Welcome Baby Henry

I was woken up Thursday morning (July 29) by STRONG contractions coming every 10 minutes for a couple of hours. I got up at 5, took a walk around and around the cul-de-sac and the contractions continued. Naturally I thought, “This is it!” I got a little excited and went back to bed around 7, thinking he would be born before noon. These contractions were pretty hard to relax and breathe through. I didn’t really expect my water to break like last time, but I didn’t know how difficult the contractions would be without it. (I know, they say the contractions are harder after the water breaks, but I feel differently). Bound and determined to do this naturally, I kept changing my activity and eating little snacks, and lo and behold-everything shut down. I felt a little sore, but no regular contractions. So I went and installed a new door knob and deadbolt at the condo in Provo. I got back from the condo and laid down for a nap. My contractions started up again then, and came about every 15 minutes. Of course I was waiting for them to come closer together before I got excited again, and they never did. You’d think the second time around, my body would be more consistent, but no. I took a warm bath and the contractions came 5 minutes apart, then 12, then 20, then 2, then 3, etc…. I couldn’t possibly go on! Is this ever going to end? My mom kept calling, wanting to know if she should come down yet, but I didn’t know if I’d know when to go to the hospital. I kept waiting for my water to break…

The contractions slowed down a bit until I suggested we pack our bags, just in case, and get Porters’ bag ready for grandma’s house. I shortly found myself on all fours on the floor waiting the next one out, and it didn’t seem to end. I felt nauseous, and suddenly had the clear impression that it was time to go. After making a phone call or two, we got into the car and drove up to Provo. I felt pretty blessed to have shorter contractions and longer breaks on the drive, ‘til we got off the freeway. I thought, “transition? Now?” It felt like the contractions were overlapping for awhile, and then letting up. When we got to the hospital, we had to stop every 30 seconds to wait through what seemed like 5 minutes of contractions at a time. We got up to the 5th floor, and I continued to say to Evan, “if I’m only dilated to a 4, I’m getting the epidural. I can’t do this anymore.” I was completely serious, though Evan kept telling me I could do it again, and I was doing great. We got checked in, and like a miracle, everyone was helping us all at once. They were rushing around like they knew something I didn’t. They were super nice to wait until my contractions ended before touching me at all.

First thing I did when I got to the room was plop down on the bed to relax during a contraction. The nurse had my hospital gown ready, and I was going to put it on after this one contraction. That’s when my water broke. It couldn’t have waited until I changed!

I got changed, and the nurse checked me first thing and said, “You’re at a 10.” What? “You’re kidding!” she wasn’t. She said the baby was still really high, and my water was only leaking a little, so we needed to get past a few more contractions to get the baby down a little further to break the rest of the water. The Dr. was 10 minutes away, and then we were ready. I was soooo excited! There’s no way I went through transition already! It was like a dream. Since my water had broken, the contractions were much more tolerable, and I happily got through the next 5, while feeling the baby descend further and further. (yay-progress!). The Dr. showed up, they prepped me, and before I ever felt the urge to push, I was pushing this little baby out! Far earlier than I thought, the baby was born! Compared to the 1 ½ hours pushing it took with Porter, this baby made it out in 4 pushes! It really was a huge relief to have the whole ordeal over and done! It was incredible how this day worked out. Never would I have guessed I’d have gone through the whole thing on my own. The staff was so awesome to work with, and very respectful of our wishes. They had everything ready for the Dr. in no time, and lucky him, he’d just finished dinner, and made it back home in time for dessert! My mom showed up right when we did, and didn’t even have to sit very long. I think everyone was super pleased, including our little one! Within an hour of arriving at the hospital, we were holding him, bewildered that he was already here.

Henry Scott Zaugg was born at 7:44 PM, weighing 7 lbs 3 oz, and measuring 19 inches long. He eats well, sleeps well, and is oh so cute. We are so happy to have him home. We left the hospital Friday night, after about 27 hours in the hospital, including labor and delivery.