lily's birth

May 9th would mark my 8th day overdue and was the date determined by my doctor that I would be induced. I was beyond ready, excitied, and anxious for that day to get here! My mom, dad, and sister Jacinda arrived in Springfield the weekend before that Monday morning on Saturday night, and Jimmy's mom and sisters arrived that Sunday. So we were able to enjoy a few days with family before the big day.
Then came Monday morning, May 9th. We were asked to be at the hospital, Cox South, at 6am and to not be late. So our alarm woke us up at 4:30am, after a shower, a final look through our bags, and a light breakfast we were on our way to the hospital. We were checked in and in our room by 5:50am and the process began.
After checking me to find I was still only 1cm dilated and 50-60% effaced they decided to first give me cervidil to help soften my cervix - this was a super small pill that they inserted vaginal right behind my cervix. They let that "sit" for a few hours before checking me again to find that I was 2cm and closer to 70% effaced.  So the next step was to break my water. My doctor came in about 11:15am and broke my water. 30 minutes after they broke my water they were able to start pitocin. Once they started the pitocin my contractions started pretty quickly and were immediately rather painful. By 1pm I was unable to talk during the contractions and had to just focus on getting through each one. By this time family had arrived at the hospital and came in and out of the room throughout the morning. However, once the contractions intensified they were no longer in our room - it was just Jimmy and I. Next check I was 3 to 4cm and maybe 80% effaced - slowly but surely. By about 3pm I decided to ask my nurse about an epidural - how long would it take once I say I want it, how much longer will labor last, how much stronger will these contractions get, etc. After learning that my labor was easily going to last another 6 hours, that my contractions would get more intense, and that it can take up to an hour between when I say I want an epidural and when I actually get it I decided to go ahead and "order" one. So about 3:30 the anesthesiologist came into the room and gave me my epidural. I was nervous that I wouldn't be able to sit still through the procedure and that it would be painful but surprisingly I barely noticed he was back there. As I sat up I just held onto Jimmy's hands, took deep breaths through each contraction and before I knew it he was done. Pretty quickly my toes began to tingle and become numb - it felt like the feeling you get when your foot falls asleep, the feeling rose up my legs to my waist. For a while I could tell when I was having contractions because my stomach would tighten but that was the only way I knew - it was almost instant relief!
At this point we invited family back into the room so we were able to visit a little more, all while I was having contractions:) The strange thing about the epidural and the only thing I didn't really like was that my legs felt SO heavy and I couldn't move much on my own. It's a strange feeling to not be able to roll over on your own or know if your leg is on or off the bed! But, for me it was so worth the alternative of 6 more hours of intense contractions plus who knew how long of pushing!
Next check I was a 4 to 5 and still 80% effaced. At this point the nurse rolled me almost completely on my side and used one of the stir ups to prop my leg up in the air. It was now about 7pm. We continued to visit, watched Dancing With the Stars as I dozed in and out of sleep for a few more hours. My parents then decided to leave and grab a quick bite for dinner, this was at about 9pm. My nurse came in about 9:20 or so to check me again and after she checked me her response was "Well, are you ready to have a baby?" Jimmy and I looked at each other with huge eyes and said "Yes!" I was now 9 1/2 cm and 100% effaced - we were finally ready to push!
Of course Jimmy stepped out to let family know and called my parents to tell them to hurry back if they wanted to see me before I started pushing! Of course everyone was shocked but excited and my mom was so mad they had decided to leave! But, they made it back in time to say hi and bye one more time before our baby was here.
So about 9:45pm I began pushing. I remember thinking to myself "ok, this is the "easy" part and the short part, only a little bit longer" however, little miss had other plans for me! Almost immediately after I started pushing Jimmy and the nurse told me they could see her head and that she had tons of hair. Again I thought to myself "not much longer"! I had trouble getting the hang of pushing - my nurse kept telling me to pull my legs towards my body, relax my butt and push down. My eyes were closed, I was trying to focus, and drown out the pain/pressure I was feeling over and over again but it kept getting stronger and harder. After an hour or so of pushing I remember feeling like it was never going to end and that I couldn't do it anymore. I also repeatedly thought to myself that I was never having any more kids! I started getting a little sassy with Jimmy, telling him that he was lying to me, that it wasn't almost over and that she was never coming since they could see her head for so long. Turns out she was face up which was causing some issues, to say the least. Our nurse called in several other nurses for opinions on what to do. They had called my doctor, who happened to be on call that night, to update her along the way and at some point, maybe about 2 hours after I had started pushing our doctor arrived. I remember hearing her come in the room but I still didn't open my eyes.  Soon after my doctor arrived I remember hearing the words "I need to do an episiotomy" at this point that didn't scare me even though I knew exactly what that meant. I knew, from previous conversations with our doctor, that she doesn't do episiotomy's unless absolutely neccessary so I knew at this point that's what needed to happen. I heard the snip and within minutes she told me to push one more time. And she was here!
I will never ever forget the feeling I had when they put her on my chest. She was slimmy, bloody, and beautiful! I remember looking into her eyes and hearing Jimmy say "she looks just like you" and instantly forgetting about everything I had just been through! She was more than worth it! So after laboring all day long, literally, and pushing for 2 and a half hours our baby girl arrived at 12:10am on Tuesday, May 10th. She weighed in at 7lbs 13 oz and was 20 3/4 inches long.
Jimmy was beyond wonderful the whole time. Even though I got a little sassy with him:) he was nothing but encouraging and loving the entire time! He held one leg and my nurse held the other the entire time, there were even a few times when the nurse left and he had no choice but to hold both legs!
We named her Lily May - which we had decided on a few months before. We had a list of 5 or 6 names that we really liked but Lily was one we both loved from the beginning. We went back and forth on her middle name. Initially we wanted to use a family name for her middle name but after trying several and not liking any of them Jimmy came up with May and we loved it. We liked the sound of Lily May together and like the simplicity of her whole name - short and sweet.
So now she's here and I still can't believe. Today she is 1 week old already. Before we know it she will be 1 month and then 1 year - it really does fly by.
She is a wonderful baby - she sleeps well, she's content and laid back and we can see parts of Jimmy and I in her already. She crosses her little arms on her chest while she sleeps like daddy, she peaks at us with 1 eye when it's bright out or when she's just waking up like her daddy, her little nose and mouth are the same as mommy's, and her eyes are still debateable - blue or brown? Time will tell.
So I promise this won't turn into a baby blog but don't be surprised if I have a Lily story from time to time and I'll be sure to share lots of pictures!:)
Aside from Lily we've had other exciting things happening as well. We have bought a house in Cedar Falls without even seeing it and close on June 15th. Call us crazy but after many prayers, lots of pictures, a virtual tour, and my mom and dad taking a look for us we decided to make an offer and it's ours! And, as of today, we have sold our home in Springfield. After being on the market for only 2 weeks the first people to walk through it made an offer and we have accepted it. So, lots to come for us in the next month but we are excited to be heading back to Iowa - closer to family and some close friends. More updates on all this with pictures of the new place to come.

more than ready to go!

welcome to the world lily may

may 17th - 1 week old - rockin' the skinny jeans