I have been so excited to sit down and write Baker’s birth story, especially while it’s still fresh on my mind! Looking back at previous blog posts, I think I really downplayed just how terrified I was to give birth to a baby. I would give myself major anxiety imagining everything that could possibly go wrong! The truth is that every single person has a different birth experience, so you absolutely cannot compare yourself to others. Anytime my mind went to this place, I prayed so hard for peace and strength! Regardless of what happened, I knew it would be worth it to finally meet my precious boy and I was right! 🙂
I went to my last appointment on Tuesday the 15th! My doctor decided she wanted me to check in at the hospital around midnight the following day to start the induction. It felt so surreal to know that I’d be meeting this little human after 9 long months (even though time really flew by)! At this point, I was only 1cm dilated, but my doctor felt really good about inducing me since my body had already started the process naturally. So I called Bo when I left and told him we’d be having a baby within 48 hours!
We finished packing our bags, and we headed to the hospital at 10pm Wednesday night! I’d be lying if I said the moment wasn’t a little bittersweet because life as we knew it was changing forever. It was no longer going to be just Bo and I, and that did make me a little sad! But on the other hand, our lives were about to change for the better!
After check in, they put us in the delivery room to get settled and start my IV! After a bad experience with an IV in my hand years ago, they put it in my arm. At first, I thought it wasn’t too bad until my vein rolled, and they had to stick me in my other arm! Needless to say, tears were shed. Keep in mind that I do have a pain tolerance of ZERO if you haven’t heard me mention this on Stories multiple times! Hahaha. I just knew things would only go downhill from here, but I was actually wrong! Thank goodness.
The nurses gave me a pill for my cervix before we went to sleep, and they monitored me throughout the night! Since they were in and out of my room all night checking our heart rates, Bo and I didn’t sleep too great. My doctor came in at 7:30am to break my water! I wanted to get my epidural before they did it, but they thought it was best for me to feel a few contractions to make sure my body was progressing properly. Breaking my water hurt SO bad! I mean I could do it again, but it wasn’t fun. Lol! And within 15 minutes, the contractions started!
If I thought breaking my water was painful, the contractions were another level! I requested my epidural immediately, but there was a wait since several others were delivering that day too. The hour I waited for my epidural was truly THE worst part of the day! I cried the entire time because breathing through it and relaxing wasn’t happening. The anesthesiologist showed up around 9am, and I would have taken anything to help the pain at this point! First, he gave me a smaller shot to numb the area which felt like a serious bee sting. Both that and the actual epidural needle did hurt, but IT WAS 1000% WORTH IT.
Once the epidural kicked in, it was literally smooth sailing! I couldn’t believe how pleasant labor was. Bo and I seriously napped the entire day while I was dilating! Hahah. I went from 2cm at 10am to 5cm at 12:30pm! By 2pm, I hit 7cm. When the nurse came to check me at 4:20, I was fully dilated! She told me she could see his hair. SO crazy! Lol. This made sense because I began feeling pressure down there, and I was worried the epidural started wearing off! Luckily, they bumped up my IV medicine, and I was ready to push at 4:25!
Even while I was pushing, I never felt any pain! There was pressure, but it didn’t compare to that hour of contractions I experienced earlier in the day. Lol! I only pushed for 25 or so minutes, and Baker popped out at 4:49. It still feels like a haze because it happened so fast! It was such a beautiful moment, and I truly couldn’t have asked for a better experience overall. I was also SO worried about tearing, but since I didn’t push long, it was pretty minimal!
Once they weighed and measured Baker (he was 6 pounds 15 ounces and 20.5 inches long), we did skin to skin for an hour post birth. I couldn’t get over how big and pretty his eyes were! He was super observant, checking out everything around him. This is pretty funny, but after Baker’s initial grand entrance and hearing that everything with him checked out, we immediately asked if his cone shaped head would correct itself! Hahaha. I forgot this happens to babies when they squeeze through the birth canal! I’m happy to report that his head has rounded out quiet nicely!
In all seriousness, nothing could have adequately prepared me for meeting my angel boy and seeing Bo hold him for the first time! It’s an indescribable moment that I will cherish forever. I already loved Bo so dang much, but somehow my love for him still doubled! My two boys. My entire heart! 🙂
XOXO
Kels
Y’all. The end is near, and I can’t believe (even after 9 months) that this baby will probably be here next Thursday! It’s so surreal, and I don’t think I’ll fully process it until I’m holding him in my arms. I really can’t wait to see who he looks like! We waited too late for the 4D sonogram photos, so we have zero clue. Lol! Baby B has been receiving great reports at my weekly doctor appointments, and he’s moving around like crazy! I’m sure he’s running low on room and ready to make his grand entrance! 🙂
UPDATE: Now that I’m on the other side, I can confirm I overpacked BIG time! However, I would do it again because you just never know what you’ll need. Every hospital is also different, but mine had basically everything thank goodness! I’m going to put an * by the items I actually used. I’ll share more of Baker’s birth story soon, but my recovery went very smoothly so that’s another reason I didn’t need a lot!