Everett's Birth Story (Finally!)

Here's how the story *should* have gone:

"Knowing that we were going to have a repeat c-section, we scheduled everything in advance. We booked the surgery for 9:00am on December 8th, 2011. I got a full eight hours of blissful sleep the night before, and woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed on the morning of our big day. I had time to shower, curl my hair, and put on makeup. We took a leisurely drive to the hospital, and everything went as planned. Friends were anxiously huddled in the waiting room, ready to toast Everett's arrival with bottles of sparkling cider and red Solo cups in hand. Everett was born at 9:30am, and Mommy and baby were happy and healthy." Short. Sweet. Predictable. Of course, we all know that babies sometimes have a mind of their own...

Here's how the story *actually* goes:

On Friday, December 2nd, I was working from home. I had just finished my last work task for the day when my best friend, Ingrid, called me. She said she had a funny feeling that I was going to have the baby early, and wanted to work out the logistics for taking care of Ethan in case I went into labor. "Don't you worry about that," I told her. "I feel fine, and the c-section is only a week away. There's no way I'm going into labor before then."

What happened next? I went into labor, of course. Not an hour after telling Ingrid that I wouldn't. Cause that's what happens when you make such a bold statement. The universe knocks you down a few pegs and shows you who's boss.

I wasn't quite ready to accept that my contractions were the real thing. I'd been having some pretty intense Braxton Hicks action off and on throughout the last few months of the pregnancy, and I was in total denial that these contractions were different. You see, I'm a planner. And I had a really good plan cooked up for welcoming this baby into the world. Unexpected labor and a trip to the hospital did not fit into those plans. I sheepishly called Ingrid, and began a slightly panicked conversation by saying, "Soooooo, remember how, like forty five minutes ago, I swore up and down that I wouldn't be going into labor?" She offered to come over right away, but still being in denial, I told her I'd call her in a hour after I'd had a chance to lie down. I made another few panicked phone calls, including one to Ryan, who happened to be enjoying himself at a "Last Hurrah Happy Hour" thrown by his work buddies. In the city. Ninety minutes away with rush hour traffic.

Resting didn't help. A shower didn't help. Crying certainly didn't help. And so, finally, I relented and faced reality: this baby was not going to wait. He was ready, and didn't care that I wasn't. I called Ingrid and told her to come on over. Thankfully, she had decided to ignore me when I told her to wait for my call, and was already on her way. Ryan had begun making his way home as well.

By the time we were headed to the hospital, things had already started to get real. I'd heard that labor can progress more quickly with your second baby, but I didn't expect it to progress this quickly. Four hours into my labor with Ethan, I wasn't totally sure that I was actually in labor. Four hours in this time around, I was in tears. Thankfully, since we had already decided to take the doc's advice to have a repeat c-section, I knew I wouldn't have long to wait. Eight hours into labor, I was being wheeled into the operating room.

Unlike the emergency c-section with Ethan where I had to be put under general anesthesia, I was able to get a spinal instead. I was so excited to witness the birth of my child, but was also very nervous about the whole process. There's a bit of blissful ignorance when you're unconscious for a major surgery. I was prepared for the recovery, but had no idea what to expect out of the actual being-cut-open-and-having-a-baby-yanked-out-of-you thing. Luckily, the c-section went really well, and Everett was born at 2:46am on December 3rd, 2011.

Everett was healthy, but not breathing well enough on his own. He had some fluid in his lungs and wasn't getting enough oxygen, so he had to stay in the NICU for four days. I wasn't able to nurse him for the first two days due to his breathing apparatus. We did get a lot of skin to skin bonding time, and (the one perk to having a baby in the NICU instead of in your room with you) I was able to get some rest between pumping and snuggling time.

Under those blankets, our kiddo was a big bundle of tubes and wires.
Slowly but surely, Everett's condition improved, and they moved him from the CPAP to the nasal cannula, took out the tube going down his throat into his stomach, and weaned him off of the IV fluids. When I was able to begin nursing he took to it like a champ, and hasn't looked back since. I was initially a little worried about the loss of bonding time, but he quickly reassured me that we were thick as thieves, even if we couldn't be hospital roomies. He'd instantly calm down when in my arms, falling asleep to the sound of me softly singing what would become his favorite songs. I can't really put it into words, but when I held him, it was like we'd known each other forever. It was hard to walk back to my room and leave him in the NICU, but deep down I felt like he knew that I'd be back. He usually just slept in between my visits - the nurses would call me when he woke up so that I could be with him. That made me feel a lot better during the long, slow walk back to my room. I left him with enough love and comfort to make his dreams sweet, and was by his side almost as soon as he woke from his peaceful slumber.

Ethan and Ryan spent a lot of time in the hospital with me, and I relished those little moments when we were together as a family of four. Ethan wore his big brother scrubs from Mima and Poppa when he came to the hospital to meet his future best buddy, which resulted in a lot of ooooohing and aaaaahing from the doctors and nurses.

