and then there were five.

i was scheduled to be induced tuesday morning. my dad drove up to stay with the boys and dave and i got to the hospital at 6:30 am. at my doctor appointment the previous day i was 4 cm dilated so he expected it would go very quickly. i filled out mountains of paperwork and the nurse gave me an IV and administered my magic blood medicine so i don't bleed.


my doctor broke my water at 8:10 and that put me into labor, so they didn't even give me pitocin. my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart and getting very strong, but at 10:00 am i was still a 4. i hated to do it so early because i was sure it was going to slow me down and i would be numb all day long like i was with isaac, but at that point i requested an epidural. the anesthesiologist came in at 10:20. i forgot how weird it was to have a needle/catheter inserted into your spine, and how uncomfortable it is to sit still during contractions while they're doing it. about 20 minutes later it started taking effect, but it was very different than with isaac. i could still feel the contractions and my legs felt tingly, like they were about to fall asleep, but never completely numb. at 11:20 i was a 4-ish, almost 5, and i told dave to go and get some lunch and he left.

i was strep b positive so i had had 2 bags of penicillin during this time. the contractions were getting stronger and i could definitely feel them, so i pushed my magic epidural button at that point. 15 minutes later i was a 10 and the nurse said "things are going to get pretty exciting here in the next few minutes" as she got out lights, tables, and other things to prepare for the birth. i frantically called dave and told him to hurry back as fast as he could. he was already in the parking lot so he shoved his hamburger into his mouth and came running back.


since i dilated so fast, there wasn't time to finish the other 2 bags of penicillin at a leisurely pace so they opened up the iv and let it pour into my veins. i cried. the contractions? nothing. that penicillin was KILLER. my whole arm burned and it was so painful that i asked them to stop it, but they couldn't. at that point we just had to wait for the doctor. i started getting really nervous because i could still feel and i was sort of terrified. but the doctor showed up about 12:10 and i realized when i started pushing that i couldn't really feel pain, just pressure. my blood pressure was going up and the baby's heart rate was going down with my contractions so the doctor used the vacuum to help it along and she was born at 12:20 pm. my first thought was "she's too skinny!" because her legs are just these tiny little sticks.

i didn't hold her for a while because i got kind of weird and shaky but when i finally did, she was perfect. just perfect.

the hospital has a "no kids under 12" rule because of the flu but they told us later that our kids could come but no nieces/nephews or other kids. i was so glad because i really wanted the boys to see her.my dad brought them in a separate car so dave could stay when he took them home. he was the only visitor i had the whole time--which was actually nice. it meant a lot of quiet time with just me and zoe and it was sort of awesome.


both boys called her "annie" when they saw her (that was my first choice going into the hospital and isaac had been calling her that for weeks), so we had a hard time deciding what to name her after that. it was so sweet, but we weren't sure her name was annie. it took us 2 days to decide her name was zoe (say the e) but i still feel nostalgic for annie. dave thought zoe had more "spice", so we'll see if she lives up to her name.


the second night in the hospital zoe slept from 10 pm to 6 am. the doctors weren't thrilled but i was. the nurses tried to wake her up but when they couldn't, they figured they'd let me sleep. i appreciated it. the hospital was a mixture of super nice and super annoying. they have "room service" and you can call and order whatever you want, whenever you want, and the food was delish; i got a complimentary pedicure the second day (they have a spa in the hospital but the girl just came to my room so i wouldn't have to leave); they don't come in in the middle of the night to check your blood pressure and temperature--they come at 10:30 and don't come back 'til 6:00 am. that was the good. what i did not love was the construction going on directly above my bedroom--hammering, sawing, jackhammers...it was ridiculous. they also have no food on the floor so when room service closes at 7 pm, you're done eating until 7 the next morning. i woke up a few times in the night starving and was so glad to have some graham crackers in my room.

i was very glad to get home and sleep in my own bed. zoe has been an angel, literally awake for only minutes of the day and sleeps soundly the rest of the time. the boys, especially isaac, cannot get enough of her. we hadn't even taken her out of her carseat yet when isaac decided he needed to share his transformers with her. (i also have a video of him singing the transformers theme song as a lullaby for her. soo cute.)

i feel great--by far my easiest delivery. haven't taken one single pain pill (just tylenol occasionally) even though the nurses and doctors were sort of pushing it. i didn't need it, and i hate how it makes the baby so sleepy (she already sleeps so much). i was nervous about this baby. really nervous. but she is perfect and i could not love her more. i am so happy to have her here and home.