Paige was determined to do things her own way. Not only was the pregnancy different form the other 2's, but her delivery had to be different too.
I'm a bit of a hippy dippy girl when it comes to labor and delivery. I do things naturally. I'm OK with delivering in a hospital, but that's it. No IV, no epidural, no pitocin - all natural. It worked out well with Megan and Quinn. I went into labor on my own, delivered without any intervention and breastfed each kid for a year. Hippy Dippy. That's me.
I went to the OB on Friday, 1 day after my due date, where I had an ultrasound and a stress test scheduled. The doctor scheduled an ultrasound because I consistently measured big and she wanted to see what to expect and the stress test to make sure the baby was OK in there. Nathan surprised me by showing up at the appointment and it was a good thing he did because the doctor took one look at the ultrasound pictures and told me she wanted me at the hospital within an hour. I had very low amniotic fluid. Anything under a 10 is worrisome, & anything under 5 is dangerous. My level was 4.2. So Nathan went to get the kids from daycare and I ran home to gather our stuff. Fortunately, my mom was already here so Nate dropped off the kids, picked me up and off we went.
I got to the hospital at 5:30 p.m. where I was hooked up to an IV and a fetal monitor. Dr. Lowe agreed to let me try and get into labor on my own as long as I was monitored and got some fluids to try and give the baby a little more cushion first. While hooked up to the IV, I got a hospital grade breast pump and pumped every hour because it is supposed to help put you into labor. 3 hours later I was unhooked from everything and Nathan and I walked the halls stopping every hour so I could pump. This went on until noon the next day when I asked to be checked. After 19 hours I had only dilated 3 cm and since I was already 1 1/2 cm before going to the hospital I was obviously not going into labor on my own. So after a mini break down, I agreed to Pitocin. Pit was started at 12:30 pm and even then labor was slow to start. Dr. Lowe said she'd be the one to deliver me even though she wasn't on call because last time I scared the doctor on call. I asked to be checked around 7:25 and I was 5 cm dilated. At 7:40, Dr Lowe called in and asked the nurses to check me again and I was 6 cm. Finally, I was moving. We all knew that once I started I'd go quick since both of my other labors were very fast. Dr. Lowe came rushing in. She made it there a little after 8 and I was already in bed, on my hands and knees pushing. At one point the nurses were asking where she was because things were going so quickly. Thankfully, she was in the hospital changing into scrubs.
Paige was born at 8:38 pm. Nathan was the one who told me she was a girl and cut the cord. I flipped over to my back and Paige was laid on my stomach where she immediately went for the boob. It was 2 hours before she could be weighed and measured because she wouldn't stop nursing! The girl knew what she wanted from her very first moment!
Dr. Lowe tried to deliver the placenta and the umbilical cord only to have the cord come out, but not the placenta. Eventually everything was delivered thanks to some intervention from the doctor, but there were some problems with the placenta. It was in 2 pieces that were connected by a little bridge and the umbilical cord was loosely attached across the bridge. Basically it was definitely time for Miss. Paige to come out. It could have turned into a very dangerous situation. Thankfully, she was just fine and should have no ill effects. Paige also had a foot that was turned at an odd angle. Her right foot was turned so the ankle bone was touching the side of her foot. The hospital pediatrician looked at it the next day and said it was just due to her position in the womb and she'd be fine. He was right. It very quickly returned to the proper position.
Grammy brought Megan and Quinn to visit the next day. It was love at first sight. They adore Paige and were so very excited to finally meet her!
Quinn literally squealed with delight.
In the end everything worked out. I had more medical interventions than I wanted, but in the end I delivered naturally. And most importantly, Paige was healthy.
Our first picture as a family of 5!
