Okay....So I know that I promised everyone pictures and a birth story a couple of weeks ago. Well, you can only imagine what adjusting to life with a newborn and a 14 month old is like. I have learned a few valuable lessons over the past two weeks:
1. Never leave Emma's bath water unattended because there will be a fully clothed Will sitting in the middle of it when you return. Ducky wash cloth and all......
2. Plan Ahead....Once you get breakfast cleaned up, you better fix lunch because you never know what might happen in between.
3. Diapers....buy lots of them. I think I can fill a whole trash can in just one day. I have never seen so many dirty diapers.
4. Bathroom breaks...remember to take them......
5. Will in, up or wherever first and out, down, or wherever last. Keep the mobile one restrained when unsupervised......
6. Last but not least, enjoy every minute of this as it is the last time they will both be this age :)
As you can tell, learning all these valuable “mother of two” lessons hasn't left me much time for blogging, but as they both quietly nap, I will see if I can catch you up......
Emma's birth.....
There's a story. Scott and I worried that we would not have any great stories to tell her about her pregnancy. We had so many with Will, and we just didn't want her to feel left out. No worries there.....her birth alone tops all of Will's pregnancy stories......
Mom and I had planned a morning out on Wednesday to return a couple of duplicate gifts and pick up the last odds and ends. We started early and had managed to stop at Walmart, Kmart, and Target. I had to run by the bank to make a deposit, and at that point, things got interesting. While standing in line, I started to have noticeable contractions. When I got back to the car, I told Mom that I thought that I might be trying to go into labor. So, we began timing the contractions and kept going with our plans. When we got to Discover Mills, they were uncomfortable and coming every three or four minutes. We decided to call my midwife for advice. They had me come in to be checked.....only to be disappointed with a centimeter and instructions to go home and rest.
I spent the rest of the afternoon at Mom's with contractions. By late Wednesday night, they had picked up again and I was sure it was time. At 11 pm, I called Jill (my midwife) again. She told me to come into labor and delivery. Surely, this was it right??? Nope, after two hours of walking the halls at Gwinnett Medical and laughing a screaming woman, we were only at two centimeters. This time I was sent home with a drug of some sort that was suppose to help me rest. Didn't stop the contractions, but did make me drunker than a night at the Firehouse during power hour.
We returned home at three am and settle in for the night only to hear my mother in law's car being towed from the front of our house. Our wonderful homeowner's association decided the night that I was in labor was the night to start towing cars. The crazy drug prevented me from getting too worked up luckily. $125.00 and a trip to the racetrak with no shoes, Scott was able to reclaim his mother's car. After all this, we just wanted to sleep and ignore the possibility of Emma's birth.
The morning came with even stronger contractions. At this point, I am in denial. I was not going back to walk the halls of the hospital. We would just have her in the bath tub before that would happen. I had another appointment with the midwife for an ultrasound at 1 pm, and I decided that we would hold out until then. By 12:15 I was on all fours in the hallway in front of the bathroom crying in pain. Truly indescribable!!!
The drive to the doctor's office was terrible. I just wanted drugs and for it to give me a break. We arrived and they began the ultrasound. The tech then realized what was going on and called a midwife immediately. They sent me back to the hospital and back to the triage room of the night before. I protested with a large quantity of profanity telling Scott that I refused to stay there and that he needed find me someone quick. The nurse came in and checked me immediately. SIX CENTIMETERS!!! "What did you intend for pain management, Mrs. Pitman?" the nurse asked. "A damn epidural!!!" I responded. They threw a sheet around me and rushed me to the delivery room calling for the doctor on the way.
Jill (my midwife) arrived soon after and stayed with me the entire time. She was truly amazing and I would have never made it through my almost, but unintentional natural child birth without her. The epidural came quickly, but seemed like a lifetime with the intense pain. Scott was great keeping the mood light and helping me deal with it. By the time the epidural started to take effect I was eight centimeters. Too much natural child birth for me. How women go all the way without something is beyond me.......
Emma greeted the world at 6 pm only an hour and a half later. It really was a beautiful birth and a special moment for both Scott and me.
She is a dream of a baby and she completes our beautiful family. Enjoy the video below....
Introducing Emma Marie Pitman.......
