April 23rd 2010 8:11pm
6lbs 11oz 19 1/2 in
This past week has gone by so fast. Bringing home Jackson was one of the greatest days of my life, but it wasn't so easy. I am so grateful for the gospel in my life and for the amazing power of the priesthood. Heavenly Father was definitely watching out for Jackson and me that day, and continues to surround us with his angels. Here is Jackson's birth story...
The morning of April 23rd (my birthday) was great! It was finally my due date which meant any day now I would get to meet my beautiful son. Matt kissed me and was off to work, with his cell phone kept close, just in case. That morning I was determined to get my baby out so I did all the natural labor inducing methods I could think of. Walked up and down my stairs about 100 times, ate spicy food etc. and....IT WORKED! My water broke at about 9:30am and Matt rushed home to get me. We were on our way to the hospital by 10am.
When we got there my contractions were coming fast and furious. I wanted to wait a bit before I got my epidural to see if it would speed things along, but that was a mistake because the anesthesiologist got tied up in a c-section and I had to wait another hour before he came! OUCH! But once I got it (it didn't even hurt to get) I was in heaven.
After a couple hours I was still only dialed to a 4, but my contractions were coming faster and much closer together. This was concerning to the doctors because my body was basically pushing him out when I was not ready. His heart rate dropped a few times with each contraction and in flew about 10 doctors and nurses. They then realized that i had developed a fever and were giving me antibiotics and oxygen. My doctor said that we better do an emergency c-section so that the baby wouldn't be in distress......"Wait. what? I am going to have a c-section?" I thought. That was not in the plan! As they wheeled me into the OR I was still in denial, but my wonderful doctor calmed me down and let me know that everything was going to be fine. Which it was. The C-section was a breeze. I wish I would have thought of that in the first place. I didn't feel a thing and my baby came out perfectly. It was actually a blessing that they ended up doing a c-section because the umbilical cord was wrapped around Jack's neck and could have been very dangerous had I delivered naturally. Heavenly father was definitely watching out for us and I am so blessed that the spirit had prompted the doctors to act quickly.
Seeing my baby for the first time was such an amazing moment. Heaven had never felt closer and the feeling of the spirit was so thick in the air I could hardly breathe. My precious gift from my Father in Heaven had finally arrived and I was so thankful for such a beautiful baby.
But after that dramatic entrance into the world Jackson was not done making us sweat! As they assessed him they realized that he was breathing a bit fast and gave him some oxygen to ease him. After about an hour of cuddling skin to skin in the recovery room they decided it was best to take him up to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for some further monitoring. After a few nights of testing they discovered that Jackson had developed a pneumothorax in his lungs (basically a tiny air bubble trapped between the walls of his lungs making it harder for him to breathe.) The doctors continued to give him oxygen, but it seemed to stay the same. Each day he spent in the NICU felt like a thousand years! All I wanted was to take my precious baby home.
After many prayers Matt was prompted to give Jackson a priesthood blessing. His father came down and helped give Jackson this blessing. We all had great faith that Jackson would soon recover and our minds were finally put at ease. I am so thankful for the power of the priesthood and for worthy men in my family to be able to use this great gift. What would I do without the gospel?
The next day the doctors did another ex-ray of his lungs and found that the pnumo was resolving! Jack would be coming home soon! Getting that news was like winning the lottery! I was elated.
AS we left the NICU I was filled with such gratitude!
Jack is now over one week old and we are loving life! He is the cutest baby! And after all that drama he turned out to be one of the most mellow babies. He is such a good nurser and loves to sleep and lets mommy and daddy do the same.
6 comments:
You guys are such a beautiful family! I am so glad to hear you are all doing well. We can't wait to meet Jackson, but we want to make sure you guys have time to settle into your new routine :-) Let us know when you're ready for visits!
That is such an amazing story! Scary I am sure, but very spiritual. Thanks for sharing! I love him already! Sorry I comment on every single picture you post on here and facebook, but I just can't get enough. He is too precious!
We too would love to come visit, so let us know when you are ready and settled. :)
(I accidentally deleted my last post. oops!)
Such a powerful story. It was amazing to witness so much of it. I learned in Stake Conference on Sunday that "peace is not the absence of chaos, but the presence of Heavenly Father." The gospel does bring us such peace even when things are CRAZY, as you know! There is just a piece of Heaven in those little bodies. We are so excited to finally have a cousin. Can't wait to see you guys in a few weeks! keep the pictures coming!
First off, who knew you had a blog?! This is great! Secondly, congrats--April 23rd is a great day, I know about 5 other people with that birthday; all great people, well except for one, but we won't count him. I'm happy he's safe, he looks like a little stud. Can't wait to meet this little guy.
Congrats to you guys! I am so glad that everything turned out just fine when all was said and done! Enjoy every moment & can't wait to meet Jackson in August!
Post a Comment