August and Finley Arrive

Well, I was finally right when I predicted that Mon. June 27 would be The Day. Dr. S finally looked at me and Matt and said, "We're done." He called my OB and before we knew it, I had a c-section scheduled for 8 p.m. that night.

For a couple of hours, Matt and I sat in a hospital room waiting, having my IV set up, filling out paperwork. Time moved slowly.

Then around 7:30 p.m., life suddenly sped up. My doctor showed up. My labor and delivery nurse, Tammie, introduced herself and quickly became my lifeline and BFF. The anesthesiologist talked me through the spinal block. I walked myself to the operating room -- crying a bit from fear and anticipation -- and then I was on my back being cut open.

For everyone who told me that a c-section was no big deal – you lied. Or at least it was a big deal to me. Maybe it's because I walked into that operating room already freaking out, but when the anesthesiologist said I could expect to feel "pressure" and "tugging," what she meant was pain.

The saving grace of the c-section was that it was over quickly. And that Matt was there with me. I held his with a vice-like death grip and told him that this was awful and I hated it.


Then when our babies were born and I heard them cry out, I cried with joy. And when they were briefly brought over for me to see, I forgot all about the "pressure" as the doctors sewed me up. My heart rate went down. My mind calmed. My complaining stopped. My life changed.

August (at left) was born at 8:32 p.m., weighing 4 lbs., 13 oz. Finley (above) was born at 8:33 p.m., weighing 3 lbs., 10 oz.

Both boys were rushed to the NICU. Only later did I learn that August was in serious distress at birth, having swallowed a ton of amniotic fluid. In the end, our "Little Floatie," Finley, was more stable than our Big Floatie.

But that doesn't matter. What matters is that they are both doing great, getting amazing 24-hour care in the NICU and making strides every day. And what really, really matters is that Matt and I love them beyond any measure that could be expressed in words.