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| Thai food take-out! |
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| Baby soothing lessons from Jacob |
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| Shredding it at Teton Village |
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| Augie's first trip to the Brew Pub |
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| Here are some kisses to last you 'til May! |
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Kissfest 2011
Augustus spent last week getting to know his Aunt Tesha and Uncle Tommy who flew in from Chicago to meet him. Our days flew by with feedings, diaper changes (did Tommy ever fly solo?), laundry-laundry-laundry and lots of baby-watching. His dynamic facial expressions kept us entertained for hours while the frigid Jackson Hole winter did little to lure us outdoors. It was fun to share his miraculous growth and development with them. Augustus began to hold the pinkie that he sucked on and to play with the sounds he can make (from different cries to his first coos). In just a few days his head and neck strength improved to where he could turn to look at the people he loves. We did enjoy walks around town checking out the ice sculptures for Winterfest and visiting our friend Andy at the bookstore. We also devoured lots of delicious food and watched the local elk and bighorn sheep in action. The time flew by much too quickly, and we can't wait to all be together again in May!
The Godfather(s)
After a day of Lonesome Dove marathon, complete with a BIG bottle of whiskey, Matt and Tommy were coaxed into a new and important job. Each agreed to support Augustus throughout his life in the role of godfather. Tesha and I were out at Pica's celebrating Charlotte's birthday, so when we returned, Jacob was catching her up on the characters and storyline. I mentioned how we have a family rule of watching this movie "once a year and on special occasions" and THIS was a special occasion, because we were asking Tommy and Matt to be Augustus' godfathers. Jacob explained how each of these men embody certain characteristics and family values that we want instilled in our little one, and thankfully, they agreed to help!
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| Matt has a special snuggle for his godson |
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| Uncle Tomtom catching Augie up on Chicago sports teams and Pearl Jam (between kisses!) |
When I see you smile . . .
Thanks to the talented Kisa Koenig for some adorable photos of Baby Augustus! Check them out for yourself at her website. Click on "Augustus" and the password is "Henrie". Enjoy!
Do you have a favorite?
Do you have a favorite?
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Tub Time
To celebrate two weeks of life, Valentine's Day and the impending visit from Tesha and Tommy, Augustus had his first bath in the big-boy-tub! We used a little Burt's Bees buttermilk bath in the tub and some apricot oil afterwards. Very spaaaaaahh!
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| Augustus really loved hanging out in the warm water with his mami. |
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| Jacob was there to snuggle him up, and ASH made Jacob's favorite "O" face! |
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| We really love this guy! |
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| Father and son! |
Welcome to the Club!
Two weeks into parenthood and Jacob and I continue to be initiated into "the club". We've both been peed on. We are sleep-deprived. We are bursting with pride. We are overwhelmed with laundry. We kiss our baby all day long. We are spoiled with the love and food of our friends. We have welcomed many visitors. We have bounced the baby in the dark. We are new members, learning by the day, completely unaware of what may be coming next . . . we are parents.
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| Augustus had a date with baby Greta. Kjera and Alyssa had mom-chat and coffee! |
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| Aunt Terri snuggled the baby and was the first recipient of flash spit-up! |
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| Rick, Deborah, Howie and Alanna surprised us with a Sunday afternoon visit and sweet Valentines. |
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| Shoshana treated us with a Valentine's dinner complete with wine, chocolate and cat nip! (check out those sweet flame leg warmers) |
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| Heidi dropped off some extra snuggles. The ASH fan club continues to grow! |
Monday, February 14, 2011
The Birth Story
The Birth of Augustus Strom Henrie – January 31, 2011
Kjera and Jacob Henrie
Birth Story by Rachel Wigglesworth (our fabulous doula!)
