Our birth story...

As most of you know by now, Hunter Mason made his debut on Sunday, May 11. I had been asking him to come out by Mother's Day, and true to his easygoing nature, he did as he was asked. Here is our story...

Brian and I had a nice day together on Saturday. When we reflect on what we did, we wonder if we had some sort of subconscious idea that Hunter would be joining us very soon. We woke up at 4 am and went for donuts. When we got home at around 7 we took a 3 hour nap, so we woke up at 10 am. We then went on a walk without the dogs, ran some errands, laid in bed for awhile and spent the day enjoying each other. At night, Brian wanted us to have our last nice dinner out together, so we went to Fleming's steakhouse. After dinner we took the dogs on a short walk (2.5 miles) with the Baby Jogger, as we wanted them to get used to walking with the jogger. When we got home we played with the car seat, practicing taking it in and out of the car. We went to sleep the latest we had in a long time: 11:30.

At 2 am I woke up and had a wet feeling in my pants. Assuming it was more of my mucous plug I didn't think anything of it. When I went to the restroom however, I knew something was different. I walked into the bedroom and told Brian that I thought my water had broken. Thor had been in the pool the night before and jumped on our bed, so Brian suggested that the bed was still wet from the puppy. I flipped on the light and saw a puddle where I was laying...my water had broken. While I had previously felt very confident and excited about birth, I became scared and cried. I then called our doula, Elizabeth, and told her what was happening.

I was in early labor, beginning from 2 cm, as my exam had suggested on Thursday. The contractions were mild and I was able to take a shower and relax a little bit. I then called Elizabeth at around 4 and asked her to come over, but to take her time. She got to our house at around 5, Brian went out to get some pads (for my flowing broken water) and Elizabeth tried to get me to relax. I quickly progressed to active labor. When Brian got back at 6:15 I told them that we needed to go to the hospital. We left at 6:30 and arrived at the hospital at 7 am. I was 5 cm dilated when admitted. This picture was JUST before we left for the hospital. I'm on the ground because I just finished having a contraction.
They admitted us to the labor and delivery room and we settled in, not that I noticed this because I was in my own little world. At 8:30 I had progressed so there was no cervix left (>10 cm)- it was time to push. After that much pain I was afraid to push and refused to do so for a good 10 minutes. When i finally decided to push, I had him out within 45 minutes. He was born at 9:25, weighing 6 lbs 5 ounces and he was 20 inches long.

He didn't cry when he came out, a sign of things to come. The nurses tapped his bottom and he cried for about 15 seconds before quieting again. His APGAR s were 8, 9 - he lost points for color because he was a little bit oxygen deprived before being born.

Overall labor was an incredible experience. Because I had no pain medications I was very present in the entire process. I was able to feel my baby be born, which wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been (or I feared it would be). I got 1 stitch - that's it! Our team- the doctor, nurses and Elizabeth - were just perfect. They fit our birth plan and were very flexible and encouraging of me. I couldn't have done it without them and without Brian.

This picture is of Brian supporting me after a particularly rough contraction. Oh my gosh! He's here!!! Immediately after his birth.
We have a baby!!A new Daddy admiring his beautiful son.

Me and my baby

My sweet boy sleeping on my chest (the pink is my robe)

Hunter Mason at 2 days old after his first bath

Me and my perfect son

Hunter was ready to go home from the hospital!! Isn't he so tiny?!
Life at home has been incredible. I've never been as happy as I am now. Our little family is amazing...the days pass so quickly but they are full of happiness. Hunter is a good sleeper and he rarely cries. Our biggest difficulty is nursing, which is common. He often falls asleep while nursing. His most awake time tends to be between 11 pm- 3 am. Of course, this is my most tired time, but I'm trying to take naps to account for this. He and Brian are both sleeping now (at 3;30 am) while I type this.

Thor and Nala came home from camp today and are really interested in him. Thor sits at my feet, or within a few feet of me but keeps his distance. Nala, on the other hand, is constantly trying to lick the baby and breathe on him. I don't really like this and Brian is working with her on this behavior.

Ok, ok, I'm off to bed. I have to wake up at 5:30 to nurse! Feel free to leave your comments.