It was July 3rd and we had gone to a fireworks show in Bountiful with Daniels family. Still no signs of labor and everyone was asking when he was going to come - and I wish I had an answer for them! We sat through the fireworks show, and then on the walk back, my contractions hit me! I knew this was it! I always wondered if I would know if I was in labor or not, but man did I know! At that point my contractions were about 10 minutes apart. We went home and I tried to sleep, but that wasn't happening! By 2:30 or so my contractions were about 4 minutes apart and very painful! I woke Daniel up and told him that it was time to go to the hospital! My wish came true! Jackson would be born on July 4th!
The drive to the hospital is about 20 minutes from our house but it felt like it was way longer than that! Labor is painful! When we got to the hospital, I could barley walk in the doors! We got to the front desk and they asked if I thought I was in labor and my response was "I sure hope so!" We got checked in and they got me hooked up to all the monitors. When the nurse checked me I was 4 cm dialated and 90% efaced. She told me they monitor you for an hour and then check you again to see if you have made any progress. That hour felt like an eternity, with contractions every 3 minutes. The hour passed and the nurse came in again. Still at a 4! Dang it! She told me that she wanted to call the Dr to see what he wanted to do since I was on the verge of being sent home! Once she talked to the Dr she came back in and said that he wanted me monitored for another hour. At this point i'm thinking in my head, just give me some drugs please!!!!! The next hour again went by so slow, I wasn't sure if I could handle it anymore. I was shaking, and struggling through the contractions. The nurse came back in. Success! I was at a 5! Hallelujah! When she told me, I immediately asked for the epidural and how long it would take to get here! Don't get me wrong, i'm no wimp, but... this pain was serious! She told me it would be here within the next half hour. Music to my ears! I got the epidural at 6:30 a.m. At that point I had been in labor for 7 hours! It was a glorious feeling, not feeling anything ha!
Once I got the epidural Daniel and I both tried to get some sleep. It was easy for me, since I was exhausted and couldn't feel the pain anymore! For Daniel, I think it was a little harder! We slept for a couple hours, and the nurse came in to check me again. I had gone from 5 cm to 8 cm's! It was exciting thinking that Jackson was coming soon! She said she would come in and check me every hour from that point on! Our families had got there and they were all so excited! An hour had passed and the nurse came to check me again, still at an 8. I stayed at an 8 for the next hour so they started me on pitocin at around 10 a.m. I was exhausted so I kept sleeping while Daniel and our families hung out (I was so much fun!) Finally at 1 p.m. the nurse came in and checked me I was fully dilated and ready to push! At this point I became extremely nervous, and anxious! Everyone went out except Daniel, my Mom, and the nurse. Trying to get situated with an epidural is hilarious! I pushed for two hours with little success. The nurse went to get the Dr, but he was in another delivery. I slept while we waited which was for about an hour. Then finally the Dr came in. It was full speed ahead from there. The lights came on, the nurses came in and the atmosphere was hectic.
Since Jackson wasn't coming, the Dr told me that we had two options, use the suction and if that didn't work, I would have to have a C-Section. In the moment I was just saying yes to everything, not understanding the situation or really what was going on. They were in a hurry since Jackson had been in the birth canal for an excess of 2 hours. I started pushing, and the Dr had to use the suction. After about 30 minutes at 4:22 p.m. Jackson Porter Kroll was born. In the words of the Dr. He was sunny side up! He was posterior, which was why he was stuck, and I wasn't progressing like I should have been. It was the best moment of my life! They laid him on my chest and I heard his cry for the first time. It was the best sound in the world! He had a bad ring of blisters on his head from the suction which was scary, but the Dr said it would heal! He weighed in at a whopping 8 lbs 14 ounces and was 20 inches long. That was a shocker since just two weeks prior they told me he was in the high 6lbs! I thought I would have a 7 lb baby, not an almost 9 pounder! He was perfectly healthy and the most beautiful thing I had ever seen! He looks just like his dad, and i'm hoping at some point he starts to look like me! He is the best baby. He usually only cries for 3 reasons: he's hungry, when he's cold and sometimes when you change his diaper! Other than that, he sleeps for 4 to 5 hour stretches at night, and sleeps til the point of starvation, so when he wakes up he's like feed me NOW!!! I find myself just staring at him and admiring him! Daniel is the best dad, and is so attentive! My favorite thing that he does, is when he plays with Jackson, he sings the Indiana Jones them song, why he does this I don't know, but I love it!
He is the greatest blessing, and teaches me so much about love and caring for someone. It's amazing how much you can love someone that you have never met, and it just re-confirms my thought that babies, and life are miracles. I love this little boy with everything that I am!
