He's Here!!!

Paxton James Davies Well, the little guy finally decided to arrive- Thursday March 18th @ 10:42am! Wednesday I kept telling everyone that I was going to have him during the night- I even packed my bag with all the last minute things & insisted that Tony shave his beard! At 2am Thursday morning I woke up to go to the bathroom and I was so disappointed that I wasn't in labor yet! Then around 3:15/3:30am I had a contraction. They weren't quite like the contractions I remembered having with Macie (they felt lower in the abdomen & also a lot in the lower back) so I laid in bed for awhile to see if they kept coming. And they did, so I got up and got ready, then Tony got up. By then the contractions were about 3 minutes apart so he was a little nervous since Macie came so fast! We dropped Macie off for my dad to watch her but she ended up going to Grandma Vickie's (and never went back to bed!).

We got to the hospital around 4:30am and I was dilated 4cm & about 90% effaced- I could feel that things weren't progressing like they had with Macie, but wasn't sure why. The first nurse I had was not great- I didn't want an epidural because I do hypnobirthing which consists of me getting into a relaxed state, but that was extremely hard to do because she kept asking me questions, many repetatively, and had to stick me with needles several times in several places because she couldn't take my blood! It was frustrating! I couldn't be more blessed that her shift ended at 7am, because the nurse Jeanie that came on after her was my angel sent from above! She had actually taught hypnobirthing and was not only extremely supportive, but also realized that the baby was posterior which is why I was having so much back pain and also not progressing past 6cm.

Nurse Jeanie used all sorts of methods to help alleviate the strength of the contractions and also to help get the baby turned the right way. I sat on a rocking chair for awhile then a birthing ball and dilated to about 7-8cm. My membranes had still not ruptured at that time, either. So she drew me a jacuzzi bath with jets and I got in. The warm water really helped the contractions- I was more relaxed in there then I had been the whole morning! The purpose of the jacuzzi was to relax my muscles so the baby could turn, and within about an hour that's exactly what happened. As soon as he turned my membranes ruptured and I started pushing, still in the tub. It's the hospital policy that I couldn't deliver in the tub, otherwise I probably would have just stayed right where I was, but instead I got out and onto the bed and was pushing right away. The nurse was trying to get me to settle down since the doctors were all in the middle of something, but it's such a natural feeling to push that there really is no stopping it! Luckily a doctor made it in and after pushing for about 20 minutes the not-so-little guy made it out! They laid him on my chest and let me just hold him while those in the room- Tony, my mom, his mom, and my sister-in-law Mackensie all crowded around to meet him as well. (My aunt Charli who had never witnessed a live birth was there up until about 5 minutes before he arrived, but missed it because she had to get to work- sorry Char!)

He did cry for a minute, but then was so content on mommy's chest- it was such an amazing bonding experience! It was one thing I hated about Macie's delivery was how they handed her to me for a minute but then took her away to clean her, weigh her, etc and I didn't get her back for almost 1/2 hr! So this was so nice!

I had them finally clean him up quick and weigh him just so we could know his size as we were calling up family & friends. He weighed in at 9lbs 3oz and 21 inches long! BIG BOY!!! He is so beautiful, though, and so sweet! He latched right on to breastfeeding and has been doing great. Macie came to meet him later in the day and she is in love! We all are! I think our family just might be complete!