10 years ago today...

I woke in the early hours of the morning multiple times until I got so excited I had to get up. I had cramps that turned into pains very quickly. About 6:30am I got Ken up and told him how I felt and asked him what he thought. He sat on the couch with me and we talked about calling the midwives to ask them what they thought.

I decided to get in the shower while Ken called the midwives at the hospital. We moved to South Bend one month prior to my due date and decided not to change hospitals. The plan was to drive to Kalamazoo from South Bend for the delivery. When I got out of the shower, Ken said the midwives told him to bring me in slowly and that we should have plenty of time to get there. If I wasn't ready by the time we got there we could go out to breakfast and then come back to the hospital later. (My pains did not yet meet the 5-1-1 rule.)

So, we got in the car and stopped at my mom's office to get a stop watch (she coached track) to keep us occupied during our drive and also to tell us how close my pains were during our trip.

After that, Ken and I hit the open roads between Mishawaka and Kalamazoo. We discussed things like how our lives were going to change and whether or not we wanted to circumcise our baby. Very soon, we discovered that my pains were only a couple minutes apart but not lasting a minute yet (about 45 seconds). About an hour down the road, I was feeling very uncomfortable. We were breathing slowly through all my pains. Ken was helping me focus as he swiftly drove to the hospital. I began to shift in my seat to try to find a comfortable position. Just as I did, I heard him yell loudly, "Get your feet off the dashboard. We have to make it to the hospital." (Ken later said he wondered if he should have called an ambulance about that time.)

About 15 minutes later, we got to the clinic where the midwives told us to be checked in the basement of the hospital. They sent us to a waiting room and said they would call us back in a few minutes. I decided I wanted to use the restroom, and Ken walked me to the restroom and waited outside the door.

When I sat down, I realized the wetness I was feeling was not going to be easily cleaned up. I yelled for Ken to come in. Within a millisecond, Ken yelled down the hall for someone to come very quickly. A midwife came in with a doppler to check on my status and that of our baby (which everyone was sure was a boy - but we wanted to leave it a surprise). This is exactly what that midwife said, "Ok! The baby's heartbeat is in a fine range. But, you have a decision to make. I can feel the baby's head about this far from the surface," as she pointed to the end of her fingernail on her thumb. "You have a decision to make. We can deliver the baby right here in this bathroom or you can get in this wheelchair and try to hold it until you get up to the delivery unit."

Immediately, Ken said, "Baby, get in this wheelchair! We're going upstairs!" A nurse from the clinic and a security guard got in the elevator with us and all three of them were breathing in sync with me the entire time. When we got to the delivery unit, they had the closest room to the elevator waiting with the delivery midwife, her nursing assistants, and a few nursing students. They told me to put a gown on and get in bed.

Ken helped me and we quickly got into place. As the midwife was checking me again, the questions began. "When was your last period?" "What?" I asked. "What was the first day of your last period?" "Uh, 9 months ago!" "Yes, but what was the day?" "I DON'T KNOW! Do you have to ask these questions NOW?" So, they agreed to save the paperwork for later but then asked if a few more students could stay and watch the delivery. "WHY NOT, I DON'T CARE."

Only five pushes later, the midwife announced, "We have a baby girl!" Ken immediately left my side and went over to our new baby girl. He got to hold her first and call our parents. (We were supposed to call my mom when we got to the hospital.) When my mom got to the phone, Ken immediately said, "We have a baby girl!" She answered, "Are you at the hospital?" "Yes!" he replied, "We got here about 20 minutes ago."

Shortly after the birth, they asked us what we wanted to name our baby girl. Ken brought her to me and we looked into her beautiful face. The "M" girl names we had discussed were Mindy and Megan. Ken said, "Which should it be?" I was so stricken with awe that I said, "I don't know. You pick." He said, "I like Megan. She doesn't look like a Mindy to me." So, we named our baby girl Megan Dee Burrow and loved on her until the rest of our family members came to the hospital to see our new arrival. She weighed 7 pounds 5.5 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. She was born at 9:25am (Indiana time), 10:25am (in Michigan).

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