He Delivered

When Marcus and I started praying for a baby, we prayed for the basics- let IVF work. Once it did, we prayed for it to be a sustainable pregnancy. Then, you pray for a full term healthy baby. At that point, it is like you have been so blessed that you feel selfish asking God for anymore. However, He knows the desires of our hearts and loves His children even more than we do. He provided for us in so many ways. He delivered this weekend with us.

Abby Lu was born Monday morning, her induction date, but we did not need to be induced. I had contractions consistently on Saturday morning for hours. We spoke to the oncall doctor who advised us to call back when they were 1 minute long and 5 minutes apart for more than 1 hour. On Saturday, that never happened.

Saturday night, I went to bed and the contractions started again. Marcus and I timed them and when we reached the magic pattern we called the oncall doctor and were told to come in. It was about 2 AM. Proving my theory that nothing good happens after midnight, we saw 3 cops that had pulled people over and street racing on all 3 lanes of 183. Wow! At the hospital, they deduced I was in labor, yet my dilation was not moving so they sent us home after 4 AM to labor at home until my water broke or the contractions were noticeably stronger.

We spent the day timing our contractions while watching football. Thank goodness our fantasy season was over as I was a bit distracted. We were both so tired we would sleep for the few minutes in between contractions and then breathe them out. My Mom came over to sit with me for an hour so that Marcus could sleep and get ready for the long night to come.

About 4 PM, I asked Marcus to call the doctor because the contractions were really getting stronger and I wanted pain relief. We also knew that with a 7:30 induction appointment they were not likely to send me home. They checked me and since I was 4 cm, my epidural was given. He delivered again. God invented epidurals for people like me. I have the utmost respect for women who can go without, but I wanted the relief.

I was checked every few hours and moved along well with a little Pitocin. My water was broken by the staff. I slept like a baby. A little after midnight, I was proclaimed to be a 10, but the doctor was concerned Abby was not facing down. She was head down, but looking up. Since this makes for a harder labor, they had me roll over and lay still for 45 minutes in the hopes Abby would turn. Marcus prayed over us and promised Abby to spoil her for the next 30 years if she turned. You can imagine what happened- she turned! He delivered again.

A little while into the waiting game, I called the nurse and told her I really felt the need to push. I had heard that before and now I really know what it meant. I could just feel Abby moving down and getting still. I pushed for a few minutes and the nurse made me stop. She had to call the doctor to risk delivering the baby herself. In all, I pushed for 12 minutes and it was pain free. He delivered again. It was also the most powerful experience of my life. I felt God with us and willing our child into our arms.

They immediately let me see her, collected her cord blood and sent her to the nearby table to check her out. She was declared medically perfect. Her APGAR score was 9.9 out of 10. Anything above a 7 is considered healthy. He delivered again.

While Marcus was watching over her at the table, I asked him who she looked like. Marcus smiled, laughed and cried when he realized she has his chin. Knowing just one year ago that we may not be able to have children biologically and knowing how much Marcus wanted to see his features in his child, this was another prayer we asked. He delivered again.

After her first test, she was given to me to feed. I have been nervous about breast feeding because I feel ill prepared and because it has been a challenge for so many people. She latched on like a pro. He delivered again.

By 4 AM, we were sent to our maternity ward as a family of three. He has given us everything we have asked for and prayed for. He has given us all of this and now our job is to glorify Him through her. We will deliver.