Journal of 40 Weeks

Well, we were both betting that you would come late, baby, and as children seem to do you decided to do the opposite. We were at a farewell dinner at the Redhook Brewery for two of Chris’s co-workers, Mike Novak and Chris Manning, when Jess leaned over and whispered “Meet me outside the ladies’ room in one minute.” When I got there she told me her water had broken! Holy Cow! While we were whispering outside the bathroom Chris Manning came leaping out of the men’s room, his face lit up, since he had overheard us and was tremendously excited. Your dad got some things from your mom’s car, and when we came back from the bathroom everyone had figured out what had happened and let out a huge cheer, like we had just won a championship.

So we drove home and got our bags and went to the hospital around 9:00 PM, where they confirmed that Jess’s water had indeed broken and you were on your way. They sent us home until 9:00 AM, and we tried to sleep, listening to the HypnoBirthing CDs, but it wasn’t really working. Jess spent more and more time in the bathroom, or on hands and knees on our little couch, working her hips side to side through the contractions. She even spent some time walking with me at 2:00 AM up and down the driveway, getting down on hands and knees during each contraction, which at this point were only 30 seconds to 1 minute or so apart.

At about 5:00 AM your mom woke your dad from a brief sleep, as her contractions were still coming back to back and she had not slept the whole night. We drove back to the hospital, only stopping twice so she could get out and walk. Then twice again from the car to the Birth Center, Jess had to get on hands and knees to labor, prompting kind people to ask if she was OK.

Once in the Birth Center we went into a laboring room. The nurse gave Jess a shot of morphine to help her finally get some sleep- her only medication of the entire delivery- which really worked wonders and gave her a break for a few hours. Our wonderful, amazing nurse from start to finish was Ashley Beaumier, who was a year behind your dad in high school! Ashley was kind and calm and supportive, exactly what we wanted and needed in a nurse, and was really supportive of trying to have a natural birth. When we first came in she asked Jess whether she should inquire about her pain level on a scale of 1 to 10. This is very standard practice, but we had been told that it leads a woman to focus on pain and think about it, instead of looking past pain. Jess told Ashley she didn’t want to be asked, and we were never asked any questions about pain for the entire time. The entire nursing staff at the hospital were great, but Ashley was very special.

Jess came in at 1 cm, and after a couple hours of sleeping and contractions they checked again, and she was at 3-4 cm. This was the hardest moment for her, because the contractions had been coming so often with little to no break in between. She lay on her side in bed, sleeping between the contractions, then pumping her legs in circles along the sheets: a move the staff began to call “Riding the Bike”. They had never seen anything like it. So to find out she was only at 3-4 cm was really discouraging, but she stuck with it. After a few hours of Riding the Bike, Ashley suggested we try the Jacuzzi to help move things along, so they started filling the Jacuzzi and checked her again, after which they announced that we would go straight to the birthing tub as she was fully dilated! It was amazing how sudden it seemed.

We had been hoping to do a water birth since the beginning, especially after getting a tour of the Birth Center and seeing the tub and the water birth room. The only hitch was that there is only one tub, and it is used on a first-come-first-served basis. We knew there was a chance that someone would be in there before us, but when the time came the tub was empty. We made a fast transition to the waterbirth room, where they started filling the big white tub. Jess was marching up and down, never stopping her feet since it was too tempting to push. She motored from the bed to one corner of the room and back, then to the other corner and back, almost jogging in her desire to hold off. Again, all the staff said they never saw anything like it. There was just enough water in the tub when we both climbed in, and the warmth seemed to slow things down a little. Jess floated on her back and rested against Chris, and pushed when the contractions came and slept often in between. There was a CD of relaxing music playing in the background, which we listened to twice, meaning that we were in the tub for at least two hours. But after that amount of time things were still going too slow, with your little baby head seemingly tipped a little to the side.

So after a long time trying in the tub we got out, and Jess did the rest on the bed, lying on her back or side, squatting, standing, on the bar- Jess tried all the positions. After hours of hard pushing she could not get that head to budge, so our midwife Molly suggested that we think about the vacuum. This was a little risky, since if the vacuum failed more drastic measures would be taken, perhaps even a C-section. However, we wanted to avoid any medication or surgery if possible, and Jess still had a good amount of energy at this point, so we agreed to try it. Doctor Banaski got the round white disc and attached it, and after literally two pushes your head was past the sticking point. Jess pushed and pushed, and your eyes opened and looked at Chris as soon as they emerged. After Jess pushed and pushed a few more times, with Chris and Ashley and Dr. Banaski all encouraging loudly, you were born! You were immediately put onto Jess’s chest, and Chris looked at the doctor and asked if you were a boy or girl. Even the doctor didn’t know yet, so your dad was the first one in the world to know you were a boy. With all her self-doubt and fear going into the birth, the HypnoBirthing techniques and the amazing staff at the hospital combined to give us a really wonderful birth experience, and Jess is so proud of her accomplishment.