Our Little Boy

I've made it a tradition to share a birth story for each one of my children, and now that little William Quincy is over six months old I figured it's about time I did. I started writing this when he was only two months old, I really have tried. I've heard the jokes about once you have the third child it doesn't matter how many more you have. I don't see that. I just can't clump em together. There is a difference between the number three and the number five!

William's birth as a planned c-section doesn't sound so exciting as the other ones. I'm 43 and I'm still having babies, so many providers want to induce after 37 weeks. That wasn't an option for me with previous c-sections. So the major abdominal surgery that it is went without event and a sweet 7 lbs. 5 oz. healthy baby boy was handed to me minutes after he was taken out, crying. It was quite a different experience to walk back to the delivery room myself instead of being wheeled back there after hours of unsuccessful labor. Yes, I know that all babies are eventually born, but I think I made the best decision. There was another little person who needed to be safely brought into this world.

When we brought William home we had one day before all his siblings came home from Grandparents' house. He was looking around the house it seemed, searching for all those voices he had heard while in the womb. His favorite place is to be surrounded by all the faces of his siblings who love him so much.

I don't know when my next blog will happen, between baby number five and deciding to homeschool my children again, this just may be it. That day whenever I do seem to figure this all out, I will remember. I will be humble and helpful to others who are desperately searching for advice and wisdom.

~Lisa

Introducing Gabriella Rose

I've made it a tradition to write birth stories or at least a few notes about the births of each of my children. No matter how many times I'm told that once I have more than two or three I won't have baby books for all of them, or that somehow it gets easier once you get past three kids...none of that is true for me. It is incredibly challenging having four children under the age of seven. We are doing the best we can, but I know we're far from the most competent, expert parents out there. We don't assume with arrogance that we can handle anything. We're crying out to God for help!

Gabriella's birth is different from the first three kiddos because I had to be induced. I tried all kinds of natural remedies to go into labor before the induction date, but we still ended up arriving at the hospital in the early morning. It felt funny to be strolling into labor and delivery without labor contractions.  I was soon hooked up to an IV with fluids and pitocin to synthetically start it all. Jeremy and I were prepared with essential oils to help progress labor quickly and help with pain management, but a few hours later these contractions were not like normal labor contractions I've been very familiar with from my previous three babies. Baby still had a high head station and was not progressing down to the birth canal. The birth was beginning to not be so natural and unmedicated as I had planned, the epidural was called in for pain management.  Finally the obstretrician, a very pleasant woman, recommended a repeat c-section due to an "arrest of descent" and heart rate issues of the baby during contractions. My midwife had actually advised no more pushing and had me lying on my left side and breathing oxygen for the baby. It was not going well, so I was relieved by that evening to finally hear that I needed the c-section.

Maybe I was supposed to fight the c-section and maybe I didn't seem so brave being relieved that I no longer had to work for hours longer trying to push a baby out of me...I was minutes away from meeting her. We were wheeled into operating and not much later I heard her first cries as she was lifted out. I got to hold her as she looked up at me from under her blanket. Jeremy was there with us through the whole thing. He had to wear a scrubs outfit in order to be in there with us.

We named her right away because we knew her name fit as soon as we saw her, it means the strength of God. We've been experimenting with many little knicknames that come out of that name, including "Gabby." Her middle name is Rose. We like old-fashioned sounding names alot.

We were wheeled back to our labor and delivery room with Gabby in my arms, where she could breastfeed for the first time. There was all the essential oil bottles lined up in a row on the bedside table. The hospital staff all remarked what a nice smelling room it was. My birth plan turned out not quite as natural as I had planned for, but God gave us a beautiful baby girl who is feeding and growing fast.

