Colin's Birth Story

Colin Gabriel, 7 lbs 7 oz & 20 inches

2/11/16 10:45PM. I got up from my yoga ball only to have intense pelvic pain and pressure. I walked around the house. Pain didn't relieve itself, became more intense so I squatted next to the bed to relieve the pain and I heard a splash. My water broke. 38w1d Off to the hospital after loading our sleepy children into the van and took him to their grandparents' house. PH level test, FERN test and visual inspection All positive test results, meaning it was indeed amniotic fluid. 

2/12/16 12:00 AM 4cm, 70%, 38w2d. Plus one cm from last week. Admitted into L&D. Walked the halls for a few hours then tried to rest. 4:30 AM no change in cervix despite regular contractions, about 3/10 minutes. 7:30 Pitocin added after I was allowed to eat a good breakfast (breakfast burrito). Melissa arrived around this time. She and Paul were a great support. Walked the room. Contractions not painful until... 

11:45AM, cervix hadn't changed much, nurse thought baby was posterior (as Anna and Charlie were... I braced myself for another vacuum delivery), fore membrane broken by Dr Johnson, membranes stripped. Baby definitely LOA (anterior facing)... Yay! More intense contractions came. Nothing I couldn't handle at first. But as the hour passed, became painful, intolerable, lots of pain on my hips and lower uterus and pubic bone. Music was a great distraction for a while. 1:00, exhaustion finally got to me so I climbed into bed where I was checked again, 6-7cm, Phentanyl given after I requested an epidural, knowing the hardest part was coming. The nurse said I could go all natural. No thanks! 

1:30 epidural given and worked. Three anesthesiologist was amazing. 

1:50, checked again and 8cm, measured by nurse as well as a student named Taylor. The nurse said I could day I got my epidural at 8cm! I said I'm glad because I'd feel like a wimp if it was fewer centimeters.

Complete by 2:30! 3:12, started pushing 3:44, Colin Gabriel was born @ 7 lbs 7 oz, 20", 13.5" head, after 32 minutes of pushing, he was immediately put into my chest where I checked him to see if he was a boy or a girl... And cried for thankfulness. We had one hour of uninterrupted skin to skin... Beautiful hour, followed by breastfeeding. 💕 Afterwards, my OB prayed over us. It was an amazing, healing birth experience. My older two needed vacuums, I had to push two hours and we're immediately checked by care teams/NICU. Went home 2/13/16 weighing in at a hefty 6 lbs 14 oz LOL 

 Funny story, he was born 4 minutes after my scheduled 38 week appointment with my OB!