Ezra's Birth Story

Add Comment , , , , ,


I don't get to write nearly as much as I would like to these days but recording my kids' birth stories is a tradition that I can't let go of. I've actually had this written for a few months but keep forgetting to post. Our ridiculously sweet little man is now NINE months old but the details of his birth still bring me so much joy. 

If you read the blog with our announcement, you know that we were in a wild state of transition when we found I was pregnant with baby #5. Thankfully the pregnancy was quite calm and smooth because our family's life in 2024 was anything but calm. During Ezra's pregnancy, we traveled to Maine to confirm the town of our church plant, to Boston for assessment with our sending network, PA for vacation and to KY for Joel's seminary graduation. We prepped our house for the market, traveled to VA and NC while it was being shown, traveled to Maine to find a house... and looked at 14 homes in 2 days before putting in an offer. We packed up and moved out of our DE house, spent over a week with friends for our last days in DE, and moved to Maine when I was 27 weeks pregnant. The whirlwind didn't really end there as we had to get settled in our home and get established with new health care providers, etc. Yet, the pregnancy itself was super smooth. I had some mild issues with my blood sugars that I was able to manage with diet thankfully but other than that there'd been no complications. 

When I was 37 weeks, we returned home from a trip to DE and my heart was quite full. We hadn't planned to travel that late in the pregnancy but we needed to go down for Joel's grandmother's memorial service and decided to go ahead and spend a few days with our friends and church family while there. My body was exhausted but getting to spend some quality time and my birthday with some of our closest people was such a joy. And it reaffirmed something that God has confirmed over and over in this journey to Maine, He knows what we need. He sees and knows and is faithful to provide. 

As we entered the last bit of pregnancy, I was so thankful for two specific prayer requests that God had answered and was asking for two more specific things surrounding Ezra's birth. When we moved states that late in pregnancy, I prayed that God would give us some Christian community and also help me find provider that I could trust with my care. We were so thankful for the sweet friends in Maine that God gave us from the start and sure enough He also provided a doctor, midwife, and chiropractor that I was thrilled with. In addition to the general healthy delivery and baby requests, two new specific requests were in the forefront. First, that we would clearly know when it was time to go to the hospital for birth and secondly, that someone would be able to come care for our kids and us get there without panic or chaos. (If you don't know, my 3rd and 4th labors turned on a dime and our 3rd was born in the minivan.) 

This all sets the stage for when my contractions began. I woke up to contractions early Friday morning (37wks 4days). We thankfully had friends visiting at the time so I didn't have to immediately make a decision on childcare. But I did realize that with all the travel, I still hadn't packed my hospital bag. After doing a little packing and attempting to go back to sleep, I realized these were the normal prodromal labor contractions that I've had with the prior pregnancies. Strong enough and regular enough to keep me from sleeping but not intense enough or frequent enough to be real true labor. This continued on and off through the weekend. Our friends had headed back to DE and we were now gearing up for a normal week. 

On Sunday though, I got this really strange chest pain. It lasted for about 20 minutes but disappeared as quickly as it came on. On Monday the same thing happened again right before my 38 week check up so I told the doctor about it. My blood pressure had been fine but she wanted to order labs just to check and told me they would get back to me. We're still not sure if it was positional thing with the baby or what but I truly believe that God used this to prompt them to run labs. 

On Tuesday (38w1d) I woke up to more intense contractions. They still weren't close enough together to go in over but they were definitely stronger and more consistent. Later that morning I lost my mucus plug which usually only comes right before "go time" for me. We started to put a plan together just in case everything turned. We asked Joel's mom to pack up and head on our way from CT. We checked in with a couple friends who could pass off childcare if needed. We asked our friend Mollie to come on over mid morning to be with the kids so we could head on to the Portland area and do some walking and grab some lunch before my scheduled ultrasound and/or be in the area of the hospital in case labor intensified quickly. 

Mollie had arrived and we were chatting and talking through plans for the kids when my doctors office called. Apparently one of my lab numbers had come back high and they wanted me to come in to discuss being induced. With my normal doctor and midwife both out of town that week, I was unsettled about having someone make that decision who didn't know me and my history so well. But when I explained to the nurse on the phone what was already happening she asked that I just go on into triage and get checked and let them run repeat labs and go from there. 

