Tuesday, July 20th, I started feeling contractions throughout the night. They weren't terribly painful, but I figured things were getting started. Richard took Wednesday, the due date, off work because we thought it would be THE DAY. We ran some errands around town, hoping the contractions would get stronger and closer together. No such luck. We went to Bible study that night, answering questions about why I was "still here" over and over. I was tired of answering questions, tired of being pregnant, and just plain tired.
Richard went to work Thursday because I figured nothing was going to happen. My contractions were randomly spread out during the day, but started getting closer together when he got home. We went to Popeyes for dinner around 6:30, then went to the mall to walk. We walked for about 2 hours, leaving just about the time the mall closed. My contractions were about 5 minutes apart at the mall, so I went home and started pacing through the house, hoping to keep them going. Rubix followed me as I paced, and I called my mom to let her know that I was pretty sure tonight was the night! However, shortly after calling her, my contractions started coming further apart. I sent her a text message to get some sleep and tried to do so, myself. The contractions continued, mostly 5 minutes apart, but randomly 7-9 minutes apart. I was frustrated because in order to go to the hospital, we were told they had to be 5 minutes apart for an hour.
Around 2:00 Friday morning (July 23rd), I woke Richard up and we called the doctor. She told us to come on in. We quickly packed the car and I called my mom. On the way to the hospital, the contractions were 2-3 minutes apart, and by the time we got into the triage and I was hooked up to a monitor, they were coming 1.5-2 minutes apart. The nurse said she thought I would go quickly. I was already 5cm dilated when we got to the hospital. I was worried because I needed to have 2 doses of penicillin 4 hours apart before delivering because I tested positive for Group B Strep (not harmful to me, but could cause blood disease and blindness in the baby if I wasn't treated before delivery). The first penicillin drip started around 4:00am, before we left the room. We told the triage nurse the baby's name, and that it was a secret. She promised she wouldn't say anything.
When they wheeled me over to the labor and delivery room, I was surprised to see my brother, Justin, sitting on the couch in the room. He beat us in there! The couch is where he would spend the entire day, resting on the pillow I brought for myself. Around 5:30am, shortly after arriving in labor and delivery, I met the man I will always be grateful to and never forget--MARK, the anesthesiologist! This man gave me such a good epidural that I felt NOTHING my entire delivery. I couldn't even feel the pressure of the contractions! He made this one of the most enjoyable, relaxed, and memorable experiences! I'll certainly be asking for him the next time I give birth at TGH!
After the epidural was administered, my Granny and parents arrived. The doctor didn't want to check my progress again until after 8:00am, to ensure that she didn't break my water before the second penicillin drip was administered. I was so excited I couldn't sleep. I spent hours just talking with my family, so relaxed because of the epidural. When Dr. Lynch finally came into the room to check me, I was 7cm dilated and she broke my water in the process. When they sat the bed back up, I felt my arm getting squished against something, which I quickly found out was my leg. I hadn't even realized they had moved it until they sat me up and I could see it! Thank you, Mark!
Dr. Lynch left to perform a C-section and said she'd be back to check on me when she was done. I was turned on my side because the baby wasn't facing the right direction completely. Another dose of penicillin was administered and she returned around 1:00pm. (Our family spent the time from the last check till then talking with the labor and delivery nurse, Monique, who was really sweet. She wasn't supposed to be our nurse, and was just subbing while our nurse was busy with another patient. However, she asked if she could stay with us because she enjoyed talking with us so much.) At 1:00pm, I was 10cm dilated and told we were going to start pushing. Since I wasn't feeling any pain or pressure, it was a bit surreal that we'd already reached this point.
Richard was by my side the whole time. Between the pushing, we were talking about the weather, joking around, and laughing the whole time. My family sat outside the door on a gurney (when they were supposed to be in the waiting room--don't know how they got away with that) and listened to the whole hour and a half of the delivery. They were worried when they heard me gasping loudly between pushes because they thought the epidural was wearing off, when in fact I was just trying to breathe because they'd made me hold my breath the whole time I was pushing. Dr. Lynch did tell them to turn off the drip so I could at least feel pressure. I had to receive oxygen at one point because I'd been pushing for so long.
Reagan Milton Smotherman arrived at 2:28pm on Friday, July 23rd. He weighed 8 lbs., 13 oz. and measured 21" long. Richard and I were sobbing like crazy, so happy to meet our sweet little man. Rubix met him Sunday, July 25th, and fell in love immediately. We're all doing well and adjusting quite nicely! This next year will be an adventure for all 4 of us!
