Chez Moi

In case the reader hasn’t guessed, The Bun popped out last monday. On my EDD, like her older brother. What are the odds of that? Seriously. I have been asked that question a lot the past week and would really love to know!

Just like my mum kept warning me, the second time around things didn’t take half as long as they did the first time. I have a thin cervix and though it takes a while for things to get the dilation process started, once it does things proceed at a rapid clip. With P, I went to the hospital 3 cms dilated at 5.30 am and he was born 4 hours later! This time, as we lived farther away from the hospital, we decided to go in earlier.

When I couldn’t take it anymore, I woke up the hubby at around 2 am and we walked into the maternity ward at 3 am exactly.  Like I had warned him on the way, the midwife checked me and said I was only 2 cms gone and there’s miles to go yet. Exactly what they told me when I had rung them the previous evening with an update: “women take even 2 weeks to go from this to actual labour so don’t worry!” Then the midwife uttered the magic words, “would you like some gas & air?” Would I ever? That cylinder of Entonox became my best bud. I hung on to it for dear life but though it did take the edge off at first, slowly it got to an unbearable stage. I couldn’t keep walking anymore and lying down on my side didn’t really help things much.

After ninety mins or so of this, the brutal pain got too much to bear and I was screaming, literally, for epidural. As I was in the midwives only unit, I needed to be transferred to the main labour ward for an epidural. And for that, I needed to be checked to see how much I have dilated as epidural wouldn’t be administered too early in the proceedings. So the midwife did her bit and let out an outraged squawk! “But you are 7 cms dilated already!!”

If I wasn’t in deep pain, I would have taken great pleasure in smirking and saying “I told you so!” Things were a blur after that. Another midwife was brought in, they tried to check the Bun’s heartbeat with the trumpet, couldn’t figure out how far she’d moved down the birth canal, told me to turn this way and that and after an age, we could hear the reassuring “whump! whump!!” of the itty bitty heart. Then I heard the midwife go “would you like us to break your waters cos we think the baby’s head is right against it and if we break the waters, she can come out” - I would have said yes to anything then. Of course, they popped the waters and sat back to ask me if I wanted the injection to contract the uterus when the aide let out another squawk. “The baby’s crowning!” Well, DUH! I can feel it, you know!

So yeah, all hands on deck, hectic minutes and then out came the little one, tearing some tissues on her way out.

The past week, we have been getting acquainted with each other and trying to get settled into a routine. Already she adores her big brother. Opens her eyes wide and looks at him if he is sat next to her. Turns her head when she hears his voice. Even smiles at him, or so he claims!

Thanks a bunch everyone for your lovely, lovely wishes. Thanks to Doula MM for her announcement on the blog. Hopefully, I can keep up the updates etc.