Scarlett was due on 31st January 2013 but I just knew I'd go over, I had that feeling. When we had our 13 week scan I remember being told that you could go 11 days over and then you'd be booked in to be induced - 11 days would take me to the day before my birthday - as I said, I had that feeling she'd hang on in there.
I finished work a week earlier than expected on 11th January, I was so big, tired and uncomfortable that I couldn't concentrate on work. Every day my husband went to work and expected 'that' phone call but nothing. Days passed, family and friends enquired but still nothing.
We then had the huge snowfall one evening - about 3 feet of snow fell in one go, we prayed that she didn't arrive that evening. She didn't.
The 31st January came and went, trips to the midwife followed but nothing could make her come out (at this point I didn't know she was a girl.) When I got to 4 days overdue they booked me in for the following Monday to be induced - yes, the day before my birthday 11th February - I knew I would be going to the hospital on that day and she wouldn't come any sooner. I was right.
I had the normal anxieties of would everything go okay, what if I couldn't push (I'd watched One Born Every Minute, I knew the script!) would she be okay etc etc etc!
The morning of 11th February arrived and we decided to celebrate my birthday a day early with lunch out at a pub near to the hospital and then I went to see my Mum. A 3pm appointment was not the best thing in the world as I had all day to think about what was going to happen.
Booking in at the hospital and getting things started seemed a slow process, lots of monitoring, blood presure checks and baby checks. I was given various drugs to start things off but she just wouldn't budge. Pete was allowed to stay with me, even though we were on a ward, but they told us if I hadn't started soon then I would only be tried again in the morning; they had lots of C sections booked in and were really busy. That was not what I wanted to hear. The three things I had said all along were 'I didn't want to stay in overnight' 'I didn't want an epidural' and 'I didn't want a C section.'
My contractions seemed to start off about 8pm but no-one seemed that bothered and didn't really think they'd begun, as it was my first baby (and last) I wasn't sure myself so put it down to just being uncomfortable.
At around 11pm they sent Pete home but typically as soon as he went my contractions intensified and they whizzed me off to a delivery room. Pete told me later that he'd just got in bed and the phone rang telling him to come back, I think it was about 12.30am.
By the time he got back I was as high as a kite on gas and air - best stuff ever, didn't necessarily take the pain away but it certainly made me concentrate on my breathing.
Things happened quite quickly once Pete arrived - my waters broke, I wanted to push but she wouldn't come out, I was checked by a more senior person, no idea who she was, but she couldn't get Scarlett to stop turning her head from side to side. I remember them saying that I may end up having a C section and then the next thing I knew I was signing a consent form to have one and an epidural - all three things I didn't want to happen had now been ticked off!
I had so many people surrounding me it was unreal. I had two people putting my socks on, one doing my gown, one doing the epidural, one putting a drip in and countless others. I was like a rag doll and not really that aware of things. Pete had gone but I don't even know if I knew that until he came back in his gown and cap.
The actual C Section seemed to be over in seconds, I asked Pete what 'it' was and he told me a girl. I was quickly shown her by the nurse and then she got whisked away. All I really remember is they said she had goregous, long eyelashes. She was born at 2.49am on my birthday - I was right all along.
Next post - she's here!
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