if I hadn't gotten any further, we'd induce, if I wanted. IF I WANTED?!?! I would have begged him to!
Well, by next week I wasn't getting anywhere, and we scheduled an inducement for early next morning. At 2:00 a.m. on February 17, we checked into the hospital. We filled out the various forms, and I received an IV. Since I was being induced, I also had to have an enema. Jimmy was very excited that the nurse let him help her with that! At 4:00 a.m., the Pitocin was started. The external monitors were put on my belly, and we discovered that I was already having small contractions, though I didn't feel them. The next few hours passed quietly, with Jimmy trying to doze on the fold out chair, and I watched the women's ice hockey game on the Winter Olympics. I noticed the contractions getting more regular and stronger, but they weren't too hard yet. Sometime later, the nurse said that they weren't getting the baby's heartrate very well on the external monitors, so they'd have to put on the internal monitors. The nurse brought in a student nurse to put in the monitor. It was very uncomfortable! Then every time the nurse would come in to check how dilatd I was, she'd accidentally pull the monitor out and have to reapply it. Which meant that I'd have to lay on my back, and that upset me because I was pretty comfortable as long as I sat up Indian-style. After the third time this happened, I was getting pretty upset and I told Jimmy I wanted my mom. He made the phone calls, and soon my room was filled with my parents, my two sisters, and Jimmy's parents. I think it was about 10:00 a.m. that the hard labor began.
As our family came in, I was throwing up in a tray. I liked having everyone there, because their chatter distracted me from my pain. My mom said it was driving her crazy that I just sat there during my contractions and didn't make a sound. Jimmy and the dads enjoyed watching the lines on the monitor go up with the contractions and say, "Wow! That one was high!" Finally my ob came in, checked me, and broke my water. Yuck! I didn't expect that much water to come gushing out! I had a focal point, I put Jimmy's wedding ring on my thumb and slowly turned it to watch the diamonds sparkle. The only breathing exercise I could remember was breathing slowly and deeply, so I did that. Finally I asked for something to take the edge off the pain because I felt like I was losing it. The nurse gave me Nubain through my IV. It didn't really dull the pain, but I felt stoned! I was very calm until the Nubain wore off. I started to feel immense pressure in my pelvis, as if my bones were spreading apart. I told my mom that the baby was coming. When the nurse came in, I told her it was time to push. (My memory gets kind of fuzzy here). It seemed like no one wanted to believe me, but I knew it was time! Then finally I was on my back, they checked me, and shaved me, and finally said I could push. All my family filed out of the room except for Jimmy and my mom. I asked if the doctor was coming, and the nurse said, "He will when I call him." I said, "You haven't called him yet?" She shook her head, and I said "You better get him now because this baby's coming whether he's here or not!" Then the ob was there and I was pushing. Pushing didn't hurt. Not pushing is what hurt. There were about 9 people in the room, but I didn't care. I knew the three nursing students from school, and somehow you lose all modesty at that point of labor! I pushed hard. I pushed for 15 minutes and suddenly she popped out, all at once. I hadn't waited to push her head out alone first, so the doctor hurriedly laid her on me and began suctioning her mouth and nose. Well, I saw her butt in front of me and I tried to snatch her, saying,"Give me my baby!" They had to hold my hands back while the ob finished suctioning her and Jimmy cut her cord. Finally they let me hold her.
She was beautiful! She had dark skin, and big dark blue eyes, and her black hair was an inch long and stuck out in spikes all over her head. As they took her to weigh her and clean her, the ob began to stitch me up, and it was only then that I realized I'd torn all the way. But that didn't matter! I felt so happy and proud. Jimmy was running around the room taking pictures and crying. My mom ran down to the waiting room to tell everyone. Once Olivia was clean, she nursed for an hour. Then they took her to the nursery and I was taken to my recovery room.
Olivia Rose was born at 2:28p.m. on Tuesday, February 17, 1998. She weighed 7 pounds 1 ounce, and she was 21 inches long. She was a perfect baby girl!
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