Last Saturday I met with Nick and friends at the creek. Lumbering over toward them in the heat the girls took one look at me and together greeted me with a gasp and a "Oh, you poor thing!" This is a pic we took that day - the second last day I was pregnant with André Lennard. My darling little Ranga-tanga-ting-tang. My sweet little Gingernut. Yep that is a pattycake in my hand. As if I needed more help getting any bigger when I was carrying another 8lb 12oz baby inside my on-the-short-side 161cm body!
Sunday night, our same group of friends joined up at Nick's to share dinner. We ate Caesar salad and nori rolls, fried rice, bruchetta, potato salad and bbq'ed meat and followed it up with caramel tart and Jenn's fudge with cuppa's for dessert. (We eat like it's Xmas every bloody weekend!) I remember saying after dinner "Imagine going into labour this full of food!" And Nick commenting "You'd probably just throw it all up". (Didn't happen. My body wasn't wasting all that good tucker!)
Me and Greg had an argument on the way home so he went straight to bed sulking as soon as we got here. I stayed up looking at real estate and drafting blurbs for our property, (selling has been under discussion). I was sitting here at the computer suffering the most swollen itchy feet lamenting the fact that I could reasonably nag a person for a footrub who I'd just called a horrible pig and an idiot >.< Mum came down for a piece of fudge and a cuppa at about 10 and we yakked on for ages so it was a pretty late night for me.
I tossed and turned in Anakin's bed for the next hour or so, even though it's the comfiest in the house (not that he'd know that, he's always slept in our bed!). For the last few weeks, dreaming at night had pretty much come to a grinding holt, it was as if my thought processes had become monosyllabic or something, I had one thought, a monothought, all night, every night, my mind was fixated on the impending audible cracking sound of my waters breaking. But come to think of it, it couldn't have been the only thing in the back of my mind, there was the simple urge to get my rocks off, every now and again, and an orgasm is quite useful in getting off to sleep, ask anyone. Greg doesn't usually get any when I'm in a bad mood with him but I figured 1 o'clock in the morning when I was feeling a bit toey was a good a time as any to patch up a rift, so I tiptoed into his room and stood over the bed looking at him until he woke up. I did hold his hand tenderly as he was waking so he didn't get the wrong message and think some paranormal activity had possessed me, or maybe Mrs Bobbit. Anyway he hasn't knock back my advances yet and wasn't about to start so I lead him into the next room and, well, you know..
I was lying there a while later coming to terms with the 2 days left until André's EDD. Thinking, yeah I can wait that long, I'm feeling okay with that.. Greg was hunched over on the floor with a torch trying to trap a firefly in a jar when my nephew, who was staying with Iz in the caravan, walked passed and probably thought to himself "What the hell is he doing??"
Before Greg took himself back to bed he joked with me "We need a code word something to say: The Baby's Coming! How 'bout "peaches"?? I love peaches!" 5 minutes later I rolled over in bed and there it was, that deep internal thud that I had been anticipating for days!! I slipped out of bed and into the loo. Sure enough waters had started to trickle out of me. Greg appeared instantly with an expectant "Peaches??"
We still hadn't really decided where I was going to give birth!! But made up our minds pretty quickly after that to just go up the road to the local hospital. We rang ahead so they could get my file faxed down and the midwife I spoke to sounded great - down to earth, straight forward, unflustered. Over the next 20 minutes I fully saturated a few more sets of clothes while I threw a few more things into the hospital bags and ran off a hardcopy of my birth plan. Greg had a big bowl of cereal, and we called Mum to come down and sleep for the rest of the night next to Anakin. We also called Nick, so she would be here first thing in the morning so Mum could get ready for work.
We hung around for a bit. Mum talked us through a tutorial on her camera as ours was out-of-action after Greg jumped into the creek with it in his pocket on Saturday (our 2nd camera that was suppose to be waterproof, but wasn't!) Things didn't seem to be progressing as fast as they did with Anakin's birth. I was sad kissing Anakin goodbye because the poor boy had fallen asleep in the car to the sounds of his parents berating each other :( but hoped that by the time he woke up in the morning we'd have the much awaited news of his little brother's arrival to share with him and a big introduction to make :D. I tried to wake Izzy up in the van to let him know I was off to the hospital but, man, when teenagers finally get to bed, they sleep like the dead!
I had two contraction but otherwise tried to totally relax during the 15 minute drive into town, I hadn't really managed any sleep yet and knew I was going to need my energy before this night was over. We talked a little about possible middle names, another detail that was still under discussion but on a whole I fell quiet and introspective, readying myself mentally for the momentous physical and emotional rollercoaster ahead.
The midwife, Diane, greeted us and settled us into the birthing suite. She read through my birth plan and I was grateful when she had no queries or questions over my choices there. We got to know each other a bit. Turned out she also has a Grade 8er at Tully High and went to school herself with a couple of my Aunties and Uncles. (As has every other local between the ages of 70 and 40!) I talked her through my other two births and my expectancy of this birth proceeding similarly to Anakin's - fast and furious. I rubbed my belly and told her hopefully "but this ones going to be a bit nicer to Mummy". Greg took a couple of photo's before my belly (or half of it anyway) was gone, and I marveled over the little fella getting the hiccups for the last time in utero. Although I couldn't quite work out how there could be enough amniotic fluid left for him to drink!
