Labor Day

Well, I figure there's no time like the present for this blog post! It's just me, Stephen and Hunter here right now, and both of the boys are asleep, so I should take this opportunity to blog. :)

In case you aren't on Facebook and haven't heard the news, Hunter Grayson is here! No pictures yet because I didn't bring the hookup for my camera. When we get home I'll definitely put some up. He weighed 7 lbs, 8 oz at birth and was 20 inches long. Chunky boy! But I'm getting ahead of myself. I need to post this all so I don't forget.

Yesterday I had my 38-week doctor's appointment. I knew they would do an exam to see if I was dilated, and although I kept telling everyone I wasn't getting my hopes up, I was really hoping I'd be at least 2 centimeters. So when the doctor said I was a "good 5 centimeters" I looked at him and said, "Stop playing with me." He said, "No, I'm dead serious. I recommend that you just head on over to the hospital." At that point my jaw dropped. I didn't have my bag packed, I didn't clean up the house, I didn't have a plan for Brianna.... agh! I called Stephen and told him that I was going to pick up Brianna from mom and dad's, go home, pack my bag, wait for him to come home and then we could head over to the hospital, because my water hadn't broken and I wasn't having any contractions that I could feel.

I got to mom and dad's and said, "Uh, we need to talk!" Time for a spontaneous plan of action! I was still in shock so I didn't even know where to begin with making life as easy as possible for them and Brianna. But while we were discussing our options, the contractions started coming. I psyched myself out thinking about the 20 minute drive home, the time I'd spend packing a bag, and then the 25 minute drive to the hospital. I told mom I thought I should just go straight to the hospital. She gave me the keys to her truck, I ditched Brianna at their house, and called Stephen to tell him I'd meet him at the hospital.

I was checked into the hospital just before 4:00. Around 4:30 they decided to go on and break my water and I was having pretty consistent, although mild, contractions. At 5:00 I decided I was ready to start walking, but by 5:20 I had to stop because the contractions were coming so close together. I was checked and was 7 centimeters at that point. I also decided at this point that I wanted a shot of Nubain for the pain. I gave Hunter a pep talk at that point. Nubain lasts about 2 hours, so he either needed to come before 7:30 or long enough after that I could have another dose of medication before he made his appearance!

He wisely listened to his mother. At 6:45 I told the nurse I needed to use the bathroom. The doctor checked me and said, "Yeah, that's the baby pushing down, not you needing to use the bathroom!" They asked if I thought I could wait a few minutes to push because the shifts were about to change. I answered yes. Until about two minutes later. I told the nurse, "I'm pretty sure I can't wait any longer!"

I started pushing around 6:55 and Hunter Grayson was born at 7:01pm. I had double the nurses because of shift change! They were great, the doctor was great, Stephen was great, Hunter was great. We all made a great team!

So far he has been really laidback. Leila drove down from GA to stay with Brianna and they came by this morning. Bri said, "Baby? Baby?" and patted him. She smiled at him, kissed his hand, and gave him the teddy bear from the hospital. We'll see how she reacts when they are at home together!! It's been really nice just to sit with him today cuddling. Anyone who knows Brianna knows she does NOT sit still for long, certainly not to cuddle. I definitely do miss that even though she is so much fun now.

We're ready to go home but have to stay until he's 24 hours old so hopefully we will make it out of here this evening! Praise God for an easy delivery! I was really sore on my thighs where I held them while I was pushing but now that soreness has gone away and I truly feel about 98% normal. Hopefully we will ease into a pattern at home successfully. We are all very excited about this new little boy. :)

And now we're ready for my nephew Evan to make an appearance :)