The Beginning....

On June 27th I went in for my 40 week doctor's appointment. I was 90% effaced, but still only 2 cm dialated. However, after checking me, Dr. Han asked us when we wanted to have "this baby". Spencer quickly answered, "TODAY!" On the other hand, I was a little hesitant. I definitely wanted Madi to come sooner, rather than later. I did want to experience going into labor on my own, but I wasn't sure when that would happen. With our upcoming move, I thought it would be best to have Madi as soon as possible. Dr. Han went ahead and called the hospital and they were able to fit me in that afternoon!! WOW!! All of a sudden I felt a surge of nervousness. We hurried home, making a quick stop by Target to pick up a few last minute necessities. I quickly did 2 loads of laundry, ran and emptied the dishwasher, packed my bag, and made a few phone calls before leaving for the hospital.

Of course I had to pose for a few pictures before walking out the door. Spencer made me measure my belly- a whopping 42 inches around!!



Then a naked belly picture!! Crazy to think that our little girl is in there!


We arrived at the hospital a little after 2pm.


Ready or not, here we come!!


After getting to our room, I quickly changed into my gown and made sure to freshen up! Who knows how long I'd be confined to a bed!!



It was a lot different than I expected- more mellow, low key, and uneventful. At 4:40pm they started my drip of oxytocin. I began to have contractions a little after, but nothing I couldn't handle.



I was really enjoying the unlimited supply of ice chips....


and water!!!


Spencer and I continued to watch T.V. , play cards, and call family.



I was feeling fine, just a little uncomfortable sitting in a hospital bed, being hooked up to IV's and all.


Nothing much was happening with my contractions- I stayed dialated to 3cm. Finally at 11:45pm Dr. Han stopped by the hospital to check on me and break my water. After that contractions started getting really strong! Luckily the anesthesiologist came in at midnight to give me an epidural. This was actually super stressful for me. I was really nervous and in a lot of pain from contractions and non-stop shaking. However, once the epidural started to work life got a LOT easier!! They put a catheter in me to drain my bladder since I couldn't get out of bed. It was SUPER nice not having to keep getting up to go the bathroom. I also LOVED not feeling any pain! I was finally able to relax and get some sleep. Sometime around 2:30am I was checked and dialated to 5cm. We were excited that I was finally making progress. Around 5am I was fully dialated. We were surprised at how fast it went. Since I was feeling so great with the epidural, and Madilyn was doing so wonderfully, Dr. Han decided to wait on pushing and let the contractions naturally bring her down further. It wasn't until 8:15am that Dr. Han arrived and had me begin pushing. Nineteen minutes later Madilyn was born!!



We had a very relaxing first day with Madilyn. Spencer and I had plenty of time to just enjoy holding, talking, and feeding her.







We got tons of cute pictures those first few hours of her life!







On Saturday, June 30th, I was dressed and ready to go by 10am. I was super excited to bring Madilyn home!



However, the pediatrician had to stop by and give us the o.k. before we left. When she finally came by around 1pm, she was really concerned about Madi throwing up. She said she'd like to keep Madi at the hospital a few more days for further observation. Boy was I upset and I made sure I let her know that I disagreed with what she was saying. However, to the NICU she went.