{ Baby Ryan’s Birth Timeline }

Friday October 22, 2010

10:00am Dr. Appointment. 1 cm dilated 50% effaced. No weight gain for the third week in a row. Doctor striped membranes. Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! So glad Aaron was with me at this appointment.
10:30am Run to Target to get one last present for Erika’s birthday on Sunday. Go to Fresh Market for one last cheesecake treat. Start having a few contractions. In pain!
11:30am Pick up Abby and Scott from Murphy’s house.
12:00pm Take a nap. Still in pain.
2:30pm Pick up kids from school. Wishing I would have left well enough alone and just been induced on Tuesday without feeling contractions. Okay, who’s to say I wouldn’t have gone into labor anyways, but at the time I was really rethinking this membrane stripping thing.
5:00pm Have dinner while Aaron runs to do a bishop errand.
7:00pm Go to see movie as a family.
7:00-9:00pm Having contractions all throughout the movie. Cuddle with Scott during the movie.
10:30pm Go to bed hoping contractions will just go away. This is the start of one of the patterns of big time denial I have when going into labor. I just kind of think if I ignore it, it will go away. I know, weird thinking when what I really want is for the baby to be here, but I start to feel pain and just change my mind about everything. You’d think after 7 times I would learn. Nope, still don’t like labor.
10:30pm-5:00am Have contractions every 10-12 minutes all throughout the night. Getting much more painful. I don’t want to disturb Aaron sleeping so I try to hold out until 5am. Sleep on and off all night.

Saturday October 23, 2010 (My due date)

5:00am-7:00am Walk around the house. Contractions 4-5minutes apart.
7:00am-Aaron wakes up. I assure him that it may nothing as I am finally packing my hospital bag. (Can you see the denial here?) He laughs and gets up excited to get his little boy here. I just walk around not really wanting to go to the hospital. I am so afraid of being sent home, so I don’t like to go until I know for sure I am in labor. Being sent home when your having baby #7 would be a little embarrassing. Eat some yogurt for breakfast. Try to waste time (denial, denial, denial)
7:30am Aaron calls the Stake Young Women’s President to let her know he won’t be speaking at the Auxiliary training that morning. Call sitter for the kids-can’t get a hold of her. Everyone else who volunteered is going to the Auxiliary training. We wake up Brianna to watch the kids until the sitter can come later. She almost squeezes us to death she is so excited.
8:00am Check in at the hospital. Contractions getting painful but spread out more. They check me in and I want to go home. Not really, but I just know the pain that is coming. Despite the fact that I have had one of my kids natural with no epidural, I really am just a big chicken when it comes to pain.
8:30am 3cm dilated 50-60% effaced. Glad I had made progress since yesterday. Midwife assures me that since it’s my due date, we are having a baby today! The midwife I saw through most of my pregnancy is so nice. She totally knew I was having an epidural, but the rest of my pregnancy was great so it was easy to just see her. Since I would be having a VBAC another doctor (beside Aaron) had to be there in case of complications.
9:00am Continue to monitor me. Fewer contractions, but some stronger. Midwife says, lets get and epidural and then some Pitocin and have a baby. I love the epidural part first idea and agree.
10:00am Nurse informs me they are going to get some Pitocin going to get the contractions back stronger and then give me the epidural. What?! Aaron kindly informs them I will be having the epidural first. The nurse kind of looks at me like-okay whatever. Lady, by kid#7, a little Pitocin is going have this kid out of here in no time-just humor me and let me be in a little comfort.
10:20am Epidural in and working quite well. Anesthesiologist laughs as he comes in, “You guys alone keep me in business”. So funny. He was the same one who gave me Abby’s epidural too. Nice guy. Midwife checks me-4cm. Water has broken at some point-I’m not sure when. Meconium in fluid. I am glad we are here today, I really just want him here healthy.
10:40am Start Pitocin. I rest a little bit. I am thinking this is a really good epidural. I sometimes have ones that don’t take as well or I get the shakes and throw up really bad. I can feel a bit when I have a contraction, but not pain. Enjoying life for a while.
11:20am They up the Pitocin. I am starting to feel the contractions a bit on my right side. Darn that right side. It’s always the side that doesn’t take well. Aaron runs to the cafeteria for something to eat while I rest.
11:30am Ask the nurses if I can roll over to see if that helps even out the epidural. Much more uncomfortable. I try sitting up and that is even worse.
12:00pm In a LOT of pain. Aaron is so good to hold my hand and help me. All the nurses think he’s such a great husband and they are totally right! Throwing up and feel like passing out. Having to breath big time through contractions. The denial thing is pretty much obsolete at this point. I am fully aware that this is happening and really want it just to be over. No “woman power” here, just get this kid out! Aaron suggests multiple times to the nurse to go get the midwife to check me, he is pretty sure I am going through transition and am ready to have a baby. The nurse doesn’t go until I suggest it as well. Midwife checks. Sure enough. Complete and ready for baby.
12:28pm Beautiful baby Ryan enters the world.







He fully surprised us all in how big he was. He is the biggest Starbuck to date, beating out Brooke who was 8lbs. 8oz. He was also the longest at 21inches. He has black curly hair when it’s wet and straight when it’s dry, green eyes, and the cutest little chubby cheeks! We are smitten of course and so glad he is here.