Sarah Claire's arrival

I wish that I had this blog up and running before Sarah Claire made her grand entrance into this world, but nesting took precedence,  and I ran out of time! I still want to post her birth story, though - better late than never, right?

It all started on Thursday, August 5, when I decided that I would scrub our house top to bottom, clean out every closet, and wash (and even re-wash) any clothes I even thought MIGHT be dirty.  I knew it might be nesting, but I didn't know that it meant labor was so near in my future! After all, Sarah Claire was my first child, and I fully expected her to be a little late.  So, after my cleaning episode on Thursday, I woke up Friday morning with absolutely nothing to do.  Everything that could be done had been done, so I decided I would bake cookies and then go to Babies R Us, because the only thing left to buy was a Snuggle Nest for Sarah Claire to sleep in.  So, after baking (and eating) a large number of cookies, I left for the store.

I made it to Babies R Us, found the snuggle nest, and decided to kill some time by browsing. Well, my browsing didn't last too long, because as I thumbed through a rack of onsies, my water broke.  I didn't have any other labor signs, so I was a little confused, but I checked out (I mean, I had driven all that way... I wasn't leaving without that snuggle nest!) and called Christopher, sent him home for our bags, and told him to meet me at the hospital.  I called my mom, and she and two of my sisters left Mobile to come to Chattanooga.  I told them not to hurry, since I was sure I had plenty of time before delivery- especially since I wasn't even having contractions.

Around 3:30, I was settled into the triage room in L&D, praying that a room would open up before Sarah Claire arrived. Labor and Delivery was full!  Christopher's mom Karen came and waited with me, and kept me company while we waited for Christopher.  I was getting pretty nervous, so I was so glad that she was there! The nurses hooked me up to a few monitors, and I asked them to turn the volume up on SC's heartbeat.  We had prayed so hard to hear that heartbeat just months earlier, so listening to it was such a wonderful way to turn my anxieties into thanksgiving.  Once Christopher arrived (with all our gear in tow), my nervousness turned into excitement; we were having a BABY!

The nurses started Pitocin around 5, and soon after our friends Frank and Megan arrived for a quick visit.  Contractions were starting, but they weren't too bad, so we spent some time with them and promised to call when delivery was a little closer in our future. My doctor had assured me that it would be sometime Saturday afternoon.  Finally a room opened up, and we were able to settle into our delivery suite. By 9:00, I was in pretty bad pain.  Karen had come back for a little bit; she had so sweetly picked up a few things we forgot from our house, and brought them to the hospital.  I wasn't very good company at this point!  There were not "lulls" between contractions. They were back to back, and I started begging for an epidural! I had progressed about halfway to the "finish line," so I thought it was time to finally give in and get some relief.  And relief it was! At about 9:45 they gave me the epi, and I went from struggling to breathe through contractions to not even knowing when I was having one! It was down-right miraculous.

Karen went back home, and we promised to call her with an update in the morning.  We were just so sure we had plenty of time... BUT at 11 p.m. Sarah Claire's heart rate went up and stayed up.  My sweet nurse, Leslie, came in and checked to see why it was beating so quickly, and it was because I was already ready to push! We couldn't believe it.  We called our parents (my mom was still a good ways away) and told them that this was all happening really fast.  Pushing was a little tough, but I had one heck of a coach.  Christopher encouraged me, and reminded me the whole time why all of this was so worth it.  He was amazing.  I pushed for about an hour, and one of the nurses came in and said "There are 3 ladies right outside the door, and they are asking me a lot of questions." I wanted to cry; I was so relieved!  Three ladies asking a lot of questions could only mean one thing: my mom and sisters made it before Sarah Claire arrived.  20 minutes later, we all heard her first cries.  They laid her on my chest and I was able to see her for the very first time.  She was beautiful.  We had a daughter!  I was so overwhelmed with joy and with gratitude.  God had given us a precious baby girl.  She was 6 pounds, 8 oz, and perfectly healthy.  She scored a 8 then a 9 on the Apgar test, and she was crying like a... baby.

My mom and sisters came in, and they celebrated with us, and almost immediately afterwards, Karen and Steve arrived.  Sarah Claire was so surrounded by love- right from the very beginning! She still is, and always will be.

Sarah Claire, right after her birth.  Yawning, of course, because it was such hard work!

I couldn't believe she was actually mine.  I am a Momma!

Christopher got a picture of my mom when she first saw Sarah Claire.

Christopher is showing his parents their very first grandchild!