she's here

So Scarlett Ann made her arrival on June 26 at 11:38am. It was a pretty quick labor, I started having contractions around 4:15 that morning but they didn't hurt at all and they were short so I wrote them off as Braxton Hicks. When they kept coming and I finally had to stop what I was doing during them, I realized that just maybe I was in labor. I called David to come home from work. He came home & packed my bag while I laid in bed.

We left for the hospital a little before 11:00 and got there around 11:20 or so. He handed me off to one of the "transport people" to take to L&D while he took the car to the valet. While they are doing the initial check in they make husbands wait in the waiting room, so I didn't see him again for a while...they kept asking me questions for paperwork and no one checked me until I told them I needed to use the bathroom. (Yeah, I still thought the contrax weren't real...) When I told them I needed to potty they screamed for someone to check me and I was at 9cm. When I heard that I screamed for them to get my husband and get me an epidural! The nurse sent someone after David and told me "honey there's no time for an epidural." They wheel me from the L&D check in rooms to LDR. I get in the bed & tell them I have to push. They are screaming at me not to push but check & I'm at 10cm. My doctor comes rushing in & I tell them I'm pushing. She says "wait I need to get my gloves." I yelled that I couldn't wait & I started pushing. My water broke with my first push and the doctor turned and said oh there's the head! I pushed like 3 times and they told me to stop because the cord was around her neck. That is the only time I could stop the urge to push. They got it unwrapped & I pushed one more time and she was out.

Scarlett weighed 7lbs even and was 20-3/4" long. She is absolutely perfect! She immediately latched on & is nursing great - we've had no problems! It is so much easier than it was with Matthew - I am not sure if it is the unmedicated delivery so she was more alert or if it is because I've done it before...maybe a combination.

So now I have to remember, worry is useless...I spent so much time thinking about being induced and the "what-ifs" and I didn't even need to. Scarlett decided when it was time to come. (And oh yeah, I still have that crud/cough, but somehow had the energy to give birth anyway.)

My parents arrived the next day to take care of Matthew. They brought him to the hospital to visit and that was nice. I think I missed him more than he missed me! We were finally released Thursday morning (stupid hospital policy requires them to keep newborns for 36 hours after birth and of course they wouldn't release us in the middle of the night) and got home around lunchtime. So far Matthew hasn't paid much attention to Scarlett, but when he does it is very loving. He kisses her and calls her "shish-ter".

Matthew is loving having his Grandaddy and Momma Joy here. They are so helpful - entertaining him and taking care of things around the house so David & I can settle in with Scarlett. It makes me fearful of the day I have it "all on my own" when they go home and I have to juggle it all, but I just keep telling myself "I can do it". Only time will tell...