Labor Day!

This is the story of how Colin Edward Boswell came into this world. Don't worry, there's not anything graphic.















I'd been having prodromal labor since Thursday May 24th. I was already 3cm dilated and was having a lot of contractions. The contractions were either intense and spaced far apart or medium intensity and coming every 10 minutes. My Dr said she expected him to come any day and we scheduled an induction for Monday May 28th if he wasn't here by then. I walked and bounced on yoga balls and kept hoping he would come on his own.



Fritz laying in front of me while I was breathing through a contraction

Sunday morning I woke up at 6:30 am with a huge contraction. They were coming every 10 minutes, but mostly medium-low intensity. I hadn't slept well, so I laid down to take a nap around 8. I woke up at 10:00am with another huge painful contraction. 15 minutes later another and 15 minutes later another. They continued about every 10-12 minutes, but not all of them were as strong. I told Ward to slowly start getting his stuff together while I had a shower. We had to pack for the induction the next morning regardless.



Daddy driving us to the hospital.

By 2:00 contractions were every 5-6 minutes and really strong. I was doubling over and was yelling some expletives. After watching me endure a particularly bad one, Ward decided we were going to the hospital. I thought for sure it was too early and we'd be sent home. We checked in about 3:45pm and got the process started. I was still only at about 3-4 cm dilated which was depressing. About 5:00pm I decided to walk the halls to get things moving. I was constantly having to stop for excruciating contractions. Around 6:00pm my OB broke my water. Things picked up from there, quickly. Contractions were coming right on top of each other and I was screaming and shaking. The epidural was ordered and I got it around 7ish. Actually getting the epidural was nothing short of hell on earth, but once it kicked in it was instantly worth it! I was 5cm dilated.

I was shaking from the drugs and Ward read some random sports blogs to me to help me relax. I think I even fell asleep for a few minutes. The nurses came back around 8pm to check me and said I was still at 5cm, but they had a concern and wanted to call my dr. Dr came in around 9pm and confirmed what the nurse suspected. He was head down, but he was presenting face first (they could feel his nose and mouth when they checked me!). The dr said she would not advise normal delivery because while he wasn't a big baby per se, he was big for me and coming in a face first position would make a very long painful labor, delivery, and recovery. She was concerned about him not handling it well (and me not handling it well) so we decided to move forward with the c section.

They prepped me and took me to the OR. I was very freaked out, but trying to remain calm. I have a huge fear of needles and I was oddly relieved that I would not need any more needles since the epidural had already been placed. Ward had to wait in the hall during the prep and I didn't like being alone.

Meeting Colin for the first time!

In the OR they did the pinch test to make sure I was numb; I wasn't. They increased the dosage and I could still feel it. The anesthesiologist said he was going to max out the dosage and if I could still feel it they would have to knock me out. Well, I could still feel it! Within seconds they had the mask on me, no time to see Ward.

Next thing I knew, I was waking up in the recovery room. I was completely out of it, but I unconsciously put my hand on my stomach and realized it was flat. My baby wasn't in there anymore. A few minutes later Ward was able to come in and see me. He showed me some videos he took of Colin getting his bath and screenings. I was still shaking uncontrollably and was ready to see my baby. Luckily, I didn't have to wait too long before the nurse brought in our perfect little baby and we got to be together as a family.

I missed my baby's birth, but the reality is I'm not sure if I could have handled being awake for the procedure. I get freaked out by anything remotely related to blood, guts, and needles and might have had a total melt down during the csection. Recovery has been really painful and I couldn't even change a diaper for 24 hours, but it's getting better every day (thank you Vicodin).



Changing his first poopy diaper solo!

Colin is perfect and Ward is a rock star Daddy! We discovered Colin has a cleft pallet and will require surgery at 6-9 months to repair, but I'll post about that later.

Birth Stats: 

May 27, 2012  (his original due date!)

9:48pm

7lbs 3oz

20 inches long