Blake was a little unsure of all of the tubes and monitors on his baby brother but he was still excited to meet him.
So happy to be holding him
I might be smiling but I sure was hurting.. :)
Weston Ross Hill was born on October 3rd, 2011 at 5:07 am weighing it at 7lbs and 7ozs and was 21 inches long. This delivery was so much faster than with Blake. Weston came 2 weeks early just like his big brother. Here is his birth story...On October 2nd I decided to pack my hospital bag and finalize everything in preparation for our baby's arrival (my due date wasn't until October 16th) so I thought I was ahead of the game. Mitch wasn't home that night, he was dog sitting his parents dogs but I wasn't worried at all because I still had two weeks left. I jokingly called him that night and said well my bags are packed, just watch my water will break tonight. And around 1230am it did! I was fast asleep and a gush of water woke me right up. I don't think I have ever moved faster in my life to get out of my bed and into the bathroom. How ironic that I made that comment to Mitch just a few hours before. I called him immediately and we rushed to figure out who could watch Blake while we went to the hospital. I called my mom and she met us there. We made it to the hospital by 1:30 am and my contractions were very close already. They admitted us and by 2am I was already dilated to 4cm. The nurses for whatever reason could not get an IV in me. You have to have a full bag of fluid before you can get your epidural and the nurses could not get an IV in me! Needless to say I was getting very frustrated and my contractions were only getting stronger and more close together. They moved me to the labor and delivery room (still no IV) and I was really starting to get anxious about that epidural. Finally the head nurse got the IV to take and the fluids started. My labor nurse was a sweetheart. She was very thorough and explained everything to me. I told her I was having a lot of pressure so she checked me and I was at 7cm. Still no epidural. I had not prepared my mind at all for what it would be like to deliver a baby without an epidural. I pleaded with her to get that process started. Thankfully I was able to get one before I missed the window of opportunity! After I got the epidural I still felt a ton of pressure so I asked the nurse to check again because it really felt like it was time to push. She checked again and sure enough it was! It was 4:50am. My doctor was on her way so the nurse was coaching me to not push just yet. Dr. Hollar arrived at 5am and with two pushes Weston was out. I couldn't believe how fast it all went. With Blake I was in labor for 23 hours and with Weston a little over 4 hours total. So fast.
So that was the delivery part...
When Weston came out the cord was wrapped around his neck twice and he wasn't breathing. They put him on my chest... he still was not breathing. He was blue. A deep shade of blue. I knew something was wrong. I looked up at the nurse and said take him he is not breathing and he is blue. My doctor was trying to ensure me that he will take his breath. As I am watching across the room I still don't hear a cry. I see the nurses working with him but still not a sound. Then teams of doctors and nurses start pouring into my room. Still not a sound. My doctor gets up and goes over to Weston and starts working on him. Still no sound. They start chest compressions. No mom should ever have to see that. That image will forever be engraved in my head. I was so scared. Actually scared doesn't even describe my emotion. I was frozen. Finally after what seemed an eternity Weston let out this little tiny cry. Barely anything. I just started crying. I didn't know what was going on. Why didn't he breathe? The NICU pediatrician came over to me and reassured me that he was going to be okay. He said that some babies are just slow to start. His oxygen levels weren't maintaining so they needed to take him and put him on oxygen and observe him. I didn't know what to think. They brought Weston over to me... this time he was pink like he should be so I knew at least he was breathing. I only got to hold him and see him for a brief moment before they whisked him away. Mitch stayed with me until I was all taken care of and then he went with Weston. Before I knew it I was alone in that room. No doctors, no nurses, no Mitch, and no Weston. Just me. And I cried and said a prayer. In that moment when it was just me I felt a reassuring calm from the Spirit letting me know that everything was going to be okay. The peace that I felt was something that I hadn't felt in a while. God works miracles every day. Weston was our miracle that day.
Weston had to spend the time we were in the hospital in the NICU because his oxygen levels wouldn't level out. Our nurse in the NICU was wonderful. She took care of Weston and reassured us that everything was going to be okay. Being in the NICU really made me realize how miraculous it is to have a baby. So many babies were sick and it broke my heart. I just wanted to go home with my baby. They took xrays of Weston's chest and saw that he had a lot of fluid in his lungs and that could be a possible reason why he didn't breathe right away. Over the next two days he coughed up a bunch of fluid. He had every possible monitor hooked to him it seemed. That was hard on me to see that. After rounds of antibiotics and lots of monitoring he was released to go home with us. I was so grateful for all of the nurses and doctors at Banner Desert for taking care of him.
This birth experience was so different from my first on many different levels. Being in the hospital after you carry a baby for nine months and then deliver him and then not having him with you was hard. I felt empty not having him close by me. I spent as much time as I could up in the NICU with him. I missed him.
I am so happy that he is a healthy little boy. Weston has such a calm demeanor. He rarely cries and never complains about anything. He sleeps all day and most of the night. He only wakes up to feed. He loves to be held and snuggles into my neck. He has the best hair. It is my favorite thing.
Blake loves being a big brother. He loves to help. He only has had a few outbursts but that is normal. He loves to hold him and help change him and bathe him. He asks me every day if he is big yet... he can not wait to be able to play with him.
I love my husband. He was right by my side and was my calming force. He kept reassuring me that everything was going to be okay and that we were in the best place possible for Weston. Mitch is a wonderful dad. The best I know.
On a side note... We had a bittersweet moment on the way to the hospital. We both got choked up realizing that the drive their was the last time it would just be the 3 of us. The past 3 years with Blake have been so wonderful. We have been blessed with such a sweet little boy that we wondered how it could get any better. Now that Weston is here it feels like he always has been. We are so blessed.
