Nathan's Birth Story

I thought I would give some more details about Nathan's rapid arrival, so here it goes. Our day on Sunday, October 12th, 2008:
We arrived at the hospital at our scheduled 8:30am time. It took almost 2 hours to answer questions, give insurance information, and get hooked up to the monitors. I wondered if they took this long for someone who is in active labor? I would've flipped out! The nurse put in an IV and started Pitocin at 10:15am to get the contractions going. It took about and hour to start working, and my contractions became uncomfortable around 11:30am and were about 2-3 minutes apart, sometimes closer together. The on-call doctor came in and broke my water at 12:30pm and told me I was a good 3 cm and shortly after that my contractions became very strong and painful. I tried just breathing through them while Joe and I watched "The Butterfly Affect" on FX. Weird movie. Anyways, I asked for some pain meds at 1:30pm and my nurse gave me Nubane or Nubain through my IV. Awesome stuff! I felt drunk and happy...although it didn't really help the pain. But, I just didn't care as much! :) I was given an epidural at 1:45pm but it was only working on my right side, which didn't help much. The anesthesiologist came back in about 15 minutes later and gave me a "bolus" which increased the medication and ended up working. I was told to lay on my left side to help the medicine get to that side, and it worked. Around 2:30, my nurse checked me again and I was 5-6 cm. I continued to lay on my side and took a brief snooze since the Nubain had made me drowsy. A few minutes later I started to feel pressure, like the baby was getting lower. At 2:52 pm, just 22 minutes after I was 5-6 cm, the nurse checked me again and I was 10 cm! The baby's head was visible. Then things got crazy. My nurse put on the emergency light, called for any available nurses to assist, and called for ANY doctor on the floor. My doctor was at Target since she thought she had a while. Joe called my mom and his mom, since they were supposed to be in the delivery room for the birth. I pushed 2 times at 2:57 pm, and baby Nathan was born at 2:58 pm. Needless to say, our moms didn't make it. My doctor arrived shortly thereafter to check on me. I didn't tear at all, which thrilled me! Nathan was placed on my chest immediately and I cried of course. Our moms arrived and were disappointed that they missed the actual birth, but they were so excited to see Nathan, and to be grandmas again. Nathan's apgar scores were 8 and then 9. He weighed 8 lbs. and was 20 inches long. He passed all the tests, and his blood counts were normal. No jaundice! He was circumcised and the doctor said he didn't even cry during that. (I wonder if they tell that to all the parents?) Besides having a cold, I feel wonderful. I do not feel like I gave birth 3 days ago, that's for sure. With Ella, I was sitting on one of those "doughnut" pillows for days! I was outside playing with Ella yesterday when we got home from the hospital. It's definately an adjustment, bringing a 2nd baby home. Ella is very curious and needs to be reminded quite frequently to be gentle. Nathan is eating very well, especially since my milk came in over night. He spits up a lot, but the pediatrician said not to worry at this point. Nathan did lose weight, like most babies do. He's now 7 lbs. 8 oz. He sleeps a lot, but when he's awake, he seems very content. He just looks around with his wide eyes. I thought it would be weird having a boy, since I'm only used to having a girl, but it feels completely normal. My parents are leaving for a vacation to South Dakota tomorrow, Ella will go to daycare, and Joe is going to work for a 1/2 day, so it will be just Nathan and I in the morning, and then Joe will join us in the afternoon. We'll have a little time with just Nathan, Joe, and I before Ella gets picked up from daycare (which we are still completely thrilled with!) Joe is taking Friday off as well, so it will be the 4 of us. Ella will continue to go to daycare Tuesdays and Thursdays while I am on maternity leave. Monday will be the first day I have both kids on my own. I am a little nervous! Well, this got very wordy, but I wanted to share all the details and excitement. Please call if you'd like...I'd love to talk briefly if I'm available! :) Look for some more hospital pictures on Snapfish, taken by my dad.