Todd and Megs Plus 2: Rowan's Birth Story....

WARNING: BIRTH STORY! NOT GRAPHIC BUT IF YOU'RE NOT INTERESTED I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND...
JUST SCROLL DOWN AND THERE IS LOTS OF PICTURES OF OUR NEW FAMILY
:)

So I know it's six days late, I was unable to sit down and start this for obvious reasons...
However, I wanted to do it sooner than later because I want to record every detail of Rowan's birth story...
Let me just start out by saying it was such an amazing birth!!!

I will start from the beginning...
On Monday March 8th I went into Labor and Delivery to have Rowan moved since he was facing the wrong direction...
As I documented on the blog we were so blessed that he moved on his own...
The next day (Tuesday) I started having contractions...
At the time I thought they were bad contractions (boy was I wrong)
:-)
Since I dilated an additional cm from Friday to Monday with no contractions, I was worried that with these contractions I was dilating further...
So I don't know how I did it, but I took Gracie to school...
Ouch, bumpy freeways and contractions don't mix...
I then headed into Labor and Delivery...
After being monitored and checked they said I was in early labor and sent me home...
The next day Wednesday was a tough one...
I didn't sleep at all Tuesday night...
Not a wink, the contractions were getting much more severe and sleeping through them was impossible...
Again I took Gracie to school...
OUCH!!!
After returning home I realized that there was no way I could drive anymore...
It was just to painful...
Todd started timing my contractions on a really awesome and helpful website called TheBump.com...
This contraction counter was so helpful...
We timed contractions all day...
As the day progressed they got closer and closer together and the pain was more severe...
I could no longer walk or talk through them and they were 4 to 5 minutes apart consistently...
While laying in bed trying to seek comfort I had a few big ones back to back that were so intense I felt I wasn't going to make it through them...
I told Todd it's time, we're going to the hospital...
Todd called Tom (what an amazing brother-in-law I have) and he left work and headed over to our house...
We were all packed and ready to go...
Tom showed up and off we went to the hospital...
I will never forget Tom as he flew over the speed bumps in the parking lot...
I couldn't help but laugh even though it was so painful...
I figured well that's one way to get the baby out!!! :-)
We arrived at Labor and Delivery to be monitored and assessed...
When the nurse was getting all of my information she asked me if I wanted a Doctor or a Midwife...
My OB/GYN was not on call at the time and I was apprehensive about using another Doctor there after having a bad experience the day prior...
So in a last minute decision I went with a Midwife...
Let me just say it was one of the best decisions I've made...
So shortly thereafter my Midwife came in to check me...
She was so sweet and gentle...
After going over my prior birth with Gracie and finding out that I had a 4th degree tear with her she offered me a c-section...
I had been fighting for a vaginal birth this whole time and even though the beginning stages of labor were progressing so slowly and a c-section seemed like an easier route I stuck to my instincts and continued on my plan to have a vaginal birth...
The Midwife was so supportive and happy with my decision...
After my check she informed us that there was only a cm change since the day before and offered us the option of going back home for a couple hours to continue labor progression...
Luckily she saw the exhaustion and pain in my eyes and offered to admit me if I made her a deal...
(At that point I would have stood on my head while juggling rings of fire)...
LOL :-)
The deal was that she would admit me and I would have to try and progress my labor on my own dealing with the pain (OUCH)...
If in two hours I had not dilated anymore than she would have to start me on Pitocin to progress my labor...
I agreed, it didn't take much to sell me on that one...
After being admitted and taken to my labor room I was told that they had to get a reacting strip done on the baby and my IV placed with a bag of fluid administered...
And then Todd and I could get in the shower and try to progress my labor with the warm water to help with the pain...
After being hooked up to the baby monitor for over 30 minutes I was in so much pain and looking forward to the shower...
It was the only thing that was getting me through...
The nurse came in and I was so happy to see her, thinking that she was there to unhook me...
Instead she came in with all kinds of food...
