Alexander Indiana Jones was born Sunday, June 21, 2009 at 2:06am. He was 7 lb and 12 oz, he was 20 inches long. What a perfect baby! At my doctors appt a few weeks before I asked my Dr how big he thought he was going to be and he said "Oh, 8 lb and ....6, 7, 8--8 oz." I told him that was too big, I wanted a seven pound baby…and I got him! :) It's hard to say when labor really began. I started having contractions on Friday early morning--they were actually painful, which was a change from the extremely tight contractions I'd been having starting Monday morning and coming off and on from there. They were somewhat consistent at every 10-12 minutes, but I didn't worry too much about them and went to work that day. They weren't too bad and slowed down a bit too. That night Keith and I went to the mall to get free Orange Julius Light drinks---poor workers they had a stack of computer printed coupons on the back counter that was probably six or seven inches high. We walked around while we drank them and I had contractions the whole time every five minutes. They were so consistent that Keith could anticipate the coming of the next one. He was actually quite entertained to be able to look and see that in 20 seconds I would have another contraction, and then I would. Alas, they stopped when we got home.
About 2 am Saturday morning I started having contractions again every ten to twelve minutes apart. By three Keith was awake with me as I had them and we snoozed in between. We got up and got ready for the day like normal. I had a haircut appt at 11 (we decided we needed to make as many plans as possible so that the baby would be enticed to come and ruin them!) The contractions really slowed down then and were barely painful, so I was a little disheartened. I was by this point three days past-due and hadn't had a good full nights rest in awhile. When I got home Keith and I went for a walk around the neighborhoods in the area. My contractions started up again and were about every seven minutes apart and to the point that I would have to stop and breathe during the peaks. Keith was a great coach and never let me slack in my breathing. He was also a faithful timer. It's interesting how long seven minutes can be and how quickly an hour can go by being counted in seven minute intervals.
After our walk we were hanging out in our apartment and the contractions kept coming. Keith was looking up different possibilities for activities we could do that night--his co-worker was in a play in Springville that sounded fun, but at this point I was feeling like real labor or not I didn't want to do anything.
We continued to track and time the contractions and they were definitely getting stronger and longer and closer together and continued despite my activity whether laying down, walking, sitting.....all the right signs for labor! I was getting pretty miserable and the contractions were putting such pressure on my low back and tailbone area I was not handling things as well. We decided to try and distract ourselves and played war in between contractions.
I had planned a steak dinner for Keith for Father's day, but it wasn't looking like we were going to be home for that so I told Keith we might as well cook them up for dinner, so he started doing that as I continued to try and distract myself and work through contractions the best I could. I tried all kinds of positions and Keith was great about trying different counter pressures. Sometimes they really helped and sometimes they hurt worse. So we just played it by ear and did our best. By the time that Keith had dinner ready, despite how good it smelled the thought of eating was very unappealing. My contractions were getting to the point that I only had two minutes from the end of one and the beginning of the next and I was about ready to cry sometimes. Keith was still being a great coach helping me breath and giving such great encouragement, but I was ready to get to the hospital and see if I had made progress. Of course, I was hoping that by this point I was at least five centimeters and 90% effaced, but being my first baby, I was going to be happy if I had made it to a two since at my last two doctor appointments I was only one centimeter and had had what I had previously thought to be some good contractions-even if they were braxton hicks. So we started gathering the rest of our last minute things to put into our hospital bag. We would get maybe one or two things in before I was calling Keith to hurry back to me to help me through another contractions. We got everything together and headed out.
We arrived at the hospital around 7:30--I had to stop in the parking lot for a contraction and to cry a minute before we went in, we got to the floor and the receptionist got us checked in--I was trying so hard to be brave and stoic and not cry more as she asked me about the contractions and my due date and birthday, etc. It seemed like a long process but finally she called back and asked what room they wanted me in for a labor check. She asked us if this was our first time coming to the hospital and we said yes, and yes it was our first child. Well later we found out that I was a little too stoic and brave because she hadn't really believed that I was in active labor. They put me in a room and hooked me to the heartbeat and contraction monitor and told me that the rule of thumb was for a first time mom, active labor would progress a centimeter an hour, so they would check me then and return in an hour to re-check, if I had progressed a centimeter I would be admitted, but if not they would give me a morphine shot and sent me home. I was thinking, if they send me home...I won't make it--I'll cry. They can give me pitocin and an epidural and induce me, but I can't go home. Well, we made it through that hour--I was so worried that the contractions would slow down while I was laying there, but reassuringly they continued to show on the monitor consistently every three minutes or so. The nurse, Katie, came back about 8:45 and re-checked me and I had progressed from the 2 1/2-3 centimeters to a 4 and was 90% effaced!!!! Yay!!! I get to stay!!!! She said she had to call the doctor on call and see what he wanted to do and would be back. They put the IV in and admitted me. The receptionist from earlier came in and told us she was glad that we got to stay, that she wasn't sure when we got there because though I looked uncomfortable, it didn't seem like I was really in labor. I guess next time I should go in wailing! The doctor decided to break my water to "speed things up" and I decided at that point that I wanted the epidural. Up until this point I had in mind to at least try and go naturally, but with where I was at and the whole night left to go, looking forward to another six hours at least (by their estimate of average first time labors at 1 cm/hr) of labor that was only going to get