The Family Tree: March 2013

It finally happened! Our little Boston was born 12-15-12 at 11:39pm. I decided i need to hurry and write down Boston's birth story before i forget everything so one day he can read about his grand entrance. It is super long because I didn't want to leave anything out, so don't say i didn't warn you. So here it is:

I will start at the beginning of December. I decided to work up until I delivered, and being extremely large, it started getting really difficult. I never really got used to my big belly! I was always trying to squeeze past people or in small places only then to realize it was just not happening :-) Several times i brushed a patient on the head trying to move from one side of them to another. Oh boy. December is also probably our busiest month at the Dental Office, everyone tries to get in before their insurance renews. Its also the time where the most of our staff gets sick. The first week of December, we had 3 co-workers out sick. It was a nightmare! All i remember is waddling. Waddling FAST! Back and forth, from one room to the next. Up front answering phones, into one room to take x-rays, down the hall to a different patient to assist, and so on and so on... I had cankles the size of basketballs i tell you! I kept joking with my boss that if anything put me into labor, it would be this!
We also had a wedding the week before I delivered. Now, i wasn't due til December 30th, and i was POSITIVE i was going to be late. So Jeff's brother Brady and his then fiance Marissa were married December 7th 2012 in the Manti Temple. It was a gorgeous day, and aside from having my butt blown up on the ceiling of their reception, the day was great! (Boston, if you ever read this, just ask your dad. I'm sure he still has a picture somewhere) The next day, we traveled back to Heber for a second reception. It was crazy! I think it was all a good thing i stayed so busy or i would have gone insane.
The following week, i went right back at it. Work, home, sleep. We ended up blowing up our air mattress and putting it on top of our bed because that's the only place i could lay down and be comfortable :-) (Jeff was so good to me through this whole process. He hates the air mattress, and he didn't complain once to me :-) He also never seemed to mind going for shakes and french fries with me either. Crazy!) So I ended the work week with a Doctors appointment on Thursday afternoon. I left work early, it was crazy (surprise) and found out i was dialated to a 1. I was so happy! Progress, people! Afterwards, we had my work Christmas Party where we talked about how sad my last week would be. I was not looking forward to saying goodbye! Little did I know, i had already had my last day!

So the next day on Friday, i had the day off, and decided to spend my time making and shopping for Christmas gifts. I left most of my shopping to do this day and the next since we had been so busy. When i woke up that morning, i wasn't feeling all that well. I remember watching the news of the Connecticut Elementary School shooting all day, feeling so sick about it, and sobbing while making a book page wreath for my mom. (Pregnancy hormones are fun!) That night i went to a Christmas Party with Jeff's family, and afterwards visiting at his Aunt Bonnie's house. My mother-in-law kept saying, we need to get Megan to laugh really hard so she goes into labor! Yeah right! Was my thought, but we laughed the whole night, at Brady and Marissa's expense!
Jeff and I came home, went to bed, i tossed and turned all night, thinking i couldn't possibly be any more uncomfortable. I also got up about 3 different times to pee, Boston must have been playing with my bladder.

WARNING
Ok, Boston, your mom is going to get a little graphic here, so if you can't handle it, you obviously have some more growing up to do :-) Ask me to read this again in ten years. Anyone who may be reading this just be warned...i want to remember the details and don't care if you don't like it :-)

I got up around 7 and noticed a lot of mucous. I was prepared for my mucous plug to come out, i read that once its out, it can still take about 2 weeks for you to deliver. So i ran in (imagine it as more of a waddle-run) and told Jeff. We were excited, but trying not to be too excited. I laid back down, but couldn't sleep. As i got back up, i felt a gush of fluid and thought maybe my water broke. My doctor always told me at the end of my appointments, if i ever got a gush of fluid to call in right away. I called the on-call doctor, and was told i probably should run over to the hospital to be checked. We got there, I got to my room, and i had mucous coming out like nothing. It was disgusting...i must have had one heck of a mucous plug. The nurse was even surprised. They checked me and i was only almost dialated to a 2. It felt like the nurse was up to her elbow when she checked me. yikes! My doctor has always been so gentle, so when she checked, i wanted to punch her in the face. She kept telling me to relax...funny how they always want you to relax with their hand jammed up there. They tested me for amniotic fluid, and it came back negative. They said just to make sure i made it to my Doctors appointment next week, and i should be fine.

