june sixteen - twenty-one :: my birthday & Mack's arrival!

Mack’s Birth Story

As you all know, I blog daily before I go to bed for the night. My blog is my journal, I write for me, but love that I have an audience that follows it. I used to journal daily in a “paper journal/diary” but that got neglected when I discovered blogging. Anyhow, as you all know, I haven’t blogged since Sunday night, June 15th, 2008 and for a very good reason!

Monday morning, June 16th, we all woke up for a day of work for Jamie and some doctor appointments for Sean & I. First my mom picked us up and we went to my 37 week OB check-up. Everything looked fine, and I was still no where near starting to dilate. My doctor told me that he’d see me the next week at my next appointment.

We then went for lunch at a mall with my grandmother. Nothing fancy, just food court lunch (easiest for the time we had before Sean’s appointment). I ran 2 errands in the mall as well, and then we headed off to Sean’s doctor’s appointment.

Sean got his 18 month shots on Monday, the first one he squirmed out of my lap and the second one he was a little bit better, but then started to cried. He was easily distracted though and forgot about his pain from the shot.

He weighed in at just under 25 lbs, (half a pound up from his last check up), and in weight he was just under the 50th percentile and for height, he was just over the 50th percentile. However, when she measured his head, it hadn’t changed in size from the time before, or even from the time from before that. She said it’s possible that one of those readings were wrong, as Sean squirms when getting checked out by his doctor. However, she double checked it and her reading was still the same, the same number that we could have sworn that we double checked last time as well. So we’re going back in 3months to re-check his head size. (Otherwise he wouldn’t have to of gone back to see her for Sean until his 2nd birthday this December). When I booked the appointment in 3 months from now, I also booked an appointment for myself to see her as well, for a physical. I don’t really have a family doctor, and want to keep her from having to switch back to Sean’s original doctor at the clinic (who went on maternity leave before his first birthday check up). So I figured that if Mackenzie has only seen her, and I’ve only seen her, and Jamie has only seen her (he went for a physical in May), then she’ll have to keep us on as patients, and honestly, Sean’s new doctor will have seen him longer than his previous doctor when she finally returns from her maternity leave in January 2009. So, since I like his new doctor a LOT better, I plan on sticking with her, with her, but she was worried about “stealing” another doctor’s patients. But really, in the end, only Sean was her patient for about 10 months. From 10 months on until he’s just over 2 years old, he’ll be longer with her longer as a patient. Call me nuts, but when you feel more comfortable with a doctor, you want to stay with them. And that’s how I feel. Sean’s first doctor, as I’ve talked about before on my blog, was nice, but very quiet and I didn’t ever feel 100% comfortable with her. Ever since she went on maternity leave, and getting to see Dr. F, I’ve not wanted to switch back. Dr. F. really listens to you, makes you feel like no question is stupid, and really is caring. And that’s the way you should feel with a doctor.

After the doctor’s appointment we went back to my parents place and changed into our bathing suits. We went swimming with my mother for about 2 hours.

In those 2 hours, my water broke in the pool. It was around 4pm. We were in the pool until 5pm. I must have had about 5 gushes of water, the first two times I thought maybe Sean had peed on me or something, because he was being held by me, or near me at those times. Then when it happened again and he wasn’t on me, I knew it wasn’t him, and it hit me, “Oh no, I think my water just broke”. I dripped more on the side of the pool when I got out, and then again on my parent’s kitchen floor. It just kept happening and I knew that my water had broken. Sean stayed at my parents house with my dad, brother & sister, and my mom drove me to my house to get my hospital bag, and throw some stuff into an over night bag for Sean. Jamie had ball at 7pm, and was already on his way to the field. I told Jamie to leave his cell phone on the bench with his best friend who usually does play ball but is currently injured and can’t play, so incase I call and Jamie’s in the outfield, that I could keep him posted. I told him I’d call him as soon as I knew anything.We pulled into the parking lot of the hospital at 6:45 pm. By 7 pm, I was in a labor room waiting for a nurse to do my pre-check and then to see a doctor. It took hours before the nurse even came to check me out, and then more hours to wait to see the doctor. I caught Jamie after his game and told him to go home and change and then come to the hospital, that they were admitting me, and I was in labor and we were going to have a baby!


I was still not dilated or anything, and they started me on cervadil to help with starting that out. It was a gel that took 12 hours. So we had 12 hours to kill as the doctor wasn’t going to check on me until the 12 hours were up, from 10:50pm to 10:50 am. Jamie & I played Cribbage and then he napped and I worked on my misty garden scarf. (It’s the only knitting I had with me). I also read some in Knocked Up by Rebecca Eckler. (I’m about just over half way done the book now and loving the book.

