From A Mom's Perspective

It has been a while since I have posted an entry into the blog and that is because as many of you already know I gave birth to a beautiful little girl Thursday night and since then Scott and my sister Cheryl have been keeping up the blogs so all of our friends and family could share in this time with us. This post is a little long but I wanted to write something from myself about this amazing experience.

I was very nervous going into the hospital Wednesday night and getting the induction started. When we got to the labor and delivery floor I was escorted back to a room by myself and had to leave Scott, Mom, Dad and Cheryl in the waiting room. Once the nurses got me settled into my room Scott was brought back and then shortly after Mom was able to come back as well. Because of the restriction on the number of people in the room (we had one more then they would allow) then there was a little swapping around but it turned out where everyone got to spend a good bit of time with me. I was given medication to get the induction process started and then they gave me something else to help me sleep and it worked like a charm! Cheryl and Dad went back to my house for the night and Scott and Mom stayed the night at the hospital. Thursday morning my Dr came in and started the medicine that got my contractions going and as the hours progressed so did the pain until I finally decided it was time for the epidural. I was also very nervous about the epidural but I have to say that it really wasn't that bad and it was worth any pain involved. When the medication started to work they could have done whatever they wanted to do and I wouldn't have cared as I couldn't feel a thing after that point from my belly button down and as a matter of fact I fell asleep! Once I woke up the Dr came in a couple of times to check to see if I had dialated enough to start pushing and when that time came I had execellent coaches as again I couldn't feel anything so they had to tell me when to push and helped count as I breathed through each one. After about two hours of pushing the Dr explained that because Jayci's head was not turned right that we needed to do a c-section and that was hard for me to take as I didn't want to go that route but as she said we could have kept trying but if it went much longer then we ran the chance that it would have turned into an emergency situation and I didn't want that to happen so I was wheeled back to the operating room and shortly after we brought this little precious gift we had been waiting on into this world and that moment changed our lives forever. It was a weird experience to be behind a curtain where I could not see anything that was going on but I could hear Jayci cry when she came out and that was music to my ears. Scott was then told that he could go over to where she was and see her but it seemed like forever before they wrapped her up and brought her over to me and all I could do was touch her little face and then they took her off to the nursery to be examined. I was sent to recovery for a couple of hours and didn't get to hold my daughter for the first time until after 1:00 on Friday morning. I am glad that Scott and Cheryl were able to share these details while they were happening.

The first 3 days of Jayci's life we had to spend in the hospital and we got plenty of time to spend with her and get used to nursing and for me to start recovering from surgery and I am so glad that we were sent home Sunday afternoon. Now that we are home I have been able to be more comfortable and Mom is staying with us for a few weeks. I can't tell you how much help that is as she is doing a lot of work around the house and helping with Jayci since I am still unable to do some things and this helps us all rotate and let the other two get some sleep.

I have spent the last 41 weeks thinking about what it would be like when Jayci actually arrived and nothing compares to what it is like now that she is here. We have had some rough spots with her feedings and her sleep (or lack of) but I wouldn't trade this experience for anything in the world. Being a mother is something that I could have never prepared for but is something that I treasure so dearly. I catch myself watching Jayci sleep and make faces and it makes me smile. I sit and hold Jayci as she is nursing and it makes my heart skip a beat as I watch her. Even the changing of a diaper or trying to comfort her as she cries are feelings like I have never had before. Jayci is truly a gift and each moment is something new for me right now and I look forward to each day with her. I have truly enjoyed watching Scott with his new little girl (she has him wrapped around her finger already) and he is a natural father as he had showed me for the past 7 years whith Brittany and Molly. Seeing Mom and Dad with Jayci has also been great to watch as they have looked forward to being grandparents and going through this whole preganancy with us. Mom and Dad have always considered Brittany and Molly as their grandchildren and now they get the opportunity to experience a grandchild from the moment she was born...Mom was in the delivery room until the c-section! Cheryl is already an excellent Aunt and Jayci to have her and I know that Cheryl will always be there for her as she has been for Molly and Brittany. I can't wait to share her with the rest of our family and friends and I know that I won't be able to post very often for now but Scott is helping me out with this as he is posting my entries for me and getting our pictures online and Cheryl is doing the same on her blog. Well I am going to get a little rest for now as Jayci is sleeping and I will hopefully have another post soon.