in the parking lot

Checking In

Avery Johanna Mason

7lbs, 8oz 19.5 inches

Wednesday morning, June 9, 2004, I had a weekly appointment with Dr. Russo. Matt drove his car and I followed with Rebecca Brewer tagging along to help us with the car shuffle (Matt would go to work if everything was normal). We were confident this wasn’t the day, or maybe it was a I was past my due date of June 5 and the doctor was concerned at the low water level. So, off to the hospital we go. This was it! We called Erica from the parking lot to let her know, and Rebecca drove my car back home. Looking back, I wish I had asked her to come with because it was lonely in the waiting room while Matt parked the car at the hospital.

But, the first hour there was a blur: getting wheeled to the delivery room and getting set up with an I.V. Matt turned on K-LOVE for a background of Christian music and made the first phone calls to our parents to let them know we were at the hospital and that news would be coming soon. It was about 10am. It was a lot of waiting after that. I felt strange being there and not feeling any different than I had the day or even the hour before. But that changed quickly.

The Water Breaks and Contractions Begin
After my water was broken by a doctor, I began to feel apprehensive. It’s happening now? Suddenly it seemed to be happening so fast … too fast! There’s no turning back! Was I ready? No, but I don’t know that anyone ever really can be. The pitocin forced contractions, which were tough. I don’t know if it was better or worse for me because I hadn’t felt any before labor began at the hospital. The only thing that made them tolerable was the thought that they were only going to get worse. Matt “rented” the movie Dave from the hospital library, but we never even put the tape in. We took a few walks around the corridor, me pushing the I.V. and Pitocin alongside and pausing every minute and half for 30 seconds or so to wait out contractions. I also tried the birthing ball, but the need for counterbalance hurt my back. Simply standing or sitting in rocking chair were most comforting. I wanted to try anything but get into the bed and be trapped there. My focal point was “darkness.” I closed by eyes through each contraction and just breathed. It was amazing how the Lamaze breathing helped. Even without practice, the methods came to me, with lots of prompts from Matt, of course. The pattern of contractions was nothing like the class, though, but I realize the real life experience is hard to emulate or predict. They were always really close together, and the length and intensity varied little. My experience also may have been different having been induced. I was told I could have the epidural whenever I wanted but had no clue when the optimal time would be or how to gauge it. I finally requested the epidural at about 2pm after two especially painful contractions in a row. I couldn’t imagine them getting any worse than that or enduring them for very long. Matt left the room (it’s procedure) but Erica had arrived by this time ad stayed with me. She held me tight while the needle was inserted and the drug began to flow through my body. She prayed for me and the baby the entire time. I had uncontrollable shakes from the drug. It was such a relief. I could still feel my legs and feet but no pain from the contractions. Although it was well worth it, I laid in the bed, still, with piles of warm blankets up to my chin, and yet I shook. I felt helpless. And we waited. With contractions out of the way, I began to get scared again. Can I do this? Will I be strong enough to endure it? Will I survive? I was nervous about what was yet to come. I’ve seen too many movies where actresses are screaming bloody murder as the baby is born. And I have been told they make it look easy on tv! Yikes. Matt was so supportive though. He kept telling me how great I was doing, massaging my head and rub my arms to comfort me.

Within an hour, I dilated from 4 to 8. Avery’s head was pushing, but I mistook the feeling for the catheter that had been inserted recently, thinking it had moved and was causing the discomfort. I mentioned it to the nurse, Edina (“Ah-deena”), who could see clearly that the catheter was not incorrectly positioned. A few moments later, I realized the pain was in waves, like contractions, and that it was becoming more intense. I mentioned it again and said that I thought it was the baby’s head creating pressure; and she whole-heartedly agreed. She left, planning to come back in 20 minutes to check on me; I was getting close. About 5 minutes after she left the room, I mentioned sheepishly that I felt the urge to poop. Erica said she thought that might mean I was ready! When the next contraction came, it was all I could do to NOT push. Instinctively, I began blowing outward in short breaths. Erica got on the intercom to the nurse’s station, saying I was ready. It was about 3:30, and I was ecstatic that it was time.

Here She Comes!
Edina returned quickly and the work began. No more waiting; I could finally DO something. Of course, after 15 minutes I wanted to be done! I was able to keep going with support from the nurse, Matt and Erica who were on each side of me. Matt was full of encouragement, counting off one through ten while I pushed, and Erica was the enthusiastic one, exclaiming occasionally about the baby’s progress. Dr. Hussey walked into the room during a push, not realizing we were in delivery already—Avery’s head was crowning—and said, “How’re we—whoa! Great! Okay.” He was clearly surprised at my progress.

