Zachary was due March 20, 2003. This pregnancy was planned and we started trying when Joshua was about 15 months old. I got a positive pregnancy test the day before my 24th birthday and we were thrilled.
I knew from the get-go that it was another boy. Jason really wanted a girl, but I told him if he held on to that, he would be disappointed when we had our ultrasound and he found out it would be another boy. At 20 weeks, we did find out it was another boy and we decided on the name Zachary Joie (after my grandfather who was named Joie Bruce).
My doctor had been telling me for weeks that he was as low as he could get and if my water broke, he would be born within minutes, so I better be sure I was at the hospital or got there quickly. Jason was extremely concerned about the possibility of the baby being born at home because of this. Everyone at his work joked that every time the phone rang, he'd have one arm in his coat and ready to bolt out the door.
Monday, March 17, my sister Julie started on spring break (she was in college) and we spent the day together. We took Joshua to the park and went grocery shopping. Then we headed back to my house. I hadn't been feeling all that great that day.
By 5 o'clock, I could tell I was having contractions, and we went and started walking around the neighborhood. They were mostly pretty far apart, but sometimes they would be only four or five minutes apart. My husband and her husband were at a friend's house playing games.
By about 8 p.m., after my sister had given our oldest a bath and I had taken a shower to relax, we called Jason and told him that tonight was probably going to be the night, but there was no hurry. We also gave my mom a heads-up. My sister and brother-in-law took Joshua back to their house since it was Nate's job to watch Joshua when Zachary was born.
Jason and I played a game for a while and then decided to get some sleep. I was uncomfortable and could not sleep. When I was lying in bed, my contractions were nine minutes apart. Finally around 3 a.m., I got out of bed and Jason asked me what I was doing. I told him I couldn't sleep and I was hungry and going to eat a bowl of cereal. When we got down to the kitchen, he started timing the contractions and they were less than five minutes apart. We called the doctor, got dressed, called my mom and sister and headed to the hospital.
We arrived about 4 a.m., and I was only 3 centimeters dilated (had been 1 1/2 to 2 previously) and was having contractions. I was also told that the baby was extremely high and they would not break my water with him so high. I was so confused since I had been told he was so low. I didn't know if when she stripped my membranes, maybe the water all moved in front of his head?
I had a birth plan written out and signed by my doctor and on file with the hospital. I didn't have to have an IV right away. I got to eat and drink, and I stayed mobile.
Around 6 a.m., they started an IV and some fluids. At 7 a.m., the doctor (not mine) came in to check me. I was only 4 centimeters, he was still high and the doctor was not going to break my water because of that. The time frame is a little blurry to me, but I started having quite a bit of pain. It wasn't from the contractions; it was just a lot of pressure.
By 10 a.m., I was really starting to panic. I had been having strong contractions for 17 hours and I was starting to worry about not being able to handle it much longer. I opted to get in the shower when I found out I was only 5 centimeters. I really wanted to not even have Stadol this time around.
I stayed in the shower until the water got cold – about 45 minutes. The nurse checked me at 11 a.m. and I was only 5 1/2 centimeters but still in severe pain. I was told the doctor would come at lunch and break my water.
About 11:15 a.m., I decided I needed a half dose of Stadol because I was in so much pain. As she gave me the half dose of Stadol (I was 6 centimeters and it was 11:20 a.m.), my water broke. My eyes got huge and I said, "My water just broke!" The nurse said, "It's OK." I said, "No, you don't understand! This baby is coming right now!" She looked, and didn't even leave the room. She pushed the call button and yelled for people to come quick and to call the doctor.
A bunch of people came in and were all sure they were going to have to deliver the baby. The doctor showed up at 11:32 a.m. They put my feet on the foot pedals, and Zachary was born in maybe one push. I got totally gypped on the stadol since it didn't even have time to kick in before he was born.
He weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces and was 18 inches long. (I think they measured him wrong because he fit in his clothes better than his brother, who they said was two and a half inches longer, and at a week they said he was 21 inches long and he didn't grow 3 inches in a week!)
I had a second degree tear again, and this time only had 12 stitches. I felt wonderful and never had any pain or soreness. When my doctor came in to see me the morning after, she told me I would have to be induced with my next child because if my water would have broken at home at 3 centimeters, he still would have been born right then. It was an incredible experience, though it was longer and I felt more painful than my first labor.
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