Jackson's Birth Story

This morning I woke up around 345 to go to the bathroom.  As I was crawling back into bed, I had a contraction.  A few minutes later I had another, and then another, and another.  I decided to get up and eat something since this very well may be "it" and I was starving.  I knew that if it was "it" I would soon not be able to eat anything.  I had a bowl of cheerios and kept track of the contractions that were now coming every 6 minutes or so.  My midwife had told me to call the office or the pager when the contractions got to be around 7 minutes apart.  

I called the pager around 4am and waited until 5 before I decided no one was going to be calling me back, which was just fine with me because by that time the contractions had slowed down.   I went back to bed convinced that I was being punked by my body.  Scott woke up in a start when I came back to bed.  He was all excited that I was having the baby.  I told him that it might happen later in the day, but for now we have to go back to sleep.  So I dozed as best as I could in between contractions and had Scott keep track of their frequency.

619

632

644

702

724

759

I sent Scott off to work-hey! he might as well get as much done as he could before the babe came along.  I got up and got in the shower.  I continued to have contractions.  They were increasing in intensity but not in frequency.  

My mom and I kept a mental record of when they were coming as we packed up the last minute things in my bag.  My dad made me the saltiest scrambled eggs I've ever had and about made me throw up.  He did his best to keep Natalie downstairs while I labored upstairs.  The contractions were hard enough that I couldn't talk through them.  We started to keep track on paper again.

1013

1021

1028

1034 - I called the midwife and she said to head to the hospital.

I called Scott and said get your butt home NOW!!!  We're having this baby!!!

1041

1046

1050

1054

1058

I walked down the stairs, out the door, and to the car door before having another contraction.  They were unbelievably fierce by this point.  I was asking my husband for an epidural.  We had a 40 minute drive ahead of us.  I thought for sure I was going to be one of those women that delivered her baby in the car on the side of the road.  Scott did not drive fast enough for me.  Every bump, every turn, every lane change was excruciating!  My body was ripping itself apart from the inside out.

We pulled up to the birthing center.  Scott grabbed a wheel chair and in we went.  The receptionist asked how she could help me.  I told her to get me an epidural, NOW!  She had the audacity to ask me if I was in labor.  Ha!  At the time, all I could think was how stupid is this woman?  Bless Scott--he answered all of the registration questions except for when was my last period.  I covered that for him.  

The nurse then came and took me to triage to check me.  It took my 10 minutes to change and get on the bed.  The whole time I was demanding my epidural NOW!!!  Scott ran out to move the car from the entrance to the parking garage.  It was 1157am.

My midwife came and checked me while I was still in triage.  (I found out later that my sudden appearance had totally messed up the whole birthing center.  I pulled my midwife out of a c-section that she was just about to start and I pulled most of the nurses away from other patients, because I was going so fast they needed so many people to get things ready fast enough.)  I was already 8 centimeters dilated.  I begged her for an epidural and she kept telling me that they would try, but that I might not have time.  She promised me a "treat" in my IV once I got to my room.  

They wheeled me down to my room.  It took me another 5 minutes to get into the bed.  While I was still in the wheel chair I got that pushy-pushy feeling.  Everyone was telling me just to wait.  Yeah right?  You try waiting when a child is sliding out of you!  

I got into the bed and within a contraction or two I was really ready to push.  I was still about 9.5 but I couldn't wait.  The midwife said I would push through the rest.  She also told me that there would be no epidural and no IV with good stuff in it.  They didn't even have time to take blood.  I was already pushing.  The midwife broke my water and three or four pushes later he started crowing. It was then that the blasted "ring of fire" started.  I never had that with Natalie and oh. my. gosh!  I thought it was going to kill me dead right then and there.  Never have I had that kind of pain.  

Scott said it took me four pushes to get his head out.  It literally popped out.  No cord around the neck and out he slid.  It was 1238pm.   Forty-one minutes after Scott parked the car.  

I was so dazed from the intensity of the morning that I just kind stared into space as they laid him on my belly.  I didn't even reach out for him.  I was so totally and completely drained.  I remember just looking at him and wondering who he was.  (We still hadn't agreed on a name.)  

A few minutes later they shot me with pitocin to help me deliver the placenta (still not sure why they did that).  I pushed and the midwife pulled.  I was done.  I just had a baby!

My parents and Natalie got there just a few minutes after I had him.  It was wonderful.  It still took us an hour to decide on his name.  He had blonde hair which meant he was Jackson.  The middle name was easy - Michael.  I love the name and had determined from the beginning that his middle name would be Michael.  We called a whole bunch of people spreading the good news.  One person made some comment about him being Jackson, Michael like Michael Jackson.  Scott said absolutely not to that, so we were back to no middle name.  It didn't take long though to put Warner with Jackson.  We had long considered Warner for a first name.  It was a name we both loved.  So that's who he is... Jackson Warner.  

Two hours after popping him out I was up and feeling like a totally normal person.  The whole time I was laboring at the hospital I kept apologizing to the nurses and my midwife for being so mean and rude.  They all just laughed and said that anything goes when I'm in labor, but once the baby was born I needed to be nice.  And I was.  As they came in I was laughing and joking around.  I told them that this is who I really was--not that hag of a woman screaming for an epidural.  

I couldn't have asked for a more perfect delivery.  As much as I wanted an epidural, I'm proud of myself that I didn't have one and was able to deliver both of my children naturally.  I wanted a fast labor and delivery.  I love that I literally popped him out and was up and moving around an hour later.  God is good.

Later:  As we left the hospital two days later, the receptionist who I thought couldn't have been stupider came out to see who was giving me such fits when I came in.  She actually turned out to be a really sweet woman.  I had to apologize to her too for being so mean.  She just laughed and said it was a hazard of the job.  I wouldn't want to be her.  

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I apologize for any grammatical errors and misspelled words.  This is too long to proof read and I have better things to do.