stephanie on the move: Welcoming Cooper: Part 1

Shortly after writing my 40 week post I started having contractions. Apparently the squeaky wheel gets the grease! I think I'll write this very similar to Noah's birth story in more of a timeline format:

Monday, May 19, 2014
2:15ish - contractions begin. It actually took me a handful to realize what was really going on as they felt much different than my contractions with Noah (induced and back labor). They were really mild and we were actually out running errands all afternoon as I attempted to time them. I would miss them here and there as I didn't notice them really unless I was sitting down. At this point they were about 12 minutes apart.

Evening - they definitely became more noticeable as the evening went on and I got increasingly more hormonal. I think the reality that Cooper was coming and that Noah wouldn't be my only baby kind of overwhelmed me in that moment. There were tears and a bit of snappiness on my part to my mom and Scott.

It was fun to actually get to time contractions this time! My doctor actually developed an app called "Pregnancy Companion". I highly recommend it as it does so much throughout all of pregnancy.

9pm-ish - Contractions had gotten a bit closer together (7 minutes or so) so we called the on call doctor and asked about hospital protocol. She said we could go in or wait it out until they were consistently 5-6 minutes apart. A trip to labor and delivery seemed premature so we all set off to bed to get absolutely zero rest. We were all on edge and, of course, my contractions also kept me awake. But, as I laid down, they spaced back out to 10-13 minutes.

Tuesday, May 20, 2014
4:45am - Sleep was over. My contractions were getting much more intense but were still pretty erratic in timing. I had a few that were 5 minutes apart and decided it was time to pack up and head to the hospital.

5:30am - We check into labor and delivery and start getting all hooked up. At this point I am 2cm dilated (same as at the doctor that morning) and contractions are continuing.

7am - Nurse comes back in to check me after being monitored and, as I already knew, told me that my contractions had spaced back out. I was also still only 2cm dilated. She made a comment about sending me home and I lost it (again). Alligator tears. Luckily, she called my doctor and he said to keep me. PHEW!

After a few hours of watching my contractions it was clear that we would need to intervene to get me into true active labor (which was a-ok by me). I really felt like my body was trying to get into labor itself and that Coop was ready to make his debut so we went ahead and hooked me up to some Pitocin.

Just hangin' around...waiting, waiting, waiting.

Labor the second time around was extremely mellow. Aside from a contraction that would make me say, "why would anyone sign up for this without drugs", it was a very uneventful few hours. We played cards, Scott went out to lunch, we FaceTimed with Noah. Knowing the drill made it all much less scary and I was very relaxed about the entire process.

Missed this little guy while we were away!

1:30pm - Epidural time. While I wasn't in a place where I felt like I truly needed my epidural, the anesthesiologist was available and I didn't want to find myself in a situation where the contractions were getting seriously intense and he wasn't around so we went ahead and cut off feeling to my lower half. Our anesthesiologist was amazing and he make quick work of getting me on my way to happy labor.

From there we spent more time waiting. I was Group B Strep positive so we waited for my two round of antibiotics to be complete before Dr. R came in to break my water.

Cool. Calm. Collected.

4:15pm - Dr.R broke my water and I was 4.5cm dilated.

5:45pm - 10cm!

We decided to let me labor a little longer to get Cooper down a little further before the pushing fun began. Luckily, they asked me about my delivery with Noah and upon hearing I only pushed for 20 minutes with Noah they made sure Dr. R was there when we started pushing.

6:12pm - Dr. R arrives and makes the decision to give a few test pushes. It was all very casual with him simply sitting at the end of my bed (no stirrups, fancy positioning, etc...). He asked me to give my first push and said, "very nice". Ok, let's do one more. It was about halfway through that push that this occurred:

Dr.R - "STOP. Stop pushing." He then jumps up (this is a man who is cool as a cucumber at every moment...I have never seen him in a rush or even seem remotely flustered) and things get hectic...

Nurse - on the phone - "we need help in 304". She then runs to Dr. R and starts to get him in his delivery wear (gown, gloves, etc).

Scott - "My wife is a beast! She is serious about pushing!"

I laugh...

Dr. R - "Don't laugh. Don't push. Don't cough."

I half laugh again.

Dr. R - "Seriously, stop laughing."

I took him seriously at this point and tried my best to barely even breathe. People were streaming in the room at this point and all hands were on deck where they should be. (Thankfully our nurse had gone ahead and set up the room for delivery earlier in the day or we would have been in a real pickle!)

Dr. R sat back down about 30 seconds later and said it was ok to give another big push...so I pushed again and he said, "TOO MUCH. TOO MUCH!". So I stopped and with another half push, Cooper arrived.

Cooper William Retchless

May 20, 2014 @ 6:15pm

8 lbs. 3oz. 19in.

Coop's first picture!

It was all very dramatic in a very hilarious way. I am so happy that my delivery room "drama" was that Cooper was coming fast. My labor and delivery was seriously a dream experience. I thought it was easy with Noah but Cooper proved me wrong. The entire day was relaxing, and the actual delivery itself could not have gone smoother.

Snuggles. I was so happy they let us have this time before weighing, bathing, etc. With Noah he was only with me for a few minutes before they whisked him off to be assessed. They did everything urgent right on my chest and left the rest for later.

As soon as he was born they put him on my chest and he stayed there for about an hour and half after delivery before they took him to be weighed, etc. He had an impressive set of lungs on him but eventually he settled in and snuggled. The rest is, as they say, history.

Our first family selfie. That goo they put in their eyes is so gross!

Cooper got to meet his cousins when he was only a couple of hours old! They also came bearing a burrito for me (I was ravenous) and champagne for Scott.