Popsicles, Pudding, Ice Chips, Juice...
She said the baby wasn't reacting enough and being that I was in so much pain all day I hadn't eaten...
They wanted me to consume all of the food items and see if I could get a reaction out of the baby...
Ugghhh was I disappointed...
The pain was getting really bad at this point...
I consumed said food items to no prevail...
The baby wasn't reacting and I was forced to stay in bed on the monitors...
After a couple hours the contractions were unbearable...
I was disconnected from the monitors to use the restroom...
When I walked into the bathroom and began to sit down I was hit with the strongest contraction I had ever felt...
I can't even put the pain into words but I lost it...
I began sobbing on the toilet...
Todd came in and got down on his knees in front of me...
I sobbed and sobbed into his chest as another contraction hit...
I had lost all composure and was so worried I was not going to be able to pull it together and make it through...
It literally felt like the pain was going to kill me...
I know it sounds dramatic but honestly this was putting it lightly...
While sobbing in Todd's arms on the the toilet...
(I know picture that, but with that kind of pain image goes out the window)
The Midwife came in to check me...
She was so wonderful and caring, she waited for my contraction to end and then had me lay down on the bed for another check...
While she was checking she said "Well, this is why you're crying, you're dilated to 6cm"...
I started crying all over again...
She said "What's wrong why are you crying? This is a good thing"...
I said in between sobs "I'm crying because I'm so happy!!!!"....
She smiled and held my hand calming me down and comforting me...
And then she said the best words I've ever heard in my life...
She told the nurse "Call anesthesia and tell them we're ready for an epidural"...
I wanted to hug and kiss this woman...
:-)
She continued to sit on the bed with me, holding my hand and calming me down...
She took so much time with me, offering me words of encouragement and comfort...
She sat with me until anesthesia walked through my door...
Boy was I happy to see them...
I sat up and got in position for my epidural...
Todd sat in front of me and offered me words of comfort as the procedure began...
After getting my epidural I was layed back down in bed and realized that the epidural wasn't working right...
One side was numbing and the other wasn't...
After talking with anesthesia I agreed to have my epidural removed and another one placed to see if the problem could be fixed...
Two epidurals is no fun!!!
After the second one was in, I was layed back down and began to feel the proper effects...
However while talking with anesthesia and the nurses I got an overwhelming need to get sick...
I explained this to them and they got me something to get sick in...
When I reached out to grab it, all of a sudden I wasn't really able to see it right and every one's voices started to sound like I was in a tunnel...
I felt like I was sinking down into a hole and things were getting blurry...
I told them that I wasn't feeling right and they looked over at my monitors and saw that my blood pressure and dropped super low...
62 over 28...
Yikes!!!
Anesthesia started giving me tons of fluids and a shot of epinephrine...
All the while he kept me calm and told me this was nothing to worry about and a common side effect that meant the epidural was working...
After some oxygen, fluids, and medication I began to feel like myself again...
Anesthesia left the room and the nurse continued to monitor me while Todd and I chit chatted...
Then all of a sudden I started to get all of those feelings back...
As the nausea hit I told the nurse and she checked my monitors again and sure enough my was blood pressure was plummeting...
She called for anesthesia once more and he did the same things to recover me...
He reassured me once again that everything was ok and that the epinephrine was short acting and sometimes it took a couple doses to get my blood pressure maintained...
After I was stabilized again I told Todd that I was ready for Mom and Aunt Edie...
Our brothers and Grandma were waiting in the waiting room (what champs they were)...
Mom and Aunt Edie came in and I was able to relax and talk with the epidural now working properly...
Next came the waiting game...
After chatting and watching TV for a while the midwife came in to check me again...
I was dilated to 7.5cm...
I had to have my epidural topped off as the contractions were coming every 2 to 3 minutes and were so strong they were off the charts on the monitor...
We waited a while longer and once again I was checked...
This time the nurse told me I was at 9cm...
What a relief that was...
Although then the anxiety began...
We were told we would have a baby within the hour...
