Owen's Birth Story

Owen's birth was so much better than I expected. I was so afraid that I would have to be induced or end up with a c-section but thankfully I had none of that!

Friday, February 14 - I SO did NOT want a Valentine's baby. That was the ONE day that I did not want my baby born. Thankfully he wasn't. I woke up around 5 as I had the entire week because I couldn't get used to being on maternity leave. Of course I turned on the news and dozed in and out until Blake came home. Right before he came home I woke up from one of my mini naps and felt wet. (TMI, go ahead and stop reading.) I went to the bathroom and determined it was probably my mucus plug. We had an appointment that morning anyways so I didn't worry about it.

At the appointment my blood pressure was still high. (Not super high but high enough for a preggo woman so they worry.) The Dr checked me and determined my water had not broken but my cervix was "unfavorable." Great. Just what I wanted to hear. So they hooked me up to the NST (non-stress test) which measured baby's heartbeats. He came out with flying colors and my blood pressure also dropped. I was told to come back on Monday to make sure my blood pressure was still OK.

So we went home. Blake went to sleep and I took up my spot on the loveseat with the remote watching the Winter Olympics. All day I had very regular cramps. Mid-afternoon they were really noticeable and I started to wonder if it was labor. I messaged a mommy friend on Facebook to see what contractions actually feel like. She talked me out of it. My mom came over for dinner (Valentine's Day!) and together we determined it was the beginnings of labor so she decided to spend the night since Blake would be at work. We walked around the neighborhood at 9:30 PM in my pink polka dot PJs which made me feel a lot better. I tried to sleep but really couldn't because it was becoming more and more painful. I put a heating pad on my belly but Owen kicked it off. Seriously. I woke up when he kicked the heat so hard the pad fell off my belly. Finally about 2 AM I called Blake to come home. I called the Dr and she said to come on in. I took a shower and we were on the way!

We got to the hospital about 4:15 AM. When we got to triage I was almost 2 cm. Dr. Fisher determined I was actually in labor and we could stay. My blood pressure was borderline high but she wasn't concerned at this point. I did tell her in triage that she never should have prescribed me Clomid. This labor thing was a bad idea. ;)

We were settled in our room and I tried everything to stay comfy. We walked. Bounced on the ball. Breathed through it. But they kept getting more and more painful. I decided if this was going to be a marathon, I would meed pain meds. So in to bed I went and got the first round of pain meds. It was heavenly and I went to sleep.

Dr. Brown came in (the same Dr who I saw Friday) and was shocked to see me there. (I like to say he offended my cervix so we proved him wrong!) I was making good progress and around noon he broke my water. Holy cow. The contractions after that were awful! After about 2 of those I ordered the epidural. It was going to be an hour until the anesthesiologist could do that so I ordered more IV meds. Just as the meds kicked in my epidural was coming. I felt nothing!

I slept some more and about 4 PM Dr. Brown came in and I was 9 cm. A half-hour later I was 10 and started pushing. After 30 minutes of pushing Owen was born!

No one told me babies are purple when they are born. I was completely scared to death that my baby was dead. And then a nurse said, "Make him cry." So he finally cried and I got to hold him. I wasn't worried about all the gunk all over him, it was just cool to see him. It wasn't love at first sight either. I guess I should feel like a bad mother but it wasn't. I love him to death now of course!

I had such an awesome labor and I feel so blessed. Overall I had an amazing pregnancy. I was told that my body was built to have babies. Of course I love that but we will wait awhile for another one. (10 years... ;))

We've now fallen in to a routine at home and have adjusted to our new normal. We love our Owen so so much. He's so much fun and is usually a really happy, easy baby. Of course the 2 AM feedings took some getting used to but now I get up right on time!