I could physically feel and see my stomach deflating as Avery was making progress down the birth canal. I even felt a moment of sadness as she left my body. In about ten minutes, her head suddenly—and literally—“popped” out and, voila, that was it! Once I saw her, the sadness was replaced by joy and excitement. It was over, and already it didn’t seem so bad. I guess I was constantly expecting the worst. All I could see were her feet and legs kicking in Dr. Hussey’s grasp. Amazing! I was so emotionally charged and full of, well, disbelief. I couldn’t contain the tears or my excitement (and relief). After five hours and 15 minutes of labor and delivery, we had our baby girl. She was beautiful—perfect! Her blonde hair was wavy from the bodily fluids, and her eyes were clear blue. It was so hard to control our emotions. When asked for our baby girl’s name, Matt couldn’t even speak.

I had to wait a long time to hold her, though. She was cleaned and weighed—7 pounds, 8 ounces—and forced to cry (a pathetic effort on her behalf). The afterbirth was nothing, just one push and it was out, and I hardly felt anything at all. Matt unintentionally got a glance at it and immediately wished he hadn’t, but was impressed that he didn’t have any other negative reactions. The manipulation of the uterus were much worse; the nurse sure pressed hard. It wasn’t until this point that I even knew I had had an episiotomy, because Dr. Hussey began to sew me back up. I waited an eternity, it seems. Meanwhile, I was feeling my “flat” stomach. It was like jelly—very strange after so many months of it being hard and round.

Finally, Avery was handed to me to nurse for the first time. She latched on quickly, and the light tugging wasn’t painful at all. Our daughter was in my arms! I could hardly believe it. It is hard to tell whose features she has but we can’t wait to see her character develop. She does have long fingers, with the Mason curvy pinky, and toes.

She was well worth the nine-month wait. We thank God for the miracle she is and for the amazing experience we had. So many people were praying for us before and after her birth. What a blessing to have people who believe in the power of prayer to be taking the time and effort to intercede on our behalf for a labor experience I could truly appreciate, even just a few hours later.

The Hospital Stay
After about an hour, I was moved to the mother/baby room on another floor where I stayed for two nights. Matt and I remained in awe of this little person who we were now responsible for! Matt made several phone calls and told bits of our story. It was fun for me to hear it from his perspective. He was so excited and proud. I hadn’t eaten since breakfast so I was ravenous and requested a late supper. It was almost 7pm. He was unable to stay in the room with me overnight because I had a roommate so he left about 9:45pm. On the way home, he stopped at Wendy’s so he could get something to eat. He told the 18-year-old drive-up cashier, “I became a father today.”

Now alone, I called a few more people and finally was able to sleep after a long day. At about 2am, I was awakened for a feeding and diaper change. I was disoriented for only a moment before the exciting realization that I was a mom! Avery was very alert afterward so we “played” and bonded for about an hour. I explored her fingers and toes and prayed over her. I also took her picture (it turned out disappointingly fuzzy), startling her with the flash. She then slept from 5:30am to 9am or so, which allowed me good rest and breakfast (in bed!). Matt returned at about 9:30 am. It was good to see him. Our friends Jim and Joy DeLaere came about at 11am with an outfit and pink receiving blanket. Rachel Chapman and Cathy Christensen from Allured came after lunch. I rushed Avery’s feeding though so she was fussy. I fed her again at 2pm, than at 3pm! She continued to cry an adorable but painful warble. I was about at wit’s end and she wasn’t even 24 hours old! I needed sleep so we sent her off to the nursery. I cried as we “sent” her away. The guilt already is setting in! Matt checked on her while I napped and they were able to calm her by swaddling with extra blankets tucked into the side of the cradle. The miracle of swaddling! We also had After a visit from H.B. and Kathy Brewer, who brought a beautiful bouquet of pink roses and baby white roses from Springbrook, as well as our friends Rich and Rebecca Brewer, who also brought a bag of goodies for us. The rest of the day was peaceful—mostly phone calls. Then, during a call from Pastor Dan Harrison that evening, we had to go in the hallway for a tornado warning. It had been rainy all day. We sat in the hall, me holding Avery, for less than an hour before we able to return after no further excitement.

Friday, I was holding Avery and changing her diaper on a pillow in my lap when she peed. And then she pooped! What a mess it made. Our cradle-cart was missing wipes and diapers so Matt had to run down a nurse to obtain some. He was so mad that we weren’t able to help poor Avery who didn’t like the experience of pooping and was quite upset. We finally were able to get what we needed from a then-apologetic nurse who had stalled on our request. Another crisis as parents resolved!

Going Home
We prepared to head home that evening, leaving the hospital at about 7 so that we wouldn’t have to worry about any rush hour traffic. Matt was nervous driving, and we were both apprehensive about leaving the hospital and its nursery. We were on our own! I sat in the back seat with Avery, trying to hold her head up so that she wouldn’t “fold in half.” She was quiet for the ride, and so were we as we contemplated our new lives as parents. Again, it was difficult to contain the emotions we felt just looking into her face. What a miracle she is!