Tuesday, July 13th 2010
We got to the hospital at 11am and were taken back to my room. I was given my gown to change into that was huge on me, I think I could've wrapped it around myself a few times. My contractions had picked up on their own between the time I had been at the doctors and heading to the hospital. The kids were SOO excited to finally be at the hospital! I'm glad they had enough excitement for all of us as I was in a bit of shock that today was THE day.
They did all the initial paperwork and questions while we sat around and waited for the doctor. She unfortunately got held up in surgery and didn't get to my room until 3hrs after we arrived. At 2pm she checked my cervix and I was now at 4cm. I was a bit excited at that point as I had only been 3cm at my appointment that morning. She went ahead and broke my water. Nothing like feeling Niagra falls pouring from yourself!!
During this time, we had some visitors stop by. I've talked about my friend Michele, how her and her family experianced the loss of Hezekiah earlier this year. Her family wanted to do something special for our kids in honor of Noah. They brought each of the kids a Bitty Baby, complete with a little boys outfit and receiving blanket!! The kids were so excited to each have their own Noah baby. Also, the outfits they each picked for Noah would fit perfect on these dolls so that made them all the more meaningful.
I stayed in bed for about an hour after she broke my water. They wanted to make sure Noah's head was firmly on my cervix before letting me get up and walk around (the head on cervix is to ensure his cord wouldn't prolapse). I started walking the halls and within a few minutes my contractions started picking up both in frequency and intensity. I was surprised actually at how quick my labor changed. I had to stop walking when contractions hit and breathe through them. I went from contractions every 10 minutes before my water broke to contractions every 1-2 minutes after my water broke.
Due to how quick my contractions changed, I started having the awful shakes. It's almost like something takes over your body, you can't control them, quite a weird feeling. The doctor suggested that I get an epidural, especially due to our situation. She said she wanted me to save my energy to enjoy whatever time we have with Noah. She also stated that if I had any issues after birth that she needed to deal with, I would be in a lot of pain and not able to focus on Noah. So I decided to take her advice and get the epidural.
It took a little time from the time they called the anesthesiologist until the pain relief kicked in. While I could still feel the pressure of the contractions, I didn't have the uncomfortable pain. That was the first time I had relief from pain since I started having contractions Saturday afternoon. Wow, I hadn't realized just how uncomfortable I had been for almost 4 days. So I pretty much just spent time trying to relax.
Around 6pm the doctor came in and checked my cervix again. I was now 6cm dialated. By this time I was truly feeling excited and all the unknowns weren't even in my thoughts. I know the only reason I was feeling calm and not worrying was due to all of you who were lifting us in prayer during my labor. I was able to smile and feel a sense of peace.
It was getting later and everyone was getting hungry. We ended up having a big ole pizza party in my room with our close friends and our pastor and his wife. Of course, I wasn't allowed to eat though I admit I snuck a bite because I was SOO hungry by this point. It was so great having them all there with us, they were a huge support to not only me, but Kevin and the kids especially.
During all this time, I was still having contractions every 1 1/2-2 minutes apart. I could tell the contractions were changing a bit and figured if the doctor soon didn't come in to check me, I'd ask for her. She came in a little before 9pm and checked me and said I am fully dialated & it's time to have a baby!!! I literally started shaking, this is IT!!!! It seemed this moment would never come after all this time.
The kids scrambled to each get their own camera in hand while the nurses started situating my bed. It seemed like forever to get things organized but in reality, it was maybe 2 minutes if that. The doctor said whenever I feel the next contraction to start pushing. Of course, I wasn't feeling any and everyone was just staring at me, waiting. Finally, I felt a contraction coming on. I took a deep breath and started to barely push when I felt Noah's head pop out. In fact, that's all it took, half a push for him to enter this world. She told me to look down and I watched her guide him out. She took her time and even turned him towards all the cameras for the kids to see!
At 9:06pm, Noah made his grand entrance and she immediately placed him on my chest. I was holding my breath, waiting to see if he would cry, to find out if he was even born alive. You see, during labor, they were not monitoring Noah's heartbeat. We were told there is a good chance Noah could die during labor and they recommended not doing any fetal monitoring. We knew God got us this far and we put our faith in Him that he already knew what the outcome would be, no matter what the medical staff did or didn't do.
It was only a matter of seconds after Noah was placed in my arms, that he started crying and moving!!!!! I started crying myself and just kept saying "he's crying!!!". A newborns cry is always a special thing, but Noah's cry was all that more precious considering all the odds he fought to get here. I had wanted SO bad to be given the chance to hear Noah's cry and felt beyond thrilled to have been blessed to hear his sweet voice! And best of all, we got it on video tape as well as a lot of other special times with Noah. Kevin also got the opportunity to cut his umbilical cord!
They left Noah on my chest a lot longer than they usually do with newborns, mainly because they weren't sure how long he had and they wanted to allow him to stay right in my arms. Kevin held each of the kids up close so they could touch Noah. The smiles on their faces lit up the room! Hannah actually cried. We kept assuring her that he was doing ok. They kept monitoring his heart and when they felt he was still doing well, they asked if they could weigh & measure him. I was excited to see just how big he was because when he came out, I could tell immediately that he was a lot bigger than what the specialist said he would be.
Poor Noah didn't like being uncovered for all this and cried as he was being wiped down and measured. The specialist had told us that Noah would be a lot smaller than what my other kids were as Trisomy babies are usually smaller than normal. Imagine our surprise when we found out he weighed in at 6lbs 10 oz!!!! My biggest babies were Erik & Hannah, both weighing in at 7lb 1 oz, so he wasn't small at all compared to his siblings. Yet another thing he had proved the doctors wrong on.
Noah measured 19" long which just brought tears to my eyes. All 4 of the other kids were ALL 19". So Noah kept the tradition of all my kids being 19", how amazing!!!! We had joked when I first found out I was pregnant that it would be neat to have the baby also be 19", but when we were told Noah would be tiny, we figured that wouldn't happen. God showed us even in Noah's length, not to doubt Him.
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dearest Jenn, thank you for being willing to share this precious story. my eyes are misty and my heart reaching out to you. please know we're praying, and consider yourself hugged. praise be to God. <3
ReplyDeleteJenn, I wish that I was close enough to give you a hug. Hearing about Noah's birth was amazing! You are always in my prayers!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this. We serve a BIG God!
ReplyDeleteJenn, that delivery room was filled with friends, family, medical staff and God! You had such a great, easy labor with Noah. I remember Sarah's cry just like it was yesterday (I missed Darren's as I was under anesth.) and it was pure magic. I can't imagine how wonderful it must have been to hear Noah cry. I'm glad you got it all on tape. I will always remember July 13th and Noah. Love from my family to yours.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my blog, and leading me in turn to yours. And thank you for sharing your story. Our stories are so different, and yet the end result the same. I imagine that Noah was as beautiful as your other children and am glad that you got to have those moments with him, including hearing him cry
ReplyDeleteI can't even imagine the emotion! Thanks for sharing.
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