Isn't She Lovely!!

During the latter part of my pregnancy, I've had a feeling that Serafina was going to come early. My body felt heavier, and by the end of June, I was already carrying her pretty low and stretched out more than I thought was possible. Still, she didn't come out on June 26th, despite all the prodding and nodding of approval from both Robert and myself. After watching the fireworks show in Tustin, I even declared that it would be perfect for her to make her debut. She didn't budge. I did have more and more contractions during the week, and I knew something was different when I was feeling them moving from my belly and going down.

Wednesday, at 3:45 am, I woke up with the same painful contractions. This time, they felt a little worse. I tried the usual. I drank some water and shifted which side I was sleeping on. They weren't going away. I woke Robert up for his iPhone, which has a Contraction Calculator application so I could see how far apart they were coming. 6 minutes. 4 minutes. 3 minutes. 5 minutes. 3 minutes. I got up. Having showered earlier, my hair was a crazy mass on my head, and I decided that since I had a while before leaving for the hospital, I was going to do my hair. Yes! Call me crazy, but there I was in the bathroom, straightening my hair and dealing with contractions coming in every 3 minutes. I did wake Robert up to tell him that this was it! Serafina was coming! I still managed to get dressed and finish putting on my makeup while he took my hospital bag to the car and wake up a little more. I calmly woke my parents to let them know I was having contractions, and that we were leaving for the hospital. Oh! How I wanted to stop by Starbucks and get a caramel frapp and a pastry on the way to the hospital, but I'm sure my doctor and the nurses would have frowned at me for that decision.

We arrived at the hospital by 6 am, and were admitted right away. Dr. Hagadorn was called. I was hooked up and monitored. Went through the questionnaire while enduring more contractions. The best thing the nurse told me was that I was going to get something to stop the contractions because I was already 3-4 cm dilated at this point. THANK YOU!!!! I couldn't take any more waves of pain. I might have started crying if I had to feel them for another hour. I had my blood drawn at the same time they were trying to find a spot to insert my IV.

Dr. Hagadorn was ready to get things going by 8 am. They moved me to the other room and prepped me for surgery. As my legs started to tingle and go numb, I remember thinking what a terrible feeling it is to not be able to move a part of your body no matter how hard you try. My only consolation was that I would be pain free for a good number of hours. My surgery didn't take long. Pressure here. Pressure there. I could feel them pulling, and pushing down on my belly. More pulling. They told Robert he could get up and get ready to get that perfect picture. Then I heard that most beautiful cry! Serafina was out! What a precious sound. Her cry, greeting the world. I was still shielded, waiting to finally meet my little one.

Serafina Luz Virtucio Medina
Born on July 8, 2009 (they called it "Lucky 07-08-09")
9:09 am
6 lbs 9 oz
18 inches long

So tiny. So beautiful. Look at her long fingers. Tiny little toes. All that hair! So beautiful. I love her!

Stitched up and going to recovery. Robert and I were exhausted by then. Robert was starting to feel the loss of sleep, and I was just worn out from dealing with the contractions and birth process. I looked at Robert while he sat holding Serafina and said to him, "And to think I really did say just a week ago: Wouldn't it be nice to have a little bit of the natural birth experience? To go through the "surprise" and having contractions tell my body that the baby is on her way? Not as far as having my water break, but to at least make it to the hospital before that happens?" HAHA! Be careful what you think about when it comes to your ideal birth story, right??

I definitely got the birth experience. At least as much of it as I can handle. We are so thankful to be blessed with another beautiful little girl. Pray for us as we continue to seek God and His wisdom in raising our daughters.