Before:

Friday (October 1st) I started getting a little bit more of an upset stomach I thought nothing of it, because I’ve had gastric “issues” (wink) pretty much this entire pregnancy. Scott and I spent the night at home because Scott didn’t want to miss his “new Friday night lineup” on TV. This was fine with me because I was feeling a bit tired. Before we headed to bed, we just decided to pack up the Blazer incase something happened over the night and the weekend… might as well have been prepared than not and then hit the hay, but I couldn’t sleep for more than an hour or 2 at a time. It was a horrible night for me, and in turn Scott.

Scott woke up early Saturday morning and headed to golf with is dad. He said he might be back within an hour because it looked like rain and it was cold. I was still feeling really icky and decided to go downstairs and check some email and play with Oreo. I was messing around on the computer until around 11 or so and I came upstairs to use the bathroom, yet again…. And thought I’d better just check my cell phone. “24 missed calls.” WHAT?! It was Scott! So I called him back ASAP, and he was let’s say… not happy. He was rushing home because he thought I was going into labor or something because there wasn’t a signal on the golf course, and he couldn’t get me to answer the phone from the club house. He actually left “the best game of his life” to fly home to make sure I was ok. Scott had called his mom and my mom to see where the heck I was. He was more freaked out because his mom wasn’t answering the phone, and he figured that I had called her to take me to the hospital when I couldn’t get a hold of him on the golf course. Poor Scott…. Freaked out and was really really upset with me. I felt horrible…. but we kissed and made up.

Scott and I wanted to head to the local fire department to get them to check out the car seat to make sure that we had installed it right, but they stopped their Saturday checks at 11:30. Scott went ahead and installed the base in his car and my car. He did a really good job installing it, especially when it started POURING down rain. There was my wonderful husband halfway in the cars with an umbrella propped between the door and the roof of the car so he wouldn’t get wet; making sure that his daughter would be completely safe coming home.

I was still feeling icky, and to “make it up to Scott” we had a really awesome lunch at Swenson’s. MMMM MMMM Then we headed to the movies to use our free tickets and this was probably going to be one of the last times we would have a “date.” We watched “The Forgotten.” When we got to the ticket counter the young lady behind the desk asked, “Oh! When are you due?” I replied “Tomorrow.” She had a surprised look on her face and said “Well, I hope that this movie doesn’t make you go into labor. We’ve never had that happen before.” I laughed because Scott said the EXACT same thing before we entered the theater. I watched the movie, and there was a TON of movement from Reese.

After the movie we headed to Target to pick up some last minute items that I might need at the hospital then home we went to chill. I was feeling a bit more “under the weather” that night, but we went to dinner at a really good Mexican restaurant. Scott asked if that was a good idea because he remembered during our birthing class that it was likely we’d see this again if I went into labor that night. I laughed and said, it was fine! After dinner we headed home and crashed… we both were tired from the day’s earlier events.

During:

12:35AM Sunday, October 3rd…. It started. I kept going to the bathroom and when I would lie back down, I’d feel more than just a Braxton Hicks. I gently woke Scott and said “I think that was a real contraction.” He was perfectly calm and said that he’d start keeping track of the time. I was having about 1 an hour… I’d just breathe through it, and it really wasn’t painful at that point. Then they started getting a bit more intense, and a bit more painful. I called Barbara and said that they were still about 10 minutes apart, but not too terribly painful, but getting there. We were on the phone for a bit, I had some, but it didn’t take my breath away and asked if I couldn’t sleep through most of them. I nervously said, I think so… but to be honest I wasn’t sure. She said for me to wait until they were 3 – 5 minutes apart and inquired if I had seen any signs of my plug or bloody show, which I hadn’t.

Scott was timing the length of the contractions and they were lasting about a minute and a half and started getting to be around 8 minutes apart. They finally were anywhere from 3 ½ - 5 minutes apart at around 7:20AM when I called Barbara, and at this point, I had labored breathing after each contraction and they were lasting up to 1 minute 45 seconds – 2 minutes! She said “Well, are you ready to have this baby?” I said, “I think so.” I was a bit nervous. Barbara called over to the hospital to let them know I was on my way over.

