It's taken me a while to publish this post. I started writing it on November 15th, but for some reason I'm not getting things done quite as quickly these days! Even though it's taken me a while, I'm glad to finally have Lydia's birth story written. Since becoming a mother, I've realized that after awhile I start to forget details I never thought I would or could. (Sleep deprivation might have something to do with that!) Lydia's birthday is definitely a day we want to remember for years to come!
Time is such a funny thing. It's hard to believe that this time last week I was still pregnant. It seems like a lifetime ago. But at the same time, I also can't believe that Lydia will be a week old tomorrow. How is that possible? It seems like just yesterday I was holding her for the first time!
Our girl wasn't in a hurry to choose her birthday, but once she decided, she didn't waste any time! By last Sunday evening I accepted that I would most likely have to be induced on Wednesday. It wasn't really the route I wanted to take, but at the same time there wasn't much we could do about it. As I went to bed around eleven that night, I had no idea that I'd be holding my baby in the morning! And why would I? I hadn't had any significant labor signs. Looking back, I'd had very little appetite on Sunday, but that had been the norm for me the last few weeks. I had a dull backache and an occasional contraction, but again, I'd had both for the past week. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Needless to say, I was very surprised when I woke up just before 2 am as my water was breaking! I checked in with the on-call doctor, and he said we should head towards the hospital. I told him I wasn't really having contractions yet, but he said to come anyway since it was my second baby. At this point, Scott and I didn't feel a huge sense of urgency, because my labor with Jacob started the same way. My water broke, but contractions didn't start. It was over 14 hours before he was born. I guess we thought this experience would be similar. My mom was coming to stay with Jacob, so while we waited for her to arrive we both took our time getting ready and loading up last minute things. However, as the minutes passed, I noticed contractions were not only starting, but were quickly becoming more intense, as well as quickly coming closer together. When we pulled out of our driveway just before 3 am, they were about 5 minutes apart. By the time we got to the hospital, twenty minutes later, they were less than two minutes apart. I was to the point where I could not walk or talk through them. It was pretty clear things were going to move faster this time!
When I arrived at the admittance desk, I assumed I'd be admitted immediately, considering my water had broken and my contractions were so close together. After all, when I came in with Jacob that's exactly what happened, and I wasn't even having significant contractions, yet. I was not happy when the nurse told me I had to be hooked up to the fetal monitor for at least twenty minutes, even after confirming my water had broken. The next twenty minutes were probably the most miserable of my labor experience, because while hooked to the monitor I had to remain sitting and still. If you've ever experienced painful contractions, you know being still is agonizing. After 20 very long minutes, and a few snippy exchanges with the nurse, of which I'm not completely proud of, I was admitted. I told my labor and delivery nurse that I definitely wanted an epidural, and I don't think I've ever been as happy to see someone as I was to see the anesthesiologist! Fortunately, she arrived quickly, because about 30 minutes after she administered the epidural I was ready to deliver. We couldn't believe how quickly everything was moving! Scott hadn't even had a chance to move the car, which was still in a temporary L&D parking spot. He didn't even have our camera!
However, after all the excitement, things came to a bit of a halt. As I started to push, my contractions weakened. My doctor also realized that while Lydia's body was positioned correctly, her face was turned to the side, which was stalling delivery. He felt a small dose of pitocin to strengthen contractions and a little time to see if she would turn her face back would be beneficial and we agreed.
The following hour was a long one. I think up until this point I had been so distracted by contractions and the rapid progression of my labor that I hadn't had time to be anxious. But with my pain managed and the anticlimactic pause in delivery, I became obsessively focused on Lydia's heart rate, specifically the drops I noticed occurred every time I had a contraction. It was incredibly scary to see the numbers on the monitor drop to zero and to hear silence replace the reassuring beat. My nurse was so patient and kindly assured me it was okay as long as the drop coincided with the contraction and her heart rate continued to jump back up immediately afterwards. She said it was just her body's reaction to the stress caused by the contractions. Even so, I was beyond relieved when it was time to start pushing again. I just wanted her to be born safely!