worse, that I would like the epidural. Once I got that I felt so much better--like I might survive this thing. I called my mom and Keith texted family. We decided that we would call my mom when I was an 8 0r 9 so that she could be there for the birth. Keith went and got a movie and I tried to doze in between contractions. I could still feel some pain but the degree was so much less, that I was able to relax and rest. Things got exciting again around midnight when I was checked again and I was seven centimeters. Not long after the nurse left the contraction monitor got messed up and was showing a flat line plateau so the charge nurse came in and tried to adjust it, in doing so she told me I was now nine centimeters and only had a small lip left of the cervix. Keith called my mom and told her to come now since we’d be having a baby soon. Not long after my mom arrived, I started to feel really nauseous and then started throwing up repeatedly. I didn’t have anything in my stomach to throw up though so it was a lot of heaving. This put the baby into a little distress, so I had to change sides and be checked again. Around 1 am they checked me and I was fully dilated with just that small lip left. The nurse said to let her know when I had the sensation/urge to push. Another nurse came in and set up the birth cart for the doctor—what a crazy array of tools! Our nurse-Kelly (who looked and had a very similar personality to Keith’s cousin Megan) came back in and said we could try pushing a few times—I guess to get warmed up. Lucky for me, Alex was already pretty low—it didn’t take much to get his head starting to show, so the nurse decided to call the doctor and see where he was, it didn’t seem like I’d have too much trouble having this baby very soon. He was getting anxious to get here and his heart rate had started to drop and not recover as well. The doctor came in looking like he was still asleep and trying to make his eyes open. This was a little disconcerting as I was about to have a baby and wanted an alert doctor to catch him! Well, he was awake enough by the time he was ready for me to start pushing again. We did three sets of counting to ten per contraction. Keith and my mom were counting too fast for the doctor and he told them to slow it down—according to Keith he told them to count like they were retarded ;). That was hard to hold each breath for a very slow 10 count, but I did it and after a few more contractions out came my perfect little son! He looked really good actually for having just been birthed—I’ve seen my share of just from the womb babies, and he held his own. The nurses swiftly got him to the warmer and started suctioning out his nose and throat. He was having a hard time getting all the mucous out and they had to call the respiratory therapists to come in. After assessing him for a minute they decided it would be best to take him to the NICU for some extra care. Thankfully before they took him, my mom made sure they brought him over to me so that I could hold him a minute. He was so adorable and looked up at me with his big dark eyes as I said hello.
As the doctor finished stitching me up, and as they were working on Alex, to distract me I’m sure he kept talking about random things—I remember that he told me he was disappointed in his other patient who had arrived before me and still hadn’t delivered. He also told us it was his birthday too, that it was a good day to have a baby….Summer Solstice—we had him not only on Father’s day but we had him on the longest day of the year in the middle of the night! J
Welcome to our world baby Alexander Indiana Jones!!
About 2 am Saturday morning I started having contractions again every ten to twelve minutes apart. By three Keith was awake with me as I had them and we snoozed in between. We got up and got ready for the day like normal. I had a haircut appt at 11 (we decided we needed to make as many plans as possible so that the baby would be enticed to come and ruin them!) The contractions really slowed down then and were barely painful, so I was a little disheartened. I was by this point three days past-due and hadn't had a good full nights rest in awhile. When I got home Keith and I went for a walk around the neighborhoods in the area. My contractions started up again and were about every seven minutes apart and to the point that I would have to stop and breathe during the peaks. Keith was a great coach and never let me slack in my breathing. He was also a faithful timer. It's interesting how long seven minutes can be and how quickly an hour can go by being counted in seven minute intervals.
After our walk we were hanging out in our apartment and the contractions kept coming. Keith was looking up different possibilities for activities we could do that night--his co-worker was in a play in Springville that sounded fun, but at this point I was feeling like real labor or not I didn't want to do anything.
We continued to track and time the contractions and they were definitely getting stronger and longer and closer together and continued despite my activity whether laying down, walking, sitting.....all the right signs for labor! I was getting pretty miserable and the contractions were putting such pressure on my low back and tailbone area I was not handling things as well. We decided to try and distract ourselves and played war in between contractions.
I had planned a steak dinner for Keith for Father's day, but it wasn't looking like we were going to be home for that so I told Keith we might as well cook them up for dinner, so he started doing that as I continued to try and distract myself and work through contractions the best I could. I tried all kinds of positions and Keith was great about trying different counter pressures. Sometimes they really helped and sometimes they hurt worse. So we just played it by ear and did our best. By the time that Keith had dinner ready, despite how good it smelled the thought of eating was very unappealing. My contractions were getting to the point that I only had two minutes from the end of one and the beginning of the next and I was about ready to cry sometimes. Keith was still being a great coach helping me breath and giving such great encouragement, but I was ready to get to the hospital and see if I had made progress. Of course, I was hoping that by this point I was at least five centimeters and 90% effaced, but being my first baby, I was going to be happy if I had made it to a two since at my last two doctor appointments I was only one centimeter and had had what I had previously thought to be some good contractions-even if they were braxton hicks. So we started gathering the rest of our last minute things to put into our hospital bag. We would get maybe one or two things in before I was calling Keith to hurry back to me to help me through another contractions. We got everything together and headed out.
