Jackson is here and we couldn't be more thrilled! Born July 2, 2012 at 11:53. 6 pounds 7 ounces, 19 & 3/4 inches. I'm especially happy I didn't have to be pregnant that extra 12 days till my due date on July 14th! It is so nice to have him here! I even made it through without any stretch marks! Woohoo! My mom took the first couple of pictures.
-Big Yawn!-
Here's the story: (Sorry if it's boring or to detailed but I want to remember everything!)
Monday morning at 10:30 Justin & I were getting ready to go walk our two dogs at Fairview Elementary just down the road from our house. I was in the laundry room. I bent over kicking one leg out golfer style to pick up a tube of Chapstick off the floor. I heard a very faint "pop" as I bent over and thought it was my hip or knee. When I straightened up there was a warm gush like Niagara Falls! I called out "Justin... I think my water just broke!" He replied, "Are ya sure? Can you control it!?" I said "nope, It just keeps coming!" Or something like that. Justin got me a towel and even cleaned up the puddle on the floor. What a good husband!
-"Mother Messenger & Jackson"-
Contractions didn't start immediately. I was able to quickly shower and finish packing my hospital bag. I think we left for Blackfoot within an hour. I had a wash cloth in my undies along with a pad and Justin had me sit on a towel. It's a 40 minute drive to Blackfoot. We chose to deliver at Bingham Memorial Hospital because I am a registered nurse there on the Medical Surgical floor and employees get a nice discount on their hospital bill after insurance has paid their portion. It was so fun to already know the nurses in OB as well. I never worked in OB but I would go say hi on slow night shifts or help them out on busy nights when Med Surge was slow. Twice I used the ultrasound machine on my lunch break in the middle of the night and peaked at my little guy.
-Jackson, 6 day's old, 3rd day at home-
Anyway, we got settled in our room at noon and they hooked up the baby monitor and checked me. I was only a 2 or 3 but baby was very low in my pelvis. At my last checkup a week ago I wasn't dilated at all but his head was low as well. So they started my IV, Cynthia felt bad because she had to poke me twice. They started pumping me full of fluids because that's just what they do and also because I planned on getting an epidural and epidurals often make your Blood Pressure plummet. I was positive for group B strep so they started my 1st dose of penicillin right away because they like to have at least 2 doses 4 hours apart before the baby is born. I was able to have 3 doses.
Lying there in the hospital bed I realized how hungry I was all of a sudden. We ate a good breakfast but completely spaced stopping for lunch in the excitement of everything. Justin went down to the cafeteria and ordered a juicy burger while I sipped on sprite! I could have kicked myself. We were just starting the waiting process and I was already starving!
I asked Justin to give me a blessing between all the people coming in and out. I don't remember anything specific besides him blessing me to be strong.
My contractions started picking up and getting regular and stronger on their own but they still put me on Pitocin. I could feel the contractions getting stronger and a tiny bit painful but still very bearable. I'd felt worse at home. Dr. Larson came in and checked me and I was a 3-4. He offered to let me get the epidural now. I was surprised because it didn't even hurt yet but I got it anyway about 1/2 hr later. It was crazy to hear the needle pop through the sheath on my spine. Chris, the anesthesiologist was really cool. I stayed at a 4 for quite a few hours. Gary & Jeralyn came to visit with grandkids Logan & Grace who were visiting from Utah for the week. They brought Justin dinner. By that time I didn't feel as hungry anymore but I did have the adrenaline shakes. It was like having the shivers when you are cold but I wasn't cold at all. I was hot with only the sheet over me. It was such a weird feeling, hard to relax. The epidural was nice, I know I would have been hurting a lot just from the contractions I'd had the last few weeks. I would have a contraction and the pain would be in my back. After Dr. Larson checked me at my last appointment I started contracting like crazy on the drive home. It made my back hurt so badly that I just about turned around and drove back to the hospital.
34 weeks, one of my last side profile pics, I should have been more diligent at taking these more often! I used this one for my baby shower invitation.
