Tanners pregnancy and birth story

This post is long and it may not make as much sense to you as it did to me but this is for my journaling purposes and I hope you enjoy!




I'm going to start back in February 2011. I was 11 weeks pregnant and due September 1 2011 when I had a miscarriage. We were heartbroken but knew that there was a reason for everything and that we just had to keep trying for another miracle. In July we found out we were expecting again due March 24 2012. We were so excited and so were the boys! This was the most sick I have been with the 4 pregnancies. I only threw up from time to time but I was nauseous 24 hours a day! I also was exhausted! I don't know how much of this exhaustion had to do with the pregnancy or the fact that I had 2 other children to take care of. To sum it up I spent about 6 weeks on the couch. I would get up long enough to get food for the kids and to start laundry. I had piles of clean laundry downstairs because even though I washed the clothes, I never folded them or put them away :) I felt pretty good for a weeks and then I had this wave of cold, after cold, after cold. I was getting so frustrated because I just wanted to feel "normal" again. On November we found out we were expecting another little boy!!!!! I was wrong. I honestly believed we were having a girl especially since Jordan kept telling me he wanted a baby sister. When we told Jordan he started crying and ran upstairs. After a few minutes he calmed down and we talked about how fun brothers are and how daddy has 6 brothers and how great it is to have a brother. He hopped on board to the idea of another brother (thank goodness). I was really late in getting my glucose screen done because I kept putting it off since I had never had gestational diabetes in my other pregnancies, I didn't think it was a big deal. I finally went and took the one hour test and I failed so I went and took the 3 hour test and unfortunately I had gestational diabetes. I had to test my blood 4 times a day, take medicine twice a day and monitor the carbs in everything I ate.

This now takes us to the end of my pregnancy. All 3 of the midwives were concerned with how big our baby might get. Jordan and Logan were both large babies 8 lbs. 13 oz and 9 lbs 7 oz and I didn't have gestational diabetes with them so they were a little concerned about how big this one could get. At my 37 1/2 week appointment I was measuring over 40 weeks and by their external palpitations they guessed the baby to be around the 8 1/2 lb mark. They knew that I wanted to avoid being induced but they also wanted to keep me from having another 9 lb baby so we discussed the option of inducing after the 39 week mark. Well Monday March 12 I went in for my non-stress test (common procedure in gestational diabetes patients) and when I got there Rosie (my nurse) told me that the midwives wanted me to pop into their office when i was done. Patty came in and asked me how I felt about trying to get things going that week instead of the next week. I said I was fine with that so Julie came in and stripped my membranes. This hurt like heck but it didn't do a whole lot for me. I had a few contractions that night but that was it. So Tuesday night Devon and I went back to the office where Nicole placed a foley bulb. Now I had never heard of this before but I recommend it to every pregnant lady who wants/needs induce but doesn't want to go straight to pit. It is a balloon filled with water that they place on the cervix to help you dilate and efface. I wasn't only dilated to like a 2 and barely starting to efface so I didn't think this would do a whole lot but boy was I wrong. The foley bulb can only be in for 12 hours before they have to remove it so we were scheduled to show up at the hospital Wednesday morning at 7 where Nicole would decide to either start me on pit, use cervadil, or break my water depending on where I was at. She also told me that usually if you aren't a first time mom the foley bulb will fall out within a few hours. So we went home and went about our normal lives. I finally packed our hospital bag, had things ready for the kids, my parents drove in from Boise, Devon and my dad gave me a wonderful blessing and then we went to bed.