Kjera gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on January 31, 2011, her due date, after a long and impressive labor. Kjera’s labor started slowly on January 28 when she began feeling mild contractions at 9:30 PM that were approximately 15 minutes apart. She labored through the night trying to sleep through her contractions, or between them, with only a small amount of success. Jacob called me at 7:30 AM on January 29 to tell me about Kjera’s labor. Kjera was managing her contractions well. She was still able to walk and talk through them and didn’t feel like she needed my help. She and Jacob went out for a walk. By 10:15 AM her contractions ranged mostly from 7-8 minutes apart but would then space out to 10-12 minutes apart. She was feeling the baby move regularly, about once per hour. Kjera was tired from her night of little sleep so rested for a bit. Her contractions seemed to continue in this irregular pattern throughout the day. Sometimes they would come in intervals of 5-7 minutes apart but then would space out to 10 minutes apart. Kjera spent time “Skyping” with her family, moving through a variety of positions, resting and showering. She vomited at one point in the afternoon.
Jacob called me at 6:05 PM saying that Kjera’s contractions were approximately five minutes apart but that she had just had three contractions in 10 minutes. He asked me to come to their house. I arrived at 6:30 PM to find Kjera in a good mood and very lucid between contractions. She would get on her hands and knees, sway back and forth, and whisper “open” during her contractions. She seemed to have a good rhythm and focus going and was working well with her breath. Jacob put counter-pressure on her back which was bothering her quite a bit. They were working well as a team. We got out a heating pad to help alleviate some of her back pain. At 7:30 PM we went upstairs to try a position on the bed which might help the baby into a more favorable position. Because Kjera was feeling so much back pain I wondered if the back of the baby’s head was facing Kjera’s back, which can lead to intense back pain. Kjera got on her knees and forearms and stayed that way for a while. For the next two hours Kjera alternated from resting on her side to being on hands and knees and working on the birth ball. She was still lucid between contractions and was doing a good job relaxing and moaning “open” through her contractions. By 9:25 PM she was becoming slightly less lucid between contractions and her back pain was intensifying. We tried ice on her back but still Kjera was having a hard time finding a comfortable position.
Because of the irregular nature and long duration of Kjera’s contractions as well as the intense back pain Kjera was feeling even between contractions, I more strongly suspected that Kjera’s baby was in an occiput posterior position meaning that the back of the baby’s head was facing Kjera’s back. Kjera worked hard in various positions I asked her to get into to try to get the baby to turn. She spent time on her hands and knees as well as leaning over the railing to the stairs. She got up several times to go to the bathroom with little success. This was a hard time for Kjera. She expressed feeling “nervous” and at one time whispered “I want it to be over”. Lying on her left side seemed to feel a bit better. Kjera’s labor began to turn a corner for the better around 10:50 PM when her back pain seemed to lessen. She then vomited quite a bit and was finally able to empty her bladder. She then began to feel much better between contractions and her back no longer hurt. Her mood became visibly lighter and she seemed ready to move on through her labor.
Kjera spent the rest of the night alternating from working hard to get her contractions to progress and lying down to rest. We moved back and forth from upstairs to downstairs and Kjera worked on the ball, walked around the house, and spent time on her hands and knees. When she spent time lying down, she often fell asleep between contractions. This was good rest for her but at the same time her contractions spaced apart more and slowed down every time she rested. Jacob got some needed rest for a short time. The three of us were cognizant of whether the baby had moved or not through the night. Baby’s movement wasn’t frequent but whenever we got a bit concerned, Kjera would feel a movement and we would continue through her labor. By 6:00 AM on January 30 we started talking about the idea of going to the hospital. This came up again more seriously at 7:30 AM after Kjera’s contractions slowed to 10-12 minutes apart while she was lying down. I didn’t think Kjera was at a place in her labor where it was necessary to be at the hospital but because her labor was going on for so long I felt additional information might help us figure out how to try to speed up her labor. I also thought it might be a good idea to listen to baby’s heart rate. We packed our things and left.
