Sunday, October 27, 2013

Charlie Cash Harris

Our littlest man joined our family a little over 2 months ago and I wanted to record his special birth story while it is still fresh on my mind. Dr. Chasan, my obgyn had me monitored closely throughout the last few months of pregnancy with Charlie because he was growing so fast and was measuring about 3 weeks bigger than normal!. She told me that a c-section may be in the cards if he was over 10 lbs at my due date, so that made me super nervous! As I entered my last 2 weeks before my due date, we decided that Charlie was probably still small enough to deliver naturally and that we would plan for an induction on August 14th unless he decided to make his arrival sooner! ;) ... Trust me, I did EVERYTHING to go into labor naturally for the next few days! Pedicures, massages, eating beets, eating pizza, (lol), long walks, lots of squats, prenatal yoga, you name it, i tried it!! Well, the 13th of August arrived and I came to terms with the fact that I was probably going to have to be induced (I don't like the idea of pitocin), and I decided to get a blessing from my Father in-law, my Dad, and my husband. In the blessing I was told that I would have a smooth delivery and that my fears would not come to pass. I felt a lot better and at peace with my decision after hearing those words. So at 5:30 the next morning I was up and getting ready and packing last minute hospital items! I was excited and scared all at the same time. We arrived to St. Lukes Downtown Boise at about 6:45 a.m. Once Derek and I got up to the labor and delivery unit I started to get really freaked out! It was a totally different experience when I went in to have Hudson because I was already in the the middle of all the pain and I didn't have time to be scared or nervous, I was already breathing through contractions! I got all signed in and the nurses took me back to my delivery room to get started. It really hit when I dressed down to the hospital gown and they had me get up on the bed to get iv fluids started! Both of my nurses were so sweet and helpful, they explained every single question I had in great detail and really were good about helping me stay calm. If I would have been dilated past a 3 when they checked me that morning, they could have just broken my water and see if that started things enough with out pitocin, but unfortunately they checked and sure enough I was still just at 3! So we finally got the pitocin going on the lowest level at about 8 and I was all hooked up to the monitors.
By this point I had really calmed down and just being able to hear my baby's heart beat on the monitor was so comforting to me! I was praying my hardest all night that I would be confident and focused for the delivery, and I really felt Heavenly Father's strength and guidance with me through out the day. My Momma arrived at about 10:00 and my contractions were barely getting to a point where there was some sort of feeling to them. I was on the birth ball when she walked in and it must have looked funny because it made her laugh and snap a quick shot!
hahaha As my contractions got stronger I walked around the halls, sat on the birth ball, and continued breathing through the pain. At around 11:00 my Dad and sister Natalie arrived. My sister Nat is also expecting her first baby in November, and I wanted her to be in the room with me when I delivered Charlie so she could see what it was like first hand to prepare her a little more. At about Noon Dr. Chasan came in to check me and break my water, my labor and delivery nurses kept checking me to see how dilate I was getting. I had been at a THREE the whole day!!! Even though the nurses were turning up the pitocin levels through out the day about every 30 minutes or so. Once my water broke however, the contractions got real!! They were stronger and harder than anything I remembered from Hudson's birth. After trying to deal with them on my own and be tough by just walking the halls for another 20 minutes, I told my nurses I was ready for the epidural. Of course the anesthesiologist was with another patient and I instantly wished I had requested the epidural right before I had my water broken! My Dad and Natalie decided to go get some lunch while I was waiting for the epidural since it was getting pretty intense. There was no screaming or crying, just deep breathing and clenching the bed!
lol. I was so focused on getting through contraction after contraction that I barely noticed the next 30 minutes until the Anesthesiologist finally arrived!! What a moment of relief! He got me all set up after placing the epidural needle TWICE into my back. It was a painful epidural, but once the juice kicked in it was ALL worth it! I was finally comfortable and completely numb. I fell asleep soon after the epidural, and woke back up at about 3. The nurses checked me again, thinking (and hoping) it might be about time to push.. but I was still only at three centimeters. They told me that we had to move to the other wing of the labor and delivery unit because no one else was going to be on that side past 5, so unless I delivered within the next 2 hours, we would have to switch rooms. They also informed me of the possibility that if my son wasn't progressing down, and if I wasn't dilating, we may have to have a c-section after all! At this point, I was still scared of having surgery, but I was honestly just ready to have my baby. Five o'clock rolls around, and they told me that we were moving to the other new room. I guess in the hustle and bustle of things we forgot to check my progression before we moved over to the other side. The nurses wheeled me in my hospital bed and all of my monitors to the new labor and delivery room. They decided to double check my progression to see if there was anything new... I was at a nine and a half! I literally did a little cheer I was soooo relieved and excited. They called Dr. Chasan and told her to get over so she could deliver little Charlie. As soon as she arrived I was ready to push, so she and the staff geared up.
Everything from there was just cloud nine for me. After pushing for six, painless contractions, my sweet 8 lb, 21 inch Charlie boy entered this life!
It was perfect and spiritual, and my Momma was able to capture so many beautiful moments on camera.
I just remember how warm and soft he felt on my chest as soon as he was born. We were skin to skin immediately and his tiny fist grabbed my finger.
I got to hold him for a long time before they took him to weigh and do the tests. I don't remember a time when I felt happier or more fulfilled than that day. After almost losing my little Charlie at 25 weeks of pregnancy, I will always feel extra gratitude that Heavenly Father let him join our family, and brought him safely to us.

1 comment:

  1. Amazing Pictures Amanda! So glad you could capture those memories.

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