I was approximately 28 weeks pregnant when I ended up in the hospital due to complications. I was having a lot of pain, which was resulting in nausea and vomiting.

After a five-day stay, it was determined that I was suffering from kidney stones. Due to being pregnant, there was not a lot that could be done to treat the stones, and I was sent home with instructions to take gravol and remain on bed rest for the remainder of the pregnancy.

At the 36-week mark, we had an ultrasound that determined the baby was still healthy, and the stone was still present. Again, we went home and remained on bed rest. The decision was made to induce labor once we were past 38 weeks.

On Monday, March 23, we woke to call the hospital at 6:30 a.m., and were advised to be at the hospital to begin the induction at 7:30 a.m. As we live 45 minutes away, it was a frantic rush to make it to the hospital on time. My fiancee, his mother and I were making the trip.

At approximately 8:30 a.m., I was all signed in at the hospital, and the OB came in to determine how we would proceed. At this time, I was 50 percent effaced and 2 centimeters dilated, so she inserted the gel to begin labor.

Initially, the nursing staff thought they would send us back home with plans to return in four hours for a further evaluation, but the gel took and active labor began. The contractions started out short and quickly grew to be more and more intense.

By around 11 a.m. I was asking for the epidural! Once the epidural was given, it was time to relax for a bit. We were given a TV and DVD player and watched a movie. My mother (who is an experienced OB nurse) was also with us by this point.

Around 4:30 p.m., I was beginning to have feeling on the left side of my body, so I asked for the epidural to be topped up. When this was done, it made the entire right side of my body, including my leg, numb. I could not even move it. Unfortunately, it did not make any change in the left side of my body, and I would have full feeling there for the remainder of the labor. I was 4 centimeters dilated at this point.

I remember feeling like my water broke around 5:30 p.m., and asked the nurses a few times. They checked and advised me that my membranes were still intact, and even provided litmus paper to show me.

Around 6 p.m., I asked them to check again, as I could feel water, and felt pressure on my pelvic floor. The midwife in training checked and stated that I was only 6 centimeters dilated and my membranes were still intact. The OB would be in soon to confirm.

At 6:45 p.m., my OB returned to check progress, and stated that I was 10 centimeters and she could see the head. She commented that my water had broken a few hours ago (I was right!) and it was time to start pushing. I was completely overwhelmed. This was what we had been waiting for, and soon we would meet our daughter! I couldn't hold back the tears.

At 6:55 p.m., we started pushing, my mother to my left side and my fiancee to my right. They each held a leg and cheered me on. As my mother has done this many times, she was the most incredible coach. She knew exactly what to say and when to say it.

As I had full feeling on the left side of my body, I could feel everything, and the pain was quite excruciating. I was screaming with every push, and my mother-in-law could hear me down the hallway. The baby came very fast, and the OB did not even have time to change out of her street clothes. At one point, my mother put her hand down to stop Baby's head from coming, as we were not prepared, and I would have torn very badly had she not done this.

At 7:32 p.m., we welcomed a beautiful and healthy baby girl at 7 pounds, 6 ounces and 20 inches long. I was very careful to push and not push when instructed by the OB, and did not suffer any tearing. I remember that even after my daughter was born, I still had a desire to push and the placenta came out immediately after. Following this, my body went into shock and I shook uncontrollably until covered with warm blankets. It did not take long for me to recover and start enjoying my new little bundle of joy!