A Birth Story

For the last year, I have sat down to start writing Zeke’s birth story. Each time I try to relive one of the best days of my life, and while I remember each minute like it was yesterday, the words were never complete.

WIth Zeke’s birthday just a few days away, I thought now was a good time to finish it. Here it is, the birth story of Zeke. 

A Birth Story

It was August 2, 2011 and I went to bed embracing sleep as I knew I was due to have a baby sometime soon. At 3:00 am I was awoken by contractions that continued to increase in frequency and in pain. I woke my husband up and had him start timing with the Labor Mate app. The contractions went from 7 minutes apart to 3 minutes apart in 45 minutes. The hubs called the doctor and I called my sister to come watch the kids.

We were having a baby.

My sister makes the 7-mile trek in 10 minutes. We jump in the car waiting in front of the house for her and my mom to arrive. As soon as we see them pull-up, Sean guns it and off to the hospital we go.

The hospital was about 15 minutes away. It’s so weird, I can remember the ride to the hospital so vividly with each of my children.

With Z, our first – it was early AM and I went into laboring suffering severe back labor. I cried the entire 10-minute ride to the hospital.

With E, our second – we were sent into the hospital at midnight. I drove thru Sonic for a Route 44 before heading to the hospital for a diet Coke. I poured out the diet coke but kept the ice so I didn’t have to chew on hospital ice during labor. I got out of the car, not in labor – and my water broke on the hospital lawn.

With Izaiah, our third – he was induced. The ride was laid back, we drove thru Starbucks. The cashier asked us what our plans were for the day, “we’re having a baby”.

With Zeke, the contractions were close apart. I was breathing heavily and praying that we wouldn’t deliver the baby in the car.

It was our fourth baby, so we didn’t do the hospital tour or lamaze class.  As my husband missed the exit for the hospital, I kept thinking maybe we should have done a trial run. I remember my husband having to slow down as a coyote was crossing the street.  I remember thinking I hope a coyote crossing in front of the car was a good sign.

Arriving at the Hospital

5:00 am

We finally made it to the hospital and my husband parked in what he thought was Emergency room parking. We couldn’t find a pull-in, turns out he was in employee parking.

I jumped out of the car while he re-parked. I see doors up ahead, but I had to walk up about a 300 yards steep incline. I remember running and crying, getting to the door and it was locked. After banging, a nice doctor took one look at me and screamed “NURSE”. It was so movie-like, it’s now funny. At the time, not so much.

The young doctor, immediately started trying to breathe with me and started asking me questions. My husband finally made it in. I refused a wheelchair as I was in too much pain. I just knew I needed to lay down and the hallway of the hospital was not where I wanted to deliver the baby.

The doctor held my arms and guided me to the elevator. A nurse accompanied us and I made him promise I wouldn’t deliver the baby on the elevator. Sorry if you are looking for a birth story with a baby born in an elevator, please return to Google and search again.

We finally made it to the maternity ward. I honestly don’t remember checking in, I just remember being placed in a hospital bed and feeling a sense of peace just knowing I was there and not at home or in an elevator or a hospital hallway.

With our third baby, we had gone to the hospital, stayed most of the night and were sent home when my contractions stopped. I DID NOT want that to happen again. I wanted a baby and was scared that while I felt this was labor that they would send me home.

After settling in, I remember looking at Sean and thinking, something is wrong. We obviously were in a rush to get out of the house, as my husband had put on his shirt backward. He’s a neat freak and takes more time to get ready than the rest of the family combined – but obviously today he just focused on getting out of the door.

I look up and notice the hospital lights. These are the stage lights as I call them and they always freak me out. It’s like they are eyeballs staring at me.

6:00 am

I’m checked by a nurse, and I was a 7. I was definitely going to have a baby. I told her that I’d like to talk to the anesthesiologist as I was contemplating an epidural. I hadn’t had one with the last 2 kids and thought I had gotten over my bad experience with my first child and wanted to talk it thru. She put an IV in and went to call him – saying she’d be back to check on me in a few.

6:30 am

The contractions started coming quickly. I was suffering dreadful back labor. I called the nurse after my water broke and told her that last time this happened the baby was born VERY soon after and that I needed to talk to the anesthesiologist about the epidural.