So Justin ate dinner and I sipped on more sprite and had a red jello. The jello on my spoon was extra jiggly from my adrenaline shakes! Justin & I napped on & off for a few hours. Justin was on the comfy leather couch and I was confined to my bed after the epidural. It was a crazy feeling when the epidural set in. Warm and tingly and I started itching everywhere. They eventually gave me some IV Benadryl. It seemed to help. My right leg was much more numb than my left. Justin & I were laughing when I could move my left leg fine but couldn't lift my right leg up to cross my right ankle over my left. I had to grab my thigh with my hands to help myself out. I tried lying on my left side to let gravity even out the epidural but it didn't work.
Ellia was my nurse after the night shift came on. Either my nurse or Dr. Larson checked me about every two hours. I stayed at a four for a long time. At 10 o'clock Dr. Larson checked me again and said, "Woah! You're at 9 and a lip. Lets have this baby within the next two hours." It was cool that I had suddenly progressed that fast. Earlier they had turned the Pitosin drip up from 2 to 4 and it must have been doing its job! My mom wanted so badly to have Jackson born on the 2nd so he could have his own birthday and not have to share with my Uncle Rey Jamison or cousin Bradley Croft. I said a little prayer in my heart that it would happen. But I didn't let myself get super excited about it incase it didn't happen. Mom told me later that she had prayed out loud and dad said he thinks it was her sincere prayer that did the trick.
The actual delivery was the part I was most nervous about. The time was here ready or not! In nursing school, I never got to watch a delivery and I didn't take any birthing classes because I was so busy working at my new job in wound care at EIRMC or getting our house ready for baby. But Ellia was awesome. She was on my left & Justin was on my right. Every time a contraction hit they would help me lift my knees close to my chest but spread apart like the "happy baby yoga pose." I would push as Ellia or Justin counted to 10. I did this 3 times with every contraction. Sometimes I felt like my eyes were going to pop out even though I was squeezing them shut! Justin says it looked like it too. Cynthia came back in even though she was off (she was back to do some charting.) Months ago, I met Cynthia when she had come over to help out with a one on one patient on the Med Surg floor. I asked her questions all night and told her I hoped she was there when I deliver. It was so awesome when she walked in my room that afternoon. I also told Tammy, the nursing house supervisor she better be there when I deliver and she was! She helped a lot near the end as I was pushing, running out of energy, she would say, "Common Sarah, clear down in your bum!" For some reason hearing her voice made me focus more and try harder. I love Tammy. They said I was a pro. It was a fun atmosphere because I knew all the nurses and the respiratory therapist already.
Justin & I kept looking at our watches. Everyone was saying I was really close or almost there. I didn't know whether or not I should believe them. I looked at my watch, it was 11:50, my heart fell a little bit. I was thinking "maybe these guys are just saying that to be encouraging, there was no way he was going to come before midnight!" And then with the next couple sets of contractions there was tons of pressure as his head crowned. I felt the pressure release slightly as I ripped a little bit and then release more as Dr. Larson did an episiotomy. Then came the final push, the pressure hurt & I can't imagine what I would have been feeling without an epidural! After an hour and a half of pushing, Jackson was here! It was 11:53! They put a towel on my chest and then put Jackson there. I remember feeling relief he was finally here, his poor head was coned from my birth canal. It was so cute to see his little eyes open looking at the world. The nurses were drying him off with towels. Justin got to cut the cord. I couldn't believe I was a MOM! Justin leaned over and kissed me. I said you're a DADDY! I didn't cry but I'm tearing up now writing this!
They took Jackson over to the baby station under the warmer where they cleaned him up more, did his APGAR, and other things. Jackson didn't cry! It was a little bit nerve wracking not hearing him. I could barely see him with Justin and the nurses in the way. I didn't know until afterward but Jackson had the cord wrapped around his neck so he had a few heart decelerations at the end. Steven, the respiratory therapist was there as well. Justin recorded the nurses working on Jackson, I'm so glad, I can hardly remember this part! I was so tired! Dr. Larson delivered my placenta and stitched me up.
