Your Birth Story

My Dearest Evan,

Oh my, do you know how to make an entrance! You, my boy, prove to me more every day that you truly are my little miracle baby. You arrived in this world at 7:49 pm on December 26, one day after your due date (just like your big sister). Here is your birth story.....

At 11:50 pm on Christmas day, I started having contractions. This was nothing new for me, as I'd had false contractions for weeks up to this point so I wasn't surprised. BUT, this time they were getting more frequent and more intense so I thought this could be it, finally. I woke your dad up and sat on the exercise ball to get through the contractions. We still weren't fitting the criteria to head to the hospital when we had to leave for our Maternal Fetal Medicine appointment for a non-stress test, which we'd been doing twice a week since week 34. During the test, we were told to go ahead and get checked out next door at the women's center, so we walked over and lo and behold, I was already dilated to a 5! They went ahead and admitted me - you were on your way!

After being admitted, I made it to a 7 pretty quickly. But since I had to have some meds that would take a while to integrate in my system, we went ahead and got an epidural because we knew it would be a little while before we could safely bring you into the world. That was my only goal, by the way: deliver a healthy baby! After the epidural, things stalled quite a bit. I got to an 8, but wouldn't dilate any further. My cervix also wouldn't thin out any more. While my normal OB was planning on coming in to deliver you, she couldn't make it in that day. However, we had a wonderful lady named Dr Warner who took great care of us. She said because I was stalled and my contractions were irregular, we should go ahead with a c-section. While she was very apologetic about it all, I was still focused on getting you out as safely as possible (and so ready to meet you). I didn't care how you entered the world!

We got suited up and into the OR - not as cold as I remembered it being with Avery. They pulled you out and there was a large gasp in the room.....and someone said "that's why".....turns out you looked like a giant compared to most babies delivered. The person that said "that's why" was referring to why I couldn't deliver you vaginally. Although everyone thought you were over 10 pounds, you weighed in at 9 pounds, 2 ounces and 21 inches long. Your dad's first words to me when he saw you was "he's a horse." When I first got to see you, I couldn't believe how perfect you were! You were such a healthy big boy - definitely meeting my goal for the delivery!

You went off with dad to get your APGAR score and I got stitched back up. When the doctor was done, she came over to tell me a few things. First, she thought your weight was the reason for the needed c-section. Second, I had a uterine window. A uterine window is when they can see the baby through the uterus wall (that's unusual). She said it was like my uterus wall was a thin layer of saran wrap. A nurse later told me it was the biggest uterine window she'd ever seen. The doctor told me that had I tried to push (during a vaginal delivery), I would have likely torn through that uterine window, causing a rupture. A rupture would have been life-threatening to both you and me, so I am forever grateful that Dr Warner suggested we move forward with a c-section!

Following your birth, I had really low blood pressure so I still couldn't see you. I didn't realize you and dad were waiting in the hall for me to get meds to boost my blood pressure before I saw you. I generally have low blood pressure, so wasn't surprised, but glad the meds finally kicked in so I could hold you.

Here's your entry and hospital stay in pictures:

 

   

 

 

Meeting for the first time!

 

 

Grandma and Grandpa meeting you! 

 

 

Big sister was so excited to meet you! 

 

 

 

You, my sweet baby boy, are worth every hiccup we encountered along the way. I'm so grateful to have a healthy boy to take care of - just have to focus on not messing it up now!
All my love,
Mom