Archer Cade Washburn made his debut into the world on
June 22, 2011 at 9:40pm weighing in at 7 pounds 4 ounces and 18.5" long!
Archer's arrival story:
Aaron and I checked into Baylor All Saints in downtown Fort Worth on the evening of June 21st. I was crazy swollen from preecalmpsia and feeling pretty miserable, but I made it to 39 weeks 3 days before my doctor decided to go ahead and induce. So we went to the hospital to begin the cervidil induction, which would soften my cervix and prepare me for labor. The pitocin induction started around 4:00am on June 22nd. Our families arrived at the hospital around 10:45am, and they were in and out of the labor and delivery room all day - it was great to have them there to share in the excitement!
I was incredibly emotional and scared. I feared the physical action of labor and delivery like some people fear water or heights. I have a mild fear of heights, depending on the circumstances, but none of my fears compared to my fear of childbirth. That said, I had a lot of anxiety during the last few months of my pregnancy, especially leading up to the big day. Thankfully, I have a lot of really sweet and caring friends who were there to encourage me and pray for me. I can't thank them enough...The day we went into the hospital, I went with a great deal of peace in my heart - I was as ready as I was going to get!
Once the cervidil was in place to soften my cervix, it was smooth sailing - sorta. I slept in my bed and Aaron slept on his pull out couch bed. I know I should have sent Aaron home to get some rest, but I was so fearful of being alone (especially if they had me take a sleeping pill) that Aaron promised not to leave me. He's such a great husband! The nurses had me sleeping on my left side like you're supposed to, but the last couple of months sleeping on my left side was really uncomfortable so I'd been sleeping on my right side. Since I was connected to what seemed like a ton of equipment, I laid on my left side like they asked. But not even 30 minutes went by before the monitors started going off. The nurses rushed in, started pushing buttons, had me move to my right side, and then they put an oxygen mask on me. Aaron woke up to all of the commotion and demanded to know what was happening. Once the nurses saw things improve, they told Aaron and I that the baby's heart rate had drastically decreased, which is why they were putting me on oxygen. Once I laid on my right side, all was fine. However, sometime during the night I was told to go ahead and move back to my left side (not an easy task with swelling and monitors). The same thing happened again shortly thereafter. So I was put on my right side again, and a note was put on my chart not to put me on my left side!
Around 4am, my doctor started the pitocin. My contractions began pretty slowly. Once I realized I was having contractions, I was really surprised, the contractions weren't bad at all! I labored for hours, and the pain came on so gradually that I didn't even realize how much it hurt! For me, the contractions didn't hurt nearly as much as the doctor checking me to see how far I was dialated. For me, the dialation checks were more painful than I can ever describe in words, and even more painful than the contractions I was experiencing. When I was around 5 cm dialated, I remember the nurse making a comment: "Oh, wow! You must be in pain. Are you doing a natural birth?" I was like, "NO!" The nurse told me I should go ahead and request an epidural. The checks to see how far I was dialated hurt so much that I didn't realized how painful the contractions were. Crying and scared, I received the epidural in between contractions. The nurses and doctors were really patient with me. I think they could sense my anxiety, plus I was crying like a giant baby! The epidural itself was swift and fairly pain free, at most it felt like a bee sting, not too bad.
Once I had the epidural, it was a whole new game. I could lay back and "relax," even when they were checking me to see how far I was dialated! Once I had the epidural, I dialated fairly quickly, maybe because I could "relax." I got to 8 cm dialated and everything was looking good, but Archer was not moving down the birth canal, he was still at a "-2." Archer never dropped. Finally, at 8:00pm, my doctor made the call that we needed to do a cesarean. Around 8:30pm, Aaron & I were prepped and ready to be taken to the operating room (OR). My doctor had Archer out within 5 minutes, but it took another hour for them to put me back together. I vaguely remember seeing our sweet son in the OR - it was so bright, and I was in and out of consciousness. Our first real moment together came in the labor and delivery room when I got to see him face-to-face and hold him in my arms. The feeling is indescribable. It was like God hit me with a thunderbolt. I've never felt such flood of love and so immediately at that!
From that moment, I knew my life would never be the same. I was different. I was amazed at the miracle God blessed Aaron and I with! Everyone told me my life would change forever, and I knew they were right, but no one can really prepare you for that moment, that feeling of love, that experience. It's something you have to experience for yourself. Even though childbirth was my biggest fear, I made it through - a heathly, happy mommy! We are now a happy family of three + Marianne!!
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Archer Cade Washburn is born! |
WONDERFUL! So happy for y'all :)
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