I have about 28 years in L&D, nursery and it is a great specialty. Not to say that it is without any sad days.  My advice is to have at least 6 months med/surg experience first.  We are getting some new grads and I think it makes it harder for them-you really need that basic experience first.

You need to be a pretty independant worker and plan on learning new information all of the time.  You need to stay educated on the updates. learn fetal monitoring, s/s of emergencies, and be able to deal with a very diverse population of patients.

I love what I do and like seeing new people go into the field. It is very rewarding, and after all of my years there is still never a birth that is not amazing to me!   A love seeing the families expressions as they first look at their new infant and hear the discussions about who he/she looks like.  The eyes of a first time grandparent are indescribable! 

Good luck and I hope you choose and love this field as much as I do!