Thursday, April 1, 2010

Birth Story

Where do I begin? Everthing about Jack's birthday was absolutely and completely perfect. The night before Jack was born we were playing cards with some of our dearest friends and for the very first time (after months and months of playing) Boss actually won. We all joked that it was his lucky night and that we bet Jack would be born by the next day....and he was!

Boss and I went to bed around midnight and at 1:30 am I felt that magical gush. My water has broken on its own (at home) with all three of my babies, so I know how it feels when it happens, but I still spent the next two hours trying to decide if it had really broken or if I had simply peed my pants (though clearly that has never happened before. duh.). By 3:30 am I was fairly convinced that it was my water, so I called the on call resident and she told us to come on in. After making all of the necessary calls to get relief to watch the residents and my parents to come get the girls, Boss and I arrived at the hospital around 5:30 am.

When the doctor examined me to see if my waters had in fact been broken, she told me that she did not think that it had, but that she would test the fluid first to be positively sure before she sent me home. You can bet there were tears after she said that! I was desperately wanting to have my baby that day and I was mortified to have to go home and announce to everyone that I had called in the middle of the night, that I had in fact only peed my pants. However, the doctor came back in a few minutes later and said that the test strip said my waters had ruptured and I got to stay. Hooray! It was officially baby day!

By 6:00 am we were in a labor and delivery room and my two dearest friends had arrived to experience the day and birth with us. Because my water had broken but contractions had not yet started, they started pitocin by 7:00 am. Since I was already dilated to five centimeters and this was my third child, they warned me things would probably move quickly, and they were right! By 8:00 am contractions were picking up, but I was still not in any pain. The nurse suggested we call Mr. Epidural man before things got painful, so we did, and the amazing thing is that I did not experiance any labor pains at all throughout the entire delivery! After the epidural was administered it was time to relax and wait. Boss' parents arrived sometime after that and shortly before noon I felt like it was time to push.

We had the nurse check me (she was awesome, by the way) and she said it was indeed go time. She told me NOT to push because the baby's head was right there and she had to call the doctors. By 12:01 pm, with one push, Jack Ryan Huston Zickafoose entered this world and our lives became more joyful and meaningful because of it.

It was a completely and utterly amazing experience to deliver my son. The not having any pain thing was wonderful and it allowed me to fully experience all of the wonderfulness that is bringing a child into this world. I was surrounded by people that I love and I could feel just enough to make it beautiful.

I will never forget what it felt like to hold Jack's tiny little body in my arms for the very first time. To see his head full of dark hair and to watch his tiny fingers grasp mine. After waiting nearly four years for another child to enter our lives, on March 15, 2010 I was blessed beyond measure to be holding in my arms an absolute answer to prayer. I will always thank God for the gift of his life.

Some more answers to prayer... Besides a wonderful, complication free delivery and the gift of our son, God answered many other prayers that day. When I first became pregnant and started going to appointments at the clinic, I noticed a big sign that brought me to tears on more than one occasion. It stated that due to it being flu season and the threat of H1N1, no children under the age of 14 were allowed in the hospital (not even siblings) until flu season was over. That meant my girls would not be able to come see me and meet their baby brother when he was born. I was worried I would have to stay longer due to health reasons and I was worried about how we would handle the separation. Silly or not, it was something that I prayed about often! When we checked in that morning the sign was still in place. However, right before I started to push, Boss came into the room with a huge smile on his face and announced that just a few minutes prior the ban that had been in place for the last nine months had been lifted! Random? I think not! And another answer to prayer...  Not only did I not need magnesium after delivery (something I was really worried about), but I left the hospital on no blood pressure medications at all! Definitely an answer to prayer.

Jack Ryan, we are so in love with you and count our blessings each time we hold you. You have filled our lives with unspeakable joy and we cannot wait to see God unfold the plans He has for your life. We pray daily that you will grow to love the Lord and that we will always be close as a family. Never doubt how much you are loved! Happy Birthday baby boy!

2 comments:

Sarah said...

Darn it! I KNEW I shouldn't read this at work! I'm crying with joy for you guys right now. Kendra, your family is so beautiful. I am 12 weeks pregnant with our first, and I pray I have as easy and happy a delivery as you. God bless you all!

Sara Nickson said...

Thanks for sharing this part of your life. I enjoyed reading Jack's birth story.