Adventures with Grady and Kendall!: The Birth Story

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

I had a doctor appointment at 4:00 that afternoon. She told me that I was now 4cm dilated (up from 2cm on Friday) and that she thought it could be any time now. She basically told Derek and I that if we showed up at the hospital, they wouldn't send me away- if labor didn't progress on it's own then they would break my water and she thought that would be enough to get that baby coming. She stripped my membranes again, scheduled an induction for the following Tuesday just in case, and sent us on our way. Reminding me to get to the hospital if I had contractions for about an hour straight.

So Derek and I left feeling a little confused... was she coming tonight? Tomorrow? Why was I already feeling contractions by the time we got home? Was it all in my mind? They were not painful at this point, just a little uncomfortable. We decided that since my dad is retired, he should come on down and spend the night at our place, just in case we needed to go to the hospital. He could then be there for Grady, and that put everyone's mind at ease.

By bedtime I was pretty sure that Baby Kendall was coming soon. I was still having contractions, but not really in pain like I was when I had Grady, so I just assumed I had plenty of time to spare (since we were at the hospital a good 12 hours last time before he arrived). We went to bed, but neither of us slept much. We decided around midnight that maybe we should just go to the hospital. But then we kind of dozed off, and I awoke at 2:30am with contractions that were really starting to hurt. OK, it was definitely time to go!

Thursday, August 11, 2011

We got to the hospital by 3:00am, and I was no longer doubting that this was true labor. This was the pain I remembered from last time! They checked me in and I was already 6cm dilated. By the time I was in a room, had an IV, and the epidural lady was on her way, they checked me again, and I was at 10cm! What???? It was time to push. I was totally freaked out because I hadn't expected it to happen so quickly! My mom wasn't even here yet! Then I panicked because I thought I couldn't get the epidural, but they gave it to me anyway with just one dose to get me through. This turned out actually way better then Grady's birth, because I could actually feel what was happening, but it definitely took the edge off.

About 35 minutes of pushing, and Kendall Beth Stephens entered the world at 4:40am. She was beautiful and healthy and much bigger than expected! 8 lbs. 7 oz & 21 inches long. My mom arrived a little before 5:00am and was also shocked to see that we already had a baby! No complaints from me though, it was a blessing to be so quick with no complications! We had our baby girl, and now our family is complete! We are all doing well, and have been enjoying our time together at home. Here's a few pics to enjoy, and I promise more to come soon.