Dear Elyse,
So, my little darling, you are almost ten months old, and I am just now documenting the day of your birth. Sad, I know. I know I have forgotten SO many of the details, but I still hope that someday you will enjoy reading how you entered the world.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008, started just like every other day EXCEPT for the fact that for once, giving birth to you was not on my mind. I went into work at 8:30 that morning, and my boss decided to close our office at noon so we could all meet up at Carrabba’s for lunch. I remember specifically arriving at the restaurant and hearing “mean” comments from my coworkers about me still being pregnant well into January. Honestly, since your due date was January 1, I wasn’t expecting to be giving birth this day. For lunch, I was ravenous, and in addition to eating almost an entire basket of Italian bread dipped in olive oil and oregano, I ordered shrimp scampi and even ate dessert. We all laughed about how much I was eating, but I was later very thankful! I left the restaurant at about 2pm, and I was so excited for the evening ahead of us. This would be the first Christmas Eve that Dad and I had spent alone. We had lofty plans of putting together a puzzle in our pajamas and watching “Elf” while eating oreo balls. Daddy got off work at about 1 that day, so he was waiting for me when I arrived home.
We headed down to Target to pick up a puzzle and grab the movie, and while we were at Target, your dad bought me a caramel frappuccino from Starbucks. I managed to guzzle that in no time. We found our little puzzle and headed home. Jordan decided to make the oreo balls for us, so we changed into our pj’s and Jordan started on the dessert. It was about 4pm when my water broke. I KNEW I had already gone to the bathroom, so that just left one option! I distinctly remember looking down, then up at Jordan, and the expression on his face was priceless. He said, “What?” I responded that I thought my water had just broken, and all he said was, “Really?”
After I convinced Jordan that I really believed my water broke, I called my doctor’s office. Minutes later, I received a call from the doctor on call that night, Dr. G. After he asked about my “symptoms,” he told me to head over to the hospital to confirm that it was indeed my water. He closed our conversation with, “See you at the stable, Mary!” I immediately packed up our bags (no, I didn’t do that ahead of time), changed clothes, and went to check on your dad. There he is, still in his pajamas, washing dishes and sweeping the floor! I finally convinced him to get ready, and by 4:30, we hit the road. The hospital was about 20 minutes from our house, but we weren’t in a rush. We still hadn’t eaten dinner, so we did decide to grab Jordan something to eat (I was still very full). We knew we were in for the long haul. At this point, I wasn’t having any contractions, but I was feeling a little nauseous. We found a 7-11 that was open, and Jordan grabbed a drink and a packaged sandwich that looked kind of crummy. There were not a lot of open restaurants on Christmas Eve! We headed up to labor & delivery, and we settled into a small observation room. The nurse had to confirm that it was indeed my water that had broken. This took forever, and I was starting to feel very uncomfortable. Once they confirmed it, Jordan headed down to the car to get our stuff, and I was taken over to our room. I was officially admitted at about 6:30pm when I was 4cm dilated. Our room was very spacious, and Jordan set out to make it as homey as possible. He had grabbed our Christmas “stuff” from home, and he even hung our stockings on the IV pole next to my bed! The nurses got a real kick out of that.
My contractions hit hard just as I got settled into my room. They had me all hooked up to the machines, but a nurse came in rather quickly to confirm that my contractions had STARTED at 2 minutes apart. She asked me how I was doing, and at the time, I just told her I was okay. She left us, and Jordan decided we would celebrate our little Christmas. He had our cards and the few gifts that we had, and I remember very little of that time. I remember him reading cards to me between contractions, and I could hardly see straight, let alone listen. It was quite funny. I felt like I was almost hitting a little delirium. I remember telling Jordan that I felt like such a wimp, but I felt I needed something. When the nurse came back in, I asked her for something, and she gave me Nubain. It didn’t take long for the drug to kick in, and I felt a little dizzy and got sick. Although it took some of the edge off the pain, it wasn’t all that helpful. I was ready for an epidural, and I remember panting like a dog to get through the contractions! It was about 9:30pm when I told the nurse that I really needed the epidural. She mentioned that I would have to be fairly dilated to be ready for that. She decided to check, and I was over 8cm dilated. She called the anesthesiologist and called Dr. G (who had not yet arrived at the hospital).
Shortly later, the anesthesiologist arrived to administer the epidural. I remember throwing myself over the small table on wheels to sit still for him, but I was oblivious. I remember him administering a test dose and asking me if I was seeing any dark spots or bright lights (scary!). Since I wasn’t, he showed me how to use the little pain button (which the nurse pushed once for me, but I didn’t use at all since I was so out of it) and took off. As soon as he left the room, I informed the nurse that I was ready to push. She informed me that I was NOT ready to push, and again called Dr. G. Shortly after that, he arrived to the “stable” with his little suit on and his Christmas tie. Yes, I had indeed called him out of his Christmas Eve service.
