Our darling daughter was just as stubborn as our mischievious son when it came to evacuating the womb! She was due on the 14th December but when I had my last check up at the obstetrician's office a few days later, we discovered she was nowhere near ready to pack her bags and get out of there. The ob feared she was going to be bigger than her brother who we had some dramas in getting out so the evacuation orders were in place for Friday the 19th.
I went in on the Thursday night to have gel tape applied and get things happening. Andrew went home at 11pm to get some sleep and I tried to sleep as well. Of course, I couldn't. Knowing my baby would be there the next day, and wondering if anything was going to happen overnight, worrying whether the labour would be as long, hard and as scary as last time were all factors that got in the way of the much needed zzz's. Then just as I did drift off, someone would press a buzzer or a baby would cry and I'd be awake again. I tried to tire my eyes a bit by handstitching the binding down on the baby quilt I'd brought in for that very purpose, but even that didn't work. I think I got maybe 2hrs of broken sleep all night, giving up when I woke at 5:30am and the midwife came in to do my obs.
My obstetrician came in and broke my waters at 8:15am and Andrew returned at about 8:45am and we wandered the grounds of the hospital for a bit, enjoying the beautiful day and waiting for contractions to start. They did, and got nice and regular quite quickly and a "show" an hour later gave me hope that my body knew what it was doing this time (none of that happened last time until massive doses of syntocin were given!). I wanted to avoid the syntocin at all costs as I knew that meant ultra pain and contractions on top of each other for several hours (going from past experience). So I was quite pleased that the contractions were good enough for the obstetrician to leave me alone for a while. She then got caught up delivering another baby so I was silently cheering as while she was busy, she couldn't hook me up to a syntocin drip!
Unfortunately she did eventually get to me though at around 2:30pm, and decided my contractions weren't close enough together to do much in the way of getting that baby out. So the syntocin came. And so did my tears... until I got a grip and decided just because I needed the syntocin again it didn't have to turn out the same way, and who cared if I needed drugs, all I wanted was for this baby to be healthy enough to room in with me. The ob started the drip on the lowest dose just like last time and left me to see if contractions would get closer. About an hour after she left, I started being sick, feeling like I could cope no longer and got teary again ordering an epidural (I figured nothing else worked with Austy so why bother!). The midwife I had was wonderful and positive throughout the whole labour, perhaps realising how scared I was the second time around, knowing what I was in for, and having had a bit of a hard time of it last time. She told me it was likely to be "transition" and got the baby stuff ready to encourage me. I told her it wasn't transition as it got to that point last time and nothing had happened - it was just the synto doing it - and I still had hours to go. She wasn't convinced, so told me to wait for the obstetrician before we made the epidural call!
My ob arrived and checked to find I had dilated 5cm in just an hour and it wouldn't be long before I was ready to push. She suggested I use the gas and since the anesthetist was nowhere in sight I gave it a shot. I couldn't believe what it did to me - the midwife told me it was on a low dosage just like I had asked for with Austin, but a few deep breaths and I almost passed out, scaring the life out of Andrew, and I couldn't move or talk for a few minutes, easing his anguish by responding to his frantic "Joy! Joy! Are you okay?!" calls with a very slow and slurred "I'm gooo-ooone..." That was it for the gas - the ob told them to take it off me as I was too relaxed!
She went off for her hairdresser appointment with her three kids in tow, and then as soon as she got out of the car, her phone rang to tell her to come back to the hospital as I was ready to push. She didn't muck around as she knew the pushing stage was super fast with Austin. She just had to get her husband there to take over with the kids and then she could come back to deliver my baby. Luckily, having not had an epi, I was much more exhausted than I was at that stage with Austy, so the pushing took a little longer giving her time to get there.
Our beautiful little princess, Madelyn Anneliese arrived at 5:05pm, weighing exactly the same as Austy (9lb,1oz) and measuring 51cm (1cm shorter than Austy) and having a head circumference of 34cm (1.5cm less than Austy). She seemed a bit smaller than him so I don't know where she put that weight. Instead of back fat like he had, hers was deposited on her rolly little thighs. So cute! She had also had the cord around her neck, although not twice around like Austin's so she didn't have to have it cut before she was out like he did.
As they took her to the table to be rubbed and wrapped, we both just stared in silence with our jaws dropped waiting for the cry that never came with our son until he had been whisked off to the SCN and out of my sight. And then suddenly she became nice and pink, and there it was. "Waaaaahhhhh aaaaaahhhh aaaaaaahhh!!" I can't tell you how wonderful it was to hear that sound! They handed her to me and I asked if she was going to be okay to stay with me. They told me she was, and I beamed at Andrew, realising that not only did I get my healthy little baby, but I managed the birth relatively drug free (except for the syntocin and those few puffs of gas), just as I had hoped for with Austy.
My recovery was quite quick too, I felt more like I had done a few push ups (thanks to holding onto the bed too tightly while I pushed) rather than had a baby. It was a huge difference to last time. She fed straight away (and for most of the first night until the midwives dragged her out of my grasp at 12:30am so I could have a couple of hours sleep until I rang the buzzer at 3am and demanded her back!). She loves her milk as much as her big brother does, and is certainly thriving on it!
Madelyn's personality is a lot different to Austy's at the same age (except for the milk guzzling and needing milk NOW!!!). She sleeps a lot during the day, but still wants to feed all night. With him, he was brilliant at night but awake most of the day staring at everything going on around him, taking everything in. She couldn't care less - give her a full tummy and a nice snuggly wrap and she'd much rather be in dreamland! She does get a fair bit of wind pain at the moment which upsets her a bit, but it's probably from the way she guzzles at the breast like she's never been fed and will do it again just 2hrs later.
Austy is thrilled to bits (as are we) and tells us often that he is glad she came out of Mummy's tummy, always asking for cuddles. He just adores her, which is wonderful to see. While the tantrums have stepped up a notch and the "listening ears" seem to spend more time switched off these days, he is always very gentle with her. We feel so very lucky to have two beautiful children, and one of each at that!
Oh and just look at how similar they look - it's unbelievable. Both photos were taken on their first car trip, on te way home from hospital. Austy is on the left, Maddy on the right.
