Vanessa Elise joined our family on August 12. She weighed 7 lbs. 8 oz. and was 18 1/2 inches long, which for me is a small baby.
My contractions started around 1 a.m. but were few and far between. I really didn't think too much about it, other than I wasn't getting much sleep, until around 6 when they were coming a lot closer and were quite a bit stronger. I started debating back and forth about whether I should have Jim go to work or not. Since he works 45 minutes away, I finally decided after he was all showered and ready for work to ask him if he'd like to miss work that day. He seemed a little shocked but willing to take the day off. I showered and finally decided to call my mom around 8:15 to come watch Andrew and Ally. She showed up around an hour later and we were off. By the time we were getting to the hospital around 9:30 my contractions were very strong. After checking in with the receptionist she took me back to a room told me to put on a gown and a nurse would be right in to check me. We sat there waiting and waiting but no nurse. Finally after 15 minutes Jim told me he was going to find one. He went out to the nurses station and asked if someone could come check on me since my contractions were coming 'every one to two minutes.' The nurse finally nonchalantly wandered into my room, told me to lay back on the bed and checked me. She looked at me with big eyes and told me I was dilated to a five and 100% complete. She walked out to the hall and all of sudden four other nurses were with her. One was prepping stuff for the baby, one was getting supplies, one was hooking me up to an IV, another was asking me questions, in between contractions and me death gripping the bed rail because the contractions were so strong. They kept telling me the anesthesiologist was finishing up with another epidural and would be right in. Finally, my knight in shining armor came in to rescue me from the pain. He got my epidural in me and nothing. I was still feeling every contraction and wanting to die. (I know I sound like a huge baby right now because many women have and still continue to have babies without any drugs and I really, truly admire them. I don't know how they did and continue to do it.) The anesthesiologist came to check how I was doing and decided to give me a boost right into the line. Still no help. About five minutes later I could still feel the contractions but they weren't lasting as long. Next walked in the doctor. Luckily by the time I was starting to push my friend the epidural kicked in. I only had to push three times and little Vanessa was born at 11:01 a.m. It was a very quick delivery (the receptionist told me if I ever have another baby, I better head for the hospital with my first contraction) and thankfully Vanessa was healthy. They left her with me and Jim for a while in our room and she just kept fussing. She was acting like she was hungry. Jim went and got the nurse and off they went to the nursery where she ate a full ounce. The nurses told Jim that it is very rare for a baby to eat like that so quickly after being born.
The only other bad thing about the quick delivery was that I tested positive for Strep B and since she came so quickly I only had the penicillin for 30 minutes when you are supposed to have it for four hours. They couldn't get Vanessa's blood to draw (you should see her poor heels and hands covered with prick marks and bruises) so they had to try later in the day. Once they finally tested her blood her white blood cell count was high so she had to receive shots of antibiotics for 48 hours after being born. The good news is that she tested normal on the day of check out so we could bring her home. She is such a beautiful baby and I am so glad to have her finally join our family. She is truly a blessing!!
