Before it all went down

So the pregnancy journey has finally come to an end. Brooklyn Jaydah Elzy made her debut at 5:36 am Tuesday December 14th, 2010 after a long labor. We went in at 7pm Sunday night for Angel to be induced. In my novice opinion and unknowledgeable guess, I figured we would be done by Monday afternoon at the latest. I will spare everyone the exact details of the labor because it wasn’t a great time and actually traumatic (I don’t know if I can unsee some of the things I saw) but I did write a quick Haiku (a Japanese poem) about it.

34 hours labor
Crap I know this is my fault
Glad baby looks like her

I will tell one story. Angel didn’t want an epidural, and told me and her mother beforehand that even if she begs and cries try not to let her get it. When she told me this I knew an internal battle would happen. Like what if she’s really in pain and she tells me she’s going to divorce me. I did know that a quick labor would help the chance of her not needed the epidural, but getting induced makes the contractions worse. So of course the labor is 34 hours long. 18 hours into it she started asking relief. She cried three times, yelled at me four times, told me and her mom to get the nurse twelve times. It was getting pretty awkward in the delivery room me when she’s crying and me and are Mom are staring at each other not knowing what to do, but we were trying to honor her wishes. The issue is Angel was a slow dilator, at 8am she was a 3, at 1pm she was a 4. The doctor came in around this time and said that it’s usually one centimeter per hour. So I figure “okay then at 7pm she would be a ten” (the ultimate goal). So I was using that time as an end point. I tried to not let her have the epidural figuring by the time they checked her at 7pm she would be like 9 or hopefully a 10.

When the time came to check her, she was a 5. She immediately asked for the epidural and I didn’t blame her. 24 hours of labor and we were barely at a 5. If you told me it would take 2 more weeks to deliver this baby I would of believed you. Luckily, the epidural made the process better for everyone involved. Angel wishes she would have gotten it sooner.

At 5:36am the baby was finally born, it was definitely amazing and its one of those things you have to be there for. It’s weird because before Brooklyn was born you talk about her, buy clothes for her, and paint a room for her and all kinds of stuff, but it almost like you’re talking about Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy because you can’t even imagine her here. Then at that moment when she’s about born it’s almost like she appears out of thin air. Oh and she wasn’t happy. Actually you can see for yourself.

I think she got that from her mom. They weighted her (7lbs 2.3 ounces) measures her (19 1/2 inches) and then gave her to me. She was done crying and wide awake and alert, she was just staring at me probably wondering who the heck I am. I’m looking back and I can’t believe that this baby is actually real, and that she’s half of me and half of Angel.
In the end everyone is doing well, Mom and Baby. Today we finally left the hospital. Thanks for everyone’s prayers and thoughts.