Abigail Elizabeth's Story

Imagine my surprise when I found out on my 20th birthday that I was going to be a mommy. My husband, Chris, and I had just been engaged for one month so it was going to be a life-changing year! I had a pretty routine pregnancy with the morning sickness, ice-cream cravings, and feeling absolutely huge by the ninth month.

On December 10, 2001, when I was just 33 weeks along, I woke up in the middle of the night with a backache. Being a first-time mom, I gave it no thought and went downstairs for a snack, of course! The contractions started getting closer together so we called the hospital and went in about an hour later. I was not dilated, but was a bit dehydrated so they gave me an IV and some medicine to stop the contractions. I was released early that morning and went home on bed rest. Chris and I were still engaged at that time, and seeing me about to deliver his child convinced him that the time had come to tie the knot. We were married on December 12, 2001.

I was due on January 26, 2002. That morning, right before Chris walked out the door, I told him that I thought my water had broken. It was just leaking slightly so I wasn't sure. We called the hospital and they said to call back if more contractions started coming. We checked in at 2 PM and I was given Pitocin a few hours later. I have to say that stuff really works! I started feeling the contractions while Chris was downstairs in the emergency room getting treated for an eye infection! By the time he got back up to the room at 8:30 PM, I had my epidural. I will always remember the miracle drug! About an hour later I felt like pushing but the doctor wasn't there yet. I had gone from five centimeters to 10 in an hour. By the time she arrived I was really ready to push! I pushed for 20 minutes and at 10:55 PM Abigail Elizabeth was brought into the world. She weighed six pounds, twelve ounces, and was nineteen inches long. She was beautiful from the beginning and the most precious gift I have ever received.