I feel like Bryce and I went away for a weekend and came back with a baby. We're trying to figure out our new "normal" while life is still speeding on around us. Nolan is such a dream that I feel bad I ever complained about being pregnant. The delivery day was filled with ups and downs, but in the end we got a pretty great reward.
I woke up at 2:30 am Friday morning with steady, strong contractions. I lay in bed wondering how long I should wait, whether I should send Bryce to work or not, etc. etc. Hudson woke up at 3am and asked if I could sleep by him. I snuggled with him in his bed, admiring his sweet sleeping face. I knew this might be my last chance to enjoy such a moment for a while. Charlotte woke up at 5 am, as soon as I picked her up she laid her head on my shoulder, rubbed my back and whispered the word, "Happy." I took her to our bed and spent the next couple hours admiring her and thinking about how blessed we are to have these wonderful little people in our life.
When we arrived at the hospital I got the disappointing news that I hadn't progressed much at all. They suggested that we go walking for a couple hours and come back. Bryce and I wandered around in the drizzling rain--absolutely certain that we'd be sent home without a baby. I was so embarrassed that Bryce had taken the day off work and he'd have to go back and tell them it was a false alarm. The nurse told me to get a little something to eat. Since I thought we'd be going back home, I didn't hold back and ate Chinese food until I was stuffed. We arrived back at the hospital expecting to be sent home. Turns out the walk + lunch must have done the trick because I walked into my delivery room at 1:30 pm.
I'd never had an epidural before and really wanted to try it out. They came in and got me all set up, then the waiting began. I got stuck with a midwife who told me she'd do nothing to help me along. She refused to break my water since I wasn't a full 40 weeks, so we waited and waited until the end of her shift. As soon as she was gone a team of ladies entered my room and got the show on the road. They broke my water, we hung out for 25-30 minutes until it was showtime. I told my midwife I wanted it over in five minutes or less. I got my wish--Nolan was here in under five minutes. (P.S. I highly recommend getting an epidural. It made it totally bearable).
And now we're enjoying every minute with this sweet little guy. I feel lucky to have had a speedy recovery and plenty of help with the "big kids" for the last week. Nolan is exactly ten days old today; and my due date is tomorrow. I'm so glad we got a few bonus days with our baby boy.
