And then came this:
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3
I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful pregnancy. Thank God! Thank God!
As soon as I found out my due date was in November, I was so hoping I would end up giving birth on the 8th, my mom's birthday (Allah yirham ha). But, as November got closer and closer, I had my doubts. I wasn't really feeling any contractions, so I was starting to think I might even go as far as my original due date of November 18th (my due date was changed to November 12th after an ultrasound).
Friday, November 6th was my last day at work! Mulham, my brother-in-law, was hosting a Last Farahhhh Party that evening for Farah. Sort of a this-will-be-your-last-night-of-hanging-with-the-guys-before-you-become-a-responsible-father party. Anywho, I decided to have a few girls over for pizza and games. We had a lot of fun! Me, Annan (sister), Manal (sister-in-law), Ekram (cousin) and Christina (BFF). We watched "Top Model," then played Imaginiff with Legally Blonde in the background. Annan and Manal slept over. We watched A Cinderella Story before bed. When I woke up the next morning, I used the bathroom and noticed ***WARNING!!! Graphic description ahead!!!*** I had lost my mucus plug. I recalled it being a sign that labor was near! I told the girls and Manal looked it up online. Labor could be hours to weeks away. Not super helpful. But, I started thinking that it was coming soon. And the 8th was looking like a strong possibility.
We had breakfast and Manal stayed for a bit. Annan hung out and left my house around 5pm. I spent the rest of the day doing nothing. Farah came home some time that afternoon, I don't really remember when. Around 10pmish, Farah and I were hungry. I made chicken patties and mac n'cheese. I ate way too much. Two chicken patty sandwiches and a ton of mac n'cheese. Around 11pmish, I went up to bed. I feel asleep around midnight while watching "House Hunters." Around 1:30am, I woke up feeling wet. I called Farah to the room and asked him if the bed was wet. He looked and said yes. My water broke!
I called the doctor, got my bag and we headed to the hospital. Only after I called the doctor did I actually start feeling contractions! And they weren't that bad...at first! Once in the car, I texted the immediate families, "My water broke. We are going to the hospital." I didn't want to call because it was after 2am! I timed the contractions on the way to the hospital and realized they were where they should've been to classify as "in labor." Lasting about a minute every 4-5 minutes. And they definitely had gotten stronger and stronger as time went by.
By the time we got to the hospital, it was about 3am and I looked liked this:
Apparentely it was a busy night at the hospital for births. We were the third ones to arrive that day already. Poor Farah hadn't slept yet, and who knew when he was going to be able to!
Once I got to the room and in my gown, everything happened so fast. The nurse checked me and said I was already 6cm dilated. The pain was getting pretty strong. I decided I was going to get the epidural. It was just a matter of when. In the background was my ipod playing the labor playlist Annan gave me, plus some of my own song selections. It wasn't helping much. But, I don't think I was really focusing on it. On TV was Animal Planet!...some show about cats. I couldn't have cared less. Not long later, I requested the epidural after checking with the nurse to make sure it wasn't too early. And let me tell you, it really sucked waiting for that anesthesiologist to show up. But once he arrived and I finally got into the right position (it took FOREVER...I couldn't get it right for some reason [arch your back, slouch your shoulders, do this, do that, no like this]) I couldn't feel any more pain. It was weird how instant it was. I could still feel my legs and feet, I just couldn't feel the pain of the contractions. I don't remember what time it was at this point. Maybe 5am? Anyway, after that, I took a nap!
The nurse came in a couple hours later to check me. By then, I was 10cm, fully dilated, and she could feel the baby's head! The labor playlist was turned back on and I started pushing around ten after 8am. The nurse would tell me when a contraction was coming and to hold my breath and push, hold my breath and push, hold my breath and push. After a while, I could tell when a contraction was coming because I felt like I had to pass gas. But, the nurse still guided me. She held one leg while Farah held the other. After all my pushes, I really felt like I was getting nowhere. To me, it didn't seem like anything was happening. But, something must've been because, not too long after (maybe an hour, maybe less), the nurse said the baby was so close, and she went to get the doctor. This was the first time I was meeting this guy! My regular doctor was off and this was the on-call doctor. He was nice. Normally, I would NOT feel comfortable with a male doctor. But, you know, when you're in labor, all shame goes out the window. So, I continued pushing and pushing and pushing. It was very frustrating not being able to feel the progress I was making. But, my next push became my last. And at 8:38am on Sunday, November 8, 2009, my baby was out of the womb and into the world! And it was a BOY!!! He weighed 8lbs, 2oz and measured 21.5in long. We named him Ibrahim Farah Shalabi, after his grandfather.
Thank God for my healthy, handsome little boy. May God bless him and protect him always. That feeling, when he was born, when I held him in my arms and looked at him for the first time...it is irreplaceable. Indescribable. The greatest feeling in the world, really. The tears of joy, mine, Farah's, our families' when they finally arrived and saw him...those tears were neverending. I still cry sometimes when I look at him. And to this day, 15 months later, I am still amazed that my son shares my mom's birthday. Such a blessing. I love you, Ibrahim!
My bad, there was a typo! Ibrahim was born at 9:38am, not 8:38am.
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