Greyson's Birth Story

Thursday, April 28th I got out of bed and went to work, hoping that I would be able to somehow get out of work early...I didn't know how I was going to do it, I was still having lots of Braxton Hicks Contractions, but nothing real concrete. At 11:15 I got a phone call from my Dr. asking if I would like to be induced that day instead of Friday? He said that he had something come up on Friday and the Hospital had an opening at 12:15 for an induction that day. He said he would still do it Friday if we needed to but I agreed to do it then. I quickly left work and drove straight to the hospital while letting Mike know what was going on and having him get in contact with his Mom to come get Gavin.

I got to the Hospital at noon, got all checked in and into my room and by 1 Mike and Gavin were finally there to be with me. They started all the meds I needed to be on (pitocin, antibiotic, IV) At that time I was dilated to an almost 3 and 90% effaced.

I started to feel the contractions somewhere around 2 but they weren't that bad. About 3:30 I asked to get the epidural. The bed I guess was off center, so they had to stick me with the epidural needle twice. It all worked out though. I started feeling better. The Dr. broke my water and I was still only dilated 3 and 100% effaced. We were progressing. We asked Mike's cousin to come get Gavin so that my Mother in Law could stay with us while we were delivering. At about 4 Mike and his Mom went down to get a bite to eat. The nurse came in and asked if I wanted anything to snack on. I told her I was so thirsty, so she brought me an apple juice. I sucked it right down and immeditly felt so sick. The nurse said I lost all color in my face. I asked for something to throw up in, and up came all the apple juice! After that I felt so much better and drank another apple juice, but slowly! At 6:15 I asked to be checked again and was dilated to a 5. At about 7 I was feeling the pressure to push, so I asked to be checked again and was finally dilated to a 10 and ready to go. 20 Minutes of pushing and Baby Greyson was finally here.

He weighed 8 lbs 2 ozs, was 18.5 inches long and had a great set of lungs. He entered the world at 7:42 pm. Everything looked great. After he came out I felt great. I didn't shake like I did uncontrollably with Gavin. After about an hour I breastfed Greyson and he latched on great & ate like a champ! He then made his way down to get a bath while I got cleaned up and down to the recovery room. Our new adventure was just starting.

Things I want to remember from this pregnancy:

I had really bad Rib Labor. When I would have a contraction, it would put so much pressure on my ribs, it hurt really bad. I even had to push the epidural button because I thought it was wearing off, but the epidural didn't even touch the Rib pain. I also had the nurse check me at 4 to make sure I wasn't digressing and Greyson wasn't moving back up into my belly because of the rib pain.

I felt so much better this time around. I did feel it all but there was no pain. I also didn't have to have an episiotomy this time around, so I think that helped. I did get this pain in my chest and middle back the next day but we chalked it up to heartburn. I had extremely bad heartburn this pregnancy.

And that is the Birth Story of Baby Greyson!

Birth Story

This is for Memories...& for when I got to print my Blog into a book next year, I can have Michelle's account of the day Gavin was born...

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Back to the hospital...

Yes, another day (Monday) spent at the hospital. Fortunately there were no tests done, no ANC levels to worry about, no Oncologsits, Immunologists, Heart Specialsts, etc. There were really no serious worries except for the blanket of snow falling and what that might do to our long drive home. It wasn't the typcial hospital visit that our family has grown acustom to these days. I was called to the hospital because my little brother and his wife were having their baby....their first!For so long now hospital visits have been a dread sprinkled with hope to find answers, usually ending with more questions, more worry. But today was a different kind of walk down the halls of the hospital...a quick tone to my step, sounding out notes of anticipation, excitement and joy. I arrived shortly after the epidural kicked in and Alicia was calm and relaxed. Mike, on the other hand, bless his heart, worries enough for all of us. Being their first, there were a lot of emotions floating in that room, even fear, worry, anxiety and all the questions of new parents. but this fear and worry (what's this all going to feel like, how big will he be, will he cry a lot, will I ever sleep again)...those fears have a sweet taste to them, unlike so many other fears that are lingering on the 'other floors' of the hospital. Four and a half hours after my arrival to the hospital, it was time...time to push, time to dig deep and find the only strength left after 13 hours of labor to help the doctor bring her sweet angel into the world. My mother and Mike had her legs, holding them up at the wonderful medicine of the epidural did it's job while I stood by her side, holding her head up and counting as she pushed with all her might. An hour of pushing had passed, Alicia's strength was fading, but she kept fighting, pushing, and never complaining. The nurse put her on oxygen as the baby was showing some signs of stress and the doctor was called in to identify a blood clot that came with the last set of pushing. The placenta had ruptured a bit, so the time to get this baby out was decreasing significantly. After an episiotomy and watching the strength of a 'mother' emerge from the depths of exhaustion, fear and anticipation... we all counting that last count...1, 2, 3...tears streaming down our faces, fore we all had the opportunity to witness the miraculous gift of BIRTH! One of the most beautiful moments God has given us...when one of his precious spirits takes their first breath and enters into their first moments of life. Life...the lessons, the struggles, the bumps, bruises, tears, triumphs, laughter, lessons, trials, broken hearts, and all the rest we can imagine.

Baby Gavin was perfect, a head of hair, 2 sweet dimples, 10 perfect fingers and toes and eyes full of wonder and life. My sister -in-law Alicia showed so much courage, strength, determination and love and made me so proud to be apart of that incredible moment with my family. Kurt and the kids arrived shortly after to meet this sweet baby, the newest member of the family. I left the hospital late that night still processing the surreal situation I had just witnessed and even though the chill of winter was all around us, the snow now covering all the earth and the thought of spring was pushed to the back of our minds...we just left a precious moment of 'spring'...a new birth, new life, new experiences...joy, hope, laughter and witnessing the doors of heaven opening right before us and sending down yet another angel...my nephew GAVIN!

Welcome sweet child, may your days be filled with laughter, may you not dwell on the trials, but look toward the triumphs...may you always find time to smile, laugh, love and may you always know your worth and that your family loves you...forever.

Posted by Michelle at 7:39 AM