I am going to back things up and start a few weeks before Kaitlyn's birth. June 3rd (which also happened to be our anniversary) I went in for my 38 week check up. I chatted with my Dr for a few minutes as he had me lay down on the table. He got ready to measure my belly by placing his hand on my stomach. I noticed his face right away and noted the look of concern. "I don't think this is a butt under your ribs." He exclaimed. He did a quick exam and an ultrasound that confirmed that our baby was in fact breach. Being 2 weeks away from my due date my Dr. was concerned that I could go into labor at any time, and if that happened while baby was breach then they would have no choice but to do a c-section. Seeing as this is my 5th baby and I have had all vaginal, healthy births, he really didn't want to see me have to have a c-section. Being that it is a hospital policy not to deliver breach babies we had only a few options. My Dr. suggested that we do an external version (turning the baby from the outside). I agreed and we set things up for that afternoon.
My mother in law took the rest of the day off of work to be with our kids. Bill and I headed to the hospital that afternoon. I was really nervous because I had heard all kinds or horror stories about having a version. I heard it was extremely painful and that it would likely cause me to go into labor. We prepared ourselves for what could happen. My Dr. explained before the procedure the risks to me and the baby, but assured us that they are very minimal. We trusted my Dr and his opinion. Bill stood on one side of the bed and held my hand as the Dr. worked on the outside of my stomach. Bill said it was really amazing to watch. He got to see the baby turn. It was over in a matter of 30 seconds. Baby girl turned just like that...and it wasn't painful like everyone said, just a little uncomfortable. They kept me at the hospital for about an hour to monitor me and make sure baby wasn't in distress. We went home from the hospital that afternoon praising God that she had turned so easily and that everything was okay. Now we just prayed that she would stay head down until I went into labor.
The next week on June 10th I went in for my 39 week check up. I kind of suspected that my Dr. was going to tell me that baby girl was breach yet again. I had felt her turning inside me a few days earlier. He confirmed what I suspected...she was in fact breach! Dr. W. had said the week before that if I came in at 39 weeks and she was breach he would just do another version and induction that day. However he seemed to have a change of mind. Maybe it was because he was going out of town that weekend, or maybe it was because labor and delivery was full that day, or maybe it was because like my Dr. said he wanted to get me as close to my due date as possible. So we planned a version and induction for the following week. I left with instructions to "Not go into labor over the weekend." I said I'd try my best. I certainly didn't want to have a c-section unless it was the best thing for the baby.
That week felt like an eternity long, but June 16th finally rolled around. Bill and I dropped the kids off at his parents in the morning and then headed to the hospital at 9:00 am. I am going to be totally honest here. I felt a little disappointed. Things weren't turning out exactly as I had planned. I had really wanted to go into labor on my own. Labor at home as much as possible and then go to the hospital. But it was not to be and I had to come to terms with the fact that God had planned this day ahead of me and that He was in control. I was nervous about all the things that could also go wrong on this day. But God continued to remind me that He was in control and would get us through this day.
As I was getting into my gown and preparing for what lay ahead I heard the nurse talking to Bill in the other room. She explained to Bill that if they couldn't get baby to turn they would send us home and schedule a c-section. I whispered under my breath "You have got to be kidding me." It never dawned on me that we could leave the hospital that day with no baby yet.
My Dr walked into the room about a half hour later with much confidence. He told me that baby girl was going to turn and that we would be having our baby that day! Bill and I felt comforted by his confidence. He quickly did the version without any trouble, getting her head into the correct position, and then started pitocin. That was at 10:30 a.m I was actually already having some regular contractions on my own that morning before we got there.
