Chloe Mayme: Birth Story

I went in with Christopher on Tuesday night at 8pm.

I had a scheduled induction. They wanted to give me some medication to soften my cervix before I was to be induced.

When we went in the receptionist had my paperwork right next to her, all ready for me. She told us to wait in the waiting room for a nurse to come and get us. We waited for what seemed like forever. There were two other groups in the waiting room with us. They were anxiously waiting for loved ones to deliver. It made me excited and anxious about what was to come.

When the nurse came I had butterflies in my stomach. Her name was Erika, and she was one of the prettiest, nicest people I have ever met. She put me right at ease with her smile and wonderful explanations. She walked us down to my delivery room.

Once we were down there I changed into my gown and answered some questions. They hooked up some monitors to watch my contractions compared to Chloe's heart rate and then gave me the first dose of medication to soften my cervix. I was told that it might start contractions. They then told me that I would get the other half in the morning around 1am. At this point I was not dilated at all.

At midnight I started having contractions that were 2-3 minutes apart. When 1 am arrived they decided not to give me the rest of the dose because I was having so many contractions. At 4 am my water broke as I was using the restroom. Let me just say, how disgusting it was! I am so glad I was in the hospital when it happened. Once my water broke they checked my cervix again and I was still not dilated.

At 5 am they started the pitocin (it's what actually induces labor). Once it started, my contractions were every minute, and they were terrible. They were a little worried for awhile because Chloe's heart rate sometimes  would drop after I would have a contraction. My nurse told me that if it kept happening that they would have to take me in for a C-section. They watched her heart rate all morning and it seemed to get better.

At noon they checked my cervix again and it was only dilated 2 centimeters. I was so frustrated and in so much pain. I had been having a contraction every other minute for 12 hours. My original plan was to not have an epidural. We didn't really have money for the epidural deposit so we had planned on going without. I told Christopher that I couldn't handle it any longer (especially if I was only 2 centimeters) and he asked the nurse if there was anyway we could still ask for the epidural.

About 10 minutes later I got an epidural and oh my goodness... Not only was I no longer in any pain, it sped labor up so quickly. I know there are strong opinions about epidurals but I just decided that it was what was best for our situation. I absolutely loved my epidural. I took a three hour nap and when I woke up it was time to push. 

While I was pushing my doctor told me that she could see her head but that she was having trouble coming out on her own. My doctor had to suction her out. (We later found out that Chloe had her hands in her face and it made it harder for her to come out on her own.)

The moment Chloe came out was so amazing. Seeing her for the first time gave me such a wave of wonderful emotions. She had so much hair and was so beautiful. She made a tiny little cry. She had to be rushed away so they could clear out her throat because she couldn't breathe because she had so much fluid in her throat. Christopher went with her and they brought her back a minute later (it seemed like a lot longer though). While they were cleaning her off all I could do was look at her while the doctor worked on me. They brought her to my chest and it was such a precious moment. I was finally holding my daughter in my arms. I cannot properly describe how amazing it was. She was so beautiful and perfect.

She was born at 5:07 pm and weighed 6 pounds 12 ounces and was 20 inches long. She was healthy and here.

My second favorite moment was when I got to see the love of my life holding our daughter for the first time. His face was so priceless. He was so happy to finally get to feel his daughter in his arms.

We later were moved to a postpartum room and had some family and friends visit.

It's been five days since her birth and as tiring as these days have been I would not trade them for anything. All I can think about is how one day she will be all grown up and I will miss these sweet precious moments with her. I already want her to stay this tiny forever...

"Be still my beating heart..."

James 1:17

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."

These pictures were taken by mdvisuals.

Induction Day Thoughts

My Dearest Daughter,

I am so excited to finally meet you! I am going in to the hospital tonight to start the induction process. I wanted to write to you about what your father and I are thinking and feeling, and maybe some advice to you in the future when or if you ever have children of your own.

Our thoughts are totally on you. We are so excited to finally get to kiss your cheeks and hold you in our arms. We already love you so much. Something that your father and I take great comfort in is that God loves you even more than we do.

Psalm 139:14-18

        I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works;

my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from you,

when I was being made in secret,

intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

 Your eyes saw my unformed substance;

in your book were written, every one of them,

the days that were formed for me,

when as yet there was none of them.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

If I would count them, they are more than the sand.

I awake, and I am still with you.

I hope you always know that no matter how scary something seems that God will always be right by your side. I am very scared about these next few days but I know as soon as I see you it will all be worth it. 

Your dad is worried about our safety. But I know God's ways are always higher than our ways. 

Your dad is taking such good care of me, calming me down, helping me practice breathing, and so much more. I hope that you find a man someday that is as wonderful to you, as your daddy is to me. He is such a caring man and I can't wait to see how he is with you. 

