Birth Story

As much as I thought this baby boy was going make an appearance early, God had a way of keeping him safe and sound in his Momma! The funny thing, I wanted him to get here so badly, yet I wasn't ready for him. I don't think it ever registered with me that I was pregnant and that a BABY was going to be joining our family, until about a week before he arrived. Sure, I knew I was pregnant. I gained nearly 40 lbs! And I was in a lot of pain! And I never slept! Who DIDN'T hear me complain about being pregnant! The nursery was all ready, I went through the motions of getting everything ready so early, and I think everyone else was ready....but I wasn't. Thursday night was really hard for me. I remember Adam and I turning down the bed and he asked me "Are you ready!? I'm so excited! He's going to be here tomorrow!!" and my answer: "No. I'm not ready. I'm not sure I want our family of 3 to be any bigger. I LIKE our family of 3. I LIKE Jackson being my one and only. I can handle one. I'm really not ready for tomorrow." Adam's jaw hit the floor. That was not what he was wanting to hear, I'm sure. I was nervous about the surgery, sure, but I just really liked things the way they were and I was having cold feet. How can I say that now?! But truly, that's how I felt. I cried, simply because I felt guilty for not being excited for his arrival.

Friday morning, we woke up EARLY! 4:30am!! Holy crap!! We were to be at the hospital at 5:30am for check-in, with my c-section scheduled for 7:30am. We got dressed, got the bags, said good bye to Patty and Doug who were staying with us, and headed to Clear Lake Regional! My nerves were starting to get to me....

We checked in, and our initial nurse took all my information and hooked me up to an IV. I took my last pictures of pregnancy about 2 minutes before the IV started...



The entire time, to keep my mind off of feeling guilty and nervous and emotional, I Facebooked. I updated about EVERYTHING I was doing--EVERYTHING. I'm sure my friends were tired of my updates, but it wasn't really for them, it was for me! I had to keep my mind on something else for those 2 hours. We were ready to go into surgery right at shift change. I was still doing fine...tired, quiet, nervous. I didn't want to see ANYONE. All I kept thinking about was Jackson and how he was doing--Memaw and Papaw had Jackson stay the night at their house Thursday night and got him up and dressed and to the hospital. I just kept thinking (like every other mother out there), "I can't believe I am doing this to Jackson. He's not going to be the only one anymore. What if he doesn't like having a brother? Am I going to have enough time with him? Am I going to love him as much?" All while waiting for surgery....

Right at shift change, my new nurse came bouncing in the door, "Okay, Mrs. Babcock! You ready to go have this baby?!" I LOST IT! First of all, she was like 16. No joke! SOO young! My first thought? "YOU are the one that's going to help me through my epidural/spinal? YOU are the one that's going to watch my vitals during surgery?!" Oh shit!! And my second thought, "I'm not ready! I don't want to do this! Hell, I'm not sure I WANT another baby!?"...although, those words never left my mouth, Adam knew EXACTLY what I was going through...I just started crying and it never stopped. Sitting here typing about it, I'm crying again. It was the most emotional moment. I didn't go through this at ALL with Jackson....so weird....

They wheeled me back (I told them I didn't want to walk back there, I'd never make it!) and got me prepped for my epidural. I was sitting there, in the OR, looking at all the gadgets and sharp things, the monitors, and still freaking out, and crying hysterically. My poor nurse. She really WAS a great nurse!! Calm and sweet and cute as a button! Dr. so-in-so (can't remember his name) came in to give me my epidural. He was nice....and talked me off my ledge a little. I was still crying. And like with Jackson, the epidural felt like a bee sting! No big deal! It was over with SUPER fast!! I got REALLY dizzy REALLY fast after those meds hit me--and I couldn't talk for a second, which freaked me out!! "It's normal! Don't worry! I'm holding on to you! You're fine!"

As soon as I laid down, Adam came walking in (thankfully!! I was much more calm then!) and then Dr. Taylor arrived, and Dr. Visaria, and the baby nurse....Adam and the baby nurse were all I could see. Strangely, the only thing I was thinking about at that moment, was Jackson. And what he was doing in the waiting room. And if he was nervous. And what he was going to think of this new baby.....

