The day Judson was born....

Here are some pictures that my friend, Brittany, took of Judson and I. She is a great photographer...you can check her out at Photography Honestly.

Judson's Birth Story

On Monday, June 21, I went in for my 39 week appointment, only to find out that my Dr was going out of town for a few days. I was given the option of being induced on Wednesday.

I struggled with this decision, since I labor without pain medication and want my births to be as natural as possible. I told my doctor that if my body was showing signs of labor readiness, then I would do it.

During my exam, I was told that I was a favorable 3cm dilated and 50% effaced. Considering what happens when I am in labor and reach 5cm...as well as the nervousness of John not wanting to deliver a baby at home...I opted to have my membranes stripped and then to come in Wednesday morning for an induction.

We arrived at the hospital at 6am. I signed all the necessary paperwork and waited for my doctor to come and in write the order for the pitocin. I met with the anesthesiologist who gave me the run down on pain medications...to which I firmly declined. I had already birthed 4 times with no pain medication, and knew that this birth wouldn't be any different.

They began my iv around 8am, which started some regular, though mild, contractions. I was able to continue updating Facebook on my progress, as well as laugh, smile and talk....which for me, doesn't happen too much once I am in deep labor.

Dr Selman stuck his head in the room around 9am and asked if he was making me uncomfortable yet. They told me they were a little concerned because Judson's heart rate was dropping after each contraction. It was quickly recovering and was only going down about 20-30 beats per minute, but since it was consistently happening, we decided to stop the pitocin and break my water.

Dr Selman checked me and told me I had progressed to 4cm, and then he proceeded to break my water. The fluid was clear, and having my water broken was enough to kick my body into labor without the need of pitocin. They had me switch from my back to my side, which seemed to help his heart rate.

I continued contracting every few minutes, but the contractions were still mild...at least by my standards. I was still able to converse and smile through the contractions without much effort.

By 10:30am, the contractions started picking up in intensity, yet I was continuing to have a couple minutes inbetween them, which for me, is not typical. I think it was because Judson's head was still a bit high, so I didn't have the added pressure of that on my cervix for dilation.

I began to feel the baby move lower and called for my nurse. She ran in to check me and said that I was at 6cm and the baby had moved a little lower. At this point, I had to breath and concentrate during each contraction, but there was still enough time inbetween them for me to have a bit of a breather...which was nice for a change!

I continued to progress about a centimeter every 15 minutes...and it got to the point that I was calling for the nurse enough that she decided to just stay by my side.

Dr Selman continued to check in on me and see how I was doing. He stayed close, knowing it wouldn't be long before he was needed.

At 11:15, my contractions began peaking with no breaks. Looking at the monitor was like watching waves, they never let up....and continued to piggy back on top of one another. I remember hearing the nurse speak to John, amazed at my pain tolerance. I calmly continued to moan through each contraction...knowing that when I reach this point, the end is near.

By noon, I began to feel immense pressure. My nurse checked me and said I had a slight lip to my cervix left. She called the dr in and he suited up for delivery. After a couple more intense contractions, I was complete and told everyone that I was pushing.

The bed was in the process of being lowered, and Judon began to crown. Within one push, his head was out...and another half push later, he was born!! The time was 12:11pm.

He came out screaming and received an apgar score of 9. He measured in at 20.5 inches and weighed 7 pounds 12 ounces.

The moment he was out, I felt great. Again, I needed no stitches and had virtually zero recovery. They placed him immediately on my chest so I could hold my guy as soon as possible!

Once he was born, my dr was struggling at getting the placenta delivered. He began to look worried, and I knew something wasn't right. His exact words were: 'you aren't going to like me very much in a minute'.

He was going to manually extract my placenta.

I called John to my side...and there are no words to describe the pain of what happened next. Thankfully, what seemed to go for several minutes, was over quickly.

Judson was then given to me, and I was able to nurse him for the first time. He had some extra fluid in his stomach those first few days that made him spit up and not want to nurse very much cause it upset his stomach, but that worked its way out of his system, and we aren't having any issues now.

About four days after he was born, I ended up with a fever and chills due to a uterine infection. I was admitted to the hospital to be placed on antibiotics for 24 hours. Since then, I feel good, but am forcing myself to take it easy!

When Judson met his brothers and sister, it was love at first sight! They want to hold him all the time and are convinced that they have the cutest little baby brother in the whole world!

He is a sweet little guy who loves to just look around at everything. He's had great head control from birth and looks like he is always deep in thought.

I am amazed at how God has continued to bless my family over the past year!!