Callan's Birth Story

Gosh, it's been 6 weeks since my littlest love was born, and I'm just now sitting down to write this. I don't want to forget just how our sweet baby girl came into this world.

Sunday June 16, 2013...just so happened to be our 6th Anniversary and Father's Day. From the moment I knew Callan's due date, I prayed that she wouldn't come as early as my anniversary. Sorry, that's me being selfish, but I wanted that day to be just about Jacob and myself. She could come any other day!

Well, this Sunday we went to watch my cousin Caleb play a baseball game since it was close to us in McKinney. It was HOT, and I had to walk a long way to get to the ball field. My back/left hip was killing me. But Campbell wanted to go so bad and I thought why not. My parents and grandparents were all there too, so we decided to go have lunch afterwards to celebrate our guys! After lunch, we went home and Campbell took a nap...and I may have too! The rest of the afternoon/evening was pretty uneventful...wasn't having any out of the ordinary contractions or anything that made me think I would be going into labor that night.

While I was putting Campbell to bed, I always sit on the edge of her bed when I tuck her in, I stood up to turn off the light and my water broke (around 7:45). Yeah, I was pretty confident it was my water and I didn't just pee on myself! I quietly walked into the living room and asked Jacob to finish putting Campbell to bed because I thought my water just broke and I needed to call the doctor and see what to do. AAAHHHH....I was freaking out just a little bit. This was pretty early...and I was NOT ready! I called my parents, who luckily weren't all the way home in Fort Worth and told them to head back this way. They were eating dinner, so they scarfed down their food and hopped back in the car. I ran around the house trying to get things ready and my heart was racing knowing this would be the last time I would be in the house with only 1 daughter. Jacob packed up some things, go the car seat ready, made a few phone calls, and we were off to the hospital as soon as my parents arrived.

It was around 8:30 or so by the time we got to the hospital and it took a while to get changed, paperwork completed, and the IVstarted/bloodwork drawn. I started pretty much where I had been for the last week, 2 cm dilated and 80% effaced. I wasn't having very strong contractions, so we waited a while to see if my body would go ahead and go into labor on its own before starting pitocin. My contractions became stronger, but they were slow going and weren't making me progress very fast. I decided to let the nurse start a very small amount of pitocin, probably around 11 pm. It wasn't in for a full hour before my contractions were really strong and hurting pretty good. I went ahead and decided it was time for the epidural (I was 5cm at this point)....which seemed like it took forever to get because labor was getting intense.

I finally got the epidural between 12:30 and 1 am and got to relax. Jacob and I both tried to sleep, but it was hard! He eventually had to just get up and go walk around and find some coffee. Around 2 or so my sister showed up. Yes, her and Aric drove all night from Lubbock to be there! What a sweet sister/aunt to my girls she is! Around 3:30 or 4 am the nurse checked me again and I was at 8 cm and 100%, so it wouldn't be long until I was going to meet miss Callan. We called my mom who was at my house and told her to come to the hospital. I'm so thankful we live so close to it. Aric stayed at the house with Campbell. My dad who waited all night, had to get up around 4 to head off to work to get things squared away before he could come back. I wished he could have waited just a little bit longer. Callan was definitely on her own time! By 4:30 I was feeling like I needed to push, but was told not to! They checked to see her sweet little head and started rushing around the room setting things up. The doctor, not my normal OB once again, walked into the room, got gowned up, and told me to push. I pushed twice, and my sweet baby girl was born at 4:49 am on June 17, 2013!!!! Not on my anniversary! On her own special day!

Jacob and I let my mom and sister stay in the room to see her birth. I'm so thankful for that for two reasons. Casey took the sweetest pictures of her birth, and it was sweet to see their reactions. Jacob got to just be in the moment with me, not having to take pictures with our camera.

I cried as soon as I saw her. She looked so much like Campbell. She was absolutely gorgeous. She was bright eyed...screaming, had a head full of dark hair, and was just a miracle. The doctor was sweet and said I made it look easy, not to tell my friends how easy it was for me...for this I am incredibly thankful. The rest of the morning is a little bit of a blur...I was exhausted. We stayed in the delivery room for a couple more hours, her pediatrician came and checked her out, my mom and sister went home to be with Campbell, I ate breakfast, Jacob slept on the couch, and I nursed Callan. We moved to the post-partum room and I got a few hours of sleep while Jacob went home to take and shower and be with Campbell. He wanted to be the one to bring her in to meet Callan for the first time.

Once again, Casey got pictures of Campbell meeting Callan! And Aric took video. They are both priceless. My heart was so full holding both of my girls in my arms. I thanked God for them once again, right then and there. Jacob's parents drove from Brownfield early that morning and came to meet Callan, as well as Aric, JJ and her boys, and my sweet friend Carrie. It was a blur of a day, but because she was nursing so well and I was feeling fine, we stayed that night, and were able to go home the next day! I know there are lots of little things I'm forgetting, but I had another wonderful experience with the nurses, doctors, and the hospital. I'm so thankful for a quick and healthy delivery.

Callan Blair is such a blessing to us already. Her big sister adores her, for the most part, and her daddy and I are cherishing these moments of holding this sweet baby girl. Because before we know it she will be as big as her sister, and I will wonder where the time has gone.

Enjoy the pictures Aunt Casey took...

My heart is exploding as I look at these pics! Now I need to get on the ball and make Callan a birth story book like I did Campbell. My next post will be Callan's newborn pics. Not that she's a newborn anymore, she's a chunky 6 week old, but her pics are so so sweet! Yes, I'm slower this go around, but I'm getting them posted as soon as I can! This mom of 2 thing is hard work! And I'm not quite the best at it yet.