Some more delivery details
I just wanted to add a few cute details to my previous description of Ainsley's birth, since I was trying to keep it brief, even for my closest friends.
Baby Ulstad was due Monday, July 1st (my Nana's birthday) and I had been having contractions for months before that. Sometimes they were so strong that I thought I was going into labor! One of the worst times was during my 35 minute drive into work when the baby must have shifted into a very uncomfortable position.
Anyway, July 1st came and went. I was so ready to have the baby and wanted to do everything in my power to move things along. So after work that evening, I took the dog for a walk around the neighborhood and went out for spicy Thai food. And all the while, my irregular contractions didn't stop. (I still swear that if my water didn't break, I would have never known when it was time to go to the hospital.)
So yes, my water broke. I woke up around 4:30am July 2nd to go to the bathroom for the 3rd or 4th time that night, but this time, more than pee came out in the toilet. I wasn't sure if it was my mucus plug or what, so I went back into the bed room and told Ryan something weird happened. Someone had told me that if you're not sure if your water broke, lay down and get back up in a few minutes. If there's a big gush, then that's it! So I got up after another minute, and sure enough, splash, all over the floor in our room! We wanted to call the doctor to make sure we should go to the hospital, but my contractions were now 2-4 minutes apart so when the doctor couldn't be reached, off we went anyway.
It was all so exciting! Painful, weird, gross, and scary, but definitely exciting! Thinking back to those moments still give me chills to this day! I am so glad I was able to experience that because, as I mentioned in my previous post, I never got the opportunity to push.
As I was wheeled into the hospital, people all around me were making bets about whether I was having a boy or a girl. This continued until the moment we entered the operating room. The excitement and anticipation of knowing that we were going to finally meet our son or daughter, was too much to handle, so despite my efforts, I could not sleep at all for the next 24 hours. I will never find out the gender for any of my kids, because one of the greatest moments of my life was hearing Ryan say, "It's a girl!"
Even though it was crushing, I am obviously very grateful that my doctor decided to do a c-section. She said she did some cord-blood testing after Ainsley was born that proved she was right on the verge of distress. Had I attempted to push, I no-doubt would have ended up in an emergency c-section. I don't remember much after the surgery, but I do remember her telling me that. I also remember her saying something else, "I NEVER tell my patients this," she said, "but I am telling you that if you plan to have more children, you should never have a VBAC." That stuck with me and made me even more grateful for having experienced a bit of labor with Miss Ainsley.
A lot of people ask us where we came up with the name Ainsley, especially because we had pretty much settled on Camryn for a girl two weeks before. Well, Ryan had gotten the name from a character in the West Wing, one of his favorite TV shows. We looked it up and found out that it was of Gaelic origin and meant "One's own meadow". We were both drawn to Irish names and Ainsley just sounded so pretty, but I discounted the name for a while thinking that it was too different and would be difficult for people to pronounce or spell. Towards the end of my pregnancy, however, Ryan and I started to discuss it again and put it at the top of our list. And seeing my little angel in person, confirmed it. When I first saw her, I think one of the first things I said was, "She looks just like me!" and I wanted her to have the same initials as me.
Well, I think that's enough of more my more gruesome delivery details. Next time I write it will be about my breastfeeding journey… which is still going on, by the way, 7.5 months and counting!
Baby Ulstad was due Monday, July 1st (my Nana's birthday) and I had been having contractions for months before that. Sometimes they were so strong that I thought I was going into labor! One of the worst times was during my 35 minute drive into work when the baby must have shifted into a very uncomfortable position.
Anyway, July 1st came and went. I was so ready to have the baby and wanted to do everything in my power to move things along. So after work that evening, I took the dog for a walk around the neighborhood and went out for spicy Thai food. And all the while, my irregular contractions didn't stop. (I still swear that if my water didn't break, I would have never known when it was time to go to the hospital.)
So yes, my water broke. I woke up around 4:30am July 2nd to go to the bathroom for the 3rd or 4th time that night, but this time, more than pee came out in the toilet. I wasn't sure if it was my mucus plug or what, so I went back into the bed room and told Ryan something weird happened. Someone had told me that if you're not sure if your water broke, lay down and get back up in a few minutes. If there's a big gush, then that's it! So I got up after another minute, and sure enough, splash, all over the floor in our room! We wanted to call the doctor to make sure we should go to the hospital, but my contractions were now 2-4 minutes apart so when the doctor couldn't be reached, off we went anyway.
It was all so exciting! Painful, weird, gross, and scary, but definitely exciting! Thinking back to those moments still give me chills to this day! I am so glad I was able to experience that because, as I mentioned in my previous post, I never got the opportunity to push.
As I was wheeled into the hospital, people all around me were making bets about whether I was having a boy or a girl. This continued until the moment we entered the operating room. The excitement and anticipation of knowing that we were going to finally meet our son or daughter, was too much to handle, so despite my efforts, I could not sleep at all for the next 24 hours. I will never find out the gender for any of my kids, because one of the greatest moments of my life was hearing Ryan say, "It's a girl!"
Even though it was crushing, I am obviously very grateful that my doctor decided to do a c-section. She said she did some cord-blood testing after Ainsley was born that proved she was right on the verge of distress. Had I attempted to push, I no-doubt would have ended up in an emergency c-section. I don't remember much after the surgery, but I do remember her telling me that. I also remember her saying something else, "I NEVER tell my patients this," she said, "but I am telling you that if you plan to have more children, you should never have a VBAC." That stuck with me and made me even more grateful for having experienced a bit of labor with Miss Ainsley.
A lot of people ask us where we came up with the name Ainsley, especially because we had pretty much settled on Camryn for a girl two weeks before. Well, Ryan had gotten the name from a character in the West Wing, one of his favorite TV shows. We looked it up and found out that it was of Gaelic origin and meant "One's own meadow". We were both drawn to Irish names and Ainsley just sounded so pretty, but I discounted the name for a while thinking that it was too different and would be difficult for people to pronounce or spell. Towards the end of my pregnancy, however, Ryan and I started to discuss it again and put it at the top of our list. And seeing my little angel in person, confirmed it. When I first saw her, I think one of the first things I said was, "She looks just like me!" and I wanted her to have the same initials as me.
Well, I think that's enough of more my more gruesome delivery details. Next time I write it will be about my breastfeeding journey… which is still going on, by the way, 7.5 months and counting!
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