Welcome Baby Arlo!

Finally! We are happy to announce the birth of Arlo Sherman Patrick on Thursday, September 2nd, at 10:42 pm. He weighed 8 pounds, 15 ounces and was 21 inches long. We are so happy he's finally here, and we are in transition survival mode.

The following is my birth story. If you aren't interested, you should probably scroll down to the fun pictures.

I tried everything to go into labor naturally -- acupuncture, evening primrose oil, walking, etc. -- but Arlo was too happy to leave his uterine home. As a result, I had an induction that started on the evening of August 31st. Yep, that's right. I was in labor for about 48 hours. It all started with a catheter that was put in place to mechanically dilate my cervix in the hopes of reducing the amount of pitocin I would need and the difficulty of my induced labor. The good news is that after the catheter was put in place, I was able to go home for a little rest. I won't go into to details, but the catheter was very uncomfortable, and I ended up in the tub for part of the night shaking and having contractions. That was only a preview of what was to come.

When we checked into the hospital the following morning, the catheter was removed and I felt pretty good. I was 4 centimeters dilated (as opposed to 0 cm before the catheter) and had mild cramping without regular contractions. A pitocin drip was started at a fairly low dose to try and get things moving. For the next 20 hours, I was pretty comfortable. In fact, I kept telling the nurses that even though the contractions got more painful and required focused breathing to get through, I didn't think I would know that I was in labor if things started on their own.

Just when I was feeling confident in my ability to deliver without medical interventions, the shit started hitting the fan. It started when the external monitors for Arlo's heart rate and my contractions went on the fritz. The medical staff was having a hard time getting readings to assess Arlo's baseline heart rate and the contraction monitor wasn't picking up any of my contractions. The heart rate monitor is critical for making sure the baby's heart rate isn't dipping too low while the contraction monitor provide information on when contractions start and end. In the event that the baby's heart rate drops, medical staff look at whether or not contractions are occurring, which helps paint a picture for potential issues. The short of it is that both monitors are necessary, especially for a labor induced with pitocin.

The monitor issues meant that I couldn't walk or move around as much as I would have liked. However, the monitor troubles became critical when, after about 30-33 hours of labor, the baby's heart rate dropped to the 80s (a normal heart rate for a full term baby is between 110 and 160 beats per minute) and my water broke. Since Arlo was in the uterus for so long, he pooped and the amniotic fluid had meconium, which, if inhaled, could raise complications at birth.

A flurry of midwives, OB/GYNs, and nurses flooded the room and because the monitors weren't working like they should, a vaginal fetal heart rate monitor was put in to provide better information on Arlo's condition. I started convulsing and was put on oxygen. Poor Ryan was watching this helplessly, and I don't know what he was thinking, but I'm sure it was stressful and worrisome.

After some time, Arlo's heart rate increased to within the normal range, and I started to relax. Intense contractions that were 2-3 minutes apart began, and I started moaning and breathing my way through them. Thankfully, I was able to spend time in the shower and the warm water helped me tremendously.

A few hours later, the pain was incredibly intense, but the contraction monitor wasn't picking up any of my contractions. So, the midwife suggested an internal contraction monitor. After having so many things put into my uterus and cervix, the last thing I wanted to do was have another device put inside. I resisted, but ultimately, it became clear that the internal contraction monitor was necessary. Strangely, when they put the internal contraction monitor in it didn't work. The midwife and nurse were surprised and said they had not seen that happen before. The defective monitor had to be removed and another monitor inserted. Ugh!!!

Distracted by the technical difficulties; crippled by serious pain, tubes and gadgets; frustrated by a lack of progress (I was still 4 cm dilated 36 hours into my labor); and exhausted from multiple nights without much (or any) sleep, I finally decided to have an epidural at about 10 a.m. on Thursday the 2nd. When the anesthesiologist put the epidural catheter in place, it didn't work. Once again, we heard, "Wow, we've never seen that before." Finally, after the second try, it worked and I was soon numb but comfortable enough to sleep and recharge.

Now, let me just say that overall we had a great experience at the hospital we delivered in. The technical problems seemed like true flukes of chance, but the nurses, midwives, OBs and everyone else were amazing. However, there was one nurse who was a little frustrating. If you ask Ryan, he would say the nurse was incompetent, cold-hearted, and impossible.

