William Clary Quist: A Birth Story

Okay I hope I can remember all of the details!

Weeks before I actually had Will, I had lots of false labor. Ugh, just thinking about it makes me upset. There were three times that I legitimately thought I was going to have a baby that day, due to the false labor. I would have contractions 4-5 minutes apart for an hour or so, and then when I thought things were getting serious, they would completely stop! Talk about frustrating. The day of my due date, I woke up at 4 am with some intense contractions. I took a shower because of the pain and did a lot of walking but things eventually stopped. I then got back to sleep around 8 am. Around noon, I decided I wanted to go to the hospital. I was so sick of the contractions, they were coming every 3 minutes, and I wanted to see if I was really in labor. Looking back, that probably wasn't the best choice.

I was admitted and checked where I found out I was at a 4, 80% effaced. My doctor came in at 1:50 and stripped my membranes. He then talked to me about breaking my water. I think at this point I was so done and not in the best hospital as far as encouraging a natural birth, so I decided to go for it. He didn't mention that if I didn't dialate in a certain amount of time that they would have to put me on pitocin to avoid infection. So my water breaks, and then my labor pretty much stalls. At 4pm I was at a 5. I was very frustrated that I wasn't progressing especially because the contractions were starting to get pretty intense. Also, they made me stay on the monitor the entire time which meant it was nearly impossible to walk around. I walked with Elin for hours during my labor so that was pretty tough to be stuck to the bed. My doctor decides he wants me to do pitocin and so I got an epidural. I had expressed that I wanted to avoid pitocin at all costs and wanted to labor on my own for as long as possible. I had such a great experience when I had Elin, but this hospital, and not to mention my doctor, were so very different. Don't get me wrong, I liked my doctor, but it wasn't the experience I was hoping to have. Oh well, as long as we get the baby safely here and everyone's healthy, those are the most important things.

So at 5:15, I got my epidural and started pit shortly after. I was at a 6. They gave me the smallest dosage of pit possible but it definitely amped up my labor. My epidural was a little too strong because I could not move my one leg, it was terrible! All of the sudden, I felt intense pressure. It was a pretty crazy feeling. With elin, I pushed her down the birth canal, so having Will come on his own was really great. I decided to have my parents in the room with us. My dad stayed in the corner up by my head and my mom and Nate were by my side. My nurse was fine, but nothing special. I started pushing at 6:35 and it was a lot easier then it was with Elin. I pushed for 4 contractions and then Will was out! He was born at 6:49 pm, August 14th, 2015. He was 7 lbs. 4 oz and 19 in long.

My first look at my sweet babe.

Oh, isn't this the best. I could have 10 more babies just to enjoy the newborn stage. It never gets old for me. Toddlers though...

 First pic of father and son. Nate named Will. We have a hard time agreeing on names and so we have followed in the footsteps of his grandparents and how they named their children. We take turns naming our kids. So I named Elin, and Nate named Will. I will name the next child, and so on. Although I do love the name Will. As far as his middle name, Clary is Will's grandma's maiden name. Nate's middle name is his grandma's maiden name. So we thought it would be neat to keep the tradition. 

 Straight from heaven and absolutely perfect.

 Just obsessed with him!

 Elin meeting Will! I actually didn't get to see Elin see Will for the first time. He was in the nursery and so she went straight there and I missed it. It still makes me sad. We definitely had a different experience in about every way, having Will compared to Elin. When we had Elin, we lived in Virginia and so the only family we had was my mom. I also had a few of my friends visit in the hospital. So even though it would have been nice to have more family, it was pretty chill and I never felt bombarded. Will, on the other hand, I had people ready to come in my room while I was getting stitched up! It was pretty wild. I had just had a baby and was dealing with all of those emotions and wanting to see Elin and I had no desire to deal with a bunch of people. That was pretty hard for me.