We took our time going in. It was such a beautiful Fall day and we were still being mesmerized by the gorgeous Maine Autumn colors. We dropped off our absentee ballots and grabbed lunch at a sub shop by the hospital. Upon arrival they made sure baby was head down and checked my cervix. She said I was still high and closed. I was surprised because I don't typically lose my mucus plug until I start to dilate but I didn't dwell on it. The contractions were still coming consistently but weren't very intense. I talked with the doc and just explained that because I wasn't dilated, unless my labs came back much higher, I didn't really want to be induced and have to get a foley bulb etc. (I wouldn't have minded as much if I were dilated and they could just break my water because that usually does the trick for me.) 

Sure enough my labs came back and the liver labs they were concerned about had increased which led them to believe I was trending towards preeclampsia slowly but surely. As much as I didn't want to be induced, it was clear that was the path forward and I honestly had so much peace about it. I realized that already God had graciously answered the two specific requests that I had asked of Him for delivery... my kids were in the care of trusted friends (with my mother in law on the way) and we clearly knew when to go to the hospital. 

We discussed the plan of doing a cook ball (similar to foley bulb) as well as a medicine for early dilation and then breaking my water to see if that would be enough without pitocin. They got us settled in a room with a gorgeous view of the fall foliage, a nice rocking chair, and a laboring tub. Since it was shift change and I wasn't an urgent priority they told us to just get dinner and stay comfy and they'd eventually come get my induction all started. Joel ran out to grab our favorite fish sandwiches in Portland and we enjoyed them greatly while watching the Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives episode about Becky's Diner (the place our dinner was from). To be honest, it totally felt like a date. 




At some point they came to get the induction going but they were having a hard time getting my cook ball inserted so they had to call for another doctor. When she finally found my cervix, I was actually already 4cm. This made so much more sense and was such a relief… basically they admitted me to induce me but  the only inducing I really needed was for them to break my water. The doctor who ran point from then on was wonderful and so supportive of my natural birth wishes. 


They broke my water a little after 8 and that definitely made the contractions start coming more intensely. I sat on the ball while we watched Maine Cabin Masters and eventually relaxed in the tub a bit. My nurse was so helpful and gave me some suggestions to get the contractions coming quicker naturally. Eventually they picked up enough that I wanted to get in the shower as that’s my laboring happy place. At that point the portable monitors began sliding around and the doctor offered for me to do intermittent monitoring. I’ve never been offered that option and was so thrilled to not be hooked up to anything for the last bit of my labor. 


Once I started feeling some back labor and pressure I moved back to the bed and had Joel rubbing my back during contractions. That last hour of back labor was definitely tough. Honestly even just typing that makes my tail bone hurt haha. But of course right about the time where I felt like I couldn’t make it, it was time to push. The doctor and nurse were already in the room because they knew my track record and were determined to be in the room when baby was born. I was on hands and knees already trying to get comfortable and thankfully the doctor was all for me delivering in that position. 


At this point, I started pushing and honestly just couldn’t wait to know if we were having Ezra or Lucy Ann. It was our first time waiting to find out gender and it had been fun all pregnancy but it was especially fun during the labor. We had told them that we wanted Joel to be the one to announce if it was a boy or girl. After a few pushes, we heard those precious cries. Within seconds I heard Joel say “Babe… (and his voice caught) It’s Ezra!” Queue all the waterworks. It was one of the sweetest moments of my life. We had another precious son. And God had shown His faithfulness to us through another pregnancy and delivery. As I rolled over and got him settled on my chest, the song “You Know What I Need” was playing on my birth playlist. God did indeed know what we needed and we are still overwhelmed with thankfulness. 




Ezra was born on October 23rd at 12:54am weighing 6lbs 10oz. We had decided ahead of time that we wouldn’t reveal the gender to anyone until our kids had met him and knew. That next morning Joel’s mom brought them to the hospital and I don’t know that our kids have ever been so excited. Upon hearing that it was Ezra they all were overjoyed. Malachi teared up. Levi said “this has made my whole life.” The girlies (and the boys) couldn’t wait to get ahold of him.  




The following weeks were full of sweetness but they weren’t without their challenges. I had some blood pressure issues after delivery that were heightened by a reaction to Rhogam. We had to learn to navigate the baby season in a completely new place. And hardest of all was Ezra being hospitalized with RSV at 2 months old. But in the midst of all of that we were thankful for so many ways that God cared for us. Through the body of Christ near and far and through His constant love and grace. Ezra has been the most loving and joyful little babe. He is insanely loved and constantly told so and he’s incredibly affectionate right back. We are beyond thankful to God for the gift that he is and all the ways God drew us to Himself through the journey of his pregnancy and birth. 






CONVERSATION

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments ( Atom )
Back
to top