Birthday Story

JD's first birthday is rapidly approaching. I still can't believe it has almost been a year. I remember how scared I was to have a baby (actually delivering it) and then how nervous I was about taking care of a tiny little life.

At my last doctor appointment before JD's due date, he mentioned coming in to be induced. He reasoned that it would be better to have a more controlled environment for the birth since JD was getting large (by estimation of our last sonogram). He hoped that we would avoid a c-section this way.

I was pretty fearful of a "large baby" birth and I really wanted to make sure that JD would be not be in any danger during the process, so we agreed. I wanted to wait until at least JD's due date though, so we didn't go into the hospital until his actual due date - April 2.


They gave me the inducing drugs in the evening and we went to sleep. Or as much sleep as my constant bathroom trips allowed. Poor Jon had to help me in and out everytime because I was hooked up to an IV.

The next day was pretty interesting. Although I was in labor (having contractions), I made very little progress, so the doctor mentioned breaking my water to get things going. He also let me have an epidural early, which was the best thing that had happened all morning. After he broke my water, he found meconium in the fluid, which is a sign that the baby was getting a little past due and needed to be delivered prettty quickly. You don't want that stuff sitting in their lungs. Plus, there were other signs that JD was wearing out his welcome inside of me, so he needed to move along!

But unfortunately, the intensity of the induced contractions made little JD's heartrate go skyhigh, so we had to make a quick decision to go ahead with a c-section. Jon and I wanted to the best thing for the baby's health and for my health at this point.


They prepped us both for surgery and I started to get nervous again. Not about the surgery, but about how quickly I was going to have a baby in my arms after it would be over! We went in for the procedure and the doctor asked if we would be okay with music playing. Garth Brooks' The Thunder Rolls was playing, a song that Jon and I both liked to make fun of for the cheesiness factor.

They checked to make sure I couldn't feel anything (and I couldn't) and they started. The next thing I remember is the doctor saying 'He is huge!' Then he quickly said, 'Oh no. That was just his head.' Then we had our sweet little baby boy. They brought him over to the table beside us and cleaned him off. Jon took pictures and went with them for the first checkup. JD was the perfect size (in my opinion) - 7 pounds, 13.5 ounces and 20 inches long.



They finished all the procedures on me and wheeled me all over the place (it seemed like). I finally settled in to our room and got to hold JD for the first time. I was slightly drugged, but I knew I had the sweetest bundle of joy in my arms and I thanked God for such a wonderful baby boy.