Fast and Furious

She made it into this world on her own terms. Lesson learned, one can plan all they want, but life goes on His plan, not yours. I woke up to leaking fluid on Tuesday morning at 3am. Called in to the doc, they said if more fluid is present, head on in. If not, just come in the morning. N went back to sleep, I tried, but contractions began. We decided we would leave in an hour. I got all things ready for the kids for the next day. It was 5am when we called the neighbor Miss D. She came over and we were off. By the time we got to the hospital, my contractions were getting stronger. I knew I couldn't walk up to L & D on my own. N went for a wheel chair. I made it to the hospital door. On L & D, they were slightly surprised to see me. They thought I'd changed my mind. I was put in a room and my contractions got worse. I couldn't believe how painful it was. When they checked, I was still at a 3. I remained a 3. I was frustrated for feeling weak from the pain. I kept saying it wasn't like the others, I never had strong pain like this so early on.
By 6am, I couldn't stand it. They sort of didn't know what to do with me. My dr wasn't coming in until around 8am. I couldn't imagine surviving the next hour. Little did I know, I would, but not on my terms. It was 7am and all chaos began. I had to stand up, the pain was so bad. Water gushed on to the floor. They said I was still a 3! I will not think of the number 3 the same again. I went for a 3 to ready in just a matter of minutes. Baby girl couldn't even wait for the midwife to come down the hall. She came so fast and surprised everyone. It was shift change for the nurses. There were maybe 6-8 people in the room. Red headed Mickey caught her as she came out. I'm not sure how many pushes it took, but I know it wasn't many. Turns out the membrane never ruptured completely. It came out on top of her head. I did have a leak in my water, but the part at the bottom never broke. I was past a 3, they just couldn't tell because of the hard bulge on the bottom.
The plans for my epidural were out the window. There was no time. I was shocked after the entire experience. It was not like any of the other kids. Their labors were 12 hours +. This was as N said "old school" without any pain med assistance. Our theme lately has been vintage, guess this experience was just keeping in line with the theme.
Her entire pregnancy was not like the others, I guess it only appropriate the deliver by unique too. She arrived on her own terms and is beautiful. She was 9 lbs 3 oz. She looks a little like each kid. She has the same hair color Eight did when he was born. Her nose looks a lot like Four. She looks the most similar to Six, which surprised me. Eight and Four had more similar features when first born. Now Six and Baby girl will maybe have some features in common.
Later in the morning, Zinnia and Miss D brought Four to see us. She got in on helping with Baby Girl's first bath. It was great to see. Four was completely smitten with her new sister. They stayed for a few hours. N went home to get some sleep. He came back refreshed and ready for the day. He brought the kids back with him. The boys had their turn to inspect the new sister. Eight was grinning from ear to ear. Six bounced in like Tigger. He was so pleased with the day and everyone. They checked her out carefully, eager to see her eyes and toes. It was a sweet moment to see them meeting her for the first time.
Zinnia took all kids over night. N came back and stayed with us. I know he didn't get much sleep, I even less. Thankfully, we are going home tonight. Baby girl passed all her tests with flying colors. She's the soonest out of all our kids. She's done great with nursing and slept from 3 am to 6am last night! Lets home that habit carries over to home. Not sure what I will call her on this yet. I'll come up with something.
For now. I am just so thankful the Lord has blessed us with many things this past week. We couldn't have done this without our friends and neighbors. Many played an important role in bringing this baby girl into the world. She is more loved than she'll ever know. Her arrival involved so many people who care.
Now the challenge begins, keeping up with life and family. I will just take it one day at a time. I plan to post pictures soon. For now, this is as far as I've gotten.