It's hard to believe that it's already been 9.5 weeks since little miss Ava was born. Before too much time gets away from us, and the effects of absolute sleep deprivation take a toll on our memory :), we wanted to be sure to capture what will forever be one of the most special memories of our lives.
Sunday May 25, 2014.We knew it would be our last weekend without kids since I was 41 weeks and 4 days pregnant and due to be induced the following day on May 26th. But, it was hard to enjoy it...we just wanted our baby and were done waiting patiently for her!! We enjoyed a nice date at Chicago Fire (mmmmm pizzokies!), and then took a two mile walk around the neighborhood with Paisley. At 9pm, we crawled into bed with Paisley to watch a show. I laid back in bed on my pillow and bam...a huge gush of water, just like in the movies. There was no mistaking that my water had broken. I looked at Dee and with equal parts panic and excitement, and exclaimed "my water just broke!"
We put Paisley her crate, grabbed all our hospital bags that had been meticulously packed and ready to go for FIVE weeks (hey, she could have come three weeks early!), and drove to the hospital to meet our baby girl.
On the way there we called our parents. Funny enough, my parents were already scheduled to fly out the following day, Monday, and would arrive around noon. Now, it was just a matter of how long I would labor as to whether they would be there for the actual birth or not.
I remember checking into Labor and Delivery and telling the woman at the front desk that my water had broken and contractions were starting. Bless her heart, she picked up the phone and told the nurse that would be checking me in that "she
thinks her water has broken," to which I immediately interrupted to say "oh, no no...I
KNOW my water has broken, and you'll see for yourself if I don't get to a room ASAP." There's no mistaking that Hollywood movie gush. They skipped the check in and rushed me right back to my room. It was there I was informed that baby had gotten pretty stressed being so overdue that she passed meconium and I was therefore to be treated as a high risk labor and delivery. So long those 6 weeks spent learning natural childbirth techniques...no need Dee to go get the giant exercise ball from the car...and so long to my hopes of being able to walk through labor. I was informed that I could not get out of bed and I could only lay on my back! I shouldn't have been too surprised. I had such a high risk pregnancy, that it really should have been expected that I'd have a high risk labor/birth too.
All of which I was willing to do, gladly, of course if it meant protecting my baby,...but, boy was I unprepared for just how excruciatingly painful labor is when you are not allowed to move and confined to your back. After three hours, the baby's vitals were good so they agreed to let me get up and move for 30 minutes....yay! I was so relieved at how much less painful contractions were being able to move with them. I honestly think I could have made it through the whole labor without medication had I been allowed to be up and moving the whole time. But I was given orders to get back into that dreadful bed and stay on my back. My body would start to convulse with each contraction...it was a pain like nothing else I had experienced.
The only reason I wanted to forgo an epidural was because I did not want to do anything to jeopardize our chances of successfully breastfeeding. After six long, excruciatingly painful hours confined to my back with my body shaking violently essentially non-stop, I begged and pleaded for the epidural.
The nurses, who had been trying to shove IVs, epidurals and Pitocin practically down my throat from the moment of check-in, were happy to oblige.
Once that epidural was in, I was in absolute bliss. My body, despite having irregular contractions the whole time, was progressing quite well...about 1 cm every 1-2 hours.
The next day, Monday, May 26th I remember Dee calling my parents as they were about to take off from Phoenix to Sacramento...I was 7cm and we were really hoping they would make it! They did in fact make it...I was only 8 cm by the time they got to the hospital around noon.
Around 3pm I felt that unmistakable urge to push, and the equal parts panic and excitement to welcome our baby girl into the world.
Dee held one leg while my mom held the other. While the 18 hours of labor seemed to be just an hour or two, the 47 minutes of pushing felt like 47 hours. I remember Dee having the job of counting to ten with each push....and I remember yelling at him that he was counting too slowly because I was going to pass out from holding my breath longer than a real 10 seconds (who made that silly rule anyway that you have to hold your breath and push for 10 second intervals 3-4 times in a row?!). The only other part I remember is my mom telling me to "bear down" over and over again, and each time all I could think was "mom, I'm a sundevil...NOT a wildcat!" ;) Boo U of A. But, I had no energy to crack jokes.
Ava was born at 3:47pm on Monday, May 26th (Memorial Day). Before I heard Ava cry, I heard the doctor counting "one...two..." and instantly I knew why...her umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck twice. This poor baby...as if she hadn't been through enough trauma with my high risk pregnancy. Luckily, she breathed and cried instantly afterwards and was declared healthy with great APGAR scores.
Seeing her laid on my chest for the first time is a memory I'll never forget. The greatest memory of my life...looking into her eyes for the first time. I swear it was as if she recognized me when I said "hi Ava - I'm your mommy. I love you."
That night we didn't get much rest as Ava had fluid in her lungs - a complication from the meconium she passed in utero. So, nurses were coming in every hour on the dot, waking her up, making her scream until she ultimately coughed up all the fluid. The next night, a tech came to the room to do a test of oxygen levels. Ava failed and was rushed to the nursery to get an echo of her heart to detect a defect. Watching my little baby hooked up to monitors with wires covering her whole body terrified me. I had tears streaming constantly down my face as I held her little hand while they did the echo. Dee was the strong one. Waiting for the cardiologist to review the echo felt like an eternity, but thankfully it came back clear of any defects. Unfortunately, she still was suffering from low oxygen levels, so they had to admit her to the NICU.
Sleeping without my baby by my side was...nonexistent. We stayed in the NICU with her until we could no longer keep our eyes open, and then tried to get maybe 2 hours of sleep and then rushed right back down to her side.
Luckily, she never needed oxygen assistance in the NICU, but she was there for two very long days.
Being discharged from the hospital without her was so painful...you never expect to walk out of the hospital leaving your baby there. I am so incredibly thankful it was only for one day that we had to be separated, but still...it was painful. We're so thankful to my incredible parents who put us up in the hotel on the hospital's campus so we were only 2 minutes away from her for the three hours we took to sleep...we stayed in the NICU right by her side all other times.
Ava was cleared of any heart defects and declared perfectly healthy on Thursday, May 29th - praise God! We excitedly took her home that day and haven't left her side since! :)
We're so immeasurably thankful that my parents were here to help the first week. From bringing us yummy meals in the hospital to cleaning our home to making delicious elaborate home cooked meals for us...we couldn't have survived without them!! We're so thankful as well to Dee's parents for being here the second week to continue helping us make the transition into parenthood. Ava is very blessed with two wonderful sets of grandparents!
Welcome to the world Ava Joy Mains! Daddy and I are so very blessed to be your parents.
Daddy and daughter:
Getting discharged from the NICU and headed home!!
First car ride!
Mommy and daughter:
In the NICU...broke my heart to see so many wires and monitors strapped to her :(
Grandmommy with her first grandbaby!
Grandpa with his first grandbaby! (She yawning, not crying btw...she was born an expert huge yawner)
Grandmommy and Grandpa with furry grandbaby and real grandbaby:
Snuggle time with papa:
With Papa and Grandma:
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