Eloise May: Her Story

I guess I should start with a little announcement...just in case we aren't Facebook/Instagram friends  :)

Our little girl has arrived!

Eloise May
May 3, 2015
12:38am
7 lbs 8 oz.
20.5 inches long

I love birth stories.  I love them all.  Natural, C-Section, it doesn't matter.  I love hearing the emotions and thoughts behind it.  I am so glad that I got Jack's down before it became too fuzzy.  I reread his a couple of weeks ago and it's funny the things that I have already forgotten.

So here is Eloise's story (and it's a little loooong):



We some how all had it in our mind that Eloise would make her appearance 1-2 weeks before her due date.  That's a really bad idea to get in your mind by the way. Jack was a week early and they say that often times your subsequent babies come even earlier.  Well it was not the case with our second baby.  It also didn't help that at my 38 week appointment I was 90% effaced and 4 cm dilated.  She told me she didn't think that I would make it to my next appointment.  I agreed because I was feeling tons of Braxton Hicks/contractions.  Some that would even keep me up at night.  I EVEN went to the hospital after 4 hours straight of contractions...only to have them basically stop once they got me on the bed to monitor the baby.  I went home obviously.  :)

And I DID make it to my 39 week appointment (actually it was more like 39 weeks + 4 days).  We decided to go ahead and schedule an induction on her due date, Monday May 4th.  There has been the ongoing concern of her size/the best way for her to enter the world.  Jack was a relatively large baby (for me) with a big head.  I ended up with a 4th degree tear.  My current office was basically horrified by the idea and we were doing our best to avoid having this happen again.  Not only is the healing horrific but there can be some pretty awful long term problems from having me re-tear in the same spot to that degree.  On the other hand, I didn't like the idea of going through a C-Section only to have her come out smaller.  I was pretty sure that I could birth another baby smaller then Jack...it was just scary to think of her being the same size...or bigger.  After a lot of mixed messages we decided to go ahead and try a vaginal birth again.  I stressed about it for so long.  Deciding whether I should do a C-Section or not.  I received a lot of opinions and in the end there was nothing concrete.  I FELT like she wasn't as big as Jack.  When I felt my belly with Jack there was very little "extra" space.  It was all baby.  With Eloise I felt like my belly wasn't quite so "full" of baby.  I told my doctor that thinking he would think I'm nuts but he said, "You are probably right about that."  In the end I basically said, "Alright Lord, there is no clear answer here.  I am going to move forward with vaginal and if You desire something else...make it clear."  I left it like that.  Phew.  So there is a bit of the background.

Now back to the actual event.  :)

So with a very conveniently scheduled induction for Monday May 4th and FINALLY having everything figured out and perfectly lined up for Jack that day (a sitter) we went on with our weekend, intending to live it up as a family of 3 for the last time.  Saturday morning we kept it low key and leisurely, hung out at home, Jack took his nap, and then we decided to go to the pool for fun in the afternoon.  I busted out that good ole' maternity bathing suit and seriously, we had so much fun.  There is a huge indoor pool that becomes a wave pool and Jack had a total blast.  We played and played.  As we were bouncing around in the water I started to feel some contractions.  I have been feeling contractions for almost 2 weeks at this point so at first I didn't think anything of it.  But they kept coming.  Nothing bad...but persistent.  I joked around with Jason that maybe all this bouncing up and down in the water would bring on the baby.  This probably started around 3pm.  We stayed another half hour there and decided to go take advantage of Starbucks frappaccino happy hour.  Half off frapps!  Yes please.  Had the S'mores one by the way.  Um, YUM!  Anywho, as we were sitting in Starbucks, Jack enjoying his cookie, us our frappacinos, the contractions started getting a bit worse.  I informed Jason and he looked at me like, "You're kidding me right?"  We decided to go home.  I am the driver in the family and I opted to have Jason drive us home.  :) 

