Tristan's Birth Story

Well as you all saw I went into labor at around 2:30 in the morning on the 13th. Josh and I had just come home from coffee with Kevin no more than 2 hours prior. Kevin has since shipped out and will be gone for the next 15 months. Maybe it was a mental thing... maybe it was physical... emotional... probably a combination of all three. I wanted Josh to see the baby before he left. I wanted Kevin to see the baby before he left. Well anyway, I went into labor :)

I stuck it out at home for quite a while, but I was eager to see how far I had progressed. I left once my contractions seemed painful enough and actually progressed. Trying to ride in a car or walk around a hospital can be rough past a certain point. We arrived at the hospital at around 6am. I was still able to laugh and joke and walk so I was half expecting them to say I was only 4cm, but I had managed to get to 6cm on my own and was admitted. I was left to my own devices for a few hours before they checked me again. By that time we had called almost everyone we knew and Kevin showed up in his uniform straight from work. He and Josh got to talk and get some breakfast and coffee before he left. That three hours my contractions stayed mostly the same.

When I was checked again at 9:30 I was still 6cm and they asked if I wanted them to break my water to speed things up. I decided it would be OK... it wouldn't be like it was with Noah because my body would remember what to do. Right after they broke my water things progressed like a freight train. It was 10:15 when I started really regretting not getting an epidural, but I was determined. How much worse can it get, right? They checked me and I was a "loose" 8cm. I told them I was still OK. I can do it. It was getting pretty painful and my contractions were more like one loooong contraction. Kevin and Josh had fun watching the little graphs and telling me I was having a contraction... hahahaha. Like I didn't know! ;) Josh was very attentive, trying to help out with ice on the base of my neck... which actually felt really good. For a brief while.

I guess the 2nd check they did kind of kick started me again because in no time I was feeling massive pressure and pain. This was the point where I told Kevin to leave. This was also the point where I regretted not taking classes or something. I was breathing and trying to relax between contractions, but there was no break whatsoever. Suddenly, the baby's head came down and I sorta lost my mind. I have never felt so much pain in my life. I never thought I would be a screamer, but I sure was. Maybe if I had been more prepared for how painful it was going to be? The worst part had to be the few seconds I wanted to push that I wasn't allowed to because they were still getting people into place. Oh and then all the pushing was excruciating as well. I only took maybe 7 pushes to get him out, but they were intense. It was a lot easier once I opened my eyes and looked down... there he was. It was 10:41am and Tristan Daniel had officially entered into the world. He was 8lbs 1/2oz and 20" long.

Because I went all natural I didn't have a doctor in the room. I had a lot of nurses and the head Nurse Midwife there who delivered him. He was placed on me as soon as he came out and went from screaming to completely contented silence. Josh got to cut the cord. After they cleaned him up a bit I got to have him back and he was wide awake, following all the sounds. I couldn't believe how alert he was! He was staring at Josh too. He also nursed right away. I noticed a major difference than how my experience with Noah went.

I was given lots of water to drink. I never placed my feet in stirrups. I was allowed to walk around if I wanted. The midwife didn't try to push or pull the placenta out and gave my body time to deliver it naturally. I went home after 24hrs. I feel great. Tristan is really healthy. I didn't need any stitches at all. I was walking less than an hour after he came out. I actually had a great experience. I would do it again even though I swore up and down right after that it was the dumbest decision I ever made. I was only laboring for about 4 hours and it's worth the decrease in recovery time I think. Next time I will be more prepared for how painful it actually is and therefore better equipped to control myself. I hope. lol... at one point a nurse went to shut the door because they didn't want me to scare everyone, but according to Kevin who was waiting outside... that door didn't block anything.

Kevin was already there so he was the first non-parent to hold Tristan. I'm really glad he was able to share in the experience with us the day before he shipped out. He called us the next day from the flight line to thank us for allowing him to be there. I hope he's doing OK. It's strange to think that by the time he comes back Tristan will be running.

Kevin was nice enough to take the Honda down to our house and pick up my Mom, Dad, and Noah so they could come greet Tristan as well. My Mom thought she had a cold so she refused to hold him. Noah was SO INTERESTED in his baby brother. He always wants to touch him and kiss him. He's constantly talking to him. He's already read him a story and asked him if he wanted to watch a movie with him. Noah's favorite thing to do is hold Tristan's hand while I change his diaper because it calms him down. Noah just keeps telling him "it's ok shhhh" and he pats his head really gently. He's doing a great job so far.

Josh escorted Noah back home for a nap and my parents hung out with me for a couple hours. Then Josh came back to get them and bring everyone back to the house and grab some lunch. Tristan and I napped and enjoyed our alone time, listening to music and dancing for a little bit. Josh eventually came back and this time he brought Vita with him. She took some great shots for us like always. Then she was nice enough to post them into the blogosphere for all to see :) Thanks so much, V!

So that's how Tristan's first day went. He did a lot of sleeping and nursing. He wanted to eat every hour, but only on one side at a time. Believe it or not he did a lot of pooping too. It's so much easier with the second. I was very relaxed and calm and felt capable of taking care of an infant. I remember last time being scared I was going to break Noah... or that I was doing something wrong. Now I feel like it's all second nature and I feel like I'm a good mom. We're all thrilled to finally have Tristan here with us. He's a very easy baby and I am so used to the sleep deprivation that it just doesn't phase me. We're really enjoying him because we know this newborn stage is over in a blink.