Gretel's arrival - Part 3

We walked into the hospital and let the nurse behind the desk at St Mary's Ward that we were here to have a baby. She asked for my name and then said "Oh that's why we can't find you. We had the wrong name!" Then they pulled out my file(s), lol, and she walked us over to the delivery suite.

At this point, I was feeling confident we'd be calling everyone soon to let them know who was added to our family. Fat lot I knew! I love that I always learn something new with every birth, keeps me humble, lol.

The midwife went off to phone Dr Nichols, my obstetrician, while we made ourselves comfy. The room contained all the usual features, the delivery bed, a couple of stools, a stainless steel trolley, a pie warmer for the baby (well, that's what we call it anyway :) ), a clock. Wait! There's no clock on the wall!!! There was a very comfy leather lounge which Rob claimed for most of the day. He went downstairs to get some food from the cafe and he brought me a lovely muffin to nibble on.

When the midwife came back (wish I had written down her name!), she told me something that stopped me right in my tracks. Dr Nichols was working north of the river and wouldn't be able to get here until after 1pm! I had mentally steeled myself to wait for him to return from his 2 week holiday right before this baby was due, and now he might miss it! I decided that we would wait until he got there and told the midwife. She was a bit bemused but was very nice about it. Later she told me that she thought it best not to examine me, just in case she made things go faster. It was quite clear that my contractions were very irregular and because I told her that Taffy had jumped on my belly, she told me that she would like to monitor the baby for a little while. I agreed as long as it was only for a short while and so I lay on the bed with those frustrating belts wrapped around me.

So it all stopped.

It took ages before I got another contraction and bub was taking it well so I was unhooked so I could walk around again. Contractions started again and I soon had Rob treading a well worn path to the microwave to reheat my heat pack. As long as I paced the room, my contractions stayed fairly regular. They were not unbearable and the heat pack helped immensely. Sometimes I held it on my belly and sometimes on my back. Sometimes I wished I had made 2 of them so I could cover both places at once!

The labour ward was pretty busy that morning and the midwife who had settled us in had to leave as she was in charge of the whole maternity wing that day. She popped her head in every now and then during the day, fully expecting to see a new baby. A new midwife took over and she was very efficient and it took a little while to warm up to her. I think it's easy to get attached to a midwife and then it takes a little while to adjust to a different personality. But, adjust we did, and we had a great time discussing the weirdest baby names we'd ever heard and previous labours. The time passed and Rob kept making fresh guesses as to when bub would arrive.

She found the clock hidden in a cupboard and Rob took a few photos of me as I wanted to remember how I was coping. The last photo was taken a couple of hours before she arrived and I was still smiling.

At some point after 12.30pm, I had a shower just for something to do. The water wasn't very warm and I had trouble relaxing. The contractions stopped again. Perhaps I'd hit transition, but I felt frustrated rather than over it, which is a typical feeling for me when I hit transition. I got out, and walked around again. Finally it started again and then much to my relief, Dr Nichols showed up after 1.30pm! Now I could have my baby!

Dr Nichols (Chris), was surprised to find me still in one piece and he joked around with us for a little while before he examined me. I was fully dilated so he asked if I wanted my waters broken and I said yes. So he did and then he went off to see some other patients. I had been lying on the bed for a little while before Chris arrived as I was feeling like it was getting close.  Within a few minutes I felt her move down and the urge to push began to creep in towards the end of the contractions. I was hugging that heat pack pretty tight by that stage and Rob was reheating it every couple of contractions and passing me a cup to sip cold water from after each one passed. I kept him very busy towards the end, haha!

Another midwife had joined the crew and the piewarmer was turned on and Chris was recalled. For once the urge to push got stronger with each contraction, I don't always get that urge. I did ask to go to the loo as my bladder felt quite full but I was told it was just the pressure of bub's head. I was sure I just needed to pee, but they were not letting me get off the bed! I lay on my right side with my foot on Chris' hip and Rob holding my left leg and my hand. I started to push down and I could feel bub moving down. All of a sudden her head was through and Chris said "Oh hello little one" and without even opening my eyes, I asked if she was posterior. "Yep," he replied, "I'm looking at a little face!"

I knew it! I felt like there was way too much movement for only her head emerging. She came out with the next contraction at 2.11pm and was placed straight on my tummy in a glorious mess of vernix and fluid. It's the first time I recall feeling heaps of fluid coming out with the baby.

Are there any words to describe that first meeting with a newborn baby? It was magical, awesome and thrilling to say the least. It didn't matter that she is our 11th child, it was just as exciting as the first time we held a newborn baby in our arms. And just like that very first time, I felt ready to do it all again!

We marvelled at her tiny face and her long fingers and her huge feet. She was pink and perfect, not crying, just looking around at her new surroundings. I had seen as they lifted her onto my belly that she was a girl and we started to discuss names while I fed her. Chris checked me over and delivered the placenta, congratulated us and went back to his unfinished rounds. The midwife asked me to let her know if my loss was too heavy, but I wasn't paying attention. I was absorbed with getting to know our newest little princess. After a while, she checked me again and was disturbed at the amount of blood I'd lost. I had to hand over Gretel to Rob while she massaged  my belly. It was boggy and unresponsive. I remembered that I really needed to go  to the loo, so she let me go. As usual, she wanted a sample. Unfortunately the sample was hard to get as clots came  pouring out of me! (Apologies for too much info!) I am fairly sure that my full bladder was preventing my uterus from clamping down and doing it's job. After that, everything settled and I was able to shower and dress in my new pj's and go to our room.

For once, I accepted a ride in a wheelchair. Usually I walk back to the ward but this time I was drained from the blood loss and the marathon labour. Rob went to get my big suitcase from the car (lucky he paid for all day parking, lol!) and then went home to bring the kids back to meet their new sister.

Gretel and I had a little sleep.

We named her Gretel Faith. Gretel means "Pearl" and is perfect for everything we have been through. She is a gift from God, beautiful and shiny, wrapping the stress and bother that we have been through. A wonderful reminder that God has everything under control and a purpose for everything. That's what I think of every time I look into her eyes and I thank Him for His wonderful provision and grace. Faith is what got us through.