David's Birth

Here is the story of how David was born! For all of those guys reading (or others who do not wish to hear the particulars of a story of a childbirth), you may turn back now - just fair warning for what's ahead! :)

Well, I finally had my 'natural' childbirth - and by that I mean I had no pain medication! And it wasn't even on purpose! With the other 2 kids, I went to the hospital saying, "I'd like to have this baby without any medication, but if I feel I HAVE to, I will have an epidural." and both times, between back labor and pitocin, and the fact that I have no pain tolerance, I ended up having the epidural. This time, I walked in to the hospital, and while we were being shown to our room, I saw the anesthesiologist go into another room & say to another laboring mama, "So, you want an epidural, huh?" and I jokingly said, "Don't go too far, I'm next!" - I had resigned myself to the fact that an epidural was the way to go. :) Apparently God had other plans this time... :)

So, this was my third pregnancy, and the third time my due date came and went without any baby to show for it. My due date was Saturday, July 23rd, and nothing much happened that day. On Sunday, the 24th, I started to feel just 'icky' in the afternoon - I took a nap when the kids did, and while I was laying down, I finally had some mild contractions start up. They continued to be about 10-20 minutes apart through Sunday night and Monday, and I could feel that David's position had moved - somehow he was pinching my bladder when I would try to walk, and it was very painful. I was so thankful that the end stage of this pregnancy was easier than that of Zachary and Natalie - I think it was definitely God's mercy because I was so busy with Z & Nat, and with the busy summer camp season - I wasn't to the point of major discomfort until the day after my due date. That Sunday was also the day that we finally picked out David's middle name - Isaac. :)

On Monday, the 25th, I went to my OB in the afternoon, and she checked me - I was at 2 cm, and she said that I was 'induce-able', so if I WANTED to, I could come in Tuesday morning and be induced. To which I said, of course, "No, I'd rather waddle around on my swollen ankles, wincing in pain from my pinched bladder for a few more days, please." NOT! :) I actually got giddy & said something along the lines of, 'Sign me up!' :) She had told me that she would induce when I was a week late, so I was pleasantly surprised that she was willing to induce me earlier! We left the office, called our families to tell them the news, and headed home. That night I sat with Zachary before he went to bed, and we chatted about the coming baby, and I told Zachary that the baby's name would be David. This whole pregnancy, he has been telling everyone the baby's name will be Charlie Brown, and I didn't want him to be disappointed or unprepared for the fact that a brother named Charlie Brown would NOT be happening. :) Instead, he surprised me by replying, 'I like the name Titus instead.' He finally decided, after another talk with Daddy, that he could like David's name after all. His exact words were, 'I guess I suppose I could like it.' :) I continued to have contractions about 10-15 minutes apart all night, so a good friend came over & stayed the night 'just in case'. But David wasn't that anxious to make his appearance after all, so we got up Tuesday morning & got ready to head to the hospital!

We arrived at the hospital around 8:30 am, filled out paperwork, and waited until about 9:40 or so for my dr. to arrive. She checked me, told me I was at 3.5 (at which point I thought, "Great! Almost to 4, when I'll ask for my epidural!", but then she said she wanted me to progress to 6 before the epidural so that my end stages of labor would go more quickly. Sigh. She started a low dose of pitocin, and I waited for it to kick in. Which it did!! :) I labored in bed for a while, even playing a few turns of a game with Joel on his iPad, and when the contractions got stronger, I moved to the birthing ball (basically an exercise ball that you sit on), which feels amazing when you are in labor! My way of coping with the pain of the contractions is always to squeeze my husband's hands while doing my labor breathing, which he is very patient about. We have a picture of his mangled hand from when I was laboring with Zachary, but didn't have a chance for that this time! But I

promise you, his hand was just as mangled. :)

After I had labored a while, I asked to be checked, and we discovered I was at 5.5 cm. Just shy of the epidural mark. I remember saying, "Can't you just call the anesthesiologist? I'm sure I'll be at 6 by the time he gets here..." but apparently my dr. was very strict on the 6, so I kept on laboring. The nurse helped me get on my hands & knees in the bed (with my top propped up on pillows) to see if that would help my labor progress more quickly. Someone else was delivering or something at this point, so all the nurses disappeared for a while to deal with that, and I labored on my hands and knees but the contractions in that position were VERY painful, so eventually I got back onto the birthing ball.

