Maxwell

"Jordan."  "Jordan"  I continually repeated getting louder each time.  It was three in the morning and like every night I desperately had to pee.  But this time was different.  I had awoken because I was having such a painful contraction that I literally could not roll over and get myself to the bathroom.  

Jordan finally woke up and helped push my achey, large body over the bed.

As I washed my dry hands the thought that had come to me so many times within the past month came to me again... "This is it!!!"  I dried my hands and then waddled over to my warm bed as emotions flooded my body.  I peeled back the covers and curled up next to Jordan who was already fast asleep again.  I laid there as my thoughts had a battle with each other.  A battle over "this is it" and "you're never having this baby!  it's stuck in you forever... have a fun life!"  

I was miserable.  Ready to be DONE being pregnant and ready to look into the eyes of my sweet boy.  

And that's when my prayers started.  "Please let me have another contraction.  And please make it painful.... SOOOO painful!" I literally was in tears as I begged Heavenly Father to just make the contractions painful.  Because I knew that pain meant baby.  

And ten minutes later another one came.  Painful, just like the last.  And they continued...every ten minutes.

I laid there in bed for the next few hours staring at our white wall and studying the way the light from our street lamp shone through our window.  I listened to the frogs outside and basked in the joy I was feeling from every painful contraction.  

After awhile of laying there my excitement began to make me restless so I got up and took a hot shower.  And then I cleaned the house.  

At that point it was around five in the morning and my thoughts and energy were all over the place.

My in-laws were on a red-eye flight and were going to arrive soon so I decided to whip up some German pancakes.  

I am sure they were expecting to walk in the door to a dark quiet apartment... but they were surprised and welcomed to a daughter in law that was brimming with excitement and energy.  At this point the contractions were painful enough that I was down on my hands and knees with each one.  After each contraction I would clap with excitement and say"Guys, that was such a good one... SO painful!"  

For hours this went on... but they never got closer together.  My excitement started to leave and sadness started to creep into its place.  I was left wanting to curl up into a ball on my bed and just cry.  I needed something to make me feel better- so we went and got pedicures and I ate nearly a whole bag of cadbury eggs.  

By the time we got home from the pedicures my contractions had nearly stopped and were only coming about twice in an hour.

It was now late afternoon and they still hadn't progressed so I went out into the rain and jogged the stairs outside of my apartment hoping it would bring them back and this time more frequent and painful.  After a while of doing it and seeing no progress I was ready to try the next idea.  

So we ventured out to target to buy a yoga ball for me to bounce on.  

While in target the contractions started getting close together again and every ten minutes I would have to bend over the cart as I tried with all my might to not fall on the cold tile and just lay in the middle of the isle.  

As we were checking out I finally said after a really painful one, "Guys, I think I need to go to the hospital."  

BUT- I KNEW they would send me home.  So we went back home rather than the hospital. 

While at home I watched the bachelor and bounced for a good hour and half on that yoga ball.  

But they were still TEN MINUTES APART.  

At this point my mom called me and insisted I go to the hospital... and my momma is HARD to say no to.  But Jordan was in the middle of an assignment that was due that night so waited for him to finish.

We finaly arrived at the hospital and I was nervous, frightened and worried... worried that these nurses would make fun of me for acting like I was in so much pain and send me home saying, "you're not in labor..."

After they hooked me up to the heart rate and contractions monitor she checked me for dilation.  I was a four... So the nurse left to call my Doctor to see what to do with me.

  I laid there for a while... no contraction.  OF COURSE once they hook me up to see if I am contracting I get no contractions...Frightened and exhausted I turned to Jordan and said, "Should I jump up and down or something to make myself have a contraction?"  and he looked at me like I was crazy.

After about fifteen minutes and ONE strong contraction the nurse told me that since they were unsure if I had been at a four for a few days or if I had progressed to a four just today that they needed me to walk around the hospital for two hours and then come back and they would check to see if I had progressed more.  If I had progressed at the end of the two hours, they would keep me.  

So there I was at 10:30 PM completely drained, starving and having to labor in the halls of a hospital...

After buying some salt and vinegar chips and water to boost my energy Jordan and I headed for the hospital stairs.  "I am NOT leaving this hospital without a baby" I said to Jordan... so he sat at the top of the stairs and studied while I jogged them for over an hour. We then walked the halls... and with every contraction I fell to the ground in so much pain...They were getting closer together and the pain was so unbearable at this point that I couldn't wait the remaining fifteen minutes to return to Labor and Delivery.  So we returned early.

  

When we returned the nurses facial expressions and attitudes towards me changed from the time I had first come in... as if they were thinking "NOW she's in labor"  cause that excited girl that first came in was now just wanting to die and it was written all over my face.  

I was now dilated to a six.

And the first thing I said was, "I want my epidural NOW!!!!"

Unfortunately it took another hour or so to get the epidural so once I got it I was the happiest girl on the planet.  

Around 3:30AM they checked me again and were very surprised that I was already at a 10.  The two nurses in my room kept checking me and seemed super confused because they could feel the head and could tell my water had broken... but my water had never broken...at least that we were ever aware of... So finally my awesome Doctor came in and she had me start pushing.

I was so excited and in such a good mood that I let basically all the nurses in the hospital in my room and we all just laughed and chatted for the next thirty minutes before Max arrived.  At one point one of the nurses said, "You are the happiest woman (that is in labor) that I have ever seen!" 

"Last push"  my Doctor said.  And before I knew it I could see her trying to pull a baby out and said, "Gosh, this baby is bigger than I thought he would be!"  While still trying to pull the rest of his body out.  

They immediately put him on my chest and that crazy, unconditional, motherly love flooded over me for the second time in my life.  We laid there skin-to-skin and while he wailed I fell more and more in love with him every second.

My sweet Maxwell Jordan Mabey.
4:08 AM
7lbs 9oz
20 inches long

And to put a cherry on top of such a wonderful delivery, he nursed pretty much immediately and in shock I turned to my nurse and said "WHATTTT!!! It's not hurting....???"  He  latched better than Myra ever did.  

I am SO grateful for this little boy and the happiness he brings me... I am even grateful for the exhaustion he has brought to my life because it means I have a BABY... and gosh, I really love babies.