Delivery Day- Aislin

The belly at 35 weeks.

I was definitely carrying all out front and low this pregnancy.

None of my pants would stay up and I couldn't bend over at all. I was looking forward to being able to move again soon.

The kids stayed at Gigi's house the night before my induction.

Last pic as a family of 5!

Last belly pic EVER at 39w 3d. I was induced again since I never go into labor and didn't show any signs of labor with this one either. I was having some contractions for the past few weeks but nothing regular and hadn't changed from 1/80/high for weeks. This baby was not well applied and I was just ready to have her out!

Baby #4 here we come!

The nurses had a tough time getting my IV in so my induction was off to a delayed start. Then the nurse thought the baby might be transverse (moment of panic of having a c-section on my last) so an ultrasound was done to confirm she was vertex. She ended up being asynclitic, which explains why she wasn't well applied and I wasn't progressing. The nurse started the pit but only increased it by 2 so it took forever for the contractions to get going. I wanted the baby to come down more before the Dr. broke my water so we waited for hours but the contractions, although regular, were not hurting despite the pit. Dr. Lamb decided to break my water around 1:30pm and as usual things started to pick up. He had asked me to wait until I was uncomfortable to get the epidural since I wasn't in active labor quite so I waited...and waited too long. It took about another 2 hours for the contractions to get going and after about 30 minutes of breathing through them, I got an epidural at 4pm. I had the nurse check me before the epi to see if I was close but was only 5cm. But when I sat up for my epi and I started shaking, I knew I was in trouble and transitioning. The pain was terrible and the pressure was even worse. The anesthesiologist was quick and great, but when I laid down, the pressure was so intense, I was practically crawling up the bed. It felt like my tail bone was being scrapped by an ax. Every contraction was unbearable and the pressure only decreased slightly in between. Even though the nurse had just checked me, I asked her to check me again and I was complete/+2 and had to push. She called the Dr. and he was came quickly and I started pushing as soon as he entered the room. The nurse bolused my epi but it didn't help. Nothing could manage the pressure; I just had to get this baby out. I felt a bit out of control since I was not prepared for this feeling and have never felt anything like this with my other babies. I pushed 3 times with a contraction and her head was half out when the contraction ended and the pressure was more than I could bear! I was expressing my discomfort and them suddenly it went away! I asked Dr. Lamb how he made it go away and he said he just pushed her back in! With the next contraction, I pushed her head out and then with the next came her body and then I was done! They handed me this beautiful, crying, pink baby girl with dark hair (although it looked blonde until she was cleaned up). It was the slowest, fastest delivery and after that pain, I was happy it was my last and that she was finally here.

She weighed 7 lb 8 oz and 20 inches.

She wasn't a light weight, but she has pretty skinny arms and legs and seemed long.

Unlike her ultrasound, she came out looking just like all our other babies: same nose and mouth. Her eyes are a very deep blue, most likely turning brown, and she has a decent amount of brown hair, especially in the back. Her head was perfectly round and it's interesting how many people continue to comment on her perfectly shaped head.

Gigi brought the kids up and they were absolutely ecstatic about their new baby sister.

Raegan couldn't stop laughing.

First family photo.

She has the most beautiful tan skin color.

She did well at the hospital, sleeping most of the time. She nursed fairly well, although she didn't have the best latch since she wouldn't open her tiny mouth much. The nurses were great at leaving us alone, so I got pretty good sleep. Patrick had taken the kids home, so it was just baby girl and me.

The next day, Patrick came to get us to go home and we needed to pick a name. This had been an ongoing debate since we got pregnant and we were getting no where. Not liking any of each other's names, I agreed to Caitlyn because a decision needed to be made. But as Patrick was about to write it on the birth certificate application, he looked up and said what about the name Aislin (Ashlyn) which we had discussed earlier but had a discrepancy about its pronunciation and Irish spelling (Aisling). So, we agreed to drop the "g" making it fit the Irish and end in "n" criteria like the other kid's names and that was that. Patrick quickly finished the paper work and we went home with a baby who had a name!

Welcome home Aislin!