Noelle is here!

And it went something like this...
Yesterday morning (Jan 6) at 2:30am, I was sort of surprised to find that my waters had broken at just over 2 weeks early. I had been telling Luke for a couple of weeks that I thought I would have this one early, so it didn't totally catch me off guard. He had been listening to me (and not believing it) for a couple of weeks, so it took him a few minutes to adjust the reality of this baby coming! Here's our shot at about 4:30am before heading to the hospital via our friend, Kelly. I was having irregular contractions, and they told me to just labor at home, but I knew I'd be more comfortable laboring in the halls at the hospital than in the comfort of my own home. So, we got to the hospital, where they confirmed that my waters had broken and that my contractions were far apart and irregular. Thus, I was not in "established labor" and they couldn't admit me. This didn't surprise me at all. I was still glad we were there and certain that once labor started rocking, it would rock hard and fast. We hung out in the lobby of the hospital for a few hours before we decided to take the bus back into Dundee to walk the mall and get a snack (and try to figure out a middle name for our daughter...). My contractions had slowed to 20 minutes apart by this point, so I was willing to do it. Luke got to fulfill his dream of getting me on a bus in Scotland in labor - a suggestion I had rolled my eyes at many times.

So, after walking the mall for a few hours and coming back to do some more walking at the hospital, I finally worked myself into active labor, which meant manageable contractions every 3-5 minutes. When I was starting to get pretty uncomfortable, I went back to Labor & Delivery to see if they'd take me. They admitted me at 1:30pm and my contractions kept coming pretty steady. The midwife checked me and I was only at 2-3 centimeters. This was my moment of discouragement. I was anticipating a labor shorter than Isaiah's (12 hours), and by this point, I'd already been in labor for nearly that long and still had a looooong climb ahead of me. Luke was a great encourager and gave me strength to take one contraction at a time. Pretty soon after that, I was ready for the beloved "gas and air" (laughing gas). I LOVE this stuff for labor. It takes the edge off just enough, gives you a sense of control, and helps you separate from the pain a bit. If I ever have a baby in the States, I'm going to have to track this stuff down. Maybe I'll have to deliver at a dentist's office.

So, about this time (2:30pm), my contractions really started rocking and I sucked on that good old gas & air for 1 1/2 hours before I was ready to push. Yes, that's 3-10 centimeters in 1 1/2 hours. I told you it would go hard and fast! That moment took everyone by surprise, including the midwives, who had barely enough time to get me situated and put their gloves on before our sweet Noelle came flying into the world!! Other than the speed with which she shot into the midwives' hands, we were surprised to discover how tiny she was! She's a wee thing, coming in at 5lbs 14oz and measuring 17 inches long. She's just big enough not to worry about, and has proven her readiness to be in the world with her great nursing and alertness.




After you give birth here, they eagerly serve tea and toast. Mmmm. It really is so good after the victory of giving birth.

Noelle and I stayed in the hospital for one night, and Luke and Isaiah came to pick us up this evening. Isaiah seems very excited about his baby sister so far and keeps marveling that "Noelle came out of Mommy's tummy!" We're SO thankful for our precious little daughter!