Birth Story (4 weeks late)

So I want to apologize in advance for any errors and also the length of this :)

We were supposed to go in on September 25th so I would deliver on the 26th (my birthday), but they rescheduled without letting us know. We were rescheduled for the 28th so we would deliver on the 29th. We got the call to come in to the hospital around 5:00 p.m. They asked if we could be there at 7:30 p.m. to start the process. We arrived at the hospital around 7:00 and were settled into our room (Labor and Delivery room 5) by 7:30. My nurse came in and we filled out paperwork for about an hour… holy crap, can you believe trying to fill all of that out while in labor? I would DIE!!! They checked me (OUCH) and I was not dilated and my cervix was still tough. They started me on gels to soften my cervix. We did 3 cycles every three hours. It was kind of weird; the nurse would insert the gel, I would lie in bed for an hour and then walk the halls of the hospital for 30 to 45 minutes and then I would lie in bed for the rest of the time and then we would repeat the process. The night actually went by very fast. I thought it would drag on, but it was the opposite. Early in the morning I was checked again and with no change I was started on Pitocin.
Let me take a second to talk about my IV experience… holy moly! I was swollen, like everything was swollen. Even my wrists and hands were swollen so bad that my veins kept “rolling”. It took about 20-30 minutes to do my IV and it hurt like crazy. I could not believe that it could hurt that bad. I did however do awesome through the whole process. I was also great when my blood was taken.
Okay- back to the process  shortly after the Pitocin was started my doctor (Dr. Melissa Austin) can in to check me. I was about 1cm, she told me not to be a hero and to get my Epidural whenever I wanted and that she would be back in a few hours to break my water. I definitely wanted to make sure to get my magic juice before she came back to break my water. It hurt so badly when she would check me, so I wanted to make sure I was numb when she came back to break my water. I just want to mention that getting the epidural did not hurt at all!!! My IV hurt way worse and I didn’t even feel the epidural.
My nurses were amazing and I even had a male nursing student helping out. He was very excited and thankful that I let him help out because all of the other patients he asked said no.
I was not making much progress and was checked every two hours or so throughout the day. My contractions would get stronger and then die down. I was checked around 7:00 p.m. (reminder, I have been here for 24 hours at this point) and I was about 4cm dilated. 4cm? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Although, I wasn’t surprised, for some reason I just knew my body wouldn’t help me through this process. I eventually got to 5cm, but stopped making progress. At 10:00p.m. My doctor made the call to go ahead with a c-section. (In the beginning of my pregnancy I was told that I had an issue and would most likely have to go with a c-section. I researched and thought I had prepared myself mentally. My issue cleared up around my 4th month and I didn’t think about the c-section again.) After being told that I was going to have a c-section, I realized I was not mentally prepared and started to worry. I was also relieved because by this time I was shaking so bad from the epidural that it was a little scary. By 10:30 p.m. my nurse was getting me ready for my c-section and I had Connor at 11:00p.m.
The c-section experience is quite odd. I was wheeled in there, strapped down and when they were ready to start they brought Kevin in. It felt like Kevin had only been in there for a minute or so and Connor graced us with his presence. They showed him to us, but I missed it because I had my eyes closed. Right after Connor was born, Kevin went with him. We did take a few pictures and then Kevin left with the baby. I was in there for about 45 minutes to an hour while they were sewing me up and then was taken to recovery.
I was in recovery for about 20 minutes before Kevin and Connor came in. I didn’t expect to be so out of it. I could barely even talk; I was running a fever and was so hot! It did break my heart that I could hold my son when he was brought in to the recovery room. I couldn’t even lift my arms. It also broke my heart that I couldn’t feed him for the first time. It did however, let Kevin experience that first. We stayed in the recovery room for another hour or so and then taken into our room (2021). I cannot rave enough about the nursing staff at this hospital. They were all so great and I am so thankful for them. I was released on Sunday around 3:00 p.m. and even received a call the next morning from the hospital to see how I was doing. I was happy to be home except I really got used to pre-ordering my food and having it delivered to me. I was also getting used to my favorite nurse, Jenn, bringing me cranberry juice with extra ice every hour or so. But it was great to be home as a family 
We did have some visitors:
Michelle and Junior (Friday afternoon)
Kevin’s Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Carla, and Cousin Tiffany (Friday evening)
Erica (Saturday afternoon)

I am so thankful for my husband. He was the best person to have at my side through this journey. I couldn’t imagine having anyone else at my side.