Mums talk about their best Christmas present ever 11 December: A Christmas baby is magical!
The excitement started in the early hours of Sunday 11th December; my contractions started but were very irregular. I came downstairs to watch the news and, at 7am, I decided to call my mum as I had another child (Sam, aged 3) and I was worried that I would leave it too late and have no one to look after him.
Mum came round and my husband Lee got up. We timed the contractions and I was stuck at 2-3cm all day until 9pm, when I really didn’t care how dilated I was; I wanted an epidural!
I was checked at the hospital and found to be 9cm dilated and nearly ready to push! Unfortunately, the baby was in the back-to-back position and I needed gas and air and half a shot of pethidine.
I remember very clearly Lucy’s head being born, and then nothing. Her shoulders were stuck as she had shoulder dystocia (which basically means that when the baby’s shoulders are very big to fit through the mother’s pelvis). My midwife moved me into a different position to open my pelvis up and after a few hard pushes Lucy Isabella was born at 11:43pm on Sunday 11th December 2005.
Having a baby so close to Christmas is magical but very, very hard. Christmas is busy at the best of time with family visiting and wanting you to visit them, but add that to the fact that you have a newborn baby… well I’m sure you can imagine! It was busy but lovely to have our baby girl with us for Christmas morning.
Heather Coverley
16 December: Freya’s Early Arrival
It all started on Monday 12th December with irregular contractions
that lasted three nights. I was told the pains were normal and caused by my baby moving around.
A couple of nights later, I woke up at 2.30am and couldn’t get back to sleep. I eventually got up at 8.15am to get my daughter Erin ready for her playgroup’s Christmas party. I went downstairs to get breakfast and when I opened the cereal cupboard I felt my waters go. I just froze, staring at the puddle! I called to Erin to get the phone then called my partner Alan at work and told him to come home now; he came home in ten minutes flat! Erin got my pregnancy folder as I didn’t want to leave a trail of water everywhere by walking around the house.
Next, I called the labour ward and was told to go straight in. A family friend took Erin and I arrived at the hospital about 9am. They confirmed my waters had definitely broken but I wasn’t in active labour or dilating. From then until 10pm my blood pressure and baby were monitored.
Each time the consultants came I was told something different: either they were going to send me home and get me to come back every day to check for progress or induce me. The monitor readings weren’t reassuring. The baby wasn’t responding well to any contractions and her heart rate dipped each time. I wasn’t in any pain but I wasn’t happy being sent home either. As I’d had a C-section after a failed inducement last time, I said I wanted a C-section this time.
At 10.30pm, it was finally agreed to go with this request and I was prepped. I felt calm as I knew what to expect. During the operation, they discovered that my scar from the last C-section had healed wrong: my inside should be in layers but it was all conjoined into one. They had to call for a senior consultant to take over the operation.
When he finally arrived, he pulled Freya out in what felt like two minutes, at 11.22pm on Friday 16th December. She cried straight away and they took her for her checks. After being stitched up, I was taken to the recovery room, where I got to hold her and try her with a feed. She was taken to the special care baby unit because she was premature and needed to keep her temperature up and establish feeding.
Nicolla Macdonald
17 December: Six days early
My pregnancy went really well; no problems at all. My husband Glenn is in the army and away on courses a lot so we asked my mum to attend the antenatal classes with me and be at the birth with us. Glenn was promoted in his job and was told a new posting in Surrey was coming up and he would have to take it. The new date for him to start his new job was 6th December… and my due date was the 23rd! We decided that I would stay with my parents in Devon until after the New Year.
We had the removals booked for 30th of November; the following morning, I had a midwife appointment. My blood pressure was over 100 and she sent me to hospital straight away! Glenn left that night to go to our new house and I didn’t see him again until the day before our child was born…. The midwife checked on me every day and then, in the early hours in the morning of the 15th of December, my contractions began. The contractions were coming between 10 and 30 minutes so I wasn’t too concerned. At 6am I called Glenn and he came back by train to be with me.
At 2am on 17th of December the contractions got stronger and were coming every five minutes. I called my midwife and she came to see me. At this point I was 2cm dilated; she wanted me to go to the hospital so we got my bag and left. At 6am I was 4cm dilated so she gave me some pethidine to help me relax as I hadn’t slept in over 24 hours. At about 8am I was 8cm dilated and by 10.30am I had started to push. I was on gas and air and that really helped with the pain! Our son Robbie was born at 11.05am on 17 December 2005, weighing in at 6lb 10oz. I was allowed home after two nights in hospital to get ready for Christmas. Luckily I had bought all my presents and had written all my cards out by October!
I never thought I would have had Robbie six days early. We had a fantastic Christmas and a quiet new year. This year has gone so quickly; I can’t believe that we will be celebrating his first birthday in less than two weeks time!
Tammy Aitchison
21 December: My surprise!
I found out I was expecting again after an 11-year gap: what a surprise!
My pregnancy was great, I had no morning sickness, only a small bump, and I carried on working right up to the end. I planned my labour at home so my older children could be there.
Leo was due after Christmas but put in an early arrival on the 21st. My waters broke at 12pm and he was born at 2.50pm. Labour wasn’t easy, with no pain relief, but it was definitely worth it. My older kids loved seeing their brother arrive and couldn’t wait to help dress him and cuddle him. I was also lucky enough to have the same midwife who delivered my older daughter 13 years ago, also at home.
Debra Squires
6 January: An alcohol-free Christmas
Finding out I was pregnant in April 2005 was a huge shock,
but the biggest was yet to come: my estimated due date was the 30th of December 2005.
My biggest fear was that my baby would turn up smack bang in the middle of the festive season, when everyone around me would be too drunk to drive
me to the hospital, and that I might actually have to drive myself! Luckily,
my fantastic mum gave up her alcohol over Christmas and New Year to be
there in case I needed her.
Christmas Eve came and went without a hitch. Christmas day wasn’t so good; trying to force a huge dinner down that you sooo want to eat, but can’t because you’ve got a 9lb baby rustling about inside of you was hard work, I tell you! I also turned into the designated taxi driver over both Christmas and the New Year for all my friends and family who’d had too
much to drink!
My due date and New Year all came and went without so much of a twinge from my little bundle. Mummy was obviously a comfy home for this little one!
At 9pm on the 4th of January 2006, the contractions started… and stopped. Then started… and stopped. Then started again! Thirty-nine hours later, on the 6th of January 2006 at 1:38pm, baby Holly (Christmassy name!) finally made her entrance into the world, all 9lb 2oz of her (ouch!).
Now it’s December 2006 and we are getting ready for my little princess’s first Christmas and birthday, and we can’t wait.
Jodie Berry