Finally, about an hour after my last check, the nurse came back to check me again, to see if I could have my epidural now. I remember her saying excitedly to another nurse, "Oh! She's a rim! This girl is a rim! Call the doctor now!" and I remember thinking, "What exactly is a rim, and can I have my epidural now?" Turns out a rim is 9.5 cm, and yeah, I missed my chance for the epidural! I just remember being so exhausted at this point and thinking, "Really? I don't get to have my break from the epidural where I rest before the pushing? I don't know if I can do this!"

When the doctor arrived, she checked me again, and announced that baby David's head was facing my back instead of my front, and we needed him to flip over before the pushing could begin. She said the best way to get this to happen was for me to flip over on my hands and knees. Being the mature person who handles pain so well, I responded, "No way! That hurts too much." I kept refusing to turn over, so finally she had me lay on my side. Switching positions at this point was a BIG deal, because they kept saying, "Tell us when this contraction is done," but I was in so much pain that the contractions never felt like they were done, so I couldn't tell them, and it took me forever to turn over or do anything! Well, after about 30 more minutes of painful contractions and no progress towards David's flipping, the doctor (with Joel's insistent help) finally talked me into getting up on my hands and knees again. I don't remember much about this part except that I kept saying over and over in my mind, "I CAN do all things through Christ who strengthens me." and singing the song that has those words, over and over... and at one point, the nurses told me that I had to let go of Joel's hand because it was literally BLUE from how hard I was squeezing it! I should note that HE never complained about it, though, and even shook his head to dismiss the nurses' concern when they noticed it! :)

And then, all at once, David flipped, and then he was on his way out! They even had to call quick for the doctor, because she had left the room! I pushed about 2 times total, and there he was, and they said, "Don't push any more! Get respiratory in here!" because he was coming so fast, they weren't prepared, and I heard someone else say that his cord was wrapped around his neck, which freaked me out- but a minute later I heard him cry and was very relieved. Then one more push, and it was over!! And I have never been so exhausted, and so relieved, in my life. :)

David got all wrapped up & then I got to see his little face & watch Joel hold him for a while & when my body finally calmed down & stopped shaking from the shock of his birth, I got to hold him, too! He is so precious & we are so thankful for him! :) His brother & sister got to come and meet him later that night, and they were thrilled.

I couldn't believe that I did it without the epidural! I also felt very shaky & my abdomen was more sore right afterwards than usual, which I guess was because I didn't have the after-effects of the epidural still in my system to numb me a little, but after a half hour or so, that started feeling better, and I was thankful that my legs weren't numb like they were for at least an hour after my other two were born! And later that night I felt like I was able to get around better than I had the other times as well, so overall, I think it was nice afterwards not to have had the epidural. And I'm glad I got to have the experience, even though I wouldn't describe it as 'fun' or anything! :)

I guess David's birth story is just another example of how God's plan, even though it may be different than what we expect, is always perfect!! :)

Natalie's Birth Story: Part Three - 'Worth It All'

**Catch up on part 1 here and part 2 here.**

The next morning, I woke and ordered breakfast. Hubby went to get something to eat for himself, and we chatted and waited for a couple of hours for the doctor to show up. The day shift nurse, Yvonne (sweetest nurse EVER - I totally loved her) showed up, and ended up spending her entire shift taking care of me {poor lady}.

The doctor arrived around 10:00 to administer my Pitocin, and finally chose to break my water and really get this party started. Having your water broken doesn't hurt at all, in case you ever wondered - I thought it would.

After my water was broken, I hardly needed any Pitocin to get going with my contractions. I labored in bed, standing, and on the ball again. At some point in the early afternoon, when I had been sitting on the birthing ball for a while, the contractions were still very painful in spite of all of my efforts to change positions and breathe and all. I decided to ask for an epidural.

Every time I am expecting, I plan to have a beautiful, 'natural' med-free labor. But I 'reserve the right' to have an epidural. And both times I have resorted to it. :) At some point you'd think I would just realize that I am NOT a 'natural labor' girl. I am an 'epidural-needing' girl (with absolutely NO pain tolerance). Will someone please remind me of this the next time I am writing a birth plan???

