My Three Sons: Four

The middle child, Tate, is awesome for so many reasons. #1 I'm his mom. Kidding, but really, I don’t even feel like he’s “the middle child” I feel like he is Tate. He is his own person. Not to say he won’t have the typical struggles any 2 child/ middle child has but that as well will make him uniquely HIM. I was not blogging at the time he was born, which I highly regret for so many reasons, so I decided to share a little about the day he was born in honor of his soon arriving 4th Birthday.
Tate came into this world on a cold, snowy, day in Wichita, Kansas. That which would have been okay, except...There was ice under the snow, which was extremely nerve-wracking. So many people had driven off in ditches the days prior to my going in to labor. Of course, this little storm was nothing for the locals ,but everyone in Wichita are not locals, myself included. Knowing it was my second labor, I had concerns I could go faster and with the weather that made me a little nervous. Considering my labor with Keegan was a 24 hour induction I probably had nothing to worry about.

4:30am- I wake up and feel sort of wet. But really, could I have peed my pants? Go back to bed. It must have been a fluke.

6:30-ish Woke up again. Something is not right, I know I'll ask Greg what he thinks, he knows all about this stuff- NOT! But, I proceed to the end of the bed and shake Greg's foot. He wakes up and as soon as I start to speak there is know question in my mind. MY WATER JUST BROKE! I say "never mind" ,to Greg, meaning my question was answered go back to sleep. See, I knew Greg would rush me anxious to get to the hospital and meet this little man and I had this “plan” to not go to the hospital too early. It was too late, he couldn't go back to sleep. My back labor started almost immediately and the contractions strengthened through the next hour as we fed Keegan and got him ready to go stay with a friend. Heck, to be honest I think I was too excited myself.

830-ish I arrived at the hospital. And they confirmed MY WATER BROKE! Great detective work people. I had an okay nurse, and an okay doctor, but the labor was not near as personal or intimate feeling as my labor with Keegan. This hospital of course informed us Our last relaxing, intimate, labor wasn't safe. I got Pitocin since my water had broken and I wasn't planning on going natural. Looking back I wish I wouldn't have. I was already dilated and thinned out a great deal, and with my water breaking and Tate being a little flying squirrel I think I could have done it natural. But, a last I got the pit and I got the epidural, so what are ya gonna do. The epidural was up too high and I couldn't feel a thing. It was your typical epidural story, at least the ones I’ve always heard. If I had this experience the first time I probably would have made more of an effort to go natch' but my epidural with Keegan couldn’t have been better. This felt made things feel way harder. Thankful I had done this before but it was still a frustrating feeling.
I don't remember when I started pushing but I know I went from 4- 10 super fast, like 10 minutes. That why my epidural was too strong. I was having horrible pains and couldn't figure out why my epidural wasn't working. Instead of checking me the nurse called the anesthesiologist to up the level. Come to find out I was already complete. What agony could have been avoided had I known to ask her to check first.
The pushing was hard because I couldn’t tell when I was pushing but I only pushed a few times for a few minutes.
1:42 pm- Feb 3rd , 2007 He was here. Sweet as pie. Pink and blond with blue eyes. 8 LBS 7 OZ