A Bunch of Barkers: February 2014

So, sweet Chloe turns 6 weeks old tomorrow. My memory is such that if I don’t write things down pretty soon I have very little recollection of the event, so I’ve decided to write out Chloe’s birth story. Be warned, if you are male, you will have absolutely no desire whatsoever to know these details…

Blake and Kate both came before their due date (Blake 4 days, Kate 8 days) so I was prepared, even expecting, for Chloe to come early. Her official due date was January 7^th, but we were not so secretly hoping she would come before the New Year (Sorry, but I’m way too practical to deny a tax deduction and insurance deductible that was already met!)

My Mom, step-dad, sister in law and her kids had come the week before in hopes that Chloe would be born while they were here….no pressure at all right? On Monday the 30^th my doctor did what she could to stimulate labor, I’ll spare you the details. At that point I was already dilated to a 3. So I went home feeling fine to spend time with my family.

I woke up about 7:00 Tuesday morning and could tell my contractions (I had had some tightening before but nothing to cause excitement) were becoming more serious. My contractions always seem to be in my back and these were no different. What was different with this labor was that my contractions were only on the left side of my body. They were consistent, but 10-15 minutes apart, then gradually became more like 7 minutes apart. I called the nurse to ask her if I should go on to the hospital. She said yes, but it was no rush. So I called Nick, he came home around noon and we went to the hospital around 1:30. At the hospital I was still a 3 but my contractions on the monitor were coming every 3-5 minutes. “Sweet!” I thought, “we’ll be admitted and have a baby!”….but no….they monitored me for an hour, had me drink water, talked me into taking Vicodin (I should’ve known better) and sent me home.

At home, my brother in law had brought the girls Christmas gifts from his Mom and my Mom had made taco salad at my request…so we watched the girls play and had dinner…I think I remember some New Years Eve festivities but to be honest I couldn’t have cared less about New Years eve at that point. By 8:00 I was really in pain, I would have to stop and really concentrate to get through the contractions that were coming every 3-5 minutes. Perfect! Back to the hospital we go, ready to have a baby!!

Nope. They checked me , still a 3. My doctor was on call downtown so she called to tell me she was sending me back home. Again. Then came my tears. I just didn’t understand. With Blake and Kate I was admitted when I was a 3, given an epidural and enjoyed labor bliss completely pain free. I never claimed to want to be without an epidural for my labors. I know myself well enough to know it just wouldn’t happen. I was always so scared to be sent home that I made sure I was in labor before heading to the hospital. I look back on my labor experience with them as a sweet time of excitement. So my doctor tells me to take more Vicodin, and believe it or not tells me to take a sleeping pill and sends me home to drug induced craziness. I cried all the way home.

When we get home it takes Nick massaging my back and me finding new positions to get through the pain of each contraction. My Mom and sister in law were with me the whole time. By now the medications had kicked in and things become a little (a lot) fuzzy. I remember getting sick to my stomach. Around 1:00 they had had enough of watching me hurt. They loaded me up and drove me back to the hospital (I don’t remember that part at all.)

I got into a room, like hell were they sending me back home. I would’ve camped in the waiting room begging for an epidural at that point! I was now dilated to a 5 and could not keep up with the pain of my contractions. The nurse gave me an injection of stadol, why oh why did they keep medicating me when all I needed was a freaking epidural!!! ?? I remember my doctor coming in and breaking my water. Looking back I totally don’t understand why she did that. I was in so much pain, I thought it couldn’t get any worse…but who knew, it could! Just break that water and watch the pain triple in effect. So at 4:00 a.m. the anesthesiologist finally comes. 10 minutes later I have approximately 10 minutes of relief before the doctor declares me a 10 and tells me to push. A few pushes later little Chloe Ryan reminded me why it was all worth it when she was born at 4:48 a.m. on New Years Day. We were able to have skin to skin time right away and she latched right on like a pro. 7 lb 2 oz 20 ¾ “ long.

We stayed that night in the hospital then went home the next morning. Usually I enjoy my time in the hospital but all I wanted was to get home.