Also, both of my kids have been so active during labor - kicking against the contractions and spinning around in my womb during my labor, so that about half of the time, I'm experiencing 'back labor' (where their head is facing the wrong way - which makes for VERY painful contractions).

Anyway, when I asked for an epidural, Yvonne checked me and I was at 6 cm. The epidural mercifully only took 20 minutes to arrive, and then, oh, sweet relief that is numbness. They laid me down, covered me with warm blankets, and mmmmm...it was blissful. I napped for an hour or so, and then I began to feel each contraction again, stronger in my lower back than before. At first I just felt tightness, and pressure, but the longer it went on, I felt more and more pain with the pressure. I asked to be checked again, and was progressing nicely, to 8, then 9, with the pains growing stronger every minute. I can't imagine the pain I would have felt withOUT the epidural, but even with it, the last two hours were ALMOST unbearable.

Hubby held my hand through the pain, allowing me to squeeze the life out of his fingers during each contraction, and reminded me that I could do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Which I repeated to myself constantly. And then I began to feel the 'urge to push'. While I was enjoying the benefits of my epidural during Zachary's labor, I felt nothing. I slept peacefully for three hours, and they told me, "When you feel the urge to push, let us know." Finally, at some point, I said something like, 'Um, I think it's time...maybe...not sure...' But during his labor and even delivery, I had never in my life felt THIS URGE.

I told the nurse, and she checked me, and informed me that I was fully dilated, and that she would CALL THE DOCTOR AND HAVE HER DRIVE OVER FROM HER OFFICE (only a 5-minute drive, but STILL).

Um, no, you don't understand. I HAVE TO PUSH. THIS URGE is not something that can just wait until it's convenient. I am usually a really nice person during my labors (I think, not too demanding or yelling stuff at Hubby or anything), but this was the one time that I really wanted to yell at someone - I ended up just whimpering and trying to focus my energy on 'breathing through' the contractions, when my body had other ideas about what I SHOULD be doing with them.

Yvonne (and Hubby) impressed upon me the necessity of waiting until the doctor was present to deliver the baby, and Hubby continued to encourage me with our favorite verse, and God helped me hold that baby in, and I prayed more fervently than ever before that my doctor would ALREADY BE NEAR, IF NOT IN THE HOSPITAL, and when she walked in the door about 60 seconds later, I literally uttered a rather loud, "Oh, PRAISE the LORD!", which Hubby and I laughed about later.

At this point, I still figured I had a while until Natalie would make her appearance - I pushed for two grueling hours with Zachary, and expected my experience with Natalie to be just slightly quicker - I was praying for a 'pushing time' of 20-30 minutes or less.

So the doctor made sure I was ready, and got everyone in position, and I pushed a couple of times, and exactly TWO minutes of burning pain and hard work later, Natalie was outside the womb!!! It seemed like it took forever to hear her first cry, though I'm sure it was only a few seconds. They put her on my chest as they cleaned her up, and let her cuddle, and it was wonderful and beautiful and amazing. And her cry was the most beautiful sound in the world.

And every single second of pain and discomfort was absolutely worth it.


And if God so chooses to bless us, I will be thrilled to do it all again. :)

Natalie's Birth Story: Part Two: The False Start

So, we had the induction scheduled for Monday afternoon. We were to arrive at the hospital at 5:00. We celebrated with a quick lunch together at McDonald's, went home, and I tried to rest (yeah, right!) for a couple of hours while Hubby finished up some final tasks at the office. We showered, took one last enormo-belly picture (above), and headed to the hospital! I was so excited to say, "Hello, I'm Carrie, and I'm here for an INDUCTION!!!" :)

We had to fill out all kinds of paperwork, I got blood taken, an IV set up, and those stupid belly monitors all stuck on my belly. {Speaking of which, if someone could invent an external fetal heart monitor, and contraction monitor that ACTUALLY stayed on, and did not have to be adjusted every 20 minutes (TAKING 20 minutes each time), they would make a FORTUNE. Those things are DUMB. Just saying.} Anyway, the good news was that I was starting out my labor at 3.5 cm dilated (out of 10, in case any of you were wondering) - so apparently those 'useless' contractions I'd had all week had been doing SOMETHING after all.

