Set Apart For Him: November 2012

Jaxton wasn't nursing well for about 5 days and he was losing weight-it was really stressful. I went to see a lactation specialist after Thanksgiving and it turns out he is mildly tongue tied and he has a high palate. Those 2 things combined gave him a hard time keeping suction and latching. She gave me something to sort of trick him until he matures and gets the hang of it. He is doing much better now. So if you scroll down to the previous post, I posted the birth story and lots of pictures from the birth/hospital.

So here are the many faces of Jaxton at 12 days old- If you want to compare them to Joshua at almost the same age look here. I suggest you click on the first picture then scroll through them - you will see them a lot better.

Special Delivery

Pirate Jax - look at his sweet little dimple and his fuzzy shoulders and back :)

Mr. Blue Eyes

Frowny

Big yawn

Yo what's up - His little scrawny arms crack me up in this pic

Awwww - Janae crocheted this hat for him

Pure sweetness

**Quick Version**
Thursday at my doc appointment, I was 5 1/2 cm dilated, my blood pressure was high and the baby's heart rate was low so they sent me to the hospital. The midwife came and broke my water at 2:30. I only had a few contractions the next 1 1/2 hours. I got in a hot shower and they started up super hard and 1-2 minutes apart. Javier stayed right there with me keeping the hot water on my back or wherever the pain was. At 4:30 we called the nurse because the urge to push got so strong and I was afraid I wouldn't make it to the bed if I waited any longer. She helped me in bed and checked me and I was only 6 cm but my midwife came in right then and saw how I was acting (hanging onto the side of the bed moaning) and she told me she was staying right there and she told the nurse she thought I would go quick. Sure enough, they started breaking down the bed and putting on the gowns. On the 3rd contraction since I had gotten in bed, my midwife told me I was ok to push. He came out with a splash on that one push and I didn't tear or need an episiotomy (first time ever). My midwife didn't even have a chance to get gloves on. He was completely white and slimy but good and healthy with apgar scores of 9/9.

This was the easiest healing/recovery I ever had. Besides the nursing contractions, I really didn't feel like I had just given birth - not swollen or sore or anything. The funny thing is my obliques hurt from twisting and hanging on the rail on the edge of the bed for dear life. (scroll down for lots of pictures)

**Detailed Version**
I had been contracting for weeks like I always do, but I also had a lot of swelling so I was on the couch a lot the last few weeks. I was still working out a few mornings a week. Friday, the week before he was born, my contractions started at 5pm again like they did almost every afternoon. By 7 pm they were 3-5 minutes apart. Finally at 2am I woke up Javier, Julia and Janae and called my mom to come stay with the other kids. I was 4 cm and 70% effaced - about the same I was in the office 2 days earlier. They monitored me and had me walk and I only changed to 4 1/2 cm but my contractions were still 3-5 minutes apart, too intense to sit or lay down and I had a lot of pressure with each one. I asked them to please just break my water, but since I was 37 weeks and a few days, they couldn't break my water and help it along either because it was just a little too early. They sent me home at 8 am and by about 1pm the contractions finally fizzled out and I could lay down and sleep. So that was about 20 hours of contractions.

Nothing really happened all week, but Thursday morning I had an appointment at my doctor's office with my midwife. That morning my feet were swelling already, my blood pressure was high for the first time ever, I had been nauseous for 3 days and baby hadn't been moving much all week. Then when my midwife's scrubs brushed my foot my whole leg jumped. She checked my reflexes and they were crazy sensitive. She then put him on a stress monitor and his heart rate kept setting off the alarm because it stayed down in the 110-115 range. It is on the very low side of normal range. When she checked me, I was at a stretchy 5 1/2 cm, 80% effaced, baby's head was lower and my bag of water was bulging. She said, "I think we need to have a baby today." I was so relieved and excited. She told me to check into the hospital and she would be there in the afternoon to break my water.

I called Javi and he was excited and left work and we ate something. I called my mom to let her know because she was taking care of all the little boys. The 5 big kids were at their enrichment school that they go to twice a week, so once Javi dropped me off at the hospital around noon, he checked them out of school and brought them to the hospital.

My midwife came at 2:30 and broke my water - big gush. They kept me in bed for a while to monitor the baby and then they let me walk around. I still didn't have many contractions, but the water kept coming and coming. So at about 3:45pm Jacklyn and Jordan were getting bored and hungry, so my mom picked them up, but Janae, Julia and Joanna wanted to be there for his birth.

At 4pm my midwife suggested I get in a hot shower and focus the water on certain spots. My contractions started super hard and close together within 5 minutes - they were 1-2 minutes apart. They became so bad and the need to push got so bad that we asked Janae to push the nurse call button and they helped me get to my bed. The nurse checked me as the midwife was entering and she said, "She said she is ready to push, but she is only at 6cm." I guess my midwife could just sense I was in transition and saw me hanging on the edge of the bed and she said, "I am not going to leave. Let's get things ready, I think she is going to go quickly." Of course I had my eyes closed and am tuning most everything out, but Javi told me during my next 2 contractions they broke down the bed and put on their gowns and then she told me to go ahead and push on my next contraction - I was completely dilated. I was on my side and he came out with that one push at 4:40 - so I went from 6 cm to the baby being born in about 5 minutes. He came out with a burst of more water and it splashed them. My midwife didn't even have a chance to get gloves on. She put him right on my chest, he cried and he was so white and goopy. I did not tear or need an episiotomy for the first time and also for the first time, Javier didn't get lightheaded (he has almost passed out at every birth). He was 6 lbs 8oz and 20.5 inches long.

From the time contractions started in the shower, to the time Jaxton was born, it was only about 30-40 minutes! It was so nice for the whole family to be rested and be awake and really enjoy the birth and first hours after his birth. Javier and Joanna stayed the night with Jaxton and me the first night. I had so much adrenaline running through my body and I was just soaking up every minute with Jaxton, as well as talking to God - thanking Him and repenting of my lack of faith and trust in Him concerning this pregnancy and this child he was giving us. I didn't sleep at all. I wasn't even tired. Janae and Julia stayed with me the second night and Grandma had all the other kids most of the time I was in the hospital.