Layla Grace

Let me tell you a funny story about this day. Well, actually, it all started yesterday.

We've been slowly prepping our house and food supply and laundry stash for the arrival of Layla but this weekend was shaping up to be the most productive. Husband was going to be off work and the "to-do" list was lengthy. We were ready to tackle some projects together and finally knock everything off the list. 

But then I started feeling weird. Google said it was no big deal. And actually the doctor said it was no big deal. We came in for our weekly baby check and she said sometimes people feel weird for weeks before the baby is born. Weeks? Seriously? I might feel like my insides are being ripped from my body for weeks? I explained my symptoms and she and she wasn't worried about them so I figured I shouldn't be either. I was having contractions, sure, but it was just my body preparing itself. So we continued on with our day. 

I woke up all night long, about every 30 minutes, with contractions. And then I saw 4:00 blinking on the clock by my face. The contractions started coming closer together and that pain wasn't for pansies. I downloaded a contraction timer (thanks technology) so I could get a read on them. By the time they were 15 minutes apart, I had given up on sleeping and was working on some church stuff while Husband and Lily were sleeping. 

I Googled labor details again and labor pains normally start from your back and move to the front. My pain was only in the front so it must just be false labor, right? You'd think I would know. After all, I've done this before. Well, last time was totally different in about every way. It was a chill experience where I rolled in early in the morn, had a shot of some sweet meds, got induced and had a baby by lunch. This time was, well, not as chill. 

By the time Lily and Ben were both up I knew I had to do something about the pain. I read somewhere warm baths help stop false labor pains. I really don't like baths but I tried one anyway and it worked 0%. I called the nurse line and she said not to worry...but if the contractions were 5 minutes apart I should probably come in. They were at 8 minutes so I jumped in the shower. They were probably nothing. The pain was probably nothing. 

Standing in the shower, I suddenly realized that I was probably going to have a human in a matter of hours. So, naturally, I finished washing my hair and shaving my legs then I asked Husband to call the nurse line back and get Lily ready to go on an adventure. I didn't want him to freak out so while my contractions were closing in on 5-6 minutes apart, I assured him it was no big deal and they would probably send us back home. He threw some clothes in a bag, just in case, and we headed out the door. 

When we rolled up to the hospital at 10:45, I seriously pictured myself having a baby in the parking lot. The pain was ridiculous and poor Lily kept looking at me saying, "Mommy crying." Not quite, kid, but almost. When we got up to the labor and delivery floor, Husband ran across the lobby, pushing me in a wheelchair and simultaneously holding Lily. The nurse wheeled me into a room, did a quick check then immediately ripped something out of the wall. Alarms started going off, people came flying into the room, someone was calling for the doctor and we were being raced down the hallway to another room. The doctor came in and before they could even attach all the cords and wires to my arms and hands, she explained there would be no time for any pain medication because the baby was coming, like, NOW. They took Lily out to the nurse's station to hang out and eat some graham crackers. Right after she left I shouted, "I don't think I can do this!!" The nurse said, "Honey, you don't have a choice." And then Layla Grace entered the world at 11:03. 5 lbs, 14 oz. 18.5 inches long. 17 days early but totally healthy. 

Amazing. All of it, amazing. 

Thankful. All of us. So very thankful.