Labor Story

It seems that people like to hear other peoples labor stories so I figured I would indulge any of you who care and record Keenyn's for you to enjoy.

I had an appointment with the midwife of Wednesday the 14th. I was dilated to a 3 and 70% effaced. I have had high blood pressure at the end of all of my pregnancies and this one wasn't any different. Up until this appointment it had been high but not over the worrying point. Today it was over that point. I had also not been feeling well off and on for weeks and it was getting more frequent. So, the midwife had me do a 24 urine test and come back the next day to get my blood drawn. I did that and then waited to hear the results.

The midwife called me on Friday, the 16th, at 2:30 and told me that they had my lab results back. The protein in my urine was a little high but not enough to worry but I also had elevated liver enzymes. (Or something like that. I know if had to do with my liver.) She said it wasn't high enough to be dangerous at that point but if it got too high it could be fatal. Then she said that she had consulted with the doctor that she works with and decided that given the circumstances they didn't see any reason to keep me pregnant and they wanted to induce me that day. She told me to start preparing and she would call the charge nurse at the hospital and get back to me on when to be at the hospital.

Luckily it was a Friday so Chris was home from work. He had rented a small excavator to dig our some stumps in our yard and was out working. I told him to load the thing back on the trailer because we were going to have a baby. Luckily also it was the day before Emilee and Ben moved out so we were able to leave Eli and Isaac home with them.

The midwife called back and told us to be at the hospital between 3:30 and 4:00. I got a bag together with some clothes and my camera while Chris loaded up the excavator and showered. We ended up leaving our house about 3:30. We stopped at Ace Rentals on our way to the hospital to return the rental equipment. We ended up getting to the hospital right at 4.

They wasted no time once we got there. They brought me right back into a room and had me change. They started and IV and all that fun stuff. The midwife came into check me and I was still at a 3 but 80% effaced. While she was there she broke my water. I had actually been having contractions since I talked to her on the phone earlier but I wasn't tracking them because they weren't really strong and I didn't see a need since I was going to the hospital anyway.

After they broke my water they started the Petocin. By this time it was 4:30-4:45. I'm not sure exactly. The contractions came pretty quickly. I had decided that I would get an epidural. About 6 I asked how long it took for an epidural to be completed and start working. They said about 30 minutes. At this point the contractions were pretty painful so I asked for an epidural. If it was going to take 30 minutes to work I figured I better get it sooner rather than later so help with some of the pain. They called the anesthesiologist in and he was done at 6:35. I remember because I was watching the clock. They said that it would take about 10 minutes to be affective and I wanted to know when that was. At 6:45 the nurse asked me what my pain level was. She was surprised when I told her a 4. Apparently that she thought that was high. She said she was going to check my progress which she did and her response was "There is a head." That explained the pain I was feeling. I was totally dilated and ready to have a baby.

The midwife had actually left the hospital and gone to the other hospital that they deliver at because she had another patient in labor there. The nurse called the midwife then got the room all ready while we waited for her to get there. It took her about 15 minutes. Pretty much as soon as we got there I started pushing. A few pushes later, at 7:16 pm we had a baby boy.

They put him right on my chest and did all of their apgar tests with me holding him. It was really cool. One of the first things I noticed was his fingernails were long. When I think back that's kind of weird to notice but I did. I held him until they asked if they could weigh and measure him which they did. He was 7 lb 9 oz and 18 in (although I think the length measurement was wrong. A week and a half later he was 19.5 in. It seems weird to grow 1.5 inches in a week and have clothes fitting the same as before.) He is our smallest baby.

We didn't decide on a name until the next day. We had a few, one in particular, that we were thinking of and leaning towards but it just didn't fit. We decided on Keenyn but didn't tell anyone until Eli and Isaac came to meet him for the first time. We told them his name first.

So, there you have it. We are now a family of 5 and are adjusting to the changes well. Eli and Isaac both love their little brother. They especially love when he is awake. They get right up in his face and say things like "Hi, Keenyn. I'm Eli, your biggest brother." It is adorable. I love it.

Keenyn is a great baby. He rarely cries, only sometimes when he gets his diaper changed or he is really hungry. He sleeps a lot, even at night. I do feed him two or three times a night but for a newborn I couldn't ask for better.

We sure love having him in our family.