This is how I spent the majority of my labour. It was the only position that felt comfortable.
Here she is!
Proud Papa
8lbs 7oz, 21 1/4inches.
Looking a little "overcooked".
I apologize for my tardiness in updating my blog, but it has been a whirlwind of a month. I'm not sure how other mother's do it, last night I had two children up until 2am. According to the blog, I'm still pregnant. So, that would make me about 38 days overdue. And since I'm not an elephant, I guess I should share our good news with the world.
On June 10th, at 22:08hrs, I delivered a healthy baby girl into this world - naturally. She weighed in at 8lbs 7oz and was 21 1/4 inches long. We've named her Charlie (or Charley, we haven't decided) and she does not have a middle name yet. Big surprise with us, at least she got a first name, it took us almost a week to decide on Lennah's name.
I also got my wish to have her naturally without any drugs. I finally got the birth story I always wanted. I can say that selfishly, as everything went well and we are both happy and healthy.
I went into labour Monday, June 9th in the morning. When I went to my Dr's appointment I was only 1cm dilated and was told a C-section had been scheduled for that Thursday. I was so happy that labour had started on it's own, but it was very obvious that my Dr wasn't too optimistic that I would progress on my own. I opted to cancel the Section and schedule an induction if things didn't change on their own.
Late that night, after a couple of hours of regular contractions, we went to the hospital and were admitted early Tuesday morning. I was exhausted, I hadn't slept in a couple of days and hadn't slept well in weeks. As a result, my contractions slowed down and I was induced that afternoon. Things really started happening later that afternoon, but, although my contractions were coming very regular and progessing in strength again, I was still not dilating. I was only 2cm late that afternoon. So, I got a little scared. Normally, in active labour it takes approximately an hour for each centimeter to dilate. Here I was looking at another 8 hours potentially and the contractions were starting to hurt. So, I talked to Nathan, and we discussed an epidural. We came to the conclusion that there was no shame in taking the medication, even though I had been adamant that I wanted no drugs. I ordered it, and was told we would have to wait as an emergency C-section was in progress down the hall. While we were waiting, Nathan tried to get me to take some of the laughing gas to "tide me over", I hated it. I tried three times, couldn't get more than one inhale each time and ended up just holding on to it for dear life instead of the bed rails. All of a sudden I could not stop pushing and the nurses were telling me to relax and not push, to not fight the contractions. I remember saying that "I can't not push!". I think they started to get a little concerned, and when I was checked next, I had dilated from 2cm to 8cm - in 25 minutes!!! Apparently, that is incredibly fast, especially in a first labour.
**Edited to say: My mom arrived to bring Nathan dinner that evening. She told me later that when she got there, she had no intention of leaving until I had the baby! Nathan also called his Mum when it was discovered that I was 8cm dilated. I always thought I would only ever have Nathan with me, but I was so happy our Moms/Mums could be there with us. It made it even more special for all of us.
This is when things really started to happen in my room, the nurses were calling for the Dr and rushing to get the equipment ready. One hour of pushing later and our little bundle of joy was born. She's beautiful and healthy and we couldn't be happier.
Lennah knew exactly what to do, she even waited until we finished singing "Happy Birthday". 