We arrived at the hospital around 7:30--I had to stop in the parking lot for a contraction and to cry a minute before we went in, we got to the floor and the receptionist got us checked in--I was trying so hard to be brave and stoic and not cry more as she asked me about the contractions and my due date and birthday, etc. It seemed like a long process but finally she called back and asked what room they wanted me in for a labor check. She asked us if this was our first time coming to the hospital and we said yes, and yes it was our first child. Well later we found out that I was a little too stoic and brave because she hadn't really believed that I was in active labor. They put me in a room and hooked me to the heartbeat and contraction monitor and told me that the rule of thumb was for a first time mom, active labor would progress a centimeter an hour, so they would check me then and return in an hour to re-check, if I had progressed a centimeter I would be admitted, but if not they would give me a morphine shot and sent me home. I was thinking, if they send me home...I won't make it--I'll cry. They can give me pitocin and an epidural and induce me, but I can't go home. Well, we made it through that hour--I was so worried that the contractions would slow down while I was laying there, but reassuringly they continued to show on the monitor consistently every three minutes or so. The nurse, Katie, came back about 8:45 and re-checked me and I had progressed from the 2 1/2-3 centimeters to a 4 and was 90% effaced!!!! Yay!!! I get to stay!!!! She said she had to call the doctor on call and see what he wanted to do and would be back. They put the IV in and admitted me. The receptionist from earlier came in and told us she was glad that we got to stay, that she wasn't sure when we got there because though I looked uncomfortable, it didn't seem like I was really in labor. I guess next time I should go in wailing! The doctor decided to break my water to "speed things up" and I decided at that point that I wanted the epidural. Up until this point I had in mind to at least try and go naturally, but with where I was at and the whole night left to go, looking forward to another six hours at least (by their estimate of average first time labors at 1 cm/hr) of labor that was only going to get worse, that I would like the epidural. Once I got that I felt so much better--like I might survive this thing. I called my mom and Keith texted family. We decided that we would call my mom when I was an 8 0r 9 so that she could be there for the birth. Keith went and got a movie and I tried to doze in between contractions. I could still feel some pain but the degree was so much less, that I was able to relax and rest. Things got exciting again around midnight when I was checked again and I was seven centimeters. Not long after the nurse left the contraction monitor got messed up and was showing a flat line plateau so the charge nurse came in and tried to adjust it, in doing so she told me I was now nine centimeters and only had a small lip left of the cervix. Keith called my mom and told her to come now since we’d be having a baby soon. Not long after my mom arrived, I started to feel really nauseous and then started throwing up repeatedly. I didn’t have anything in my stomach to throw up though so it was a lot of heaving. This put the baby into a little distress, so I had to change sides and be checked again. Around 1 am they checked me and I was fully dilated with just that small lip left. The nurse said to let her know when I had the sensation/urge to push. Another nurse came in and set up the birth cart for the doctor—what a crazy array of tools! Our nurse-Kelly (who looked and had a very similar personality to Keith’s cousin Megan) came back in and said we could try pushing a few times—I guess to get warmed up. Lucky for me, Alex was already pretty low—it didn’t take much to get his head starting to show, so the nurse decided to call the doctor and see where he was, it didn’t seem like I’d have too much trouble having this baby very soon. He was getting anxious to get here and his heart rate had started to drop and not recover as well. The doctor came in looking like he was still asleep and trying to make his eyes open. This was a little disconcerting as I was about to have a baby and wanted an alert doctor to catch him! Well, he was awake enough by the time he was ready for me to start pushing again. We did three sets of counting to ten per contraction. Keith and my mom were counting too fast for the doctor and he told them to slow it down—according to Keith he told them to count like they were retarded ;). That was hard to hold each breath for a very slow 10 count, but I did it and after a few more contractions out came my perfect little son! He looked really good actually for having just been birthed—I’ve seen my share of just from the womb babies, and he held his own. The nurses swiftly got him to the warmer and started suctioning out his nose and throat. He was having a hard time getting all the mucous out and they had to call the respiratory therapists to come in. After assessing him for a minute they decided it would be best to take him to the NICU for some extra care. Thankfully before they took him, my mom made sure they brought him over to me so that I could hold him a minute. He was so adorable and looked up at me with his big dark eyes as I said hello.
As the doctor finished stitching me up, and as they were working on Alex, to distract me I’m sure he kept talking about random things—I remember that he told me he was disappointed in his other patient who had arrived before me and still hadn’t delivered. He also told us it was his birthday too, that it was a good day to have a baby….Summer Solstice—we had him not only on Father’s day but we had him on the longest day of the year in the middle of the night! J
Welcome to our world baby Alexander Indiana Jones!!
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