Shiloh Ethan

Over the weekend of my due date, I began to notice some swelling in my hands and feet. Nothing horrible but I decided to have my blood pressure checked just in case. On Monday, my 31st birthday, we headed to my favorite breakfast eatery Snooze. On our way, I decided to run into CVS to have it checked. Sure enough, it was elevated 139/84. That afternoon, we headed down to Castle Rock to have Dr. Zart check me out. With everything concerned, she thought it would be best to induce me on Tuesday night.

The following night, August 5th, my Mom and Josiah came over to stay with Micah. It was definitely hard to leave Micah, knowing it would be the last time we would be a family of three, but we were still so very excited to meet the newest member of our family. Tim and I headed to the hospital at 5:00. On our way, the charge nurse called to tell us they wouldn't be ready for us until 7pm. What a nice surprise this was because Tim and I got to have a very nice last dinner together before the craziness began. We chose Applebees and had a beautiful mountain view, which included Castle Rock Adventist too.

We anxiously and excitedly got checked in and settled in our room by 8pm. Our room was so nice and huge and we got the enjoy the view... at least until the contractions started.

By 10pm, the cervadil was on board and we were so excited/nervous to get the process going. We both tried our best to get as much rest as we could but I ended up with only getting about 3 hours. At 7am, Dr. Sorensen came in to check on me and reported that I had not dilated at all, broke my water and then started misoprostol to try to induce labor. She came back at noon and found I was only 1cm and started pitocin. Boy oh boy, did the contractions come on strong and quick then! I labored for another six hours before finding out that I was STILL only at 2-3cm and Shiloh's heart rate would drop quite a bit during the contractions. I would then do a quick change of positions and then his heart rate would pick back up. Around 6pm, we decided to go ahead with the epidural. I was a little fearful of the process of getting the epidural but really it was nothing compared to the contractions.

Dad, Mom, Josiah, and Micah came to visit around 7pm. It was nice to have the company but I think Micah was a little freaked out by all the equipment and seeing his Mommy in the condition I was in. Poor guy!

At 8pm the nurses checked me and I had progressed to 5-6cm.

At 10pm one of the nurses checked me and excitedly reported I was at 10cm, fully effaced, but the baby's head was not fully down. So we did 30 minutes of practice pushes. She called Dr. Sorensen in and the room was prepped for delivery. At 11:15 Sorensen arrived, checked me, and completely devastated me with the news that I was still only 7cm, at best. My blood pressure was also quite high at this point. She then suggested that they turn down the pitocin, let me rest, and then possibly start it back up in a few hours.

I labored through the night (absolutely no sleep!) and Shiloh's heart rate continued to rise and fall. By 5am my blood pressure was still high, I developed a fever, and Shiloh's heart rate was not stable. Dr. Sorensen's day off was on Thursday and so when she showed up at 5am in her scrubs, I knew we were headed for a c-section. Everything at this point and after is pretty blurry (from exhaustion, hormones, epidural, etc!!) but I do remember getting quite emotional when she arrived. I know I thanked her profusely (through several tears) for still coming in on her day off. Although it was not an emergency c-section, there was definitely a rush to deliver Shiloh. Within 30 minutes we heard Shiloh's sweet little cries... what a relief to finally hear, see, and touch him! Following the nurse showing him to Tim and I, they whisked him off to the baby bassinet to check on him. He scored an 9/10 on his APGAR test... praise the Lord!

One thing I do remember so clearly is that when they placed Shiloh in the baby bassinet, he was just wailing so loud. Tim, while video taping, put his finger out for him to hold on to. Shiloh immediately stopped crying, opened his eyes, and just stared up at his Daddy. So precious!!

The next four hours are a complete blur but I do remember nursing Shiloh for a good hour. Thankfully he was a champ nurser from the beginning... even with a tongue tie!