It has been so long since I blogged, that I wrote nothing during the time I was pregnant this time. But, for my memory's sake, I wanted to at least record the birth story.
Judah Mark Jarrard made his debut on May 18th at 3:50 p.m. and weighed in at 10 lbs. 3 oz. and was 22" long! I still can't believe I gave birth to a 10 pound baby!
Like his brother, Judah was taking his sweet time coming into the world, so as I approached 41 weeks, my doctor had us make a game plan. So we decided to get the induction on the calendar. I think she would have let me do the non-stress test again at 41 weeks and plan from there, but I honestly was so done with being pregnant by the end of this one! I was so sore and swollen that I was ready for baby to be out! I measured ahead consistently throughout this pregnancy and had a second ultrasound at 36 weeks that already was estimating baby's weight to be 7.1 lbs, so I was surprised she let me even go a whole week past my due date. I was hoping to be further dilated since I started having contractions a few weeks before delivery, but I was only around 2-3 cm.
Again, my mom came out on my due date (May 10th) and stayed for two weeks. We knew better this time that there was a good chance baby would not come by then! We had a great time, and it was nice having her here during those last uncomfortable days. She was so helpful with Silas and helped me stay on top of cleaning and laundry. Silas loved his play time with Grandma!
Monday was a very early morning as we needed to be at the hospital at 6:30 to get checked in and up to the labor & delivery room. When I got up I used the restroom and felt a a small gush of fluid. I was pretty sure my water broke, but wasn't 100% positive since it was different than when my OB broke my water the first time. I put a pad on just in case but didn't feel any leaking on my way to the hospital. I had my IV in and fluids and pitocin started by 7:00 and things progressed steadily from there. They started me on the lowest dose of pitocin and as my contractions became more consistent and a little stronger, I started feeling fluid with each one. Dr. Munns came to check on me around 8:30 and I was dilated 3.5/4 cm, and suggested I get the epidural within the half hour because she had a feeling I was going to progress fairly quickly and start having some harder contractions. And was she right! by 9:00 I was ready for the epidural. From there on out, I dilated about a centimeter per hour. At one point I asked if they could just turn off the pitocin haha! At the very end we were waiting on one little edge of my cervix to move so that I could start pushing. The nurse had me lay on my side and within 15 minutes I knew we were about to have a baby! I literally felt him drop and had the strongest urge to push. I was shaking from the intensity! By the time Dr. Munns got called over, I was sure one of the nurses was going to have to catch the baby haha! But, she made it in the nick of time, and we finally found out we had another son! My mom cut the cord and we found out just how big he was!
I loved this labor and delivery (as much as you can love it lol). It went so smoothly and so much quicker, and I actually remember the day so much better. I remember about a half hour before I had him, the nurse checked me, and realizing how close we were, I started crying. It hit me that this was really happening and I was about to have another baby. So many emotions came over me in that moment. They were tears of joy though! Mark had ran out to use the restroom quick since it was almost go-time, so he was so confused when he came back and me, mom, and Cindy were all in tears! ;)
Mark, as usual, was incredible. So patient, attentive, and encouraging. It was also an honor to have my mom there again, and I couldn't believe she actually cut the cord! It was also such a blessing that the timing worked out for Cindy Brown to be there and take photos for us throughout Judah's birth day! God worked this day out so perfectly, and I am so grateful for such an incredible experience, and for a healthy baby. d
