Friday morning we woke up early and drove in for my midwife's appointment. I had an hour long NST and then she placed a foley cath. I was 41 weeks, and my midwife was amazed I hadn't already gone into labor.
Right after my appointment I asked DH to drive through McD's because I was hungry. While in the drive thru lane I noticed the car was getting hotter than normal. Bad thermometer. It was an interesting drive making that stupid thing click open so it wouldn't overheat! We stopped and got the part and made it home. I had started having a few piddly contractions, but nothing major or really painful. They were definitely NOT BH's, but not serious either.
We make it home and then plan is just to hang out. DH is going to fix the car (10 minute fix, haha), and we're just going to hope something happens. Neither of us was really convinced.
A little before one the intensity of the contractions started picking up a bit. I was still able to be in any position during them, talk through them without difficulty, and they weren't close together or in a regular pattern, but by then I was convinced that this WAS labor starting. I kicked DH's butt out the door to go and fix the car.
As he's doing this super quick, easy, 10 minute no problem fix....a bolt snaps. Probably about that exact time contractions started getting closer together. I started getting really anxious. Just the thought of being home, no car, IN labor...I just couldn't handle it. I didn't think things would go super fast or anything, but wasn't sure either. Contractions were still about 10 minutes or so apart and tolerable.
DH calls his family and arranges a car for us. As soon as it gets here, things slow down considerably! Of course!! I went and laid down with Elijah and took a nap. I couldn't sleep through the contractions, but I didn't have to focus on them or anything yet.
DH decided to take the bigger boys to the grocery store at 4:30 when we realized we had squat in the house for food, and were about to leave my poor cousin here for a day (or so we thought it would be a day!) with no vehicle!
My cousin and I spend the whole time just visiting and hanging out. It was really nice, actually. I started having to concentrate more on the contractions. I couldn't talk through them, but I didn't mind if SHE talked to me through them. I started timing them while DH and the boys were gone. They were 6 minutes apart the entire almost 2 hours he was at the store. I called him about 1.5 hours into it to make sure he was almost done. I needed my ride/labor support back here! They were getting harder, but still only about 30 seconds long.
During this time I called the midwife's office and talked to the on-call midwife. Both she and I thought it would be a while. Even though contractions were in a good pattern, I was still talking through them. I rated them as 'mildly painful, mostly irritating'. I decided to take the foley out because it was bugging the ever-loving crap out of me. She was fine with that as well as we were both fairly sure labor was going on and it wouldn't stop when I took it out.
By the time DH got home they were definitely getting more intense. Still 6-10 minutes apart, still only about 30 seconds long, but I had to focus on them. I went and laid down by myself on my bed and watched some tv for a while.
Shortly after 7:30 that evening I came out and said, "Ok! Time to go! Let's go!" I gave the boys a hug and a kiss and we went out the door. I had a massive contraction as we were walking out, and I just kind of bent over and breathed through it, but I guess it freaked Daniel out.
On the drive to the hospital contractions were about 5 minutes apart. They were hard, but not long. I really had to concentrate to get through them, and at that point I was looking forward to "a big huge fat shot of whatever they will give me!!" . I alternated between thinking I'd be hardly progressed when we got there, and thinking I'd be about a 6 or maybe 7.
After we got off the freeway but were still about 10 minutes from the hospital they started coming on faster, every 2 minutes or so, and multi-peaking. My legs started shaking in between. I had a passing thought that, "Oh my gosh, isn't shaking legs a sign of transition?" I was feeling a bit sick to my stomach too. Neither one of us said it out loud, but we both knew we were running out of time. The car started going a bit faster.
We pulled into the hospital ER parking lot and DH dropped me off at the door. There were no spots when we pulled in, but as we stopped at the entrance one opened up so DH took off to get it. I started walking into the ER.
At the front desk it was fairly obvious what was going on and I had a major contraction just waiting to be taken back. Then three more, right in a row, while they were trying to ask me 1000 registration questions, none of which I could answer. I was leaning against the wall, scribbled my name on a few papers in between contractions, and tried to answer whatever I could in between. DH walked in and I said, " I've had four contractions just since walking in the door "
They had an aid bring a wheelchair, but there was no possible way I could fathom sitting down. I stared walking to where I thought the elevators were, DH and the aid behind me. All of the sudden another contraction hit and I felt the baby drop and I was scrambling for a bed. Thankfully there were some gurneys lining the hallway. Three of them. Two of them were occupied. I crawled up on the empty one and had several major PUSHY contractions. The people on the gurney's next to me were doing this... and "You should've been in a wheelchair!"
