PART II…the sequence

(Right before we left for hospital)

We arrive at the hospital at 7PM. I shuffle in and stop because of another painful contraction. We get signed in and a nurse walks us back to suite 277. She starts asking me a few things.

“So what’s going on?”

“This is baby #5. I have been having contractions all day.”

“Okay. How fast have your other deliveries gone?”

“Well, usually, I am induced at 7AM and then they come before 11:30.”

She pauses. Looks at me and says, “Okay. You get changed. I need to check you pretty fast.”

I get changed climb into the bed—of course stopping because of another contraction.

She checks me. “Okay. You are dilated to 5. 100% effaced. Did you want an epidural?”

“Um…Heck yeah I do.”

She starts moving so fast it would make a normal person wonder what the heck was going on.

Other nurses start coming in asking if they can help her with anything. She was trying to get an iv going and blood work done. The problem with that is my veins are crappy for this kind of stuff. She was able to get the iv going. She had to use my other arm to get the blood work done.

Why all the rushing?

Because before you can have an epidural your platelet count has to be checked and you have to have so much IV fluid pumped. She got a pressure wrap around the IV bag and was squeezing it for all she had. I was, of course, still contracting.

The anesthesiologist comes in and asks me how I am doing.

“I will be better once you stab me in the back,” was my response.

He got all of his stuff ready and got the epidural done. My nurse checks me…dilated to 7.

Fast forward thirty minutes. My contractions have almost disappeared. I am still 7cm dilated. What’s the deal? She checks me a little better.

pop.

My water breaks. I am dilated to 9 now. Dr. comes in. It isn’t my Dr. I was so disappointed.

I am complete at 9:20PM. Complete is 10cm dilated. I have also been pushing my “give me more medicine button” on the epidural pump because…I can feel way more than I would like. As in…holy crap does this hurt!!!!!!!!!!!

At 9:28PM, my son is born. He peed all over the Dr. His cord was around his neck—tightly one time. Paul cut the cord—the only one of our 5 children he has done this for. We are all crying. Me, Paul, Katie and my twin, Bonnie. He peed all over the warmer too.

He weighs 7lbs .01 oz. He is 20 inches long. His Apgars are 8-9-9.He has big chubby cheeks. Lots of dark hair. A perfectly round head (that measures 13 3/4). Long fingers and even longer toes.

He is perfect in every way.

I am in love.

We got the night shift off with a bang. Our nurse, Vanessa, was one of the best. It would have been nice to have her for longer than the 2 hours and 28 minutes before our son made his entrance.

So a super fast delivery. Pain in ways you can’t describe. Love so amazing it will never be the same.

Cooper Paul.