I went to the doctor for my 40 week appointment on my due date, June 16, 1998. Even though I wasn’t having any contractions, other than non-painful ones I thought were Braxton-Hicks, I was already 4-5 centimeters dilated and 80% effaced. My doctor thought things were going to move very quickly, so he suggested I come in to the hospital to be induced.

I checked in to my hospital room at about 3:00 p.m. After I changed into a gown, and the nurse took my vital signs, my doctor suggested I walk around for a while to try to "get things going." Walking didn’t really seem to do much in terms of starting labor, so at about 7:00 p.m. they started a pitocin drip, which they upped every half hour or so. According to the monitor, I was having strong and fairly regular contractions, but I just felt tension – I didn’t have any pain (lucky me!). Unfortunately, the contractions were not very effective, and I didn’t progress very quickly at all. My doctor thought I might end up needing a C-Section, because the slow progress might mean the baby was too big to drop down any lower. He "allowed me" to continue in labor, though, for quite a long time, and I will always be grateful for that.

Even though my contractions weren’t painful, the excitement of my baby’s impending arrival kept me from getting any sleep that night. The contractions finally started to become painful at about 5:00 a.m., but they still weren’t unbearable. They continued to increase in frequency and intensity, and by about 8:30 a.m., I felt almost at the end of my rope. I think this was due not only to the pain, but also to my exhaustion after being awake for 24 straight hours. When my doctor came in to examine me, I told him I wished it wasn’t "too late" to have an epidural. Despite the fact that I was dilated to 9 centimeters by that point, he told me I could still have an epidural if I wanted it. I did.

After the epidural kicked in, I was actually able to take a short nap! After about 30-45 minutes of sleep, I felt revitalized. When the nurse told me it was time to push, I actually had some energy to do so! I began pushing at 10:00 a.m., and Adam Howard Popp was born at 10:27 a.m. on June 17, 1998. He weighed 9 pounds, 3 ounces, and was 23 ½ inches long. He was blue when he was born, because the umbilical cord had been wrapped around his neck, but luckily, he came around right away.

I will never forget that moment when they put Adam in my arms for the first time. I felt such an overwhelming love for him, I can’t even describe it. The whole experience was truly a miracle.