unexpected arrival

 

Walter James Stradley

Born December 28 2012

12:27 PM

4lb 2 oz

18 inches long

 

story to follow....

 

Ok its following.  Felt more appropriate to just add it here since, I don't know it has been 7 months since Walter was born.  I'm not so on top of things I guess.  So we all knew Walter was due a month after Stacey and Travis were to be joined in holy matrimony and we all knew I'm no good a making it to my due date.  Everyone said, don't you do it Shiloh, hold him in there! I tried. I really did.  We even took hypno birthing classes with every intention of going natural and on time!!! Did it matter.  Nope.  There was no warning, no early labor signs, no nothing.  Morning of Stacey's glorious day I was up at 4ish feeling really uncomfortable, so I took a warm bath thinking this is strange maybe I just need to relax.  I've never felt contractions you see, so I had no idea what was going on.  I think my water kinda broke too (just a little mind you), but again, never experienced it so didn't think anything of it.  I started getting ready to go to Logan and was all dressed and Andrew was in his suit, but I was experiencing contractions 4 minutes apart!  So we went to the hospital instead.  Something was wrong I thought and I would rather not get stuck in a canyon not knowing what was going on.  I felt really bad, like maybe I was crazy and I should just suck it up and go to the wedding.  We had been at the hospital twice that week already! Once for decreased fetal movement and again for a regular scheduled appointment.  I got there and they had me do some fetal monitoring.  Walter was in distress with the contractions so they gave me something that was supposed to slow labor if it wasn't true labor.  It was, so the medicine didn't work.  They checked my cervix and I was dialated to a 3.  They decided because Walter was having heart decelerations while I was contracting and I was having some stabbing lower right side abdominal pain that this was going to be an emergency C-section.  I was trying so hard to breath and do my zone relaxation techniques.  They hooked me up to an epidural but a low one.  I could still tell when I was contracting.  Andrew and I kept watching the screen to see if Walters heart rate would keep dropping with every contraction.  We noticed that I was contracting every 2 minutes.  Everyone was all suited up to go to the operation room including Andrew.  The Doctor came in to ask if we had any final questions and I asked her to please check me again and if it would be at all possible to deliver without C-section.   She checked and laughed... Walter was crowning.  So she told me to push!  She said I would have probably delivered in the hall way if she hadn't checked me.  That would have been nuts!  I think I maybe pushed 3 times?  Maybe I should consult Andrew, he remembers details better than I do.  Anyway, Thats all folks.  We sent a picture to everyone at the wedding lucheon happy wedding day Stacey! So from 4am-Noon I was in labor.  Walter spent the next 3 weeks in the hospital learning to eat and breath.  It was rough.  I don't like NICU stays.  I have many journals pages full of stress from that month.  He is happy and healthy today and we love our little family even though every stinkin cute one of them has landed in the NICU.