Friday June 24th, my due date. Felt contractions all day while at my parents house. So much so that I made them follow me home, just in case I needed them. As soon as we got home, the contractions stopped. I sent my parents home and later that evening (around 8pm) the contractions started up again. We timed them for about an hour while we waited for Brett's mom to come over to stay with the boys. The contractions were around 7 minutes apart. We left for the hospital and got checked in. The contractions stayed steady all night long but I wasn't dilating past a 4. I knew if we broke my water things would start moving. I hopped on my birthing ball and tried to do it on my own but to no avail. Finally I asked them to break my water. By this time it's 9am Saturday morning (June 25th). Hello crazy contractions!!! They intensify for the next few hours and I am able to cope, but barely. Why did I say no epidural??? Come on Garian, you can do this. Now dilated to a 7. Then I get the contraction of all contractions. I tell Brett "I need some help here!". We all know it's too late for that, but nobody says so. I can feel Cambria coming down the canal. The pain is like nothing I've ever felt before. I remember my mom saying something about an "urge to push". Now I know what she means. I have no control over the pushing. My body just does it on it's own. It does feel better to bear down. I see my Dr. coming in and she's hurriedly getting ready. She gets to me, says push and a sound comes out of me I've never heard before (I may have scared a few of the other moms if they heard me). Out comes the head, relief....the Dr. takes the cord off from around her neck, twice, then, pain again. I forgot about the shoulders. Then it's like a fish flopping out. She's here, 11:19am. Whew!! They lay Cambria on my chest and I'm shaking like a leaf. It only took one good push. Boy am I glad she came quickly!! They let me hold her and love on her for an hour and a half. They do what they need to do to her while I'm holding her. I can't believe I did it naturally. I can cross that off my "bucket list" now. I am a warrior!! That was crazy!!
Watching "Anchor Man" while laboring. Hard to laugh during a contraction.
Let's skip to her. Daddy holding Cambria for the first time. She hasn't even been cleaned up or weighed yet.
8lbs 1 oz. My smallest baby. (I knew that would be the case, that's why I thought this was the one to do naturally). Bryson weighed 8lbs 2 oz, Chase weighed 8lbs 10oz.
Chase seeing Cambria for the first time.
Bryson just came from seeing "Cars 2" with Papa and Nana. Now he get's to hold his sister. What a good day!!
The Nana's.
The Papa.
Aunt "T".
Getting her hearing test. Spock...come in.