A pack of crackers AND a baby brother? Best. Day. Ever.
He stared with wonder into Everett's eyes, gently touching his baby brother's fingers and toes through the "portholes" in Everett's isolette.

You were that small once upon a time, big brother.
Unbeknownst to me, my dad had been scheming with Ryan since August, and had a secret visit planned that turned out to be perfectly timed. He arrived on the evening of December 6th, and surprised me in the hospital. I was floored, and turned into a heap of tears. See for yourself:

It's a bit of an embarrassing video, but the reaction was too good not to post.
We were released on December 7th, the day before I was supposed to be entering the hospital all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and curly-haired and pretty-faced. It worked out nicely, though, our impatient boy's unanticipated arrival. Ryan's parents flew in the next day, and were able to get more QBST (quality baby snuggling time) at home than they would have if Everett was still in the hospital.

It just goes to show - you can plan and plan, and be certain that you know the "right" way for everything to work out, and still end up being so totally wrong. Babies arrive at the perfect time, whether you want them to or not. Looking back, it was silly of me to want to wait for his scheduled arrival. On Everett's schedule, I ended up with five bonus days with my tiny boy.

Perfect timing, little man. Thank you for that.

A Year of Memories and Forgotten Glimpses

This time last year, I was anxiously awaiting the arrival of our little boy. I was as big as a house (check out this post for photographic proof of my prodigious pregnant belly). I was uncomfortable, but excited. I was on constant contraction alert, and did the "freeze-count-wait" thing about ten times a day, wondering if I was going into labor. I took naps whenever I wanted whenever I could get comfortable enough, knowing that my sleep patterns were about to drastically change. I obviously knew that I loved my baby, but I had no idea how deep that love would become. I feel like I remember this time last year like it was yesterday.

But recently, I discovered that memories that are oh-so-sweet can be oh-so-fleeting.

Our friends Matt and Laurie recently celebrated the arrival of their second precious baby boy. Holding a floppy, gurgly, cooing, tiny newborn again made me realize how much time has passed since Ethan was born.

There are things I can't remember:
~ how intense my labor was (I read this to remind myself)
~ living in a world of equal parts euphoria and insomnia
~ Ethan's newborn noises, smell, mannerisms, and habits
~ how often Ethan nursed and napped in the first few months
~ putting him down and knowing that he would stay in that spot
~ Ethan weighing under twenty pounds

There are things I hope I never forget:
~ my baby's sweet disposition and joyful laugh
~ watching him figure things out and discover his world
~ the excitement of his "firsts"
~ what his smile looks like with only a few teeth
~ how incredibly grateful I am for this little boy

Luckily, I've got a photographer/filmmaker on permanent retainer, and he's madly documenting each and every phase. Here's Ryan's latest project:



*If video is jumpy, pause it and let it completely load, then restart from the beginning*

Ethan Makes a Grand Entrance!

As promised, here are the details of our wild ride of a birth experience:

Sarah went into labor at around 9:30pm on Thursday night. Wanting to make as much progress as possible before heading to the hospital, she labored at home until about 3:30am. When we finally went in we were a bit disappointed to find that Sarah was only 1cm dilated. The contractions progressively became stronger and more frequent, but after a few hours there was still not much progress. The doctor decided to put Sarah on Pitocin, which encourages the contractions to increase significantly in intensity, frequency, and duration. Her water broke on its own shortly after that, and we thought we were on our way to a speedy delivery. Ryan was particularly excited since he chose the 25th as his guess for the baby's birth date!

As we all know know, a speedy delivery was not in the cards. Sarah lasted for about 24 hours before opting for an epidural for pain relief. She was much, much, much happier once the medicine kicked in, but had only dilated to 3cm. Still, she was able to get a bit of much needed rest. She slept comfortably until the epidural stopped working. The anesthesiologist came in to check things out, and determined that Sarah would need a second epidural administered. As with the first, the second lasted for a short while, and then began to wear off.

Shortly after the second epidural stopped working, the baby's heart rate crashed. Buzzers started sounding in the room, and about eight people rushed in and started working on stabilizing the baby. At the same time, Sarah's temperature shot up to almost 103 degrees, so more people came in to work on her. It was very difficult for Ryan to watch, unable to jump in and help. Thankfully, after what seemed like forever, the baby's heart rate returned to a more normal rhythm. The doctor checked Sarah's progress, and somberly announced that she was only 5cm dilated.

It was at this point that an emergency C-section was decided upon. Sarah's fever could have been an indication of an infection that would be very risky for the baby, and with his unstable heart rate there was really no other option. Sarah was rushed to the operating room and Ryan prepped to join her.

The last hurdle to jump was the anesthesia for the surgery. As indicated by the failed epidurals, it was impossible for the doctors to get Sarah totally numb without being completely put under. Disappointed not only with the fact that she would not witness the baby's birth, Sarah thought that Ryan would not be allowed into the operating room.

