Cooper's Birth Story....The Final Chapter

For the 3 of you who are still reading this, I'm finally able to post the rest of Cooper's birth story.  I have been wanting to write it all down before I forget.

 I last left off when the Doctor checked me and I was almost at 7cm without any pitocin.  She thought Cooper would be born around lunchtime.  I also had the epidural at this point and was feeling so much better!  My parents were there and we were hanging out in the room just waiting.  It was such a nice break after the rough morning we had.

I don't remember much that happened in the next couple of hours or even how much time had passed, but before I knew it, I was at 10cm and was getting ready to push!  I still couldn't believe how fast I was progressing.  Justin's mom came and my brother and nephew were all there and were waiting in the waiting room with my parents after we told them I was about to push.  At first the plan was to start pushing with my nurse but then the Doctor called and said we should wait for her since she thought Cooper could come fast.  So then it was just me, Justin and my nurse Megan just hanging out and waiting to push.  Megan is a newlywed and goes to Houston First Baptist and she was such a great nurse. I was actually so sad when her shift was over, I felt like I was saying bye to my best friend after all we went through together that day.

Anyway,  I don't remember how long we waited as the time seemed to go by fast, but it was long enough to worry our family as it was taking a long time and they weren't aware that the pushing got put on hold.  Finally the Doctor came and the pushing began!  Let me tell you, pushing is way harder than I ever imagined it being, it's definitely a work out.  Justin was so encouraging though and it was a joy to experience this moment with him.  He held my leg and watched the entire birth without getting freaked out...but then again he is a nurse so not much grosses him out :)  They all kept telling me I was doing a great job though it seemed like I wasn't making much progress.  After about 45 minutes of pushing, I started to get a little concerned and the Doctor decided to give me just a little pitocin to help.    Things definitely sped up and before I knew it, she told me to stop pushing because he was about to be out and they needed to get everything set up.

 It was such a surreal moment as other people started to come in and I knew I was about to meet our son!  Then she told me to push him out and after a few more pushes, he was out!  She immediately put him on my chest and I started to cry and looked at Justin and just couldn't believe he was here!  He was sooooo cute even just seconds old!  Justin then cut the umbilical cord  and I was able to hold him for awhile before  they cleaned him off and weighed him.  I was dying to know how much he weighed and was shocked that he weighed only 7 lb 7 oz.  I had an ultrasound done just 2 days before and she told me he was 8 and a half pounds.  The ultrasound also showed that he had huge chubby cheeks which he didn't at all.  I have heard the ultrasound weight is just as estimate, but didn't think it would be that much off!

The doctor (who wasn't my real doctor, but I loved her too), said that when she looked at my chart that morning, she said to herself, "she will end up with a C-section".  She told me she was just shocked how fast my labor went and how I didn't need any pitocin till the very end, which was barely any.   I told her that a lot of people were praying and she said God definitely heard our prayers.  I knew He did!

Justin was then taking pictures of him being weighed and getting his prints done while I was getting stitched up.   I told Justin that he needed to go tell our families as I knew they had been waiting awhile.   I wish I could have been there when he told our families the great news!  They then put Cooper back on my chest and I was able to breastfeed him right away.  He immediately took to nursing and was a great eater.   Then our families were able to come in and meet Cooper for the first time.  It was so fun!  My nephew brought Cooper a little stuff dinosaur and when Cooper was crying, he was asking the nurses what Cooper was saying.  So cute!

I also said to Justin "isn't he SO cute??" and the doctor and nurses thought I was talking to them, which they immediately responded with, "oh yes he is very cute."  Oops, I told them I wasn't trying to be vain and was talking to my husband but they all kept saying he really was a cute newborn.  I can't help but agree :)

What is crazy about the whole thing is while I was holding Cooper, the Doctor told me that the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck twice.  I was shocked.  It all made sense as when I pushed Cooper out, my Doctor had this look of fear on her face and yelled "STOP!".  I immediately freaked out and said "what's wrong?".  She didn't want to tell me at the time (which was very wise), so she unwrapped the cord quickly and then said "your baby is here!!" I was in awe at the moment that I had forgotten that she yelled at me to stop so suddenly.  I asked her how long the cord had been wrapped around his neck and she said there was no way to know as it doesn't show up on the ultrasound.  That could explain why his heart rate raced up so high.  And I am SO thankful I went ahead and was induced instead of waiting for him to come on his own.  Just another reminder that God is sovereign and thankfully Cooper was in perfect health.

I am so incredibly thankful for such a wonderful labor experience and for such a healthy baby boy.  I can't help but think of when I first found out I was pregnant and how scared I was to lose this baby.  I remember my whole first trimester when Justin had to give me a shot every night, I had to take progesterone vaginally 3 times a day, and had to take extra folic acid.  And it was all so worth it!!!  It has been such a long, long, long journey through 2 miscarriages, seeing a specialist, and having a long pregnancy with a few scares.  What a journey it has been and after all the fear and anxiety, He is finally here!  Now brings all a whole new world of different types of fear, but that is a life of a mom.

Thank you to all who have been so sweet and encouraging to me throughout this entire pregnancy.  Thank you for praying for us and for Cooper.  He has no idea how many people have been praying for him!  I am so thankful to the Lord for hearing our cry for a child and for answering our prayers.  We feel incredibly blessed and our hearts are overflowing with love for our sweet boy!