I did keep up on a journal I had written to Everett during my pregnancy and now continue throughout his first months. Here is an excerpt from the entry about his birth...
At about 12AM on the 24th, I woke up with my first mild contractions. I guess you must have known that we should get things moving that day to avoid an induction or c-section. I tried to go back to sleep for a while, but didn’t get much rest. So at about 3AM I got up and started tracking my contractions using an app your dad had downloaded on our tablet. They were generally around 10 minutes apart and mild, so nothing to worry about. However, your dad decided he should probably cancel his work meetings and stay home with me in case things progressed quickly.
By the afternoon when we had our appointment, my contractions were a little closer together – about every 7 or 8 minutes and still not too painful. We had the ultrasound and were able to see you, but since you were so big and squished in there, we couldn’t really tell much of what you looked like. The ultrasound tech said there was enough fluid, but she couldn’t get you to move very much. She tried for a long time to get you active – pushing on your feet and legs, pushing your butt. She even tried blowing a loud buzzer by your head. It made you jump the first time, but after that initial startle, the buzzer no longer fazed you. You must have been in a very deep sleep. Finally, just before our time limit was up, you had moved enough for them to consider the pregnancy still safe to continue with.
Next we had my exam. At this point things had moved a little for me. I was a 2, which was at least better than 0. The doctor stripped my membranes and said that for 50% of women this would move them along in labor. She also said I could expect the contractions to get more intense. And they did – quickly.
By 6:00 that night, my contractions were much stronger and closer together – about every 5 minutes. This was close enough to make us decide that it was time to head to the hospital to get checked. When we got there, I ran into a couple friends, Ryan and Maureen Sundeen, who were expecting a baby and touring the hospital. It was a funny coincidence, and I was able to talk to them for a few minutes before we checked in. I had to tell Ryan not to mention to his mom that he saw us there. We hadn’t called Grandma Sheila and Grandpa John yet, and I didn’t want them hearing from Ryan’s mom that we were at the hospital.
Once we checked in, I was examined. Unfortunately, I hadn’t progressed enough to be admitted. So, my option was to walk the halls for an hour to see if that helped. Your dad and I wandered the halls, stopping every few minutes to lean on the wall and breathe through a contraction that was getting stronger and stronger. After an hour, we went to get checked again, hoping that I would have dilated more – enough to get admitted. No such luck. Now we just had to go home and wait for things to get more intense. The nurse gave me some medicine to help me relax between contractions, but it wouldn’t help with any of the pain. Your dad asked when we would know it’s the right time to come back in, and the doctor said we basically wouldn’t. He said we should come back when the contractions got even closer together, or if they pain became so intense that I couldn’t handle it anymore.
So home we went, armed with some suggestions on how to manage the pain. I took a hot shower, a hot bath and sat on a yoga ball. Nothing seemed to help much. Finally I resigned to just lying on the couch and gritting my teeth through the contractions – trying to sleep for the couple minutes between each. At midnight I decided it was time to go back in because the pain was just more than I could continue to handle.
When we checked back in, I was examined again but hadn’t really made much progress. Thankfully, the nurse said she could stretch my progress to a 4 or 5, which would allow me to be admitted. After she contacted the doctor, your dad and I were able to be moved into the delivery room. It was gorgeous – big screen TV, sauna tub, wood floors, large windows. At that point though, I wasn’t thinking too much about the room. I was getting all strapped in and hooked up to a lot of machines. I had two bands around my stomach. One was to measure my contractions and the other was to measure your heart rate. I got an IV full of fluids that I needed before I could get my epidural. I also had a blood pressure cuff on that automatically squeezed my arm to measure my blood pressure every 15 minutes. On my finger I had a clamp to measure my oxygen level as well.
After the bag of fluid was emptied, the anesthesiologist came in to give me the epidural I had requested from the nurse “as soon as possible.” The process of getting it was relatively easy and painless. A little numbing Novocain injected in my back first, then the IV into my spine. It wasn’t at all the scary or painful process that some people make it out to be. Your dad hung back near the bathroom during the injections, since he really doesn’t like needles. At that point, my contraction pain started to diminish until about 15 minutes later when I had no pain at all. I could still feel pressure on my lower half and legs, but absolutely no pain. It was great – and I have no idea why anyone would want to do it any other way.
Once the pain was gone, your dad and I were both able to get some sleep. The blood pressure cuff woke me up a lot, as did the nurses coming in and out, but I was so tired that I even slept through some of that.
During the night, there started to be some concern about your heart rate dropping during my contractions. They started by having me lay on my side, then flipping me every so often. They thought this might help relieve the pressure and stress on you. At one point, they had me on my hands and knees to try to help bring your heart rate back up. They also gave me an oxygen mask to try to make sure you were getting enough oxygen during the contractions. Your dad and I were starting to get nervous at this point and worried about what might be wrong. But the nurses and doctors didn’t say much, so we weren’t sure how big of a concern this could be.
Finally, it was decided that you needed to have another monitoring device to better track how you were doing. This would be a tiny monitor that would be screwed into your scalp while you were still in my stomach. This made your dad and I more nervous, but the nurses just continued to have me laying on my side. Our doctor assured us that as long as your heart rate came back up after the contraction was over, there wasn’t anything too concerning.
After a while, the nurse came in to let me know that my contractions had slowed and that they were going to start me on pitocin to get them revved back up. She hooked the bag up to my IV drip, but about that same time your heart rate dropped and was slow to come back up. The nurse decided to stop the pitocin in case that somehow had put you in additional stress. Thankfully your heart rate increased finally, but we decided to stay off the pitocin unless it was absolutely necessary.
