She's Here!!

Sophia Isabella was born on Tuesday, April 28, 2009 at 10:10 pm after a long labor of love!

We began induction late, late Sunday night with no results for a long time. I remained dilated only to a 1 after all day Monday and most of Tuesday. Around 1:00 Tuesday, my water broke and things really moved at that point...well, sorta. We got to 4 cm pretty quickly, and then the really pain began. The nurse anesthetist came and placed my epidural. The bottom right side of my body didn't get completely numb though. They tried to turn me on my side to see if it would run over to that side. It really didn't work. By 7 pm that evening, we were up to a 9 and the pain was really too much to bear. We called back anesthesia and they did a spinal tap on me which worked beautifully. This was really important for the night's events. Doctor instructed the nurses to put me through a pushing trial, which we did for about 1 1/2 hours with no change. When he came back to check me around 9, I was still at a 9 and he could not feel what he wanted to on her head. At that point, he made the decision to take me into surgery for a c-section. Everything after this was a blur. I had to sign some paperwork and everyone worked very quickly to get me into the OR. I could not stop shivering! I don't know if it was the meds running into my spine or my nerves, but it was uncontrollable. John got changed into scrubs and met me in the OR. My anesthetist gave me warm air on my upper body to try to help with the cold which was very appreciated! I didn't feel a thing while they were getting her out, just some pressure. Thank goodness for that spinal tap!

Then, we heard her cry! 10:10 pm. Oh, the joy that filled my soul :) Hearing her and then seeing her was what made it all worth it. They took the baby and John to the nursery to begin the rest of the assessments with her. I stayed and got my stomach beaten up ;) As the doctor's stitched me up, it felt like they were pulling my guts 12 inches away from my body :) Not painful, but pressure. The anesthetist did have to give me something toward the very end to combat some pain. I was back in recovery by 11:00 and then sent back to my room at 11:45.

Turns out, it was a good thing we went to c-section. Sophia's head was positioned toward the side of my pelvis. She was not in a position to head toward the birth canal and we would have been there a long time!

We survived the first night in the hospital relatively well. The next day, I was in a lot of pain! Everything was a challenge! I stayed in the hospital until Friday afternoon. We got home around 5:30 pm. Since then, things have been....well, an adjustment! Not much sleep for sure. We are getting used to this sweet little girl. I am so glad that mom is here and John has been a lot of help! I will try to post more about our home adventures, but it's been a little difficult to find the time and energy! Thanks for keeping up with us!