The night before I started having back pain that would come and go. I happen to have a doctor's appointment that morning and explained the pain I was having. My midwife said it could be the start of contractions, however I was only dilated to a 1 and my cervix was not thinned out at all... so I went home to get some rest. Then I started having even more intense pain in my back that would intensify every few minutes. I was able to time them. I was in denial that it was back labor so I kept trying to rest. As Jared was walking in the house after work, my water broke! We both knew it was time to go to the hospital. We quickly grabbed all our stuff and went to the car. I sent my mom a quick text that we were headed to the hospital to get things checked out. ( I still was in denial that I was in labor). I was in so much denial I even told Jared to leave all of our stuff in the car because I thought for sure they would send me home! haha. My mom and little sister were flying out a few days later because we thought for sure Hazel would not come before then. We arrived at the hospital just before 6:00pm and as soon as I was admitted, the contractions intensified tremendously. The nurse checked me and I was dilated to a 4 and 90% effaced. Everything went so fast, it was all a blur! I was dilated to a 9 and could not take the pain anymore... so my midwife gave me an intrathecal, which is similar to an epidural except it works much quicker and only lasts about two hours. My midwife knew that the epidural would not kick in fast enough and that the baby would be here very soon! After that, my pain was gone for the most part. I was emotionally so stressed and overwhelmed that I am so glad that I chose to get the intrathecal. It was the best decision for me for sure. Hazel Estelle Schanen was 9lb 2oz and 19 3/4 inches long. My mom and sisters were all together on Facetime. I was so lucky to have such fast labor and an amazing midwife that made my experience everything I wanted. Jared was such a huge support and watching him hold our little girl was the happiest moment of my life. Our stay at the hospital was amazing thanks to all of the great nurses at WMMC.
Now 5 weeks later, Hazel weighs 12 lbs 4 oz and is growing like crazy! My family left just a few days ago and we were so lucky they were able to spend so much time helping us adjust to the life of parenthood. Hazel smiled for the first time a few days ago. She loves bath time, her paci, and being held all day long. She is starting to stay awake more and more and we are finally seeing her personality come out. We love her so much and feel so lucky we were blessed with this amazing little girl.
