Evan Patrick is here!

Wow, what an intense weekend we had! Evan decided he was done cooking and it was time to be born :) On Wednesday the 25th I had a doctor's appointment. They did a size ultrasound to see how big he was because I'd been measuring about 2 weeks ahead. They estimated that he weighed 7lbs 7oz. This would be pretty large for a baby who is supposed to be 35 weeks gestation! I was not dilated or anything, so the rest of the appointment was pretty routine. We talked about the possibility of a c-section if I went to term because he could grow very large in there.

On Friday after I had made a small trip to pick up a few things we needed (with all the kids in tow), I started spotting. I knew it wasn't normal, but the nurse at the labor and delivery at the hospital assured me that it was fine. She instructed me to come up to the hospital if it got heavier. At about 3am I got up to use the restroom and when I did, it was a lot of bleeding so I decided to drive myself to the hospital just to get checked out. Ryan stayed at home with the sleeping kiddos. It turns out that I was now dilated to 3 cm. They gave me a shot of terbetuline to stop my cervix from dilating. The 1st shot did not work, I dilated to 4.5 cm. The 2nd shot stopped me from dilating... but not the lovely contractions! Eventually I was discharged around 5pm on Saturday with strict instructions for bedrest.

On Sunday I really tried to take it easy. Ryan was so great. He was basically taking care of the girls by himself AND taking care of me. I didn't want or need for anything, he was always there when I called out for him. Around 2pm that day I decided to start timing my contractions. They were every 6 minutes like clockwork. After about an hour of timing those, they got to be 5 minutes apart.... then 4 minutes apart like clockwork. I thought maybe we should get packed up to go to the hospital. Ryan got everything ready and dropped me off at the hospital, went to pick up the babysitter, and took everyone else home. He came back up to be with me. When they checked my cervix, I was now 6 cm! It was labor time. They did give me another shot of terbetuline to TRY to slow things down enough where I'd be allowed enough time to get the epidural. It barely even changed things, but I did get the epidural! After I got it, the nurse checked me again and I was now 8cm and moving right along!

We were all basically waiting on the on-call doctor to show up so that we could finish this off. My water bag was bulging out and a push or two would've broken it. The doctor finally came in and said it was time to push, so I started to push! At first it was just like the other labors. I could feel the pressure but not a ton of pain. That changed FAST. The more I pushed, the more it burned in my abdomen, my back, and of course where he was coming out. It was absolutely the most pain I've ever felt! I think I pushed for around 15 minutes or so. It was very intense and I felt everything. I was so out of sorts after he was born but I did hear him crying and the nurses talking to Ryan about how they treat a preemie baby after birth. Evan looked so healthy! He weighed 7lbs 6oz... our biggest baby! All the others had been less than 7lbs. Isn't that amazing?

Evan was observed in the nursery for about 4-5 hours and then he's been with me ever since. He's so very healthy and nursing well. The girls are not permitted to visit because of the H1N1 restrictions but we should be going home tomorrow night. I can't believe our son is finally here and I'm amazed at his health. God is so good. We are blessed!