oh baby!

Well, apparently those contractions were real!

Once I started timing them, after enduring them all afternoon, I realized they were already 5 minutes apart, and staying there. But I was so paranoid about them going away, I wasn't sure if we should act or not. After about 45 minutes, I decided we should and I called our babysitter to come over. Problem, her husband had started working nights and she was without a car! This was at 10:45 at night. So we decided to go pick her up and bring her back here and by that time we should know for sure whether we were hospital bound or not.

By the time we got home, I knew we needed to get my bag and go to the hospital, even with moving around, these contractions were not budging! I grabbed my housecoat and bathroom stuff, a couple of books and my suitcase, and we were off for the 5 minute drive to the hospital! We got checked in right after midnight or so and I was escorted to triage, to be hooked up to monitors and be asked another gazillion questions. Sure enough, my contractions were registering every 4.5 to 5 minutes, that I was good, I was having legitimate contractions and they were regular.

However, the nurse, or course, was not so sure about me being in labor, because I was still at 4 cm and 50% effaced, the same that I had been a week previously at the doctor's office. The doc on call said I could walk for an hour and see if that did anything. I began walking.

It was now 1:30 a.m. The nurses said to go check out the weather. When we had arrived at the hospital it was calm and warm outside, a beautiful summer night. We had seen some distant lightning and not thought too much about it. Now we were in the middle of a terrific thunderstorm. Rain lashing against the windows, trees being bent over by the wind, it was amazing. We continued to walk in the square pattern of the labor and delivery ward, watching rain leak in at one of the picture windows. Finally I dropped Joey off in the waiting room to watch TV for awhile. I walked while my contractions got strong enough that I would have to stop and rest while having one. The pressure on my back was horrible. Then the tornado sirens started, and I knew this really was a bad storm, we watched forcasts on TV, yes there had been tornadoes touch down in other places.

2:30 and I'm tired of walking, it's been an hour, and I need to lay down. I get hooked up to the machines again, and the nurse sees if there is any progress. Only a little, I'm now effaced to 70%, but not further dialated. I feel almost frustrated. She begins talking about sending me home, I want to cry. I am not going home, again! I want this baby out of me! So I lay there, upset. And laughing at the girl next to me in triage who is barely dialated, and sobbing like a baby. Poor thing, it was her first and she was so unprepared. The funny thing was, was that she only did this while her husband was there, he would leave and she would be fine! Drama queen! Okay, back to me.

Well then I was jealous of the girl next to me, because her water broke! Which meant she got to stay! And because she had been so whiny, they were giving her an epidural at 2 cm. Hello, I was at a 4 already!

2:50 a.m. I am laying there, watching Joey, when something happens. It suddenly feels like I was punched in the stomach from the inside out, and we here a loud pop on the heartbeat monitor. This punching business hurt! I started to get upset, what was wrong, what was that, I was in pain. Then I realized, my water broke! Yay! I got to stay too and this baby was going to be born on June 13th! I smiled again, relief, I was not out of my mind thinking that I was in labor!

For a couple of minutes I was okay, then the first wave of new contractions hit, and they were intense. They went from manageable with deep breaths, to struggling to control myself with focused and coached breathing from Joey. I got moved to my labor room and decided to find a better position to be in. My back was killing me while laying down, so I decided to swing my legs over the side of the bed and lean on Joey. When I did that water went everywhere, and kept on coming! How did I have that much water in me?! Poor Joey, I got his feet wet! He was a good sport though, thank goodness it didn't gross him out or anything!

Well the new position helped for awhile, and I was asking for my epidural as soon as possible, but first they had to do a platelet check and an IV bolus of 1 ltr. saline solution. So I was stuck waiting. Mainly for a slow lab that was taking hours instead of the minutes I wanted! Finally I gave in and asked for staedol. A narcotic that I had last labor, and hated, because I was so out of it. But now I was desperate. Joey was having his shirt half ripped off during every contraction and I was letting myself be heard! The staedol helped. It did take the edge off the pain, and I was able to focus better on breathing, and in between contractions I was able to pass out and totally relax. That was nice. But after awhile, the staedol wasn't cutting it, and I was a yelling madwoman again. Pain can do very interesting things to you.

The nurse felt so sorry for me. Bless her. She said it was too late for any kind of pain intervention, that I was already to a 9 by this point of 5:30, but she would talk to the anesthesiologist one more time! He agreed to help me out, and at about 5:50 I was finally getting some relief. However, during the epidural I started wanting to push and that is a very hard thing to control. Labor is a very primitive and instinctive thing. It is easy to tell a laboring woman to breathe through her contractions, not to yell, and to not push when that is the only thing her body wants to do. But to do those things can be near impossible in the moment.

Once the epidural was working, and my back was no longer hurting, I was able to focus on what to do next, and we tried a couple of practice pushes, at which point she said not to push, she had to get the doctor. Wow, this was happening a lot faster than Gabbie! With Gabbie I was complete for like 4 hours before we got to this point! Dr. Powell was the doc on call, and she came in, ready for me to push. I think I pushed during three contractions, 3 times each to get little Davy's head out. I hate the part where you get their head half way out and you are in pain, where everything feels like it is on fire and will explode, but the only way for it to end is to push through it. But I knew that, and pushed again, and there was his head with one hand up on his face! One more time and his shoulders and body were out! I had a baby boy! It was 6:22 a.m.

I don't really remember seeing him well then, I was tired and didn't have my glasses on. I remember him being BIG, much bigger than I expected. I did get to cut the umbilical cord though! Joey got to last time, this was my turn! Then they took him to the warmer. He had good color and movement, but wasn't crying. He was breathing, just not crying. They suctioned him out for quite some time and gave him a little oxygen. It wasn't until they took his blood sugar that he really, really cried!

I watched them start measuring him, and I knew he was a big baby boy when they realized their little paper tape measures weren't long enought for him! Wow! Then they weighed him. Oh my goodness! 10 pounds and 14 ounces! And 24 inches long! What a whopper! How in the world that was curled up inside of me and then came out of me still boggles my mind!

Then I got to hold him and cuddle him, and nurse him for the first time. He nursed like a champ right from the start. He had been sucking on his thumb on the warming table! He nursed for a good 30 minutes before they took him to the nursery and went to get me cleaned up.

I tore in the same place as last time, only needed 2 stitches though, which I think is pretty good for such a big baby and fast labor!

The only problems we had at the hospital was Davy's blood sugar which kept dipping too low between feedings. We had to supplement with formula after he nursed until I had enough milk for him. Which thankfully wasn't too long! He now has no problems except for wanting to eat ALL the time, and wanting to be up at midnight! But all typical newborn behaviors. I couldn't ask for a more beautiful little boy, we are so blessed. Gabbie loves him in her own way, and for that I am also thankful.

I am sure you will hear a lot more about him over time, so just get ready!