The drive to the hospital was uneventful. Kjera felt baby move quite a bit during the car ride, and we arrived at 8:00 AM. Kjera was escorted into the “triage” room where laboring women are sent to see how far along they are in their labors. Laurel the nurse put Kjera on the heart rate and contraction monitors and at 8:30 AM checked her cervix to be dilated to 3 cm and 80% effaced. The baby’s head was at -1 station indicating that it was floating just above the midline of Kjera’s pelvis. Laurel confirmed that baby’s back was on Kjera’s left, a great position for labor, so malposition of the baby, at least not at this point, was not an issue. Kjera was given the option of going home or of walking around the hospital for a while to wait for Dr. Anthony to arrive. Kjera and Jacob were interested in talking with Dr. Anthony, so we spent some time walking the halls. Kjera leaned against the wall during her contractions at this point while Jacob worked on her back and I talked her through them. Kjera had created her own rhythm of whispering “open” and working on her breath, and I reminded her to relax her shoulders and open her body. After approximately 40 minutes of walking we returned to the triage room and Kjera got on the ball and waited for Dr. Anthony who arrived at 11:00 AM. She checked Kjera’s cervix at this time to be 6-7 cm dilated and paper thin! Kjera had made amazing progress! There was now no question about going home. Kjera was admitted to the hospital and moved to a birthing room.
The first order of business once we all knew Kjera was staying in the hospital was to place a heparin lock into Kjera’s vein in case she needed IV access. Kjera handled this with grace for someone who is afraid of needles. Jacob distracted her by reading her text messages that had been sent to them by family and friends. At 11:40 AM Kjera vomited all the water she had been asked to drink since she arrived at the hospital and because she was worried that she was dehydrated, she decided that she would like to get some fluids through her IV. Laurel attached her to the IV tube to give her half a bag of fluids and then checked her cervix at noon saying that she could stretch Kjera’s cervix to 8 cm. She reported a bulging bag of water and said the baby’s head was at -1 station. Kjera although exhausted, got up and walked the halls with IV pole in tow and then got onto the ball at 12:30 PM. Kjera’s back was still really hurting her so I suggested trying the tub. She got in there at 1:10 PM and her back soon felt much better, but her contractions were still coming at intervals of 7-10 minutes. She labored well there and dozed a bit between contractions. She spent half an hour in the tub but soon she started getting chilly so got out to take a warm shower. Her contractions seemed to increase in the shower. The nurse Erin checked her cervix again at 2:30 PM to be 7 cm dilated but noted that she can be “conservative” on her measurements. Because Kjera’s labor was progressing so slowly we discussed the option of breaking her bag of water to try to speed things up. Kjera decided to walk the halls again for a bit and then at 3:00 PM decided she would like to have her water broken saying, “I’m not in it for the long haul”. She had been laboring for over 40 hours at this point and was tired. Dr. Anthony then came in and broke her water and checked Kjera’s cervix to be dilated to 8 cm. Kjera then alternated her time from walking to sitting on the ball. Her contractions began to increase in frequency, especially when she walked, and she did a good job breathing and focusing inward. She remained calm and focused on opening.
Kjera was regularly asked by the nurse to get into bed for a period of continuous fetal monitoring. Her baby was low enough that the fetal monitor would not pick up baby’s heart rate when she was standing or walking around. Every time Kjera was asked to do this, the stronger contraction pattern she had just been working so hard to develop and maintain by walking around would weaken and slow down. Kjera was exhausted and welcomed this chance to lie down and rest, but it wasn’t doing her labor any good. She was asked to do this again at 5:00 PM and her cervical check at 5:25 PM showed no change from the previous exam. Dr. Anthony came in to check on her again and mentioned starting a slow drip of pitocin through her IV to get her contractions into a regular and strong pattern. We talked about waiting an hour and spending that time walking and moving around with intention and at a pace which might help her contractions gather strength. If there was no cervical change after that, Kjera thought she might like to start with the pitocin.
