May 31, 2011

This is the first of a couple “catch up” posts that I’m going do about Stella. Stella coming into our lives has changed both Blake and I in ways we never could have imagined. We are so thankful for her and for the blessing she is. I honestly can't believe she's almost 10 months. I know people talk all the time about "how time flies," but I feel like I can relate in a whole new way! My baby is just growing up too fast!

Blake and I definitely had talked about having kids, but we went back and forth all the time on when we thought we wanted to start having them. God obviously had a perfect time, so I'm very glad he didn't leave it up to us! I found out on Sunday, 10-10-10, that I was expecting! We had been to CB’s the day before I found out (CB's is an old burger place in Greenville that Blake's grandparents have been going to since they were growing up) and I was just not feeling “right” while we were there. The burger didn’t taste good and that is HIGHLY unusual – I have to have CB’s fix at least a couple times a month! Needless to say, my intuition was right and I was pregnant. Up until about week 14 I felt like I had the flu. If there was a pregnancy symptom – I got it. After getting into my second and third trimester I absolutely loved being pregnant. Everything about it was just incredible. What a miracle that God designed! If Blake would let me, I might have 10 kids! I'll settle for a few :)

The day of Stella’s birth was Tuesday, May 31, 2011. The previous day was Memorial day and we had celebrated our third anniversary over the weekend (although the actual date of our anniversary is May 31). I had been waking up the past couple nights VERY early in the morning and feeling all anxious. So, I decided to straighten my hair, ha (what else would you do at 4am?). I always wanted to be ready in case today was the day! I had been working from home for the past couple weeks since I was put on bed rest for high blood pressure. Silly me, I tried to assure my doctor (who happens to be the most fabulous doctor ever!) that my blood pressure was only high because I was having a stressful time at work. Apparently it doesn’t matter WHY your blood pressure is high. It only matters that it IS! Since I was up so early I started piddling around, feeding the dogs and getting the house straightened (if you know me – my house stays in a constant state of order).



Dr. Garner after delivery



Then, I “felt something odd,” which come to find out was my water breaking. Please note, I expected my water to break like Miranda’s in Sex in the City. Somewhat like a bucket being poured from between your legs. Well, that’s not what happened. I called my doctor after about the third time I “felt something odd” and he said to come on in and check myself in and they’d check things out. So - I immediately took a shower! Not that I advise taking a shower while you should be rushing to the hosptital, but hey, I still had to wait for Blake to turn around and come back home. So,we headed to the hospital about 9:30 in the morning. By the time I got up to the room and they checked me out I was still only dilated to a 2. The nurse tested to see if it was my water that had broke, but the test was inconclusive. Dr G came in around noon and was able to determine it was my water that had broke and then he was able to break the last “pocket of water” for me – um, ouch! By that time I was dilated to a 3 and we started the pitocin. I let myself feel about two good "knock your breath out" contractions and unashamedly asked for the epidural stat! That was about 1:30pm and very shortly after I dilated to a 5 and began getting sick (thanks anesthesia). The nurse, Heidi, let us know that now would be the best time to rest before all the action started, so we turned off the lights and attempted to rest. About 30 minutes later, Dr G walked into the room, flipped the lights on and said “It’s Time!” Sure enough, I was dilated to a 10 and the pushing began. (I later asked how he knew it was time even when he hadn't seen me in a couple hours and apparently the baby's heart beat goes into a certain pattern right before birth that he was able to see down in his office because of the fetal monitor - I love modern medicine.)

Y'all I have to tell you something funny. The weekend before I had Stella I put on sunless tanner (which proved to be quite difficult with that big ol' belly in the way). Needless to say, I didnt rub it in as well as I should have, so all I could focus on in the delivery room was the really awful lines on my ankles - I will never forget bad tan lines and purple toe nail polish during labor!



Blake watching my contractions



They opted to let me “labor down” for about 30-45 minutes letting the contractions push Stella as far as they could. After a few good pushes my sweet little baby entered this world at 4:52pm! What a wonderful anniversary gift!

Blake, my mom, and one of my best friends, Lauren Ammerman (who took all these beautiful, priceless pictures) were all in the room during delivery. If anyone is considering having pictures taken during your delivery – I say YES! There weren’t any icky photos. Lauren captured all the most amazing moments that I was too busy (pushing a kid out) to really take in.

I can't even adequately describe how special this little girl is! She's added so much joy to our lives!