Once he dropped by the room to inform the nurse that he would scrub in, she set up the bed “delivery style” and gave me one practice push (at approximately 10:30pm). Once I completed that push, Daddy could see your head! The nurse told me to STOP. Once Dr. Groves arrived, he quickly settled in and we started the pushing. It was actually quite relaxed (I was not in much pain) and the two nurses were great. Jordan was so helpful. After 3 long pushes, you came out (11:01pm)! It was truly the most amazing thing I’ve ever experienced. Once you cried (which was fairly soon, but not too loud), they placed you on a towel on my belly and I was able to “hug” you for the first time. They quickly took you over to the corner of the room where they cleaned you all up, bathed you, weighed you, and swaddled you all up.
So, my little darling, you are almost ten months old, and I am just now documenting the day of your birth. Sad, I know. I know I have forgotten SO many of the details, but I still hope that someday you will enjoy reading how you entered the world.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008, started just like every other day EXCEPT for the fact that for once, giving birth to you was not on my mind. I went into work at 8:30 that morning, and my boss decided to close our office at noon so we could all meet up at Carrabba’s for lunch. I remember specifically arriving at the restaurant and hearing “mean” comments from my coworkers about me still being pregnant well into January. Honestly, since your due date was January 1, I wasn’t expecting to be giving birth this day. For lunch, I was ravenous, and in addition to eating almost an entire basket of Italian bread dipped in olive oil and oregano, I ordered shrimp scampi and even ate dessert. We all laughed about how much I was eating, but I was later very thankful! I left the restaurant at about 2pm, and I was so excited for the evening ahead of us. This would be the first Christmas Eve that Dad and I had spent alone. We had lofty plans of putting together a puzzle in our pajamas and watching “Elf” while eating oreo balls. Daddy got off work at about 1 that day, so he was waiting for me when I arrived home.
We headed down to Target to pick up a puzzle and grab the movie, and while we were at Target, your dad bought me a caramel frappuccino from Starbucks. I managed to guzzle that in no time. We found our little puzzle and headed home. Jordan decided to make the oreo balls for us, so we changed into our pj’s and Jordan started on the dessert. It was about 4pm when my water broke. I KNEW I had already gone to the bathroom, so that just left one option! I distinctly remember looking down, then up at Jordan, and the expression on his face was priceless. He said, “What?” I responded that I thought my water had just broken, and all he said was, “Really?”
After I convinced Jordan that I really believed my water broke, I called my doctor’s office. Minutes later, I received a call from the doctor on call that night, Dr. G. After he asked about my “symptoms,” he told me to head over to the hospital to confirm that it was indeed my water. He closed our conversation with, “See you at the stable, Mary!” I immediately packed up our bags (no, I didn’t do that ahead of time), changed clothes, and went to check on your dad. There he is, still in his pajamas, washing dishes and sweeping the floor! I finally convinced him to get ready, and by 4:30, we hit the road. The hospital was about 20 minutes from our house, but we weren’t in a rush. We still hadn’t eaten dinner, so we did decide to grab Jordan something to eat (I was still very full). We knew we were in for the long haul. At this point, I wasn’t having any contractions, but I was feeling a little nauseous. We found a 7-11 that was open, and Jordan grabbed a drink and a packaged sandwich that looked kind of crummy. There were not a lot of open restaurants on Christmas Eve! We headed up to labor & delivery, and we settled into a small observation room. The nurse had to confirm that it was indeed my water that had broken. This took forever, and I was starting to feel very uncomfortable. Once they confirmed it, Jordan headed down to the car to get our stuff, and I was taken over to our room. I was officially admitted at about 6:30pm when I was 4cm dilated. Our room was very spacious, and Jordan set out to make it as homey as possible. He had grabbed our Christmas “stuff” from home, and he even hung our stockings on the IV pole next to my bed! The nurses got a real kick out of that.
My contractions hit hard just as I got settled into my room. They had me all hooked up to the machines, but a nurse came in rather quickly to confirm that my contractions had STARTED at 2 minutes apart. She asked me how I was doing, and at the time, I just told her I was okay. She left us, and Jordan decided we would celebrate our little Christmas. He had our cards and the few gifts that we had, and I remember very little of that time. I remember him reading cards to me between contractions, and I could hardly see straight, let alone listen. It was quite funny. I felt like I was almost hitting a little delirium. I remember telling Jordan that I felt like such a wimp, but I felt I needed something. When the nurse came back in, I asked her for something, and she gave me Nubain. It didn’t take long for the drug to kick in, and I felt a little dizzy and got sick. Although it took some of the edge off the pain, it wasn’t all that helpful. I was ready for an epidural, and I remember panting like a dog to get through the contractions! It was about 9:30pm when I told the nurse that I really needed the epidural. She mentioned that I would have to be fairly dilated to be ready for that. She decided to check, and I was over 8cm dilated. She called the anesthesiologist and called Dr. G (who had not yet arrived at the hospital).