Scott was FANTASTIC. He made me get in the car first before he organized Oreo and called his his mom and my mom telling them we were heading to the hospital. My mom changed her flight to leave a little later so she would be here by 4:30PM and Linda said she would come on over shortly.

The contractions were pretty intense when they would come, but I would breathe through them, Scott was right there with me keeping track and talking me through it. They were getting more intense, and the worst part… it was BACK LABOR. I think we finally ended up on the road around 8 and we got to the hospital around 8:30. We were the ONLY ones in the parking lot. I joked that it was because it was Sunday and there was a home Brown’s game and Scott said it was like a scene out of Lingaliers.

I walked in stopping now and then to breathe through a contraction. The lady behind the cashier’s window was the only person in sight and she called up to L&D to make sure they knew I was coming… which they did. We headed up on the elevator when I had another MASSIVE back contraction. I had to wait a bit before releasing myself from the rail, and the wonderful Nurse, Jennifer, greeted me and took Scott and me back to one of the labor rooms. They hooked me up to the external fetal monitor and contraction monitor to keep track of Reese’s heart rate and how intense and how long the contractions were.

Jennifer was amazed at the “doozies” of contractions I was having. Some of them wouldn’t register on the graph paper. I breathed through each one with reassurance from both Scott and Jennifer that was doing fine and very impressed I was able to breath through them. Scott would let me know when there was a contraction coming and joked if the number didn’t get as high as the last highest number. I think at one time I was at 125+’s. Jennifer then did an internal and said that she was having a hard time finding my cervix to see what dilatation I was currently because Reese was still posterior. MY GOD DID IT HURT. So Jennifer had another nurse come in and say that I was between 1 and 2 cm dilated. They won’t technically “admit me” until I was 3 cm, but Barbara wanted them to monitor me for a bit before making a decision. I breathed through a few more contractions and tried to take a bit of a nap… it sorta worked… but with such massive contractions at times, it was really hard to sleep.

The nurses wanted to see if I could get up and walk around a bit, which HURT, but I did it. Scott was getting everything situated and Linda came by and walked around with me a bit. The nurses also suggested I get on the birthing ball and see if that wouldn’t get things to move along. Barbara came in to see me around 10 (I think, one loses all track of time at moments like this). She checked my cervix and agreed that I was still 1 ½ - 2 cm dilated but wanted to wait a few more hours to see if that changed. I got back on the birthing ball and Barbara rubbed my back and talked me through some contractions. She was so wonderful. The contractions were getting pretty intense, so Jennifer offered the lowest dose of Nubain, that Barbara had already approved, to see if that would take some of the edge off and for internals not to be so incredibly painful, at some point I know I had a second dose, but I can’t remember when that was given to me. I agreed because something told me that this was going to be a long day and it did help to let me relax a bit. After sitting on the ball for a combined total of an hour I asked if I couldn’t get back in bed. Barbara and Shelley (new nurse) rubbed my feet and worked on pressure points in my feet and calves to get the contractions to come a bit more regularly and get me hopefully to 3cm before 2:00PM. I was only able to be monitored for 6 hours before they would send me home.

I was dozing off and I heard Barbara tell me that she would be back in a few hours to check on me. While I was dozing, Shelley kept rubbing my feet and doing pressure points. I heard Scott and she talking in and out of my slightly drugged/tired stupor that I was having incredibly long contractions. One of them lasted for 2 ½ minutes and was “a doozie.” I remember thinking “What? I thought that they were supposed to last 45 – 90 seconds.” They were anywhere from 6 – 10 minutes apart. It wasn’t looking good for me being admitted, but Barbara was more concerned that I didn’t have any “good sleep” Friday night and I had been up since 12:30AM and really didn’t have any sound sleep.

Barbara came back around 2 and did an internal… I was still only about 2 cm dilated, still no mucus plug nor bloody show. My contractions were becoming more and more spaced apart, and she apologized but said she would have to send me home…. But not to get discouraged because all this wasn’t for nothing. “You are shaping your baby’s head.. so though it feels like you aren’t doing much, you are doing a ton, so do not get upset.”

