merit's birthday

If you look down a few posts, you'll see a timeline of the day before Merit came. I could just pick up where that one left off, because I never went to sleep that night. I don't know if it was normal restlessness from pregnancy, or if I had some intuition about what was to come, but wide awake I was. Around 3 am, things started to get exciting...

3:05 am - I felt a painless contraction, but assumed it was only a Braxton-Hicks.

3:15 am - I felt another contraction, but this one was different and stronger, making me feel like I should maybe start timing these things.

3:15 am-3:45 am - Contractions started to come 8-10 minutes apart and were getting more painful. I decided to wake Kevan up.

3:45 am-5:30 am - Contractions continued anywhere from 4-10 minutes apart; Kev finished up some last minute things around the house and we decided we are going to the hospital.

6:00 am - We left for the hospital, but had to stop by CVS first because our camera battery was dead! Kevan called the doctor on the way to CVS. While Kev was in CVS, my contractions started coming 3 minutes apart and I got really nervous that I'd have to give birth at CVS.

6:20 am - We arrived at the hospital and checked in...I didn't read anything I signed.

6:30 am - I was taken to triage to get checked out and see if I was truly in labor.

6:45 am - The nurse told me I was already at 5 centimeters...my eyes got bigger than they have probably ever been before as I did not expect to hear that. Ohhhhh, nervous.

7:15 am - Finally, I was taken to Labor room #3114. Nurse Nancy asked if I was ready for an epidural and I gave her an emphatic, "Yes, please."

8:00 am - Received the beloved epidural.

8:45 am - Nurse Nancy came in to check my progress...almost to a 10. What?! I hadn't expected things to progress so quickly!

9:00 am - Dr. Hirsch came in to break my water. Wow is all I can say about that experience.

9:30 am - Dr. seemed concerned...he and the nurse talked under their breaths for a bit and the ultrasound machine was brought in. Not knowing yet what was going on, I was worried...

10:00 am - Dr. explained that Merit was coming face first ("face presentation") and a c-section would be the safest way to deliver. They prepped me for surgery.

10:30 am - Taken into the operating room, the coldest room in which I have ever been in my life. I had a range of emotions at this point...a little nervous about having surgery, but SO excited that we were about to meet our daughter in a matter of minutes! It was very surreal.

10:57 am - Merit Fey was born! Her cry was the sweetest sound I've ever heard. I could hear the nurses commenting about how she sounded like a cat and then about how long her eyelashes were. Kev followed her to the table behind me while she got cleaned up. He kept looking back at me with the biggest smile on his face. When they brought her over to me, I said she was beautiful and then tried lifting up her little hat and asked if she had hair. Merit, I apologize for not asking if you were healthy first. :)

12:50 pm - After a nap, I woke up to realize that neither my husband nor my baby were in the room with me. Wonderful Nurse Nancy sent for them, and I finally got to hold my baby girl in my arms! We then spent some time just the 3 of us...some of the sweetest moments of my life.

The rest of that day is a blur of excitement, emotions, phone calls, and visitors. I loved everything, and most importantly, who March 22nd brought us. What a perfect day. I can't even find words to explain how I felt that day, and how I continue to feel about my new little family. All I can say is that Merit has arrived, and in many ways, so have I.