The Day the Peanut Was Born

As The Peanut's first birthday is nearly upon us and we are having her birthday party today, I wanted to share our little story (as I remember it) of the day she was born....

Sunday, September 7, 2008—9:00 am

I woke up that morning and thought that perhaps my water had broken. I wasn’t sure and I certainly wasn’t having any contractions, so I got in the shower and got ready for the day. My mom and I were going to go shopping. I had about two weeks until The Peanut's due date (September 19) and there were some things I wanted to get finished before she arrived. There were some picture shelves at Ikea I wanted to purchase, so I could fill them with pictures of The Peanut that were sure to come. I also wanted to get to the grocery store because I had some casseroles I wanted to prepare and put in the freezer to make dinner time easier once we were home from the hospital. Meanwhile, DH and my Dad were going to finish up some jobs for my uncle at his rental and then that afternoon, we were going to barbecue and swim at my parents, as it was going to be hot.

12:00 pm

I was thinking that maybe, just maybe, my water had broken. However this was my first baby and how could I be sure? So I called our birthing instructor. She told me to call my doctor and they would have me come in for a pH test. As it was Sunday, I called the doctor’s office and they paged the doctor on call to call me back. After talking with him, he told me to come in to the hospital and they would test me to be sure.

2:30 pm

So off to the hospital we went. We got checked in and I told the nurse about my morning and she asked if I needed any pillows or some juice, as if I was going to be there for awhile. DH and I had heard all sorts of stories of moms and dads being sent home from the hospital because they went too early in the labor process. So we went to the hospital thinking they would send us home as I was not in any sort of active labor. Not so. Apparently once your water breaks, they keep you at the hospital to help “prevent infection.” We had my bags packed, however we didn’t think to bring them, as we didn’t think we would be staying.


We called my Mom and Dad and they went to our house to get my bags and camera and all the essentials we would need. Oh and did I mention DH and I had not eaten lunch? My Mom heard that and said they would take care of it. And so they did. They got to the hospital around 3:30 that afternoon and they had stopped by Albertson’s to get the provisions. This included the fried chicken meal from Albertson’s (chicken, slaw, and rolls) and in addition, but not limited to: beef jerky, grapes, yogurt, chips, Jujyfruits, cookies and the ever essential, Diet Coke with Lime. I also mentioned I wanted a burger, so my Dad went up to Burgerville (too long of a wait) and then Burger King down the street to get me a Whopper. Everybody tried to dissuade me from eating it, telling me I would get sick during labor, but I persisted and ate almost the entire thing. (Note: I did not get sick from eating the Whopper; however the onions did do a number on my heightened senses during the contractions. I could smell them on myself with all my labored breathing and it was di.scus.ting!)


4:00 pm

Dr. C wanted to put me on Petocin right away; however DH and I decided that we would like to wait a while before jumping into that. Dr. C was very kind and respected our decision. During that time, I tried rotating on an exercise ball in an attempt to get The Peanut to turn around, as she was posterior. Little did we know that our little girl already had made up her mind and was not moving. Later, I tried to rest as we knew we had a long night ahead of us.

7:30 pm

At this time, it had been nearly twelve hours since the presumed time that my water had broken and still no contractions, so Dr. C kindly persuaded us to start the Petocin. We agreed and that was all The Peanut needed. Once the drip had started I started to progress at a good rate. My Dad had brought his laptop to connect to the WiFi at the hospital in order to track his and DH's fantasy football. His laptop had his iTunes on it and he had Christmas music in his library, so he started up the Christmas music to help relax me during the first stages of labor. I know, but that’s me.

11:00 pm

The Peanut and I were both progressing really well and I was well past the point of uncomfortable. I wanted NEEDED an epidural. Weeks before, DH and I had discussed this. We decided it was best to not have pain medication, as we wanted to give The Peanut as best a start possible. (Note: The reason for this is that I learned in my birthing classes that the medication given for the epidural passes through the placenta in just 45 seconds. I know medical professionals say it is safe, however I figure if the epidural numbs a grown woman that way, what effect does it have on a newborn? Further Note: I am not trying to demean any woman who has had an epidural, this is purely my own belief. Further Further Note: This was by far the hardest thing I ever have had to do.) I had told DH that I would probably come to a point where an epidural would be demanded and his job, as a loving husband and father, was to talk me out of it. That time came and it was about 11:45 pm. The nurse checked me and I was at 8 cm. I “hit the wall” and panicked. The thoughts going through my head were “It hurts this bad right now….I’m not even at 10 cm yet….I haven’t even started to push yet…oh my gosh…I CAN NOT do this without an epidural….I haven’t even started to push yet….I HAVE to have some drugs….anything…it hurts so bad and I haven’t even started to push yet.” My labor and delivery nurse was wonderful, however she was concerned for me and why DH was so adamant about not having an epidural. It was her job to make sure I was comfortable and she knew I was extremely uncomfortable.

Monday morning, September 8, 2008—1:00 am

DH followed my wishes and talked me out of an epidural. We settled on me having a shot of Fentinel through my IV to take the edge off through the pushing. And it was just enough to get me through. I started pushing just after one in the morning. I was so glad it was almost over. Or so I thought…

4:00 am

I was still pushing three hours later. I was extremely tired…exhausted actually. DH and my Mom were such troopers. They were with me every step of the way and such an encouragement, as were my nurse and Dr. C. I couldn’t have made it without them. Little Peanut finally joined us at 4:09 am weighing in at seven pounds and nine ounces and just as beautiful as we had imagined. She was finally here. We love her so, so much and she was and is still such blessing.

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For any of you who have not had the pleasure of having children or are TERRIFIED of the labor process as I was: I never believed any of those mom's that said, "Oh you don't remember the pain....it's so worth it....don't worry....you forget all of that stuff...etc, etc, etc." Ladies, it is so true. It is a means to an end. I was the biggest skeptic and I can attest, you don't remember. Now, I do remember that it was difficult and that is was painful, but I couldn't describe to you WHAT it felt like. And your body recovers so quickly, it can only be a God thing.

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Little Peanut,

As we celebrate your first birthday, we are amazed at what a pure joy you are in our lives. We are so blessed that Jesus chose us to be your parents. We love watching you grow and explore the world around you. May your love for life never change. We know how much we love you and it is beyond what either of us could explain. It reminds us of God's love for each of us and how that is a deeper and purer love than we could ever give you.

We love you so much,

Mommy & Daddy