Sayde's Birth

Sayde Grace
7 lbs. 3 oz.
21 3/4 in. long

   
     
     Sayde was five days overdue before labor began. An induction date had already been scheduled in advance for the next week, but I was praying that I wouldn't have to do that and that she would be a natural labor and birth process...and that is what happened! God answered our prayers.
     Five days after her due date, contractions started random over the whole day. That evening we called my in-laws, Jeremy's parents, just to let them know that something had started and that they could probably wait until morning to come into Rochester to be with our two kiddos, so we could go in to the hospital. Jeremy's dad hung up saying they would talk about it, but then called back shortly to say they were on the way that night...third babies can be much faster than the ones before. By midnight when they arrived and in a period of 20 minutes, the contractions suddenly became real labor contractions and were closer together than what was advised for me to come in for since I was attempting a vaginal birth after having had a cesearean with Hudson. We called into the hospital ahead of time and told them we were on our way.
     When we got there all the rooms were in use or in need of cleaning, so we were told to wait in the family waiting room until one was made available. No one else was in there at the time. The ending of the movie Dirty Dancing was playing on the TV and by the time that was over we were brought to a room. Jeremy was joking about how I still had to make him watch that movie sometime, but I wasn't paying much attention! Next I met my midwife who was on duty that night and liked her immediately. She was a positive person and confident not only in herself but also in my ability to give birth to a happy, healthy baby girl.
     Back in the birthing room, I was able to try all kinds of non-medicated pain management. I sat on an exercise ball, got into a big bathtub that was in the room, sniffed essential oils that helped with nausea, and learned how to breath and "sway" during the contraction while the midwife or nurse held me. These all helped alot! Standing up and walking around made a huge difference, though being up all night I was so tired. In previous births I had an epidural, pitocin, and all the major medical interventions. Sayde's birth was by far the more comfortable experience overall. The only thing I wish I had been more prepared for, what was the most uncomfortable and painful, was the breathing through contractions. When my mom had babies in the 70's she went to lamaze classes with my dad and learned all about how to breath during labor. Being an athlete of some sort and running marathons does not prepare a person for the type of breathing and strength needed to birth a baby! Thankfully my midwife could tell me how and I made it through that 3 1/2 hours.. the fastest labor ever for me.
     Around 5:00 am or later baby's heart rate began to show distress on the monitor, much like Hudson's had, and a group of OB doctors and residents came into the room. I knew from experience this was not good. I was told I would need to push baby out very quickly in order to avoid another c-section. That motivated me to push her out. The OB doctor saw her head descending and walked away saying, "she's gonna have a baby!"...A very pink, healthy and crying Sayde Grace was born at 5:25 am. I was able to hold her immediately while my midwife took care of other things. After I had delivered the placenta she showed me that along with the umbilical cord...there was some part of it that may have been wrapped around her after her water sac broke and causing the heart rate trouble. A similar thing had happened with Hudson. I am so thankful that my third baby was delivered by a midwife, a successful VBAC. This was not an easy birth, but with God He made it possible and involved the right people at the right time to help.
     We had Sayde's name picked out months in advance and after we saw her we knew that it was right for her.  It is an English name and more traditionally known as "Sadie." It has the same meaning as my sister Sarah's name, "Princess," and we came up with our own spelling of it because we thought it was prettier. She is our little lady. Since it was kind of a stressful birth it took a couple days before she began to latch on, nurse well, and sleep better for small stretches of time. She is now starting to fill out and gain weight, look around at our faces and listen to all the sounds in our household. It's a new experience to have a newborn in the home with two other loud/active children to entertain her. Hudson and Annalise love their baby sister. We're so proud of how gentle and loving they have been toward her.

Sayde and Harper - Baby cousins only one week apart in age!