She checked me and I was a 9. I asked about the epidural again and she mumbled, I’m so sorry there is no time. She said she would be right back with to prep everything.

Everything got quiet. I had this realization that I was having a baby. Not that I hadn’t been pregnant for the last 39 weeks or anything, but it had been such a whirlwind that this moment was become REAL – real fast. This was the last baby I’d most likely have. I needed to embrace this moment and experience. I could do this and I didn’t need no stinking epidural.

Before I had time to dwell on the fact that I was pushing out a baby in a matter of minutes, the room went from quiet to chaos. Our hospital room was now mission control for a baby delivery. All of a sudden there was a baby bed, a plate of suspicious looking tools and 3 nurses watching me.

7:00 am

My doctor wasn’t there yet. I NEEDED to push. This baby was coming QUICK.  The nurses keep reassuring me the doctor was on her way. I kept telling them that they don’t need her and that we can do this without her. As much as I love my doctor, I didn’t need her to have this baby!

I cranked up my “songs to give birth to” playlist.

 

7:10 am

My beloved doctor arrives. I can hear someone running in the hallway. She bursts into the room yelling:

P here.

No bra, I’m wearing flip-flops and the valet hates me. Let’s deliver this baby.

This is exactly why I love her. She wasn’t on call. The on-call doctor called to alert her that I was in the hospital and my doctor said that she wanted to be there for my delivery. Always with a sense of humor, she ran out of the house to deliver my baby. Apparently, she had just thrown her keys at the valet and said she has a bra somewhere in her car, but didn’t need it to deliver.

She was suited up in no time and tells me to push like I’m going underwater.

I cranked up the iPhone. The song Beautiful Things by Gungor blaring:

One.

Two.

7:17 am

Three pushes and I hear a cry. Our lives are changed forever. 

A Baby is Born

Baby Zeke is born at 7:17 am on August 3, 2011.

He was born sunny side up, apparently that makes labor way more uncomfortable. No complications. A healthy baby boy to add to our family. God is so good. I am a mom for the fourth time, each birth just as special and memorable as the last.

The drug free delivery went smooth. After I delivered the baby, I felt amazing like I have with each non-drugged delivery.

My reasons for no epidural are because of a botched epidural with my first child. I was left with a spinal, a spinal headache, in bed for weeks, a blood patch and barely able to hold our child. It was a rare occurrence, but that’s why I chose not to go the epidural route again.

Baby Check Up

Immediately after birth, Zeke was handed to me. We had about 20 minutes together until he had to do the baby check-up routine. I loved that everything was done right in front me, not in a nursery.

He was weighed – 7lb 1.6oz – 19.5 inches long.

All of his vitals were checked. He looked great.

Then he was bathed. He actually was bathed right next to me in a small container. I loved this as I was able to see him the whole time and he wasn’t carted off to the nursery for a bath like the other kids were.

Zeke slept thru his first bath. Yes, my kid is that cool.

Bonding with Baby

The few hours alone before the visitor parade arrived at the hospital always make my favorite memories. Just me, my husband and our new baby.

My husband is a natural. Even with our first child when neither of us knew what to do, he just had a fatherly way about him.

Zeke was such a quiet baby, just like our second child E. All he wanted was to be near me or my husband.

Meeting the Family

Before we knew it, it was time for the family to meet Zeke. Gone was the quiet, in with the parade. You can tell from this photo, our then 16-month old Izaiah wasn’t quite sure what to think of this new little thing (he’s the one with the BORN WILD outfit on).

Going Home from the Hospital

Before we knew it, it was time to go home. We had 3 kids to get back to and our vacation with our new baby was over.

We put our new little baby in his Britax car seat – that still had the tags on it. He looks so wee in this photo.

We had a new kind of normal awaiting our life. 4 kids is a blessing and an adventure. God must think we can handle this. We’ve made it nearly a year, somedays by His grace alone.

I snapped this photo as I laid on the couch recovering from the prior day’s events. This is our life. It’s crazy. I so love it.

There it is. Zeke’s birth story – a year after it happened.