I can't believe it's been almost three months since my last post... and I was quite LARGE then. Only eight days away from meeting Ezra! It's gone so fast, I felt I needed to document his birth story before I start forgetting details (and with new mommy brain, that would be easy to do). Here is how our little man came into the world:
I woke up on May 15 feeling a little off. Super crampy, uncomfortable, and tons of back pain. I was scheduled to have a prenatal appointment the following day, but I really didn't feel so hot, so I called and moved it up a day to check on my progress. I was told that I was having some very early prelabor contractions, but nothing too serious yet. I was only 1 cm dilated. Feeling discouraged, I left to return to work, but not before running through a Wendy's drive-thru to chow down on a chicken sandwich and a salad. Feeling starved, I started munching on the sandwich as I was driving back downtown, but again I started feeling super weird. I couldn't finish it or even get halfway through! This was out of character for me since I was 1,800 weeks pregnant and eating everything in sight.
Once I was back at work my tiny contractions started to get worse. So much so that I opted to work from home the rest of the day. I immediately called Clay to fill him in since while I was driving they were getting so rough that thought I may have to pull over.
It wasn't long that I texted my team at work to tell them I was done for the day, I was definitely having contractions and they were interfering with my marketing skills! Clay arrived home and immediately started trying to help me get comfortable. We wanted to labor at home as long as possible so I could move around and be in a familiar environment, something we learned in our natural birthing classes.
Literally ALL I wanted to do was take a bath. It was the only thing that helped my increasingly strong contractions. So that's what I did. I took five, to be exact. Clay was timing the contractions and offering me cinnamon sugar pita chips (that I will now forever associate with labor). They were all over the place: 7 mins, 4 mins, 8 mins, 3 mins... This makes it difficult when your strict instructions are to leave for the hospital when they are 5 mins apart for one hour straight. We decided we would leave for the hospital at 8 PM.
You should know that for the duration of my pregnancy, I wanted a natural childbirth. The thought of being hooked to a million machines and unable to move or go to the bathroom or roll over really made my stomach turn. We took all the classes and practiced and studied so this could happen. Literally the moment I got into the car to go to the hospital, ALL of it went out the window. I decided right then and there that my comfort would make me a much happier person and I would enjoy the experience much more with some pain meds, not to mention Clay was secretly hoping that was the option I would choose.
We arrived in triage and I was admitted and well on my way! We were at three centimeters dilated and they said I should be pushing by morning. We scheduled my epidural and started the waiting game. I took naps, ate ice chips, listed to Clay read some parenting books to me, and greeted my mom and sister as they arrived in the wee hours of the morning.
Around 4 AM (12 hours into labor), the OB wasn't super pleased with my progress. We agreed to let him break my water to hopefully speed things up. Unfortunately, that didn't help. I was stuck at six cm and couldn't get past it. Hours and hours passed while we waited for more progress. I let them pump copious amounts of Pitocin to speed it up, still nothing. At 3 PM on May 16th (23 hours into labor) I agreed to let them perform a C-section. I wasn't thrilled, but I had been numb from the waste down for almost 18 hours with no food, water or sleep. We were just ready to meet our baby. From there, things moved FAST. As soon as I agreed, there were four or five additional people in the room prepping me and putting scrubs on Clay.
The next few moments were hazy. I started to get really upset about the surgery and being pinned down. Clay and the nursing staff did their best to help me relax. Before I knew it, I saw Clay stand up and say, "It's Ezra!". I couldn't believe it. I was so out of it that I actually had to think for a second if that meant boy or girl! It was moments before Clay held him up to my face when I think I kissed him 17 times. It was unbelievable. He didn't want to come out, but as soon as he did and I got to meet my son, I fell in love with him immediately and couldn't believe he was finally here. He was perfect! I hope he knows forever how incredibly lucky Clay and I consider ourselves to be.
Ezra Brooks Stewart was born 5-16-14 at 6:11 PM, weighing in at 7 lbs. 12 oz and 22 inches long. So loved by his parents. :)
