I had just turned 20 when I found out that I was pregnant. Not necessarily the ideal time to have a baby but my boyfriend and I decided that we were going to be parents.

At the beginning of my pregnancy I had imagined a hospital birth with an epidural and hopefully no pain, but as I progressed through my pregnancy and did more research I realized that I wanted to try a natural birth. My boyfriend and I went to prenatal classes and prepared for the natural birth.

I was due on December 4 and that day came and went. My boyfriend and I walked all around our neighborhood trying to start my labor. Nothing was working.

Finally on Sunday night/Monday morning around 2 a.m. I was heading to bed. Just as I was getting into bed I felt something wet. I looked down and realized that my water had broken.

I woke up my boyfriend and called the doctor to let her know what was going on. She said to try and get some rest but the contractions started coming hard and fast and I thought we needed to head to the hospital.

When we got to the hospital we were put in a room and I was examined. I was 1 centimeter dilated and about 75 percent effaced. The contractions were getting worse and I was sure I must be progressing along.

The pain was horrible and I decided that I was going to see how the gas would work for the pain. It really helped and I was able to relax a bit.

My doctor came in around 8 that morning and checked me and I was still 1 centimeter. We talked about it and decided that it was best for me to go home and try and labor there for a while.

We made it home and things got really bad. The pain was excruciating. I called the doctor and she said to come into her office to be checked.

As soon as I got there she realized that I was not coping well. I was screaming and crying and when she examined me I was still 1 centimeter. She decided to send me back to the hospital with orders for morphine. Hopefully I would be able to relax a bit and I would get further along.

We got to the hospital and I was still having bad contractions. The only thing that was getting me through it was the gas!

My doctor came back that night around midnight and examined me again. Much to everyone's dismay I was still 1 centimeter! My boyfriend and I couldn't believe it. I was becoming discouraged and I knew that time was running out because my water had broken almost 24 hours before.

We decided at this point to start a Pitocin drip and to talk about an epidural when I was further along. The Pitocin drip worked very effectively and within about an hour I needed the epidural. The anesthetist came in to do the epidural and she had to try five times because I apparently have a curve in my spine.

Finally with the epidural in I was able to get some sleep. It had been almost 28 hours of labor and almost 48 hours without any sleep.

I woke up at 5 a.m. on Tuesday December 9 and I was 9 centimeters! That last centimeter went quickly and soon I was feeling the urge to push. I pushed for about three hours and at 8:52 a.m. our little girl Payton Mia was born. It was not exactly the plan I had but amazing just the same.

She has been home now for two and a half weeks and she is just perfect!