About 10 minutes later, I said "Let me know when we start so that I can prepare myself for any kind of pain." They had already been asking me if I felt anything, and it didn't register that they might have already been starting....the baby nurse looked at me and said "Oh, they've been working for about 10 minutes...he's almost here!" WOW!! I had no idea! They asked me if I felt any pressure or pulling, and I said "Yes, but I also feel alot of pressure on my chest, like I have an elephant on my chest." And they ignored me. Later, I found out that Dr. Visaria was ON my chest, pushing Everson DOWN!! He wasn't coming out so easily!! :)

The minute they pulled him out, the pressure was like a rushing release. Ahhh....and then, the screams!! He was so LOUD!! Came out full on wailing!! And all my fears and nervousness and stubborness went away. He was HERE!! And I was ELATED!! I couldn't stop smiling! And giggling and laughing and tearing up!! They brought him over and I could see EVERYTHING they were doing with him this time (with Jackson, they were off to the side too far past the curtain, so I never saw anything!) Adam looked over at me and said "He's cute! He looks like Jackson did! He's adorable!" (side note: at our last ultrasound, Everson looked HUGE. I mean HUGE...and like he'd been in a bar fight. He looked like a bruiser. I was really nervous that he was going to be ugly. Seriously. Another reason I was nervous to birth this baby--that's awful, I know!) They brought him over and he WAS soooo sweet! I gave him lots of kisses and really couldn't wait to hold him!

They wheeled him out to go meet his bid brother, and I'm sad that I had to miss that part. :( I'm jealous of girls who have babies without c-sections....recovery is easier, and you don't have to do the post-op stuff..boo!!

The entire family took turns seeing him in the transition nursery while I did post-op and then was wheeled to my holding room. Labor and Delivery was PACKED, so my room wasn't ready. Everson was taken to the transitional nursery and they typically there for about 4 hours. They get their Apgar scores and measurements, and have their temperatures monitored...so in the meantime, my mom and my dad and Jackson were able to come in and see me. I was actually feeling really great! Adam's parent's joined the party briefly, and the plan was for everyone to go have breakfast, go to Build A Bear, and then come back AFTER I had seen Everson for the first time and nursed him for his first feeding, and so Adam and I could have some time alone with him before Jackson really got a chance to meet him. Well, that plan flew out the window because just as Jackson and my mom were leaving and Jackson was saying "Let's go see my baby again!", here comes Everson! Note the time: 30 minutes post op!! Holy cow! His Apgar scores were 9s, and he was warm enough, and because the nursery was so full, they went ahead and brought him to me!! I was so excited!! And so was Jackson!! THANK GOD my mom had her camera! I was so caught off guard that we had NO video, NO camera, Nothing handy!! The nurse walked in and handed the baby right to me--and then walked off. Like, "here is your baby! hope you don't drop him since you are all drugged up and on a stretcher with no side rails!" This is the quick picture that my mom thankfully snapped of my first REAL sighting of my baby boy:

Mommy seeing Everson for the 1st time!

And this moment is so absolutely precious to me. Everson was wide awake when they brought him in to us. WIDE EYED! He was staring up at me, and Jackson wanted to see him (about 10 seconds after Mom took that last picture) so he ran over so that Adam could pick him up. Jackson says to Everson, "Hey little guy! I'm your big brother! I'm right here!" and Everson tracks Jackson's voice and they INSTANTLY make eye contact and just stare at each other. About 2 seconds later, Everson starts cooing. No joke. Cooing like he's trying to talk to Jackson--he recognizes his voice! So I tell Jackson, "Oh! He's singing to you!" And Jackson starts singing "twinkle twinkle little star..." all while Everson is cooing! It was SURREAL!! They knew each other, and I told Adam, "It doesn't get any better than this!!" I'm just pissed there was no video camera around!! :(

