Category: The Kids

Going home:
We’re home. Now what?!

He’s here! Finally! Here’s the whole (mostly unedited) story of Andrew William’s debut into this big world. Once upon a time…

On Saturday November 15th, we had dinner with my parents close to our house. It was a great distraction as I looked down the barrel of my due date. At that moment I was pretty convinced I would never give birth and that I would either raise my child from inside my uterus or this had all been some sort of really elaborate phantom pregnancy. During dinner I started to have some mild regular contractions. They were small and far apart. I really didn’t think anything of it because I had been having lots of false labor episodes. So we dined, enjoyed the evening, went to sleep and I ignored them.

I woke up on Sunday November 16th early and enjoyed (what would be my last for a while) a quiet lazy morning complete with coffee, french toast and a few episodes of Property Brothers on HGTV. The same contractions came back but again, I didn’t really pay attention. In fact, later that morning I did some errands around the house and helped Andy rake leaves in the yard. I even baked cookies. That should have tipped me off. I NEVER have a desire to just bake something. Either it was the oatmeal cookies or my inability to sit still that finally gave Andrew the old eviction notice.

Later that afternoon Andy and I settled down to watch Sunday football. Around 2pm the contractions started again. As time went on they became more regular- albeit still far apart. I still wasn’t convinced they were contractions- perhaps I had just overdone it in the yard or I was having yet another false labor episode.  But (in a very rare occurrence),  I was wrong. We started to keep an eye on the clock around 4pm.  10-12 minutes apart.

At 5 pm we started to officially time the contractions (using the appropriate app of course) and very quickly they jumped from 10 minutes to 5-7 minutes apart. For the next few hours we timed contractions while watching the Eagles loose dramatically to the Green Bay Packers (boo).  Over time they became longer and more intense. At 9pm we went upstairs. I needed a change of scenery and a shower to help me handle the discomfort. Even though the contractions were regular and about 5 1/2 minutes apart, I was still only 99% convinced this was the real thing. Around 9:30 pm it was finally time to call the doctor (5-1-1) and we were given the green flag to come to the hospital. We threw on our clothes, put the bags in the car and headed to Morristown Hospital. Andy and I were still in disbelief as we cruised up I-287 that this was ACTUALLY happening.

When we arrived at the hospital I was examined by the admitting doctor and much to our shock, I was already 7-8 centimeters dilated! Andy and I were prepared for the doctor to say that I was barely dilated and that it would be a long time until baby arrived. We were needless to say, pleasantly surprised but still processing that this was actually happening. We were about to become parents.

I was quickly admitted to the hospital and shown to the room where I would labor and ultimately deliver baby Andrew. At this point I was still committed to having Andrew naturally and without any help from drugs despite my doctors asking, ‘But why?’ From 11pm until 2am I labored ‘all naturale’ with Andy’s help (and the help of my favorite corner). *Note: Andy was awesome. Everyone should be so lucky to have such an amazing partner. There is no way I could have done this without him. But then again, I wouldn’t have been in labor if it hadn’t been for him…

By 2am I wised up and finally requested an Epidural. In between intense contractions I came to realize that I wouldn’t get a special medal at the end of this if I did this without drugs. I’d still have a baby and maybe a lot more pain. So with that in mind and my sister in-law’s advice to ‘not be a hero,’ we called the doctor and ordered up the drugs.  From that point on, life got a whole lot easier in Delivery Room 5. There is no other way to describe Epidurals but magical.  From 2:30 am until 4 am Andy and I relaxed, slept and waited peacefully for baby to make his final move.

At 4am the doctor broke my water. Everyone was convinced the baby would be here before the end of Good Morning America at 9am. I was 10 centimeters dilated. How long could it take? Unfortunately we were all wrong. From 4 until 9am we waited and waited and waited.

Just when I was convinced that this kid may never want to come out, it was FINALLY time to start pushing.  For me, this is when the marathon began and life got hard. I pride myself on being in shape with a respectable level of endurance. I work out. I stayed ‘fit’ during my pregnancy and yet this was single handedly the hardest test of physical strength I’ve gone through. At times I wanted to give up and just go home.  I was spent. But after 2 1/2 hours of pushing, with Andy by my side encouraging me, bringing ice chips and oxygen when necessary (and pissing me off when I needed an extra push), our son was born! Andrew William Phillips entered this world at 11:53 am on November 17, 2014. It was the most intense, surreal and amazing moments of our lives. And yes, we both cried.

Andrew William Phillips. Born on November 17, 2014 at 11:53 am weighing 6 pounds 15 ounces and 21 inches long. 

And what do I think now looking back on our experience? Child birth is truly a miracle. Epidurals are a gift from god. I hate any woman who says ‘they only had to push a few times before baby was born.’ I have the best husband a girl could ask for. And our son may quite be the cutest little person there is.