It's a Miracle!

I woke up from a dead sleep a little after 6:30 a.m. this morning.  I had been home for not quite 12 hours from our trip to the BYU Fathers and Sons Basketball Camp over the weekend.

J. had had a doctor's appointment yesterday and the word was that even though she was two days past her due date, the baby was not going to come naturally for at least another week.  I slept soundly last night knowing that I would need the sleep since J. was scheduled to be induced early tomorrow morning (Thursday).

I was wrong.

The words that woke me up this morning were spoken by J.: "My water broke!"

Somehow, I managed to get up and get going.  Thank goodness I had unloaded my car last night!  J. was amazingly calm.  Less than 30 minutes after waking up, I had us walking into the emergency room.  (I ditched my car in some empty parking spot right next to the E.R.  Hopefully, my car has hasn't been towed by some angry doctor or hospital administrator whose spot I snagged!)

Obviously, this was after J. got her epidural!

J.'s nervousness subsided when Dr. Hancock arrived to administer the epidural.  Dr. Hancock was great, but the whole time he was here, I kept wishing my brother Dr. S. was the anesthesiologist instead.  Things calmed down quite a bit after the epidural and J. and I actually got in a couple of naps.

One of a Couple Naps at the Hospital...
This Baby Business is Exhausting!

At about 11 a.m., I realized that the doctor (Dr. Stadler) and the nurses were saying that the baby was close.  J. felt like she wanted to push.  After about 2 (maybe 3) pushes, the baby slipped right on out.  I just remember thinking that the baby was all arms and legs as he practically leaped from the womb.  I guess once he decided he was ready, he didn't want to wait another second to make his entrance into the world!

Cutting the Cord

It was 11:10 a.m.  It seemed like the total labor lasted about 2-3 minutes (at least of J. actively pushing).  I couldn't have been happier for J. that this delivery went so smoothly after what has been the hardest of all her pregnancies.

Baby D. weighed in at 8 pounds, 9 ounces.  He was 19.5 inches long.  He seems perfect to me and both he and his mom are doing great.  He hardly seems to cry at all and has been trying to eat already.

Baby D

The hospital here has a program that encourages skin-to-skin bonding with the baby and its parents.  Within 10 minutes of being born, the amazing delivery staff here at the hospital had practically abandoned us so that we could just hold him.  It was awesome.

This experience has reminded me just what a miracle the birthing process is.  I feel so blessed to have such a cute little guy come to our home.  Baby D., now that you're here, we can't wait to get to know you!

The New Addition to the Fam