Our sweet Ellie decided to grace us with her presence sooner than we expected. Not that I am complaining! Not only did she bless her mommy by taking a week off the pregnancy, but she did it in such a way that I could still get everything done I needed to before hand. So considerate.
Being the planner that I am, I had scheduled an induction with my doctor for the 13th of July so that I could make sure that everything was packed and Abby would be well taken care of. I also had a specific doctor and nurse that I wanted. However, the morning of July 6th I started to feel some very strong and frequent contractions around four. By six in the morning, I told Adam that I thought perhaps I might be in real labor. We gave the doctor a call and she told me to come in and she'd check me out. Adam told me to call my mom and have her come and get me and Abby to take us to the doctor while he quickly ran to work to finish some piece of business that would only take a few minutes and he'd meet us at the office. By the time I ate two frozen waffles and called my mom, my contractions started to taper off a little, but everyone advised me to still go to see the doctor because "you never know..." Since I wasn't contracting too badly, I took a shower, packed us all up, and did a little last minute house organization just in case! Both of my parents showed up at our house around 9 am. Apparently my mom believed that this was it, so she had my dad take the day off (which he planned on doing the next week while they watched Abby). So the four of us loaded up in my parent's car and we were off to the doctor.
You would think when you arrive at the doctor's office and tell them that you are contracting and in labor, you would be taken back immediately. I don't think lady at the front desk understood me, because I had to wait in the waiting room for 20 minutes. During that time I had some mild contractions, but nothing like what I had experienced that morning, so I was starting to feel like an idiot. That didn't go away after my initial interaction with the doctor. She checked my progress, and yup, false labor. However, she did want me to do a non stress test to monitor my contractions and their frequency and also a ultrasound to check my fluid. Contractions were mild but consistent. Fluids were....low! My water must have broken without my knowledge and it wasn't safe for me to go home since it could affect the umbilical cord. Yay! I had to be admitted to the hospital to be induced. My mom and dad took Abby home with them after the non stress test, and Adam arrived in time for the ultrasound. Everything was working out perfectly!
We were admitted into the hospital around noon. I was hooked up to the monitor at one, and I started to take a nap to prepare myself for what was to come. Unfortunately, my orders were to walk around the halls to move labor on naturally. Adam and I walked around the halls until 3:00, but we had a great time talking and making interesting observations of the other patients wondering the halls. You see some strange things in the maternity ward. By 4:44 they put me on pitocin, and the good times paused for a bit. I had INTENSE contractions every two to three minutes. Oh my, pain. Thank goodness for the epidural at 7:04. It was a long wait for sure! By 6:08 I was only dilated 2-3 cm and that was very depressing news to me. Then at 8:00 I was dilated 4 cm. With Abby I went from four to ten rather quickly so I started to think positively. An hour later I was another centimeter. Okay, things are moving along! By 10:13 p.m. I knew I was fully dilated, and just as I thought, I was a 10! I started to push with my nurse (who was the exact nurse I wanted) at 10:44 just to see if she could see the baby. It was go time. My doctor, who had just finished her C-section, made it at 10:55. I pushed through two contractions and five minutes later at 11:04 our sweet Elizabeth Adele Levengood was born.
Ellie's Stats:
Weight: 6 lbs 12 oz
Length: 20 inches
Apgars 8 and 9
Middle name: Adele- ADam + michELE
Another blessing was that my family came in the evening, and as things progressed quickly they stuck around. Thankfully I was able to share the blessing of Ellie with them immediately following her birth and Abby got to meet her baby sister just minutes after she was born. It was perfect. God's timing always is.