I woke up at 1:40 a.m. and I was having some pretty uncomfortable contractions. I didn't think a whole lot about them until I realized they were coming every couple of minutes. So I pulled out my phone and started timing the contractions. Every 5 minutes lasting for about a minute and I timed them for over an hour. Now to anyone who has ever had a baby knows that this fit the 5:1:1 rule and this is where most people are told to go to the hospital. I however knew we were going to the hospital in a few hours and I honestly didn't think I could be in labor. So I went back to sleep a little after 3 a.m.. At 4:40 I woke up to some really painful contractions. So I pulled out my phone again and started timing the contractions. 3 minutes apart lasting for a minute. I knew there was no way I was going back to bed because the contractions were too painful especially in my back. So I decided I would get out of bed and start getting ready to go to the hospital (remember we were waking up at 6 anyway to go) and I figured that if they got more intense or closer together I would wake Devon up and we would go early. Well they got more intense. I was in the bathroom leaning against the counter having very strong contractions so I went into the bedroom where I got on all fours (this is supposed to help with back labor) and I peeked up over the bed and said "Devon, Devon we need to go to the hospital" Devon looked at me and goes "oh I'm sorry I didn't even hear the alarm" I smiled at him and said "there was no alarm, we're early but I'm in labor and we need to go now" so he hops out of bed and he quickly gets dressed and we drive to the hospital. Now for those who know where we live you know we don't live in town and the hospital is about 30 miles away. So I breathe through the contractions trying to remember to relax and that I can do anything for 1 minute. We get to the hospital just after 6 a.m. and we walk into the delivery hallway where a nurse meets us and asks "are you are c-section?" I reply "no I'm your 7 o'clock induction but I went into labor on my own" the nurse looks at me and goes "o.k. lets get you into a room" She puts us in a room I get into a gown, etc. while they go and get Nicole. Nicole comes in and takes out the foley bulb and then she checks me. I'm at 3-4 centimeters but 100% effaced and thinned so she says "don't worry I think as soon as I break your water you're going to go fast. You'll have this baby before noon" So they get me all checked in, registered in the computer, put a hep block in ( I had a fever when I got there so they put the hep block in just in case). Then Nicole broke my water :)

Really quick I have to make sure everyone knows that I was planning on a natural unmedicated birth. It's something I had always wanted but hadn't prepared myself well enough for with the other two. So my water is broken just past 7 a.m. Then Nicole gets me on the birthing ball where I rock side to side to open my hips and help the baby move down. The lights were dimmed (almost completely off), there was nice soothing music in the background and through every contraction Nicole was there massaging my lower back. At this point I want you to picture Devon sound asleep in the chair as I am laboring :) This whole time Nicole had been filling up the birthing tub and I just kept telling myself that I could make it to the tub. I wasn't hooked up to the fetal monitoring machine so Nicole wanted to check on the baby with her doppler. I had a few contractions and then she said "o.k. one more contraction with me listening to the baby and then we'll get you in the tub". Now by this point I was in a lot of pain. A LOT!!!! I told myself "o.k. get in the tub, have a few contractions in the water and if it doesn't help I'm asking for drugs :) " So we get into the bathroom and Nicole has me go to the bathroom before I get into the warm water and as I'm sitting on the toilet I have a contraction. Then I look up at Nicole and go " Nicole I have to push!!!" and she goes o.k., pushes the nurse call button and then says she's going to check me. 8-9 centimeters. Nicole " we have to get you back to the bed" then she stands up, goes to the door and goes "Devon, Devon you're going to want to get up for this!" Before Devon got up I looked at Nicole and said "Nicole, can I do this?" She looked me straight in the eye and said "Yes you can! It's going to hurt and it's going to be intense but you can do it." Devon then came in half asleep and totally confused as to what was going on and Nicole tells him we're about to have a baby. He looks at me and goes "already?" So they get me back to the bed where I lay on my side and Nicole has my leg up over one of her shoulders. I get through a few more contractions and I hurt like heck!!!!! I honestly did not think I could do anymore. Then I start pushing. I'm holding on to Devons hand, it started out as one and by the end I was squeezing both of them. I understand what they mean by the ring of fire and when they say that you get to a point where you can't do it anymore and then it's over. I remember laying there in between contractions and fervently pleading with my Heavenly Father to give me the strength to do this because I didn't think I was going to make it. At one point while pushing I said "I can't, I can't it hurts it hurts" But then Nicole said "Jamie reach down and grab your baby. I did. He was placed on my chest and it was over! So from the time I got to the hospital to the time I had Tanner was 2 hours!

*This has been the best recovery out of my 3 deliveries and I know that has to do with the fact that I didn't have any drugs. We came home less than 12 hours after I delivered him!

*It was so nice to not be hooked up to an IV or the monitoring machine. It gave me so much freedom

*I was a little sad that I didn't get to get in the tub because I had heard it's amazing but I'm also glad that the delivery went so fast :)

Giving birth naturally was the most intense, insane, most painful thing I have ever experienced in my life, but it was also the most wonderful, spiritual and empowering thing I have ever done. I wouldn't change it for the world and if we decide to have any more kids I know this is the way I want to do it!