This is probably an appropriate time to mention I had the most wonderful caregivers, not only during labor & delivery, but also throughout my entire pregnancy. Anyone who knows me well, knows I don't typically like doctors. However, I can't say one negative comment about any of the doctors from Asheville Women's Medical Center. Each one was always kind, knowledgable, and invested in me as a patient. I trusted any one of them to deliver Lydia, and it ended up being Dr. Hawes. He isn't my primary physician, but we knew him pretty well, because he was with us throughout Jacob's labor. He didn't deliver Jacob, though, because of the shift change. He waited almost an extra hour after his shift was over, but had to leave before he was born. It seemed like the same thing was going to happen this time, but again he graciously stuck around over an hour to deliver Lydia. He had a very busy night. Between midnight and Lydia's birth shortly after 8am, he delivered four babies! November 9th was a popular birthday!
I also couldn't have asked for better nurses. Again, due to the shift change, I ended up with two. Both were incredibly attentive, encouraging, and efficient. I feel like they did everything they could to make sure I was comfortable and getting to have the birth experience I wanted.
My contractions regained strength and frequency, but Lydia never turned her face. Dr. Hawes said she could still be delivered that way, it would just be a little harder and could possible take a little bit longer. However, less than 45 minutes later I was holding my baby girl! At 8:12 am on November 9th, 2015, Lydia Kate Baden made her grand entrance!
It's hard to describe the flood of emotions evoked by hearing your baby's first cries as she's placed on your chest. It's surreal to come face to face with this tiny human who is a part of you, but at the same time is a stranger. It's a moment filled with relief and gratitude and all-consuming love.
I know it sounds kind of bad, but before she born, I secretly wondered if I would feel the same immense love for her in the moments after her birth that I had felt for Jacob. How was it possible to feel that depth of love twice? Jacob was our whole world. Was there really room for another? Yes. I don't know how it happens, but it just does. Your heart grows and your love multiplies without a second thought.
During the next couple of hours, we simply drank in the time with our baby girl. We cuddled and nursed and took way too many pictures. She was absolutely perfect! She weighed 7 pounds and 9 ounces and measured 19 3/4 inches long. My epidural started to wear off during delivery, so it wasn't long before I was able to get up and walk. As soon as I was able to do that, we were moved to the Mother-Baby Floor.
Throughout the day we had lots of visitors. It was so fun to introduce Lydia to her family. Everyone was so excited to meet her and to finally hear her name, which we kept a secret until her birth! Grandaddy, Grandma, and Great Grandma Bradley arrived around noon, and we were able to Face Time with Uncle Craig and Aunt Lori.
Papa and Uncle Andrew visited that afternoon. After receiving our text in the early morning hours, Papa drove all the way from Alabama to see Lydia on her birthday!
Meme and Big Brother Jacob came after dinner. Jacob was a little unsure of her, but he had lots of fun pushing every button he could get his hands on in the hospital room! We didn't quite get the sweet, "new family of four" picture I had envisioned, but what we captured was pretty much real-life! :)
At one point, Lydia managed to poop, pee, and spit up on my bed, which was also Jacob's greatest point of interest in her! He was sad when it was time for him to go home and said he wanted to stay with Mommy. It was hard to see him go, but I knew he was tired and would be fine once he left. Scott took him home and was able to spend some time with him before putting him to bed and coming back to the hospital for the night.
The next day Uncle Thomas and Aunt Ryan came from Charlotte for a visit around lunch time. We finally convinced Thomas to hold Lydia. He claims he's scared of newborn babies, but he did a pretty good job!
We were fortunate to be discharged that evening - less than 48 hours after Lydia's birth! I was doing well, and Lydia had passed all her tests and screenings, so we were cleared to leave. We were really excited to get home to Jacob and were finally out the door by 7pm!
Leaving the hospital this time was a very different experience for me than the first. With Jacob, a feeling of slight terror came over me as we left. The responsibility of caring for a newborn became real, and I wondered how we were going to do it. A part of me wanted to stay at the hospital where there were nurses and doctors and people to tell us what to do and how to keep him alive! But this time I just felt ready for our little family to be together.
Even though it was cold and dark, Jacob was waiting outside for us when we arrived. He was so excited to see us, and somewhat curious about Baby Lydia. He gave her a stuffed kitty cat, a present he chose for her a few weeks ago, but wasn't very interested in her beyond that. We didn't push it and figure he'll warm up to her in his own time. That's always been his way!
We are so grateful for a healthy pregnancy, an uncomplicated birth, and to now have two of the most beautiful children in the world. We know the weeks ahead are going to be long and sleep deprived. Adjusting to a new normal will take a little time, but we will continue to thank God for every single crazy minute of it!
