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Monday 9 April 2012

Express Delivery

She's here! Our beautiful baby girl, whom we'll refer to as Crumpet 2 for the time being, arrived Saturday, April 7 at 4:35 am, weighing 6 lbs. 14 oz. Despite being overdue, like her sister, the birthing process was entirely different this time around. I'll try to spare everyone the gory details and offer the abridged version here instead.

A few days prior to her arrival, I started experiencing what I am now pretty sure were warm-up contractions, but nothing actually happened until around 1:30 early Saturday morning. Contractions grew in intensity and length pretty quickly, and by 2:00 I was out of bed and The Other Half was phoning his mum to come down and be prepared to stay with Crumpet should the hospital say that I could go ahead and come in.

By 2:50, the hospital had confirmed that I could go in. Contractions were coming quick and fast now. We phoned my mom and sister in America to tell them things were on the move.

3:09. This is the time I remember displayed on the digital clock in the car as we arrived at the hospital.

3:30. By now, I was in the delivery room and had been hooked up to the gas and air. The midwife examined me thoroughly at this point, confirming that I was indeed in labour (duh!) but that I was only 3 1/2 centimetres dilated and that delivery wouldn't be long but probably not imminent.

4:10. This is the next time I was conscious of the time. I'd been on the gas and air for what seemed like a very long time, with the contractions lasting longer and longer and with much shorter intervals in between. I asked for an epidural around this time. Later, the midwife told me she knew the baby would be born before the anaesthesiologist would arrive, but she went to consult him anyway.

Shortly after 4:10 a senior midwife arrived to help with another exam. By this time, my waters broke, and I was suddenly at 10 centimetres. The team who had assembled to assist with the birth said I needed to start pushing the baby out now, that we needed to get her out quickly. I would find out later that this was because her heart rate and oxygen levels had dropped, but they did a good job of not panicking me at the time.

Things happened very quickly from this point, but after about three or four big pushes and the help of a "kiwi" (a sort of suction cap), our baby girl was born at 4:35.

My mom was shocked when The Other Half phoned her again, just two hours after our initial call, to say that she had a new granddaughter, and when I spoke to my sister the next day she said she thought she had been dreaming when my mom woke her around midnight to tell her the news.

We are settling in well at home. Crumpet loves her little sister and has been fascinated by her every move. Hopefully the novelty won't wear off for her any time soon.

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