The nurses in the labor ward were pretty much all the same nurses from when I was in labor with Sean back in December of 2006 and they all pretty much remembered me, and Iremembered them. They were all great to me. I had a really good experience this time around.

After the long 12 hour wait, I was only 1.5 cm dilated and about 50% effaced. Mackenzie was still in the -3 station for descent. My contractions were about 5 minutes apart at that point. I was actually contracting on my own this time (unlike my labor with Sean, were they needed Pitocin to induce my contractions). My contractions were mild and controllable through breathing. They decided to start cervadil again and hopefully not need it for 12 hours again. (That would have been brutal).

It sent me into a more active labor, and I was at 3 cm dilated and 70% effaced. I was in so much pain at that point, that I asked for the epidural. That was around 3pm on Tuesday, June 17^th, 2008. After getting the epidural it unfortunately killed all my natural contractions that I had to be put on a drug to induce the contractions. I can’t remember what it was called. It wasn’t Pitocin this time, but another one. It took a long time to start getting me contracting, and then eventually it stopped working. They did another internal and I was at 5 cm dilated at that point, and they realized that there was still a pocket of water that they had to break and hopefully that would help further along my labor. That did help – a lot. I started contracting again on my own and Mackenzie started dropping further down his route to coming out.

At about 11:15 pm, my contractions were about 1 minute apart and every time that I had a contraction, Mackenzie’s heart rate dropped from the normal 160-120 beats per minute range and were in the 60’s. NOT GOOD.

I was put on oxygen immediately and about 5 nurses and a handful of doctors came running in. They monitored my next few contractions. At one point they were like “we’ll monitor one last contraction” as his heart rate was going back to normal as soon as my contraction was over. And then the next contraction, it got even worse, so the chief resident made the call and said C-section, NOW. Within minutes I was prepared, consent form signed and being wheeled two floors below to the OR.

I had started crying when they started me on the oxygen as I was not sure what was going on. I was scared that everything wasn’t going to be okay. I was really upset and emotional at the same time.

When I was wheeled into the elevator, the anesthesiologist was in the elevator with us administering a second dose of epidural and at that point I started shaking. It was both nerves and the drugs that made me shake. I shook during the entire surgery. I was still awake through the whole thing, they thankfully did not have to put me under completely. I actually had full control of my legs during the entire surgery. Jamie was prepped in scrubs and was able to be there while our son was born. One nurse in particular stayed with me the entire time I was in the OR and was holding my hand at the times in there that Jamie wasn’t allowed to be there. I was honestly scared shitless. I’d never had surgery before, let alone been awake while they cut me open. She was my night time nurse in the labor ward and she kept saying that my son was going to be born before her shift ended at 11:30 pm that evening. She was really good to me, and really attentive (unlike some of the other nurses). I really owe a lot to her for getting me through this.

31 hours and 28 minutes after my water broke, Mackenzie Riley was born at 11:28 pm on Tuesday, June 17^th, 2008, 6 pounds 4 ounces and 19.8 inches long. He is an absolute joy.

We found out after he was born that the reason his heart rate kept dropping was because his umbilical cord was around his torso and his foot. So every time that I had a contraction, and he was trying to come down to come out, he was squeezing the cord around himself.

I am really happy that the chief resident (whom I had a VERY BAD experience with when in labor with Sean almost 18 months ago), made the right call this time, and that Mack is doing well, because of her. Who knows what could have happened otherwise.

It was a really scary experience but I’m glad that it’s over with now. Because I had a C-section, the hospital keeps you 3 days. Since my 3 days technically ended at 11:28 pm on Friday night, they decided to let me have the option to go home on Friday afternoon or if I wanted, on Saturday morning. I decided to choose Saturday morning, as I didn’t want to go home too early after just having surgery and also, I wanted to make sure it was the nurses here at the hospital that took out my staples and not the CLSC nurses, who they said would pay a visit to my house on Day 4 if I’d gone home on Day 3. I’ve been having such a great experience this time with the after care (and help breastfeeding – last time was a huge disaster) that I want the nurses here to take out the staples. I felt more comfortable.

Enjoying his new Baby Surprise Jacket & hat (though the hat is a tad too big for now!)



Mackenzie even got his brother a gift, which Sean loved a lot. The first day didn't go so well Sean meeting his brother, but every day after that got easier and easier, we'll see how it goes now that I'm home.

Mackenzie's very first bath! The nurses had to give it to him because
I wasn't allowed out of bed for 12 hours after surgery.

The proud daddy & his 2nd son!

More to come soon! xoxo