Diane took herself off to fill in all the paperwork and I paced around willing things onward and outward! We'd arrived at the hospital at about quarter to 3 and I was giving myself until 7am to birth this little Bubba.
First stage of labour was turning out marvelously. I spent most of it in the shower with warm water pouring onto my lower back. I took in a plastic chair so I could lean over it with my hands bracing the armrests. I swayed my hips backward and forwards and focused on relaxing and "Baby down. Cervix open". I found myself worrying about how much water I was wasting! And between trips to the toilet to poo - throwing on the hospital gown just for the novelty of it - because I'd never worn one before! That's how easy it seemed! When Diane came to check on me I told her I was worried I was somehow hindering progress and maybe I should do something different - go for a walk around the hospital or something. She advised to stay where I was. That the shower was helping with pain relief and I could only be assisting progress by remaining on my feet and swaying my hips. That I was fine how I was! Greg kept asking if I needed anything and if there was anything he could do for me. I told him to lie down and go to sleep!
It took me a little by suprise when I noticed the sun was up. There was a gorgeous tree blossoming pink flowers taking up most of the space in the window and the rain was pouring down all over it. Beautiful. I was starting to think delivering this boy within my self imposed time frame was seeming a bit unlikely when contraction began to overlap and strengthen. I couldn't get through them quietly anymore and the moaning and groaning began in earnest. I laboured on for another 20 minutes before requesting an internal. Diane took her time getting to me, and busied herself getting things ready for the baby. I think she had a hands off philosophy and was sure I'd know insinctively when to start pushing, and I think I took her by suprise reaching transistion this quickly. Greg helped me get a beanbag onto the floor where I knelt on my knees (is there another way to kneel??) and we dragged an upholstered armchair up close for me to drape myself over and rest my head on between contractions. When that blessed internal finally came Diane announced that my cervix was fully dilated and it I felt pushy than go right ahead. I was determined to get this over with as quick as possible so with the next couple of contractions I did just that. Pushed hard. She encouraged me to put my fingers inside myself and feel his head bearing down on my cervix. I wish I had of given the moment I got to feel André's head for the first time, the attention and awe it was due, but I was kind of in the middle of something. After another push or two I apologised "I don't think I'm going to be able to push this baby out without doing a poo." She counselled me "Don't you worry about that, don't let that hold you back! You just push as hard as you can, right into your bottom." I listened to every word she said. When she said "Relax your shoulders." I relaxed my shoulders. When she said "I can almost see his face. Hold it there. We don't want you to tear. Take little breaths... little breaths... little breaths." I just puffed away in total agony, doing just like she'd asked. The next push and a huge roar, and his head was born, another push and another roar! and his sholders. The pain was excruciating as his body eased it's way out, so I gave him a helping hand with one final push just to finish the job. It was 6:15 - plenty of time to spare!
I was facing the wrong way and couldn't see a thing though. Greg got a hold of me under the arms to help lift me around to greet my little man. There he was a perfect little boy stretched out on the bean bag. So, so perfect. I couldn't believe I'd done it again - made such a beautiful little thing. I barely even realized the craziness going on around me. While I was twisting around to see him the umbilical cord had snapped in the middle and blood was pouring all over my legs and all over the floor. Greg got to cut what remained of his cord and then I had my first nurse! What a little sweet cake! His apgar scores where 9 and 10 and he was making wee little talking noises already.
News travelled fast and my BF was on the phone before third stage labour had even set in. With one visitor on the way already I figured it was time to request some syntocinon and get on with it. OUCH!! That injection HURT!! I complained loudly too, which was kind of comical considering what I'd just been through!
After our first, long, yummy, big, big cuddle, there was a change of shift and Greg and Wendy - our next midwife took André for a deep warm bath.
I took a chance to have my 20th shower for the day and get some fresh clothes on. Then I picked out Baby's first little outfit and wobbled my way up the ward to join them. He's was fast asleep in his tubby-tub. Nawwww.
We settled into our room and adored our baby together, before the boys came to meet their little brother, before the steady stream of family and friends began to arrive and while waiting for the doctor to finish his rounds and come and give me the three stitches I needed. That's what happens when you push out your baby in 6 MINUTES! The hospital staff kept popping in to tell me how "clever" I was. I don't know about clever, just determined to get the intensely painful bit out of the way asap!
Anyway this recount could go on and on and already I've been trying to finish it for like four days. He's two weeks old now and is just a perfect little thing. He sleeps extremely well, way better than the last two! He loves his Mumma's titty milk. He's just really calm and mellow and content. The boys are both totally besotted. Izzy's always asking to hold him and Anakin follows me around kissing every part of him he can reach!
I really need to come back soon and update on all the things that have been happening lately, but I'm really needing to wrap presents, grocery shop for Xmas, cut Izzy's hair... there's so many things that need to be done. Thank the Lord Greg's on holidays for the next 6 weeks. Woop Woop.