We got home and they started picking up in speed and intensity.  It was beginning to get to the point where they were almost back to back.  If I sat down though...they slowed dramatically.  I didn't want to go to the hospital only to lay on their little bed again and have them slow down and send me home.  So we waited.  Our hospital is about 25 minutes away and finally at 6pm Jason made the call and said that we were going.  He loaded the car and Jack and off we went.  We arrived at triage and I really felt like my contractions had slowed.  So lame.  I got in there, they strapped on the monitors and checked me.  Fully effaced, 4 cm.  No real change.  At first there was talk that yes, I was definitely having contractions but that they were going to make me walk for an hour to see if that helps me dilate some more.  Then the nurse walked in with some apple juice and informed me that she talked to the doctor and that baby girl wasn't moving enough...or hardly at all...and her heart rate wasn't spiking like it should.  So I drank the juice.  I informed her that it was kind of her "quiet time" but that didn't seem to appease her.  The juice did nothing.  It was yummy though.  :)  Then she came in with a buzzer and basically buzzed her head from the outside of my stomach.  That made her move at least which made them happy.  She left the room again to talk to the doctor and monitor baby girl.  At this point my contractions were definitely picking up.  Like pretty ouchie.  Finally she walked back in with a handful of stuff and said, "You're having this baby!"  Apparently they didn't like how her heart rate was so level.  Weird?!?  I knew heart rate drops were bad but being level?  Apparently not good either.  Because I was so close to being due they thought maybe my placenta was already breaking down and not allowing her to have those surges in heart rate that she should have.  Who knows.  The plan was that if I didn't start dilating more then they would give me Pitocin.  This was at about 9pm probably.  Then we realized...what are we going to do with Jack!?!?

Enjoying a contraction in triage.  Ha!  :)

Jason wanted to keep him in the room with us.  That was not an option to me.  I am SO glad we didn't too because Jason would've had to leave the room for most of it.  It was just too intense for Jack to witness.  I contacted my friend who was planning on watching Jack during the day on Monday and she so very graciously volunteered to come over to our house and spend the night with Jack.  Seriously, I barely know her.  I met her through a Bible study and she pretty much single handedly made what could have been a horrible, stressful experience into something that went so smooth.  She so selflessly served us as a family...basically strangers to be honest (we've had one playdate together).  On top of that she's even bringing us a meal this week.  The body of Christ is amazing.  :)

So at about 9:30pm Jason left to take Jack to meet her at our house.  Jason put Jack down and everything went great.  I went ahead and sent out a text to family and called my mom.  My contractions were finally so bad that I could barely talk.  My poor Mom. haha.  I kept having to put the phone down to have another contraction.  Finally I had to hang up because we were getting no where in our conversation.  :)  At about 10:15 or so they finally moved me to my room.  Oh wait, that's after they wheeled me into a full, busy waiting room and then left me there because they forgot my paperwork...and I had a full blown contraction...much to the poor onlookers horror.  Yeah.  Awesome.  hahaha.  So I made it to my delivery room.  Jason still hadn't arrived at about 10:30pm.  My contractions where getting BAD!  I am NOT one of those quiet, strong sufferers.  I was loud.  It hurt like crud.  Like straight up awful.  It was intense and fast.  I declared about 23 times that I was ready for my epidural.  But I had to wait.  With Jack the guy came in like 5 minutes.  This time it took a good 45 minutes of pure agony.  Right before he came they checked me...7 cm.  Finally the guy came and I was a basic basket case at this point.  Jason still wasn't back.  I was back laboring like nothing else.  The anesthesiologist said that I needed to sit still through it and I basically whined and cried..."I caaaaaaan't".  He straight up and sternly said, "Then you won't get your epidural." hahaha.  I think I needed a stern hand at this point to snap me out of it.  I cried, "Ooooo-K.  I'll tryyyyyy."  The nurse helped me focus on her and of course I had a contraction right as he's inserting it.  Of course.  But I was still.  :)  Yay me.  And then nice and quick those contractions started feeling less and less intense.  Pure sweet bliss. 

Once the epidural was in it was probably about 11pm and Jason finally arrived.  bahahaha.  He completely and totally missed the hardest part.  I told him it was probably for the best.  I actually prefer to suffer and be in pain alone.  Is that weird?  And it's so hard to see someone in pain and not be able to do a thing.  Jason felt reeaaallly bad for missing it though. 

