My due date was August 22nd. Ever since hearing that day, I had convinced myself that I was going to go early, only by a week or so, because no way would my body not send an early eviction notice in the hot, hot summer. (Holy cow were there some hot July days!) I had a doctor’s appointment the Friday before and was making no progress. They did an ultrasound and estimated she would weigh 7lb 7oz. I knew they could be off, but then I started to get nervous about how big she was going to get and when she was going to come. I was a little surprised that I wasn’t dilated at all, but knew that didn’t mean I couldn’t go into labor at any time. My due date came and went and I became frustrated. Then I was mad at myself for being frustrated and not just going with the flow. My husband was getting antsy and ready for his girl to make his appearance and I was all “Yea me too buddy!” As the week went on I started to cringe when the phone rang because I knew it was someone asking if I had the baby yet. I didn’t want to be rude of course, but I couldn’t understand why my little girl didn’t want to arrive. My next appointment was the 26th and I just knew I had to be making progress. I had felt some contractions over the past couple days so I knew I had to be getting close to time. I was somewhat right. I was dialated 1cm and 50% effaced. Finally at least something was going on! Because I was almost a week late, my doctor said if I didn’t have the baby by Monday the 29th I’d be induced that night. She also said she wouldn’t be surprised if I didn’t go into labor on my own in the next 24-36 hours. That made me feel a little better because as much as I wanted her to come out I really wanted to do it on my own. After the appointment, we went to breakfast, where I had the best stuffed French toast EVER and went for a walk outside, all around CostCo then went home and super cleaned the house. The contractions picked up that night and I thought this was it- but once I relaxed and laid down that night, they went away. I woke up Saturday feeling a little off. I couldn’t explain it, but something was amiss. We finished cleaning, had lunch with friends and hung around at home. Later that day, we went to my brother in laws and that’s where the contractions picked up. We downloaded a contraction timer on Dale’s IPad (because clearly a regular watch wouldn’t work- but he was so excited about it) and there I sat for the next hour or so pressing the start and stop button. They were about 7-8 minutes apart and not that consistent but I knew this was the night. We went to our friend’s house next and I continued to time contractions. I even sat on a wooden kitchen chair instead of the comfy couch in case my water broke. Even though we were closer to the hospital being at their house, we went home around 11pm and walked around the block. It got to the point where I couldn’t anymore, so we went inside and I took a quick shower just to make sure the contractions would keep up. Once I got out we decided it was time to get ready to go- some were as close as 3 minutes and lasting a minute, but for the most part, they were 4 minutes apart for the last 2 hours. We got everything together and Dale made me make a video and talk about how excited I was. At the time I was not too pleased about it, but now, I’m glad we have the memory. The whole way to the hospital I was so nervous about being sent home, but as the contractions got stronger I knew we were good to go. We checked in and were put in a triage room- apparently they were very busy so I had to wait for a delivery room- but at least I was staying. I was now 3cm and 100% effaced and everything was going smoothly and just continued to labor. After a few hours- I lost all track of time as it was so late and was trying to get some rest- but probably around 3am sometime, I was hit with a double whammy contraction that was extra sharp and painful. That’s when I forget a lot of the details. Right after that contraction, the baby’s heart rate dropped. I knew something was not right when I heard it and then nurses and residents rushed in. They put oxygen on me and started moving me around. I was hooked up to an internal monitor and when they broke my water- there was meconium present. During this whole time, which felt like an eternity, her heart rate still didn’t go back up. They paged my doctor and told me that I may need to consider having a c-section. I didn’t have an epidural at this point so they told me I may need to be knocked out and Dale couldn’t be there with me. That thought was completely terrifying. I couldn’t imagine having to be asleep during all of this and wake up not really knowing what went on. Finally after about 8-9 minutes, her heart rate went back up and stabilized. But they were watching it very closely. I have never been so scared in my life- it’s actually really hard to write this. I looked at Dale and he was grayish white and I thought he was going to pass out. He stepped out of the room (which was tiny and hot since I still was never transferred to a proper delivery room) and the nurses helped him come to. Surprisingly on the outside, I was much calmer than I thought, but after seeing him like that, I knew I couldn’t endure that again. My doctor came in and checked me and I was 5 cm. He said I could try to labor more and see what happens, but since it was my first baby, it could be another 5-6 hours before I’m ready to push and during that time her HR could drop again. Or I could have a c-section and if she remained stable for the next 15 minutes, I could just receive the spinal and be awake with Dale with me. We couldn’t bear going through another episode like that and together decided it was safest for her to have the c-section. I feel like they had everything ready quite quickly and before I know it I was in the operating room (Grey’s Anatomy is almost spot on). I received the spinal, which is such a strange feeling, they brought Dale in and before I know it she was out. She didn’t cry right away, which the nurse said was a good thing since she had meconium all over, but they cleaned her out and then we heard the best sound in the world. My baby was here, and despite what happened, she was fine. They wrapped her up and showed her to me, and I could hardly see though the tears. Everything may have not gone the way I really wanted it too, but in that moment, it didn’t matter. She was beautiful- and so tiny! Maggie Grace arrived at 6:09am Sunday August 28th 6lbs 1oz and 19 ½ inches long. Big brown eyes and a lot of dark hair. And perfect. I could never forget the perfect.
