three years ago...

Three years ago today I was lying in a hospital bed wondering if this sweet little girl was ever going to make her grand entrance. I'm not sure if I've ever posted my "Naomi's birth" story on my blog and I know I'd like to think that I will remember it forever but if you know my mother and any of my relatives you know that probably won't happen. Memory is not a strong trait in our family.

I'm just going to hit the highlights of the birth story so it "shouldn't be too long". Famous last words. Ha!

Naomi was born on Sunday, October 1, 2006 at 7:38pm.
We'll use that as our time reference.
Wednesday the week before we had our maternity photos done by an awesome photographer in St. Louis, Holly McCaig.
Thursday I had a doctor's appointment. My blood pressure (bp) was high so she told me to check it again the next day at Walmart or something to see where it was at.

Friday I checked it a couple of times and it was pretty high. My OB told me to come in and be monitored. Greg was on his way to work (Busch Stadium) and called in and came to the hospital.
They finally got me into a room late in the evening and said someone would check my bp every two hours. Greg couldn't stay in the room because they only had a few beds left and had to keep them open in case any other preggos came in.

I didn't sleep well because I kept waiting for someone to come check my bp...no one came...and no one came...finally around 8am someone came into my room. My bp was still a little high so they were going to give me some medicine to lower it and send me home. I was not happy. Since no one came and checked on me I felt like I could have gone home and slept a little better plus Greg wasn't able to be there so that was a huge bummer. Anyway, sometime during the day they moved me to another room, still unsure of my fate. Either wait it out or go home without a baby. I was vying for the second option!

Jordan came sometime during the day and he and Greg watched lots of baseball. Tami and the twins came for a bit as well and I think she brought Greg some dinner. That was the other thing, they wouldn't let me eat after lunch on Saturday. Ugh! I guess they were saying that Naomi's heart rate was a little high so they were talking about making me stay and inducing me. At least I knew that I wouldn't go home without my little girl!

They finally induced me (with cervadil) around, I don't know, midnight or something like that...it worked faster than they thought it would so they stopped that around 3am. I think they began talking about breaking my water and I knew that was not going to be fun. I asked for the epidural and the guy came in to give me that and had to try two times to get it in right (that happened with Micah too...I have a crazy back). And I could feel the needle going in. Not FUN!

After the epidural Greg said, "that's the first time I've seen you smile all weekend" So, someone came in every hour to roll me over, I had to lay on my side and they didn't want one side getting more numb than the other. I'd sleep, watch FRIENDS, football or whatever else Greg had on at the moment in between being rolled over. We had called my mom and she began the drive from Milwaukee to St. Louis around 9am and was there before she was born. No, she wasn't in the room when Naomi was born but was able to be there shortly after. That was cool having her there. She watched me sleep and get rolled over. Then got to hold her hours old first grand baby!

Now, a little back story...Naomi did not want to come out. I did not have any contractions till they broke my water. I did not start dilating at all till the cervadil. Sorry for the details. So anyway around 6:30 my OB came back and told me that it was GO time! I pushed for about an hour and then Naomi joined the world at 7:38pm. I cried and told everyone that I couldn't believe it was real and would they really let me keep her and take her home? The drugs were talking a bit.

It was a long day wait, it was a long weekend. But totally worth it. I was able to get up and walk around a couple of hours later. But my first thought -besides how awesome it was to be a mommy- was, can I get some food?! I hadn't eaten since lunch on Saturday.

We were in the hospital till Tuesday. And it was SO nice to get out and see the real world and feel real air on my face after being in the hospital since Friday night. We loved St. John's Mercy. The nurses and doctors were amazing. The facilities were awesome. My mom moved a chair once and found some garbage so they quickly cleaned it up and gave me $20 for the gift shop for the inconvenience. Sweet! My mom stayed with Naomi and I Sunday and Monday nights. Greg went back to the apartment and had to deal with some Hickey students...I'm sure he'll never forget that night as long as he lives. Then he did go to some classes before Naomi and I made it home. So, there's the "short" version. I am sure I missed some things but those were the things that stuck out the most. I really really miss my OB, she was a family practice doctor so she was also Naomi's pediatrician. They don't do that here in Texas so that really stinks. I've never had the same OB for more than a year...either I moved or they did...bummer!

I will post a summary of Naomi's third year later...
Here's a little page I made of her with photos from her birth, 1st, 2nd and 3rd years!
Wow! Can't believe my sweet little stinker is 3!
Happy Birthday sweet Naomi! I love you more everyday! My fondest wish is for all your dreams to come true!!!! Mommy loves you. Daddy loves you. Micah loves you. and Jesus loves you most!
Kit: Birthday Joy from Ellie Lash