interesting update...

So the few friends we have in the greater Puget Sound have persuaded me... that last post really deserves a follow up. I didn't expect for it to ring true and be funny to so many people - but I'm glad others can delight in my insanity. Like my last post said, I was dead set on staying out of the hospital unless I was POSITIVE that I was in heavy labor, and thus - they'd go ahead and start my c-section. On Thursdays our house had the distinct pleasure of being graced by the presence of Shawn & Kalle - they come and spend the night with us because it's more convenient for Kalle's work and that way Nick has a partner for man night. So - on Friday morning the girls and I headed to the gym with Kalle and we all went through the weight-training circuit that I used to do with Regi in Charlotte & Kal still does three times a week. Needless to say, it kicked my butt and while I felt like everything I did was safe for pregnancy - it started a nice round of contractions going. I was able to function with them throughout the day, but around two p.m., I got a little nervous and decided to call my doctor.

My doctor, the aforementioned dark angel of false hope (who was positive I'd be in labor by next week), was out of town until Sunday and her nurse encouraged me to come on into the hospital once my contractions were ten minutes apart and I couldn't walk or talk through them. While I could still do that - they were fairly regular, but I decided to hold strong. The last thing I wanted was to go to the hospital & get sent back home. Around four p.m., I couldn't walk or talk through them - but still I wasn't going anywhere. I decided to delight in spending time with Elias cuddling and silently working on my quilt for Glory. Nick noticed that my countenance had changed and that every few minutes my eyes were welling up with tears and he suggested we go in to get checked - but I held off. By around seven that night - we put Elias to bed and when I kissed him goodnight, for whatever reason, I just lost it - and starting crying my eyes out. I think my tears were mostly about my physical pain, but mixed in were some strong feelings about having a good idea that the next time I saw my son - he wouldn't be my only child. Also, there was some sadness about missing my family & feeling really ill-prepared for the impending hospital visit.

Since the contractions were only getting worse, we quickly threw some stuff in a bag and decided to head that way. Kalle & Shawn were still in the area, so they followed in their car while Faythe & Jimmy stayed to protect a sleeping Elias. We didn't tell the girls we were going because we didn't want to get their hopes up and get them all in a tizzy & we just called Josh and Gibson and told them to be on alert for my mom & Katie so if we had to quickly go into surgery, they'd all be awake. For some reason our trip to the hospital was VERY sitcom-esque and having Kalle & Shawn there only made it funnier. (look for some quotes at the end) By this point, my pain was INTENSE - worse than anything I had during labor with Elias... but of course, the nurses thought I was a whiny, indulgent, sick-of-pregnancy freak who was trying to just skip her last few weeks of gestation. This misconception was only aided by the fact that my contraction belt monitor wasn't registering my contractions for the first hour I was there - until finally I held it on my belly and sat in the exact right position to show the nurse how strong (and PAINFUL) they actually were.

At that point, without seeing the doctor, the nurse decided it was too early for Glory to come and that this was officially pre-term labor brought on by extreme dehydration & elevated keytones from not eating enough during the day. I tried not to get discouraged as she gave me a shot of turbutelene to stop the labor and began my discharge. Thankfully, this medicine is freakishly close to heroine, and was quite the fun experience. The nurse had warned us that it might make me jittery, she failed to mention that it would make everyone of my extremities have seizure-like spasms and it would also induce intense vomiting. Fun all around. By that point, all dissapointment had dissipated and I just wanted out of the hospital bed - out of the hospital, forever. So we were allowed to head home with strict instructions that I get some food pronto and stay well hydrated. I go back Tuesday & Wednesday for more doctor's appointments. Agh - we'll see.

Now for the funny parts...
*On the way to the hospital (which only I had been to, not Nick) we pulled in about five WRONG parking lots and after freaking out about where to park, realized the hospital has valet parking for such occasions.
* Upon finally getting into the hospital - we found a wheelchair - that went about .000001 miles an hour, so after about 10 minutes and only moving five feet, I jumped up and walked to labor & delivery.
* We had to wait in the waiting room for about 45 minutes and Nick and Shawn had to go downstairs to check us in, so Kal & I stayed and worked on the contractions. I couldn't stop saying "my butt is falling off". For some reason - my butt hurt really bad, like lower back contractions.
* Upon finally getting into a room, the first question the nurse asked me was, "So what makes you think you're in labor?" For some reason, we thought this was hilarious because OBVIOUSLY my butt was falling off and I was in intense pain.
* I didn't want to call any friends in case we had to go home, but Shawn was on the phone with some random person we didn't even know and he said "Yeah, we're at the hospital with Jessi & Nick - they're having their baby. You know, she's been pregnant for a while". Hilarious.
* When I found out my cervix had UN-dilated by one centimeter I said "If I had a gun right now, I would shoot my cervix". To which Shawn responded, "That would definitely make it bigger". Classic.

I'm hoping this shot keeps me good for the next few days because I'm not sure I can handle that shot again and I know that it takes the jaws of life to open my cervix, and thus, move up my c-section. Pray for me - and my husband, that these next two and half weeks would be as pain-free as possible and we'd have tons of time to prepare for Glory and appreciate Elias.