Genevieve Carigrace's Birth Story Part One

First, I should probably start by explaining what we WANTED to happen on the day that Genevieve came:

• We wanted a natural birth. I was hoping to labor and deliver without any drugs at all and with as few as interruptions (IV, cervical checks, etc) as possible. Ross and I took Bradley Method classes before we had Caleb- and Caleb was delivered without pain meds, but with inducing drugs. So we are WELL TRAINED in birth and the process and I am not, by any means, a superwoman : )
• We wanted to labor as long as possible as home- because it is the easiest place to be comfortable and cozy and there are no chances of all of those drugs and interruptions at home.
• We wanted to deliver the baby at Phoenix Baptist Hospital with a certified-nurse midwife from Bethany Women's Center named Lisa. All of their midwives are excellent, but I had very good experiences with her- had shared a lot of my fears and concerns with her and felt she had the best idea of what we wanted and was willing to help me accomplish it.
• We did NOT want a home birth. As Ross says, "They're really messy!"
• We wanted me to be completely healthy. I had been fighting a sinus infection that turned into an ear infection. I had been pretty miserable for the week prior and I was fervently praying that Genevieve would not come until the infection had cleared. How was I supposed to deliver a baby without pain meds, if my head was constantly throbbing?

So here's what REALLY happened : )

Sunday morning, March 25th, we had decided that Ross and Caleb would go to church, but that I would stay home and rest. My infections were really running me down and it didn't seem like being around a lot of people and loudish :) music was a good idea. Ross is glad they went to church. He was blessed by the music and preaching of the Word that day, while Caleb was able to play and have some normalcy without interrupting my rest, and I was able to rest and have some sweet quiet time with the LORD on the beginning of a very, very important day.

All morning and into the afternoon, I was having contractions. Very, very sporadic ones. Sometimes they were once an hour, sometimes every half hour. They were lower than all the contractions I had been having in weeks prior, but it was easy to ignore them. If I was sitting down, I couldn't feel them at all. In fact, it seemed like they only came if I got up to go somewhere. They were stronger than all the others I had had, but so sporadic, must still be Braxton Hicks, right?

My brother and dad came over the day before to help Ross work on a home improvement project. They had worked all day and had a few finishing touches to put on it. So my brother Ben came over and worked with Ross to finish it. After Ben left, about 5 in the afternoon, I asked Ross if we could go on a walk. " If these are real contractions, a walk should help them get really started" I told him. Ross agreed and off the 3 of us went.

I had 2 contractions on that walk- both about 25 minutes apart from others I had been having. We'd be walking, they would start slowly, I'd keep walking, then have to stop to breathe through them. They were getting stronger, but not too strong. I still felt very much in control and able to handle them. And 25 minutes apart? Maybe she'd come on Monday.

When we got home (around 6pm), I really felt like this was the beginning of labor, but that the delivery itself was far off. But I got busy. What did I want done before we went to the hospital? I did dishes and cleaned up the kitchen. Our hospital bag wasn't packed (perhaps a mistake...) but I had made a list of everything I wanted to take with us, so I began gathering clothes, books, snacks, etc. Ross fed Caleb dinner at this time. I wasn't real hungry, so I had a cheese stick and some Ritz crackers.

I don't know what really happened the next couple hours. My contractions were getting closer together, but slowly. 15 minutes apart. 12. 16. Those two were 9 minutes apart. Wait, now we're back to 15. I'm busy doing some nesting. Ross is busy spending time with Caleb. Contractions are getting stronger, but still manageable. Yet, I'm getting a little jealous of the time Ross is spending with Caleb. The contractions don't hurt so much if he is stroking my hair or talking to me.

Yet, at the same time, I see his nesting instincts are sweeter than mine. I want the house ready, Ross wants Caleb ready. About 8:30pm, I decide to quit worrying about what the house looks like and start enjoying our son. They are playing together in Genevieve's purple bedroom. Our sweet neighbors have given us a play kitchen and washer/dryer for her. Caleb LOVES putting dishes in the sink and in the drawers and taking them back out again. I sit down next to my boys and tell Ross that he is choosing "the better thing" quoting Jesus in relation to Mary and Martha. I smile. You're not supposed to be able to smile in late labor, just in the beginning. Baby Girl is still a long way off...

At this time (9pm), contractions are pretty consistently 10 minutes apart. They hurt, though. Real deep and low. I can feel pain in my lower uterus, my cervix and into my legs. I felt excruciating pain in my legs when I labored with Caleb. This makes me wonder if this isn't real and progressing, but everything is still 10 minutes apart. Am I really wimpy? How come I can't handle contractions that are 10 minutes apart?

It's getting past Caleb's bedtime. so we decide to put him to bed. Ross goes through the routine with him, while I lay down on the spare bed in Caleb's room. In the 30 minutes that it takes to get him ready, my contractions go from 10 minutes apart to consistently 5 minutes apart. Still strong, but manageable.

Now it's 10pm. I start getting bossy. This is not an unusual part of my character, but one I try to suppress and an attitude that I do NOT allow to spring up around Ross, but this is serious business. "I'm going to call my mom and tell her to come over. You need to call your mom. Then I'm going to get in the shower. Hopefully some steam will help clear my sinues. You are going to finish packing for the hospital. Okay?" Ross just smiles, nods, and gets to work. I wait till a contraction is over and call my mom. She says she's rushing over. I tell her not to rush. Baby isn't coming too soon. Just take her time and come. She agrees to be to the house by 11pm.

I get in the shower and have a contraction. This one is quite strong. I thought water was supposed to help you relax even better. When I feel the next one coming on, I yell for Ross to come help me. He holds my hand while I stand with my belly in the water. That feels GOOD! We can do this. Turns out my contractions are now 3 minutes apart. Ross agrees to hold my hand through each contraction, then run around and pack for 2 minutes, then run back. We do this for a while (20 minutes, maybe??)

I turn off the shower and then can't decide what to do. I don't want to get dressed. I want to lie down. I lie down on our bed in a towel. I tell Ross I'm just going to rest. He needs to finish packing (Ross is kind of an extraordinarily slow packer, in case you were wondering...) I have a contraction, which hurts, but is manageable, and I tell him to grab my cell phone and call the midwife.

To be continued...