After another wait...
This one small, I was checked again...
And informed that I was dilated to 10cm and ready to push...
I asked the nurse if I could have 15 minutes to relax and compose myself before we started...
She said of course...
Again I want to state how amazing the staff was...
My nurse was so awesome, calm and understanding...
She talked me through my anxiety and then headed out the door with plans to return in 15 minutes to have a baby...
Todd and I talked with Mom and Aunt Edie...
Todd and I each other lots of love and kisses...
Todd did not leave my side at all up unto this point...
He was so calm and amazing...
Then the Nurse, Midwife, and Pediatrician came into the room for the delivery...
My legs were put in stirrups and the pushing began...
Now let me just tell you that after having a 4th degree tear with Gracie I was super nervous at this point...
The nurses and Midwife were so wonderful, taking their time and offering me lots of encouragement...
The Midwife did lots of massage with mineral oil and really took her time giving me a really good chance of not tearing...
It was after three pushes that they took my right leg out of the supports and Todd began to hold it and the final pushes began...
Before I knew it the Midwife said the head was out...
And it after five more big pushes, and a few little ones the Midwife instructed me to do...
My beautiful son was placed on my chest...
He was so perfect...
He let out a little cry and the nurses suctioned his nose and mouth...
They never took him away and allowed Todd and I to just bond with him...
After a few minutes Todd cut the cord...
Such and amazing Husband he was, so calm and hands on...
After cutting the cord and spending a little more skin on skin bonding time, they took little baby Rowan over to the baby station where he was wiped off and assessed by the Pediatrician...
I was happy to hear that his apgars were 8 and 9 and his weight was 7 pounds 5 ounces, 21 inches long...
He was perfect...
They then gave him back to me and I began nursing...
What a champ Rowan was...
He caught on right away...
Mom and Aunt Edie were so amazing through the whole thing...
They were quiet and calming and such a nice presence in the room...
I cannot begin to explain the wonderful vibe that filled that delivery room...
The lights were dim, everyone was calm and quiet, it was amazing...
After delivering the afterbirth and cleaning me up the Midwife informed me that my delivery was perfect...
I only had one stitch and no tearing....
I was so happy...
The nurse and Midwife kept telling me what a good job I did and how great I was...
I cannot tell you how happy and privileged I was to have this experience...
Soon Mom went out to get our Brothers...
They quietly came in and to see their faces as they stared down at their nephew was amazing...
We stayed in the delivery suite for about 2 hours...
They fed me meatloaf with mashed potatoes...
Now I know most people would say hospital meatloaf that's disgusting...
Let me tell you what it was the best thing I've ever tasted!!!...
Being that it was four o'clock in the morning Mom and Aunt Edie left...
Poor Aunt Edie had Gracie at her house and getting to sleep was probably not an option...
And poor Mom, she had a task of her own...
While showing Grandma pictures of the baby in the waiting room she got so excited and was so tired due to the super late hour she almost passed out and had to be admitted into the Emergency Room...
Poor Grandma...
But she did darn well and was discharged a while later...
While still in the delivery suite Todd got to hold his son for the first time...
Rowan looked so small in Todd's arms and I was so proud of my Husband as he held Rowan like he'd been holding newborns all of his life...
Soon the effects of my epidural were completely worn off and I was able to stand and get into a wheel chair where I was then taken to my postpartum room...
The hospital was amazing and every room was private...
It was so nice...
We didn't get settled in to the postpartum room until 6am...
The sun was coming up as we tried to get some rest...
Talk about impossible though...
Worth every minute of it however...
So that's Rowan's birth story...
I am so blessed and had such a wonderful experience...
Todd was so amazing and I couldn't ask for a better Husband...
Mom and Aunt Edie were so awesome, calm, and encouraging...
Our Brothers were champs, sleeping on the waiting room floor, and staying up all night...
I didn't even imagine this kind of birthing experience was possible...
So after this long story, how about some pictures!!!

This was the white board in my delivery room: