Drew and I were rushing to finish up work before the holidays.
We were go go go and just needed a little break. So, we did what we always do when we need rest: go to the mountains. We got coffee in Breckenridge, played fetch with Luna on a random trail and took a few pictures on top of Loveland Pass. It was perfect. Relaxing, refreshing and just what we needed.
That night (Sunday) I started feeling what I called "painful braxton hicks contractions." The off and on cramping in my back and stomach kept me up all night but they dissipated once the sun came up. Once I got out of bed, I felt sick...like I had a cold or something. So I went to my chiropractor and laid low for the day. Monday night came, the sun went down, and the contractions picked up again, right before we headed out the door for our birthing class. I remember sitting there with pain in my pelvis and hot flashes and all I could think was, "These better go away soon. I NEED TO SLEEP!"
After class, I asked the nurse about the contractions and she said she would have a midwife call me, "Just to make sure you're not in pre-term labor" she said. Later that night, the midwife and I chatted and she suggested I go to the hospital just to make sure it's nothing. I told her I wanted to try to sleep first, thinking that would make them go away.
Well, as you can guess, they didn't go away. I called my midwife back at 3am and told her my contractions were 5min apart and lasting 1minute (which in birth world that means: GET YOUR BUTT TO THE HOSPITAL, you gonna have a baby).
So we did. I told Drew: WE HAVE TO GO...NOW!
Did we have a hospital bag ready? NO. Did we know what to even pack in a hospital bag? NO. Was I a hot mess, yelling at Drew to pack things while leaning over the dresser, having contractions? Haha, YES.
Once at the hospital, they said I was at 2cm. In my mind I was like, "Okay...that's no big deal. Women can be at 2cm for like...a month, right?!" Two hours later they checked me again. The nurse looked at me, smiled, and said,
"Well, you're at 4 centimeters...! You're going to have your baby today, Brooke!"
All I could do was laugh in disbelief as I looked over at Drew's shocked face. This wasn't a drill. This wasn't a false alarm. She's not joking! We were having a baby. TODAY. It took a few hours for the shock factor to wear off and the pain to increase for me to come to terms with the fact that I was, indeed, in labor.
I labored throughout the day with the help of Drew and my awesome doula (seriously, doulas are worth their weight in gold. GOLD, I tell you!).
By 3:00pm I was at 8cm and my water hadn't broken yet. So, they broke my water and FIVE MINUTES LATER I heard the sweetest cry and this tiny, 4lbs 15oz, little boy was on my chest. He was crying, his skin was pink, and I knew: he was healthy, I survived labor, and my life just got a million times better.
