April 17, 2012
The day finally arrived and we were anxious to meet Baby. We had to be at the American Fork Hospital at 6:30 am so I could get prepped for surgery. The morning was cold, cloudy and rainy. I didn't get much sleep because my mind was going over everything that would happen in the next hours. I got up at 5:15 am to get ready to go to the hospital.
I ended up having to get a c-section because I was at full term: I hadn't dilated at all, baby was measuring quite big and I had a lot of fluid. We had our Dr check one last time to see if I had dilated any, but no luck for an induction to have baby naturally. I was too eager to wait any longer. I remember getting nervous right before they rolled me into the operating room.
The operation started at 8 am, which is when I received the spinal anesthesia. During the surgery, I felt cold and shaky. Mike sat by my head to give me support. There was a sheet covering the half that was being operated on, so Mike didn't see them actually cutting into me, but he was ready with his camera as soon as baby came out. I felt tons of pressure right before the baby came and felt like I couldn't breathe. Then at 8:30 pm, it felt like all of a sudden, I heard baby crying. It wasn't a wailing cry like I imagined, but a healthy cry and baby made his presence known.
Mike got some beautiful pictures. Here is Benjamin! Weighing at 8 lb 9 oz and 20.5 inches long. While Benjamin was cleaned, I was stitched up. I was told that the doctors and nurses present had never seen anyone with so much amniotic fluid (4 lbs). One nurse said in her 41 years, there was perhaps only one or two times when she'd seen someone with so much fluid.
This is our first picture as a whole family. I wasn't quite finished with being closed up, but I yearned to hold Benjamin in my arms. After everything was finished, I had to go away to recover for an hour before I could hold him. Meanwhile, Mike went with Benjamin to the nursery to have additional vitals checked.
I was so excited to see he had a full head of hair. He has my hands and feet, and Mike's face. I'm sure he will continue to change over the next few months as he grows.
I was finally able to hold Benjamin in my arms, and it was an overwhelming feeling of happiness, responsibility and exhaustion. This isn't a great picture of me, but it is precious to me all the same to have Benjamin safely with us.
Above, Benjamin is peacefully sleeping.
Benjamin with his proud papa.
We had a great experience at the hospital. We stayed for 3 days and then took Benjamin home to begin a new chapter in our lives.
