Isabel's Birthday

Isabel arrived on September 26, 2011 at 1:51pm at INOVA Fair Oaks Hospital in Fairfax, VA. She was a bit early, as her estimated due date was October 7, 2011. I had been feeling like she may arrive early. I had been experiencing contractions on a daily basis and it was just very uncomfortable to move.

Around 3:00 am, I woke to my water breaking. I woke Matt up and we both just waited it out. Of course, as soon as my water broke, the contractions that I had been feeling throughout the evening had stopped completely. We tried to get some rest and carried on like normal. Matt went to work. I tried to wrap some things up with my work. I called the doctor around 9:00 am to let them know that my water broke. They wanted me to go to the hospital immediately. So, I called Matt to let him know that it was time to go to the hospital and got ready for the day ahead.

Once Matt got home, we left for the hospital. I was directed to Triage where they took my vitals and hooked me up to a machine that monitored the baby’s vitals. The nurses asked us several questions and took a test to ensure that my water had indeed broken. Once it was determined that my water had been broken, they checked me to see how far along I was. I was only 1cm dilated and I was not effaced. The nurse let my doctor know the results. My doctor then determined that I would require another cesarean since I had to deliver within 24 hours of my water breaking and the time that it would take me to progress would be too long since I failed to progress with my first pregnancy. Matt and I were disappointed as we were hoping for a successful VBAC, but we focused on a safe delivery. Once the decision was made, they prepped both Matt and I for the cesarean.

The nurses took me to the Operating Room. The room was very cold and looked a bit frightening. Matt was not allowed in the room until after they administered the spinal and they had me set up on the operating table. For the first time, I felt scared and I remember thinking that I just wanted to hold Matt’s hand. They administered the spinal and I started going numb. It was an awful feeling and I almost passed out. I heard the nurses tell the Anesthesiologist that I was turning white and that my blood pressure was dropping. She stated that she had already given me another drug (cannot remember what it was) to counter and I remember feeling much better soon after. Once I was stable, they brought Matt into the room.

Shortly after Matt arrived, they began the procedure. In less than 10 minutes, I heard a baby cry and my doctor (Dr. Eleni Solos) say “Congratulations. It’s a girl.” They took her to a warming table, where they cleaned her up. The table was in my line of vision, which I greatly appreciated. I was not able to see Mason immediately, so it was nice to see my baby girl right away. Matt kept going back and forth to tell me how things were going. He told me she looked beautiful and that she had quite a bit of hair.

After they cleaned her, they swaddled her and brought her over to Matt and me where we got to hold her and take a closer look. She was beautiful and it was so nice to see her. We took a couple of pictures and then they took her to recovery. Matt went with her as the doctors finished the procedure. Once they completed, they wheeled me to recovery where I was reunited with Matt and baby (we still had not named her).

Over the next hour, they monitored our vitals. After they performed her initial testing, they brought her over to me so that we could start bonding. She immediately calmed when our skin touched, but she was not interested in eating at that point. They came to ask us what her name was but we still were unsure of her first name. So for a brief time, she was known as “Baby Female Devine”.

After recovery, they wheeled us to our room where we would stay for four days. Matt had a very uncomfortable chair to sleep on, but he stayed every night. I was so appreciative of his company and help. Not to mention my mother and Matt’s parents. They were dealing with a 2 and a half year old while we stayed in the hospital. Once we were settled into our room, we were asked again for a name. We finally decided on Isabel Josephine. Her middle name honors her maternal great grandmother whom we lost last March.

Throughout our stay, we had a constant stream of nurses, doctors and administrators visiting for information and tests. All the nurses were wonderful. My favorite nurse was Florence. She was so attentive to us and always made sure that we were well taken care of. We were discharged on Friday, September 30, 2011 and we drove home where we were welcomed by Isabel’s Gammy. Welcome home Isabel!

… and a special thank you to Mason for welcoming his new sister by flushing a toy down the toilet, the day that I went into labor, which caused a major blockage.