How Can You Not Know That Your Water Broke?

As promised, Nathan's birth story is finally being posted. Sorry it's taken a few weeks, but as many of you know time with a newborn is precious and I'm not willing to give up those moments in lieu of updating the blog. Instead I've been enjoying our nursing time and trying to keep an equally adorable older brother from loving on Nathan while he's napping.

After weeks of waiting and mild contractions I had resigned myself to being pregnant forever. Okay, I knew that wasn't going to happen, but it sure felt like it. On Sunday, June 13th, Matt, John and I packed up a potluck dish and headed to a MOMS Club picnic at Miner's Park. Right as we were preparing to leave I announced that I wasn't sure if my water was leaking. We took a quick break, I laid down for a few moments, but we decided it wasn't anything and headed off to the picnic.

Shortly after our arrival at the picnic (and after 9,000 people said "I can't believe you're still pregnant") we were caught in a nasty rain storm complete with chest rattling thunder and lightning that was touching down all around us. John and pretty much 20 other children were in hysterics; dads were racing to gather up coolers, toys, and grill supplies. Needless to say, when the storm passed everyone pretty much left because the park equipment was drenched and the pavilion was flooding.

We stopped at my parents house on the way home. After talking with my mom I decided to page the midwife and talk to her since I still wasn't sure if my water had broken. The midwife suggested that I go to the hospital to be checked so we left John with his grandparents and headed to the maternity ward. The nurse who checked me in around 9pm said she still felt my bag of water but did a swab test as well. Shortly thereafter she returned and said I was at the hospital to stay!

The midwife started me on pitocin around 9pm, I got an epidural around midnight, and at 2:15am the nurse said I was at 6cm. However - by 2:20am I was feeling the urge to push. So they checked me again and I was complete and Nathan was on his way down, already at +3 station. They paged the midwife and prepped the room. Twice they went to put my legs up in stirrups and decided against it for fear that Nathan would deliver himself. The nurses also called the front desk to see how far away the midwife was and told the desk staff to send her straight back to the room.

When the midwife arrived she took one look at me and announced that she at least needed some gloves! Two contractions later Nathan was born! The midwife never got her scrubs or smock on; she never put on her mask...she delivered our bundle of joy in her blue jean shorts, t-shirt, and a pair of surgical gloves.

This delivery was much easier than John's. I recovered extremely quickly. I haven't been back to the doctor every week since Nathan's birth. Nathan has been extremely healthy thus far. At his first doctor appointment he was given the all clear and told we didn't need to return for a 2 week check-up because he was already past his birth weight. He's growing like a weed and enjoys being cuddled. John is adjusting well and spends most of his time trying to hug and kiss Nathan.

So overall - given my choice, I'll choose this delivery again over my first delivery.

All is well that ends well.....

Nathan Michael

Nathan Michael arrived at 2:56am today! He weighed in at a whopping 9lbs, 8oz; measured 20in; and came with a powerful set of lungs and a full head of hair. More in the near future....but here's a first glimpse!

Waiting Game

The waiting game continues...

Last week after my doctor's appointment we were hopeful that baby would make an appearance in the near future. I was already 3 cm dilated and the doctor tried to stimulate labor. Instead, I ended up with 3 days worth of contractions that never got stronger or closer together. Nothing like raising your hopes...

Nonetheless, the house is pretty clean and ready for baby to arrive. My wonderful husband helped me by mopping floors last night. I've got a freezer and pantry full of quick meals for postpartum and an extended family that is planning on doing some cooking in the upcoming weeks. Not to mention that I'm counting on my MOM's Club to make some dinners for us too. Overall, we're feeling pretty good about the prospect of going into labor (if it ever happens!)

I'll continue to update as possible. We're hopeful that the next post will include some pictures of a new little bundle of joy!

Little Things in Preparation for Little Ones

Every week Danielle Bean over at Faith and Family Live! encourages us to share our small successes with the world. Mostly because it's the small successes that add up to a big triumph in the lives of mothers.....

So this edition of small successes is dedicated to the little things done in preparation for a new little one! The nesting has kicked in, cleaning hormones are in full swing, and I think we could bring the baby home today if we needed to (although I could always find a few more things to get done before little one arrives).

1. Infant car seat in installed. It should be noted that this is more Matt's success than mine, but I think I should get credit for nagging him about it until it got done!

2. John's baby clothes (from newborn to 9 months) are washed, folded, and sorted. They are either in bins with appropriate labels or dresser drawers. Now, the usefulness of this goes up ten-fold if we have a boy. Although by doing this I also realized that even a boy will pose some complications as John was born in October and this one will be born in June so our seasons won't match up very well.

3. Hospital bags are finally packed. One for me and Matt. One for John to take to his grandparents. This really became a priority when the midwife informed me that she was going to try to stimulate labor this week. She wanted to do it last week - but Matt was out of town for the weekend and I informed her we were not anywhere close to ready at home. We'll see if we get any results by next week!

Bonus 4. A couple more freezer meals have made it into the freezer. Quick and easy is the goal for after the arrival of the baby!

Make sure to check out other's successes over at Faith and Family Live! There are some incredibly inspiring women over there!