*brecken*

BRECKEN COVE OBORN
born 8.4.2011 at 8:58 pm
7 lbs 6 oz 20 inches

Its been a busy couple of months but I suppose its time to update you all on our new addition.

Here's the story, enjoy!

My due date was August 12 and since Bannock only came two days before his due date I figured I'd go all the way with this one. But I didn't want to. So I spent the weekend before his arrival walking all over town, to the grocery store, the school, climbing the stairs with laundry all day, anything I could do get something going! And to avoid giving a talk in church (unfortunately he didn't come early enough to avoid that!) I had contractions consistently for two hours Sat night but they went away, the same thing again on Monday but nothing lasting. On Wednesday the 3 I was told at my dr's appt that I was 3 cm and about 80-90% effaced. I was excited because I technically had almost two weeks to go and I hadn't progressed early when I was pregnant with Bannock. The ObGyn told me I could come in and have my membranes stripped on Friday if I wanted but my mom was due to come into town on the following Tuesday so I thought I'd try to hold out. HA. Looking back, I distinctly remember the doctor doing something funny up in there, a little swipe, that at the time I didn't think about but I started having some harder contractions on the way home from the check-up, nothing to bad though. The next day I tried to clean around the house a bit and around 2:30 I noticed my contractions getting a little bit closer and a little more uncomfortable. I thought I'd try laying down when Sean got home from work at 3, but out bed turned into an impromptu wrestling ring between Sean and Bannock, which, at some point resulted in Bannock hitting his head (not very hard I might add) on the edge of the dresser. He didn't cry too hard so we didn't think anything of it until Sean picked Bannock up off my pillow and there was blood ALL over Bannock's head, his back, and my pillow. Needless to say, I sorta freaked out, I mean the blood was matted to his head and it made it look like Bannock had a huge gash. Sean quickly put him in the tub and poured cold water over his head (which he hated of course). I saw blood all over Sean and Bannock's clothes and immediately thought "he needs to go to the ER, he's going to need stitches" so I frantically called my friend Amy to borrow her car (ours was out of commission) and ran to get her keys from her. When I returned Bannock was somewhat subdued and Sean had cleaned up his head enough to see that he had a teeny little nick in his scalp, barely the size of a nail head. So the ER was called off and I just sat with Bannock, all the while I could tell my contractions were getting a little more painful. Sean decided to help out at ward farm (yes our ward has a farm) at five and I just stayed home. I called my mom to let her know the day's events and mentioned my contractions had been about 6-7 min apart for almost 3 hours and getting more painful. I was convinced it wasn't the real thing and it would pass because it was just too early. A few minutes later my dad called and convinced me to go get checked out at the hospital, I gave in, called the nurse and she said to come in but keep calm, take a shower, get a bite to eat etc.
By this point it was getting hard to talk through my contractions so I knew I needed to hurry. And for those who don't know, we live on the North shore which is far from civilization (and about an hour from the hospital). I text Sean to come home, text him again and finally called and told him to get home NOW because this was the real thing! We took Bannock to our friend's house and were on our way by 6:30. The drive to the hospital will forever be ingrained in my memory. It was straight out of a movie. A winding, two-lane highway with a speed limit of 35 mph was not ideal for a woman who was in active labor! My contractions were coming very hard and very close together, lasting a minute each and the turns in that road were relentless. Sean was flying down the highway, honking his horn, flashing his headlights, swerving in and out of traffic to avoid slow cars, running red lights - the whole deal. It was the one time we were actually hoping to get pulled over so we could get a police escort!
As we ran a red light near the hospital, honking our way through the intersection, it turns out a nurse who had just gotten off work saw us and followed us out of concern. When we pulled up to the door (I might have let a few choice words slip when Sean suggested finding a parking spot :) I tried to scramble out and the off-duty nurse ran and got me a wheelchair. I was quickly ushered inside ( I can't imagine the spectacle I was to people in the waiting room, if I had been more coherent I probably would have spouted off some lines from Baby Mama) and met by my nurse who just so happened to be a woman from my ward! When I got on the bed they told me I was at 7 cm, and fully effaced. It was about 7:30 pm. I declined drugs because I didn't want to risk prolonging labor (like before) and I am SO glad I did it natural because it happened so fast and I was awake and alert the whole time. I started pushing at 8:30 and Brecken arrived about twenty minutes later :)
He weighed 7.6 lbs and the first measurement they gave us was 18 inches (hecka short!) but a week later he measured 21 inches so we decided he was born somewhere in the middle ;) The first feeling I had when he was put on my chest was absolute utter relief! I was so glad he was here and I was DONE. Then I noticed his dark hair and his long fingers (just like Bannock's) and his lips which are Neely lips and I was struck by what an awesome privilege it is to bring life into this world.
I am so glad we made it to the hospital in time because as we drove I could feel the baby getting lower and I felt pressure like I needed to push. I'm also so glad I did it naturally because afterward I wasn't tired and drugged up, just happy and alert. I felt so good. I can recall every moment and every feeling. Yes, it hurt tremendously (let's say, the absolute worst case of constipation ever and no matter how bad it hurts or tears that baby just HAS to come out!) but it was over so quickly and recovery was so much faster I would suggest it to anyone. I'm thankful for this beautiful little boy and I'm thankful my labor was fast and technically easy. Bannock is still getting used to a brother, he calls him "sweetie" all the time and likes to share his toys with him to make him feel better (but of course on occasion he has also dumped a cup of water on him and scratched him but we won't focus on that). Sean completely adores Brecken and the latter has a favorite sleeping place in the arms of the former. I love all my boys and I can't wait (figuratively) to have more!