Baby Story! :D

Two weeks ago on Wednesday, May 20th, our lives were forever changed by the arrival of our dear little Lydia! I was due on Tuesday, May 12, which we thought if she came then would be perfect because Mitch was going to start his internship with Intermountain Healthcare on Monday of the next week. We had lots of friends deliver early, so we figured we'd go early too...I don't know why we assumed that. :) Anyway, we went into the doctor and she said that if we hadn't gone into labor by Tuesday, May 19th, we would need to be induced.

That was hard news for me; I had wanted a natural birth from the start, but by Tuesday the 19th, I hadn't made any progress and it felt like Lydia was never going to come! It was a HUGE blessing though because Mitch called his work and he was able to start a whole week later! That was WONDERFUL. Also, my Mom had come into town on Saturday and would be leaving after a week, and looking back I'm SO glad Lydia came when she did because Mitch was there to take care of Lydia and my Mom was there to help me. So it all worked out wonderfully.

Here's the story! This is an excerpt from my journal the day we went in for induction:

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Right now I’m having Mitchy type this for me (hello from Mitch) as I lay in my bed in the hospital. We arrived at the hospital this morning at 6:00 AM after eating a nice big breakfast of eggs, toast, and fruit that my mom made. After filling out some paperwork, they took us to room 17LD on the 5th floor of Utah Valley Regional Medical Center. 

Mitchy and I at the hospital, super excited!

Where Lydia would get cleaned up. :)

The view is amazing! Our window faces the North, and all of our nurses say it’s their favorite room. They call the “Timp Room” because it has a beautiful view of Mount Timpanogos. 

My last real pregnant picture.

Our view from the hospital.

It’s been a beautiful cloudy and rainy day. Mitchy has been here helping me and he is so wonderful! Right now I’m starving!!! I’m so excited for when Lydia comes and I can eat again. After getting in my gown, our first nurse Leslie started the Pitocin at 7:00 AM.

Nothing happened for a few hours and she kept upping the dose. Finally I was at the maximum level of Pitocin they can give. We watched Kung Fu Panda 2 and started the Princess Bride. Just as Wesley was about to fight with Fezzik “like civilized people,” I suddenly started having really intense contractions! I decided to get an epidural at that point. I almost felt silly calling the nurses in because I wasn’t sure if it was supposed to hurt more before I got one. They also said that sometimes it can slow down your labor, so I wanted to put it off as long as possible. 

I am so glad that I did not put it off any longer than that! They sent in an intern named Mason, and I was suddenly terrified that he was going to give it to me. But luckily they sent in an expert just as I almost started going into shock from the intensity of the contractions. I was shaking really hard and in so much pain, I could hardly breath! Mitchy held my hand, and helped me to breathe deeply while he (the doctor) gave me the epidural. Seriously having an epidural is the strangest sensation but I am so thankful for it. As of right now, we have been here a full 12 hours. Mitchy has brought my lots of ice chips with Tiger’s Blood flavoring. He has been a champ.

We really liked our first nurse Leslie and Amanda our next nurse was really good too. And now our nurse is Maggie, and she is very friendly. My mom and Mitch’s parents came in for about 20 minutes to visit, which was so nice. Mitch’s parents brought him a chocolate and peanut butter shake, and bought cute little BYU socks for Lydia. My Mom has been sewing the finishing touches on Lydia's baby quilt that she made for her. It is called, "Tropical Sunset" and I love it! And now we wait! :)

I certainly hope it will be soon, they broke my water at 1:00 PM so hopefully in the next few hours we see more progress.

----End of journal excerpt----

Quote from me at this point, "I hope whoever invented the epidural is rich and happy." :)

Little did I know I would labor for twelve more hours until I could start pushing...

We watched Finding Nemo and waited and waited and waited. Finally at 1:00am, it was time to start pushing.

So here is my take on epidurals: I didn't want one because I've heard it can slow down your labor and it's hard to push with one. That is what I experienced. I think my labor took as long as it did because of the epidural...and for the first hour of pushing I felt like I was doing nothing because I couldn't feel a thing. That being said, I am SOOO glad I got one because contractions with Pitocin are like, the worst things in the world.

Anyway, after the first hour of pushing, my epidural started to wear off, and I hit the point where I was ready to give up on everything! I was so tired and felt like I would be pushing forever! I was glad it wore off though, because I felt like I finally was in control and could push better. We started to be able to see her head and I was getting excited to cross the finish line! After two more hours of pushing, at 4:05am, little Lydia was born, 8lbs 6oz, 20 inches long and SOOO beautiful! :)

You did it, Lydia!!! 21 hours of labor :)

We made it!

A proud Daddy :) He loves little Lydia so much!!!

Grandpa Steed

Grandma Steed

Grandma Harper--they had all been in the waiting room for hours!

Mitch picked out a little green bow for her :)

Packing up to leave the hospital!

We were so grateful to everyone who helped us in the hospital, but we were SO happy to be home! We all got in our comfy pj's and enjoyed a few more days together before Mitch started his internship. 

:)