How it All Went Down

My son is asleep on my chest, and I couldn't be more content. As I sit here, I realize it's been almost four weeks since his birth. Maybe it's time to share the birth story. I am always so intrigued to read others' birth stories, so it seems only fitting that I tell mine.

Like with Grace, my water broke before I started labor, well before any of the real contractions started. Only this time it felt more like I peed my pants then the gush of "water" I had felt the first time (tmi? too bad, this is a birth story). Only I have never peed my pants over and over again so I figured it must be the slow leak that can sometimes happen if your water breaks higher in your uterus. We called Joe's sister, who came and picked Grace up, then we headed to the hospital. After being admitted, my midwife came in to check on me and I was told my contractions weren't strong enough or close enough together to do anything yet, and that I was only about 3 cm dilated. She told me I should try walking to see if that would start my labor. Funny, but I thought the contractions (which still hurt by the way) I had been having for the last four hours or so was labor. Apparently they don't count labor until active labor begins. Whatever, labor starts when it hurts in my opinion, and labor had started. Anyways, Joe and I did some pacing around the halls, but carrying around a nine and half pound baby apparently makes you tire really fast, so I didn't last long before I had to get off my feet.

After three more hours of walking, then resting, then walking a bit more, I was still at 3 cm. This was all beginning to seem so familiar. Almost the exact same thing happened with Grace, and as with my first delivery, I was told I should start pitocin. I was given the option of waiting to see if I would go into active labor on my own but was told it could take hours for this to happen. I hated the way I felt on petocin, but had to weigh the possibility that after all that time I may not have enough energy to deliver when the time came, and I really had no idea how long my body would take as it didn't seem to be in the same hurry my brain was to get this baby out.

So I decided to go ahead with the petocin and politely asked for my epidural. I loved my nurse who told me, "Why would anyone not take an epidural. Would you get a root canal without novocaine?" Don't get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for those who labor naturally, but it made sense to me and it made me laugh.

Ah, sweet relief. I had to wait to get the epidural until my contractions were two minutes apart. By then they were hurting, and I mean really hurting, so when the wonderful drug worked its magic, it was like pure bliss. Okay maybe not exactly bliss, but the relief was much needed and welcome. I did however get the shakes really bad. I guess it's a common side effect to the medicine used in an epidural.

Fast forward four hours and it was time to push. I went from 3 cm after nine hours to 10 cm in less then four. Petocin may hurt, but it sure did speed things up.  Unlike with Grace, who took over an hour and half to push out, Owen came out in eighteen minutes. Awesome. Before delivery, my midwives guessed Owen to weigh about seven pounds. Ha ha ha. The kid was a woppin' 9 lbs 7 oz. Even being as big as he was, this labor was so much easier then the first. Joe got to cut the cord and I got to hold my baby boy from the very beginning. When Grace came out, she wouldn't breathe on her own, so they quickly took her off me and over to the corner where they were prepared to intervene if needed. It probably took less than a minute for her to start breathing on her own, but it felt like an eternity. Glad I didn't have to repeat that again.

We spent another two days in the hospital because I could, then headed home to begin life with two kids. After my crazy pregnancy (ovarian torsion, a terrible sinus infection, shingles, and severe discomfort from carrying a nine pound baby around), it was great to have such a positive birthing experience.  Now I have a beautiful son, who, by the way, now weighs 10 lbs 9 oz, and I am loving being the mother of two. So welcome to the world and our family, Owen Joseph Mogford.