All About Me!!
My Birth Story
By Mommy
Shane and I decided in June 1997 that we were both ready to have a baby. We had been married for a couple of years and it just seemed like the right time to start a family. We found out on August 16 that we were expecting. We were both thrilled and a little nervous. I spent the next couple of months EXHAUSTED and suffering with horrible morning sickness. The sickness was so bad I couldn't even keep fluids down and I was given Phenegran to help me keep things down. We went to out first OB appt. in early Sept. The pregnancy was comfirmed and although I was only about 8-9 wk. along we heard her little heartbeat. It was such a wonderful sound!
I was having some pains in late Sept. and I was given an ultrasound to make sure everything was okay with the baby. They did see a minor complication but I was told not to get too worried. Well of course I did! The Dr. wanted to monitor me closely for the next few weeks and I had 2 more ultrasounds. It was so amazing to see something so tiny kick it's little legs, suck its thumb. It was even more neat when she seemed to look at us on the monitor. At this point we had no idea whether we were having a girl or a boy. But Shane said he KNEW we were having a girl.
I had a 16 week ultrasound in Nov. The technician had asked if we wanted to know what we were having and although we had first agreed to not find out, neither of us could resist finding out. I will never forget the look on Shane's face when the technican looked at us and said, "It looks like you are having a little girl." A million thoughs ran through my head at that moment. But most of all I could not WAIT to meet HER!!!
We decided a few weeks later that her name would be Mckenzie Cianne. I loved the way Kenzie sounded and Shane had heard the name Cianne in a movie he liked.
I remember as I got bigger how I could feel her hiccuping and when she would move so much it would keep me up at night. She was SO active all the time!! She really responded to Shane's voice and Pink Floyd music. And speaking of me getting bigger....I got HUGE!! By my final Dr's appt. I had put on close to 60 lbs. I thought for sure the baby would be 10 lbs!
I was due on April 15, 1998. But everyone told me that I would probably go past my due date with her. I was scheduled for induction on April 22 at 9:00 pm. I remember telling my family to come and visit me in the morning because I was SURE she would be born around 7 am.
I arrived at the hospital having mild contractions but I was barely dialeted. I didn't even know I was contraction and I thought, "Wow, this is going to be really easy." Little did I know...
They couldn't start my pitocin until around midnight. Her heartrate shot up and they just didn't want to risk anything by starting the pitocin. I was so scared. They gave me oxygen and I just laid there hoping that everything would be okay. I laid on my side for a couple of hours and her heartrate went back down. The pains didn't really start hurting until around 5 am and when they came on they were very strong and intense. Something in the early am hours they gave me some nubain to help me rest. It barely helped. They broke my water around 8 am and I was given my epidural around 11 am. I was exhausted and I didn't want anyone near me. Sometime around 2 pm they started talking about the possibility of a cesarean section. This was something I was totally unprepared for. The dr. told me not to worry though and try to rest. I was 4 cm then. I took a nap and woke up about an hr and a half later. The nurse checked me and told me IT WAS TIME TO PUSH!! I could not believe that I had slept through the hardest part and that everything happned so quickly. I started pushing around 4:30 pm. I was so tired and thirsty and I didn't think I could push anymore. Shane was counting through each push and just his voice was annoying me. Finally at 6:25 I pushed the last push. And a beautiful baby girl was lying on my stomach. All the dr's and nurses were commenting on how much hair she had. She was the most perfect thing I had ever seen in my life!! She weighed in at 8 lbs. 6 oz and was 21 and a half inches long. Her apgars were 9/10. I had to wait awhile to hold her because I got sick but the moment she was placed in my arms I felt this instant bond with her. I didn't sleep for the next 2 days. I just couldn't take my eyes off of her! I felt great afer having her. No complications at all.
We have been blessed in such an amazing way. Wherever we go people comment on what a beautiful baby she is. She has always been a complete joy in every way. She has never cried that much and she always seems to be smiling or giggling about something. We are just so proud of her!