Kjera, Jacob and I spent the next hour walking at a fast pace through the halls with short breaks back into the room to squat with the squat bar. This was hard work for Kjera but she did well with it, mostly due, I think, to Jacob’s encouragement. He used humor but was also subtly directive in getting Kjera to stay focused and not succumb to her exhaustion. In her delirium, she would say things like, ‘no’ or ‘I can’t keep moving’ or ‘I’m too tired’, and Jacob would respond with humor about their “blueberry” (as they had been calling the baby), their back and forth race though the halls, and other silly nonsense. It was very endearing and I was impressed with Jacob’s ability to motivate Kjera in such a light manner. Jacob was a great support to Kjera throughout her labor. He remained by her side massaging her back, encouraging her through her difficult times, timing contractions and helping with decision making. Kjera’s hard work seemed to be helping. Unless she took a break to sit down, the frequency of Kjera’s contractions increased to four minutes apart. However, Kjera was tired and even though her contraction pattern seemed much better, I think she needed more than an hour of such hard work. Kjera wanted to stick to her one hour plan and had Laurel the nurse check her cervix at 7:00 PM. Laurel reported little change saying that Kjera’s cervix was at 8 cm and the baby’s head was at 0 station, and that her cervix might be a bit swollen. Because all this work produced no change in Kjera’s dilation, she opted for the pitocin and she was started on a low dose through her IV that was increased through the night.
Kjera spent the next two hours walking the halls with an occasional period of rest in the bed. She did a great job with her contractions focusing inward and using her mantra of “open”. She leaned against either Jacob or the wall during her contractions while I worked on her back and talked her through her contractions reminding her to open, stay loose, and ask her baby to move down. Kjera’s back was again quite painful and at 9:05 PM we decided getting into the tub again might help with this. Kjera felt better in the tub lying mostly on her side or back. She was able to doze between contractions and did a good job both moving her legs and relaxing in the tub. Roz, the new night nurse checked her cervix at 10:45 PM and reported that it was at 7 cm. However baby’s head was very low at +2 station and there was quite a bit of bloody show indicating potential cervical change.
Kjera’s pitocin dose was increased several times while in the tub. Her back was getting more and more painful. Jacob and I were having a hard time staying awake at this point. We were both half falling asleep unless Kjera required our direct attention. Kjera seemed to be getting to a point where she was only able to focus on her back pain and I wonder if she was not able to let her body relax and open. I told her that she needed to “forget about her back”, “to pretend it wasn’t there”, and “to go somewhere else” mentally. Remembering that prenatally she had said the beach felt good to her, I started leading her through different scenes on the beach during each contraction. We would all fall asleep between contractions (Kjera’s chin was propped nicely on her chest above the water and I had little fear that she would sink into the water) and when Kjera would wake up for a contraction I would start on a new chapter of the “beach story”, as Kjera later named it, while she took deep breaths. This worked well for a while until I ran out of ideas for the story. I massaged Kjera’s head and Jacob held her hand. At some point around midnight Jacob said he needed to take a short break and lie down for a few minutes. He went into the delivery room, set his alarm for 10 minutes, lied down on the floor, and proceeded to sleep through his alarm. Meanwhile, back in the tub room I became useless in my own way. I would half-heartedly wake up with Kjera during her contractions grab hold of her hands and help her chant through her new mantra of “I can do it”, but I don’t think I made it through Kjera’s entire contractions very often. After some time I stood up next to the tub and started bouncing around thinking that I could be more helpful to Kjera since there was no way I could fall asleep standing up. (I was wrong – twice I caught myself going down and woke up before my knees completely buckled under me). What was amazing to me at this point was that at the height of intensity of Kjera’s labor, she took over on her own and worked through her contractions with little support from her team. She got through the last part of her labor using her own inner strength. She had found an instinctual rhythm and ritual which allowed her body and mind to do what it needed to do. At 1:00 AM on January 31 she decided to get out of the tub. She was beginning to feel like she might want to push. Roz helped us back into Kjera’s room, and our entrance woke Jacob with a start! Kjera went into the bathroom and let out a moan. Jacob went running in finding that Kjera now felt a strong urge to push.
