J Squared: May 2011

Well, it's been 10 days since Belliot decided to become Elliot, and I couldn't love her any more! So here's the scoop on what went down the weeks and days before Elliot's arrival...

April 29, 2011
I had another appointment, and basically the only different news we got is that my doctor told me if I could make it to 38 weeks (one more week) she would consider inducing me. WHAT?! Up until this week I was completely against being induced. My philosophy was, "If baby wasn't coming out, that meant she wasn't ready to come out." At this point, my philosophy was, "If mommy is ready for baby to come out, baby is coming out!" My doctor wanted me to make an appointment for early the following Thursday so she could check Elliot and I out and make a decision then.

May 5, 2011
Jarrod and I had all but convinced ourselves that my doctor wouldn't want to induce me. I'm not sure if we were just trying to not get our hopes up, or if we legitimately believed that, but when we walked into the office that afternoon, we were not expecting to hear what she had to say! First, the nurse tested my urine sample and found protein (this is one symptom of pre-eclampsia). After my doctor came in and told me she was for sure going to induce me that Saturday, because she had an excuse now, she measured my belly. Since I quit growing three weeks before and I had lost 6-8 pounds in the past two weeks, she was a little concerned about my fluid levels. She did another quick ultra sound to check everything out and said we were good to go. It was so cool getting to see her one last time before she was born! Jarrod and I left the appointment with instructions to call between 5:30-6:00 Saturday morning...and even more excited than we could have imagined!

May 7, 2011
Here is a timeline of the day's events
5:31 am - I woke up and called the hospital. I was told no beds or nurses were available, and if I hadn't received a phone call between 8:00-9:00 to call them back.
9:07 am - I called the hospital again. Still no beds or nurses. The nurse told me there were a ton of pregnant women in labor coming in and I probably wouldn't get in that day. She suggested I call back at 11:00.
9:08-11:00 am - Jarrod, Mom, and I played 4298710987 games of Sequence while Daddy played on his iPad...I mean read the paper!
11:00 am - I called the hospital and talked to the sweetest nurse ever. I told her why I was being induced (I may or may not have made it sound a little worse than it actually was, but I'm not admitting to anything!) and she said she would talk to my doctor, but I would probably get in since I had a medical emergency, but I needed to call back at 12:00 just to make sure. There is hope after all!!!
12:02 pm - When I called back (again) I was told that I would definitely be getting in, they were just getting a bed and nurse ready for me. They would call me back as soon as they had everything situated!
1:15 pm - The hospital FINALLY called me back and told me to go ahead and go to the Labor and Delivery ward. I told them it would take me about 45 minutes to get there (it only takes 15 at the most to get there, and I'm still not exactly sure why I told them 45. I'm glad I d id though, because it gave me a chance to catch my breath and really take in what was going on.)
Everything else I don't have a time for, and it's all pretty much a blur!
Sometime around 2:00 we got to the hospital and I was ushered into my room where my nurse was already waiting on me. (Her name is Brandi, and if you are delivering at Texas Women's, you HAVE to request her. She. Is. AWESOME!) Blah blah blah, I changed into the hospital gown...blah blah blah I answered tons of questions...blah blah blah...
3:00(ish) - My nurse started my IV with Pitocin and sugar water. I didn't pass out. You have no idea how big of a deal that is!

Jill - 1 Labor and Delivery - 0

Sometime after 3:00 - My parents, Jeremy, Stephanie, and their girls came in to visit. This was super nice, because it gave me a chance to not think about anything and just enjoy (part of) my family. My doctor came in to check on me and basically told my nurse that my contractions were really strong/bad, but I was laughing and joking around and not showing any pain, so she was going to go ahead and break my water.

5:02 - 2cm. Water is broken!
5:15 - 4cm. Back labor has begun. Begging nurse for epidural.

Jill - 1 Labor and Delivery - 1

5:35 - 6cm. Epidural has been completed and proven itself effective. I feel like a champ, even though Jarrod has dropped my leg a time or two.

Jill - 2 Labor and Delivery - 1 Jarrod 1

7:00 - Shift change for the nurses. Insert Heather. She's pretty awesome too!
7:00 - 9:?? - I'm not really sure what happened in this time period. I do remember Jarrod's and my parents being there for a little bit, but that's all I can remember.
9:00ish - Heather kicks everyone out and checks me. 10cm!

Jill - 3 Labor and Delivery - 2 Jarrod - 1

She called my doctor who came by to check on me. She told me to hang out while she performed a procedure and jokingly said she hoped she'd be back before Elliot was born. Little did she know...
9:35 - I asked the nurse to check me again, because I was pretty sure the baby was falling out. She said the baby wasn't going to fall out, but when she checked, she called the dr. and told me it was TIME TO PUSH!!!
9:45 - I had to stop pushing, because Elliot was coming to quickly. The anesthesiologist called to check on me and make sure the epidural was still working. The nurse had to hold the baby in while Jarrod answered the phone. We will be billing the hospital for Jarrod's services. ;)
9:48 - My dr. finally showed up, and was cracking jokes with me while she and the rest of her crew were getting ready for me to deliver. I warned her not to do that, because the baby was getting ready to fall out. She looked at what I was talking about...and quickly stopped talking!
9:50 - I was finally able to start pushing again!
9:55 - My world changed forever.

Thanks to my doctor and the wonderful nurses at Women's Hospital, this experience was far better than I could have ever imagined. I've even considered giving Jarrod one or two more!

Elliot Josslyn Conner

7 pounds 6 ounces

20 inches long
9:55 pm