Angel's Birth

I knew I was pregnant right away. The hardest thing about being pregnant is finding a doctor who listens to what you want, not what he "knows". I found the perfect doctor who said "Epidural on demand and NO EPISIOTOMY". She and I got along great! Angel was born in a hospital birthing room. A room that looks like a bedroom- not a cold, sterile place. Dr. Russell broke my water when I called and said I was ready to give birth. We had decided that since I was having bad back aches and was walking around in mild labor and 4 cm dilated for a week, that whenever I was ready, just call and we would get this done. We arrived at the hospital and got all checked in and I put on my favorite button-up-the-front shirt. Dr. Russell required both a fetal monitor and an IV since she broke my water. I went through about two hours of contractions when I decided that I'd had enough! My motto was "No Pain, no pain". The epidural was kind of tough since you are required to sit on the side of the bed and try to kiss your knees. And it took two contractions to get it done. But once in, what relief! Tom and I played cards (we had brought a deck), I got a bit of sleep, Tom got a bit to eat and 4 hours after we arrived, Dr. Russell was called to "catch". I pushed just three times and Angel came into the world. She was 6 pounds, 13 oz. and the most beautiful baby you could imagine! The very first thing I said was "When can I go home?" "Anytime after the next shift change" was the response from our Dr. I was home in 18 hours. That is the way a birth should go!

Our second child came just one year later and labor lasted just 3 hours! I'm expecting again, I guess I need to camp out at the hospital this time!