Ryan Cathleen: A Birth Story

Announcing The Birth Of:

Ryan Cathleen Scurlock

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

6:35pm

7lbs 15 1/2 oz

19 inches long

Ryan Cathleen is here.  And yes, we finally have a middle name.  Ryan is Josh's middle name and Cathleen is mine.  So it's very special. :) She made her appearance last week in a long drawn-out fashion, but she was so worth the wait.  And before the memories of those few days (yes days) of labor start to fade, I think I should write them down as her arrival is something I will only ever experience once.  It's so strange to say that I'm a Momma.  I'm. A. Momma.

In the early hours of Monday morning, July 1, 2013, I started having some mild cramping.  With my due date being July 2nd, my mind started to race thinking that this could be the early stages of labor.  The cramping lasted through the night and all day Monday and I alerted Josh, who was at work, that I thought I was definitely in the very early stages of labor.  While the cramping was becoming more regular, I was only experiencing slight discomfort at that point. 

By the time Josh got home that evening, the cramping was beginning to intensify to the point of being uncomfortable.  I called my parents to alert them that I thought we would probably be going to the hospital at some point in the middle of the night or early the next morning and that our little girl was looking to be extremely punctual in her arrival.  Josh suggested timing the contractions because I had been told by my doctor not to head in to the hospital until they were 5 minutes apart or less, 1 minute long, for at least 1 hour.  Once I started really timing them, I realized that they were between 8 and 10 minutes apart which was not where they needed to be but they were intensifying enough to the point where I was unable to sleep at all.  I finished packing our hospital bag and even got myself a little bit ready by taking a shower and putting on some makeup.  Priorities right?  Little did I know it was going to be over 24 hours later that we would actually be admitted to the hospital.

By Tuesday morning, the contractions were causing quite a bit of pain.  I hadn't slept all night and was beginning to get frustrated because the contractions just weren't timing up correctly.  I wanted to go to the hospital, but Josh convinced me that we really needed to wait until the contractions were closer together.  I spent the entire day of July 2nd timing contractions that kept fluctuating between 5 minutes and 14 minutes apart and trying to deal with the pain.  Every contraction during the day left me doubled over in pain.  I tried rolling on the exercise ball, taking warm showers/baths, walking around, leaning over the bed, lying down, nothing seemed to really help.  At this point, I was in so much pain that I was no longer communicating with any family or friends.

At 6pm on Tuesday night, I felt on the verge of a mental breakdown and so I asked Josh if we could at least go to the hospital to see if I was making any progress.  I knew my contractions weren't close enough together, but I needed to know that my body was at least doing SOMETHING.  They hooked me up to the monitors and checked me. I was 3cm dilated and 70% effaced but my contractions were still averaging about 7-8 minutes apart.  In other words, I was still in early labor.  Not the words I wanted to hear.  The nurse had me walk around for an hour and then rechecked me.  I had dilated to maybe a 3-4 and she said she could potentially make a case for me to stay but really suggested we go home until the contractions were closer together.  I was prepared for this but it was still very discouraging.  In the end, we went home because I thought I would be more comfortable (as if that was possible) at home. 

Tuesday night was just plain awful.  It will probably go down as the worst night of my life.  I was in so much pain.  I couldn't do anything, Josh couldn't do anything, and yet I knew I just had to deal with it.  Obviously I didn't sleep at all and I think I spent approximately 6-7 hours in the shower over the course of the night because it was the only thing that even remotely took the edge off.  Poor Josh had to deal with an extremely pitiful and pathetic wife that night.  I know he felt really helpless.  By 7am on Wednesday, July 3, I was begging Josh to go back to the hospital.  I told him I didn't care how far apart my contractions were or if they had to cut her out of me, I was staying there because I was D.O.N.E.

We headed to the hospital, this time sans makeup and washed hair, and lucky us, the L&D ward was full.  So we were sent to triage.  I was checked in triage where we were told I was now 5cm dilated, 100% effaced, with contractions that were 4-5 minutes apart.  If I hadn't been on the verge of dying, I would have shouted Hallelujah.

By 9am, I was moved to my own room and given a painkiller via IV because the anesthesiologist was in a C-section and was unable to administer an epidural for awhile.  I had planned to go into Ryan's birth open-minded about an epidural vs. no epidural, but after two days of laboring at home, my body was completely worn out and mentally, I was unprepared to handle any more pain.

Once I received the epidural, life was great again.  Both Josh and I were able to get a little bit of sleep and I progressed rather easily to 10cm. 

Poor Daddy. Trying to catch up on some sleep.

By the early evening, it was time to push.  Thankfully, it seems as though my hard work was most definitely on the front end.  I only had to push through 3 contractions and at 6:35pm after almost three days of labor, Ryan Cathleen Scurlock was here.

The moment that Dr. Bennett-Stewart placed her on my chest was surreal.  I was filled with relief that the whole ordeal was finally over and that she was here safely.  And my heart just melted as she almost immediately opened her eyes and looked up into mine.  It was love at first sight.

This is what 3 days of labor looks like.

After a couple of hours, we were moved from the L&D floor to the Maternity floor.  And all of our visitors came up to see our new little girl.

Grandpa Fairman

Grammy Fairman

Grammy, Uncle Bert, Aunt Anna, Grandpa

The majority of the 4th of July was spent at Redlands Community Hospital, catching up on sleep, visiting with friends, and soaking up our new little firecracker.

Her hat was given to us by the hospital.

Aunt Rachel flew in from Arizona to meet her!

Name card made by Grandma Lala.

Auntie Julie got this so all Ryan's visitors could sign it

By about 8pm, we were discharged and were greeted at our home by friends and family where we celebrated the 4th of July with pizza and Ryan's birthday with a Ryan size cake!

With her Aunts and Uncle

Auntie Julie

The Fairman side

Our little family of three.

Now that she is here, it is hard to imagine our life without her.  She is such a happy little girl and has already brought so much joy into our family.  We are completely and totally in love and are so excited to watch as she grows and her little personality starts to show through.

 

Our life changed dramatically on July 3, 2013.  I'm a Momma. And Josh is a Daddy.