Roz checked Kjera’s cervix at 1:05 AM to be 10 cm – she was completely dilated and ready to push! Kjera began feeling her way through pushing at first by leaning against the squat bar but soon got down into a squat while hanging off the bar. Jacob supported her back in this position. Soon she was pushing well and by 1:40 AM Roz asked her to alternate her strong pushes between contractions. She was allowed to push with strength on one contraction but was told to rest and “grunt” through the next. I think Roz was trying to buy some time until Dr. Anthony arrived which happened in the next few minutes. Dr. Anthony checked Kjera’s pushing progress during her next contraction and was surprised to find that the baby was right there – and ready! She told Kjera to quickly get up into the bed – a difficult feat for Kjera since her baby’s head was almost out – and was out before she was completely on the bed. The rest of the baby’s body came slithering out right away and was put on Kjera’s chest. Jacob cut the cord – a particularly short cord as Dr. Anthony noted – and announced that they had a baby boy! Kjera and Jacob were ecstatic with their little boy who was born at 1:50 AM. He was having a bit of trouble breathing so the nurse took him to the warmer to give him some oxygen. Kjera delivered her placenta at 1:56 AM and Dr. Anthony sewed up a small tear. Kjera was soon given back her little boy, Augustus Strom Henrie as she and Jacob named him. He weighed 7 pounds six ounces and measured 20.5 inches long. Kjera tried to breastfeed him but he wasn’t quite ready right away due to his respiratory issues. He was content to lie skin to skin on her chest.
Kjera’s labor was extremely long and very hard. She was exhausted through much of her labor. However, despite the difficulties Kjera faced, she never once gave in. She did not mutter words of discouragement other than being tired. She found her own instinctual ritual and rhythm and dug deep to find her inner strength to get her through her contractions. Jacob was a huge support to Kjera in a calm, humorous, and loving way. Together they worked well as a team to bring their little boy, Augustus Strom Henrie, into the world.
Kjera and Jacob Henrie
Birth Story by Rachel Wigglesworth (our fabulous doula!)
Kjera gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on January 31, 2011, her due date, after a long and impressive labor. Kjera’s labor started slowly on January 28 when she began feeling mild contractions at 9:30 PM that were approximately 15 minutes apart. She labored through the night trying to sleep through her contractions, or between them, with only a small amount of success. Jacob called me at 7:30 AM on January 29 to tell me about Kjera’s labor. Kjera was managing her contractions well. She was still able to walk and talk through them and didn’t feel like she needed my help. She and Jacob went out for a walk. By 10:15 AM her contractions ranged mostly from 7-8 minutes apart but would then space out to 10-12 minutes apart. She was feeling the baby move regularly, about once per hour. Kjera was tired from her night of little sleep so rested for a bit. Her contractions seemed to continue in this irregular pattern throughout the day. Sometimes they would come in intervals of 5-7 minutes apart but then would space out to 10 minutes apart. Kjera spent time “Skyping” with her family, moving through a variety of positions, resting and showering. She vomited at one point in the afternoon.
Jacob called me at 6:05 PM saying that Kjera’s contractions were approximately five minutes apart but that she had just had three contractions in 10 minutes. He asked me to come to their house. I arrived at 6:30 PM to find Kjera in a good mood and very lucid between contractions. She would get on her hands and knees, sway back and forth, and whisper “open” during her contractions. She seemed to have a good rhythm and focus going and was working well with her breath. Jacob put counter-pressure on her back which was bothering her quite a bit. They were working well as a team. We got out a heating pad to help alleviate some of her back pain. At 7:30 PM we went upstairs to try a position on the bed which might help the baby into a more favorable position. Because Kjera was feeling so much back pain I wondered if the back of the baby’s head was facing Kjera’s back, which can lead to intense back pain. Kjera got on her knees and forearms and stayed that way for a while. For the next two hours Kjera alternated from resting on her side to being on hands and knees and working on the birth ball. She was still lucid between contractions and was doing a good job relaxing and moaning “open” through her contractions. By 9:25 PM she was becoming slightly less lucid between contractions and her back pain was intensifying. We tried ice on her back but still Kjera was having a hard time finding a comfortable position.
