the figueredos:: A Labor of Love

Well, the big day has come and gone (although I'm sure there are many big days ahead!). As you may know, I was due on February 16th, which came and went without a sign of Baby Figs. When talking with the doctor, we agreed to schedule an induction for little munchkin starting on February 22nd. All the while I was having reservations about starting the process too soon and rushing into delivering this baby. Little did I know....

Tuesday afternoon we reported to Morton Plant Hospital to start the induction process. At about 5:30pm they inserted a drug called Cervidil to help get my cervix softer and ready for dilation. I had to leave that in overnight and they would start Pitocin in the morning to help get contractions started. Around 7:00 am the nurse started me on the lowest dose of the drug. Just after 8:00 am my doctor came in and broke my water - and yes, it was disgusting! The "good" contractions started around 9:30 or 10:00, most of which were in my back. I labored until noon and when I was checked, I was already 4 cm. Like a naive, first-timer laborer, I though to myself "so far, this is easy!". At least I was smart and ordered the epidural right then because the anesthesiologist didn't make it into our room until 1:15pm. By the time the epidural was in, I was already 7 cm. Things were moving right along and I thought I would hold our baby before dinner. At 2:45 I started feeling pressure and was measured at 9cm. I really couldn't believe how fast my labor was progressing. Even with the epidural, you could still feel a lot of pressure from the little one's head and I was getting anxious to meet him/her. While I wasn't experiencing pain, it was very uncomfortable and I couldn't imagine anyone doing it naturally. By 5:45 I was still only measuring 9 cm and the doctor said it was time for a c-section. She already thought the baby was on the large side (approximately 8 to 8 1/2 pounds) and was concerned that my pelvis was too small to push the baby out, which is why my labor had stopped progressing. Scared and crying, I agreed. I had a feeling we were going to need a c-section for some reason.

About 6:15 they got me prepped and ready for surgery and wheeled me into the O.R. Chris joined me by about 6:45 and within 5 minutes they were letting us know that this baby had some chubby cheeks on her and that their 8 1/2 pound guesstimate was way off. A couple minutes later, Chris and I heard "It's a Girl", which are three words that we did not think we would hear. I really swore that we were having a boy. Chris left and went to be by Ella Rose Figueredo and watch her get cleaned up and cut her umbilical cord. He brought her over to me and I got to kiss on her cheeks (which are huge!) and look at her beautiful face. I couldn't believe I was looking at, touching and hearing my daughter. We had waited for this moment for so long that it felt surreal. Chris left to take Ella to meet the family and to get her first check-up done. A few minutes later, a nurse came back in to tell me that Ella weighed 9 lbs 13 oz. I thought I had misheard!! I have never heard of a baby in either of our families that weighed that much at birth. And I never thought I was carrying a child that was just 3 ounces short of 10 pounds!! But, she's here and she's perfect! We're all just trying to adjust to a crying newborn at 3:00 am!! Thanks for everyone's continued thoughts and prayers for a healthy, happy newborn! Below are some pictures from her first days!!