During the early morning hours, your dad and I decided to turn on a movie (Rango) to keep our minds off heart rates and to make the time go by faster. Plus, we didn’t want to hear the beep of your heart rate monitor slow during each contraction – it made us too worried. During the movie, I continued to feel more and more pressure, which meant you were getting ready to be born. Part way through the movie, the nurse came in to examine me and said we were ready to start pushing! She called the doctor in (a new one since our first doctor’s shift was over). They also brought in all the tables and instruments they might need. It was a very strange feeling to see them wheel in the bassinet that you would be placed in. It was almost like it was finally hitting me that I was going to have a baby really soon.
As the contractions came, the nurses and doctor coached me on pushing and helped hold my legs while your dad stood by me and put his cool hands on my forehead. I felt nervous but determined. After the first few pushes, the doctor left to attend to some other things. That made me feel a little defeated, because I knew if you were close to coming the doctor would not have left the room. Maybe that helped motivate me, because after another 15 minutes or so, the nurses could tell you were close and went out to get the doctor.
After 30 minutes of pushing, you finally were born at 8:56AM on January 25th, 2012. It was then that we realized why your heart rate kept dropping – the cord was wrapped around your neck. Once you were out, they plopped you up on my stomach as they wiped you off. I think I was in shock, but I remember looking at you as they lifted you up and saying “It’s a boy!” I was so happy, and as I looked at your dad I could see how happy he was too. He had tears in his eyes. He got to cut the umbilical cord and be with you as they diapered, weighed and measured you. You were 8 pounds, 10 ounces and 21 ¾ inches long. It was then that you got your picture and video taken for the first time.
Meanwhile, I was still in bed. Because of the epidural, I wouldn’t be able to walk for a little while. So, once you were ready, your dad brought you back to me and we were both able to hold you and stare at your little face. You were all bundled by this time with a little hat to keep you warm. I couldn’t believe that you were finally here and that you were ours. It was a feeling of excitement, relief, shock and love. That’s the only way I can think to describe it.
After an hour or so, we were transferred into the recovery room – you in your bassinet and I in a wheelchair. I nursed you and we finally called your grandparents and aunts and uncles to tell them the news. Everyone was so excited and made plans right away to come visit us that day.
Before everyone started arriving, we were able to watch you have your first bath. You were not happy about most of it, but when the nurse submerged you in the warm water, you quieted down. She said a lot of babies enjoy that part because it feels like being back in their mom’s tummy.
Your Aunt Jamie and Uncle Brody were the first to arrive early that afternoon. They were so excited to meet and hold you. I know they can’t wait to have a baby of their own. Later that evening, Grandma Sheila and Grandpa John came to visit from Brainerd. They were there only a few minutes before Grandma Penny, Papa and Olivia arrived. It was a full house and you were passed around so that everyone could have a chance to hold you.
By the end of the night, we were all exhausted. You had a little bit of jaundice, so you slept a lot. Apparently that is a side effect of jaundice, which isn’t great because the way to get rid of it is to get you to eat. So, every 2 hours we’d have to make sure you nursed – even if that meant waking you up.
The next day Karyn, Jim and Donna came to visit. It was great to have some of our extended family make the trip to meet you. I know Karyn was especially interested in you and how everything went because she and Nate are thinking of having a baby too.
That night was our last night in the hospital. I was excited but nervous to go home. I knew that we’d be on our own when we left – no one to bring us meals or medication or check to see how we were doing. But I knew we had a lot of support from family and friends if we needed it. Plus, we had a follow up appointment with your pediatrician on Sunday, two days after we brought you home. Any questions or concerns we had could wait until then.
The first few days of you being home are a blur. I’m sure I was sleep deprived and nervous – the thing that really helped me pull through was your dad. He was amazing and I never would have been able to manage as well as I did without him. He tracked when I should take my ibuprofen and Tylenol, he handled all the house work, and he woke up in the middle of the night to check on you – were you just fussing or did you need to eat? Since he couldn’t feed you and I was still recovering, I think this was his way of being there for both of us.
On Sunday we went in for your doctor’s appointment to check your bilirubin levels. They had to prick your heel 3 times before they could get enough blood to check you. Poor guy – but you didn’t even cry. That pacifier works wonders. Later that day we got the call that your levels were still high, so we had to bring you in again a couple days later. Thankfully, that second appointment went well (only one heel prick) and your levels were low enough that you didn’t have to come in again until your 1 month check up.
The next two months were a combination of both activity and quiet. We had a lot of visitors come meet you – both friends and family. But much of your time was spent in mine or your dad’s arms. We were all adjusting to our new life together. The cats were even learning to adjust. Initially they came trotting up to the car seat when we first brought you home to sniff you. But when you made a noise, they went running for cover. It took a few weeks, but they gradually got more comfortable with you, and now when you cry or fuss they don’t seem bothered at all. Unfortunately, I think they are still adjusting (unhappily) to less attention and time in the back yard.
Now at the end of March I am starting back up at work. You’ll be going to day care, where I am sure they will do a great job of caring for you. Even though I have lots of trust in where you’ll be, it is hard to know that from here on out, you will be spending more of your waking time with your “teachers” than with us. I guess that is the way most kids grow up now, but I do wish I could stay home with you the way my mom stayed home with me before I started school. However, I know day care will teach you a lot of important skills that will get you ready for kindergarten and the rest of your school experience. Your dad and I know you will go on to do great things!