Barbara prescribed me 2 doses of Vistaril, which was a light sleeping aid, which Barbara wanted me to take to get some sleep and take some of the edge off. She said for me to take 100mg and if I wasn’t asleep in an hour to take a second dose. She also said for me to first get something to eat, take a nice warm bath, take the Vistaril and get some sleep. If I didn’t, I was going to have to come back and have a light Morphine shot to force me to sleep. I really didn’t want to have to do that, but I was open for anything at this point. So… at 2:45ish we were heading BACK home, but stopped by the Pharmacy to pick up Vistaril.

And as I told Scott when we FIRST started dating, “There will never be a boring moment,” Scott and I had a heck of a time trying to find a 1. a pharmacy in our area and 2. one that was open that late in the day on a Sunday. Wal-Mart’s and Target’s both weren’t open!!! I was getting a little concerned, but Scott was yet again, THE MAN, found a Rite Aid that had my prescription filled within 15 – 20 minutes, but I stayed in the car breathing through the long contractions I was having (a week later Scott found a pharmacy about 1 mile from our house teehehe). We got home and I did just as Barbara asked. I’m not sure if I really ever got to sleep… I was just in a daze trying to get through the contractions.

Scott said that my Mom came to our house around 5:30… and at this point, I was so tired, but couldn’t sleep and was irritated beyond belief…I waited the hour to see if I could sleep, and I couldn’t. Scott called Barbara to see what we should do because the contractions were becoming increasingly stronger and I couldn’t relax enough to sleep. She said for me to take the second dose of the Vistaril and wait another hour. I did just that…. Still NO SLEEP.

I was trying to breath through the back labor. Scott was running up and down the stairs, while mom was writing down the time a contraction would start) when I’d call him every 12 minutes to rub my back because I was sprawled across our bed and trying to get some sleep because I could tell that I was in a little bit of a drugged sleep, but it didn’t matter….. he did a great job, though at the time I don’t think I was so nice. At around 7:45PM I begged him to call Barbara because the back labor was so intense and I was so incredibly tired. He did just that….

The next thing I know Scott said, “Sue, get in the car, we’re going back to the hospital.” I didn’t believe him and I said “Are you sure?” He said “Yes, Barbara needs you to get some sleep because you are now going on 48 hours of no sleep and intense contractions, though they aren’t regular.” I was slightly relieved because all I wanted to do was sleep… I didn’t care if I was at 3 cm or not, I just wanted to sleep! The nurse said that it should give me 4 – 6 hours worth of sleep, and I begged and prayed out loud it give me at least 6. I have to say, that shot in the hip at the point in time was a miracle drug. I think I was out within 10 minutes, but not before I was having some pretty intense contractions, Scott wasn’t in the room because he was busy calling everyone telling them what was going on, I think at one point I called out for him because I was thinking we were still at home and he had to run upstairs to rub my back!

I remember only waking up every now and then to breath through a contraction, which everyone was still so impressed I was able to breath through these massive and massively LONG contractions on my own. The next thing that I remember is the nurse coming in at 7:00AM because Barbara wanted to have me checked to see if I had dilated anymore since last night… I swear the most lovely thing was said at that moment, “You are 3 ½ cm dilated!” I promptly did the fist in the air and brought it down quietly yelling “YES! That’s the best news I’ve heard all day!” The nurse laughed and said that she’d call Barbara and let her know. I inquired where Scott was, and he had passed out on the couch in the lounge area. HOW SWEET IS HE?! They asked if they wanted me to wake him and I said no, I wanted him to sleep because I think he’s gotten less sleep than I have. I did ask if he ever came in last night and she said “Oh yeah! He peeped his head in and was more excited that you were asleep than you were!” We both laughed because we knew exactly how he reacted… I’m sure a “WOO HOO!” was in there somewhere. hehe

I can’t remember exactly when Barbara came back in to check on me (sometime around 9:00AM), but I was thrilled when I saw her and said “I’m at least 3 ½ cm!” She laughed and said “I heard!” I was then officially admitted this time! hehe It took about an hour or so to get everything going, but the WHOLE time I was on the birthing ball, Barbara was rubbing my back and talking me through the contractions, which I was still breathing through. Scott and I then walked around for a bit in the L&D ward, but I told Scott to go head and head out to get some lunch.