Much scrambling ensued as the aid didn't know WHAT the hell to do. I don't know how long it was but they rolled me back in to the ER, I guess so someone could check me. There's people standing around, and I'm on my hands and knees, white knuckling the side of this bed rail and staring at the floor just bracing myself for the next one to hit.
An ER doctor proceeds to tell me, "Please flip onto your back." Me: " No." Him: "I CAN'T check you when you are like that." Me: "You'd better figure it out because I'm not moving." He figured it out, but he wasn't happy about it!
He discovered my water wasn't broken (I knew that! Ask me! Hello!) and wished us good luck and sent us up to the 14th floor. It didn't take long to get up there. I still hadn't looked up or seen anyone, occasionally I looked around at the floor to check for DH's shoes.
We get up to the L&D unit and the wheeled me into a room. I tried to get them to let me stay on the gurney, but they insisted I move into the delivery bed. I just couldn't fathom moving at ALL at that point. Every contraction I was pushing. I couldn't help it! Slowly but surely I made my way over to the delivery bed. My midwife showed up, checked me, declared me complete with a bulging bag of waters, and told me to go for it! (As if I was holding back...) She broke my water and I actually got a couple of minutes of a reprieve. So much so she actually checked me again to see if I had any cervical lip left and she had just felt the bag of waters before and not baby's head in the birth canal!
If it wasn't the baby's head before, it was now. Less than 5 minutes later and he was out!
Caleb Jason Boaz () was born at 8:39pm, he was 8 lbs 3oz, and 20.5 inches long. He was a full 10 oz more at birth than any of my other guys were!
So I had my 2nd quickly progressing, non-medicated birth. This was was a lot more hectic than Isaiah's though! I got to the hospital an hour and a half before his actual delivery! I remember in the elevator on the way up to L&D realizing that it was WAY too late to get drugs, like I'd wanted, and I was MAD! After the fact though, its much better (for me, physically) to go natural. Its just nothing I can choose willingly!!
All of the NICU stuff was really, really stressful, and it was relatively minor compared with some of the stuff the other parents in there were dealing with. I'm so thankful it resolved relatively quickly. We're home now, sweating our butts off for the hottest week EVER (I think!) in this area. I'm so glad I'm not still pregnant for this though . The big boys are totally in love. Elijah just giggles whenever he is by the baby, and pats his head and gives him kisses. The transition is going well, even though I do get overwhelmed at times. I think its more the hormone shift going on at the moment, coupled with the heat which is making everyone cranky and miserable, than anything.
Right after my appointment I asked DH to drive through McD's because I was hungry. While in the drive thru lane I noticed the car was getting hotter than normal. Bad thermometer. It was an interesting drive making that stupid thing click open so it wouldn't overheat! We stopped and got the part and made it home. I had started having a few piddly contractions, but nothing major or really painful. They were definitely NOT BH's, but not serious either.
We make it home and then plan is just to hang out. DH is going to fix the car (10 minute fix, haha), and we're just going to hope something happens. Neither of us was really convinced.
A little before one the intensity of the contractions started picking up a bit. I was still able to be in any position during them, talk through them without difficulty, and they weren't close together or in a regular pattern, but by then I was convinced that this WAS labor starting. I kicked DH's butt out the door to go and fix the car.
As he's doing this super quick, easy, 10 minute no problem fix....a bolt snaps. Probably about that exact time contractions started getting closer together. I started getting really anxious. Just the thought of being home, no car, IN labor...I just couldn't handle it. I didn't think things would go super fast or anything, but wasn't sure either. Contractions were still about 10 minutes or so apart and tolerable.
DH calls his family and arranges a car for us. As soon as it gets here, things slow down considerably! Of course!! I went and laid down with Elijah and took a nap. I couldn't sleep through the contractions, but I didn't have to focus on them or anything yet.
DH decided to take the bigger boys to the grocery store at 4:30 when we realized we had squat in the house for food, and were about to leave my poor cousin here for a day (or so we thought it would be a day!) with no vehicle!
My cousin and I spend the whole time just visiting and hanging out. It was really nice, actually. I started having to concentrate more on the contractions. I couldn't talk through them, but I didn't mind if SHE talked to me through them. I started timing them while DH and the boys were gone. They were 6 minutes apart the entire almost 2 hours he was at the store. I called him about 1.5 hours into it to make sure he was almost done. I needed my ride/labor support back here! They were getting harder, but still only about 30 seconds long.
During this time I called the midwife's office and talked to the on-call midwife. Both she and I thought it would be a while. Even though contractions were in a good pattern, I was still talking through them. I rated them as 'mildly painful, mostly irritating'. I decided to take the foley out because it was bugging the ever-loving crap out of me. She was fine with that as well as we were both fairly sure labor was going on and it wouldn't stop when I took it out.
