She's here!
The feelings my husband and I have been feeling since her arrival last Sunday (December 16th) are simply indescribable. There is no comparison to anything else. It's like one doesn't feel until one feels for a child.
This post is, of course, loaded with pictures of our darling Savannah Jean Wilson, but I wanted to chronicle the story of her birth. It will be forever in our memory (and we have video), but I want to make sure we don't lose the little details.
So, to start, Savannah Jean was due December 20th, 2012. At the 37 week appointment, we knew she was measuring ahead, but the plan was to let her come when she was ready, so we paced on and just thanked God she had reached full term.
Saturday, December 15th, we made our way for our week 39 doctor's visit in Dubai (an hour-and-a-half's drive from our home in Abu Dhabi). Doctor examined and said she was likely to still be 5-7 days away, putting her at her delivery date or a few days later. She said I should just relax and enjoy these last few days of peace.
I had been increasing my walks to try to encourage her out, so we decided to go walk around the massive Dubai Mall. We had lunch, stopped to buy more kid's books for Savannah and walked until I could walk no more. We then headed back to Abu Dhabi convinced we wouldn't meet our little girl until at least one more week. We needed to buy ice, so we decided to walk to a little more to our neighborhood grocery store...and I think that's the walk that did it!
Adam went to watch a little TV. I went to take a nap. At around 7pm, I was halfway asleep, when I felt something wet on the bed. I sat up and went to turn on the light thinking I had spilled a water bottle on the bed when I heard a "POP!" I yelled for Adam..."My water just broke!"
I will never forget Adam's hilarious reaction! He ran in panicked, excited, jumping around, calling the hospital. It was wonderful! Just how I pictured the madness of the moment.
The midwife on call made a call to our doctor...who we had just met with 3 hours before. She told us that we should expect contractions to start soon, but that we should stay put until they do and start recording their pace. Well, an hour later...they started. At around 9pm, they started intensifying and being about 7 minutes apart. Adam worried we would have to make the drive too late into the night, so he made the call to the hospital that we would head into Dubai at that point.
The drive in was and will forever be unforgettable. We were in the most peaceful, calm and pensive mood. We talked about how much we had been waiting and wanting for this moment. We had planned the drive in since our arrival in the Middle East and we had talked about the day when we would become parents since we were married 10+ years earlier. As we entered Dubai city limits, Tom Petty's "Learning to Fly" came on the radio. We stopped talking and turned up the volume. The tears came pouring out of me. There was something so appropriate for that song to play at that moment. It was magical. We were about to be parents and we were so ready and happy and grateful!
We arrived at the hospital, was brought into a room for an exam and monitoring. They confirmed that I was definitely in labor, but that it would likely be hours before we approached our baby's arrival. They gave us the option of staying at the hospital or checking into a hotel where we may sleep more comfortably. Well, my contractions started really intensifying at that moment, even though I was still only at 1cm, 50% effaced with a posterior facing cervix. Meaning, pain...but a long way from making progress. We decided we would stay in the hospital in case things started picking up speed.
Over the course of the night, my contractions began reaching levels where I could no longer sit still. I encouraged Adam to get some rest as there was nothing he could do and I wanted to be in the dark, in quiet, to focus on getting myself through the pain without medication. I had always planned on delivering without medication if at all possible. I wanted to just hunker down and make it through the night. I ended up getting about 2 hours of sleep on a rocking chair where I remember dreaming about being in pain. I guess your body gets creative when it's exhausted (I wasn't getting much sleep at this stage of my pregnancy anyway).
Morning came...moved to another room to be set up for monitoring again. My contractions were measured to be a lot stronger, but still...1cm, 50% effaced, posterior facing cervix. I started getting nervous. Once my water had broken, we all knew we were on the clock and time was running out on how long we could allow the baby to stay inside without risk of infection.
The midwife and doctor both knew I was not yet willing to consider true induction as I didn't want to end up needing strong pain meds that would surely start a downward spiral in what was meant to be a natural delivery. My doctor and midwife both talked to me about our options. We decided I would avoid Pitocin to induce, but would try to encourage progress with a strip of medication that would be introduced to the area to see if my body would begin opening up. We decided to measure me again around 3pm...
3pm rolls around. The next check is done. My contractions are very, very intense at this point...surely I've made progress. Then the results....1cm, 50% effaced, posterior facing cervix. NO PROGRESS!
To top it off, my intensely calm and holistic-natured doctor has started discussing the expected size of the baby. She's doing everything she can to not directly tell me...but I understand what her worry is...during the exam the day before, she noticed the baby felt pretty darn big. Without any progress on the part of my body, it could lead to trouble.
