All my deliveries began the same mundane way. There was no gush of fluid loss and screams of "It's time, it's time!". No, just simple, quiet, slow leaking that was almost an imperceptable signal that the time as a "couple" that my baby and I had enjoyed, was coming to an end.
Micah was a C-section and the dr. and I had discussed trying a V-BAC delivery, if possible. We knew a normal delivery would be essentially the same as a first time birth because of the C-section. We knew it would probably take awhile to get her here. We were ready. Or so we thought.
Nov. 21, 1996 the slow leak was no exception. I awoke with the now familiar trickle and began to prepare for the hospital visit that would ensue shortly. We got Micah to Grandmama and arrived in Montgomery that morning early. After admission, nothing was moving fast enough for the doctor so at 2:30 that afternoon, the pitocin drip began.
I labored all.through.the.night, until I awoke at around 5 am to the sounds of moaning and again, realizing it was me, called the nurse. She checked my dilation progress. She said in a very chipper voice as she held her hand in front of me to give me a visual, "You have dilated to about the size of the tip of my pinky finger". Are you kidding me? Pit drip all night, contractions all night, been laboring since 2:00 am the previous day...are you kidding me?
I grabbed the nurse by her jacket collar, pulled her face close to mine, then in a very menacing tone told her to call that doctor and tell him that I had to have SOMETHING DONE. I didn't care if he came to give me an epidural or if he came to do a C-section, but I was tired, very tired and I wanted relief! I think I borrowed a phrase from my SIL, Sherrie, who after 24 hours of labor told the doctor that she didn't care if they pulled the baby out of her nose, just get it here! (smile)
The doctor arrived at close to 5:30 and administered the epidural at which time dilation began in earnest.
The rest of labor was good, except I was too numb and it made me very nervous. Would have preferred a walking epidural, but live and learn. JJ and Michael kept sneaking saltines and Sprite into the room for me. I was starved after such a long labor and it did no harm, in fact made me feel better.
Finally, at a little after 11am the nurse calls in the doctor and it is time to push. At 11:35 on November 22, 1996 our sweet little Callie was born. Months earlier in an ultrasound, she had been sucking her left thumb and while being delivered, she was sucking her left thumb! And she never sucked it since, except to immulate others.
JJ told me to look at her fat thighs and one of the nurses scolded her for talking that way about the baby! She was a quiet baby and a good baby. She loved to cuddle (and still does).
We named her Callie Maria. My maternal grandmother was named Caroline Marie, whose nickname was Callie Mae. So to honor the memory of such a sweet and dear lady, we chose Callie Maria. It has proven to be a good choice in names. Callie is as sweet and dear as was my Grandmama.
She had to spend about a week on a biliblanket at home to take care of jaundice, but other than that, she was perfect and looked like a sweet, little, angel baby. She smiled all the time. Even when she cried, she would stop to smile if you smiled at her. Everyone called her a friendly baby or a smiley baby. She didn't engage in life in the beginning, just sat back, observed, and took it all in. She was almost a sleepy baby and still enjoys her sleep at night. Once she got the confidence to jump into life, she dove right in and has not slowed down.
I worked hard for Callie. I labored over 33 hours to get her here, but she is worth every.single.second. of it! She has sweetened our lives with her good heart and made every day richer and fuller with her presence. I hope that I am able to build in her the confidence that she is loved, just for who she is. That no matter how much she does or how much she doesn't do, my love for her is ever constant, never ending, unconditional, and all encompassing. Middle child syndrome may be an inevitability, but I do all I can to let her know that she has not got to do anything to keep us loving her. We just do!
Happy Birthday, dear Callie! Until the day you hold your own little one in your arms, you will never fully comprehend how very much I love you. It is impossible for me to do anything other. I hope you have a very happy day horseback riding or seeing New Moon...something that will make you smile so big your cheeks ache!
Love always,
Mama
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