Thursday, June 19, 2014

Ryan's Birth Story

As I mentioned previously, our goal for our staycation was a peaceful, child-free evening where we could do as we please and be able to sleep in and go to brunch just us!  Ryan definitely had other plans.  In fact, I am fairly certain he was wanting to come to Jack's birthday party! :)
 
Looking at this selfie, I wish I had taken a couple minutes to put a little bit of makeup on!  Oh well - the priority at the time was to figure out if it was go time or not!  So after waking up with intense contractions and then the contractions getting closer together, I woke Brad up at 3:07 and said we needed to head to the hospital - once I told him my contractions were so close together (about 4 minutes apart according to the app), he jumped out of bed and we were headed to the car 10 minutes later.  We got to the hospital at around 3:45 and by 4 AM, we were told we would be having a baby soon! AH!  I was dilated to a 4 when I got there - so all of those contractions definitely were doing their job!  So we called all the parents to let them know, and they got started with my IV and bloodwork and all of that.
 
Since I was scheduled for a c-section and my doctor was not the one on call, they told me that I would likely have a c-section (and not be able to try for a VBAC).  I had always said that I would like to try to labor if my body ever cooperated, but that wasn't going to be an option!  Plus, I was also going to get my tubes tied (that's right, no more babies for us - three is mass chaos and definitely enough for us), so a c-section made most sense for that too.  So after everything was taken care of, they wheeled me up to a room in labor and delivery (and yes, I was still having major contractions that were anywhere from 2 to 6 minutes apart and hurt like whoa).
And I got a cute gown for this delivery too!  I forgot to pack my "Ready Or Not Here I Come" sticker, but that's ok.  In fact, I hadn't packed anything until Saturday morning when I woke up with contractions.  I had made a pile of things, so it wasn't too hard, but I didn't end up getting it all together until I was in labor!  Oops :)  But here I am - last belly shot - at 37 weeks, 3 days!
Brad's mom was with the kids (remember?  we were supposed to be having a relaxing staycation!) and my Dad and Robbin were still in Arizona (they were supposed to come into town later in the week knowing that Ryan was scheduled to come the 19th - today actually!)...but my mom made the early morning trek to the hospital!  And she got this cute picture of the two of us - love it!!  This was about 5 minutes before they wheeled me off to the OR!
I was anxious about the spinal for this c-section - the one with Jack didn't work like it was supposed to (I think they hit a nerve or something) and I definitely felt more than I should have!  But I am happy to report that this experience was much better!  The spinal went smoothly and then it was go time!  Of course it seemed like forever until they delivered Ryan, but I think that was just my nerves.  They gave Brad the heads up that it was almost time and he watched and started snapping pictures.  I absolutely love this - this was when they started pulling him out!  Absolutely amazing!  If you look closely, you can see my belly button and belly flapped up (sorry if that grosses you out)!
And at 6:39 AM, we heard that first cry! That sweet sound never gets old - music to my ears for sure!  And the first thing I heard them say about Ryan was the fact that his fingers were so long!
And I was fully expecting an 8 pound baby, but since he came earlier, he definitely was not an 8 pounder!  He weighed 6 pounds, 15 ounces and was 19.25 inches long!  
While Brad was over watching them clean Ryan off, he turned around and snapped this picture!  Here they were tying my tubes and putting me back together!  I started feeling more tugging and all that, so I kept asking what they were doing and how much longer it would be.  At one point, she said she was reattaching my abdominal muscles and then would be sewing up the fascia next - and then she said, "You know, like the gristle" - HA!  I joked and asked if she could just cut that part out.  Her response was just right - "You actually don't have much of it!" I got a good laugh out of that :)
And they brought Ryan over so I could see him more up close before they diapered and swaddled him.  The first time I got a good look at him, I couldn't believe how much he favored Jack as a newborn.
And once he was all set, I got to hold him for a minute before they took him to the nursery to be assessed!  I think I look a little drugged - what do you think? Glazed eyes for sure!  Or maybe I was teary getting to hold him...maybe we will go with that instead.
And a Ryan-Mommy-Daddy shot!  Love it :)
Brad went with Ryan and stood outside while they checked him out and I was still in the OR getting put back together.  They rejoined us in my labor/delivery/recovery room shortly after I got back there.
And I was holding Ryan and attempting to feed him for the first time and then just snuggling him.  I looked over and Brad and my mom kept dozing off - but they would wake up before I could get a good picture, so this one of the Proud Daddy will do :)  By now, it was starting to get light outside!
Doing some skin to skin...love it.
And one more where you could actually see his face!  Please excuse my arm flab :)
What an eventful morning it was!  After a couple of hours, I was taken to the room where I would be the rest of my stay.  And instead of being wheeled in the bed, I actually got up and transferred to a wheelchair to go to the room!  They couldn't believe that I was up and moving that well!  And the exciting part?  I got to eat real food sooner this time! :)  Later in the day, the siblings all met - so stay tuned for that post coming soon!


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