Simply in Love

It's been about a month now since i've had this beautiful girl, and i haven't once felt anything other than BLESSED! Oh, im so in love. She's beyond perfect. From her 10 teeny toes up to the top of her head which was definatly blessed with hair, and lots of it!! For my own sake, i want to write down my 'labor & delivery story' so i never forget the fun details.

Sunday morning, November 7th, i woke up around 5ish. I called my mom around 6 or 7 saying i was having back pain. Eventually she convinced me that i miiiiight be having contractions. We eventually started recording the times they would come. 10 minutes apart, then eventually 8, 7, 6, 5.... and we knew it was real. She told me to get in the shower because eventually i would be in pain and wouldnt want to. I took a shower, and was starving! I didn't want to eat anything big, so i had a piece of white wonder bread.. and let me just say it was heavenly. I told my mom over the phone that it was the best piece of bread i'd ever had! I got to the hospital a little after 12 noon and i was dialated to a 4 1/2. They asked if i wanted the epidural ordered then, or if i would like to walk around and wait awhile. I decided on the walking part.. however once i got into my room and got my IV in, the pain was getting bad. I was using those crazy breathing methods, and asked for it to be ordered right away. That epidural was amazingy, heaven sent, magical, etc. I'm not sure what the huge fuss is about it being scary.. it wasn't scary at all! There was a small sting for about 2 seconds, then a cold rush up my back, then shortly after, all that pain was gone! I was sure to click my button to have the medicine every 15 minutes, but at one point i started feeling contractions.. slowly. My little machine was making a beeping sound and of course just my luck, the doctors were all changing shifts. Once my nurse came in, it turned out that my epidural meds had run out! So for about an hour, i was feeling every contraction. When MY ob doctor came to the hospital, it was such a feeling of relief. I trusted her and felt as if 'family' was there with me. I knew everything was going to be ok. I had my water broken, and though it was kind of gross with the "waters" coming out, it was such a cool feeling! With every contraction & everytime baby would move, some more would come out! Saia and i watched TV/Movies for hours & eventually i started pushing. It didn't feel "real" because to me, the pushing part came with pain, screaming and all those other things seen on TV. I had none of them! I pushed for about 2 hours, then the pain started coming back again. I asked them to check to make sure there was enough medicine in there.. and they kept saying there was. Finally it was getting to the point where it hurt SO SO bad, so i asked them to call the anestesiologist (spelled wrong im sure!) in the room. I told him i was beginning to feel everything again. He had me sit up and somehow, the tube had come apart from the needle thing in my back. Uhhh.. great! So for about another hour, i was feeling alllllllll the pain. Dialated to a 10, had petocin to speed up my contractions, and NO epidural. Oh it was HELL to say the least. I was throwing up, crying, and poor saia was just standing there looking like a deer in the headlights! He of course didn't know what to do or say.. so it's probably good that he just stayed quiet :) Eventually we were back to pushing. I was just so exhausted.. mainly from being awake for almost 24 hours at this point. I was doing good through the pushing part, but for the 2 minutes between contractions i kept falling asleep. Baby's head wasn't fitting through my 'birth canal' if thats what it's called.. so they decided that i'd need a C Section. I didn't like the sound of that & saia didn't want me to have it done.. but of course if it was best for baby, then it's what we'd do. I got some stronger meds, then kissed saia & they wheeled me off into the OR to prep me before he was able to come in. The meds they gave me through that epidural numbed me from about my rib cage down to my toes. I kept falling asleep off and on which i think had alot to do with the pain medicine they had given me. I couldn't stay awake for anything. I heard Saia's voice so i opened my eyes & there he was. The blue sheet was pulled up so i couldn't see what was going on. Saia stood there & watched the whole thing. The only thing i remember from the whole procedure was someone pushing on my chest, realizing it wasn't my rib area, shaking uncontrolably, asking if i felt cold and then baby's first few cries. Saia let me know what went on though. He said once he got in there, i was already cut open.. the woman pushing down on my chest (meaning to push on the rib area & lower) was pushing to get the baby out. Someone went in from.. down there.. (sorry if too much info!) to push her head back in me, and with a few pushes on my stomach, out she came. He said it was about a 15-20 minute thing. I wish sooo badly we would have remembered to have him film it. I would have LOVED to watch it. Anyway - i heard three loud cries and Saia said "she's beautiful"... oh boy did i start crying! I couldn't stop. I asked if she was still a girl, if she had hair, and if she was okay. He assured me that she was still a girl, had lots of hair and was just fine. After they cleaned her a bit, they brought her over to me so i could see and kiss her. I told the nurse to give her to Saia.. i knew if i couldn't hold her right away, i wanted him to. He just kept staring at her and we had someone take the first picture of them. At that point it was time for them to stitch (slash STAPLE) me up, and for her to be taken to the nursery. Saia placed her in her little plastic crib thing and wheeled her off with the nurse. I fell asleep again but remember them taking that blue sheet down and seeing a guy and girl with blood alllllllllllll over their arms (gloves of course). Everyone kept saying 'congrats'... and off to sleep i went again. Soon after, i was back in my room that i was supposed to deliver in and asked for them to bring her in to me so i could feed her. She came in and her, Saia and I spent some time together, then they moved us to the recovery room which is where we spent the next few days. Saia was so in love with her from the start and couldn't put her down. Our babygirl was finally here and so pretty :) She was 8lb 6oz, 20.7 inches long, full head of hair, and healthy. Everything we could have hoped for. I wasn't able to get out of bed for 8 hours until the numbing medicine went away, but at that 8th hour, i was so ready to get up and move around. Being bed ridden was NO fun. Walking just 10 feet to the bathroom was SO hard at first but after that first day it got better. I was determined to be mobile!

Anyway - we named her 2 days later. Lyric Salome Josalyn Kaheaofi Vainuku. Lyric for my love of music, salome after saia's mom, then Josalyn Kaheaofi is a combination of his six sisters names. It's long, but beautiful. I love it, and i love her. We mainly call her "little" though. Since I was pregnant and felt her little kicks, i've always called her my "little".. and it just kind of stuck.

Being a mommy is the most wonderful feeling. I absolutely LOVE waking up to her pretty face, love her little personality, those long eyelashes, and big pretty lips. She's truly perfect.. such a blessing. I truly thank the Lord each day for blessing me with her. I cant get over the fact that she's ours, forever.