At 10:00AM Barbara came in and said she had discussed me with Dr. Bowden and they both agreed that “They thought they had better break my water to see if it wouldn’t speed things along.” I said, “Ok, guess this is it huh?” Barbara brought in the hook…. And uggg that was also very painful as well… but FINALLY… *gush*… very weird feeling. Scott was sitting behind Barbara and Donna (another nurse) while she did this… Barbara moved and I saw Scott, his face which was WHITE! I kept asking if he was ok, and he said “yeah, I’m fine, I’m fine.” Donna instructed him NOT to move and to sit right there. I swear, if Scott would have gotten up, he would have passed out, no doubt. When the initial gush was under control, the nurses and Barbara wanted me to walk around to see if that wouldn’t help Reese move down where she needed to be. I told Scott to go ahead and leave for a few hours and take care of whatever he needed to get done. I continued to walk around the L&D loop.

About an hour later Barbara did another painful internal and said I was still at 3 ½ - 4 cm. She made the decision to start me on Pitocin to get my contractions more regular and to shorten them, because they were still lasting at least 2 minutes. Barbara kept telling me the ENTIRE time, ever since I was in the hospital Sunday morning, that these contractions weren’t for nothing… they were shaping the baby’s head and it just takes a little while to move those plates around to reassure me that I was doing fantastic. I was still staying positive and knew that everything would be ok

My GOD. When the Pitocin kicked in I thought I was going to die. I was sitting on the birthing ball while Barbara was rubbing the left side of my back as the contractions started in the back and moved forward. She said that was GREAT because that meant that Reese was getting into position and turning like she should be. I don’t know how long this went on, but I know she started suggesting drugs to help cope with the pain. Scott was amazed at how well I had done since 12:30AM Sunday with the pain. I knew I was only about 4 cm and miserable. During one of the last contractions on the birthing ball I did just as I said I would… begged for an epidural like a heroine addict. I knew I was in semi tears because it hurt so so so so badly. Barbara was telling me the draw backs of the epi because they usually lowered the blood pressure of both Reese and I, and if Reese hadn’t turned around, it would increase the possibility of me having a c-section. I think Barbara was worried because she and I were both thinking that Reese was going to be a long big baby, 9 pounder. I didn’t care. I screamed I just wanted the pain to go away. The anesthesiologist was ordered and I was told that he would be up in 10 minutes. THE LONGEST 10 MINUTES OF MY LIFE (at that point).

Chris FINALLY came in while I was laboring and he was going over the same information about side effects as Barbara had, and I was getting a bit annoyed because I just wanted the pain to go away. I ordered Scott out of the room because I didn’t want him getting sick. Barbara and Kathy (another nurse… yes, at this point Scott and I had pretty gone through all nursing shifts) were getting me on the bed, getting my IV cords out of the way so that Chris could have a good angle at my back and so I “didn’t move.” I inquired “What happens if I’m in the middle of one of these awful contractions?” Everyone said in unison, “Don’t move!” I was so nervous, but it was so worth it. They lifted the bed off the ground pretty much as high as it would go because Chris was rather tall. Barbara held my hands while Kathy let me rest one of my feet on her knee. I breathed through TWO massive contractions, that I was gritting my teeth so hard that I could have cracked a walnut between them. Barbara and Kathy both kept telling me not to move and I was doing a great job. Chris was working steadily and it was FINALLY in. I had to lay on my side perfectly still for a bit because the medicine works on gravity. Within 20 minutes I was getting relief!

Barbara told me to get some sleep. She said that most people try to have visitors at this time, but she advised against it. I 300% agreed. Scott got the door that had 2 Grandma’s heads trying to peep through to see what was going on. He was the man at keeping all calls and the Grandparents-to-be in the waiting room so I would get some rest. Which I did… I was dozing off and on for about an hour. Barbara said that on average it would be at least 8 hours until Reese would come into the world and didn’t want him starving. He let the Grandparents-to-be know what Barbara said so they headed off to Wal-Mart. Barbara came back in about and hour and did an internal. I was at 8 cm! WOO HOO! Barbara was most impressed at how far I had come in less than 2 hours of having an epidural going from 4ish cm all the way to a good 8 cm!!!

