From the beginning...about 3 hours into it giving my mom an update
Finally! Many of you have asked about the birth story and I just haven't had enough time to sit down, think about it, and write it out. I should have tried to write it sooner as some of the details are a bit fuzzy already (sleep deprivation, maybe?)! So, here it goes! :)
Well, our day started out very early! I couldn't sleep because I was anxious, excited, nervous, and about every other emotion in the book! So, I woke up after only sleeping for about 3 1/2 hours and took Bailey, our dog for a walk at 4:15am. We had to be at the hospital at 6am to begin the induction. We had everything packed and ready to go and got there on time (probably one of the last times we'll be on time somewhere for awhile).
We checked in, they put us in our room, and things were slow moving. A nurse came in at 7am to begin my IV. Good ole Cindy took 3 stabs at getting my IV in which made me wonder what the rest of the process was going to be like. :) Once the Pitocin was started my contractions started about an hour later. I was only at 1cm. The midwives came in between 8:30 and 9 and broke my water. Nate and I took several laps around the maternity floor hoping that would help things along. As the Pitocin was increased, my contractions became stronger and quicker. I got to the point where all I could say was, "Oooo" and "Oohhh" and maybe a few other words here and there, too. :) I wanted to hold off on the epidural as long as long as possible. Once noon hit, I was ready for it. The anesthesiologist came in and the nurse warned her I already had low blood pressure. As the epidural was getting started, my blood pressure started to drop even more. The nurse kept telling the anesthesiologist that my blood pressure was dropping, but the anesthesiologist took it with a grain of salt. It was then these alarms started going off because it had gotten so low, so the anesthesiologist had to administer an injection to bring it back up. This happened 3 times. As I had the nurse, anesthesiologist, and a student nurse around me, I could see Nate walking backwards and sat down into a chair and leaned his head up against the wall. I was so proud of him for standing next to me through the whole epidural process as he gets queasy and wasn't sure he'd be able to handle it. He held my hand the entire time. Anyway, I saw Nate and asked everyone if he was okay. Suddenly, I went to having 3 people around me to none as they all rushed to Nate. He was as pale as could be and about on his way out! The student nurse rushed to get him some juice and the anesthesiologist busted out an ammonia capsule and waved it under his nose. After 5-10 minutes, my dear husband was back on board with us. :) It wasn't the epidural that bothered him, it was just my blood pressure that dropped that freaked him out. The epidural wasn't the most pleasant thing, but the results were well worth it as I was able to get some relief for about 12 hours. After all of this, I felt like a new woman. I was happy and comfortable and was thinking the rest may be easier now. Little did I know labor was going to last a lot longer!
Throughout the day we had some family and church staff stop in to visit. One of the most memorable things throughout this time was my sister-in-law, Danielle and nephew, Caden (age 5) came in the morning before I had gotten the epidural. They came back later in the afternoon and the first thing Caden said to me was, "Where's the baby?" as he was looking all around. My only answer to him was, "That's what I'm asking myself, too!" Then I was able to tell him the baby was still in my belly.
Things progressed very slowly. I was stuck at 3cm for awhile and then 6 cm for awhile...
As time progressed, the epidural started to wear off. I was able to get 2 refresher doses, however they did not bring much relief for very long. By midnight, it all had wore off and I was not able to get any more as they wanted me to feel the desire to push. I begged and pleaded I would do anything they wanted me to do if they would just administer something to me, but no such luck! I can remember the midwives stopping in a few times to see how I was progressing. All smiles when the epidural was working and once it wore off and they stopped in, I remember saying, "I'm not smiling anymore!" Of course they just laughed, but I wasn't (I can smile now that it's all over). So, I say, once midnight hit, it was all natural! I was having intense contractions and also began feeling nauseous and throwing up. Obviously, not a pleasant experience! I was stuck at 9cm for several hours with very heavy and close contractions. Another not so pleasant experience!
Shortly after midnight, the nurse had me push for 45 minutes and then let me rest for a bit. The midwives came back around 2am. They began getting things ready for delivery and I was thinking to myself how close I must be to meeting our baby boy (in the scheme of things, it was close, but in the moment it felt like forever). I pushed long and hard for 2 1/2 hours. I remember everyone (the nurse, the midwives, and Nate) saying how close I was and how well I was doing, cheering me on. That was all good until I realized I had been pushing for what felt like eternity and still no baby. It turned out the baby had his head crooked which was making things even more difficult. They tried moving me in different positions, but no such luck. One, the baby must have been happy in the position he was in and two, he must have been happy with life inside of the womb.
After 21 1/2 hours of labor, a beautiful, perfect baby boy was brought into this world at 4:30am. Daddy was suppose to cut the cord, but was overwhelmed with tears of joy in the moment. Such an amazing, happy time for Nate and I! He weighed 7 pounds 5 ounces and was 21 1/2 inches long. His skin was so perfect and he had dark hair. We named this precious being Griffin John with much meaning behind his names.
The meaning of Griffin is, "of strong faith" and the Bible Reference is, "Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called" ~1 Timothy 6:12
The meaning of John is, "God's gracious gift" and the Bible Reference is, "The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee." ~Numbers 6:25
John also has a very special meaning to us as we have a dear friend named John. John was fifteen months old when his whole world changed. He was diagnosed with an Astrocytoma Grade III cancerous brain tumor. Up until that point he hit all the milestones of life. His case was very puzzling to the doctor at Blanchard Valley Hospital so he was sent to Columbus Children’s Hospital. The CAT scan machine was just new. He went through brain surgery and 28 days of radiation treatments that saved his life, but would later affect his development and whole life. The prognosis was grim but John was a fighter and still is. Medical progress has come a long way. The protocol is no longer used. That was twenty-nine years ago. John is now 30 years old. He is neurologically impaired (MRDD), visually impaired, legally blind with 20/200 acuity, has Traumatic Brain Injury, epilepsy, early onset of
dementia and long-term side effects of radiation.
Griffin had several visitors throughout the entire day. Though mommy was super tired, mommy was too happy and excited to sleep at all. I ended up being awake for 45-50 hours straight and haven't caught up on sleep since! However, every ounce of pain and every minute of lost sleep has been all well worth it, no doubt about it!
t is definitely an experience one can only imagine until going through. We knew we'd love Griffin, but to actually go through this entire experience, see him and hold him, the feeling of love brings on a new meaning.
We feel so blessed to be the ones chosen as Griffin's parents. We are so in love with our bundle of joy! I'm sure I have left out some details, but the biggest detail is, Griffin is here, a happy and healthy baby boy who is very much loved!!!
The end...21 1/2 hours later
Griffin just a few minutes old
Tired, but happy momma!
Our new family!
Moore girls with Mom! Happy Mother's Day!
5 weeks old
I surrender!
Big yawn!
Bailey actually sniffing Griffin (this is a RARE event as Bailey is still adjusting to her new brother)
Hopefully they'll be friends someday...
Momma and her boy
Momma loves to give kisses
"Don't smile, Daddy! Help me!"
I'm cute even when I am crying!
Sporting my outfit from Tracy
Dad and the magic position
Too precious!
What a lil' hunk! Tennis shoes and all!
Momma and the stud
Looks like he's ready to ride a rollercoaster!
It's hard work being this cute!
6 weeks old already!
