(in the waiting room)
It was September first and also the day of the Notre Dame/ Navy game that was being played in Ireland. This is the same game Chris and I almost bought plane tickets for to watch in Ireland but found out about our little surprise the day before we purchased the tickets. We had planned on starting to try for a little baby the day of the game in Ireland but instead we were lucky enough to receive her that day instead. The morning started with me waking up at 6:45 with horrible cramps. I had planned on sleeping in a little while Chris went to our friend Beth's house to watch the game with friends and I would meet up with them a little later (mainly because Beth cooked a huge breakfast for everyone and I didn't want to miss it). The game was going to start at 8:00 in the morning and since I was hurting anyway and couldn't go back to sleep I decided to go to Beth's house with Chris. As we watched the game I grew pretty uncomfortable and felt much better walking around. A friend was actually texting me pretty early that morning asking how I felt and after telling her how awful and uncomfortable I was feeling she told me she thought I was in labor. I for one did not agree or think I was since my doctor told me if you have to ask if you are in labor then you probably aren't. After walking tons of laps around Beth's dining table and calling the on-call doctor to ask if I was in labor (a trip to the ladies room made me question all of the other symptoms-I was bleeding a ton) and they told me to time my contractions if I had any and to come in if they were 5 mins apart. If I had any contractions???? I had contractions everyday ALL the time so I started timing them as they said. Yea, they were 2-3 mins apart. I started walking in Beth's kitchen because I had started crying due to the pain and because I was starting to get nervous. I was texting my mom telling her I thought I was in labor but I wasn't sure and that I started timing my contractions to see if we needed to go to the hospital. As Chris continued to watch his game I waited in the kitchen crying so nobody would see me. I wanted him to get to finish watching his game since we didn't get to fly over there and watch. It's not like his favorite team gets to play in Ireland often! As Notre Dame won and I was jumping for joy (on the inside) that the game was over, I overheard Chris ask if they could change the TV to a different game even though he knew I was in tons of pain. I shrilled in discomfort and annoyance at Chris for forgetting that I WAS IN LABOR AND NEEDED TO LEAVE. I mean I did let him watch the entire game before making him leave I think that deserves some brownie points and credit.
We went home and grabbed Chris' bag. I tried to clean a little bit and wanted to give the dogs a bath but Chris wouldn't let me. We headed for the hospital and I kept telling my mom not to head to Tulsa until they admitted me, I definitely did not want her to drive over for them to only tell me I was not having this baby yet. I checked in at 1:30 in the afternoon, sat in the waiting room for only a few minutes and then followed a nurse to a room. I explained to her that I was 2 cm the day before and only 60% effaced but that I was bleeding a ton and my contractions were now 2-3 mins apart. She checked me and as soon as she did told me she was 99% sure I was there for good without even having to talk to my doctor. She also apologized that she put us in a room without a window because she did not think I was going to stay until she checked me herself, The ladies at the front desk only said I had slight spotting which was completely wrong! Just so happens Dr. Tran was already at the hospital, she ordered for me to go ahead and have my epidural and she would be in afterward to break my water. I was at 4 1/2 cm 100% effaced and apparently going strong. OH MY GOSH I'M GOING TO LEAVE HERE WITH A BABY is pretty much the thought going through my head. The official call/ text went out to family and the family and friends started to arrive shortly after. Sarah was the first to arrive and then my mom got there. After my epidural (which was amazing by the way) they said some women do not dilate as fast so they told me they would check every hour to make sure I was dilating at least a centimeter more each time. I started at 4 1/2, the next hour I was at a 6 and the following hour I was complete at 100% effaced and 10 cm. We waited one more hour to see if Brielle would shift and fall down a little more due to her being in a slightly bad position which actually helped due to the fact that Chris' mom had a much longer drive to the hospital.
After waiting the hour and she still did not drop down any the nurse told me it was time to start pushing and that I was probably going to have to push longer because she was stuck on my pelvic bone. YAY, what fun! I would like to mention at this time that Chris was not one bit scared the entire pregnancy or any part of my labor until they said I needed to start pushing, not even when they had to stop my contractions at 32 weeks. You should have seen his face, it looked as if he saw a ghost. My mom had said she thought it should only be Chris and I in the room when Brielle was born but as the time came for me to start she wanted to stay. I asked Sarah also to stay because she had been in the room with me almost the whole time anyway and I really wanted a friend to be there with me. They were both awesome. Mom on my left holding my leg and Sarah on my right holding the other. They were both encouraging and helpful. Sarah counted and Chris fanned me like my pool boy. The whole time Chris and I were cracking jokes and I think the nurses thought we were like no other couple. After pushing a few times I asked why I was only pushing three times for each minute and the nurse explained that most women can only handle pushing three times. I politely asked if I could just keep pushing because I REALLY wanted this baby out. From then on I pushed four times each minute. After Brielle moved down to a better position and they called in Dr. Tran. I always thought Dr. Tran would just come in right at the last second but she ended up coming in several minutes before. As Brielle moved into the correct position and they said they could see a ton of hair I lost it, I was a blubbering mess. That was enough to give me the extra "push" (pun intended) to get my baby out and hold her. It was a total of 30 minutes of pushing and Ms. Brielle Bouldin was born at 8:37 P.M. Chris' mom walked into the room right as she was pulled out. She was out, wrapped in a blanket and put on my chest. I didn't know what to do. I was crying and happy and exhausted. The nurse was trying to suck everything out of her airway and she wasn't breathing very well when they sat her on my chest and I started to get nervous so I told the nurse to take her. After they sucked everything out she was perfectly fine. She weighed 8.01 lbs and was 20 3/4 inches long (she had a huge cone head from being stuck on my pelvic bone) and we loved every bit of her. She was bathed in our room and screamed while her body was washed but as soon as they started washing her hair she was quiet as can be, she LOVED it!
I did have to wait awhile again before I got to hold her because they had to take a long time on me (Brielle's hand was up by her head and she scratched me the whole way out...thanks kid). When I did get to hold her I just melted and was instantly in love with her. I never knew how much I could love something until they placed her in my arms.
(8.1 lbs)
(First finger she held was daddy's)
(what a look, I kind of think she looks like her daddy in this picture)
(first family picture the next day)
(a girl after her mama's heart)
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