I called Scott to let him know that I wasn’t having Reese right then, but I was 8 cm along and that he didn’t need to rush back, but to get his butt back to the hospital. He got back to the hospital and I breathed through more contractions, Pitocin induced, but Barbara had been cutting back on the dosage since before the epidural because my body was kicking in and I was having a contraction every 1 – 1 ½ minutes. At some point I said I was feeling a bit nauseous and was afraid I was going to projectile vomit. Scott RAN out of the room, we all started to laugh thinking that we had made him sick with all the talk of giving birth and then I was talking about projectile vomiting. He came back in and we all asked if he was ok, and he said “Oh yeah, I’m fine, I just figured with all this excitement of giving birth and since I can’t use Sue’s bathroom, I’d had better go to the bathroom downstairs now before anymore stuff happens.” We all laughed. About 15 minutes later I started to feel a bit more pressure and the beginnings of “feeling of having to push.” It was weird… Barbara checked to see were Reese’s head was. She then turned to me and said “Do you want a mirror?” At first I didn’t… figured that Scott didn’t want to see everything, but I changed my mind and said “Sure!” The next thing I know there is a big light and rather large mirror on a stand that was brought in.

The big moment came when I had my first feeling of really needing to push. My epidural worked exactly as I had hoped. It only numbed the pain of the contraction, but I could still feel when to push, how long, my feet and pretty much everything. Barbara took one of my legs and she looked at Scott and said “We aren’t going to use stirrups, Scott grab a leg.” I was so impressed because this was a man that wanted a “blue tarp” to stay behind during the entire birth. I started pushing. Donna helped me curl and she counted to 10… 3 deep breaths, 10 seconds each per contraction. Scott was holding a leg and telling me when there was a contraction. I had to figure out the “correct way to push,” but once I got it, I was told “I was a great pusher.” It really did feel somewhere between having to have a bowel movement and urinating, but not.

As time went on, and since I was the ONLY laboring mother on the whole second floor, slowly but surely every nurse on duty was in my room. It’s funny how one loses all sense of modesty when pregnant and definitely giving birth. I didn’t care at this point, I just wanted this kiddo outta me.

I was having a hard time holding my breath during the contractions because it hurt so badly. Reese’s butt was under my ribs and it hurt more to curl than to push. I pushed for I don’t know how long before I started to vomit. I mean dry heaving and puking up stomach bile while a contraction was going on. I could feel Reese coming down, but I couldn’t help but puke. Barbara told me that though the puking wasn’t pleasant that it was still helping to move Reese down. Donna was holding the basin, Scott was holding a leg and Barbara was ordering some anti-nausea medication. Barbara was wonderful. She kept me on track with pushing, but she asked me to grab a hold of one end of a towel and she grabbed the other. We played tug-of-war trying to get me to curl and Reese to move on down where she needed to be. I also screamed to get the blood pressure cuff off of me. It kept squeezing my arm every 30 minutes to the point that it felt as though my arm was going to fall off.

After 1 - 1 ½ hours of pushing, I was ready to give up. I remember begging Barbara to “get her out of me!” over and over again. I remember saying that “I can’t do this.” I was feeling like such a failure because I had never wanted to quit, especially during this part, but things change. Barbara kept reassuring me that all women say that and that I COULD do it. She directed me on where to push and it helped immensely. I was so tired, puking my guts up and it felt like Reese’s head wasn’t moving. Scott was so wonderful. He was counting and telling me to look in the mirror that her head was “RIGHT THERE!” I just couldn’t do it anymore… I was at the breaking point. I remember saying “Oh my god it burns so bad!! [Ring of Fire]” Barbara was telling me to push through the pain; Scott was telling me to hold my breath because I was letting air escape. During one of the last pushes Scott got in my face and said “HOLD YOUR BREATH AND PUSH!!” I promptly shoved him hard in the gut to get him out of my face which knocked him back and I think that pissed me off just enough for one more last blood curdling shriek of pain and her “HEAD IS OUT! Stop pushing!” In a hushed tone Barbara said “The cord is wrapped twice around her neck.” At 6:42PM Monday night, Scott said in less than 30 seconds with a contraction Barbara had the cord clamped, snipped and pulled Reese out and over to the warming table into the hands of Chris (the anesthesiologist), Gloria (Nurse) and another nurse, not sure if it was Donna or someone else. After 2+ hours of pushing... REESE WAS FINALLY HERE!!!!