It wasn't until she came to after the surgery that Sarah discovered that she was wrong - not only did Ryan get to be present in the delivery room, he also was able to participate in a lot of important "firsts" with the baby! He was able to cut the cord, put on Ethan's first diaper, and was there for the weighing and measurements in the operating room. Ryan rolled the baby's crib down to the nursery where he saw the sponge bath, helped with the footprints, and combed Ethan's hair. After the baby's first pediatrician exam, Ryan put on Ethan's first shirt - and quite skillfully, according to the nurses! Finally, after all of that was finished, Ryan and Ethan went to the recovery room where Sarah had been since the surgery. It was good timing, as she had recently woken up from the anesthesia and was very ready to see her boys!







Even with all of the pain, fear, and curveballs, our experience was an absolutely incredible one. While we have the option of a natural delivery with the next baby, for safety's sake we'll probably opt for a repeat cesarean. When we were faced with the placenta previa, we were a bit bummed about missing out on the total pregnancy experience. Though we ended up with a C-section, we still experienced Sarah going into labor, having her water break, contractions, and the waiting game. Most importantly, our beautiful baby boy is completely healthy and an absolute joy.

He's Here!!!

After about 36 hours of labor and an emergency C-section, we are overjoyed to announce the arrival of Ethan James Notch! He was born July 26th at 8:05 am, weighing in at 8 lbs. 13 oz. and measuring 21.5 inches long. More details of his birth are to come soon, but for now we thought we'd post some pictures and a video of the newest member of our family!






Ethan James Notch just minutes after his birth!

Cast Your Vote!

Okay, blog readers, this is your opportunity to get in on the action. We are now taking predictions for the baby's name and birth date. Sarah's official due date is July 27th, but the baby will be considered full term on July 5th so he could be born anytime after that date. Technically, he could arrive before July 5th, but we're hoping that he holds out until at least then! Today's high temperature was 103 degrees, so we're also hoping that he'll take into consideration the intensifying summer heat and won't decide to arrive late... Sarah's already uncomfortable enough as it is!

You can submit your predictions by either commenting on this entry or emailing Sarah or Ryan. If you post your guess in a blog comment, be sure to sign your name so that we know for sure who it is coming from. We'll compile everyone's guesses and post them on an upcoming blog. The winners will receive the greatest prize of all - the ability to forever gloat to everyone that YOU were right!

We've had a lot of fun setting up the baby's room and getting ready for our little man's arrival! Bit by bit, the baby's stuff is steadily taking over the house. We now present Exhibits A - I:




Whatever will we do if the little guy doesn't like monkeys?!?

We're still keeping incredibly busy with getting everything moved in, and on top of that Ryan has his Master's degree thesis review coming up soon. He has to have a published book and twenty gallery ready images for his hour-long presentation to the review panel. Think good thoughts for him in the upcoming weeks!

More pictures and news to come soon... in the meantime, cast your vote for baby's name and birth date to make sure your voice is heard!

Mommy Update:
- Found out at her latest doctor's appointment that the baby is definitely not breech... thank goodness!
- Wonders what her waistline's current circumference is, but is too afraid to break out the tape measure.
- Excited about her first childbirth classes next week, and is hoping that there will be plenty of diaper practice for the dads!
- Was asked the other day if she was expecting twins... oh, the humanity!

We Love Our New Home!

Since our last post, we've moved most of our belongings into the new house and are steadily unpacking. It's been a lot of fun, even though it is a lot of work. We were lucky enough to have some phenomenal friends help us with the move. Christin was in town for a visit, and Angie and Nelson came over on Saturday. Nelson also brought one of his friends along to lend a hand! Without their help, we would never have been able to pull off this move. Thanks to all of you for the lifting and stair climbing - you're the best! Ryan also deserves a special mention. Since Sarah can't move any boxes, the daddy-to-be has been making trip after trip back to our old apartment to get all of the odds and ends packed up and moved over here. Thank goodness we're overlapping our leases by a few weeks!

We thought it would be fun to post a short video tour of the new digs once we have everything set up. Not only will that be a bit more interesting than pictures, but you'll also get to see footage of Sarah's waddle walk. We'll be sure to get that up as soon as we can. For now, here's a picture of the two of us (three of us?) in our backyard. We love sitting outside in our little "garden oasis" - it's so peaceful and relaxing!


At our last doctor's appointment, Sarah had a fetal fibrinectomy test. Since she has been experiencing a lot of pain at night, our doctor wanted to make sure that her symptoms weren't indicative of pre-term labor. The test is able to determine with about 97% accuracy whether or not the patient will go into labor in the next two weeks. As we expected, Sarah's test came back negative, but we thought it was an amazing example of what modern medicine can do. Too bad we can't get one of those tests every time we go in for our appointments - it would make planning for delivery a lot easier!

Mommy Update:
- Has discovered that she really loves doing laundry... no, really, she LOVES laundry!
- Was finally able to wash and organize every single stitch of baby clothing and linens.
- Is looking forward to hosting a barbeque party once all the boxes have been unpacked.
- Sends congrats to all of her colleagues for officially making it to summer vacation!