Because of the irregular nature and long duration of Kjera’s contractions as well as the intense back pain Kjera was feeling even between contractions, I more strongly suspected that Kjera’s baby was in an occiput posterior position meaning that the back of the baby’s head was facing Kjera’s back. Kjera worked hard in various positions I asked her to get into to try to get the baby to turn. She spent time on her hands and knees as well as leaning over the railing to the stairs. She got up several times to go to the bathroom with little success. This was a hard time for Kjera. She expressed feeling “nervous” and at one time whispered “I want it to be over”. Lying on her left side seemed to feel a bit better. Kjera’s labor began to turn a corner for the better around 10:50 PM when her back pain seemed to lessen. She then vomited quite a bit and was finally able to empty her bladder. She then began to feel much better between contractions and her back no longer hurt. Her mood became visibly lighter and she seemed ready to move on through her labor.
Kjera spent the rest of the night alternating from working hard to get her contractions to progress and lying down to rest. We moved back and forth from upstairs to downstairs and Kjera worked on the ball, walked around the house, and spent time on her hands and knees. When she spent time lying down, she often fell asleep between contractions. This was good rest for her but at the same time her contractions spaced apart more and slowed down every time she rested. Jacob got some needed rest for a short time. The three of us were cognizant of whether the baby had moved or not through the night. Baby’s movement wasn’t frequent but whenever we got a bit concerned, Kjera would feel a movement and we would continue through her labor. By 6:00 AM on January 30 we started talking about the idea of going to the hospital. This came up again more seriously at 7:30 AM after Kjera’s contractions slowed to 10-12 minutes apart while she was lying down. I didn’t think Kjera was at a place in her labor where it was necessary to be at the hospital but because her labor was going on for so long I felt additional information might help us figure out how to try to speed up her labor. I also thought it might be a good idea to listen to baby’s heart rate. We packed our things and left.
The drive to the hospital was uneventful. Kjera felt baby move quite a bit during the car ride, and we arrived at 8:00 AM. Kjera was escorted into the “triage” room where laboring women are sent to see how far along they are in their labors. Laurel the nurse put Kjera on the heart rate and contraction monitors and at 8:30 AM checked her cervix to be dilated to 3 cm and 80% effaced. The baby’s head was at -1 station indicating that it was floating just above the midline of Kjera’s pelvis. Laurel confirmed that baby’s back was on Kjera’s left, a great position for labor, so malposition of the baby, at least not at this point, was not an issue. Kjera was given the option of going home or of walking around the hospital for a while to wait for Dr. Anthony to arrive. Kjera and Jacob were interested in talking with Dr. Anthony, so we spent some time walking the halls. Kjera leaned against the wall during her contractions at this point while Jacob worked on her back and I talked her through them. Kjera had created her own rhythm of whispering “open” and working on her breath, and I reminded her to relax her shoulders and open her body. After approximately 40 minutes of walking we returned to the triage room and Kjera got on the ball and waited for Dr. Anthony who arrived at 11:00 AM. She checked Kjera’s cervix at this time to be 6-7 cm dilated and paper thin! Kjera had made amazing progress! There was now no question about going home. Kjera was admitted to the hospital and moved to a birthing room.
