If I don't do it now, I'll never remember and my little Emme is already 10 months old.
I went to the doctor for my 36 week appointment and I was already dilated to a 3. Dr. Horsley told me that if I hadn't had the baby by the next Monday, the 14th that he would induce me. We didn't have ANYTHING ready, so I rushed home and washed all the baby clothes, set up the changing table, and packed my hospital bag.
I was having small contractions on and off all afternoon, but since I had never been in labor I really didn't know if this was the real thing or not. I had to drive to Hyde Park to pick Allee up from soccer practice and the whole way was having contractions. I called Aunt Corinne to ask her when you know it's time to go to the hospital and she told me to try resting and see if they go away. We came home and made dinner and then I sat on the couch. Sure enough the contractions stopped. We wrapped a few Christmas presents for our friends and did our bedtime routine. Derek had to go into work for meetings that evening, so I waited up for him until about 10:30. We got ready for bed and as soon as my head hit the pillow my contractions started up again. Around midnight I finally got out of bed and told Derek to try to sleep, but I thought we might be going in tonight. I showered, put on my makeup, and started blow drying my hair when Derek walked into the bathroom looking puzzled and concerned. I told him that we needed to find a babysitter. We called Judy and she didn't answer her cell, so about a half hour later we called her home phone and she came over. We woke up Allee and told her we were heading to the hospital and we were out the door by 2am.
When we were admitted to the hospital I was already at a 5 1/2, but since I had just had my group B strep test that morning, they didn't have results and as a precaution they had to start me on antibiotics for four hours before the baby was born. At 3 am they started the antibiotics, and sometime around 4:30 I finally received my epidural. Derek excused himself to the restroom while I was getting it, and when he came back was pale and green. He dove for the couch and just about fainted. The nurse was more worried about him than she was about me!
Right at the four hour mark, at 7 am the doctor came in to finally check my progress. They hadn't dared check before that because they didn't want to accidently break my water. Sure enough I was at a 10, but the doctor had surgery scheduled for 7:30. He asked if I thought I could push her out before that, otherwise I'd have to wait another hour and a half. We went ahead, and little Emme was born at 7:29.
She was the tiniest thing I had ever seen! I couldn't believe how small she was! She was 3 1/2 weeks early and perfectly healthy. She was beautiful and had light brown hair. We instantly fell in love with her.
One of the most exciting things was that Derek and I were the only ones who knew she was a girl. We had kept the secret from all of our family and friends, so when they came to see us at the hospital they were able to find out. Almost everyone had guessed that she was going to be a boy so it was fun to surprise them with a pink bow on her head. Layla had said from the beginning that it was going to be a girl, so she was thrilled. Allee was happy either way, but when Pierce found out that it was ANOTHER girl, he said he was going to move out. The moment he met her that all changed. He fell in love with her and was the one who wanted to snuggle her the most.
We learned that pre-term babies require lots more testing. She had to sit in her carseat for 90 minutes with oxygen monitors on her to make sure the buckle wasn't too heavy for her chest. Her glucose tests came back low and we needed to supplement with formula and LOTS of skin to skin contact. Nurses came in to check her every 2 hours, but after her glucose picked up she was perfect. She didn't even have a high bilirubin!
The spirit in this little Emme Beth is something unbelievable. As soon as I looked at her face, I knew Heavenly Father had blessed us with a special little girl. She is my rainbow baby. She has brought so much more love and craziness to our lives. She is stubborn, happy, sweet, and perfect.
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