::: Paloma!

Much to my utter pleasure, I spent the greater half of today text messaging my friend Phaedra from her labor bed at the local hospital. She informed me last week that if her newest little miss didn't make her grand entrance into this world unassisted, modern medicine was going to have to give it a go!

So of course, I receive a text around 8:30 AM stating: "I hate pitocin. I hate pitocin."

Now, for anyone who might not be sure what pitcoin is, allow me to clarify::: pitocin is a synthetic version of a hormone naturally produced by your body. When a pregnant woman goes into labor, her body is already producing pitocin to start contractions.....we fabulous folks working in Labor and Delivery just give a little extra to help the process along. Occasionally, when a baby just ain't comin on it's own, we give "pit", as it's more affectionately known, even before labor beings, to get things started......

But frankly, this little lecture is beside the point....back to the meat and potatoes here:::

So, PJB wasn't lovin' the contractions, and nearly eight hours and one GIANT epidural later, we were still baby-less. My friend was loosing steam....loosing hope. She wanted some ice cream and a venti iced chai more than texts could say....and I was helpless to do much more than promise to bring her both as soon as she was no longer the incubator for baby numero 3!

The doctors continued to check on mom and baby, only to repeatedly discover that not much had changed. A medical student artificially broke her water, the nurse had maxed out the amount of pitocin that could run through the IV, and several repositions had already been implemented---all with no real effect. As a L&D nurse myself, I knew that as time progressed and her and the baby did not, all hands on deck would be thinking "C-Section". Unless you've had a C-section previously, it's not a route most people want to go:::: so I was praying and hoping against hope that baby girl mustered up some of her mama's spunk and fire, and really got in the game.

Shortly after 6pm, I received the final text message of the day:::

"Say HI to Paloma!"

Looking just as cute as her brother and sister (even at 10 minutes old!), I was thrilled to set my eyes on this little face! I breathed a sigh of relief knowing mom and baby were happy and healthy.

My plans for tomorrow now include a quick trip to the hospital....I CANNOT wait to get my hands on this little mama!

And to buy a venti iced chai for hers!

Until tomorrow...