As we’re nearing the one-month mark for M-Cat, I thought it was high time to record her birth story.

Due to the nature of her birth — a scheduled C-section — there isn’t nearly the mystery or drama surrounding it, as with our two boys. We knew the place, the date, the time, just about everything. I think the greatest suspense was surrounding whether it would be a boy or girl, and what we’d end up using as a name.

As I mentioned before, we set the date for the C-birth for June 19, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, who appeared to a French nun named Margaret Mary Alacoque. Because of that, I wanted to name the baby Marguerite Marie-Gabrielle if it were a girl. I wanted Elias Jean-Baptist if it were a boy. Now, I can’t imagine having a boy, and I can’t imagine a girl by any other name.

I was convinced it was a girl from the beginning because this pregnancy was the first time I had morning sickness. I also felt strongly that this baby was a direct answer to prayer and a gift from the Blessed Mother, especially when I found out the due date was on the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help — one of my favorite images of Mary. But by the end, we were doubting whether it was a girl, and thought the Lord might give us a boy to totally surprise us. The day we went to the hospital, I was fully expecting to have a son.

I’m not the kind of woman who has been “waiting” for a girl, or having babies until I “got” one. (And now, I don’t think we’ll stop just because we “have” one, as some people have implied — thank you very much!)

Frankly, I was quite anxious about having a girl the first two pregnancies (LONG back-story there!) and was elated to have boys. By this third pregnancy though, I finally felt ready for a girl and felt I could handle whomever God gave us.

The night before M-Cat was born, I was busy cooking in the kitchen, preparing meals for the boys in the days ahead, until 10pm. Of course, I was so excited about the next day — this beats anticipating Christmas morning as a kid! — that I hardly slept, and was up before 4am. Dear Husband and I got up and got ready, handed the reins over to my sister, and drove to the hospital as the sun rose around 5am. It was a lovely start to what was going to be a very special day for us!

It is quite, quite strange walking into the birth center completely calm, without pain, and by your own volition. We were shown to an admitting/prep room, where we went through the barrage of questions, hanging out with the staff and chatting. We met my anesthetist (strange guy with a bawdy sense of humor) and talked to my OB-GYN, who is possibly THE most laid-back man ever. As DH and I tend to be more Type A individuals, the OB’s surfer-dude demeanor was both perplexing (for DH) and calming (for me) at the same time.

When we were alone for a minute, DH prayed with me, as we’d be separated for a time and he’d be brought in only right before the birth. Before we knew it, they were ready for me to leave DH and walk down the hall (again, another TOTALLY strange thing to be doing minutes before giving birth) to the operating room, which looks exactly as it does on TV. I got to climb on the table, sit with my legs off the side, and lean on a nurse who looked like Britney Spears’ clone (it KILLED both me and DH to not say something to her about it!) The anesthetist was poking around on my back a bit (it felt like fingernails — the local anesthetic), but was so smooth that I didn’t even realize that he had STUCK A NEEDLE IN MY SPINE, about which I had been quite nervous. Another strange thing.

They laid me down very fast and the anesthesia started creeping up to my chest. I’ve never been awake for major surgery before, and I have to say that is was pretty darn scary. You can’t move from the chest down, so that means that YOU FEEL LIKE YOU CAN’T BREATHE. Nice. The kooky anesthetist and his assistant were completely calm, and my OB’s Valley Boy voice was soothing, but I was absolutely freaking out on the inside. After communicating with me about the various sensations I was experiencing, the anesthesia staff did seem to tinker with something, which helped me feel better mentally and physically. I had to play mind-over-body games and convince myself that I was OK, and if I wasn’t, they could do something about it.

Even though I could feel no pain, I definitely could feel a LOT of tugging and pulling, and I started getting worried that DH might miss the birth. A huge blue sheet had been put up right below my chin, so I could not see one thing that was happening below.

Some of you might prefer that, but I would have like to have SOME idea what was going on with the majority of my body. Pregnancy and childbirth are usually quite abstract concepts for men, as it is the woman experiencing them physically. But this birth, DH seemed to be the greatest participant. They brought him in just in time, and he watched over the sheet and gave me a play-by-play of what was going on, while taking photos. He knew a heck of a lot more of what was happening to me than I did!

Everything went very, very fast then. I was told that the baby was being pulled out, and the whole OR erupted in unison, “LOOK AT ALL THAT HAIR!” I asked urgently, “What is it?! What is it?!” and was told only the head was out so far. A few more tugs and a lusty scream ripped through the air; I was SHOCKED by how much noise the baby was making, and even more shocked that it was a girl! “It’s a girl?! It’s a girl?!” I kept repeating to myself, trying to process the information. I said her name out loud. And then I smiled.

They lifted her above the sheet and showed her to me, then DH went with her to a nearby warming table to get her rubbed down and cleaned up. The third shock was M-Cat’s weight, our biggest baby ever! “What would it have been like if she had been full term and NOT a C-section?!” I wondered in awe and trepidation. That was confirmation enough that I had made the right choice for her birth.

Alas, I was relieved it was over — at least the birth, that is — and was not upset at all about not being able to hold and nurse her right away; I had myself to worry about! DH and the nurses escorted M-Cat to the nursery for all the business she had to get done, and it seemed like we were reunited in no time. I was a little shaky, but glad to get a chance to get a good look at her. She was rosy and black-haired and beautiful, and sucking on her hands she was so ready to nurse! She latched on immediately … and hardly has let go since! ;-P

DH got to make all the joyful calls to the relatives, who were surprised by the gender and the eventual name (which we had kept secret from our families). My mom, who has five grandsons, personally thanked DH for giving her a granddaughter. She’s never gotten to the hospital so fast after one of my deliveries! =)

As for the physical healing, I took a friend’s advice and did the On-Q pain system, which is a local anesthetic at the incision and does NOT dupe up you and your baby. I was terrified of getting out of bed and taking my first steps, but once I did it my recovery went quite quickly.

The rest of my story is pretty darn dreamy. I felt like a queen with the wonderfully attentive nurses who trusted a third-time mom, the softer post-surgery bed and the ability to order whatever I wanted to eat for each meal. I also got four quiet days practically alone with our new daughter, just enjoying her with nothing else to do. It was like a vacation!

And for the first time post-partum, I felt happy and rested and ready to go home to the new normal of our blessed family.