So, we had been waiting for quite some time for this baby. We found out I was pregnant right at week four, and then she was 13 days late.
Thirteen days feels like a long time when you are expecting a baby at any minute.
But, we waited and waited. And waited. And even stalled with a post about the nursery.
And it was worth it.
Shilah Mae was born on Friday, January 29. She was eight pounds and 12 oz and 20 inches long. She has a full head of dark hair and those “baby” blue eyes that are apt to change as she grows.
We went into the hospital around 7 on Friday morning to be induced, already 4 cm dialated and almost fully effaced, but with no contractions, which was weird…showing up at the hospital not in labor, just with our travel coffee mugs and bags and a deck of cards.
We got into a room and they started me on pitocin around 9:30. I started feeling contractions that weren’t too strong.
So at noon they broke my water. I thought that was hilarious. I could not stop laughing. Think if you were uncontrollably peeing all over…for a long time…it feels awkward so I tried to mask my awkwardness with laughing. It kind of worked.
Then, within about 30 minutes the contractions were two minutes apart and increasing in strength and I quickly stopped laughing. By about 2pm I thought I might explode but we kept on going and going. It was tiring. And I think a lot of it was back labor, which, let me tell you is just delightful. I was dozing off for 45 seconds between contractions and I kept asking Jon how much longer he thought it would be. He coached me through the whole thing and would just talk me through each contraction, one by one, not letting me worry about what was to come (or how long it would last). After the fact, we both talked about how in the middle of it, we wondered how long this would go on and if the pain was enough to want drugs…but during the labor, neither of us mentioned compromising what we’d wanted and we made it through without any meds!
By about 4:45 I was telling the doctor that I thought my body was telling me to push. By 4:55 the room was full…5 or 6 nurses, two doctors, Jon, me, and lots of bright lights and shiny instruments that I don’t think they really used. At 5 I was pushing and at 5:35 she was out! Jon caught her and cut the umbilical cord.
Saturday and Sunday morning were in the hospital. Aside from the separate beds, we felt like we were on an all-inclusive vacation. We had cable TV, room service, a refreshment room down the hall, and people coming in to see if we needed anything else. All that being said, we were ready to get home by Sunday morning and Shilah passed all of her tests (not sure what that means) and so did I (not sure what that means either), so we got to come home.
The past few days have been great, though day three at home was a major scream fest. I did some reading and realized that I ate at least half of the things on the “what not to eat when you first start breastfeeding because it will make your baby gassy and cranky” list. Whoops.
More recipes soon 