Since they brought baby in so fast, we invited the rest of the family to come on in and join in the fun!! Mom got to hold him, GG Jane got to hold him, then the Grandpa's took him and Jackson and hung out on the bed next to me and let Jackson hold Ev for the first time--again, no camera! BOO!! Grandma Patty came in and cuddled for a bit, and then, it was time for him to eat. Not by the nurses telling me, but because he was now 45 minutes old, and I thought he needed to try and nurse right away. Like I said, the baby nurse brought him in and then left. Like "You have a 3 year old, you should know the drill." Thankfully, I did. He latched on PERFECTLY. I was really nervous about nursing again. I thought "Would it be like riding a bike?" Yup! Although, I did set up a time with the lactation consultant, just in case, and she came in about 15 minutes later, as I was still feeding. Everson was a CHAMP! It was as if he came out of the womb knowing EXACTLY how to latch on and feed. i was much more comfortable this time around, so I think that helped.

Still Facebooking...

Love these shots....I took these from my bed....

The next few days were a blur....we were in the hospital for 3 full days. In that time, my back itched SOOO bad from that stupid epidural! I was soo ready for my nurse to rip the tape off my back! The same thing happened as last go round--I swelled like a jelly fish! Everywhere! I was able to keep Everson in my room nearly the entire time. The first night, I did let them take him to the nursery so I could get some sleep and they would remind me to wake to feed him. Remember, I had gotten up at 4:30am! The rest of the time, Ev was with us!

We had SOO many visitors!! It was nice to see everyone, yet I was so tired...I really should have napped, but I was too excited!! I didn't get nearly as many shots at the hospital as I wanted....looking back, I wish I would have paid the Barron's again to come and get some shots of us in the hospital like we did with Jackson, but I didn't think about it....

Like last time, I made sure that I was up and walking the halls--alot! I really think it helped with my recovery last time. But, I made the mistake the first night of trying to be brave and ONLY taking 800mg Motrin and no Vicotin. Last time, they gave me Darvaset and it made me LOOPY and I couldn't nurse or even wake up to feed Jackson, and I didn't want the same thing to happen. I was in alot of pain by the time the Motrin wore off, so I ended up taking the Vicotin for about 4 days.

And again, like with Jackson, the VERY BEST TIME was at about 10pm, when they brought Everson in RIGHT after his first bath--ohhhh, he smelled so good! I just held him and cuddled for what seemed like forever! BEST feeling EVER!!

I kept telling my mom that I thought Everson looked just like me. Seriously, I would look down and him and I felt like I was looking at my baby pictures....and I was right! I'll post my baby pics vs. Everson's pics, and you can see for yourself!!





















Everson was an amazing baby while were in the hospital--he smiled AND he nearly rolled over. No lie. The first time he smiled, he was only about 10 hours old. Really, he seemed to be smiling the first time I saw him, but I just thought it was his look. I didn't think anything of it. Then, Mom was in the room while the family said their goodbyes, and while she was holding him, he did a full on open mouthed smile! The nurse saw it too, so she verified for Adam when he came back. I swear, it was not gas. It went on for about 3 minutes straight. That night, I caught this video of our little man giving some little smiles:

The rolling over nearly happened when the family was in visiting and we layed Everson down on the bed to stretch out--he went all the way over, and lifted his head! He could have gone all the way over if his arm didn't get in the way! The nurse said she wasn't suprised--she HAS seen babies roll in the nursery! NO WAY!!

We came home on Monday. And rested. The best part--GG Jane and Memaw made dinner for all of us! GG brought me Kroger flowers--she knows I'm a sucker for the floral dept when you first walk into Kroger, and she got me a gorgeous autumn bouquet! We all ate dinner, I took my meds, I nursed the baby...it was very relaxing. I was up and moving and felt great, just tired....can you tell?!

I am sooo completely in love for the 3rd time! I fell in love with Adam, I fell completely in love with Jackson, and now, I have no idea what I would do without my precious Everson. We are now a HAPPY family of FOUR, and I have no idea why I ever doubted that. Everson is a sweet sweet baby....very easy going. And just super cute! Jackson is the BEST big brother--he's always helping: "I'll get the diaper! I'll get the boppy! Momma, what do we need? Why is he crying? He needs me, huh?!" He doesn't let that baby out of his sight...it's awesome! I could not ask for better boys. And I love referring to "my boys"! I'm still the Queen Bee though....and I love it!!