My doctor stopped by around 7:00 or so, and started me on some Pitocin. I asked her to break my water, but she decided not to, giving a vague reason about me being overdue & possibly having low fluid levels...? After just a few minutes, I started having some mildly uncomfortable contractions, and after a little while, they were coming just a few minutes apart. I had to lay in the bed for about an hour to make sure the fetal heart rate was good, but then I was able to get up & stand, walk, and sit on the birthing ball.

This was a new experience for me, since when Z was born, I had to stay in bed during the whole labor. I rushed to the hospital too early with him, thinking my water had broken when it hadn't, and during the process of being checked out, his heart rate dropped twice, so after that, I was confined to the bed, and that was not pleasant. I was really looking forward to a more 'natural' labor this time, and being able to walk around, and it really did help, especially during the early stages. So I labored, changing positions every 45 minutes or so, spending 20 minutes each time with a nurse adjusting my monitors, and then laboring through my moderately painful contractions.

At 2:00 am, my doctor called to see how I was doing. Holding steady at 4 cm, thank you very much. So she called off the whole Pitocin operation for the night, and they offered me a sleeping pill and a chance to start over the next morning.

I was SOOOOOO completely and utterly disappointed, I cried when the nurse was trying to help me decide what to do. Even at this point, some part of me honestly believed that Natalie would NEVER be born. Hubby tried to decide whether to go home or sleep in the delivery room (on a recliner or the floor), but I was afraid that my labor would continue on its own & he wouldn't be there - and our house is a half hour away, so I talked him into staying - poor guy. I got my sleeping pill & my lovely hospital bed, and warm blankets....and he slept on the hard recliner & floor with no sleep aids. And I don't think he actually slept much. :(

And after the Pitocin was turned off, my contractions slowed down to next to nothing as well. So my fears were for naught.

But the next morning is the REAL beginning of Natalie's birth story. (Spoiler alert - She DID eventually come out!) :)


I'm hoping to have the third (final) part up soon! :)

Natalie's Birth Story: Part One - Introduction

In preparing to write Natalie's birth story, I realize that I have never shared Zachary's birth story, other than this Labor Day meme a little over a year ago.

So these posts will intertwine both stories, a study in similarities and contrasts, and also what I have learned about myself through the hours I have spent bringing my children into the world.

To start out with, Z was 'overdue'. Just a little teensy bit - actually, the first sign of labor happened on the evening of my due date. And his labor was quick - from that first sign until the beautiful, miraculous end, was only 23 hours. From the time I first felt a contraction for sure, after my water broke at 4:30 am, until his head lay on my chest, was only about 15 hours. So I expected my labor with Natalie to be very similar, and equally quick.

I went to my doctor on December 15th, three days before Natalie's due date. And just as she had on Zachary's due date two years ago, she did something to get things going inside of me. I scheduled my OB appointment for the next Monday, just as a formality, of course. And when I came home, after feeling 'crampy' all afternoon and evening, the first sign of labor appeared! Contractions came gently every 15 minutes or so, and I was sure that this was it, and Natalie would be in my arms before her due date even arrived. I slept on an extra waterproof crib mattress pad 'just in case' my water broke during the night. And the next morning, when I woke up without any more signs of labor, I was rather mystified and disappointed. But I stayed home from a Christmas party that Wednesday morning 'just in case' - I mean, how embarrassing would it be for my water to break at someone else's house???

That next afternoon, I headed into town for a non-stress test, to make sure that Natalie was still thriving in spite of my gestational diabetes. The test went smoothly, and I had two contractions during the half hour I was hooked up to the monitors - 15 minutes apart again, but hardly felt. I did some Christmas shopping, and headed home. I remember having to breathe through two contractions on my way home, and being excited about their intensity (but rather distracted while driving).

Over the next few days, as my due date came and went, my contractions did the same. At times they were ten or fifteen minutes apart, but for hours at a time, they were barely noticeable. One night, I had an hour-long spell of contractions that were close & intense, and I got excited, waiting, breathing, and then they went away. I woke up rather discouraged. I felt that Natalie would NEVER come out. My parents arrived, to be here in time to take care of Zachary while we were in the hospital, and we went on walks, and read countless books, and played with toys...and waited. On Sunday, God gave me a swift attitude adjustment at church, and on Monday morning, Hubby and I headed to my scheduled OB appointment. Which turned out to be my last!

...more to come as I have time between disciplining and loving on a 2-year-old and feeding and loving a newborn!!! :)