Carter's birth story

First family picture of the 4 of us

9 lbs 5 oz

I loved my midwife she had a nice soothing voice. She was a student though and my only complaint is that when the baby came out and instead of gradually letting the head come out, section the nose and letting the shoulders come out slowly, she just grabbed his head and pulled him out fast so I tore a lot.

Nurse

Right before this picture I was squatted down having a contraction. I stood up smiled and headed in to have him.

Where do I begin? It's been almost a week since I had Carter and I've played the moment he was born over and over in my mind. It's hard to believe a week ago he was in my tummy, upside down, all warm and cozy. I looked forward to giving birth to him and what it would be like. It was amazing!

Contractions started weeks before he was born. They were mild pains that would come and go but nothing consistent. Monday, 4 days before my due date, I went to my dr appointment and I was 2.5 cm dilated. Tuesday before Carter was born I asked Jocelynn when Carter would be born she said confidently that it would be Friday morning. Thursday my due date came and although I felt it was close, I was discouraged that nothing was happening. My friends were being sealed in the temple to their daughter on my due date in Newport beach. My mom said she would take me and we drove out that way. Once we got there I got really nervous. What if I went into labor on the way home in traffic or in the temple? I was glad I was able to attend and be in a place so close to the spirit one last time before he was born. Once we got home, James, Jocelynn and I went for a long walk and up the hills. That night was when it all started. Carter was finally ready to make his entrance into this world.

I woke up at 1:30am and 2:30am to use the restroom, which wasn't a surprise. I woke up again at 3:30am to a mild pain but fell back asleep and was woken again at 4am. I got up and needed to walk around. I started stretching and the pain was pretty long and then would go away. I finally woke up James and decided to take a warm bath. In the bath I was still having pains and decided to call my mom. I couldn't time the contractions because the pain was long and not consistent. When I got out of the bath, my mom came and as I sat on the couch, I thought "Where did the pain go?" It started to go away. I called the hospital and they said to come in when the contractions were 4-5 minutes apart. We sat in the car to see if we could time them, I couldn't. I wanted to cry. I was so discouraged. I woke everyone up and now we weren't heading to the hospital. We decided at 5am to go for a walk up the street. The pains weren't coming so I just said let's just go back to bed. My mom left we got into bed. I lay awake for about 20 minutes and then the pain started again. I was watching the clock and it was every 5 minutes. I decided not to wake James until it had been awhile. Finally after 45 minutes I told him I think it's time. He looked at me and smiled and I called my mom and he took a shower. I could tell by the way he was taking his time that he didn't think it was going to happen. Jocelynn walked in our room at 7am and lay with us. I cuddled her and thought, during a contraction, you're about to have a brother. She was right, Friday morning he was coming. When my mom came the contractions were now 4 minutes apart. I had 2 contractions in the car and by the time we got to the hospital, they were 3-4 minutes apart. I had to stop every time a contraction came. James found a wheelchair and we headed to labor and delivery. I told them I was having contractions. I was having a contraction and she said "yes you are in labor." She checked me and I was dilated to a 4. It was going so fast. The contractions were getting stronger and closer together. She got me admitted and I said I wanted an epidural. She hooked me to an IV and I couldn't get an epidural until I had the fluids in me. I didn't think I would get it in time. The midwife came in and checked me and I was a 6. I started to panic a little thinking I wasn't able to get an epidural. The anesthesiologist walked in the room I thought, yes!! He looked at me with a worried look and said I'll be right back! That's not what a woman in labor wants to hear. He was called to an emergency c section. I kept saying things like "I can do this!" I was also telling James that I was scared and it's going so fast and it hurts. I'm sure it was hard for him to see me in so much pain and there was nothing he could do. The pain was getting intense and I was hitting James chest because it felt good to let out the pain I was feeling. I would try to breathe through them. The midwife checked me again and I was a 7. I started to yell through the contractions. The nurse kept telling me to breathe or I'll hyperventilate. Finally I yelled, How?? I couldn't think straight, I needed someone to show me how to breathe. James started doing hee hee hoo. I felt like it was a movie. Finally, my hero walked in and I was able to get an epidural. I kept wanting him to wait during a contraction because I couldn't sit still while he was doing it because the contractions were so close together. He said I need to do it or you won't be able to get one and you have to sit still. Finally I got one and instant relief!! I got the epidural at 930am and had him at 11am. I was still feeling pain in my left side when a contraction would come but it was nothing compared to what I was feeling!! With Jocelynn I think they had me push too early. I pushed for almost 2 hours with her. With Carter they waited awhile and it was finally time to push! The midwife checked me and he pooped in me so they had to have a special team there when he was born. The pressure was so strong and did not feel good. I was ready to push. I wanted him out so bad. The final push was the hardest and what a relief when he came out. They said "wow he's a big one!" They were all trying to guess his weight. I remember laying there thinking "look at those rolls! Did he really come out of me?" I tore a lot because he was so big. I was able to hold him and the experience was amazing! He was perfect.