Birth Story!!

The day has finally arrived!!!  Induction Day!!!  Since we still had not made any progress as of June 7th, we were scheduled to go to the hospital Tuesday night, June 8th.  Our check-in time was 6pm on June 8th.  We arrived at the hospital after getting in the car and realizing that the gas light was on and having to stop to get gas so we could make it to the hospital!  They started the cervidil, which is a medication that works for 12 hours to induce labor, at 8pm (that part was not fun).  I was having contractions when we arrived at the hospital so after the cervidil was put in the contractions increased slightly.  The nurse gave me some really strong pain medication so I would be able to rest and prepare for the long road ahead.  That was a very weird experience...it made me feel very strange and I kept seeing things in the room.  Michael and I really had a good time that night.  We spent one final night with just the two of us.  We watched the office on his laptop, laughed together, and talked about what it would be like to have Morgan in our lives.  I will never forget the experiences that we got to share together through this whole process.  8am finally came around and Dr. Cole came in to check me.  The cervidil worked in that I was 2 to 3 cm dilated, but the cervix was still very high.  They broke my water and started Pitocin to get everything rolling.  The contractions started to pick up IMMEDIATELY!  I went from being fairly comfortable to dealing with contractions that I could not even breathe through.  About 15 minutes after breaking my water and starting Pitocin they came in to give me the epidural.  Everyone says that you fall in love with the anesthesiologist...it is so true!!!  He was a life saver.  I forgot about how terrible the process of getting the epidural was as soon as I was comfortable again.  I went from 2cm to 10cm in about 3 hours!!!  It was all looking really good and the nurse was saying that it looked like we would have a baby by noon!  I started to push when I reached 10cm to see if we could start to get her down.

Michael and I right before leaving for the hospital

The process has started...anxiously awaiting our little girl

The whole experience is so surreal...Michael and I, with the help of God, created this baby that for 9 months has grown inside of me, and now here we are in the hospital getting ready to deliver this child that we have waited so long to meet!  AMAZING!!

We noticed after pushing for about 20 mins that Morgan's heart rate started to increase and was not going back down.  Dr. Cole was right there the whole time watching the monitor.  She had me stop pushing for about 30 mins and sit straight up so that maybe gravity could work in our favor and help Morgan come down.  Dr. Cole checked me and said that she was not coming down, her heart rate was still up, and there was a knot on my cervix that was swelling which would ultimately keep me from being able to get her out.  By this point Michael and I were worried about our sweet little girl.  Dr. Cole was concerned as well.  She explained the risks of the cervix tearing and said that could cause uncontrollable bleeding and the risks for Morgan due to the stress.  We quickly came to the conclusion that we had done all we could to try and get this baby out on our own, but now it was time to move forward with the c-section.  Michael and I were filled with so many emotions at this moment.  We were very concerned for our little girl and for me at the same time.  I knew that I was in good hands during this whole process with Dr. Cole.  Once we decided on the c-section everything started to move very fast.  I was being given all kinds of drugs, Michael was given scrubs to put on, he was sent down to give the family the update, and before I knew it they were wheeling me into the operating room.  I have no clue how long the c-section took, but there are moments that I remember very clearly!!  I remember them telling me that I would be meeting my little girl very soon, that everything was going very good, and all of a sudden I heard that first cry....my first instinct was to scream because I was so overcome with joy!!!  Everyone in the OR laughed and said that was the first time they had ever had someone scream during a c-section.  I'm glad that I made it memorable for them too!!  =)  I will never forget that moment for as long as I live.  They brought our sweet little Morgan around the curtain and I couldn't help but let out another scream.  It is a moment that I will never be able to fully describe!!!  She was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen, perfect in every way!

                                    

One of the most amazing parts of the whole entire experience was seeing how it affected Michael.  I have known Michael for over 4 years and I have never seen this side of him.  He was very emotional from the moment we arrived at the hospital and the action started.  He was and still is one VERY proud daddy!!  He told our families that this was the most he had ever cried!  I loved seeing that side of him.  You should have seen the look in his eyes when he saw his daughter for the first time....it was priceless!

                                    

                                    

This one is kind of funny, but another moment that I remember so clearly was after she was born and they got her all cleaned up, Michael was taking her to meet our family and I hear someone tell the nurse "Pull his pants up so he doesn't trip and fall."  In all of the rushing to get to the OR, Michael forgot to tie the drawstring on his scrubs and they had fallen down to his knees and he was walking out with Morgan.  It was SO cute!!!

Michael and I were able to love on Morgan while they finished up the c-section and spend our first few moments together as a family!  We were just drooling over her.  She was just as beautiful as we had imagined that she would be.  I was dying to know how much she weighed because they kept telling me towards the end of the pregnancy that she was a big baby.  I didn't find out until I was in recovery, but she weighed 7lbs 11.5oz (but they round up so 7lbs 12oz) and was 19 1/2 inches long.  Morgan came into this world at 1:01pm on June 9, 2010.  She scored 9/9 on her APGAR test (she is already an over achiever like her daddy).

                                                

                                      

I was in recovery for about 2 hours and was unable to see Morgan for about 4 hours.  I was so excited when they finally brought here into our room!  Unfortunately, I don't remember much from the rest of the day because of all the drugs that I had been given throughout the day and the night before.  The fun was just beginning.  Michael and I spent the next couple of days just in awe of our little girl.  We had some wonderful moments in the hospital, just the three of us!

We had a lot of visitors come to the hospital to meet Morgan during our stay.  It was so nice to see how many people love me, Michael, and Morgan!!

After being in the hospital since Tuesday night, we finally got to bring our little girl home on Saturday, June 12th.  It was kind of strange leaving the house on Tuesday, just Michael and I, and coming back on Saturday as a family of three.  We were so glad to be home!

Michael and I are so blessed to have our little girl in our lives.  We thank God everyday for blessing us with a family.  We are looking forward to watching Morgan grow up into a beautiful young lady!