Baby Wheeler

I know--way more than you ever wanted to see

So tonight I have a very messy (dirty) house, but I am going to blog.

The Story of Wheeler's Birth

The Doctors office scheduled an appointment for us on May 27th at 4:30 to have an ultrasound. They told us if everything looked good they would induce me, which is what I wanted. So we go in on Friday, only to be told that it would be "rude/unethical" for them to induce me on the start of a holiday weekend--so walk around and see if I could get some contractions going. Like I had any control over that--I was already 4 days past my due date!

Lucas and I were frustrated to say the least. We wanted to have this kid--I was totally uncomfortable, and I think God gave us modern medicine for a reason and I was going to use it!

So we walked around the hospital neighborhood for about 2 hours and went back (Lucas had his first Slushy from 7-11)--by then there had been a shift change and the head nurse had us come in and she checked me and said that she would admit me and "lets have a baby!" She was great after dealing with the less than friendly doctor we had earlier.

So we got checked in and I got the gown, the IV and all that fun stuff. The new Doctor came in and said--"lets get you an epidural and then we will break your water"---Sounded good to me. A few times the fear was starting to get to me, but I just had to ignore it and focus on right then and there...

I was telling the nurse how the guy who gave me an epidural 3 years ago with Pepper was awesome and really relaxed me because he was so at ease--and guess what! Same guy comes walking in. I was really happy and told him so. He was more friendly this time around. We talked about how he had a ferarri, but traded it in for a Subaru because he was so unsure of the Obama health care plan---he had a great (Irish?/Scottish?) accent that I could listen to all day--don't worry, he was older and looked a bit like Albert Einstien to me. The epidural went in great and soon my legs and lower body were warm and tingly and mostly numb. So there we sat with Lucas watching the monitor as I had contractions and the babies heart beat kept right on going.

At one point the nurse was in watching the monitor and Lucas and her noticed something was wrong, and pretty soon here comes another nurse with a big smile on her face and they told me baby wasn't liking something so they had me turn this way and that way until the heart rate when back up---so if you ever have a nurse come in with a bigger than normal smile--be prepared.

We were admitted around 8:00 at night and around 2:30 I started to feel a little uncomfortable. Then I started to feel pain--so I called the nurse in and said "I can feel pain" so she called in the anesthesiologist again and he have me a "booster shot" which is suppose to work with in about 5 minutes, but nope--it didn't take. I have always heard of women having their epidural run out, but I always thought--how could that happen? It goes straight to the brain-I am not sure how it could run out.--BUT I am here to tell you that it CAN! Even with the medicine still in the IV bag (yes I use very technical terms) I was now fully aware of all feeling--NOT the way I wanted to have a baby. So by then my pain was INTENSE so the nurse checked me and low and behold--I was ready to have a baby.

Poor Lucas was not prepared--not that I was either, but--and he was really good--he kept saying "what can I do?" I finally told him--"just be here!" and then he was really good at telling me to try and relax and my body was made to do this--and all those things I had told him before. Most of the time it was really helpful--I only remember once thinking "MY body was not made to do this!"

So I am in pretty great pain by now and the nurse tells me to push a few times which I do--but what no one told me is that once you start pushing your body wants to keep pushing and there is no stopping it. Try to stop yawning in the middle of a yawn--or stop sneezing in the middle of a sneeze---it just doesn't work. So I push a few times and the nurse tells me "ok, great, now breath through the next few" So I am trying, but the pushing sensation is to great. It is a VERY strange feeling. Lucas asks the nurse "why does she have to stop pushing" and the nurse said "because I don't want to deliver this baby" and then just like in the movies she yells "I need a Dr. in here!" The room comes alive--it was like all the nurses were waiting outside the door for a more dramatic entrance--the bottom of the bed gets pulled off, the baby warming table is prepped, the doctors tools are prepped and in walks the Dr.

I do remember saying things like "Tell the Dr. to hurry, please." and "i am sorry, I am trying not to push, but I can't help it!" and"oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goodness." (I said that a lot) and "I hope I don't wake the women up in the room next to me." Lucas said the nurses thought that was kind of funny and I remember one of them saying "It is OK, don't worry about her" and the one thing I remember saying alot was "I CAN FEEL EVERYTHING!!"

So I pushed and a few minutes (maybe 15) little Wheeler was out--What it is like to have your body open up to deliver a baby?--lets just say I thought that each time I opened up a little more I thought for sure this is it, but nope--it keep right on getting more and more intense. The thing I remember was that opening feeling didn't cause a lot of pain, the contractions caused pain, but the body opening up was more like --hell--ok really--it was more like finally some relief to the pressure. When Wheeler was finally born I just remember relief. anyway--hope that wasn't to much info. Wheeler came out and Lucas said "Amy look down" and plop --Wheeler was on my stomach. I picked him up and held him for a few minutes before the nurses took him to do all the measuring and stuff. Image our surprise when the nurses said "9 pounds 2 ounces"!! After having him I remember saying "that was horrible!" but I will say 2 weeks later and I am forgetting alot of the pain--what a blessing!!

The doctor finished up all his work down there and soon the bed was put back together, and the room got quiet again. I was flipping back and forth between total exhaustion and being super excited about having a new baby!

Lucas and I just sat there amazed. I got up not to much later to go to the bathroom and I walked just fine over to the bathroom--the nurse was worried since I had the epidural, but I tried to tell her, I can feel my legs 100% the epidural is totally gone and has been for a while.

They gave Wheeler a 8-9 Apgar score, which is really good. He was the highest scoring of all my kids so I was happy! He was a big, healthy (mostly except jaundice--which I will write about another night) boy and it was really a great experience over all. The nurse told me later that Wheeler was the biggest baby she had ever delivered. I said "I am not sure I want that 'award'" and she answered back--which helped put things in perspective "it is better than the award for the smallest baby"--VERY TRUE!!

I don't recommend it to anyone, but I will say after his birth I felt the best even thought he was WAY bigger than the other two.

So--if you have any questions about how to deliver a baby or what to expect, I have now had a C-section, a successful Epidural birth (my favorite), and a "natural" birth. I say "natural" because I was able to relax during all the pre-pushing contractions--so take it for what it is worth. so I feel I can talk to all the "mommy crowds" about any type of child birth!

I will say that Breastfeeding is STILL the hardest part about having a kid. I would rather have natural child birth and NOT have painful breastfeeding, then to have no pain child birth and painful breastfeeding, but since we don't get to choose--I just suffer through it, but I will say this one has been better than the other two. (Yes I have talked with a lactation nurse--not much I can do about the pain--)

Anyway--that is the basic story of Wheeler Lucas Larson.

I will post about Jaundice and our extra 4 days in the hospital some other time.