Welcome to the World Little One

Carlos and Maria's son was born October 7th at 12:14am weighing 8lbs 6oz.

Now to tell you how he came into this world.

I was scheduled to be induced on October 6th at 9am due to some high blood pressure spikes here and there (which always turned out to be fine once I relaxed a bit). So we go into Labor and Delivery at 9:15, oops a tad late (we had a valid reason though, I promise). The OB doctor checks to see if I have dilated (I was a 3) and other things and then he decides it would not be beneficial for us to induce. He was willing to but as soon as I heard the word possible c-section I asked to speak with Carlos and Maria about waiting till the baby decided it was time. They both agreed that we should do what was best for the baby and I and avoid a c-section if at all possible. After letting the doctor know we were going to wait he offered to scrape my cervix (sounds bad and yes it feels horrible as well) in the meantime to see if that would bring labor on.

As soon as he scraped my cervix I knew something was changing in my body. I had to sit down for a bit in the waiting room just to relax a bit before we headed out. I told Maria and Carlos that my body already felt different and maybe we could stay close to the hospital instead of going home 'just in case'. We decided to walk around Balboa Park for a bit and see if I could get the contractions going. As we were walking around I kept feeling extreme pain down the back of my legs (sciatica) which I would get only occasionally, but now I was feeling it every few minutes. To me this meant the little guy was moving down the birth canal and putting even more pressure on my sciatic nerve. So I knew we were getting somewhere with this labor. I was also feeling more contractions and they were strong but not strong enough to stop me in my tracks. So we kept walking and walking aaaaaannnddd walking. Till Maria suggested maybe we go back to the hospital and walk there just to be closer ( I guess she could see the pain was getting worse).

We got to the hospital and we sat for a few minutes and I swear my contractions eased up as well as the pain down the back of my legs. Hmmm now what?! Am I in labor or not?! So we eat lunch and walk more and more (even did some stairs). Finally after walking and looking down to see how swollen my feet were we come up with a plan. I will go back in to Labor and Delivery to get checked and if they say I have not dilated anymore we will go home but if they say things are progressing I would stay and walk more or be admitted.

My entourage (Carlos, Maria, Maria's sister, my friends Val, and Cora and my oldest daughter all go back up to Labor and Delivery. The OB smiles as we come back because he knew there was a good chance he would see me back that day. He checked me again and said I was at a 5!! He turns to us and says "So do you want to have a baby today?"

One of my first questions was " at what point can I have an epidural?" The wonderful doctor said "whenever you would like".. well all right lets get this party started!

The birth was wonderful, the pain was a distant thought almost the whole time except for an hour when the epidural wore off (I won't even go into how that felt). Carlos and Maria were there the whole time, it was a happy atmosphere the whole time (okay except for that hour), we were laughing and waiting and my daughter was taking this all in with pictures ( I want to get permission before I post any). The labor was about 8 hours long, not too bad when you really don't feel a thing ;) When it was time to push Carlos and Maria were by my head, Val on my left and my daughter on my right. 4 pushes and he was just about here, a couple little ones more and he entered this world and placed on my chest.

He was perfect, an apgar of 8-9. His parents were so happy and thrilled, I wish I could show you the pictures of their reaction upon first seeing him. He is such a cute, easy going baby. He did wonderfully in the hospital and was released 24 hours later when I was released.

The parents are still here  and we see each other often, which I am so happy about. This journey for me is not all about having someones baby but also about the relationship that grows during the process. I think the hardest part is having to say goodbye to these people I now consider family/close friends. Hopefully it will not be a goodbye but an 'until next time'!

38 weeks and 6 days

Only 2 more days till this little one arrives, unless he comes sooner! I am so excited for Maria and Carlos to become a mommy and daddy!!

Still waiting for the little guy!

Well his parents are here, they are all unpacked and ready, have the car seat in the car and are almost over the jet lag......now we wait for him to make his appearance!

I still feel contractions here and there but nothing yet that says "this is it, quick get in the car"!

But the good news is if he doesn't come this week, Saturday they will induce me. Everything looks good enough for them to... So Saturday at 9am they are walking through the door as a couple and will leave as a family!!