We found out December 11th that I was pregnant, which was soo exciting for us. Getting pregnant wasn't easy for us. We tried for about 2 years before being referred to the fertility clinic. After numerous tests they decided to try me on a drug called Clomid, to help regulate things in my body. We did 2 rounds and the 2nd round worked for us. It was a long process, and a tough one and waiting was the hardest part. I kept our struggle to myself and tried so hard to be happy for the many pregnant friends that seemed to announce every other day that they were having a baby. We were eventually blessed to find out that we too were going to have a baby. December 11th was one of the happiest days for Matt and I.
Well fast forward, pregnancy is not glamourous. I think I had it pretty easy compared to some, but at the same time it was really rough for me. I had morning sickness for the first 3 months combined with a persistent headache. I would have a headache pretty much every day, and when I didn't have a headache, I had a migraine. No bueno. My 2nd trimester was astronomically better, I started seeing a chiropractor and my headaches lessened and I felt like a person again! Then on to the 3rd trimester, which seemed to be the longest one! Up until about the last month of my pregnancy I felt pretty good. Then 32 weeks hit and I was done. My feet were swollen, I walked like a penguin and I had to pee every 5 minutes.
Porter was born August 18th, 2014. On his due date. Did you know only something between 5 and 10 percent of babies are born on their due date? Yeah, it was pretty cool. Wanna hear my birth story? If not you can stop reading here!
Well the week prior to Porter being born was a rough one. I struggled with high blood pressure the last 3 weeks of my pregnancy and had an appointment on Tuesday August 12th. At that appointment it seemed that my blood pressure was exceptionally high, my normal doctor was not in the office and I was seeing a different doctor. So after taking 4 readings, they sent me to the hospital and told me I would most likely be induced. Well we went to the hospital, they put me on a monitor to check my blood pressure every 15 minutes, they took blood and ran a whole slew of tests. After 4 hours everything came back clear and they sent me home and told me to make a follow up appointment at my doctor's office to check my bp again. So Thursday I had another appointment with the doctor. Well same thing happened. I was sent to the hospital again and told they would definitely induce me. They were wrong. After another round of tests, an ultrasound and 6 hours in the hospital they sent me home and told me I was fine. Well that was frustrating.
Then, on Sunday August 17th I went in to labour. It was about 4 o'clock in the afternoon and I was eating dinner at my parents house. I started to feel a little sick and had some minor cramping. Well the cramping seemed to be happening on a pretty regular basis. I would eat a couple bites of dinner and have a cramp. This continued and after dinner I went to lie down on the couch. I texted Matt from the living room saying I didn't feel well. Well my mom came in and things started to hurt a little more. After about a half hour she said she thought this was real labour. Well that kind of scared me! My mom had taught me a breathing technique to help get through pain. You breathe all different colours. So I went upstairs into my parents room to lie down on the bed (I was crying at this point, partially from pain, partially apprehension). Then after lying in bed for a bit, I went down into the basement to watch a slideshow my Dad had put together for our family. I had contractions all the way through. At about 7ish (it's a little foggy in my memory as to what time it was) I asked for a blessing. My dad, brother-in-law and husband gave me a wonderful blessing. We then decided it was time to head home.
I had contractions all the way home, still not long and not super close together. We arrived home and I honestly can't remember what I did for the next hour and a half. I know that I took a shower, and it felt soo much better. Around 9pm Matt called our Doula and said that it looked like I was in labour. We had been timing contractions and they were about 5 minutes apart, lasting 30 seconds. She told us she was on her way and headed over to our house. We stayed home until around 1:30am (during which I watched Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, while managing contractions). Once we got into the hospital they took me to triage to check things out. Well in triage they said I was only 1-2 cm dilated and that my cervix was posterior and that I was not very effaced. My contractions had slowed down and they thought about sending me home. They then decided due to my high blood pressure (this time it stayed high through their monitoring) they would admit me. At around 3am I was admitted. They checked me again and said that I was now dilated 3cm, fully effaced and that things were progressing. Shortly after being admitted, my water broke (I hear that's uncommon). I don't think the nurse believed me when I told her, but sure enough, it had broken. Matt took me into the washroom to get cleaned up and that's when things got really hard. I decided that it was time to ask for an epidural. I really hadn't wanted one, but I was exhausted and in a lot of pain. The anesthesiologist was in our room within 15 minutes. I was lucky and mine was the only birth happening that night. He gave me the first epidural, well it only froze 1 half of my body. My left side felt no pain, but my right side felt every contraction. So they gave me another epidural, this time it took and I could feel nothing except pressure. It was heavenly. I was able to get some sleep and at 6am they checked me again. Now I was 6cm dilated and progressing well. They walked me to the bathroom so I could use it (another thing they said was uncommon, the fact I could walk) and then I went back to sleep. Around 10:30 or so, I called for the nurses. I felt a ton of pressure and I couldn't find the button to increase my epidural, I thought it was wearing off or something. They checked me and told me that I was 10 cm dilated and fully effaced and it was now time to push. They brought in the doctor, Dr. Flowers (who I had met at my Thursday trip to the hospital). He was an awesome doctor, he spoke to me, and helped me understand what was going to happen. Well after 56 minutes of pushing our baby was born! He was beautiful right from the get go! I suffered from a partial 3rd degree tear and had some stitches, but my little boy was there! Matt was amazing through the whole experience, he really helped me to focus and breathe through each contraction. He got to cut the cord and had the stomach to watch the whole birth. I couldn't have done that without him.
Porter was born August 18th at 11:26am. He weighed 7 lbs, 14 oz and was 21.5 cm long.
They kept us another 24 hours and then we got to take our little guy home!
Here's his first photo shoot!
After the eye drops, he really didn't open his eyes much.
My amazing husband.
Soo happy to meet his little guy.
Seriously though, have you ever seen a more perfect newborn?
Cuddling with Mommy.
Daddy enjoying his brand new little man.