The nurse in question was supposed to help me empty my bladder through two temporary catheter applications before a final catheter was put in place. The reason for the two temporary catheters was due to the fact that my water had broken and the longer a catheter is in place, the higher the risk of infection. I kept telling the nurse I felt pain/pressure and had to pee. She kept telling me I was wrong and refused to put in a temporary catheter to empty my bladder. As I grew more and more uncomfortable, Ryan and our doula pushed for the catheter, and finally the nurse complied.

Then, the nurse was supposed to help me stay on top of my epidural. The system this hospital uses has a base amount of the drug going into the system and the patient pushes a button to increase the dose and stay on top of the pain. I knew about the button, but assumed that I should only use if I felt pain returning. Unfortuantely, if you don't press the button regularly, you fall behind the medication dose and can't catch up. Twice the pain came back so strongly that I started shaking uncontrollably and the anesthesiologist had to come in to get me back to a comfortable state. After the second incident, the anesthesiologist pulled Ryan out of the room and told him that I needed to push the button regularly to stay ahead of the pain. After that, everything was a breeze, but Ryan was furious that the nurse didn't help avoid the problem in the first place.

After a woman's water breaks, infection is always a concern. According to our midwives, when a woman's temperature reaches 100.7 degrees, they start talking to the laboring mother about other interventions that may be necessary, including the dreaded cesarean section. My temperature reached 100.6, so I'm glad to say that I barely escaped the need for another intervention and gave birth vaginally.

After resting and laboring for a few more hours, I started to feel pressure and the urge to push. I began pushing at about 8 pm and continued until Arlo was born at 10:42. I have to say, my favorite part of labor was pushing. I was so encouraged by the positive cheers, and I could tell by looking at Ryan's face that Arlo was on the way! I also felt like pushing was the first time I could actively do SOMETHING to birth the baby. When Arlo emerged, I was completely blown away. Ryan was crying and the experience was truly surreal. It was the most incredible moment of my life. As soon as Arlo heard Ryan's voice at the examination table, he seemed to recognize him and settle down. The whole moment is truly beyond words or description.

Now, we are adjusting to an entirely different life. They say the first week is the hardest because you are just trying to survive the long nights and pain of breast feeding (yes, it is painful even if you are doing it right). I hope that's true because the adrenaline and rush of the moment of birth is starting to wear off.

Regardless, one look at Arlo makes it all worth it. I know that sounds cliche and completely ridiculous and, believe me, I have broken down a few times this week and wanted to quit, but it's true. Arlo tries to smile or snorts like a pig while latching on and it makes us laugh and think we can do it one step at a time. For someone who was a little unsure about this whole baby thing, I'm totally on board now and looking forward to the adventure of parenthood!

One last thing: Both Ryan and I cannot sing enough praise for our wonderful doula, Alissa Wehrman from Sunbirth Services. Ryan told me that he would never have been able to cope with the challenging labor and delivery without Alissa's support and assistance. I feel the same way, and Alissa has been a life saver with postpartum and breast feeding support. I'm awed by Alissa's incredible skill, patience, depth of knowledge, and flexibility. In a word, Alissa rocks!

We also adored our midwives from Swedish Hospital in Ballard. We've worked with all of the midwives and would gladly use them again and recommend them to our friends. A special thank you goes out to Audrey, who saw me through the darkest period of the labor, and Mia, who delivered Arlo in fine fashion! Many of the midwives and nurses at the hospital also sung Alissa's praises. She is very good at what she does!

Arlo almost smiling in the hospital.

My guys sleeping as soon as we get home from the hospital.

Ryan and Arlo's first Moby wrap experience. Lookin' good!

First bath!
Yes, that is a pacifier in his mouth. Arlo has an extremely strong need to suck to soothe himself even when he's not hungry. Since he has no trouble latching on for feeding, we are using the pacifier as a crutch to give us a little sanity during survival week.

I call this Arlo's "old man face" because he looks all scrunched and wrinkled.

One of the fabulous nurses helping us get Arlo ready to go home.

Welcome Baby Arlo! We're so glad you're here!