Hudson's Arrival

The day after Hudson's due date and Jeremy's birthday, I woke up the next morning and realized around breakfast time that contractions were starting. It was Thursday and Jeremy works remotely from home or from Dunn Brothers on Thursdays, so I knew he would be close by or easy to get ahold of. I was very busy with Annalise so sometime during or after breakfast I started to time the contractions I was having on my iphone contractions log application – much easier than calculating them on a tablet! All I have to do is touch the screen when one begins (there is a picture of a pregnant belly that you touch on the screen), and then touch it again when the contraction ends. It logs the duration and the interval. I noticed they were already around 4 minutes apart, but they weren't too intense. I continued to stay busy with Annalise and household chores a few hours longer, thinking to myself that I would go to Target that afternoon for some last minute shopping possibly. I thought that since my labor with Annalise had lasted for days at home I had plenty of time. After lunch I got Annalise down for her nap, and during the contractions I realized they were getting much more intense and I couldn't pay much attention to her until it was over. I wouldn't be going shopping at Target that afternoon I knew! I decided to call Jeremy, and then I called my Mom to come over to stay with Annalise. Once they were both here I finally called a nurse and asked if I should come in. She said that I should come in and they would check my cervix to see how much progress I had really made. While we were getting bags ready to take to the car I was bustling around the house in between contractions trying to do last minute chores. I had Jeremy dust the ceiling fans in our bedrooms and then I was ready to go. We drove the 5 minute drive to the hospital, parked the car in the ramp and walked through the subway. All during that time I was carrying the iphone and punching the screen...they were about 2 minutes apart now. We got up to the floor of labor and delivery where I met the midwife on duty and several nurses. My midwife told me that I was fully dilated 10 cm! I got up and we all walked back to one of the private birthing rooms. It was around 5:30 pm. My midwife also asked for my birthplan and they all understood that we were hoping and planning on a natural birth this time, with no pain medications. Labor continued to progress and my water broke while walking around in the room. They advised me to start pushing if it felt more comfortable and I did. Not long after that they were having trouble picking up Hudson's heart rate and had to monitor it, and that was when we discovered it was dipping down very low after each contraction. Not long after that an OB doctor came into the room and said we would all have to go to the delivery room, which is where the surgical deliveries are done. At that point I didn't care what happened to me, I just wanted to see Hudson! We were wisked very quickly across the hallway and an epidural was started for a c-section. Hudson had never made it out of the uterus into the birth canal, so I was thankful we had time for that instead of putting me out under general anesthesia. It seemed within minutes they had him out and then I heard him crying and got emotional. Jeremy carried him over to me and I could hold him. Within the hour I was able to nurse him and it went really well. He was delivered a very healthy baby, weighing less than Annalise weighed but with a larger head circumference! He was very cuddly at birth and loved to be held all the time, and still does! Maybe next time, if I want to, I can try again for a natural childbirth.

~Lisa

Annalise's Arrival

I have done birth stories for each of my children, only Annalise, my firstborn and my first pregnancy, was in the form of a survey called "My First Pregnancy":

1. WAS YOUR FIRST PREGNANCY PLANNED? All of my babies are planned, no matter what.

2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME? Yes

3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS? Surprise and excitement as well as thinking "that was so easy!"

4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU? no way

5. HOW OLD WERE YOU? 32

6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT? My cycle was a little late but since we had traveled around the world to China I just assumed it was messed up from that. I ended up taking a pregnancy test just to see one morning and saw immediately that it was positive.

7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST? Jeremy, and he was excited as I was.

8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX? We weren't sure at first, but both changed our minds later since we were already praying for her and wanted to know how to pray better.

9. DUE DATE? Nov 11th 2008

10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS? Yes, but before I knew I was pregnant I thought I just had food poisoning or that I was sick from drinking Oolong tea in the morning. I really doubted at first that I could possibly be pregnant so easily!

11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE? Cold noodles with peanuts, spices and cilantro they sold on the streets in China

12. WHO/WHAT IRRITATED YOU THE MOST? When I began to grow out of my normal clothes and had a hard time finding well-fitting pregnancy clothes while in China

13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD'S SEX? Girl

14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING? No, once we found out later in the pregnancy I was super excited to have a girl - about dressing her up and teaching her as she grows into a beautiful young lady. Jeremy was always afraid of having a girl - he will be very protective of her and need a shotgun when she's older.

15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY? 40 lbs.

16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER? Yes

17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW? I knew

18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY? Not really

19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH? Olmsted Medical Hospital in Rochester, MN

20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR? 2 days at home and then 12 hours at the hospital, I would call in twice a day and the nurses advised me to labor at home (I had such a calm voice over the telephone they couldn't tell how far along the labor had progressed!), by the time we went in to the hospital I was 8 cm dilated.

21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL? Jeremy

22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH? Jeremy, 2 or 3 nurses and the doctor

23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION? natural

24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN? I had an epidural for the last 3 or 4 hours with pitocin

27. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH? 7 lbs 1 oz

28. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN ? November 11th, 2008 ( right on her due date )

30. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER? Annalise Pearle