My parents' house was also out of power. With no indication of how long we would be without power, and after much discussion and debate, we decided to get in the car and start a trek down to Cape Girardeau to stay with Rog's parents. We stopped before we left town for a late lunch. Throughout the meal, I was feeling tightening and pressure in my lower abdomen. Since I had not yet felt this before, I was unsure as to whether it was actual contractions, or if my stomach was just disagreeing with me.
We were really torn about what to do and were driving down the highway when we came to a split. If we drove south, we would be on our way to Cape. If we drove north, we would head toward the hospital. At the very last second, we veered north to go by the hospital. We were able to walk right into an exam room. The doctor came in, performed the examination, and told us that we would most likely have a newborn in 24 hours. We were terrified. We still had so much to do, nothing packed for the baby, and I had only
begun training my replacement for work, so the first words out of my mouth were "My boss is going to kill me!", and then shortly after, "Thank God we didn't drive to Cape!"
They got us a room, we called some good friends to go by the house and pack some items for the baby, and they proceeded to hook me up to an IV to attempt to stop the contractions. Once the initial shock had worn off, we were thrilled and excited. Later that night, the contractions began to slow down and then eventually stopped. After another exam the next morning, we were told that we could go home. Fortunately by that time our power was back on. We drove home disappointed, but understood that any extra time the baby could stay in the womb would be better for her health.
We made it through the weekend, though I was suffering through some pretty severe back pain, which in retrospect was probably back labor. Monday came, and my office was still without power, so I stayed at home. Rog worked and came home, and that night we decided to go to one of our favorite restaurants, Minion's Cafe. We were enjoying
our meal, though my back was still in pain. I remember shifting to find a comfortable spot and then suddenly felt my water break. I didn't know what to do and I didn't want to cause a scene. I quietly informed Rog, who jumped up, ran to the counter and asked for paper towels since his wife's water just broke. (This is how I remember it, Rog, so you can contest if you feel you need to! I love you!) The owners of the cafe were
people that we had gotten to know since we were in there so often and they were thrilled. We left the restaurant, headed home to get our now-more-prepared-suitcase, and drove to the hospital. Once we were in and settled, they had to give me pitocin to bring on contractions. They were much happier that the baby had waited until
the 36 week mark before she made her appearance. Apparently a few days makes a big difference. I'm not sure the labor could have gone smoother. We were checked into the hospital by about 6pm, the contractions didn't really start until 9 or 10, I had an epidural and tried to nap, and Teagan Hope came into the world at 2:10am on Tuesday, December 5, 2006. She weighed only 5 lbs, 11 oz, which made my part really easy, only about 20 minutes of actual pushing. That easy nature has stayed with her, for the most part. She was sleeping through the night at three months and has since then been a champion sleeper. Though the toddler stage has proven to be somewhat of a challenge, for the most part, Teagan has blessed us with her easygoing and comical personality. Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!
