As everybody knows, I went in Wed the 3rd for my final prenatal appointment hoping and praying he would either A) induce me that day, B) offer to induce me, or C) listen to my pathetic cries to be induced and agree. To my dismay, he didn't want to induce me that day... but after a couple minutes of me complaining about not being able to keep up with Landon and being so uncomfortable it was becoming difficult to walk, etc, he asked me what I wanted to do. He had quite a giant beaming smile when I told him, "I want you to induce me... I am DONE being pregnant." So, our "appointment" for induction was set and we were to be at the labor and delivery ward of the hospital 6am Friday the 5th. This disappointment me a bit as well, as I was hoping to be taken after my appointment or the following morning (Thursday the 4th). His rational was, "Take one more full day to be a parent to one, as you will likely never have this opportunity again after Friday."
Landon and I spent the following day together running final errands, we went to lunch, and we had a great time together playing at the park. We came home and I ran around like a mad man cleaning our house (for the 1000 time) and triple checking that I had everything I wanted/needed for the hospital. I started to get emotional over the thought of becoming a Mommy to two instead of just Landon... typical jitters and nervousness any other mother has before having another baby. My mother-in-law took Landon for the night/next day, and then it was just Alex and I for the rest of the night.
Of course, I couldn't sleep too well... I was anxious for my pregnancy to FINALLY be over (Friday the 5th I was one day shy of being 41 weeks... barf) and my mind started thinking of all the complications that could occur... needless to say, I got about 5 hours of broken-up sleep (interrupted by the fact that I had to pee throughout the night).
So, Alex and I get up around 4:30am on Friday, get ourselves ready, enjoy our last few minutes alone together in quiet, and then head out to the hospital. We arrived and were checked in... after the initial questioning of my family history of health problems and etc, and then she asked if I had eaten or drank anything past midnight to which I told her I had made some fresh juice to drink that morning (juiced some plums, strawberries, apples and carrots).... she started going on about how my induction would have to be delayed and the anesthesiologist was going to be upset... I laughed and said I wasn't told to abstain from eating, and I don't know why I would need an epidural right off the bat before contractions actually started. Apparently the nurse thought I was going to be having a c section... my heart had jumped into my throat at that point. I told her I didn't *think* I was there for a c section, just a regular pitocen drip or what have you... she left for a few minutes to "double check" and I started to feel hysterical. Upon her coming back, she announced that I was correct and that my juice breakfast was acceptable, lol.
Then it was time to get the needle into my arm for my I.V. ... as many of you know, this is around the time with Landon's induction that Alex became ill and passed out cold in the room, slamming his head against the very hard wall and had to be taken to the ER for a few hours to get some tests done to make sure he was ok..... this time around, he sat in the corner reading his book while the nurse attempted to get the I.V. in. She first tried in my inner arm and FAILED miserably... to the point that she burst something in my arm... it was horrible pain and I got VERY light-headed... not a good thing to be when you are just barely beginning your labor journey... After getting me to feel better and stable again, she quickly checked my hand for a vein, found one and jabbed it in. Normally, needles and I.V.'s done bother me as long as I don't watch them put them in... but these suckers HURT!
Anyway, moving on.... around 7am they finally got my pitocen to start and at this point I had a new nurse. I really liked her! She was with me for a good 97% of my labor. I started off at 3.5cm dilated, having mild contractions on my own every 10-15 minutes. By 8am, they had picked up and were coming every 5-6 minutes and were a bit stronger. My doctor also came in at this time to check me... I was at 4cm. He decided to break my water as well. Everything started to pick up VERY quickly after that. As he was leaving, he told me I could get an epidural whenever I wanted and that he would see me at pushing time.
Soon after that, my contractions started coming no more than 3 minutes apart. I was hoping to get a nap in before my contractions intensified... with Landon, they didn't pick up or start getting painful until a good 4-5 hours into my labor. With Caius, they were pretty intense by 9am, two hours after my pitocen had started. Alex kept asking if I wanted him to let the nurse know I wanted an epidural, and I kept pushing it off thinking that I would hold off as long as I could.
My nurse came in around 9:30, a bit worried, as Caius' heartrate would drop significantly after each contraction... leading her to believe that his head was being compressed. She had me roll onto my side and stay that way for quite a while. His heartrate steadied itself and I was instructed to lay on my side "probably" until it was time to push. She monitored several contractions to make sure all was well, and around 10 she checked me (I was at 5.5cm) and asked if I wanted an epidural, as my contractions were "pretty intense" according to the monitor they had on my belly. I told her no, and she left. At around 10:30, I decided it was a dumb idea to not accept the epidural. I really wanted to get a nap in before Caius came, and I know how quickly things can progress towards the end.
