Copycat post--Details

So I just read the post on my friend Jana's blog with her details about her baby's birth, and it made me realize I never gave the scoop to many of the women in my life who would care. That said, if you get uncomfortable when people talk about labor and delivery (like Eric did before I had Noah), skip this post! Like her, this is mostly for myself and I won't feel bad if you don't want to read it or comment :)

At my 34-week checkup, the doctor had told me that I was 2 cm dilated, which didn't necessarily mean much because you can stay at that for several weeks. He just said that it meant that my body was getting ready, which was nice to know!

The next week Eric's parents came in town for a couple days and we enjoyed that visit, and then we got ready to head up to Albany to visit my brother and his family for Thanksgiving break and for my maternity session with my photog sister-in-law Jessica. We were at the airport and...I started to lose my mucus plug (so this is maybe the most uncomfortable detail I share, haha). I got worried because we were about to fly to NY, but I called my doctor's office and was surprised to have them say that it should be fine for me to fly. I guess it was because I wasn't having any regular contractions or any other signs of labor. We enjoyed our time in Albany and came back on Sunday night--still no baby :)

On Tuesday I went to the doctor for my regular checkup, and he asked me a few questions about what had happened at the airport, but he didn't do an exam because nothing had really changed after that...I got home to discover that...I had lost the rest of the plug? I wasn't sure. I called the doctor's office and he said he knew he should have examined me and told me to come back in. I went in and I was at nearly 3 cm. He told me I could go home, but to make sure my bags were packed and as soon as I felt like I was having regular contractions, head to the hospital. Throughout the week I felt like I was having more contractions, but I'd had Braxton Hicks contractions since almost the beginning of the second trimester, so I wasn't sure if anything was up because the contractions didn't hurt, just tightened my stomach and sometimes made it hard to breathe--which was exactly like the Braxton Hicks! It was really hard to time them, but by Thursday night I was able to notice that they'd gotten considerably closer and I was at about 8 minutes apart. I called the doctor and he told me to head to the hospital!

We had planned to have a tour of the labor and delivery department that weekend at the hospital, so we actually had no idea where we were going. After driving around the hospital a couple times, we figured it out :) We probably got there around 7:30 or 8 p.m., and by the time I was checked in and the doctor examined me, it was probably nearing 9 p.m. We were all surprised to discover that I was at 5 cm and -1. (We were surprised because I was still having no discomfort at all!) The doctor broke my water and that really set things in motion! Soon I was having contractions only a minute apart or so, and I was ready to push sometime by around midnight. The doctor came in shortly after and we started the fun part...everything went really smoothly until the very end and he was just right there and his little head was coming out--but not quite, and I couldn't give it the big push he needed to get all the way out and join us. The doctor ended up using the vacuum for just a moment to provide that little boost that Noah needed and we had a baby! A perfect little guy with his daddy's nose and mommy's lips. I was so overwhelmed with how blessed we were to have him join our family, as well as with the miracle we had witnessed! Birth is a messy but beautiful thing, and I really am grateful to be a woman and be able to experience bringing children into the world.

Many people have asked me about this, so I'll add this here at the end. I had an unmedicated birth experience, which had been my plan from the beginning. I have a lot of personal reasons for why I chose that route, and I wouldn't ever look down on anyone for choosing any of the medications available, but it worked for me and I was grateful to be able to go through with my plans! I think it just helped to make the decision early on in my pregnancy and get my doctor on board with me so I didn't feel forced into anything when it was time for little Noah to join us.