Verity's Arrival

February 27 (big sister Kenna's 10th birthday) passed fairly uneventfully...aside from the fact that I had contractions pretty much all day long! Since this had become more common in the previous week or two, I wasn't sure what to make of it, although the contractions were definitely noticeable and more uncomfortable. Many people had prayed on Kenna's behalf that she would not have to share her birthday (she herself was adamant about this), and while I was fairly sure the Lord would grant this request, I did wonder, especially as the evening got underway and it got harder and harder to rest!

Our attempt at a normal bedtime was short-lived. Ted got maybe an hour and a half of sleep before I woke him up and asked him to please wake the girls and Grandma. Our photographer prepared to meet us at the hospital, and I finished packing. (I must say, in retrospect, I did a rather horrible job of packing this time! Ah, well, the important things were included...who needs shampoo anyway?!)

Kenna has no recollection of the two separate conversations she had with her dad about us leaving for the hospital...so...she did not attend Verity's birth after all. Charis, Rhonda, Ted, and I prayed together in the kitchen before we left the house, with Grandma staying behind to hold down the fort. Tobin had awakened during the commotion and hugged us goodbye, but no one else knew we were leaving.

We arrived at the L&D ward at 1am. I was so nervous that we would find out this was a false alarm after all--despite having some pretty painful contractions at home, hardly anything happened during the drive, and the contractions I did have after leaving the house were really not very intense. But I had felt it was time to go, even though there didn't seem to be a clear sign like I had prayed for. Turns out the mama instinct was correct; I was dilated 6cm when we arrived, with my water bag bulging out but still intact.

It was so surreal actually being in labor after waiting and wondering for what seemed like an eternity. The fact that it happened in the middle of the night only added to the dream-like quality of the whole experience. Still, I appreciated the calm and the quiet: peace. Overwhelming peace.

As per my birth plan, we requested an epidural so that in case something happened and Verity ended up in distress, I would be alert for an emergency C-section. We waited what seemed like a very long time for the epidural; it may have been around 2:30am or even 3:00 before it was in. I was afraid that things would progress too fast and it would get to be too late to get one! Thankfully the contractions were so minimally uncomfortable; honestly, it was the easiest labor I've had, other than I was just so tired from being awake all day.

After the epidural was in place, my contractions seemed to slow down. In fact, Ted had time to take a little nap in the rocking chair! It seemed strange to feel so good during labor! The epidural helped, to be sure, but the contractions hadn't been unbearable even before that. The main annoyance, if you will, was that my body would shake uncontrollably during each contraction, even though I wasn't yet transitioning. During this lull, I enjoyed visiting with my nurse and my photographer friend (herself a homeschooling mama of seven beautiful kiddos). Charis calmly worked on a crocheting project. The nurse mentioned that they were wanting to start pitocin, but I asked if we could first break my waters since that has often led to a speedy delivery in the past. Everyone agreed, and so that was the plan of action.

One of the blessings and answers to my prayers for Verity's delivery was that my favorite doctor, Dr. T who had been so proactive on our behalf, was on duty that night. Along with two residents, he was there during the last hour leading up to Verity's delivery. When he checked Verity's position, all of a sudden I felt as if we had entered a twilight zone: no longer was Verity head down, after weeks and weeks of always presenting herself in that position. We all agreed that a vaginal breech delivery was entirely possible; however, a quick ultrasound confirmed that she was actually transverse. Before I could blink, I was being tilted backward with MY head down! And hands were maneuvering my belly as the doctors worked to manually flip Verity into position. My sweet nurse reminded me that God was with us there, which snapped me back to reality a bit, and I began quoting Scripture aloud, any passage that came to mind, hearing her at my shoulder agreeing with my words, which were whispered prayers to keep me from panicking. [I'll list the passages at the end of this post--at least the ones I remember murmuring at the time--in case anyone is interested in reading them. :-) ]

The maneuvering worked, and Dr. T continued with his hands planted firmly on my abdomen to prevent Verity from moving again while my waters were broken. At this point I was at 8 cm, not completely dilated as was originally thought; the bag had bulged through and stretched the cervix to make it seem like I was complete. Verity's station was still fairly high, so we needed some contractions to bring her down and finish dilation. But contractions had pretty much stopped. So they upped my pitocin and sat me more upright to make use of gravity.

For a few minutes, nothing happened, so the doctors stepped out of the room to check on another laboring woman, and after another few minutes, my nurse decided to step out as well, telling me to ring if anything happened. No sooner had she left the room when I felt an enormous wave of a contraction with immediate pressure, so I rang that bell and she hurried back inside! We were ready to have a baby!

Easiest delivery ever from that point on: I pushed carefully a little at a time and there she was, all beautiful and dark-haired and perfect. I got to cuddle her on my chest for a few precious minutes while time stood still and I wept tears of joy unlike any I've shed over my other babies--and I've cried at seeing each precious face, because the miracle of life is something we never get over, nor should we. I watched Ted cut the cord and regretfully agreed after a short while that she needed to go; even love-filled eyes couldn't deny seeing that she was turning gray.

The NICU team was wonderful, and Ted, Charis, and Melissa (our photographer) accompanied Verity from that point. Perhaps I'll ask Charis to write a post about what happened from that point, because my experience was pretty generic post-partum, and who wants to read about that! Verity is the star of this story! But for my mama friends who care about such things, the only difficulty my body had in the aftermath of this particular birth is that my lower abdomen muscles ached in a different way than I've ever felt before, and this puzzled me until the doc reminded me the next morning, "Well, we did turn your baby!" Oh, yes! That did require quite a bit of activity that I wasn't used to, lol.

So, that is the story of Verity Irene's birth, fittingly occurring the same day as the Rare Disease Day that was happening on Capitol Hill.

Welcome, Verity Irene...

Born February 28, 2017, 04:05am

40 weeks, 3 days

5 pounds, 3 ounces, 18 inches long

My labor & delivery verses...in a variety of versions used in my memory efforts over the years:

I love you, O Lord, my strength.
 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
    my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
    my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
 I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
    and I am saved from my enemies.
Psalm 18:1-3, ESV

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10, NIV

Fear not, for I have redeemed thee; I have called thee by thy name, thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee, when thou passest through the fire, thou shall not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee, for I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One. Isaiah 43:1-3, KJV

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, NIV

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
Psalm 23, KJV