The anesthesiologist was a very sweet guy, but unfortunately it took 3 tries to get the needle into my back. The actual needle being put in didn't bother me, but my contractions were quite strong and it was difficult to stay COMPLETELY motionless like he was requesting. After getting it in, they were going to do a "test run" to make sure it was put in successfully. I ended up vomiting at this point... I'm guessing it was from anxiety. After about 5 minutes, I felt much better. It was determined all was well with the epidural and he turned it on.
It was about 11:30 when he left the room, and Alex decided he was going to go get some lunch for himself while I tried to nap. Between 11:30 and 12:30 (when Alex came back) I got MAYBE 20 minutes of sleep in... the nurse had to wake me though because I had rolled onto my back, causing his heartrate to drop again after contractions. I rolled onto my other side and all was well in the world...
At 1pm, my nurse came in and introduced the next nurse that would be caring for me. She put a catheter in and checked me before she left and said I was at 6cm. I was a little let down by that number, as I was SURE I would have been farther along by that point... I was ready to accept that it would be an INCREDIBLY long day though. My new nurse was a great nurse as well, and she left the room to let me attempt to nap again. By this point, I was starting to feel more discomfort again so I pushed the button on my epidural to give it another "boost".
I instantly felt the cold surge go into my back. I waited a good 10 minutes or so and realized that the discomfort wasn't going away... and it was VERY awkward. To put it bluntly, it was a pressure that felt like I needed to make a #2... lol! I called the nurse and said, "I think I need to have a bowel movement..." and so she came in about 5 minutes later and grabbed a bed pan.... At this point, it's about 1:20pm. She asked me a couple questions about the "pressure" and I said it might have just felt weird because I was laying on my side. She decided to check me again, even though I had been checked 20 minutes earlier.
I was 10 centimeters and Caius' head was in the birth canal, trying to make his way out! I was in absolute SHOCK that I went from 6cm to 10 and ready to push in 20 minutes... WOW!
They called my doctor to come deliever me and started setting up the room. Another nurse (for Caius) came in and set up her stuff. It was at that point that I started REALLY feeling the need to push... it was SO hard not to push. My doctor showed up promptly, and the nurses were conversing with him about how he has a record for NOT cutting women in labor that was pretty impressive. With Landon, I tore a little bit and he was my doctor, but they were right... he never once cut me. We got down to business and within about 5 minutes of his arrival, I had pushed Caius out! The cord was wrapped around his neck a good 2-3 times too... something else Landon didn't have.
Caius Jarett Thurmer was born October 5th, 2012 at 1:36pm weighing 8lbs, 14oz (AFTER peeing all over his nurse!) and was 21.5" long. He was quite a hefty fella! They cleaned him off while he layed on me (something else I didn't get with Landon... I got to see him being held by the doctor, and then they whisked him away to clean him up and get his stats taken care of..) I actually ended up with tears in my eyes when he was out. I didn't cry or tear up with Landon either... but FINALLY having Caius here was just an overwhelming emotion... it was all very cliche =)
My doctor announced at the end of all the shenanigans that I had absolutely NO tearing and he didn't have to cut me at all again. It was INCREDIBLE. My recovery has been quick and virtually painless. The only "pains" I had around my "lady parts" was mild burning from my catheter being inserted/removed and that disappeared in a matter of 36 hours.
Caius is SUCH a great baby. He hardly cries and is easily soothed. As I mentioned in my previous blog, he is a GREAT breast feeder which was all I could have hoped for. He eats and sleeps so well... he gives me 4-5 hours of straight sleep every night initially, and wakes up every 2-3 hours after that. When he DOES wake up and it's dark, he will eat, let me change his diaper, and he goes right back to sleep. He is an absolutely perfect baby. Landon is IN LOVE with his little brother and LOVES to help me with him whenever he can. It is so amazing to see them together... soooo sweet! Caius is also a VERY smiley baby! I had NO IDEA newborns could smile and mean to do it so early in life! Landon started intentionally smiling around a month old, and that's the norm for most babies. But Caius just smiles and smiles and smiles and tries to coo at you when you talk to him... it's the sweetest thing ever!
I am so glad I had such a short labor, a picture perfect vaginal delivery, and a healthy, happy, beautiful baby to show for it all =) I know not everybody gets the kind of delivery they hope for, and not everybody gets to have a baby... I thank God every day for the blessings he's given me and I couldn't ask for more in life <3
