Later that evening the contractions started to become pretty painful, so I called my doctor, Doctor Judd. He told me that I probably wasn't in labor because my due date was so far away and told me to go to the hospital only when it became too painful to stand. So I waited some more. I finally decided that the basketball game wasn't a good idea, but I was still too stubborn to make the 30-minute drive to the hospital until I was absolutely sure I needed to. I packed my hospital bag (just in case) and tried to get some sleep. I laid in bed for a couple of hours without sleeping while the contractions got worse and worse. Finally at about 3 AM I told Glen to take me to the hospital.
The drive to the hospital was nothing like you see in the movies. Sure, I was in pain, but I wasn't breaking out in a heavy sweat and screaming at Glen to drive faster. I like to think that I was quite pleasant considering the circumstances. When we finally got to the hospital, I was feeling pretty uncomfortable. I still wasn't looking like those crazy ladies from the movies, though, and I think the nurse at the front desk was convinced it was a false alarm. I was taken into a room where a nurse evaluated me and told Glen and me that I was already dilated to a five. My water broke as she was doing the evaluation. "You're having a baby today!" the nurse said, and took Glen and me to the room where I'd be giving birth and where we'd be staying for the next couple of days. HA! What do you think about that, Doctor Judd?
I received an epidural just when the contractions were becoming unbearably uncomfortable. I couldn't feel a thing after that. Those poor women who gave birth before epidurals were invented. I dilated very quickly from that point on and didn't need any Pitocin. At about 8:15, the nurse called Dr. Weiss (Dr. Judd was no longer on call because it was Christmas Eve) and I started to push. The pushing wasn't nearly as hard as I had anticipated it to be, although the whole experience was quite traumatic for Glen.
Sailor was born at 8:57. At 8 pounds, 20 inches, she couldn't have been more beautiful and perfect. Over the next two days, Glen's mom, Whitney, Jenny, Glen's dad, Troy, Austin, Christian, Trevor and Wes, and Grandma and Grandpa Klumker visited us in the hospital. By the time we left the hospital, we finally had a name for our little Christmas present: Sailor Noelle Young. My family drove to Utah on Christmas day and were able to see her shortly after we got home that night.
Everything about this time in our lives seems like a surreal blur (or, rather, a sleep-deprived one). We were worried, happy, sad and overwhelmed all at the same time. Thank goodness that my mom was able to stay with us for a couple of weeks to help us with.. well.. everything. And thank goodness Glen's parents were right next door after she left. This whole "parenting" thing turned out to be pretty dang scary. But it also turned out to be pretty dang worth it.
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