I can’t believe Clark has been in our lives for 9 months already. It seems like just yesterday I was big and pregnant and waiting for him to get here. Since I haven’t blogged anything about his birth, I thought tonight would be a good time.
My due date was August 29th and I actually had a Dr. appt that day. My incredible OB, Dr. Bierer didn’t want me to go too far overdue since I have a not too great family history of babies born past their due date. There were crazy rules at the hospital that had gone into effect a few months before we were due that prohibited 1st time moms to be induced before they were 41 weeks. I was not too thrilled about that and luckily neither was Dr. Bierer. So on my due date, Dr. Bierer gave me something to “help” with my dilation. It was pretty uncomfortable so after, my mom took me to a movie (The Odd Life of Timothy Green). It was so fun to go and relax and not think too much about L/D.
The next morning, (August 30th)we were to go back to my OB’s to be checked again. My blood pressure was elevated slightly and I hadn’t felt the baby move a whole lot, so Dr. Bierer called McKay Dee Hospital and scheduled us to be there at 12pm to be induced. I was so excited but SO nervous at the same time. He told me to not plan on having the baby for about 24 hours after I got started on Pitocin. So we packed a few movies and yummy treats (for Mike) and checked into the Hospital at noon. It was about 12:30pm when I was finally gowned and climbing into bed. Our Amazing nurse (Sabrina) came in to do lots of paperwork and answer any questions we had. She was seriously incredible!! I felt right at home the minute we started talking. She reminded me a lot of my older sisters, such a blessing! Earlier I had tested positive for Step B so by about 12:45pm, my IV in was placed (by the anesthesiologist) and some Penicillin was started. Well, Dr. Bierer was at the hospital for a delivery so he decided to come in and break my water so he didn’t have to come back in a few hours to do so. That sure was a crazy feeling! By 1:00pm, they started my pitocin and I was really starting to feel some contractions. I was so shocked and surprised at how quickly things were moving. By about 1:30pm, my contractions were getting really strong so I asked for my epidural. My anesthesiologist was Amazing. I didn’t really feel much pain but my left leg shot straight out once he started pushing the meds. It was Crazy and quite scary for a few seconds. Mike was great, he stayed right be my side, holding my hands the entire time. A few hours went by and my contractions were getting really strong that they had to turn down the pit. No real pain, just a little pressure. We watched Despicable Me and listened to music. I had ice chips, a sucker, and a yummy popsical. I wasn’t progressing very quickly so the nurses kept telling me that it would be at least til tomorrow afternoon. I was feeling really good until about 8:00pm. The pressure in my back was really starting to bother me and I knew it was getting close to delivery. The anesthesiologist came back and gave me another push on my epidural. My sisters and parents had come up during the day for some visits which helped pass the time. Mike was so great to help in every way he could. At about 9pm we started watching “the Proposal” to help get my mind off the pain. I think it was about 10:30pm and my nurse came to check how dilated I was. I wasn’t paying much attention to her since I had been at a 5cm for the past 7 hours or so. She checked and then nonchalantly said that I was a 9+. I sat up and said “are you kidding me?!” She said no, and left the room to get the delivery cart setup. I instantly burst into tears of joy and nervousness. My cute sisters were there and were encouraging me the entire time. Mike was great too, however I think he was a bit nervous too. Jami called my parents to get them all caught up. By about 11:30pm, the nurses came in to help get ready to start pushing. My sisters left into the hall, and unbeknownst to me, Michelle kept her foot in the door so they could hear everything that was happening. Mike turned on James Taylor on our ipod and I started pushing at 11:45pm. Hardest thing I’ve ever had to do! My nurses were great and helped me a ton. At 12:10 am, Dr. Bierer was called and got there 10 minutes later. It was such a huge relief to see his happy face walk in the room. I only pushed for about 10 more minutes and our sweet baby boy was born at 12:34 am on Friday, August 31st. The spirit was so strong in the room, I wasn’t expecting that. It was an incredible experience! Dr. Bierer layed him right on my chest and Mike cut the cord. We were parents!! The most amazing experience I’ve ever had. The nurses wanted me to start trying to nurse him before visitors came in the room. Wow! Right after he was born, I spiked a big fever and so did Clark, luckily his went down super quick. After about 20 minutes, my amazing parents and sisters came in to see him. They were all so cute taking pictures and taking it all in. It was so great to have them there! They stayed for a bit then left, since it was the middle of the night! About 30 minutes later, we were moved to the Postpartum unit. Once we got to our room, they took Clark away and said they would keep us updated on his condition. I was scared to death. No one had answers as to why they had to take him away. By about 6am, we were finally told that he had spiked another fever and they didn’t want to chance him having an infection. So they completed lots of blood work and placed an IV in his head to give him antibiotics. He was placed in the transition nursery which was in between the NICU and regular nursery. We were allowed to see him/be with him 1 hour every 2 hours. That was really difficult but I was thankful they were keeping such a close eye on him.
Our entire stay at McKay was awesome. We had wonderful nurses that were very helpful and I really liked our Pediatrician, the best was the food! So tasty!! The second night at about 2am, I was up breastfeeding the baby, Mike was asleep on the couch/bed and the power went out. It was crazy! Pure darkness for about 10 seconds then the emergency lights came on. It was cool to watch the rain and listen to the thunder. We were scheduled to leave on Sunday as long as Clark’s blood work was still clear. Thankfully it was and we were able to go home.
Reflecting back on my labor and delivery experience, I can’t help but feel such gratitude to my Heavenly Father for blessing us with such an incredible baby. He is just so happy all of the time and LOVES to be constantly moving. These past 9 months have gone faster than the 9 months I was pregnant with him. We sure love you Clark! Happy 9 month birthday baby boy!!