I cannot wait to develop a relationship with you Chloe. I want you to be able to talk to me about anything. I don't want to make our relationship all about me. You are so precious to me and I want you to know that every single day of your life. I never want you to feel like you disappoint me. I hope you never have to question my love for you. I love you so much! 

You are already so strong and you haven't even been born yet. You are already in our hearts Chloe.

See you tomorrow, 

Love, your Mom

Anniversary

I would like to use this post to talk about my wonderful husband and our marriage.

Christopher is the best husband anyone could ask for. He is loving, supportive, and very hard working.

Christopher and I will be celebrating our third wedding anniversary tomorrow. And what a wonderful three years it's been.

Year One:

Our Wedding Day

Our first year was filled with so many changes. We had to grow up a lot that year. Some of my favorite memories of that time were of just the two of us in our tiny apartment.

I remember one time Christopher surprised me with candles all lit around our apartment. He took my hand and we danced  in to the night. (He's always been romantic like that :) )

Another memory I have from that year is cooking for Christopher and I. It was so much fun to try new recipes. I used to make him homemade pizza all the time, he loved it.

Year Two:

Our First Anniversary

Our second year was so different from our first. Our second year was filled with many ups and downs. Not necessarily in our marriage but in our financial situation. We had to make difficult decisions that eventually lead to where we are today. For the first half of our second year Christopher and I were working crazy hours and really never got to see each other. I know this may sound dumb but I NEED to spend time with my husband. We aren't one of those couples that do our own things all the time. He is my best friend and I am his. If I'm excited or upset about something there is no one in the entire world I want to talk about it with more than my husband. When I was at work I would be missing him. I eventually took a job where he worked just so I could be near him. I loved working with Christopher. He is such a hard worker. He always gives 100% when doing his job (which is hard to say about our generation sometimes.). He made me so proud at work! It was so nice to be able to be around him other than when we were going to bed or worrying about our bills at home.

Even though we finally got to be around each other the financial stress became too much to handle. Christopher and I prayed and prayed that God would provide. We were running out of money to pay for school (Our rent was part of that.). But we also knew if we didn't go back to school we would not have a place to live. If we could have stayed in that cheap apartment and take a semester off, I think we would have been fine. But it wouldn't make much sense for them to let us stay there without being enrolled.
   
When we visited my parents for Christmas before the next semester was to begin, my Dad came up with the idea of letting us move in for about a year, so we could save up some money and go back. So that's what we did. We moved in with my parents while Christopher took a few online classes. We went from being on our own to living in the same home I grew up in. Christopher got a job at QuikTrip and I took one as a "Nanny" (everyday babysitter). We didn't end up making as much as we did in Springfield, but at least we had a place to live.

With all of that being said, moving back in with my parents has both tested our marriage and made us stronger.

One of my favorite memories from this year was watching Christopher with the little girl I babysat. He was so sweet and understanding of her. When I would watch him play with her it made me know what a great father he would make one day.

Year Three:

Our Second Anniversary

Our third year was been very similar to our second but very different at the same time. When it was time for the fall semester to begin we knew that we were not financially ready to move back to Springfield. So we set our budget and goals on being able to return to Springfield fall of 2014. Christopher would only have two semesters to finish before he could graduate. The plan was for me to work full time that way he wouldn't have to worry about working. We could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. So we kept working and saving. We only had a phone bill to worry about so we knew we could make it. 

Right about the time you feel like you have control of your life God likes to remind you that you don't... 

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not lean on your own understanding

In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.

On November 30th, 2013 I took a pregnancy test... and it totally changed our comfy plans. Another fun thing we had happen was with our car. Our car totally pooped out and we had to buy a "new" one while we were visiting Christopher's family in St. Louis for Christmas. So we found out we were pregnant and got our first car and insurance payment all with in a month of each other... All I can do now is smile and shake my head. We were seriously starting to doubt if we could afford going back to Springfield. 

Earlier in December God had provided us with a trip to go down and visit some missionary friends in Mexico. As you probably know, Christopher and I want to be missionaries in Mexico one day. It was such a wonderful opportunity. It really set our hearts on fire for what we already knew, God wants us in Mexico one day. This trip could not have come at a better time. It was still early enough in the pregnancy that I could travel, we didn't have any kids to cart around (yet) and God knew what we would be going through with the car. God's timing is always perfect. Because of this trip we knew that if we trusted God, He would get us through this up coming year. 

Our Third Anniversary

The plan is still to move back to Springfield in August. Christopher is going to work full-time and go to school full-time while I stay home with our daughter. It is going to be such a hard year but once Christopher graduates it will be totally worth it. 

Our hope is for him to graduate in May and soon after find a missions intern position at a church somewhere and work while I finish my schooling online. 

This fourth year is going to be totally different with a baby, but there is no one I would rather be beside me than Christopher.