I remember falling back and feeling as though I was going to pass out. It took me a few seconds to figure out what was going on and why it was so quiet. I was frantically asking why she wasn’t screaming and if she was breathing! Barbara was trying to calm my hysterics by explaining that when baby’s cord is cut in while they are still in the canal that it’s too much of a shock to their system and so they breathe shallowly. Still didn’t calm me. I was asking if she was breathing over and over again. One of the nurses turned to me to calm me down and said she was breathing, she never stopped, and it was just shallow and fast. FINALLY the sweet screams of our angel!!!!! I was so relieved and asked if “she was definitely a girl.” Gloria checked and said “Yup! She’s a girl!” PHEW! ;)

I was still going through light contractions to expel the placenta, which was weird because I could still feel the umbilical cord pulsing. It finally was delivered and Barbara asked if I wanted to see it and I said “Heck no, if you think it looks healthy that’s good enough for me! hehe" Chris laughed and said “I don’t blame you, I wouldn’t want to see it either!” I looked over at Scott and he was staring in awe and I started crying and said how beautiful she looked. Scott agreed and said “She’s got a massive cone head!” I remember saying, Barbara do you want to know her name? She said “Of course!” I blurted out, “Reese Lillian” between sobs. The whole room Barbara then said what a wonderful name for such a beautiful baby. Chris looked at me and said “She looks just like you.”

After I calmed down a bit Barbara said “I need to stitch you up.” I was a little confused because I didn’t feel anything. Epidural worked great! Barbara explained that the only reason I tore is because she had to drop Reese’s head to cut the cord. I kept asking if it was bad, and she said no, but it was taking a bit to sew me up so that “she did a good job.” I chuckled and I looked over at Scott who was standing beside me and he looked at me and said “Sue, it’s not that bad.” I laughed to myself thinking that this was a man who gets queasy just looking at a needle and there he was, right in the middle of Reese’s birth right until the end. I fell more in love with him at that moment.

When all was calm in the delivery room, Scott asked if it was ok if he went out and told the Grandparents the good news and take the gift bags that had a miniature old-fashioned candy dispenser filled with Reese’s Pieces along with a gift certificate to get the base engraved her name and birth date. Scott told them the good news of their “cone head daughter and that the gift bags contained “a hint at the name.” After a few interesting guesses of M&M and Candy… Linda finally got it, REESE! Everyone loved her name, Reese Lillian… and to think that there was so much stress over what we were going to name her. teehehe

I was moved to my recovery room while everyone watched Reese get her first bath in the nursery. Scott and I were now and forever to be known as Mom and Dad to our beautiful daughter Reese Lillian.

After:

The next 48+ hours in my Labor “Suite” was amazing. The nursing staff was INCREDIABLE. I felt like a celebrity in a 4 star hotel. I was the only mother in the entire ward. I had a whole staff of wonderful nurses that tended to my every need, care and want. They were also so cheerful and concerned for my well being and Reese’s. At no time did they make me feel like an idiot when asking how to use a Sitz Bath, breastfeeding, using Tucks Pads and overall if I was doing ok as a first time mom. I let Reese stay in the nursery at night, except for feedings, and she was with me during the day. Breastfeeding was a bit stressful, but I was told that Reese and I were doing just fine and it would just take a few days for us to get used to one another. Donna, our birthing class instructor/lactation consultant, was amazing. She gave me her home and cell phone number and told me to call her day or night if I had any questions or problems.

On the last day Scott and I had a wonderful “Memory Meal” for lunch. Where we ordered Chicken Cordon Bleu and a Steak meal with rice pilaf and dessert as one of our last “dates” while the nurses watched Reese. It was absolutely fantastic. Scott had me rolling with laughter. It was just such a wonderful time and so great that it was offered to us. We were also given a free Elmo book from the Gift Shop, a bunch of buttons that had Reese’s webpage photo and we were mailed Reese’s first footprint keep sake from one of the nurses that does calligraphy. Scott, Reese and I are so lucky to have delivered at Wadsworth-Rittman hospital. I couldn’t think of a better labor and delivery experience and the best part, we left with the most wonderful gift of all…. Our daughter.