They took Jackson to the nursery to do his newborn assessment. I could finally eat! They brought me a sandwich and a coke. I went my whole pregnancy without throwing up and right after I delivered as I was putting mayo on my sandwich the nausea hit. I threw up! It was just a little bit and I felt better afterward but they gave me some IV Zofran anyway. Sipping on the coke helped a lot. I don't ever remember feeling more exhausted than this moment. My eyes being puffy from all the pushing and fluids they pumped in me compounded the feeling. Ellia placed a huge pad between my legs and an icepack made from a diaper. She also pulled out the epidural. Justin & I snoozed for a few hours. Ellia helped me get up for my first time after the epidural wore off and try to pee. I put a new humongous pad inside these sexy hospital net like underwear. She offered me pain meds but I only took an Ibuprofen because I wasn't hurting down there yet. My head hurt more than anything. I figured out I would need them later! It wasn't actually that painful but definitely a constant ache in my crotch! We moved to our new post partum room and slept hard the rest of the night.
On the way over to the new room I went in the nursery to see my little man. He looked so different already! His eyes weren't swollen anymore and he was a lot cuter! We took a few picture here that I am extremely embarrassed of because of my swollen eyes. Justin just saw this picture as I posted and said "whoa babe!" I said, "what are you saying hun!"
-Jackson, 3 hours & 20 minutes old!-
-Yuck, here I am puffy faced!-
-We should have gotten a better picture of his cone head!-
-We had lots of visitors! This is my cousins Lance & Ashley, Aunt Catherine, and cousin Michelle-
-Justin & I on Sunday up at Island Park, the day before I delivered. We floated the lazy Buffalo river with our Croft cousins in the previous picture! My aunt Catherine let me sit in her super comfy reclining camp chair. That chair is what made sitting around the camp fire bearable, usually sitting was no fun... I'm getting one!-
We stayed the 3rd, 4th, & were discharged morning of the 5th because of my positive Group B strep. I have never missed the fireworks before! We got to take Jackson & watch the Jensen's Grove fireworks from the skywalk (a big glass hallway that connects the Hospital to the Medical office building across the street.) The view of the fireworks was great. It made it special. I doubt they would have let us do that had I not been an employee.
There is something about giving birth that makes you feel like you could eat an elephant! All of my meals in the hospital tasted SO good. I had eggs and bacon every morning. Here is a picture of a salad I ordered twice for lunch because it was so good. Justin wouldn't let me eat the onions because he didn't want our baby to be gassy and fussy. The apple pie was the best, I had it with lunch and dinner for almost every meal. I don't think any grandma's apple pie can beat that apple pie!
I feel so blessed to have Jackson here! I'm so glad I didn't have to be pregnant for 12 more days until my due date: July 14th.. or longer! I feel extremely blessed to have had such a smooth delivery and an easy pregnancy. I was never sick, never threw up (except after delivery!), no complications! AND I have to brag, I only have one tiny stretch mark right above my belly button about a half a cm long. I feel lucky! I especially feel blessed to not have gone into labor early or have had other complications and a premature baby. I love being a mom, getting up a bazillion times during the night kinda sucks but it is worth it. I love my little man! Heavenly Father blesses me so much, I'm not sure how I ended up with so many blessings or if I am living worthy enough to deserve them!
I've noticed a lot lately the timing of things always is perfect in my life. Jackson came during Justin's days off from work. I started my new job at EIRMC wound care about 7 weeks before I was due so I was able to tell Bingham to only work me the one required shift per schedule because I am "PRN" or "as needed" staff there. Working the night shift was really hard on me but even harder when I was pregnant. It was such a relief when I was done with my last few scheduled days there and able to focus on training in wound care. Wound care is no nights, weekends, or holidays! 8-5! The staff there is super awesome. Traci, my manager just had me do 1/2 days and they were always telling me to sit down more or to drink more water. I love my new job! I am PRN there as well so it will be perfect for family life! I will be able to say when I can and can't work.
I am glad Justin & I decided to wait until we were finished with school to have kids. I have no idea how people do both. It took me until noon to get out of the house with Jackson the other day to go to my friend's baby shower. I know it will get better but I don't think I could have done school and a baby. We've been married 5 years as of June 14th, 2007. That was a hard wait! We love our Jackson!