The first order of business once we all knew Kjera was staying in the hospital was to place a heparin lock into Kjera’s vein in case she needed IV access. Kjera handled this with grace for someone who is afraid of needles. Jacob distracted her by reading her text messages that had been sent to them by family and friends. At 11:40 AM Kjera vomited all the water she had been asked to drink since she arrived at the hospital and because she was worried that she was dehydrated, she decided that she would like to get some fluids through her IV. Laurel attached her to the IV tube to give her half a bag of fluids and then checked her cervix at noon saying that she could stretch Kjera’s cervix to 8 cm. She reported a bulging bag of water and said the baby’s head was at -1 station. Kjera although exhausted, got up and walked the halls with IV pole in tow and then got onto the ball at 12:30 PM. Kjera’s back was still really hurting her so I suggested trying the tub. She got in there at 1:10 PM and her back soon felt much better, but her contractions were still coming at intervals of 7-10 minutes. She labored well there and dozed a bit between contractions. She spent half an hour in the tub but soon she started getting chilly so got out to take a warm shower. Her contractions seemed to increase in the shower. The nurse Erin checked her cervix again at 2:30 PM to be 7 cm dilated but noted that she can be “conservative” on her measurements. Because Kjera’s labor was progressing so slowly we discussed the option of breaking her bag of water to try to speed things up. Kjera decided to walk the halls again for a bit and then at 3:00 PM decided she would like to have her water broken saying, “I’m not in it for the long haul”. She had been laboring for over 40 hours at this point and was tired. Dr. Anthony then came in and broke her water and checked Kjera’s cervix to be dilated to 8 cm. Kjera then alternated her time from walking to sitting on the ball. Her contractions began to increase in frequency, especially when she walked, and she did a good job breathing and focusing inward. She remained calm and focused on opening.
Kjera was regularly asked by the nurse to get into bed for a period of continuous fetal monitoring. Her baby was low enough that the fetal monitor would not pick up baby’s heart rate when she was standing or walking around. Every time Kjera was asked to do this, the stronger contraction pattern she had just been working so hard to develop and maintain by walking around would weaken and slow down. Kjera was exhausted and welcomed this chance to lie down and rest, but it wasn’t doing her labor any good. She was asked to do this again at 5:00 PM and her cervical check at 5:25 PM showed no change from the previous exam. Dr. Anthony came in to check on her again and mentioned starting a slow drip of pitocin through her IV to get her contractions into a regular and strong pattern. We talked about waiting an hour and spending that time walking and moving around with intention and at a pace which might help her contractions gather strength. If there was no cervical change after that, Kjera thought she might like to start with the pitocin.
Kjera, Jacob and I spent the next hour walking at a fast pace through the halls with short breaks back into the room to squat with the squat bar. This was hard work for Kjera but she did well with it, mostly due, I think, to Jacob’s encouragement. He used humor but was also subtly directive in getting Kjera to stay focused and not succumb to her exhaustion. In her delirium, she would say things like, ‘no’ or ‘I can’t keep moving’ or ‘I’m too tired’, and Jacob would respond with humor about their “blueberry” (as they had been calling the baby), their back and forth race though the halls, and other silly nonsense. It was very endearing and I was impressed with Jacob’s ability to motivate Kjera in such a light manner. Jacob was a great support to Kjera throughout her labor. He remained by her side massaging her back, encouraging her through her difficult times, timing contractions and helping with decision making. Kjera’s hard work seemed to be helping. Unless she took a break to sit down, the frequency of Kjera’s contractions increased to four minutes apart. However, Kjera was tired and even though her contraction pattern seemed much better, I think she needed more than an hour of such hard work. Kjera wanted to stick to her one hour plan and had Laurel the nurse check her cervix at 7:00 PM. Laurel reported little change saying that Kjera’s cervix was at 8 cm and the baby’s head was at 0 station, and that her cervix might be a bit swollen. Because all this work produced no change in Kjera’s dilation, she opted for the pitocin and she was started on a low dose through her IV that was increased through the night.
Kjera spent the next two hours walking the halls with an occasional period of rest in the bed. She did a great job with her contractions focusing inward and using her mantra of “open”. She leaned against either Jacob or the wall during her contractions while I worked on her back and talked her through her contractions reminding her to open, stay loose, and ask her baby to move down. Kjera’s back was again quite painful and at 9:05 PM we decided getting into the tub again might help with this. Kjera felt better in the tub lying mostly on her side or back. She was able to doze between contractions and did a good job both moving her legs and relaxing in the tub. Roz, the new night nurse checked her cervix at 10:45 PM and reported that it was at 7 cm. However baby’s head was very low at +2 station and there was quite a bit of bloody show indicating potential cervical change.