 Elin wasn't sure of Will but would ask to hold him quite often even though it only lasted a few seconds. Seeing these two babes of mine together is a priceless feeling. I feel so blessed that I get to go through pregnancy(even though I hate it) and labors, and have these sweet little spirits be all mine. Life is pretty incredible!

Elin K Quist: A Birth Story

This is pretty long and quite detailed but I don't want to forget anything!

I had an  appointment on Thursday the 22nd, the day before my due date.  I was still dialated to a 2 and 50% effaced(I was the same at the last appointment).  Normally my doctor won't induce until 1-2 weeks after the due date but because Nate's law school finals were coming he said he would induce me on Tuesday the 23rd if I hadn't had her yet.  I went on lots of walks that weekend and Sunday and Monday I had some pretty strong contractions.  I thought I would go into labor but the contractions would not stay consistent. 

Right before I was induced. Yes I know, I was huge. 

So here came Tuesday and we checked in at 7:00 am.  At 7:50, they gave me cytotec.  It is a pill that softens the cervix.  They wanted to try that and see if it would start my labor, and then if it didn't, they would do pitocin.  At 9:15 am,  Nate left to school.  We figured I would be a while and he had a full day of classes so I told him to go.  My mom flew in on Monday so I had her there which was great. I could not have made it so far into labor without my mom. She was my rock.

My mom and I went and got breakfast and then walked the hospital until 11:50. I got checked at 1 pm and I was at a 4 and 90% effaced.  In my mind I had always wanted to make it to a 4 before I got my epidural but labor was pretty manageable so I decided to keep going.  The hospital I delivered in was 2 years old so it was so nice. In my bathroom I had a giant jacuzzi tub so at 1:15 I moved to the tub.  It was so amazing.  After that experience I think I could do a water birth.  Although the contractions were really starting to hurt at this point.  Nate came back at 2:00. I had asked for an epidural but there was someone ahead of me.  At 2:30 they gave me a drug to help me relax for the epidural. It basically just took the edge off of the contractions.  I was also at a 6 at that point.  At 4:00, they came in to give me my epidural.  I was then at a 7.  Got the epidural and it wasn't bad at all.  My doctor doesn't like to give a strong dose of the epidural so I could still feel my contractions and was able to move my legs. At 5:10 my water broke on its own.  That was a weird feeling. At 5:30 pm I was at an 8. I was ready to push at 7. Up until this point, I really didn't think labor was bad. In fact it was actually quite enjoyable. But that was all about to change.

I started pushing with Nate and the nurse helping me. The first hour is a blur. I couldn't feel much and so I don't think I was pushing very effectively.  The nurse also told me that she was still quite high.  At the 1 hr. mark they said that she was stuck against my pelvis and that I was going to have to push hard. I could feel when I would get a contraction and then I would push. I couldn't believe the intense pressure I felt while pushing.  In my mind I thought, oh I'll get an epidural and not feel anything.  Not the case for me.  I had moments where I thought it would never end and I was quite discouraged.  Pushing for 2 1/2 hours was by far the hardest thing I have ever done! Nate and my nurse saved me, they were both so encouraging and wonderful! At 9:34 pm, she was here! She was out to her chest and my doctor told me to reach down and pull her out.  I was a little out of it and she was pretty nasty but I grabbed one side of her and the doctor had her other side and we pulled her out.  It was such a neat experience to literally bring her into this world. They plopped her on my chest and Nate cut the cord.  In my phone I added a note shortly after she was born. "Swallowed a little meconium but was just fine. Apgar score was 8.  Did skin to skin shortly after birth for 2 hrs. So special. 12 am moved to room and was able to walk around. E went to nursery with daddy.  They came back a little before 2.  Babes is now sound asleep.  Best day ever."

Nate and E right after the birth.

E and I the next day.

The day we went home.

It truly was the best day ever. The love I have for this little girl is so special and something I've never felt before nor could I describe.  Those that are parents I'm sure can relate.  It is quite crazy to think we are parents but we are absolutely loving it!