I'm told I have 2 options:
1) Wait 24 hrs, see if I make progress by the following morning. If I don't, that will lead to an emergency c-section
2) Opt for a c-section for 6pm (a little less than 24 hrs after my water broke)
My doctor told me starting Pitocin at this point was a lost cause as it would be putting pressure of contractions on me & baby while dealing with a "closed door" (my body not progressing past 1 cm).
We were left alone for an hour discuss our options considering the advice and implications our doctor and midwife gave us.
We opted for a c-section at 6pm that evening, Sunday, December 16th. We did not want to put additional, unnecessary pressure on the baby with increased contractions, especially considering that my water had already broken. Also, we thought that at the pace my progress was going, it was likely we would end up with an emergency c-section after laboring for nearly 48 hours in hopes of a natural delivery.
6:30pm, Sunday, December 16th, they brought me into an operating room to prepare for my c-section.
The anesthesiologist asked if I wanted music played to help me relax and asked if I had any special requests. I asked if he had Beatles music. They had been my favorite growing up...the stuff of teenage memories. He turned them on, but I tuned them out during most of the prep. I was scared to death. This was not what I had envisioned my delivery to be like.
After my spinal (which hurt like hell!!), Adam was allowed to come in and sit by me and the work of getting my baby to the world started. There was a lot of pushing and pulling and pressure...and me being absolutely terrified. Adam said I had a look of terror on my face.
6:54pm, Sunday, December 16th 2012 at the American Hospital in Dubai, UAE, my world was rocked! While "Hey Jude" was blasting in the operating room...a baby was pulled over my head.
Everything that was before...was changed in an instant when over the surgery curtain, a beautiful, screaming baby girl was put into view. Both Adam and I broke into tears. She was here!!
In another one of those moments to remember forever...she was handed over to me while "A Day in the Life" was playing.
Everything since then has been a haze of sleepless nights, sweet snuggling and just being in awe at the blessings we have received in our lives. We're in a little bubble of love in our home with our dogs, each other and our new baby!
7 days in, I'm still pretty sore from the surgery, but each day I get a little stronger and I pray each day for healing and more strength so that I can continue enjoying the wonderful way our world has changed.
Weighing in at 9 lbs, 13 oz and measuring 22 inches in length, here is our beautiful Savannah Jean Wilson...
The feelings my husband and I have been feeling since her arrival last Sunday (December 16th) are simply indescribable. There is no comparison to anything else. It's like one doesn't feel until one feels for a child.
This post is, of course, loaded with pictures of our darling Savannah Jean Wilson, but I wanted to chronicle the story of her birth. It will be forever in our memory (and we have video), but I want to make sure we don't lose the little details.
So, to start, Savannah Jean was due December 20th, 2012. At the 37 week appointment, we knew she was measuring ahead, but the plan was to let her come when she was ready, so we paced on and just thanked God she had reached full term.
Saturday, December 15th, we made our way for our week 39 doctor's visit in Dubai (an hour-and-a-half's drive from our home in Abu Dhabi). Doctor examined and said she was likely to still be 5-7 days away, putting her at her delivery date or a few days later. She said I should just relax and enjoy these last few days of peace.
I had been increasing my walks to try to encourage her out, so we decided to go walk around the massive Dubai Mall. We had lunch, stopped to buy more kid's books for Savannah and walked until I could walk no more. We then headed back to Abu Dhabi convinced we wouldn't meet our little girl until at least one more week. We needed to buy ice, so we decided to walk to a little more to our neighborhood grocery store...and I think that's the walk that did it!
Adam went to watch a little TV. I went to take a nap. At around 7pm, I was halfway asleep, when I felt something wet on the bed. I sat up and went to turn on the light thinking I had spilled a water bottle on the bed when I heard a "POP!" I yelled for Adam..."My water just broke!"
I will never forget Adam's hilarious reaction! He ran in panicked, excited, jumping around, calling the hospital. It was wonderful! Just how I pictured the madness of the moment.
The midwife on call made a call to our doctor...who we had just met with 3 hours before. She told us that we should expect contractions to start soon, but that we should stay put until they do and start recording their pace. Well, an hour later...they started. At around 9pm, they started intensifying and being about 7 minutes apart. Adam worried we would have to make the drive too late into the night, so he made the call to the hospital that we would head into Dubai at that point.
The drive in was and will forever be unforgettable. We were in the most peaceful, calm and pensive mood. We talked about how much we had been waiting and wanting for this moment. We had planned the drive in since our arrival in the Middle East and we had talked about the day when we would become parents since we were married 10+ years earlier. As we entered Dubai city limits, Tom Petty's "Learning to Fly" came on the radio. We stopped talking and turned up the volume. The tears came pouring out of me. There was something so appropriate for that song to play at that moment. It was magical. We were about to be parents and we were so ready and happy and grateful!