I did opt to have an epidural. Because the pitocin was making my contractions strong and come every 2 minutes (and I was only about 3 cm dilated at that point) I knew that I was going to have a long road ahead. I have since regretted that decision but there is nothing I can do about that now. They came in around maybe 12:30 p.m. to administer the epidural. After prepping me the Dr started around 1:00. What was only supposed to take 10 minutes took a half hour. It was one of the worst pains I have had to go through. They couldn't get the catheter to thread into my back, so he had to do it twice. I was hunched over with Bill holding my shoulders in place (while having contractions) trying to stay still for that half hour. I was very hot and worn out by the time they finally finished. They laid me mostly flat onto the bed so the epidural could take effect. My Dr. walked in a few minutes later. He had planned to come in and break my water. He took a look at me and started to ask if I was feeling better since I got my epidural but then he stopped short and asked what was wrong (I guess I didn't look good). The nurse explained that they had had a hard time getting it in. The next thing I knew I was feeling really sweaty and tired. I saw my Dr. look at me and the nurse (who must have seen something on the monitor) exclaimed that she needed to give me some meds...my blood pressure was bottoming out.
Because my blood pressure dropped so low, this put the baby into distress for a few minutes. My Dr. explained that he wasn't going to break my water yet. They needed to monitor the baby for awhile and make sure she was alright. They immediately put me on oxygen to help the baby. He stood there for several minutes watching until the baby's heart rate stabilized. Once he saw that she was doing alright again he said he would be back in a little while to break my water. Since that moment I have struggled with guilt. If I hadn't gotten an epidural to ease intense contractions, I wouldn't have put my baby in danger. But I can't change the past. I am just thankful that it turned out alright.
After all that it was basically a waiting game. They watched me and the baby very closely to make sure we were both doing good. After a few hours I started to feel like the epidural was wearing off on my right side. I started feeling the contractions again. I told the nurse how I was feeling, so she suggested they turn my to my right side to give the epidural a chance to spread to that side. Of course as soon as they turned me to the right, baby's heart rate started to drop real low. So they had to put me back on my left. Throughout that afternoon the baby continued to have drops in her heart rate. They concluded that the baby must have the cord wrapped around her neck. Bill and I felt nervous about that, but they assured us that she would be okay, and that plenty of babies were born with a cord wrapped around them. I laid there and prayed for God's protection over our little one.
At 3:50 p.m. My Dr. came back to break my water. Usually when my water breaks things really pick up and the baby comes in a short amount of time. Not this time around however. Baby girl's head was still pretty high up and I was still only about 3 cm dilated. I stayed around 3 cm for the next hour or so. I just rested for the next few hours. My nurse predicted that once I got to 5 cm that things would just start to fly...and wouldn't you know she was right! I remember them checking me and telling me I was at a 5...then checking me shortly after that because I was starting to progress really fast. The epidural had pretty much all worn off on my right side, and I began to moan as I felt each contraction coming harder and closer together. They were going to try and give me some other pain meds to see if that would help, but the nurse decided to check me first. I was already at an 8. She whispered to me that we were almost there and that I probably only had about 15 minutes left. She walked out of the room to get something. It wasn't even 2 minutes when I felt it...I KNEW it was time to push. I told Bill I felt ALOT of pressure. He quickly found the nurse call button and paged for our nurse.
Within seconds the nurse and my Dr. were there and everything was in place, and I began to push. I started to push then the contraction ended. I waited a minute then pushed our sweet baby into the Dr.'s hands. The nurse told me to open my eyes as I was pushing. I'm so glad she did because it was the most amazing thing to see our daughter as she exited my womb. I laid back and breathed a huge sigh of relief. She was here, she was safe, she was beautiful! And amazingly there was no cord around her neck, praise God! She was welcomed into our lives at 6:25 p.m.
Bill and I had been going back in forth between 2 names and weren't totally sure what we were going to call her. But after seeing her, Kaitlyn Joy just seemed right!
These are pictures that Bill took just moments after her birth.
We were shocked by the amount of dark hair she had. None of our other babies had that much hair.
Holding Kaitlyn for the first time.
Just like her brothers and sisters before her Kaitlyn's birth was unique and special and a day I will never forget.
We are praising God for this precious gift of life!
