Well, I've become one of those mothers who stops coming to class and never provides the birth update :) My husband and I welcomed our son James (Jamie) Reges at 1:38 pm on Monday, March 15th. Jamie weighed a whopping 9 lbs, 15 oz and measured in at 21.5 inches.
At my last internal appointment on March 12th, my doctor suggested that we induce early (on the first day of Week 39) due to size concerns of our little guy. We took the first available day - that following Monday. My doctor broke my amniotic sac at approximately 8:00 in the morning and I was started on a pitocin drip. My body was ready for labor, as I was already 3 cm dilated at that point and needed very little pitocin to get things moving. Unfortunately, because of the inducement, much of my birth plan went out the window - no early laboring at home - and I was hooked up to continuous fetal and contraction monitoring because of the pitocin.
At around 6 cm, I asked for an epidural and was very happy with my decision. It helped me relax and mentally prepare for pushing. Around noon, I began pushing for about 1 1/2 hours. Overall, the labor went great! About 5 1/2 hours total and little pain. My postpartum recovery turned out to be the more difficult aspect. Given Jamie's size, my doctor did an episiotomy to help with the delivery of the shoulders. The episiotomy ended up in a 3rd degree tear. Not sure what exactly that means, and not sure that I want to know. I was given morphine after labor, to which I had a bad reaction (uncontrollable itching and nausea) and ending up staying an additional night at the hospital. It took about 1 1/2 weeks until I was completely comfortable again from a pain aspect.
I'm enjoying my time home with the little guy and am slowly adjusting to his sleep (or our lack of our sleep) schedule. I'm attaching some of my favorite pictures.
Thank you for all your support and guidance throughout my pregnancy! I've thoroughly enjoyed your prenatal classes and connecting with other moms-to-be. You provided the perfect mix of education, confidence-building, and relaxation. I hope to see you soon and some of the new moms at Itsy Bitsy Yoga.
Jen R