Not that I could ever forget but I wanted to document the story of Adelyn's birth. Friday (12/22/11) I had my weekly OB appointment and after being checked the NP said she didn't think the baby was coming anytime soon. I was not dialated at all and she said that the baby was at -2 (the week before she was at -1 which would mean she was moving in the wrong direction). So, I did some errands (Micah was w/ the grandparents) and we had dinner that night with Corey's parents and went to bed early (as usual). The next day was Christmas Eve and we had plans to go to my dad's to celebrate. Well, plans started to change at about 4 am when I woke up with contractions. I wasn't exactly sure if it was the real thing of not but we started timing them around 4:30 am. The contractions were consistently 5 minutes apart and were continued to progress in intensity however they never lasted more than 30-40 seconds long. Anways, I decided to get our bags packed (not sure why I never have this part done ahead of time) as I figured we'd probably be going to the hospital. I packed and told Corey he should pack his bag to which he responded he didn't need anything (not even a change of clothes or toothbrush! works for me haha). Around 6 am Micah woke up and this is when things stated to get difficult. I was in our bedroom having contractions every 5 minutes and he is wanting me to play with the new puzzle he had gotten for Christmas. We decided at that point to call Corey's parents to have them come pick up Micah. At about 7 am my water broke, Corey's parents arrived shortly after, and we headed straight to the hospital. My contractions were really strong and painful but thankfully it was only about a 5 minute drive. We arrived and had to go to the ER but I got checked in immediately. I went to labor and delivery and told the nurse that I would like an epidural asap. The doctor came in to check me and to my shock told me I was already 8 cm dilated and that it would be too late for an epidural. I felt like freaking out!!! I will tell you that I have never had any desire whatsoever to have a natural childbirth. My plan was to have another epidural and just the thought of doing it w/o one was terrifying. The nurse told me they would start an IV (which I needed anyways b/c I was positive for Strep B and needed to get penicillin) and could give me some pain meds through that. Well, they tried twice to start an IV and couldn't get one started in time as it was almost time to start pushing. And let me tell you the entire time I was pushing I was still asking for my epidural...looking back it was a fast labor (though it didn't seem so at the time) but VERY intense. The nurse said just think you are going to be able to brag to all of your friends that you did this and I just said I don't want to brag I want an epidural. You get the point that I really wanted an epidural!!! :) However, after a few pushes the nurse said she could see her head. She let me look with a mirror and I just remember thinking "oh my gosh I can barely see any of her head and that head and entire body still has to come out there is no way I can do this." I remembering praying and asking God to give me strength to do this b/c on my own there was no way I could. He did give me the strength b/c one hour after arriving at the hospital at 8:47 am our sweet little Adelyn Jewel was born. It was a completely different experience than I would have ever imagined having and completely different than when Micah was born (where I had an epidural but also took 2 1/2 hrs of pushing). Adelyn was also born posterior (fece up instead of face down) and the doctor and nurses were all really impressed that she was able to be born vaginally. The nurses and doctor were really great and of course Corey was awesome and was right there by my side the entire time. It is an amazing experience to hold and see your child that you have been carrying for the last 9 months inside you for the first time. We were blessed with a beautiful baby girl and are so thankful to God for this precious baby!! We named her Adelyn (just b/c we liked the name and was really the only one we could agree on) Jewel (after my mom Julie).
We had lots of visitors on Christmas Eve who wanted to meet Adelyn. Jori was there w/in 30 min of Adelyn's birth as she left for the hospital as soon as she got the text that we were at the hospital. My mom and Lily came later, Corey's parents, Jessica and her finance (Matt) and Micah came that afternoon, and my dad, Jamie, McKenna and Reagan came later that evening. It was fun to see Micah meet his baby sister for the first time. He was actually much more interested in her than what we thought he would be. He saw the baby and said please as he wanted to hold and kiss her...it was very cute. The next day was Christmas Day so Corey picked up Micah from his parents and they went to church and then came to the hospital where we had brought up a few gifts for Micah to open. They didn't stay long as a 2 year old in the hospital doesn't necessarily go well. Corey took Micah back home for a nap and they were able to go to his parents to celebrate Christmas that evening. Adelyn and I had a pretty quiet day but it was a good Christmas just me and my little girl (actually we even had a few visitors that day too--my step-dad Jeff, friends from church and my great aunt and uncle). Adelyn had to stay in the hospital for 48 hours to be monitored since I was unable to get antibiotics they needed to make sure she didn't get an infection. She was good to go though so on Monday morning we were discharged and headed home. Corey picked up Micah and brought him home and thus began life as a family of 4!!!!! :) Life is a little crazy right now though we know we are so blessed!!!
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