Louis Oliver is here and is settling into our little world just perfectly. The last few weeks before Louis was born, Richard Carey and I were getting pretty antsy and were predicting labor to begin any second... Even though I was anxiously awaiting the baby's arrival, I was praying that God take care of the timing, as He surely knows more about that than I do. His timing could not have been any better.
And so the labor story goes: The weekend before Louis was born, my dad and step-mom came to Houston for a visit. On Sunday the 16th, we had a nice, relaxing family day. We went to Mass in the morning and played in the backyard in the afternoon. Bateman even carved his first pumpkin! Sunday afternoon and evening, I felt really tired which was probably a signal for things to come... Labor began around 1:30 am when my water broke. I was able to labor at home until 6 am. Our goal was a natural, unmedicated childbirth, so we wanted to labor at home as long as we could. During our time at home and in between contractions, Richard Carey was getting things together, and I was tidying up around the house. RC fixed us some yummy bagel and egg sandwiches. At 6, the contractions were still manageable, but we decided to go into the hospital especially since my water had broken. God's perfect timing comes in here as we were able to leave Bateman sleeping while my dad took care of him all day! When we got to the hospital, I had dilated 2 cm. Since my water had been broken for a few hours, it was protocol to give me Pitocin to speed up my labor. I also had to have continuous fetal monitoring (instead of intermittent checking as I had hoped so I could move around and walk the halls during labor). Both the Pitocin and fetal monitoring were things I was hoping to avoid, but I accepted it and focused on the contractions. Pitocin was the reason I opted for an epidural during Bateman's birth, but this time, I felt prepared to accept the strength of the contractions as a positive step towards having that baby in our arms. At that point, RC called our assistant birth coach, Monique, who offered free "doula" services since she is training to be a doula. Monique was certainly sent by God because we were not seeking her out, but she just kind of fell into our laps. RC and Monique were so wonderful at helping me to focus on the purpose of each contraction rather than the pain involved. Monique had great ideas for me to change positions to be the most comfortable and to keep the progression of labor moving forward. RC reminded me to offer the pain as a prayer for a certain intention. The next few hours just went by so fast. They were hard work, but so manageable when I focused on my breathing and relaxation instead of tensing up and holding my breath. I also got some support from little visits from my mom, sister, and my mother and father in law. I was so glad they were all there. When it was time to push, the nurse tried to stop me because the doctor had still not arrived. It was very difficult not to push, so I started before the doctor arrived. RC and Monique were telling me to listen to my body! I don't know if the doctor was in the room for 5 minutes before Louis was born. As I was pushing for the last time, the doctor asked me to stop because the cord was around Louis' neck. Dr. Edwards pulled the cord from around his neck and told me to continue pushing. The nurse announced, "15:54!" It took me a few seconds to convert it to 3:54 pm. Wow! Louis Oliver Green. The emotion of seeing that baby come out and to have him placed on my tummy to snuggle... it's just indescribable. Unbelievable. Life! How amazing. So that's my little rundown of how Louis entered our arms.
My mother and father in law were already planning to drive to Houston that day to pick up Bateman for the Washington Parish fair. So in God's perfect timing, they drove in and snatched him for a few days while Richard Carey and I had some bonding time with Louis Oliver. God is so good!
The day before Louis was born...
Click on the following picture for a Picasa slideshow:
And he arrives!
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