By the time DH got home they were definitely getting more intense. Still 6-10 minutes apart, still only about 30 seconds long, but I had to focus on them. I went and laid down by myself on my bed and watched some tv for a while.
Shortly after 7:30 that evening I came out and said, "Ok! Time to go! Let's go!" I gave the boys a hug and a kiss and we went out the door. I had a massive contraction as we were walking out, and I just kind of bent over and breathed through it, but I guess it freaked Daniel out.
On the drive to the hospital contractions were about 5 minutes apart. They were hard, but not long. I really had to concentrate to get through them, and at that point I was looking forward to "a big huge fat shot of whatever they will give me!!" . I alternated between thinking I'd be hardly progressed when we got there, and thinking I'd be about a 6 or maybe 7.
After we got off the freeway but were still about 10 minutes from the hospital they started coming on faster, every 2 minutes or so, and multi-peaking. My legs started shaking in between. I had a passing thought that, "Oh my gosh, isn't shaking legs a sign of transition?" I was feeling a bit sick to my stomach too. Neither one of us said it out loud, but we both knew we were running out of time. The car started going a bit faster.
We pulled into the hospital ER parking lot and DH dropped me off at the door. There were no spots when we pulled in, but as we stopped at the entrance one opened up so DH took off to get it. I started walking into the ER.
At the front desk it was fairly obvious what was going on and I had a major contraction just waiting to be taken back. Then three more, right in a row, while they were trying to ask me 1000 registration questions, none of which I could answer. I was leaning against the wall, scribbled my name on a few papers in between contractions, and tried to answer whatever I could in between. DH walked in and I said, " I've had four contractions just since walking in the door "
They had an aid bring a wheelchair, but there was no possible way I could fathom sitting down. I stared walking to where I thought the elevators were, DH and the aid behind me. All of the sudden another contraction hit and I felt the baby drop and I was scrambling for a bed. Thankfully there were some gurneys lining the hallway. Three of them. Two of them were occupied. I crawled up on the empty one and had several major PUSHY contractions. The people on the gurney's next to me were doing this... and "You should've been in a wheelchair!"
Much scrambling ensued as the aid didn't know WHAT the hell to do. I don't know how long it was but they rolled me back in to the ER, I guess so someone could check me. There's people standing around, and I'm on my hands and knees, white knuckling the side of this bed rail and staring at the floor just bracing myself for the next one to hit.
An ER doctor proceeds to tell me, "Please flip onto your back." Me: " No." Him: "I CAN'T check you when you are like that." Me: "You'd better figure it out because I'm not moving." He figured it out, but he wasn't happy about it!
He discovered my water wasn't broken (I knew that! Ask me! Hello!) and wished us good luck and sent us up to the 14th floor. It didn't take long to get up there. I still hadn't looked up or seen anyone, occasionally I looked around at the floor to check for DH's shoes.
We get up to the L&D unit and the wheeled me into a room. I tried to get them to let me stay on the gurney, but they insisted I move into the delivery bed. I just couldn't fathom moving at ALL at that point. Every contraction I was pushing. I couldn't help it! Slowly but surely I made my way over to the delivery bed. My midwife showed up, checked me, declared me complete with a bulging bag of waters, and told me to go for it! (As if I was holding back...) She broke my water and I actually got a couple of minutes of a reprieve. So much so she actually checked me again to see if I had any cervical lip left and she had just felt the bag of waters before and not baby's head in the birth canal!
If it wasn't the baby's head before, it was now. Less than 5 minutes later and he was out!
Caleb Jason Boaz () was born at 8:39pm, he was 8 lbs 3oz, and 20.5 inches long. He was a full 10 oz more at birth than any of my other guys were!
So I had my 2nd quickly progressing, non-medicated birth. This was was a lot more hectic than Isaiah's though! I got to the hospital an hour and a half before his actual delivery! I remember in the elevator on the way up to L&D realizing that it was WAY too late to get drugs, like I'd wanted, and I was MAD! After the fact though, its much better (for me, physically) to go natural. Its just nothing I can choose willingly!!
All of the NICU stuff was really, really stressful, and it was relatively minor compared with some of the stuff the other parents in there were dealing with. I'm so thankful it resolved relatively quickly. We're home now, sweating our butts off for the hottest week EVER (I think!) in this area. I'm so glad I'm not still pregnant for this though . The big boys are totally in love. Elijah just giggles whenever he is by the baby, and pats his head and gives him kisses. The transition is going well, even though I do get overwhelmed at times. I think its more the hormone shift going on at the moment, coupled with the heat which is making everyone cranky and miserable, than anything.
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