With the appointment at the hospital to be induced at 5pm we took the last. Moments to have some family photos and prepare for the birth of out baby.
We headed up to the hospital and had to wait an hour before anyone came and saw us. It was very annoying and we were eventually told that there was no one available to break her waters so we would be sent up top ward 51 where we would wait.
Midnight was fast approaching and I was getting very tired. We asked what the likely hood of birthing tonight would be and the answer was slim. I headed home only to realise that I had left the house keys at the hospital. After breaking in and feeding the cat I received a call to say that Chelsea was going down to the birthing unit and that I needed to get there.
I raced back to the hospital and prepared for a long night.
9th January
00:03- transferred into birthing unit and had waters broken, feed and drink.
They are going to start the inducing at 01:00 so she has an hour to start labour naturally. We started to walk around and bounce on the yoga ball. By 01:30 there was a few contractions and the ward was starting to get a bit busy. The coordinator said they were to busy to start inducing now and that she had until 02:00 till they would start the IV. That was all the time that was needed. The more we walked and moved on the ball the more that baby started to cause contractions.
By 2:00 the contractions were well underway lasting about 40seconds with 3minute intervals. This was great new ps so they decided not to start the IV and just let nature takes it's course.
Baby was happy inside and not under any stress. During the labour they kept monitoring the heart rate and most of the time you were asleep. At about 03:00 they decided to call in Katrina and she took over. Our midwife was amazing keeping us informed with what was happening and how Chelsea and baby were progressing. Having her remind Chelsea how to breath and push was invaluable.
I did the best I could to help your mum during the labour. Heating weat bags, providing water, cold flannels, and someone to hold and pull against. It is impossible to describe what is like being in a birthing suit. The emotions that I felt covered the whole sprectrum. Your mother did such a great job and I am so proud of her. She didn't use any pain killer apart for. A little bit of gas but that didn't last for long.
During the labour Chelsea was moving in lots of different positions including having a shower. All this moving was suppose to help bring baby down but baca use you are so big it was a real struggle. After 2hrs of pushing there wasn't that much progress and I was beginning to worry. Katrina said that it can take some time and we are not worried yet. Eventually there was progress and we were able to slowly see your head. Chelsea kept pushing and working and it was truly a huge effort after 10hrs of labour.
Once baby started to come out we realised just how big it was and there was a little bit of concern that it was going to get stuck. Chelsea rocked hard and was able to get tour head out. It was hard work as your little face was getting smooched abut we didn't want Chelsea pushing you out all at once. You started to turn and move and that was painful especially without and contractions. Chelsea had to wait a painful 5minutes before the next contraction and with a room full of midwives they were determined to get you out with this next push. And then it happened. You were born at 11.17am on the 9th January 2014. You weighed 10.5lb or 4.760kgs. Our beautiful baby girl.
Once baby was born Chelsea still had to birth the placenta which is where we had a lot of trouble. There was concern that the cord was going to break and that the placenta was going to get stuck. Chelsea had to go the the toilet to try and empty her bladder to help but on the way there she was loosing a huge amount of blood so they rushed her back to the bed. She started to black out and the pain was worse than labour. She said she can't remember bits of it as watching her eyes roll back and the amount of blood everywhere was one of the scarest things I've ever experienced.
The midwife team decided to call a surgan and get him to remove it in case there was trouble. He would also be on hand if things went wrong. Chelsea woke up enough for one last push and birthed the placenta. The pain stopped and we were finally able to look at each other and, you, our beautiful baby girl.
There was still a little concern with the amount of bleeding from Chelsea but we were allowed to go to Waterford birthing centre where we settled in and you spent your first night.
Your grandparents have been and visited, twice and you have had lots of holds and cuddles. You are a very special part of a lot of people's lives. Welcome to the world baby Willis
