Welcome Jaxon!

Welcome to the world Jaxon!!!

Isn't it amazing how much life can change in just one day?  We have really enjoyed being a family of 3, and in one day we became a family of 4.  I realize that we've had 10 months to plan and imagine what life will be like with another family member, but it really all happens in one day.  February 9th started out like many days in the past couple of months for me.  I woke up with a backache and cramps.  And when I say backache, I don't mean the kind that is annoying and taking a few Tylenol will relieve.  I've had the kind of back pain that makes you feel like you are going to pee your pants or puke, or both.  But big deal.  It had been a fact of life for most of my pregnancy.  Jesse's mom had came over to watch Sierra for the morning and I had a OB check scheduled for 11:45.  Interestingly enough when Sierra got up that morning and hopped onto our bed she announced "I'm going to be a big sister today."  She was right.  

I headed into town to pick Jesse up and head to the appointment.  The plan was for me to go to the doctor, we would eat lunch, I would take him back to work, and then go get Sierra.  We got to the appointment and they did not like how high my blood pressure had gotten.  The doctor said based on my blood pressure I needed to go to the hospital to be monitored.  Again.  But before we left she would check to see how far I was dilated.  She did and announced that I was almost 6 centimeters.  She told us that with my blood pressure so high it was time to get the baby out.  Well what does that mean exactly?  Yes I was crampy, yes I was dilated, but I hadn't been having the contractions for hours and hours like I did with Sierra.  We headed to the hospital kind of thinking they would send me away like they had done before and say to come in when my contractions were 5 minutes apart.

When we got to our room they started prepping me like I was going to have a baby.  I said that I was confused, I thought I was coming into be monitored, and we would go from there.  The nurse called my doctor and informed us that there was some protein in my urine (another sign my body was under stress) and with my blood pressure high I was not to leave the hospital until I did so with a baby.  Crap.  I wasn't ready.  I didn't have my "hospital bag", we didn't have an infant car seat in the car, and mostly, I was not ready for a long labor.  I wanted to run away or tell Jesse that he needed to take it from here this time.

My mom was on her way to the hospital because my grandma had been admitted a few days before due to some internal bleeding.  So we called mom and told her we were there too, called Shelly to let her know that she would have Sierra for a little longer than planned, and called my sister who was going to be there for the birth to get pictures right after Jaxon entered the world.   By about 1 they started me on Petocin.  I was having close contractions, but they were not really that painful.  Within 10 minutes after starting me on Petocin they started to pick up.  At 3:30 they broke my water and then they REALLY picked up.  They hurt.  Hurt like a mother!  I had decided that after two months of being in pain that when I had the option of an epidural this time, I was going to take it.  And I wasn't going to feel bad at all.  So when they started coming about every minute and a half, and I was about to break the bed rails, I asked for the epidural.  I was still 6 cm's at this point.  So we waited for the anesthesiologist to come in and stick a needle in my back.  

The epidural really isn't that bad.  The scary part is that they tell you to be really still while they insert the needle in your back, but when you are having contractions that close, being still is not very easy.  Once it was done the anesthesiologist stayed in there to see if it was successful or not.  Once I started to feel a little bit numb he took off to do a surgery.  Little bit numb is the key word.  My thighs felt a little weak, and a small area on the right side of my stomach felt numb, but nothing else was numb at all.  The contractions still hurt like heck, and I could still move my legs easily.  They had me lay on my left side hoping that it would move some of the anesthesia to that side of my body.  The second I turned on my side the contractions started coming like crazy.  It didn't seem like there was a break in between, and I was kind of mad that I went through the whole needle in the back thing, and could feel everything.  

