Wow, it is so hard to believe that it has already been nine days since Graham was born. I never thought that this day would come and then it came and went before you can even realize what is happening. This week has been so amazing and has been challenging in its own way, but I would not change a single thing. I haven't wanted to put him down for a single second so this is my first opportunity to blog since we have been home and I wanted to write about the exciting day of his birth before I could forget. So here it goes!!
Graham's First Photo (check out those lips!):
On Monday, August 18th, I had a doctor's appointment where Travis and I found out that we were going to end up having a C-Section because Graham was a little bit big, a little bit over 8 lbs, and my doctor was concerned about him getting stuck. He was going to let me try naturally but then he also found that my pelvic bone is slightly narrower than the average woman and so he felt that a C-Section was the best bet. As soon as he said it, I got a little freaked out because it is considered major surgery and he told us all of the risks involved (which even though the chances are so small, I got nervous) but when we got home, I really felt like this was going to be the best thing for our little boy, whatever happened to me was nothing compared to his health and safety. So, my doctor told me that he would schedule the surgery for Monday, August 25th and Travis and I just settled in to wait for Monday to come.
Now, Travis has been off work for summer break since the last week in July, but Friday, August 22nd was his first day back at work. They were having a teacher in-service meeting and I insisted that he go since he was going to miss the next two weeks. It was the first time that we were going to be apart since I stopped working, but I had absolutely no reason to think that I wouldn't be waiting until Monday to have Graham. Travis and I only have one car, so he left around 7:30am, taking my only mode of transportation with him and his assurance that he would have his cell phone on him. I settled onto the couch to watch some t.v. and was working on filling out my glucose level paperwork for my doctor's appointment that I had later that day. At around 8:45am, I could feel something strange lower in my stomach, like a tugging but it didn't feel like the baby was moving but as many of you know, when your pregnant, you feel all sorts of weird things going on, so I didn't think anything of it, I just remember thinking that it felt weird. Then I shifted my position on the couch and a gushing of fluid just came out of me!! I ran into the bathroom, not before grabbing the phone, and sat myself down on the toilet, completely freaking out. Now, in case you don't know, according to my doctor, only 15% of woman actually have the water break before having any sort of contractions and if their water does break, it is hardly a gush, just a trickle because the baby usually blocks the tear in the amniotic sac. The thought that my water would actually break didn't even cross my mind, so if you could imagine, I was totally surprised.
So, I rushed into the bathroom and frantically started calling Travis. Of course, I couldn't get a hold of him. I called and called and called, but he didn't answer. So, I tried to call my mom and naturally, she didn't answer either. Then I called my dad at work and of course, he didn't answer either. I was calling everyone. I am not sure how long it took to get a hold of Travis, it felt like forever, but finally he answered. I was balling at this point because I was so nervous that I wouldn't be able to get a hold of him. He rushed out of his meeting and hurried home to pick me up. As soon as I heard his voice, a feeling of calm surrounded me and I knew that everything was going to be alright. I also got a hold of my mom and she promised to meet me at the hospital. While I was waiting for Travis, I tried to finish packing our bag (which we were going to do on Sunday) and clean up a little bit (I hate to leave my house dirty). I called my doctor to let him know that my water broke and I also called the hospital to let them know that I was on my way. I am sure I was a sight to see because I was running around with a towel between my legs. If you don't know, your water doesn't just break and thats it, it is constantly gushing!!
So, Travis arrived around 9:30am and we immediately left for the hospital. At this point I had not felt any contractions but as soon as we got off the freeway at the hospital exit, I started to feel them. It wasn't so bad, at first, but it really does make you stop and grimace in pain. We checked into the labor and delivery room and found ourselves in the smallest room I have ever seen! The hospital was busy with all of these unexpected deliveries so we got one of their little rooms. The nurse hooked me up to the monitor and checked my cervix, I was 3 cm dialated and 90% effaced. At this point, they didn't know that I was going to have a C-Section and I wasn't sure if I was still going to have one since I had gone into labor earlier than expected. The nurse got a hold of my doctor and he still wanted to do the C-Section. The hospital had a bunch of previously scheduled C-Sections so I had to be fitted in so they scheduled me for 1:30, I had three more hours to go! Of course, there was a girl in the room next to me who had a scheduled C-Section that was just relaxing while I was sitting there in immense pain...and she got to go have her baby ahead of me! My nurse did give me some drug that was supposed to spread my contractions out to help relieve some of the pain, but it lasted for like 20 mins and it was back to strong contractions every 2 mins. My nurse wasn't very personable and she would so nicely remind me that if I was having a normal delivery, I would have already had my epideral. Thanks so much for reminding me of that! For C-Sections, they give you a spinal block which lasts for about 2 hours and so I couldn't have that until I was in the operating room and so I labored until 1:30 when they finally took me in. It was one of the most difficult things I have had to do, but knowing that it was going to end made it possible to get through it all.
So, I was wheeled into the operating room where the anesthesiologist gave me the spinal block. This was hard because they kept trying to get me to relax, but trying to stay relaxed during a contraction while a needle is being inserted into your back is much easier said than done. As soon as he was done, they had to push me down on the table really fast and I immediately felt relief. It was so wonderful to no longer feel pain!! My hat is off to anyone who can go through childbirth without any sort of pain relief, I knew I couldn't take it any longer and I had only been going through it for four hours. I felt completely numb from the chest down and the only thing I didn't like was no matter how hard I tried, I could not move my toes! I didn't like not having control over my body.
At this point, Travis was able to come into the operating room and sit next to my head. It was just like you see in those shows like A Baby Story, with the partition up and the husband sitting there. I was freaking out a little bit as they started because I didn't know what to expect, but before I knew it, my doctor had already cut me open and was working on getting Graham out. To help pull the baby out, the doctor has to really push hard on your chest and that was really uncomfortable. When the doctor got Graham's head out, he let Travis watch him pull Graham out which we have on video. I entered the operating room around 1:30 and Graham was born at 1:47, I couldn't believe how quick it was! The doctor told us that the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck twice and that they would have had to do an emergency C-section if I would have tried naturally so it was such a blessing that we had the C-section in the first place. When Graham came out, he was holding his breath so it took him a minute to start crying. I just remember thinking that I wanted to hear him cry, since I couldn't see him. Hearing him cry was just the most amazing thing and I just knew that everything had gone sucessfully. Travis got to go over to where he was being cleaned up and cut the umbilical cord. Then they brought him over to me. Graham was just the most beautiful little baby I had ever seen and I couldn't believe that he was all mine. He weighed in at 8 lbs 5 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long, just perfect. They whisked him away to the recovery room while they finished closing me up, but Travis got to go with him. I was sad that I didn't get to have this time with Graham but we have been inseperable since.
Giving birth was the greatest experience that I have ever gone through and I feel so blessed that everything went so smoothly. Graham is perfect in every way and he is a part of our life forever. I can't wait to discover what lies ahead for our little family.
Here is my invitation that was created by my co-worker Debi! I thought they turned out so cute!
