Birth Story continued...
Sorry I haven't finished the birth story! I have been so insanely preoccupied with our little bundle of joy that I haven't had a spare minute. Sometimes I can't even go to the bathroom he keeps me so busy!
Well, when I left off I hadn't found the right outfit to replace the one that Silas accidentally ruined. I looked at all the major stores at the mall--Target, JC Penney, Sears, Kohls--and I still wasn't thrilled with what I saw. Silas took some time at work and stopped in at the Target in St. Louis Park and picked up two outfits that he thought I'd like so I could choose. I was getting pretty tired and uncomfortable so when he called and said he'd found something I decided to head home and take a short nap. I wish I would have gone home and cleaned but I had no idea I would be in the hospital for the next few days!
When Silas got home we decided to go out and pick up a few more things for Ryatt's room. We got a clothes hamper, changing pad, and a basket for bath supplies. I was also able to find a good selection of nursing bras which suprised me since JC Penney only had two styles to choose from. I can still remember being in the dressing room at Target trying on the bras and having to stop to breathe through a contraction. We also got a stop watch so that I would have something at home to time my contractions when Silas was at work. See, at that point I was still in denial that I was in labor so I thought I would need a watch just in case I went into labor while Si was at work. When we got to the checkout the woman asked how far along I was. When we told her I was due that Friday she said I looked like I could go any minute. Who knew how true that was!
When we got home I decided to take a bath to see if the contractions would change because we were told that if changing positions or taking a bath made the contractions lessen or stop then it was probably false labor. So into the tub I went. I called Nicole while I was in there to apologize for slowing her down at the fair the day before. She laughed and said it was no problem. I told her I'd been having contractions but the bath seemed to be helping so I probably wasn't really in labor. Meanwhile Silas was timing the contractions to see if there was any sign of a pattern. They were all over the place--3 minutes here, 7 minutes there. So again, I told myself this wasn't it. What a fool I was! As soon as I got out of the nice warm water the contractions started coming stronger, faster, and with a definite pattern. I told Si to get a notebook and keep a record so we'd know for sure. We did it for an hour and it never changed--every 3 minutes! We were putting the training we got in our weekend crash course to good use. Silas got out my exercise ball so I could sit on it and we started a breathing pattern that really seemed to help me get through the pain. Poor Bailey and Baxter were so concerned about me they never left my side! Silas wanted to call the hospital to find out if we should go in but I wouldn't let him at first. I was seriously still in denial about what was happening. It just felt too soon. After my appointment that morning I thought for sure I had at least a few more days to prepare. I was not ready to leave the house that night and come home with a baby! Silas asked me why I didn't want him to call and I told him--I'm not in labor because I'm not ready yet!!! He laughed and gave me a hug then made the call. The hospital couldn't tell us what to do. They said we could either come in and have them examine me or call the urgent care line and talk to a doctor. We decided to call the doctor just to get one more opinion. They told us the on call doctor would call us back within 30 minutes. We were pleasantly suprised when Dr. Kuhl returned our call. Silas filled her in on what had been happening. Guess what she said: "I had a feeling I would be getting a call tonight." Can you believe it?! I was so annoyed. If she thought I was going to be going into labor that night she should have told me that, not that she thought I'd be delivering by the end of the week. I would have done way more work around the house instead of lollygaggling around at the mall. Needless to say, she told us to head to the hospital so they could determine if I needed to be admitted. Now it was real. Silas was scrambling to finish packing our bags while I continued to breathe through the contractions. He called Karlyn and Heather to let them both know we were heading in so they could take care of the dogs for us. |
I was able to satisfy all of my cravings and apparently the walking helped me progress towards the ultimate goal of GETTING THIS BABY OUT OF ME! 
At my appointment today Dr. Kuhl said I was about 2-3 cm dilated and 50% effaced. I was measuring at 36 cm so she said Ryatt was definitely dropping. She did a little stripping of my membranes in hopes that that would help speed things along--not a very pleasant experience but worth it in the long run. 
I hardly slept because I just couldn't get comfortable. The cramping was annoying and just wouldn't stop. I felt bad because Silas wasn't able to sleep well either. He was so focused on wanting to time the contractions he wouldn't relax. And my acid reflux was acting up the whole night too. Probably from all the "health food" I ate at the fair, but it was totally worth it! 
Thankfully I was able to sleep in a little after Silas went to work.
It's nice to talk with people who will be honest about what you really need and what you can do without. There are so many things out there that you can buy for your baby it's hard to decide what's worth it or not.
If not, she is going to try to schedule an induction for next Tuesday. I really hope things happen on their own, and if things continue the way they have been I feel like they will. So everyone say a little prayer that Ryatt decides to be one of the 5% that actually shows up on his due date. I'll keep you all posted to let you know how things are progressing. TTFN! 
