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I’ll preface this post by saying; things start to get hazy at
this point. Instinct takes over by
this point and I think you partially black out with adrenaline and a rush of
dopamine after the baby comes. So,
I know for sure it didn’t take long from the time my mom left to Penny’s
arrival, no more than 15 minutes!
Those few minutes were full of intensity in every aspect and from all
corners of the room.
The room started to fill up; a telling sign that baby is
near. More nurses, more docs, more
lab coats, more trays, more talking, more activity, more instructions, more
EVERYTHING!
The doc finally showed up as my mom left. She barely had enough time to suit up
and sit down before Penny came bursting into the world! Two quick and painful pushes and we
welcomed our daughter at 6:23 PM.
I watched her head appear beyond my legs and a blur of
activity as she began to scream. Simply
put, I was in amazement and complete bliss for the next half hour as the flurry
of activity settled. Nurses
cleared her airways, began to wipe her down and asked Nolan if he’d like to tell
Mom the sex of the baby. I laugh
as I write this because I still remember looking up to her tiny body being
exposed to him and his head shaking and shrugging his shoulders. He stuttered and finally said he didn’t
know. To his credit, newborn
genitalia, not matter the sex is very swollen. Chuckles erupted around the room and finally the doctor
said, “It’s a Girl.” Nolan cut the
umbilical cord after. He was
shaken and overwhelmed at that moment, I remember thinking he was so sweaty for
not having done much physically!
To help him regain his composure, I asked him to go tell my
mom! They came back in the room a
few short minutes later as the doc was tending to me and I was finally holding
our little girl. I remember
shaking uncontrollably. I have never
felt so much relief as I did in those hours after Penny was born, it was a
13-hour build up after 41 weeks of pregnancy and our little girl was with us!
The nurses were off shift at 7, so I was their last for the
day; they later thanked Penny and me for making it all happen before they
left. Just enough time left for
the clean up, photos, and paperwork!
I think it might have been quite the cluster if our nurses would have
all changed out in the middle – I’m curious how that happens!?
One of the nurses even offered to take photos for us, which
I was so grateful for so Nolan could be apart of them.
Things I learned
after the fact:
Nolan is silly and before he was asked to actively hold my leg he was near my head and started whispering and humming the lyrics, “oh baby, baby, oh baby, baby” – you know, the beginning of “Push It” by Salt-N-Pepa! Please press play below to remind yourself of this 90’s hit and why he stopped when a few of the nurses gave him the stink eye!
Be persistent – if you want to meet the other doctors in the
office, make it happen. My doctor
did not deliver Penny, even though she said she delivers 90% of her patients. I
asked to meet the other docs at least once and she reassured me that I didn’t
need to. Really, I just wanted to
put a face to the name so if (when) it came down to someone else handling my
daughters birth, I’d know their face.
It all turned out great so I can’t complain too much but it is something
of an “I told you” moment.
I wish I had someone take a picture of Penny and her delivering doctor and nurses.
The room is full but everyone seems to know their small part in the chaos that is the delivery room.
There is a LOT to clean up! Haha, I know that is probably obvious but more than that I was surprised how quickly it happens!
Our little cooler was a miracle idea! We brought a cooler of PB&J sandwiches, fruit. Had the hospital kitchen been closed, that food is all that I would have eaten unless Nolan or my mom would have gone to get something and that would have taken away from our time.
After I scarffed down a Belgian waffle we were escorted to
the recovery floor where Nolan stayed with Penny for her bath and Mom and I
figured out how to put on my nursing bra with an IV in!
It was a magical night and I think back on that time fondly – it was an amazing experience and I am so glad I did it without drugs
and wouldn’t have changed a thing about it.
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