We arrived at the hospital, was brought into a room for an exam and monitoring. They confirmed that I was definitely in labor, but that it would likely be hours before we approached our baby's arrival. They gave us the option of staying at the hospital or checking into a hotel where we may sleep more comfortably. Well, my contractions started really intensifying at that moment, even though I was still only at 1cm, 50% effaced with a posterior facing cervix. Meaning, pain...but a long way from making progress. We decided we would stay in the hospital in case things started picking up speed.
Over the course of the night, my contractions began reaching levels where I could no longer sit still. I encouraged Adam to get some rest as there was nothing he could do and I wanted to be in the dark, in quiet, to focus on getting myself through the pain without medication. I had always planned on delivering without medication if at all possible. I wanted to just hunker down and make it through the night. I ended up getting about 2 hours of sleep on a rocking chair where I remember dreaming about being in pain. I guess your body gets creative when it's exhausted (I wasn't getting much sleep at this stage of my pregnancy anyway).
Morning came...moved to another room to be set up for monitoring again. My contractions were measured to be a lot stronger, but still...1cm, 50% effaced, posterior facing cervix. I started getting nervous. Once my water had broken, we all knew we were on the clock and time was running out on how long we could allow the baby to stay inside without risk of infection.
The midwife and doctor both knew I was not yet willing to consider true induction as I didn't want to end up needing strong pain meds that would surely start a downward spiral in what was meant to be a natural delivery. My doctor and midwife both talked to me about our options. We decided I would avoid Pitocin to induce, but would try to encourage progress with a strip of medication that would be introduced to the area to see if my body would begin opening up. We decided to measure me again around 3pm...
3pm rolls around. The next check is done. My contractions are very, very intense at this point...surely I've made progress. Then the results....1cm, 50% effaced, posterior facing cervix. NO PROGRESS!
To top it off, my intensely calm and holistic-natured doctor has started discussing the expected size of the baby. She's doing everything she can to not directly tell me...but I understand what her worry is...during the exam the day before, she noticed the baby felt pretty darn big. Without any progress on the part of my body, it could lead to trouble.
I'm told I have 2 options:
1) Wait 24 hrs, see if I make progress by the following morning. If I don't, that will lead to an emergency c-section
2) Opt for a c-section for 6pm (a little less than 24 hrs after my water broke)
My doctor told me starting Pitocin at this point was a lost cause as it would be putting pressure of contractions on me & baby while dealing with a "closed door" (my body not progressing past 1 cm).
We were left alone for an hour discuss our options considering the advice and implications our doctor and midwife gave us.
We opted for a c-section at 6pm that evening, Sunday, December 16th. We did not want to put additional, unnecessary pressure on the baby with increased contractions, especially considering that my water had already broken. Also, we thought that at the pace my progress was going, it was likely we would end up with an emergency c-section after laboring for nearly 48 hours in hopes of a natural delivery.
6:30pm, Sunday, December 16th, they brought me into an operating room to prepare for my c-section.
The anesthesiologist asked if I wanted music played to help me relax and asked if I had any special requests. I asked if he had Beatles music. They had been my favorite growing up...the stuff of teenage memories. He turned them on, but I tuned them out during most of the prep. I was scared to death. This was not what I had envisioned my delivery to be like.
After my spinal (which hurt like hell!!), Adam was allowed to come in and sit by me and the work of getting my baby to the world started. There was a lot of pushing and pulling and pressure...and me being absolutely terrified. Adam said I had a look of terror on my face.
6:54pm, Sunday, December 16th 2012 at the American Hospital in Dubai, UAE, my world was rocked! While "Hey Jude" was blasting in the operating room...a baby was pulled over my head.
Everything that was before...was changed in an instant when over the surgery curtain, a beautiful, screaming baby girl was put into view. Both Adam and I broke into tears. She was here!!
In another one of those moments to remember forever...she was handed over to me while "A Day in the Life" was playing.
Everything since then has been a haze of sleepless nights, sweet snuggling and just being in awe at the blessings we have received in our lives. We're in a little bubble of love in our home with our dogs, each other and our new baby!
7 days in, I'm still pretty sore from the surgery, but each day I get a little stronger and I pray each day for healing and more strength so that I can continue enjoying the wonderful way our world has changed.
Weighing in at 9 lbs, 13 oz and measuring 22 inches in length, here is our beautiful Savannah Jean Wilson...
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