My Birth Story (Part 3 of 4): Abigail Remi Kline January 11th, 2017.
Crystal had me lay on my side for my next contraction with my legs closed to ensure you weren't coming out before Dr. White was able to make it to our room. I remember her talking to other nurses saying if she needed to deliver you she would, your head was crowning and you were waiting for nobody to make your grand entrance. There were Nurses were coming in and out of my room, asking whether or not I was still going strong with no pain meds (all very proud and happy to hear!) and before I knew it all the nurses were excitedly yelling Dr. White's name as he came barreling through those doors, ready to deliver you!
As soon as he entered the room, he immediately put his gown and gloves on, turned on the big, bright spot light above me and we were ready to go! In my birth plan I had mentioned that I wanted to look into a mirror when your head began to crown, figured it would give me that extra boost I needed to keep going strong, knowing you were just right there! Well I got my mirror all right, I was expecting a small hand held mirror that they would hand me and then take it back. Nope, they wheeled out a 4-foot mirror and placed it at the foot of my bed for me to see everything… for the entire birth! I could tell at this point your Daddy was starting to get a little worried, he had never seen Mommy in so much pain and despite all his motivation and help, there was truly nothing he could really do!
Everything that mommy had expected to happen during labor and delivery was WAY off, I expected my legs to go in stirrups, which would hold them back and up for me and the doctor… Well instead your Godmother Kristie and Daddy were each handed a leg to help hold back (Mommy found this very funny for some reason, since Kristie was there to simply take pictures and be a fly on the wall haha)! I also expected for there to be only a few nurses and Dr. White in the room… There were WAY more people, but I am thankful for all the cheerleaders I had. I was very adamant on not allowing anyone in the room other than your Daddy while I was in labor because I did not want anyone to see me in pain. However, I did want pictures of the journey documented but didn't know how to go about that. So Kristie volunteered to be in there with us to take pictures and that was it… As you can tell, she got/ saw way more than she bargained for! I am beyond thankful though that I had her in that room with me. She lightened the mood, helped your mommy stay cool by fanning me during heavy contractions, she made me look pretty and helped me brush my hair and freshen up after I delivered you! She was a true champ and the true definition of a best friend; one that I can only hope you are lucky enough to find.
So, by now I was fully dilated (10CM) and ready to push you out, no more crossing my legs or fighting/ breathing through a contraction without pushing. Before I even got a chance to process what all was going on, I looked up and around my room to find at least 9 nurses standing around; some ready to help clean up during and after, some to weigh/examine you and take care of mommy… but the rest were there to cheer me on and offer encouragement as I came to the end of my journey of delivering you without any pain medication! I will never forget the amount of support and energy that filled that room as I was coached to push and hold my breath for 10 seconds every time I got a contraction! Everyone kept telling me "you can do it", "OH I see her head" or like your Daddy had to say "You got it champ!" My go to person throughout the entire process was of course your Daddy, but also Crystal! Whenever I got exhausted or overwhelmed I turned to her for encouragement and advice and boy did that work. I was going through the video and rewatching it all after the fact, laughing at myself saying "again", "you sure", "am I almost done"! There is no way to ever be able to describe all of the emotions, pain and excitement simultaneously running through your body. As time progressed, you were making progress however, I struggled with being able to birth your head out. Because of that, the doctor had to perform an episiotomy (they snip you to allow passage of the head) to help you out and not compromise your blood pressure. I honestly do not remember the Doctor doing this, or even saying "hey I am going to have to snip you" (Daddy said I agreed to it!). Only reason I found out was because after I delivered you, I saw him with some yarn looking material going up and down like he was sticking something up and when I asked what the heck that was for, he reminded me!! HAHA oops. They don't take any mercy on you down there either and your poor Daddy happened to look over at just the right time to witness it all! I am pretty sure the picture below was taken just as this was happening… based on his facial expression!
Just a few more pushes and she's here!
Once this was done it was smooth sailing for you to come make your debut! It only took about a dozen more pushes before you came out! Because Mommy didn't take any pain meds, I was able to feel every single contraction and knew when my body needed me to push. After a few hard and strong pushes, your head came out! This scared your Daddy quite a bit because you were blue from the lack of oxygen (since you hadn't take your first breath outside mommy's belly yet). They say the worst part is pushing the shoulders out because they are wide; however I found this the easiest. After your head came out, I was able to push your shoulders out in 3 pushes. Next thing I know, I hear the most amazing sound, the cries of our healthy baby girl taking her first breaths. The next moments were some that your Daddy and I will never forget. You were delivered at 7:28 PM and immediately placed on Mommy's chest for skin to skin bonding. The amount of pride, excitement, joy and love I had in that moment was surreal, it was as if time had stopped and all I could do was stare at you in disbelief. Amazed you had finally entered this world and that your Daddy and I were able to create such a perfect little human being!
My Birth Story (Part 2 of 4): Abigail Remi Kline January 11th, 2017.