At my last prenatal check up, I was 38 weeks. I was dilated to 4cm, 70% effaced and the doctor stripped my membranes. Everyone thought I’d be in labor within a few hours for sure, including the doctors. Contractions came and went the next few days and I lost my plug but it wasn’t until Saturday night that things got steady. After a few hours of consistent contractions, we decided to head up to labor and delivery to get things checked out. I wasn’t in any pain yet, just tight contractions. But since I was so far along I didn’t want to chance anything if I actually was in labor.
(All photos by Mari Catherine of Mavin Photography)
We got to the hospital and I was dilated to 6 cm. No one could believe it since I still wasn’t having strong contractions or having any pain. After an hour of a little inconsistent but still regular contractions, they came by and broke my water. Contractions started getting more irregular so they started a tiny pit. That’s when my wonderful birth photographer/coach/nurse Mari Catherine showed up. After the pit kicked in, I dilated to 10cm in an hour. In my entire “labor” I had three really strong painful contractions that I felt before the epidural kicked in. Otherwise it was totally painless. The worst part (like my whole pregnancy) was the anxiety leading up to delivery. I had so many anxieties and what ifs running through my mind in the first few hours of arriving at the hospital. It’s scary birthing a child even if you’ve already done it!
When I got to 10cm, Dr Craig came in with my nurses and the NICU transition nurse. I started pushing and Luke was not lookin so good. The first push was hard because I was laughing so much at Luke. Luke was laughing, the doctor was laughing and the nurses were a little bit too.
After my first push I could see her head full of hair halfway out. We could not believe how much hair she had. I normally don’t look but when they said “look at all that hair” I was so shocked and so curious. Luke could not believe I looked and nearly passed out at the thought of it. Haha!! Watch his faces below…it’s hilarious….
I got it together for the next two pushes then I was asked to stop while she pulled her head out to avoid a tear. I stopped pushing and looked over and Luke. He looked like he was going to puke and pass out at the same time. It was so hilarious that I started laughing and Piper’s head popped out! The rest of her body slid right out. In three pushes and a laugh we were holding our precious daughter.
Little Miss Piper Ann weighed 7lbs 2oz and 19.5 inches long. She was a whole 2 lbs and 2 inches smaller than her big brother. Daddy stayed by her through the weighing and poking then she came skin to skin with me. She instantly latched on and has been an amazing eater from the start.
After all the poking and prodding, the nurses brought Piper Ann back to me for some skin to skin time. She instantly had us wrapped around her little tiny fingers.
I think she looks a lot like Luke in this one ^ 
Luke climbed up on the bed with us and snuggled up with his girls until we were moved to recovery.
Kylee started Kylee Ann Photography 9 years ago, and has since grown from a one woman amateur show to a full associate team. We shoot 50-75 weddings a year, and thrive on kindness and service. After a year of teaching Intro to Photography at the local technical college, she discovered that helping other entrepreneurs create thriving businesses is what fires her up! She hosts semi-annual Kylee Ann Sleepovers all over the US, speak at conferences and teach online courses about running a small business and marketing.
October 19, 2014
Kylee Maughan
