On Wednesday morning Avery woke up unusually early. When I went into her room to ask her what she was doing up so early (she’s not a morning person) she told me she just wasn’t tired. I kept wondering if today was the day Brooklyn was going to be born. I had really bad back pain that whole night before which is how my labor with Avery started. So I took Avery to ballet and ran to the grocery store in case she was coming soon. Then at about 10:30am I was having uncomfortable contractions. They weren’t to the point where they were super painful but I called my doctor to see if they could check to see how dilated I was. I had an appointment the day before and I was 2 cm dilated. So around noon that day they checked me and said I was 3 cm. The doctor said I’ll probably have Brooklyn within the day so go home, eat something and walk. When we got home we went on a long walk around our neighborhood. Towards the end the contractions weren’t something I could walk through anymore. They were about every 10-15 min apart so now was just the waiting game. Toward the end of that night they got much more intense. By 8:00pm they were still every 10 minutes but very painful!! I called the hospital asking if I could come in but they said no wait until they are 5 min apart. I was pretty frustrated because to me they were intense enough. Then at 10:30 I had a contraction and then felt a small gush of water. I went to the bathroom and told Josh my water broke and it was continuing to slowly leak so I wanted to go to the hospital now. My contractions had still been 7-10 min apart but I didn’t care anymore, I was ready to go. Josh’s mom was at our house at the time so she stayed with Avery and we headed to the hospital. The hospital is only a 15 min drive away thank goodness because while in the car my contractions went from every 10 min apart to every 2-3 min very quickly! We ended up walking into the hospital at exactly 11:00 and by then I was in the most pain I had ever been in! I didn’t throw up like I did while in labor with Avery but I for sure cried! After we walked in they had me go back to triage to check and see if I was in labor (I could easily let them know I was!!) I was in so much pain I couldn’t catch my breath anymore. Everyone kept telling me to breath through my nose and out my mouth but I felt like I physically couldn’t. I kept breathing so fast in and out of my mouth I felt like I was going to pass out. I was also so thirsty but they wouldn’t let me drink anything so my wonderful husband went sprinting down the hall to get me some ice chips. It only took them a minute to realize I was in full blown labor and things were moving fast! I asked them if I could get an epidural because I was in so much pain or if it was too late and the nurse told me I was way past the point of being able to get one. I didn’t have time to mentally prepare for an all natural birth before they were rushing me to a room and getting me on a hospital bed. Then it wasn’t even 5 minutes later that I yelled “she’s coming she’s coming!” And then there Brooklyn was! I normally never ever yell or raise my voice but I couldn’t help myself in that moment. I didn’t even have to force myself to push, my body did it for me. The nurses actually had to deliver her because my doctor didn’t have enough time to get there. They immediately placed Brooklyn on my chest and it was the best feeling! My daughter was here and healthy! And I was very happy to not be in that intense pain anymore. My doctor walked in a couple minutes after Brooklyn was born to stitch me because I tore to the second degree (also very painful to feel without an epidural!). After Josh cut Brooklyn’s cord and they cleaned her up a little bit I asked the nurses what time she was born. They said 11:34pm. That meant it had only been 34 min from the time we had walked into the hospital to Brooklyn being born! I was so so grateful we didn’t wait any longer to head to the hospital or we could have been having her in the car! Avery’s labor lasted 12 hours so it was a much different labor this time around! Brooklyn weighed 6 pounds 15.6 oz and measured 20 1/4 inches long. She was a little jaundice but not enough to concern the pediatrician. When we left the hospital on Friday morning (the 27th which was my actual due date) Brooklyn weighed 6 pounds 6 oz. And luckily when we took her to the doctors at 5 days old she had gained 1.2 oz.
Brooklyn’s labor was a whirlwind but I’m very grateful it was quick and there were no complications! I had so many things prepped for my labor (a worship labor playlist, inspiring quotes to tape on the walls, etc.) and it all went out the window! We don’t have any photos of the laboring process because it all happened so fast. I’m not sure if it’s the fact that I had a fast labor or that I was very active leading right up to delivering but this time around I’ve felt great. Recovering has been pretty easy and fast. By 4 days postpartum I was able to only need ibuprofen every 12 hours to manage the pain and then at 7 days postpartum I didn’t need to take anything at all. By 5 days postpartum I was able to carry Brooklyn in the baby wrap and Avery on my hip for a little bit. On Halloween Josh and I took turns being in the car with Brooklyn and walking around our neighborhood trick-or-treating with Avery. I was able to carry Avery around the neighborhood without being in any pain which was wonderful! She loved that one on one time!
I’m 9 days postpartum right now and currently weigh 129 pounds. I was 149 pounds right before Brooklyn was born and 120 pounds before I was pregnant. Although I’m already closer to my pre-pregnancy weight I can tell that my stomach muscles are currently nonexistent. I am enjoying letting my body naturally find its way back to how it was before and once I hit 6 Weeks postpartum I’ll enjoy working out again.
I know this was a long blog so congratulations to anyone that read through it all. We are so happy to have Brooklyn in our lives and her birth story is for sure a memorable one!