All of a sudden I felt like I really needed to push.  I started kind of freaking out for some reason, because they told me that I was still 6cm's right before the epidural.  When I told the nurse she said, good that means you are progressing and she said she was glad I wasn't smiling through the contractions anymore (they were surprised that with that much dilation and the contractions showing up as close as they were when I first got there that I wasn't complaining of much pain).  I'd much prefer to be smiling through my contractions lady, pump up the drugs.  The anesthesiologist was in the process of being called to come back and "fix" the epidural.  I wasn't sure if that meant redoing it or not, but we were going to have to get a different person this time because the original one had just started surgery.  In the process of waiting, it had only been about 10 minutes, I started panicking because I REALLY felt like it was time to push.  The nurse again said that she had just checked me but she would again.  She took her time while I was laying on my side seriously feeling like I had to try to NOT push.  When she checked me her eyes flew open, and she said that I was 10 centimeters and it really was time.  One problem, the midwife was over at the OB office and had to be called over.

I didn't think I was going to be able to wait.  And neither did the nurses.  I was the only person in the hospital in labor at the time, and had lots of nurses keeping tabs on me.  There were several in there and they were all ringing their hands saying that they had never delivered a baby in their years of nursing, and they didn't want this to be the first.  I was trying not to freak out, and I laid there praying that the midwife would make it.  Once I turned over onto my back the pressure eased a bit and the midwife made it, sat down, and told me to push when I was ready.  So I did.  And about 3 minutes later Jesse was able to "catch" Jaxon and put him on my chest.  From start to finish labor was less than two hours.  I guess technically I was in labor for a couple of months - but the close, crazy painful contractions, lasted less than two hours.  I was shocked at how fast it had gone and that I was getting to meet my baby boy for the first time.

Sierra had a traumatic start to life.  My labor was so long (34 hours) that she had a bowel movement in the womb and she had to be rushed away as soon as she was born.  She was touched to my chest, we got one picture, and then she was zipped out of the room for almost 2 hours.  It was terrifying.  Jaxon on the other hand laid on my chest for over 30 minutes before they had Jesse cut the cord, and then took him to weigh and measure him.  It was heaven.  I am still very sad that I missed out on that with Sierra.  As I held my pink, wriggling, crying boy, I was overwhelmed at how different everything had went this time and that in just a few short hours I had become a mommy again.  It kind of felt like a dream.

One of the neatest moments after he was born was when Jesse started talking to Jaxon while he was on my chest. Jaxon had been crying and crying like newborns are supposed to, even though he could hear my voice.  But the second Jesse would speak he would stop and turn his head towards Jesse.  When Jesse would stop and Jaxon would cry again.  And if Jesse would speak again, the same thing would happen.  It still makes me cry to think about.  It's just amazing to me that they react like that to things that they are familiar with.  I know that he heard my voice every day in the womb, but he sure heard his daddy's too. 

Before Jaxon was weighed the nurses and midwife guessed his weight.  The midwife said she thought he was around 8 lbs 6 oz (she actually hadn't really held him because she let Jesse catch and lift him to my chest) and so we all guessed somewhere around 8.5 to 9 lbs.  When the nurse weighed him nobody could believe the scale said 9lbs 8 oz.  We were the talk of the floor that day (maybe because we were the only ones there).  No one could believe that I had that big of a baby that fast.  Neither could we.  But praise the Lord.  I would rather have a short labor with an epidural that doesn't work than a long labor with one that does work any day.  That being said, we are a happy with our family of four.  There will be no more babies for us, we have plans to make sure of that:)  Unless God has other plans, I guess. 

Jaxon Merle Skaggs (Merle after his daddy, grandpa, and great grandpa) was born at 5:13pm on February 9th - one day before his due date.  He was 9lbs 8oz and was 20.5 inches long.  Amy didn't make it to take pictures right after the birth, but my mom was already at the hospital and was able to step in and take some.  It sure is amazing how things work out the way they do.  We have welcomed a beautiful, healthy baby boy into the world.  What a gift.  Happy birthday my sweet Jaxon.  Mommy is so glad to meet you and so excited to see the boy and man that you will become.