the labor of love

here is the long awaited labor story you've all been anticipating. i promised in my last post that i would write it on the wee one's day of birth, but it didn't happen. so here goes nothin'...

so, i had a doula that i met with before the labor for a couple weeks. she helped to answer any questions i might have before the labor, gave me foot massages, tried to help me with my pinched nerve pain, listened to me talk about my birth art, etc. her name was lara and she was great! the baby was due july 26 and the weekend before that, lara was going out of town for a family reunion so she wasn't going to be able to come to my labor if i had the baby that weekend. so a back-up doula was arranged so that if the baby came, i would have one. i met the back-up doula, deb, saturady, july 17 for a quick visit at the park behind my apartment. she was kind enough to come and meet me even though there was a big possibility that she would not be at my labor and that i would never see her again. i wanted to meet her just in case, but i was pretty sure i wasn't going to have a baby that weekend. i thought it would be nice to see her and meet her before she was "in my face" and right next to my side during an entire labor, in the event that i did go into labor that weekend.

well, that whole day, i felt so uncomfortable and like my belly was contracted tight all day. i couldn't get comfortable anywhere. it didn't matter whether i was sitting or standing. i went to sleep in my recliner and at 2:00 in the morning, i woke up wet. i got up and thought i must be going pee in my sleep and started to walk towards the bathroom. that's when a big gush came- my water BROKE! it was quite the gushing sound. i woke up kyle and told him my water had broken. so then we woke up my mama and told her. we called the hospital and they told us to come in. we had all our hospital bags together so i changed into dry clothes. we were about to leave when my mom suggested that i get a priesthood blessing from kyle. this was a great idea because i got a lot of comfort and assurance from the blessing. most of all kyle and i felt completely assured that a natural childbirth would be a challenge but that i would be able to do it. (before this blessing, i had my doubts that i would be able to stand the pain because i had a severely pinhced siatic nerve that made it very difficult for me to move and walk. i thought that this, combined with the pain of labor would not be a good combination. and, in order to have a successful natural childbirth, the ability to freely move around the halls of the hospital and the hospital room is very important- as opposed to being stuck to a hospital bed).

the sequel to this labor story will have to be finished another day. i am tired and need some sleep. it is only 10:00, but i am trying my darndest to get to bed early whenever it is humanly possible :) adeaiu.