We headed home, a little disappointed. Jeff had a wrestling tournament to coach in Provo, and i had a hair appointment. We also had tickets to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas performance that night. My mom and i try each year to get tickets, and this was the first time we've actually recieved them. Oh yeah! (Thanks Boston) As we got out of the car to head into our apartment, i started cramping. Its pretty normal after you get checked, and since she REALLY checked me, i didn't think anything of it. Jeff left for Provo, i met my mom at my sister in laws apartment to get our hair done. I was late, so she had started on my moms, and i joined my brothers on the couch who were watching the movie Christmas Shoes. I sat down and noticed the cramping had gotten worse. I only really felt it when i stood up or sat down. But now they were getting bad. I was cursing that nurses name something pretty bad. My mom kept asking if i was ok, i told her i was cramping but fine, so we started highlighting my hair.
I started noticing the cramping coming and going now, without me moving. It must have shown on my face because my mom suggested maybe i should start keeping track of them just in case they really were contractions. It was about 2pm and they were coming about every 2-3 minutes lasting about 30 seconds. You might be saying, DUH! But hey, my water still hadn't broke! And i had already been sent home.
At about 2:30, my water finally broke. I had shifted in the chair and thought i peed my pants. I had foils all over in my hair, and my sister in law wasn't finished. I looked at my mom, then looked at her and said OH MY HECK MY WATER BROKE. We all just kind of sat there like....what do we do? I told her i was fine, and just to finish. She probably broke a record or something with how fast she finished! My mom drove me to our apartment to meet Jeff, who made it to West Jordan from Provo in about 15 minutes...another record i'm sure :-) On the way over is when the contractions REALLY started getting painful. I was so glad to be with my mom, instead of alone in our apartment! She held my hand and helped me until we got to our apartment where Jeff and my dad gave me a blessing. As soon as they finished we grabbed our hospital bags and headed back out to the car.

Just a funny side note, both my dad and Jeff were nervous, so they started making small talk about my dad's new car. I had just sat down in the passenger seat when another contraction hit and my mom saw me and yelled at my dad: Troy! they need to go. I was in so much pain i didn't have time to laugh, but i really was laughing on this inside. Oh dad!

We made it to the hospital in no time.Checked, water had indeed broke, and we were admitted! All i could think about was GET ME THAT FREAKING EPIDURAL! They wheeled me into my room, and I remember thinking to myself: Ok, Megan, try not to sound crazy. Try not to be one of those crazy pregnant women! So this little old nurse walks in, and i burst out, "When can i get the epidural!?" It didn't sound to bad to me, but the lady took a step back and started to reassure me that the anesthesiologist would be in shortly. Yes, i was a crazy woman in labor.

So at about 4:30 the anesthesiologist comes in and asks me to lay on my side and arch my back. So hard when your belly is the size of an overgrown watermelon. He kept saying, "'you need to arch your back further," "try to push your spine outwards," "roll into a ball." All the while in between, he and Jeff and the nurse were talking about missions. Thats all gravy, but, a little help here? I wanted to jab him with his needle. The doctor that is :-) (I didn't say one mean thing to Jeff the entire time!) After knicking my spine a few times, it finally worked. Oh sweet relief. I don't know how any woman would want to give birth without one. I kept telling Jeff I felt like a million bucks. So nice to watch the monitor and say, hey look i'm having another contraction! And not feel a single thing :-)

Ok, no judging! :)

After that, i really don't remember much. I had not been that comfortable in about nine months :-) Jeff found some Christmas movies, and Friends episodes on TV, and i was in and out of sleep the whole time. He also brought me slushies. All you can eat slushies! Heaven! I had forgotten i hadn't eaten a single thing all day, so they could have tasted like dirt and i would have loved it. Yum :-)
They did hook me up to Petocin to speed things up, and I developed a fever that required me to be on an antibiotic IV, but other than that labor was a breeze.
I made great progress, and they started getting things set up for me to push around 10:30/11pm. I was pushing at 11:20pm, and he was born at 11:39 Weighing 7lbs, 7oz 20 inches long. They immediately set him on my stomach while Jeff cut the umbilical cord. He was covered in all sorts of who knows what, and I will admit i was slightly freaked out. They took him to clean him off, and he didn't even really cry, just laid on the table so in awe of everything there was to look at.

Once he was cleaned off, they had Jeff carry him over to me for some skin to skin time. He laid on my chest and was trying so hard to look up at me and Jeff. His eyes were bright and wide open the whole time :-) Jeff and I are absolutely in love with this little boy. It makes me so emotional just writing this. He is the best thing that has ever happened to us! Being a parent is so much harder than i even imagined, but the joy he brings outweighs everything! I would do anything for this sweet boy. Here are some more pictures: