Cameo woke up at 5:00 am on Sunday, July 13th and
was having contractions, small and infrequent but enough to keep her awake. She
didn’t tell me until after we were on our way to church because she thought
that I wouldn’t have let her go to church, which was probably true. At church,
her contractions were consistently about every 20 to 30 minutes. They were
uncomfortable but not excruciating. Cameo was in semi-denial—she didn’t know if
the contractions were a sign of pending labor and so we stayed for a post-church
meeting for myself and choir practice for her. Upon driving and arriving home,
I started timing the time between contractions and the contractions became more
frequent (about 10 minutes between). I became anxious and eager to eat lunch
quickly, gather our stuff, and head to the hospital. Cameo was still in denial
and was reluctant to leave in a hurry. She called her sister, Julee, to see if
I was overanxious. Julee confirmed my suspicions and encouraged us to leave for
the hospital as soon as possible. We had just finished eating a quick lunch and
put Leo and Lucy down for their naps. Kathy Griggs came over and we gave her
the instructions for the next few hours with the kids. I anxiously kept rushing
Cameo but she remained calm and still unsure of whether the contractions
indicated pending labor. She mentioned about possibly being turned away at the
hospital at least 5 times. I felt more sure that the baby was on her way. Cameo
really wanted to have the baby and so her reluctance with everything was her
attempt to avoid possible disappointment in case labor did not proceed. In
fact, Cameo told me after Jane was born that she had prayed mightily on the
evening before that she would be born on Sunday.
After arriving at the hospital at 2:30 pm, they monitored
her contractions for about an hour and a half in triage. She was dilated to 4
cm at her admittance and contractions became more frequent and painful but she
was only dilated to 4.5 cm at 3:30 pm. Everything continued and they moved her
to a labor and delivery room at 4:00 pm. They got her IV started and began preparing
for the epidural, which they anticipated would happen around 5:00 pm. Epidurals
are mandatory for women who have had a previous cesarean section as many women
who attempt a vaginal birth end up having another C-section. This was not the
case with Lucy so we were both hopeful that Cameo would be able to birth Jane
vaginally but with the epidural.
Contractions were much more frequent at this point—about every
2 to 3 minutes—and were beginning to be extremely painful for Cameo. Dr.
Alverson arrived at 4:15 pm but chose not to check Cameo’s dilation as he
wanted to wait until she was more comfortable with the “happydural.” The nurse
administered some medication to help Cameo until she was ready for her epidural
and within minutes she was feeling better but the room was moving up and down
for her. At each contraction, Cameo didn’t know if she would be able to make it
until the epidural.
Meanwhile, Germany and Argentina were locked in a battle in
the World Cup Final. The score was 0-0 and they were in the second overtime
period. There was approximately 5 minutes until they would go to a penalty
shootout to decide the winner of the World Cup. I was half watching the game
while Cameo was squeezing my fingers in pain. Then, at 4:30 pm, Germany scored
the goal that would propel them to win the World Cup, Cameo had a contraction,
and her water broke. Thanks Germany.
I went out and told Natasha, our nurse, that Cameo’s water
had broken and she came and checked Cameo. She was dilated to 9 cm. At her next
contraction, Cameo said that she felt the need to push. The nurse asked her if
she wanted to have the baby right now or try to wait for the epidural, which
was over 20 minutes away since the anesthesiologist was just leaving his home
per Natasha’s report. Cameo said that she wanted to wait. The next contraction
was excruciating for Cameo and the nurse said that the baby was on her way and
that Cameo wouldn’t be able to wait. Cameo was scared and didn’t think she
could do it without the epidural but the nurse was very encouraging and reassured
her and so Cameo agreed. I was worried for Cameo but really believed that she
could do it. As usual, I didn’t know what exactly I should be doing or saying
that would be most helpful so I just held Cameo’s hand and touched her shoulder
and the back of her neck with my other hand. The nurse left for a minute and
over the next 60 seconds, all of the nurses and Dr. Alverson were getting
everything ready to deliver the baby. Everyone was set up and ready to go at
4:35 pm and Cameo was wondering if she would be able to do it this way. The
nurses coached Cameo (and vicariously me) really well and after 4
contractions/pushing, Jane “just popped out” (how Leo described it) at 4:45 pm. She weighed 6 lbs. 14 oz. and was 20 in. long. I struggled to hold back sobbing as I saw Cameo in so much pain during the
labor but was equally filled with joy and love when Jane arrived. Jane let out
a little cry but was brought almost immediately to Cameo’s chest and within 5
minutes, she was calm and nursing.
Everything happened so fast and so afterwards, both of us
were a bit in shock that she was already here in our arms. We are happy and feel
blessed that she arrived safely and that our doctor was able to deliver her. Cameo
has now given birth in all three possible ways: C-section with Leo, vaginally
with an epidural with Lucy, and all natural with Jane. What a champ! Cameo and
I also feel that our Heavenly Father was watching over all of us during the
process.
Leo and Lucy came to
the hospital to meet their new sister Jane the next morning. We bought donuts
to eat together in celebration of Jane’s birthday and I’m not sure if Leo was most
excited about seeing and meeting Jane or eating the donuts. Both of them were
excited to see Cameo and Jane and wanted to hold her, especially Lucy. Their
excitement lasted for about 10 minutes, which was as expected, and it was a unique
and special feeling to be all together as a family.
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