Where do I begin? The Lord has blessed us beyond belief and these past 5 days have been a whirlwind! If you would have talked to me this time last week, I never imagined everything transpiring so perfectly and wonderfully as they have. This time last week, Adam and I knew our chances of Baby Acklin coming on his own were dwindling because my blood pressure continued to run borderline high (despite NO other negative symptoms- no protein in urine at all, no headaches, amniotic fluid perfect every ultrasound, and we aced every non stress test performed), and I was quickly approaching 42 weeks gestation- with a holiday weekend on top of that (doctors' schedules, induction, etc.). Nevermind that normal pregnancies run 38-42 weeks. I was torn between bedrest and moving around to "get things going," and it was stressful knowing that Adam and I had both taken leave from work prior to delivery (which meant less time with the baby afterwards!) We prayed multiple times a day for labor to begin, and I begged God for contractions and told him I would never complain about them!
Monday afternoon, we headed to Dr. Sellers office, and, since I'd been having cramps all weekend, we were sure I was making progress and he would be fine to let me continue. As it turned out, I was only dilated to a 2 and Baby Acklin was still a -4 station (as in, "up by my tonsils," as Dr. Sellers told me!). He was asking us how much longer we were going to continue and that he was really feeling uncomfortable with my blood pressure being like it was. I asked him to give me the weekend, then I'd come in on Monday. That's when he reminded me it was Memorial Day weekend and besides, according to them, Friday was 42 weeks exactly. I asked Dr. Sellers if he was wanting me to say "Thursday," (for the induction) and he said, "Really, I'd like for you to say today because I'm on call." I told him I was going to beg him for every day I could have, that I felt it would be so much better for us if the baby came when he was ready. So he agreed to have me come back on Wednesday (but only after ordering another ultrasound and bloodwork-all of which were perfect).
I know I have made a lot of my family, friends, and coworkers nervous this whole time, but it's not like I was being ridiculous about not being induced. If there had been a clear medical reason the baby needed to be delivered, I would have gladly agreed. But every single test result was perfect, and my blood pressure was only borderline high (and I was monitoring constantly at home, where a lot of the time it was a lot lower). If Adam and I got anything our of our Bradley Childbirth classes, it's that your body knows what it's doing and that oftentimes one intervention leads to another, interrupting the body's natural progression.
I left the office in tears, and I think Adam was shedding them on the inside as well. We were just so discouraged and defeated, not to mention the incessant inquiries from well meaning friends and family members about how I felt, what we were going to do, etc. only frustrated us more.
Once we got home, I settled down to watch Dr. Phil (my fav!) while Adam graded tests, then we were going to watch the season premiere of The Bachelorette with Ali!!!!! Surely that would take mind off everything. It seemed like I had just sat down, when my stomach started hurting. It was hurting kind of bad, but I didn't want to interrupt Adam so he could get those tests graded. Finally about 6:30 or so, I went to his office and said, "Adam, I'm in pain!" We couldn't decide whether to time them or not because they were happening so quickly and figured they would stop shortly. Besides, labor was supposed to begin slowly, and I had even bought all the ingredients to make my favorite oatmeal chocolate chip cookies during that time. The pains only got worse and Adam knew it was bad when he asked me if he should pause Dr. Phil and I said, "I don't care!" He called Dena, our doula, and when he said they were two minutes apart lasting a minute to a minute and a half a piece, she thought for sure he was timing them wrong and told him to call her back in an hour. Thirty minutes later, he called her and said it was worse and so she came over. I started feeling like I needed to push, and Dena said I could be having a fast labor and we probably need to head to the hospital. I'm glad I had most of our stuff ready to go, but I do remember telling Adam, "Grab my makeup!"
I can't imagine having to ride longer than the six minutes it took us to get to the hospital. I remember Adam asking me if I wanted him to stop at the red light or "go through guns blazing." I told him not to break any laws. Then the walk into the hospital seemed so long! When we finally made it to Labor and Delivery, there weren't any rooms and I stood at the nurses' station having contractions while they cleaned one out. I don't think any of this took very long, but each thing seemed like an eternity to me! I was so relieved to get into the room, even though the floor was still wet. They checked me at 9:30 and I was dilated to an 8-9! Five hours prior, I had been a 2 in Dr. Sellers' office! At 11:30, Dr. Sellers came in and cleared me to push, and Baby Acklin was here by 1:08 am!
Some things are a blur for me because everything happened so fast and intensely, but some things are crystal clear for some reason. I do remember asking Dr. Sellers, "Can you believe I'm really here tonight? You didn't expect to see me, did you?!" He said, "I was hoping I would!" It was so great to have him there; the odds of us actually having our own doctor for delivery are very small! He was great and calm and made me feel at ease. Adam even actually ended up cutting the umblical cord! (He hadn't planned on it!)
When I saw the baby I was just in shock that that thing really was inside of me! I wanted to know how much he weighed but I wanted to hold him more, so I held/bonded with him for a while before he was cleaned up or anything. He nursed right away and then Adam gave him his first bath and they weighed him a couple hours later.
Adam was so amazing through the whole labor and I could not have done it without him. Giving birth without drugs was by far the hardest thing I've ever done, but was so worth it. Adam was there every step of the way, physically and emotionally. He was every bit as involved throughout the whole process; it was like we were doing it together, whether he was physically supporting me during contractions or feeding me ice chips. If he was ever scared, I never knew it. He truly is the greatest "coach" there is!
This is me and Adam with Dena, our doula, who guided us through it all and took amazing pictures!! She also gave me orange juice to drink right afterwards, and I seriously think I drank a whole case of them!
My mom meeting her very first grandchild for the first time:
Getting a glimpse of his head full of hair!!! Adam said he will be the only baby at Baby Dedication with dreadlocks!
We didn't decide on a name until the next day before we went home. Anderson wasn't one of the front runners on our list of names, ironically! It's just that he was such a strong baby (the nurses called him "The Hulk!") with strong features, we felt he needed a strong name, and Anderson fit! And of course, Reed is my maiden name. :)
Looking back, it is so humbling and comforting to know that God was in control the whole time. Adam and I had four days prior to me going into labor just to sleep in every day and relax and do things around the house. I am so thankful for a "fast" labor and for strength that only comes from Him who gives us life.
Anderson, you were worth all the preparation, every bit of pain, worry, anxiety, and hard work. We are so blessed we were able to bring you into this world naturally and hope to give you everything you need to be the man God wants you to be!!!
