Gabriel Anthony

We are proud to introduce our newest addition!

Gabriel Anthony joined our family Thursday, March 1st at 6:43pm. Weighing in at a nice 8 pounds, 1 ounce and measuring 19 3/4", I'm thankful that he is our last baby.  If I had gone through labor like that either time before, we wouldn't have had any more children.

It started out pretty normal for me. I was still only dilated 2cm at my appointment the Monday prior, and the doctor agreed to induce me Thursday even though he stated the baby was pretty high up there, thus a risk for a c-section. My other labors hadn't even a hint of a complication, so we pretty much poo-pooed his worries and he said he was comfortable with delivering on March 1st. This put me at 4 days early, since they did change my due date to March 5th.

I really thought with the level of contractions I had been having all week that I would be in the hospital Wednesday night.  We distributed the children to their home for the week, and showed up at the hospital at 5:30am on Thursday. The same nurse who started my induction for Gracie was there, so that was nice. We had the Pitocin drip started by 7:10am, doctor broke my water around 9, and by 10:45 the epidural was in effect. On schedule to deliver early afternoon, if things went according to how Zachary and Gracie were delivered.

But I still just didn't dilate. Unfortunately, our favorite doctor was only there until 1pm, and after that was the doctor I saw that previous Monday. When he got there, I was barely at a 4, with no dropping.  He started spouting off about high risk for c-section, baby not ready yet, that's why they don't like to induce early, yada yada yada. I got to hear that nice little speech every hour until 4pm. I finally got to a 5 then, and the epidural started wearing off.

For the next hour I was maxed out on the Pitocin. The epidural slowly wore off, and I really started to be in pain and uncomfortable.  I could feel extreme pressure, but still not dilating any. At 5:00, the doctor let me in on a little secret - my cervix was leaning to my left, and the baby's head wasn't dropping down into it but was pressing on the side of the opening. In fact - hind sight is 20/20, of course - I had been having pain on my lower right abdomen for the last 6-8 weeks of my pregnancy.  I wasn't comfortable sleeping on my right side at all, and if by chance I rolled over onto my right side without having hoisted myself over there, I always turned back over to my left side. Excruciating pain, but I didn't ever think to tell the doctor because I just thought it was pregnancy, and pain happens.

Anyways, when he mentioned that tiny detail about my cervix not cooperating, the nurse suggested that I reposition to my right side, instead of the sitting up we had been trying, to allow gravity to take its course. Dr McSmartypants also threw in one final "if she hasn't delivered by 8pm, we will have to do a c-section."

I think at that point I started going delirious. About the last thing I remember is crying, asking Chris to pray for me because I was so scared. I just held on to the bed railing and cried every contraction. At some point Chris started calling around for prayer for me, because it just was not looking good at all.  My bff Christina got there some time after 6. I do know I was so relieved when I saw she was there because that's just what we do for each other.  Finally around 6:30 they pronounced that I was complete and ready to push.

Chris and Christina have had a really great time sharing with our friends and family that I told off the doctor about telling me what to do, and giving the anesthesiologist down the road ... I don't really remember all that.

(I did ask if I cussed, and thankfully I did not.)

(I will not say that those words did not pass through my mind but apparently even in my miserable about to die state, the Lord had mercy on me to help me not be profane.)

At 6:43pm, the most precious little bundle of fat rolls came tumbling out. Zachary had asked me how the doctor was going to get the baby out, and would he come through my belly button? I decided almost 4 years old is still too young for some facts of life, and told him that the doctor would know how to help me get the baby out.  So he thinks Gabriel came out of my back. I'm going with that. :)

Even though he was bigger than the other two babies, I have to agree with my sister in law Catharine. She had a 9 pounder first, and then again a 7+ pound baby just a few months ago, and said they both felt the same coming out. That is exactly the way I felt, even though the labor to get to that point was different for each child, the actual pushing of a human out of my body didn't feel any different.

I still wouldn't call this labor traumatic. I was disappointed at the lack of support I received from the doctor who was delivering. However with my body not really lining up the way it was supposed to, I don't think the labor would have gone any differently if I was induced on or after my due date.

Enough about me. THE BABY! He is so precious!  Takes a paci, thank you Lord for small blessings. Loves to snuggle right into my neck, he's a great nurser, and last night he slept from 11pm to 4am, and again 5am to 8:45am.  It was fantastic. He does have a spitty problem, but I'm working on resolving that by just shortening his feeding times because I think he is just a super sucker haha!

This was today. Zonked out on my lap.

We're so pleased at how the kids are doing with him. Gracie has finally figured out it is a he, not a her. For the first night she was saying "Her so tute!" every 30 seconds. Zachary is oh so protective of him, and tells everyone he is a Big Brother.  Like he hasn't had a little sister for the last 2 1/2 years. Kelsey is head over heels for him.  I think it's different this time for her because she is older, and has lived with us the whole pregnancy. It's more real that a new baby joined the family rather than us picking up a baby doll at the store.

Affectionately we call him our love child because he was totally unplanned. But I wouldn't take him back for all the 100% birth control plans in the world.