On Saturday November 13th at 10 am. I went to triage in the morning due to having really itchy feet and hands for the past few nights to the extent that I couldn't sleep. I know it sounds kind of weird that I would be concerned about my hands and feet when you would think most of your attention would go to the belly. Well, there's a condition called pregnancy induced coleostasis that can have a negative impact on your pregnancy (I won't get into the finer details of the diagnosis). So, I went to the hospital just to check in, and I was 40 weeks and 3 days pregnant at this point. They put me on the fetal monitor and had me describe my symptoms. After about an hour my mom and I were getting ready to leave the hospital, and the midwife came in and told me the chief resident of the ObGyn unit wanted to talk to me before I left, because they felt I should be induced considering my symptoms and how far along I was. As everyone 
knows from previous blogs, I was trying to go all natural for the birth, and this did not fit into my plan. I called Jonathan to come down to the hospital to talk about our options. When he got there, the chief resident talked about the risks of leaving without doing an induction, and we decided the induction was the best decision. So, we went home to pick up our belongings and came back to the Birthing Center to get started. The picture above is the last pregnant photo of me smiling not in pain before leaving to go back to the hospital.
knows from previous blogs, I was trying to go all natural for the birth, and this did not fit into my plan. I called Jonathan to come down to the hospital to talk about our options. When he got there, the chief resident talked about the risks of leaving without doing an induction, and we decided the induction was the best decision. So, we went home to pick up our belongings and came back to the Birthing Center to get started. The picture above is the last pregnant photo of me smiling not in pain before leaving to go back to the hospital.They gave me a pill to prepare my body and said it could take up to 72 hours to get things started so I should sit back and relax. Well, my body kicked into labor about 2 hours after taking the pill, so I must have been ready to go soon on my own. Contractions started off manageable and Jonathan and I walked the halls of the hospital. I felt like I had it under control and we would still have our natural birth. About 2 hours into pretty good contractions, they came and told us that I would have to go to the high risk unit since they drew blood and found that I had severe preeclampsia and the possible coleostasis. This meant no birthing tub or freedom to move around outside of the bed for natural pain management. I was going to have to stay in the bed the whole labor and be given pitocin to get things moving along. Well, I labored unmedicated on a pitocin induced labor for approximately 15 more hours. My contractions were coming a minute apart and were excruciating, but everyone was convinced I was almost to the point of pushing. I thought I could make it just a little bit longer if I was close. I was examined, and they said that my body had failed to progress and I was sticking at 4 cm. The midwife recommended an epidural due to 17 hours of labor and to calm me down to see if my body would progress. 2 hours and 2 epidurals later (the first one didn't work), I had only progressed 3/4 cm, and Jackson's heart rate was dropping after every contraction, so they determined that we needed to do a c-section.
They whee
led me in to prep me for surgery, and Jonathan and our doula got all dressed up in their special surgery gowns. The doula took pictures and a video for us during the c-section so that Jonathan could talk to me. I felt like I was going to fall asleep but fought hard to stay awake so I could hear his first cries. Jackson "Jack" Steven Nichols was born on November 14, 2010 at 3:28 p.m. He was 7 lbs. 14 oz. and 20 3/4 in. long. I heard him cry, and Jonathan told me to tell everyone his name. Everyone was asking us throughout the labor, and we said we would announce it when he was born. They cleaned him up and did his Apgars, and they held him up to my face so I could see him. Jonathan went with him to recovery, and they stitched me up, where I fell asleep for at least half of it. I was hooked up to an anti-seizure medication for 24 hours post delivery due to the preeclampsia and only able to eat clear fluids/drinks. We were finally discharged from the hospital on Wednesday November 17th. Overall, everyone at the hospital was so great, and we really enjoyed working with them. The time we had at the hospital gave us a great chance to learn some of the things that come along with caring for a newborn. I think if we went home right away we would have been overwhelmed a bit by reacting to his late, late night fussiness and how to meet his needs in the first few days.
led me in to prep me for surgery, and Jonathan and our doula got all dressed up in their special surgery gowns. The doula took pictures and a video for us during the c-section so that Jonathan could talk to me. I felt like I was going to fall asleep but fought hard to stay awake so I could hear his first cries. Jackson "Jack" Steven Nichols was born on November 14, 2010 at 3:28 p.m. He was 7 lbs. 14 oz. and 20 3/4 in. long. I heard him cry, and Jonathan told me to tell everyone his name. Everyone was asking us throughout the labor, and we said we would announce it when he was born. They cleaned him up and did his Apgars, and they held him up to my face so I could see him. Jonathan went with him to recovery, and they stitched me up, where I fell asleep for at least half of it. I was hooked up to an anti-seizure medication for 24 hours post delivery due to the preeclampsia and only able to eat clear fluids/drinks. We were finally discharged from the hospital on Wednesday November 17th. Overall, everyone at the hospital was so great, and we really enjoyed working with them. The time we had at the hospital gave us a great chance to learn some of the things that come along with caring for a newborn. I think if we went home right away we would have been overwhelmed a bit by reacting to his late, late night fussiness and how to meet his needs in the first few days.
When we first arrived home my parents were in town until Sunday. They helped with getting any extra baby items while we tried to get some rest and took Jack to his first pediatrician appointment. He had a little bit of jaundice but nothing to be too concerned about. Right now Jack's life consists of eating A LOT, sleeping, and going to the bathroom. A few days ago we put him onto his playmat for tummy time, and he rolled himself over from his front to his back since he doesn't really like being on his stomach much. He's very advanced ;)! We are probably the luckiest people alive, and I almost hate to say this like I might jinx myself, but he is an amazing sleeper at night. He started off waking up on his own every 3-4 hours, then we set our alarm to wake him up every 3-4 hours, and last night he slept through the night! He slept through the night at 8 days old...pretty amazing. We thought he would wake us up, but he didn't, so we're going to have to go back to waking him up to make sure he eats enough. We've had a bunch of appointments to go to, and he's really great travelling in the car too.
One of the things I was most excited about is that we had newborn photos taken this morning. Some of them were so cute I almost threw up :). We got some of his little nudey booty with these cute hats on, and a few family pictures. The photographer said she would have them edited in about a week, so I will try to put some up here when we get them. He was a good sport during the photos, but he was so over it at the end when we tried to get some of him and me. Oh well!
One of the things I was most excited about is that we had newborn photos taken this morning. Some of them were so cute I almost threw up :). We got some of his little nudey booty with these cute hats on, and a few family pictures. The photographer said she would have them edited in about a week, so I will try to put some up here when we get them. He was a good sport during the photos, but he was so over it at the end when we tried to get some of him and me. Oh well! 
Awh, so cute Sarah! Can't wait for December and to meet him.
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