They informed me at this point that they would check me again at 2 am and probably break my water.  They were trying to get the 2 rounds of antibiotics through me since I was Strep B positive.  About as fast as they said that though I started feeling pain again.  Not the same, intense contraction pain but pressure pain.  This was completely new to me because with my epidural with Jack I felt NOTHING.  I didn't feel anything that indicated it was time for me to push.  They had to tell me.  Once I started pushing I felt cramping at the top of my uterus but other then that?  Nothing.  I asked her what it was and she thought it was just the contractions coming through a bit.  She said when it's time to push the pain and pressure would be constant.  It didn't take long for that to be the case and I could feel something coming out...whether they were ready or not.  It was actually my water bag and not the baby but it was an indication that she was soon to follow (obviously...since she's IN it haha).  Apparently the place was hopping and there were babies being born left and right.  My doctor (who I hadn't met until that night) was delivering another baby.  The nurses said if I had to I could deliver with them if the doctor didn't make it in time.  I wasn't thrilled with that idea.  I didn't want to have a repeat of last time with the tear and I felt like I needed the doc to be there to ensure that. 

Right on cue she came in though and looked me in the eyes and said, "That's not going to happen again.  You aren't going to get a 4th degree tear again."  Even though she didn't REALLY know...I believed her and it DID make me a little less nervous to push.  The nurse then said that in the 3 years she'd worked at that hospital she'd never seen a 4th degree tear so I was in good hands.  It was time to break the water...which was a total explosion by the way.  hahaha.  And then the baby came right after.  I pushed for 3 hours with Jack.  It was intense and long and I barely felt a thing.  This was intense and short, and I felt a lot.  At first I was timid and not giving it my all.  I couldn't get the tear out of my mind.  Finally the pain of it all made me motivated to be done.  I pushed for 10 minutes with Eloise.  The relief my body felt when she was out was amazing.  As much as it hurt, I will say that I preferred feeling more of the birth with her then the complete numbness I had with Jack....when it came to the pushing part.  Contractions?  Um.  Yeah.  I could skip THAT pain.  :) 

I was so relieved that she was out and started to cry immediately.  Jason and the nurses had to tell me to LOOK at our new baby.  I don't know where I was looking but apparently not at her ha!  They then flopped her on me and I took our new little girl in.  I looked at the doctor though because I needed to know.  I could tell that I DID tear by her expression.  Jason said there was a lot of blood so I think it looked worse then it was.  Once she cleaned and started sewing though she said, "You tore...in the same spot.  But it's a 2nd degree...and not a very bad one."  She was smiling and I could tell she was pleased with the results.  I was under no delusion that I would walk out completely unscathed.  I figured I would tear again...I just didn't want the SAME tear.

They cleaned our little one up eventually...sorta.  This hospital was so different in so many ways.  For example, the labor seemed so...casual at this hospital.  The hospital in San Francisco felt like I was undergoing a major surgery.  They also don't bathe the baby at this hospital until they have nursed 2 times.  For us that was the next day because she was soooo sleepy...and just had no sucking reflex/desire.  They have done studies that show that keeping the amniotic fluid on them makes them nurse better apparently.  Who knows. 

So there you have it.  Eloise's birth story.  I am healing well from the tear...I think.  ;)  Having experienced the other tear this is totally not bad at all.  Like really.  And definitely much easier to heal from then a C-Section.  In this case I guess we made the right decision.  Apparently there shouldn't really be any long term problems from this tear.  I hope they are right.  ;)

Very proud Daddy <3

And Eloise?  She is a doll.  She feels so tiny.  She's only a pound smaller then Jack was but I think I forget just how tiny newborns are.  She is a quiet little thing who chooses to sleep far more then she chooses to eat.  We might have to address that tomorrow at her pediatrician appointment.  :)  She loves to be held, or is content being put down.  Jack loves her so far...  ;)  She it fitting well into our family and some how yes...it IS easier the second time.  I'm tired but I don't feel like I'm going to pass out from the exhaustion.  Jason is home for this week and is basically the best Daddy ever.  We are so blessed to have him around.  And I am so blessed to be a Mama of TWO.  I love my little Ellie May and Jacko.  <3

When I look at this pic I laugh because to me it looks like a baby Jack in a pink bow.  Ha!  :)