He's here! Jesse Caleb Miskin was born on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 8:33pm. He was 8 lbs 15 oz, and 21 inches long. Here's how the labor and delivery went...
I had been having regular Braxton-Hicks contractions all of friday, which was very unusual for me. They continued the next morning, but then became more like real contractions by about noon. I was still a little in denial, because I was expecting this baby to be a week late like Alaina was. But by about 4pm I couldn't avoid the cold hard facts that I was in labor. This is when Caleb became frantic. He did what any husband would do in the same situation: he started cleaning the garage. I guess it's the male version of nesting. Our plan was to take Alaina to the neighbor's around her bedtime, and then drive to the hospital, assuming that things went similarly to my last labor. Well, they didn't. Things went much faster, and by 6pm it was time to get going. Brief interjection about my contractions: They were much more manageable this time around. I'm attributing it to my faithfulness in walking 3-4 miles every day of my pregnancy up until the end. My body felt much more "fit" for delivery for some reason.
So anyway, my dear sweet irrational husband refuses to go to the hospital at this point because, and I quote, "the dishes aren't done, and we will get fruit flies!" So here I am, suffering through contractions every 3 minutes while Caleb frantically throws dishware around the sink. Since the pain wasn't unbearable, I let him clean. We left for the hospital at 7:15, and made one more quick stop on the way there.
And now here's when things pick up:
7:50pm-arrive at hospital
8pm-walk into delivery room. About 6 nurses were waiting to poke/prod/measure/monitor/fill the birthing tub. I was already at an 8, 100% effaced. At first I thought the midwife was joking. I was expecting to be a 4 or 5.
8:10-I have to push! The tub isn't full quite yet, but I hopped in anyway.
8:11-8:32-Excruciating pushing and searing pain that seemed to last for hours, but apparently only lasted like 20 minutes. For those of you who haven't experienced natural childbirth, think of your insides being torn in half while pushing out an infant Edward Scissorhands.
8:33-Jesse was born.
For those of you doing the math, I spent a grand total of 43 minutes in the hospital before delivery.
A lot of people have asked what I thought about the water birth experience. These are my thoughts:
It is THE BEST way to go if you are planning on a natural childbirth. Being weightless in the water made it so much easier to squat and push. Being reclined in a bed makes it so much harder to figure out which muscles to push with. It was also very relaxing to be in warm water, and I was able to rest between contractions by leaning over the side of the pool. The best part of all was being able to essentially deliver my own child. As soon as I pushed him out the midwife helped me pick him up out of the water and rest him on my own chest. It was so cool to just chill in the tub for a few minutes with my newborn son. After Caleb cut the cord I got out of the pool and onto the bed for placenta delivery/stitches/etc. That part isn't so fun...
As far as addressing some concerns people may have about a water birth:
People may worry that a water birth is more risky than a regular delivery. I did some research on this, and although there hasn't been much research done yet, the 2 major studies I looked at concluded that it is just as safe as non-water births. You can read up here if you are interested.
Other people may be deterred by being in the water with all the "ickiness" of a delivery. To be honest, that's never bothered me, and I was only in there with all that stuff for maybe 5 minutes. I do feel sorry for whoever had to clean everything up though. And no, Caleb did not get in the birthing tub with me. I'm not that much of a hippie.
The recovery has been 100 times better than the last time. It took me 6 weeks to feel this good. Jesse is a cute little thing. He did get a cephalohematoma on his head from delivery (the pediatrician thinks he hit my pubic bone on the way out). But it just a fancy name
for a bruise/lump, and will go away in a few weeks. Until then we keep a
hat on when he has visitors, because it looks much scarier than it is. I
promise he doesn't have a tumor.
Some pictures!
Here he is.
This is Alaina as a newborn. I think they look very similar. Those Miskin genes are overwhelmingly strong. Also, someday it would be nice to have a small baby. Even like 7.5 lbs would be great. Is that too much to ask?
Proud father
Happy (& exhausted) mommy
The lump.
Our family
We are all a little sleep deprived, but very happy to have him here!
