Short version: Lucia Jane was born via planned cesarean section (due to breech positioning) at 8:10 am on Monday, June 24. She weighed 6 lbs. 9 oz. and was 20 inches long, with a full head of dark hair.
Long version: In some ways, it was nice knowing in advance that we would be having a baby on Monday. DH and I spent the weekend finishing up a few house projects, enjoying a final date night, and just relaxing in preparation for the huge change in our life. We checked in at the hospital at 5:40 am on Monday, June 24 and were shown to a room where I changed into a gown and filled out some paperwork. DH and I had a quiet moment alone where we prayed together and talked about some final name choices. I received an IV, was prepped for the c/s, and met with the anesthesiologist and my OB, who did a final ultrasound to make sure that our stubborn girl was still breech (she was).
We walked back to the operating room and the anesthesiologist gave me a spinal block, which surprisingly didn't hurt at all and started to work almost immediately. The song "If I Loved You" by Delta Rae was playing on a radio in the corner of the operating room (to this day, I tear up whenever I hear that song on the radio). DH came in and sat by my head, and we made predictions on the baby's size (he guessed 7 lbs. 8 oz. and I guessed 6 lbs. 10 oz.) as my OB started the surgery. Just 15 minutes later, our daughter was born at 8:10 am, letting out a great big cry as she came into the world. DH went with her into an adjacent room where she was cleaned up, measured and weighed (6 lbs. 9 oz. and 20 inches long - I was only off by 1 oz. on my earlier weight guess!) and scored a 9 on her Apgar tests. He brought her back to me and laid her on my chest; we were both amazed by how alert and wide eyed she was, and after a short discussion, we named her Lucia Jane, with a nickname of Lucy. All the nurses in the operating room were cooing over how beautiful she was, and what a great name choice we had made. I began to feel slightly nauseous and hot, despite the chilly temp of the operating room, and thankfully got a shot of anti-nausea medication and some good painkillers before being wheeled back to recovery.
Lucy and I had some skin-to-skin bonding time and I was able to start breastfeeding; she latched on and began nursing like a champ right away. The next two hours were filled with nurses checking my blood pressure, bleeding, and incision. I was sore and swollen from being pumped full of fluids, but felt surprisingly good and euphoric. We spent three full days and two nights in the hospital before being discharged on Wednesday evening. Life is good and we are absolutely smitten with our beautiful girl!
karinothing, I was so pleased at how everything turned out, especially since I was anxious about having a c/s. The hospital where I delivered highly encourages early bonding and breast feeding, and it was so calming to have her on my chest for most of the surgery.