Ethan was due on January 13, 2013. Because of my advanced maternal age (43), my doctor said they would induce on my due date. After a pre-term labor scare at 22 weeks, Ethan seemed determined to go full-term. My mom made plans to fly out on January 10. For about a week, I had been having very strong, regular Braxton Hicks contractions during the day, but especially at night, starting around 9:00. They were timeable, but not painful. It felt like very strong clenching on the top of my pregnant belly. Mom arrived on January 10. We picked her up at the airport in the afternoon and took her home to show off the nursery. We chatted until dinner, then we went out to a great Korean BBQ place that had just opened around the corner from our house. It was very cold for San Diego - getting down to freezing at night. We got there around 7 and had a really wonderful dinner. During dinner, I noticed that my contractions seemed much lower, much more like menstrual cramps. Since I had a little phone app, I timed the contractions and they were about 3 minutes apart. After dinner, as we were walking out of the restaurant, I felt a gush of fluid. Sure that it was just a pregnancy faux pas, I managed to drive us home (about 2 minutes away) and immediately went upstairs to the bathroom. I had a larger gush of fluid and found more of my mucus plug, which was slightly red-tinged. Every time I tried to move, I gushed more fluid, which made it tough to call Jason upstairs! I finally managed to tell him I thought my water had broken. He said to call L&D while he got the car ready. L&D said to come in! I started to have much stronger contractions that approached painful, which made it tough to get ready to go. Luckily, our bag was packed. Jason put a trash bag and a couple of layers of towels in the back seat of the car for me. I really wanted to braid my hair, but Jason urged me to get into the car! Jason and mom sat in the front and I sat in the back. I timed the contractions during the 40 minute drive to the hospital and they were very regular - about 2 minutes apart and lasting about 50 seconds. They were definitely getting stronger and more painful, the drive to the hospital seemed to take forever but Jason actually made very good time. We checked into L&D around 9:00pm and they confirmed that my membranes had partially ruptured. I was checked and was dilated to 5cm already. I changed into a hospital gown and my first pair of huge mesh panties and ginormous pad. I was glad of the big pad - since I was still losing amniotic fluid. We were assigned our delivery room - lucky room 7, the same room we had seen on our tour! Two nurses greeted us, including Nurse Delores who would be our awesome delivery nurse. Since the contractions were so strong, the anesthesiologist was called for the epidural. I was really starting to hurt. Jason held my hand and mom rubbed my back. I wanted to lie on my side and squeeze the metal bars of the bed. I also found it useful to count - I knew that each contraction only lasted 50 seconds and only 20 seconds of the contraction were truly painful. I figured if I could count to 20, I could make it. I didn't scream or cry. I had extremely powerful body shakes, my whole body was shaking. Lovely epidural man showed up and prepped me for the epidural. I honestly don't remember his name, but he had a wonderful, comforting bedside manner. He did a great job explaining the process, but I was pretty out of it by then. I remember I had an oxygen cuff on my finger and I begged them to take it off so I could squeeze the chair rail, but they wouldn't. I was able to sit perfectly still while the drugs were administered. It didn't hurt at all. When the doctor said I would feel relief in 10 minutes, I asked Jason what time it was so I would know when I would feel better. During the procedure, I felt huge gushes of amniotic fluid, the doctors never had to break my water. I started feeling better very quickly. My shaking subsided and my legs felt very warm and heavy. I was so thirsty - never go out and eat super salty Korean BBQ before labor! I kept begging for ice chips. Jason was a champ at making sure I had ice chips all the time. They checked my progress again, and I had dilated to 9.5. They inserted the catheter, which I was worried about, but I didn't even feel it. The nurse said I would start pushing very soon! I rested about half an hour, then Nurse Delores came back and said it was time to start pushing. The catheter was removed and I also didn't feel it. I finally got my hair braided. It took me a few tries to get the method. Nurse Delores had my left leg and mom had my right left. Jason stayed up by my head. When I felt a contraction, I was supposed to curl forward like a shrimp, take a big breath and push out for a count of 10, then repeat for a total of 3 times per contraction. I kept wanting to exhale during the push, but that is less effective. I pushed for an hour and was getting very tired of pushing. I started pushing REALLY hard and giving it my best effort each time, because I wanted the pushing part to be over! The pain was very managed. I could feel each contraction but it didn't hurt. I felt like I was a part of the process. Delores called in the midwife and it felt like a swarm of people came into the room. There was the midwife and her trainee and more nurses and other people. At least 6 people! If you are the least bit modest, childbirth cures you immediately. Everything felt very surreal and dreamlike - I couldn't believe that I was about to have a baby! At one point, there was a show of bright red blood. The doctor explained it was a remnant of my hymen tearing. Virgin birth - who knew? With 2-3 more pushes, Ethan started to be born. I did not ask for the mirror, but now I wish that I had! The doctor told me to stop pushing and she gently freed his shoulders and then Ethan came into the world very quickly at 1:03 am. He was little and perfect and making tiny little sounds, I said he sounded like a kitty cat. The nurses wiped him off a little bit and then put him right on my chest so I could feel him and see him immediately. Ethan immediately peed on me, which was hilarious. I held Jason's hand and touched my baby - feeling his fingers, looking at his face. My mom cut the cord! She said it was chewy, like calimari. The midwife started to deliver the placenta. It turns out - I DID have a valementous cord insertion (the doctor had downgraded me to a marginal cord insertion during pregnancy). The placenta was very difficult to deliver so a more senior doctor was called. I was very glad of the epidural as the doctors pulled, prodded and pushed on my abdomen. Briefly, they said I might have to have surgery, but they were finally able to deliver the placenta and made sure it was all accounted for. The doctor said I had a very minor tear which she stitched after the placenta was delivered. She must have done a great job, I had very little post delivery pain in the area. I must have lost a ton of blood, the doctor who examined me at my 6 week follow up appointment mentioned it casually “oh, you lost a lot of blood during delivery.” I guess they were trying to keep me calm during the process by not mentioning it. Ethan was weighed and measured - 6lbs 15oz and 20" long. His head measured 13.5". It was a wonderful experience! He is now a delightful 9 month old, I can’t believe he was ever so small.