My first birth experience was...

Hey Everyone,

It's been a very long time since I've wrote to you guys.  I got a little lazy the last few weeks of my pregnancy so I didn't update as frequently.  Sorry for being MIA.  I was also a little busy preparing for Topher to come as well.  Chris and I were so anxious to meet Topher the last few weeks it was kind of driving us crazy (in a good way). I also couldn't sleep. There were days I would be awake until 4:00 am or 5:00 am. Thank goodness I was on maternity leave or I would be one grumpy pregnant lady at work.

My official due date was 11/28/11 but Topher was born on 11/21/11 at 10:15 pm. If you would like to know how my first birth experience was you can continue to read.

On 11/20/11, Sunday morning I had a bloody show so Chris and I went into the hospital to get a check up. It turned out that I was 2 cm dilated and it was a sign of pre-term labor. They monitored my contractions and checked if I would dilate more for about 3 hours but I didn't make any progression so they sent me home. I was getting stronger contractions by that time but it wasn't strong enough. The nurse told us we would most likely be back that night seeing the amount of contractions I was having. We were both super anxious to see Topher so we were very hopeful and excited to know that I may go into labor that night. After I was discharged we went to John's house (our pastor) to have Thanksgiving dinner. Everything was great until 9 pm that night. I started getting really strong contractions and much closer in time. This time there were about 3-5 minutes a part but it wasn't consistent. I wanted to make sure it was the real thing so we monitored it for about 5 hours and finally at 2 am it was so painful I couldn't handle it anymore. We finally drove to the hospital and found out that I was 3 1/2 cm dilated. I was considered "in active labor".

I was able to get the epidural right away (THANK GOD). The process was a bit scary because I really don't like needles. There were also a few more unexpected events that made the experience of giving birth a lot more nerve recking then I expected but once you're numb it gets better. Especially because you don't feel your contractions anymore. That's one of the worse pains ever.

I was in labor from 2 am to 3 pm. I didn't feel any of the pain so I slept most of the time. Then finally at 3 pm I was 10 cm dilated and the nurse said I was ready to push. The nurse came back at 3:30pm and I started pushing. Chris and the nurse helped me through the whole process.  The nurse expected me to push for about 1 hour max but I ended up pushing for 3 1/2 hours. My doctor thought I would be able to push better if I was able to feel the contractions more so my epidural doses was cut by half and I was given medicine to feel more contractions. That was the most painful part of my whole birth experience. It turned out that Topher was facing up and not down so the bigger part of his head was coming out first. That's why he wouldn't come out. After 3 1/2 long hours of pushing my doctor said I had to get a C-section because Topher's head wasn't turning. I was so scared when she told me because the thought of going into surgery was terrifying. I was trembling and so many thoughts were going through my mind. I was praying the whole time. It helped tremendously that Chris was there the whole time. I don't know what I would have done without him. Finally we went into the operation room around 10:00 pm and at 10:15pm Topher was born.

My recovery wasn't as painful as I thought it would be. I'm very lucky to have a quick recovery. I started walking a little the next day and by the end of the week I was able to walk fairly well. It's been 3 weeks since I gave birth and I feel about 90% recovered.

The process of becoming a mom is definitely not easy but like all mom's would say it's well worth it. Chris and I are enjoying everyday with Topher. His smiles, cries, farts, poops, burps, and every thing about him puts a smile on our face. He's truly perfect. Chris and I still can't believe we're parents. I don't think it'll really hit us until Topher starts talking. He's truly a gift from God. We love him so much! I hope to share all the great memories that our family will have with everyone. Thank you everyone for your love and prayers. It has made our journey as a parent that much more special and wonderful. I will try my best to share our journey as a family with you guys.

My two favorite men in my life. 

This is us in our recovery room

I can't believe Christmas is almost a week away. Time seems to fly these days. I hope you guys are excited! We are because it's our first as a family. How exciting! Let's start counting down the days!