Welcome Gabriella Pearl!

My baby girl was supposed to be here on June 2nd, but she had other plans. The 2nd came and went, and I was super uncomfortable. By the 4th, I started having some light bleeding.

I was nervous and thought that maybe something was wrong. Later that night, probably around 10:30pm my waters broke. It felt soooo weird and I knew it was the start of labor.

My boyfriend came into the bathroom and brought me an adult diaper (amazing actually!) and I continued to leak.. I was super nervous and got the shakes. Like this was really it! I finally calmed down and was able to start packing my things for the hospital.

We got to the hospital around 12:30 am on the 5th and did the pre checks and I was 4 cm dilated. After arriving to the delivery room, I got set up on the bed and nurses came in and out. It was all such a blur because I was trying to stay focused on getting through the contractions. They were manageable but painful!

I got in the tub and that felt amazing! The contractions didn’t hurt as bad. By about 4:30 am I used the exercise ball and had my boyfriend rub my back. I was checked again and I was still at 4 cm. I was getting a little discouraged. I decided to get back in bed and try resting and meditating.

By 6am I was only 5cm. The nurse mentioned pitocin and epidural. I was so exhausted and could not continue to work through the contractions. I didn’t exactly want either of those, but I also wanted to get things going!

The epidural was amazing! I still felt some pressure, but it didn’t hurt going in at all! By 8:30 I had progressed to 6 cm but I was having a lot of back pain. I got a huge dose of the epidural meds and then everything went numb.

By 9:30 am I was fully dilated!! Unfortunately the nurses did not want me to push until I felt the urge. So I slept to get my energy up for pushing.

The nurse emptied my bladder with a catheter and it wasn’t that bad at all! I thought she was going to hook it up for the entire time.

Around 12:15 pm I finally felt like I could push. I could feel my legs a little more and the pressure like I had to poop. The nurse came in and she asked if I wanted a mirror. That was the best idea ever! It really helped me focus on where I was pushing. My mom was on one side and my boyfriend was on the other, holding my legs.

OHHHH MY the pressure was crazy! I thought the whole ring of fire lasted like a minute when the baby comes out... but nooooo her head is like stuck there until I felt another contraction to push. My doctor finally came in to set up while her head was LITERALLY right there! I felt a HUGE contraction come on and my body just took over and pushed so hard and her head came out, then the doctors helped with her shoulders, and out she came! That was so painful! Pushed for an hour and 10 min. A huge wave of happiness and relief came over me.

They put her on my chest and I heard and felt her cry, it was the most beautiful thing in the entire world! From then on it was a blur. I was stitched up and cleaned up. I just bonded with my girl:)

Gabriella Pearl was born June 5th at 1:43pm weighing 7lb 5 ounces and 20.5 inches long! I’m so in love 😍

3 days old at home ❤️💕 with her grandma