The Big Day(s)
Our first-born son, Kellen, was born April 22, 2014 at 4:19 in the morning. This is our story of his birth.
My wife, Aimee, about 37 weeks pregnant, had been having some unusual discomfort over Easter weekend. Monday morning, she thought it’d be best to not go into work and to call her doctor for advice instead of waiting for her scheduled weekly visit two days later. She was told to go ahead and go in for an exam at 10:30 that morning.
The Call… Or Rather, The Text
Aimee’s doctor informed us the week before that he’d probably induce her at 38 weeks, so we were expecting Kellen to arrive soon, but not for another week or so. I was about to sit down for my regular Monday morning status meeting at work when I received a text message from Aimee…
“We are having a baby. Come over to the hospital.”
I immediately left work and called my wife on my way to the hospital. She was already there but was hesitant to go in. We’d been to this hospital several times before throughout her pregnancy, but this time was different. She knew that the next time she’d leave the hospital, our lives would be forever changed - we’d be parents. It was a bit overwhelming. I was making good time getting to the hospital, so she decided to wait for me to arrive and we’d go in together.
Arriving At The Hospital
We arrived at the hospital and got settled in our maternity suite around noon. Various preparations were made, medications were given and allowed to take effect, and at about 8:00 that evening, Aimee was given a Pitocin drip to start her contractions. About an hour later, the doctor broke her water and started the epidural. Now, we wait.
For the next several hours, Aimee’s contractions would become more frequent, and she would become increasingly dilated. At around 2:00 the following morning (Tuesday), it was time for her to start pushing. About two hours later, the nurse called in Aimee’s doctor. We were in the home stretch.
The Final Push(es)
Aimee’s doctor arrived about 8 minutes later and guided Aimee through the final push(es). At 4:19 in the morning, our baby boy was born. He weighed 6 pounds, 6 ounces and measured 19 inches.
After a quick checkup, foot printing, and installation of his “Baby Lo-Jack” device, the nurse passed Kellen to me for the first time. I held him for a minute or two, amazed at the life we had created, then passed him to his mother.
Getting Some Rest
After spending about an hour with Kellen, he was taken to the nursery to be cleaned up and given some immunizations. This was our first opportunity to get an hour or two of sleep. I was exhausted. I can’t imagine how Aimee must have felt.
After getting a couple hours’ rest, I wandered down to the nursery to retrieve Kellen and bring him back to our suite. We were looking forward to getting to spend some time with him.
Kellen’s First Visitors
Throughout the rest of the day, we’d receive visits from most of our Houston-based family, including my parents and sister…
… as well Aimee’s parents and sister, her husband, and two kids.
Great Moments
Aimee had grown increasingly nervous about giving birth in the final weeks of her pregnancy, but she handled it amazingly well. Her strength and determination were inspiring to behold. For me, being at her side during this experience was not only one of the greatest moments of my life, but one of the greatest moments of our marriage.
