Caelan's Birth Story

In all fairness to Caelan, Micah had his birth story recorded so I wanted to make sure Caelan's story got the spotlight too. Most of you know that I was scheduled for an induction on October 1st at 7:30 a.m., two weeks earlier than my due date. In the last trimester, I was diagnosed with Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy (ICP) which is a liver condition that causes excess bile in my bloodstream, and was toxic to the baby. While the idea of an induction was very unnatural, in all frankness, I was more concerned with the risk of a sudden stillbirth than I was with an early baby. But the Lord's timing is always perfect, and I didn't need to worry, it turned out that my body was ready to give birth at exactly the same time I was supposed to be induced. How God is that!

My doctor's appointment earlier that day confirmed I was about 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced. I started having strong contractions around 4 p.m. and decided that I should go to the hospital in case I dilated too quickly and wouldn't be allowed an epidural. Something I was not willing to risk! So I packed the rest of my bag, got all dolled up for the momentous occasion (for all those comments of how I looked- no I did not have a make up artist on stand by! I am a diva --deal with it) and so we were off to meet our new baby!

Our last family photo of just us and Micah:
 

When we arrived at the hospital, I was only 5 cm dilated (For reference, you need to be at ten when you start pushing) however, the doctor was not willing to send me home and risk me having the baby on the bathroom floor. I was encouraged to walk around the hospital for about an hour, so Patrick and I paced the halls in hopes that the pressure would dilate me further. We used that precious time to "prayer walk" and pray for the delivery, our sons, our families, and friends. When we ran out of things to pray for, we prayed for the upcoming Presidential election! :)

Hard to believe I am in active labor right now with killer
contractions at 2 minutes a part. I can't feel a thing! 
 

Around 7:30 p.m., I was checked again and it worked, I was more dilated and pretty ready to go. I was quickly admitted, given a fantastic dose of an epidural and by 8:30 p.m., they broke my water, and started me on pitocin to speed things up. Within 3 hours, I was already fully dilated! I have to say it was the best birthing experience EVER. I didn't feel an ounce of pain from the start and when it was time to push, I had to peer over the side and ask my doctor if indeed I was pushing! I suppose anyone would still look good if they didn't even break a sweat during labor! We missed a September birthday by one minute (believe me, my doctor tried!)

Fifteen minutes of painless pushing and little Caelan came into the world at 12:01 a.m. And shook me to the core. I guess I thought having done this before that I wouldn't be as moved, but surprisingly, I was even more moved by seeing his little body wiggling and hearing that first cry. I think it's because of all the stress of whether he was going to be alive or not. We have a video and you can hear me saying in complete awe, "Wow, he's so real! He's actually alive..." He was the most beautiful thing I ever saw.