David's story

David's pregnancy was an easy pregnancy after my first one! Little morning sickness. It was confined to the morning! And it went away before birth!

He rode LOW in my pelvis the whole time. I'd get up and my tailbone would pop. The doctors will tell you that can't happen, but I swear that's what happened.

Because his Dad was working in another state and was 5 hours away and no vacation time we decided to schedule his induction. My OB took some convincing, but since we had a reason she gave in and set a date. In some ways it was easier because when it was overwhelming I could go "We only have to go till August 4th!" And at the same time, when it was overwhelming I went, "August 4th is FOREVER away!!" Cause I was pregnant and a touch dramatic.

Everything was set. It was marked on the calender. AUGUST 4TH BABY DAY all in caps just like that.
And on August 3rd, Edwin was coming down and I was anxiously waiting for him so we could sleep a few hours and then go to the hospital and get the show on the road. The hospital called while I was waiting. Turns out, everyone and their sister went into natural labor and we got bumped. I was told maybe the 6th. That didn't work at all. He would be going back to his job on the 6th. He would have to leave mid-labor. There were tears. I was mad. How unfair could the world be??

So Edwin gets there and I explain what happened. We agree we'll figure out what to do about it tomorrow and go to bed.

I woke up at 2am and had to pee like crazy. I roll out of bed, stand up, and woosh, pee all over my feet. I run to the bathroom and finish peeing in the potty. Rinse myself off, change, go to bed. Edwin asks if anything is wrong, I am too embarassed to say what happened and just tell him it was a normal potty break.

The next morning I'm crampy but chalk it up to having been intimate with Edwin the night before. It's a beautiful day so we sit outside and watch the kids play. I'm sitting still as can be when the baby moves and I pee my pants again. I go inside, change, and say nothing about it to Edwin. Since there's no baby that day Edwin decides to go to a movie with his Dad, and I go to have lunch with a girlfriend. We decide to walk to the restaurant. It feels like walk walk pee my pants. I'm embarrassed but had a pad on so was set. We eat, "m uncomfortable. My friend, who was also my labor coach with my daughter, suggests I go home and rest and call my doc.

I call at 3pm because I'm thinking maybe the cramps are early labor. I speak with the nurse and complain about peeing my pants. I'm told the doctor will call me. I have her paged at 5:20pm and she calls back finally. She doesn't think it's anything but come in and we'll check you. She does the slide test and there are "ferns ferns everywhere" and she goes to check for dilation and effacement and as soon as she touches my cervix, the rest of my water break and is nice enough to not get her soaked.

We discuss my contractions, or lack there of, and the estimated time since my water broke. We figure it could have been 2 am or 10am either way, the baby needs to get out because the infection risk is high. So I call Edwin and inform him what's going on. He and his father have just bought the tickets and are headed to the theater. I told him to go watch the movie, they haven't even started an IV, found a room for me, let alone start the pitocin. He says call if it gets going and I need him. I call my best friend and she and her sister come. Her sister takes Lori home with her and my best friend/old labor coach stays with me until Edwin arrives. The nurse comes in to go over information and start my IV. We get things going and she starts my pitocin. Immediately my labor is intense. There is no easing into it. About 15 minutes in, I have to pee. The nurse arranges my lines so I can use the bathroom. As I start to sit up David crashes down into my left hip which hurts like crazy and a contraction starts, harder and longer than the one before it.
The nurse says "don't worry, just get up, it's just gravity helping along" and is trying to pull me upright mid-contraction. If I had the ability at the time, I'd have killed her. My friend is calling Edwin telling him things are going fast and head over now.

I get back in bed and ask if I can lay on my side. Nurse says sure, I roll over and I can't close my legs. There is something between them. I can't close my legs. I want an epidural. In fact that sentence is my chant while laboring. My doctor comes in and explains I can't have one, there isn't time. She rubs my leg while I chant, my friend holds my hand and silently curses Edwin for not being here yet.

I tell the doctor I have to push, she checks me and I have a "lip of cervix" left. She has me bear down to see if it'll move, and I moan how good it feels to push. She encourages it and helps manually push the lip of cervix out of the way. My doctor jokes "where is Edwin? I thought that was why it was planned, so he could be here" A few pushes and I have a son. I'm crying, my doctor is delaying cutting the cord so maybe Edwin will show up, and in through the door he bursts. At this point it had been explained to my doctor that he was at a movie. First sentence out of my doctors mouth to Edwin? "Was it a good movie?"

He looks embarrassed, says "she said I could stay. she said I had time" and cuts the cord.

I take my son to nurse him and am so incredibly happy. He was 8lbs 4oz 21in and born August 4th. (We still crack up he was 8 4 on 8/4) I told my OB he heard August 4th, he already had it written in and he'd be darn if he was going to change his plans because the hospital couldn't induce that day. He self induced!

The next day I'm sitting up, dressed in clothes, alert and eating like a horse. My doctor says she's never seen someone bounce back from labor so fast.

He had a lump on his head from hitting my pelvis and I have a bruised tailbone because he was big.

My doctors parting advice is next time I have a baby, I should live in the hospital for the 9th month. 8 hours from first contraction to baby with my first, 1 1/2 hours with my second, the third will likely be in a bobsled!

Two birth stories. Two completely different experiences. Two beautiful children

As for my best friend/labor coach for both births? She swears if I get pregnant again, she's taking her niece and spending a year in Guam.