The Wilcox's: Ike's Birth Story

I am writing this about 2 months or so late, but this is my 3rd birth, meaning I now have 3 kids who take up a lot of my time, so I guess late is better than never, right? Either way, here is Ike's story.

In the past, I have had very fast labors. When my water broke with Isla, she was in my arms in 1 push and less than 15 minutes later. Due to this history, the doctors and I decided it would be best to allow them to break my water for me at 39 weeks if I did not go into labor before then. This was mainly to ensure that I had him at the hospital and not at home. It was a huge fear of mine that I would be home with my children by myself when my water would break and that I would be delivering my own child by myself in my bathroom floor. My husband works about an hour away and the hospital is 25 minutes away without traffic and can be almost an hour away during rush hour. It was also the dead of winter... Heaven forbid I go into labor during a snow storm. Since I was so dilated this time prior to labor, the doctors said they would break my water for me at 39 weeks and that my body would likely just take over and I'd have the baby pretty quickly.

On February 5th, I went into the hospital at 6 AM. At 8 AM, they broke my water. My plan was to try to go all natural - especially if I would labor as quickly as I did in the past. After they broke my water, I walked the halls, changed positions frequently, and did what I knew to do to help labor progress. Unfortunately, after a few hours, I had very little progress. Since they had broken my water and I had to have him within 24 hours, they gave me Pitocin. Ouch. At this point, labor was picking up and I was in a lot of pain. One of the reasons (other than contractions) I was in so much pain was because of my pubic bone. A few weeks prior, I told my doctor that I felt like my child had hit me with a hammer in my pubic bone. It hurt so bad those last few weeks that I felt pain there constantly and it sometimes took my breath away. What I didn't realize during labor was that as he was descending, my pubic bone was separating. More on that later...

So, I finally decided to go ahead and have an epidural. When I was around 6 cm, they ordered the epidural. While I was getting the epidural, my contractions started picking up majorly. The nurse kept telling me, "You are really progressing..." and I'd say, "I was thinking the same thing..." as the anesthesiologist was poking my back. After he was done, they checked me and I was 8 cm. The problem was that the epidural only took on 1 side. My left side was numb, and my right side could still feel everything. Everything. I mean E V E R Y T H I N G. They had me lay on my right side and wait a while to see if the medicine from the epidural would take on my right side. It never did. So, at 9 cm, they took out my epidural and did another one allllllll over again. That was miserable. So, they gave me another one and gave me just enough to make my right side somewhat numb, but couldn't give me a full amount because it would make my left side too numb. Almost as soon as they were done with the 2nd epidural, I felt an extreme amount of pressure and I knew it was about that time. They checked me and confirmed what I was feeling - that I was ready to push.

When the doctor came in, it wasn't too long after that and Ike was coming out. I probably pushed for about 5-10 minutes at most. (Although it felt much longer!) My left side was totally numb, but I could still feel a lot on my right side. I could feel the stretching and the intense amount of pressure. For some reason, when he came out, I just had a flood of emotions. I felt relief physically and even emotionally. With the girls, I never felt "done." I always felt like they were a sweet addition to our family, but this time, I felt like this baby completed our family. I also had a miscarriage prior to this baby. I prayed so hard for him before I had him, while I carried him, and while I was in labor with him. I truly felt like God was saying to me, "I want to bless you more than you can fathom with your precious son." I felt like I had asked God for just a healthy baby and He gave me so much more... He gave me a healthy baby who He created to fit perfectly into our family and perfectly into my arms. He was more than "a healthy baby," he was (and is) MY perfect baby. He's so much better than what I asked for and I can't even describe the love I felt for him in that very instant when I first touched his warm skin and held his little soft cheeks against my chest.

Everything with Ike was perfect. He was 7 pounds and 9 ounces of perfect, sweet, soft, beautiful baby boy. I'm so thankful. The hard part was the recovery. I assumed that since he was my 3rd baby, that recovery would be easy. It was easy with Isla, so I figured it would be easy with him too. Unfortunately, I was very wrong. This was my hardest recovery yet. My pubic bone separated during the birth and caused me a tremendous amount of pain... So much so that I could not even walk to the bathroom. While in the hospital, I had to have X rays on my pubic bone. Before I even spoke with the doctor, the nurse told me, "The doctor will come and talk with you, but I saw your X ray and your pubic bone definitely separated." I can't take pain medications because they make me throw up constantly. So needless to say, it was a rough few days. I was supposed to go home on the 6th, but I didn't get to go home until the 7th, and even then - I was still in a lot of pain. The good thing is that with time, it has healed on its own.

Ike is 8 weeks old now and he is just precious. He is a very easy and relaxed baby. He enjoys nursing, snuggling, and starring at whoever is holding him. He loves to coo and smile at us as my heart melts into a puddle on the floor. He absolutely hates his car seat. Other than that, he is very content. He typically wakes once during the night to eat. After he burps and spits up (he spits up alllll the time), he goes right back to sleep. He is seriously a dream. At his 1 month checkup, he was 9 pounds 11 ounces. I really think he would have been heavier, but the week prior to his appointment, all 5 of us got a yucky stomach virus. Ike threw up for 4 days. That was not fun, but I'm so glad it is over! Regardless, he gained over 2 pounds his first month, which means he is a good little eater. :) I'm excited to see what he will weigh next week at his 2 month checkup.

So here is a video and some of the pictures from Ike's birth. Please excuse my emotional blubbering in the video. So. Many. Emotions.

This was when I first got to the hospital.

And there he is! Nothing is sweeter than holding that precious little one for the first time!

Oooooh how I love this boy and ooooooh how glad I was to have him OUT.

Ha ha... this girl was opening her big sister kit and got a little excited over the snacks. :)

Nana and Ike

Pops, Ike, and Isla

The girls loved meeting their little brother

MiMi and Ike

MiMi, G-Pa, and Ike

My boy.

This was after he got his little belly full and decided to fall asleep snuggled up with me. Pure contentment.

Ike's first little bath.

I love this tiny burrito!

Headed home!

I also wanted to share some professional newborn photos of Ike and our family. First, let me introduce you to my kind, sweet, gentle friend. Her name is Taylor Groneck and she is the mastermind behind these photos! Her photography business is called Simply You Photography. I cannot sing her praises enough. She is such a professional and not only do her pictures bring a warmness to your heart, but so does she. Working with her was amazing. She was so tender and sweet towards our whole family and she did an incredible job. If you are interested in having some high quality beautiful photos taken, please check with Taylor. You can click HERE to see her Facebook page, or click HERE for her website, or just shoot her an email at taylor @simplyyouphoto.org.