Our Anniversary Gift

If you know Derek and I you know that we are big on traditions. We get each other a gift from the traditional anniversary gift list each year. The first year it was paper, the second year it was cotton, the third year it was leather or crystal, and the fourth year apparently it was a baby!

On June 24th, I had a blood work appointment at 10:30 a.m. and then we had reservations at Pattis for dinner. Derek stayed at home to mow the yard. I went to get my nails done before the appointment and I was feeling great. I got home from the doctor about 11:15 and Derek stopped mowing long enough to ask me how everything went and I told him great and we were all set for tomorrow. As I walked into the house I got a horrible cramp but I didn't know it was a contraction I just thought I was hungry. I came in and fixed myself some leftovers (steak and salad) and then sat down to update the blog with an anniversary post. I felt a pain again and got up to go to the bathroom and that's when I could tell my water had broken. About 10 minutes later Derek was done mowing and came in the house and I told him my water had broken. He jumped in the shower and I called my doctor.

Before I knew I had to have a csection, my biggest fear was getting to the hospital only to find out it was a false alarm so I wanted to talk to my doctor for a reassurance. They told me to come in right away. Derek hadn't packed his stuff yet so we started throwing things in a bag and got Maddy all packed up. We rushed to the hospital with Maddy in tow. We had talked to my aunt who owns the kennel Maddy stays at and she met us at the entrance of Western Baptist.

We got onto the labor and delivery floor and my doctor had already called and told them I was coming. They asked if my water had for sure broken and I told them I was 95% sure it had. I was still in denial at this point. They put me in a little holding room and asked me to change into a gown. I came out and Derek and I hung out in that room and the contractions started to hurt a little. I would get up and walk around when I was having a contraction. My sister came back into the room when she got to the hospital along with one of my best friends Kristen. Kristen is a nurse and could tell I was getting uncomfortable with the contractions. She was beginning to get mad that they hadn't checked me yet but I think it was because I didn't appear to be in pain when I checked in and I told them I wasn't sure my water had broken.

About 40 minutes later, they came in and began asking me a million questions. I was in pain but tried my hardest to be polite. They were taking there time and never acted as though they were in a hurry. At some point during the questioning my parents came in. My mom said something when she walked in the room and Derek said I told her to "shut-up." I remember asking her to be quiet but I thought I said "Be quiet please because I am hurting." We FINALLY got done with the questionnaire and the nurse hooked up our monitors.

The nurse then said she was going to go an internal exam. Derek was fanning me with a postcard because the air in the hospital was messed up. Taylor and Kristen were standing behind a curtain and my parents had gone back to the waiting room.She checked me as I was having a bad contraction and I was holding onto Derek with both hands. She then said she would be right back. Kristen and Taylor went back to the waiting room and another nurse came in with the original nurse. The original nurse said she thought I was dilated to 6 centimeters and that she couldn't feel any fluid left but that she wanted a second opinion. The new nurse checked me and agreed that I was 6 centimeters and she told me that she could feel his butt. They told Derek to go to the waiting room and let our families know what was happening and that we would have a baby in 30 minutes.

Another nurse came in while he was gone and said that Dr. Anunciato had called for a c-section STAT. When Derek came back in the room the anesthesiologist was in there. He told me that he would have one shot to get the spinal in and if it didn't work then he would knock me all the way out and Derek would have to wait in the hall. This is only time I became nervous because Derek had been with me every step of the way and I wasn't ready to be separated from him. Dr. Anunciato came by on her way to the OR and told me that I would be fine and assure me that the anesthesiologist was really good.

They then wheeled me really quickly into the OR while Derek got changed. I saw Taylor, Kristen, and Jill in the hall on the way back in. They later told me that they had seen the anesthesiologist and the surgical techs running to the OR as it was now an emergency situation. Dr. Anunciato sat by me as they put the spinal in and rubbed my arm as I was in pain. I wanted to pray so bad at that moment but my mind wouldn't let me and it was in a fog from the medication. He got the spinal in and it worked great so they laid me back and let Derek back in. Derek started out standing and watching the surgery and I asked him to sit down and talk to me. Again, I wanted to pray but words escaped me. I know God was in that room and the people in the waiting room had taken over praying for me since I was unable to do it. As soon as Dr. Anunciato started she told me that I had already dilated to 10 centimeters so I have basically experienced labor just very quickly.

I was never scared or nervous. I heard them tell Derek to stand up as they could see Deacon's butt. Then I heard his little cry and I began to tear up. I had been so worried about him throughout the pregnancy and now he was here. Derek went to the side to be with him and they continued the procedure. Danielle, the nursery nurse, scooted the warmer over so I could see them working on him. When it was time to go to the nursery Derek brought him over to see me and I kissed him goodbye. I thought I would be scared without Derek there but I was still in awe at the miracle of birth.

Derek took him past the waiting room to meet friends and family and then took him in the nursery. I was finished up and then taken to recovery. My favorite part of the day was when they took me to my room and brought Deacon in to us. It was just me, Derek, and Deacon as I nursed him for the first time and it was a time I will never ever forget. We praise God daily for giving us everything we had ever dreamed of. I'm not going to give a step-by-step account of the 3 days in the hospital but I will do several picture posts today and tomorrow and let them tell the story. I just wanted to get his birth story in writing so I would never forget it.