Shortly later, the anesthesiologist arrived to administer the epidural. I remember throwing myself over the small table on wheels to sit still for him, but I was oblivious. I remember him administering a test dose and asking me if I was seeing any dark spots or bright lights (scary!). Since I wasn’t, he showed me how to use the little pain button (which the nurse pushed once for me, but I didn’t use at all since I was so out of it) and took off. As soon as he left the room, I informed the nurse that I was ready to push. She informed me that I was NOT ready to push, and again called Dr. G. Shortly after that, he arrived to the “stable” with his little suit on and his Christmas tie. Yes, I had indeed called him out of his Christmas Eve service.
Once he dropped by the room to inform the nurse that he would scrub in, she set up the bed “delivery style” and gave me one practice push (at approximately 10:30pm). Once I completed that push, Daddy could see your head! The nurse told me to STOP. Once Dr. Groves arrived, he quickly settled in and we started the pushing. It was actually quite relaxed (I was not in much pain) and the two nurses were great. Jordan was so helpful. After 3 long pushes, you came out (11:01pm)! It was truly the most amazing thing I’ve ever experienced. Once you cried (which was fairly soon, but not too loud), they placed you on a towel on my belly and I was able to “hug” you for the first time. They quickly took you over to the corner of the room where they cleaned you all up, bathed you, weighed you, and swaddled you all up.
Once Dr. G left, I was finally able to hold you. You were and still are beautiful. I remember thinking that your skin looked so dark and your little cheeks were so chubby! We were finally able to spend time as a family. I remember Daddy pulling off your little candy-striped stocking cap, and I think we both gasped at your beautiful hair. It was so dark and thick! You were wide awake, and your little eyes were so dark. After I had a few minutes with you, I passed you off to Dad, and he was instantly in love. I will never forget the look on his face as he looked at you closely for the first time. You were the best Christmas present we could have ever received.
We had to trust God the day you were born, and we still trust him for every part of your life. We pray you will love him and trust him, too, as HE is trustworthy always. We love you, Elyse. I hope you enjoyed reading your story. I enjoyed reliving it ☺
All my love,
Mom
We had to trust God the day you were born, and we still trust him for every part of your life. We pray you will love him and trust him, too, as HE is trustworthy always. We love you, Elyse. I hope you enjoyed reading your story. I enjoyed reliving it ☺
All my love,
Mom
7 comments:
I loved reading your story too! I had forgotten most of those details (or I never heard them!). I still remember sitting around the Christmas tree at mom and dad's, hearing your phone call and anxiously waiting all night. I even had Mom call my cell phone (as I slept upstairs) and I ran downstairs around midnight and heard all the details. :) I'm sorry to say Nate didn't really care to be woken up - he was content to hear the news in the morning. :) Hope Elyse enjoys her big week - wish we could be there. Give her a big hug and kiss for us! We love her!!!
So sweet! Thanks for sharing Sue!
Oh, boy - wasn't prepared for how this would start me crying. I loved the part about how all Jordan could get was a "crummy" sandwich from 7-11 because it was Christmas Eve - it makes me think about Mary and Joseph (ha ha even though so not the same thing) and how they were in kind of the same situation on what we celebrate at Christmas Eve. :) I have been thinking about you so much when I think about the Christmas Story this year. Love you and happy birthday, Elyse!
oh I loved reading this!
I cried. So, when do the emotions go back to normal???? I have cried 3 times today--all at good things--but still, cracks me up!
Thanks for sharing Sue--Elyse will LOVE having this!
Merry Christmas!
Sue-I dangerously chose to read this while I was at work and somehow managed to read it with only a few tears. Though I have heard most of Elyse's birth story, it was so fun to read the details. Thanks for sharing. Sniff. Sniff. (Happy Sniffs).
Oh--and my word verification this time is 'platerd'--Eeeww.
brought me tears too just thinking about what precious gifts our children are and what a miracle a birth is! hope you have a wonderful week filled with big celebrations!
Happy Birthday Sweet Elyse!
Sue, I loved reading your story again. It's so fun to reminisce over what you were doing, thinking, and feeling this time last year. Tim and I have been talking alot about that lately as well ;) We're so happy that Maddy and Elyse share their Birthday week together :)
Those Christmas pics of Elyse are BEAUTIFUL! What a gorgeous gal you have on your hands! Love you guys.
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