Your birth story

Your birth story begins on July 6th, 2005. Dad and I were at a regular appointment two weeks before your due date of July 21st. I had gained a lot of weight while pregnant and my blood pressure was high, so we were closely monitored. At this appointment Dr. Balica decided to feel Mom’s cervix for the first time to see if everything was progressing as expected. When the Dr tried to do this it hurt quite a bit and he knew right away what it meant, you was upside down in a breech position. The Dr. did an ultrasound to make sure, and there you were Wyatt, upside down hanging out in no hurry to leave Mom’s womb.
The decision was made to schedule a C-section, but as everyone watched the monitor we were hooked up to, they began to think you might be in a big hurry to meet us after all, even if you were upside down. The Dr. wanted us to be monitored for a bit more and he left. After a while a nurse relayed some information about our condition to the Dr. and she came back and told us some very scary words; go home and pack your bags and come back to the hospital tonight. Dad and Mom’s stomach dropped because neither of us woke up that morning thinking we were having a baby that week, never mind that day.
The nurse calmed us and told us we were not likely to have the baby that night, but, since the contractions were fairly regular, we should be monitored a bit more. She told us to go home, relax a few hours, have some dinner and come back later prepared to stay, just in case. We drove home and on the way stopped at Mc Donald’s. I was so nervous I couldn’t eat anything. We went home and I finished packing up all the things for the hospital and then I lay in bed and thought about meeting Wyatt and tried to focus on that instead of the method by which he would arrive. In truth, I wasn’t at all concerned about having a C-section instead of a natural birth, a flag waving pain freak and nervous Nellie, the idea of surgery instead didn’t sound like such a bad idea. We stayed home from about 4:00 until we went to the hospital around 6:30.
We arrived at the hospital and were put back on the monitor. The Dr. finally came and spoke with us discussed our options and the risks associated with them all. The decision was made to schedule a C-section in a few more days, but, as the Dr. watched the monitor he was concerned that my contractions were very regular and fairly strong. He sent us home for the night but asked that we come back in the morning so we could be monitored again. The last thing he discussed with us was that if Mom’s water broke to hurry and come in because we wouldn’t want a prolapsed umbilical. That is a very scary complication that occurs to women who are breech and it set me up to worry A LOT. We went home and I lay down and I relaxed more than I have ever relaxed in my life, I barely moved a muscle trying to thwart off any movement that could cause my water to break.
It was a long night but on Thursday July 7, 2005 Mom woke up and felt fine. Trying to convince herself that birth wouldn’t happen today Mom busied herself with getting ready for the Dr appointment. Mom and Dad packed up the car with everything we needed for the hospital and went to the Dr appointment. The Dr checked Mom and observed that we were ready to give birth and labor was progressing. Today was the day! We discussed the option of waiting because Mom was SO afraid. Waiting made no sense and wasn’t an option, Wyattella was on the way. We checked in at the hospital at around 10 and had a cesarean section planned for 3:30. Mom was hooked up to monitors and got in bed and signed her and her baby’s life away. Dad went home to do a million things since we really weren’t ready to give birth that day or even that week, this was 14 days before your due date. The time was delayed and it was not easy for me to sit and wait for surgery all day. As excited as I was to meet my baby, needles and operating rooms caused much anxiety. But the time soon arrived. The Dr. came to let us know and I got up and said, I think the baby turned around, and, sure enough, Wyatt was no longer breech.
We then had to decide all over again what to do. There was a possibility of inducing Mom but there was a concern that you could have flipped again and we would end up doing a c-section anyway. After a discussion between Mom, Dad and the Doctor, the Doctor gave us a few minutes to decide. We decided to go ahead with the c-section and have our baby safely without any major trauma for Mom or baby.
I walked down to the OR, taking each step with; confidence that we made the right decision, complete and utter terror and fear about surgery and palpable excitement and joy about meeting our new beautiful baby.
Mom had an epidural and soon the incision was made. At 6:56 PM the anesthesiologist said the words I knew I would hear, “It’s a boy!.” As Dad described, Dr. Balica tossed you onto the warming table for the nurses to attend to you and within 25 seconds I heard your sweet, perfect and gorgeous little cry. This is when I understood love the most in my life. You were brought over to me wrapped in blankets and I gave you a kiss on your beautiful face and since you were crying, told you not to worry, Mom’s here.
You were healthy and your lungs were in good condition considering the fact that you hadn’t had the liquid squeezed out of your lungs on a trip down the birth canal. You and Dad and the nurses went to the nursery for weighing and all manner of new baby checks. Mom had the rest of her operation and we all joined together again in the recovery room about an hour later.
It was such an incredible feeling to hold you again, we took some more family photos of the 3 of us and then we began our journey into breastfeeding. I am sure you don’t want to hear about that, so I will spare you the details, but, I will say we were a great team and it was the second most amazing experience of my life, the first of course, was the minute you entered this world, my amazing and beautiful son.