Kjera’s pitocin dose was increased several times while in the tub. Her back was getting more and more painful. Jacob and I were having a hard time staying awake at this point. We were both half falling asleep unless Kjera required our direct attention. Kjera seemed to be getting to a point where she was only able to focus on her back pain and I wonder if she was not able to let her body relax and open. I told her that she needed to “forget about her back”, “to pretend it wasn’t there”, and “to go somewhere else” mentally. Remembering that prenatally she had said the beach felt good to her, I started leading her through different scenes on the beach during each contraction. We would all fall asleep between contractions (Kjera’s chin was propped nicely on her chest above the water and I had little fear that she would sink into the water) and when Kjera would wake up for a contraction I would start on a new chapter of the “beach story”, as Kjera later named it, while she took deep breaths. This worked well for a while until I ran out of ideas for the story. I massaged Kjera’s head and Jacob held her hand. At some point around midnight Jacob said he needed to take a short break and lie down for a few minutes. He went into the delivery room, set his alarm for 10 minutes, lied down on the floor, and proceeded to sleep through his alarm. Meanwhile, back in the tub room I became useless in my own way. I would half-heartedly wake up with Kjera during her contractions grab hold of her hands and help her chant through her new mantra of “I can do it”, but I don’t think I made it through Kjera’s entire contractions very often. After some time I stood up next to the tub and started bouncing around thinking that I could be more helpful to Kjera since there was no way I could fall asleep standing up. (I was wrong – twice I caught myself going down and woke up before my knees completely buckled under me). What was amazing to me at this point was that at the height of intensity of Kjera’s labor, she took over on her own and worked through her contractions with little support from her team. She got through the last part of her labor using her own inner strength. She had found an instinctual rhythm and ritual which allowed her body and mind to do what it needed to do. At 1:00 AM on January 31 she decided to get out of the tub. She was beginning to feel like she might want to push. Roz helped us back into Kjera’s room, and our entrance woke Jacob with a start! Kjera went into the bathroom and let out a moan. Jacob went running in finding that Kjera now felt a strong urge to push.
Roz checked Kjera’s cervix at 1:05 AM to be 10 cm – she was completely dilated and ready to push! Kjera began feeling her way through pushing at first by leaning against the squat bar but soon got down into a squat while hanging off the bar. Jacob supported her back in this position. Soon she was pushing well and by 1:40 AM Roz asked her to alternate her strong pushes between contractions. She was allowed to push with strength on one contraction but was told to rest and “grunt” through the next. I think Roz was trying to buy some time until Dr. Anthony arrived which happened in the next few minutes. Dr. Anthony checked Kjera’s pushing progress during her next contraction and was surprised to find that the baby was right there – and ready! She told Kjera to quickly get up into the bed – a difficult feat for Kjera since her baby’s head was almost out – and was out before she was completely on the bed. The rest of the baby’s body came slithering out right away and was put on Kjera’s chest. Jacob cut the cord – a particularly short cord as Dr. Anthony noted – and announced that they had a baby boy! Kjera and Jacob were ecstatic with their little boy who was born at 1:50 AM. He was having a bit of trouble breathing so the nurse took him to the warmer to give him some oxygen. Kjera delivered her placenta at 1:56 AM and Dr. Anthony sewed up a small tear. Kjera was soon given back her little boy, Augustus Strom Henrie as she and Jacob named him. He weighed 7 pounds six ounces and measured 20.5 inches long. Kjera tried to breastfeed him but he wasn’t quite ready right away due to his respiratory issues. He was content to lie skin to skin on her chest.
Kjera’s labor was extremely long and very hard. She was exhausted through much of her labor. However, despite the difficulties Kjera faced, she never once gave in. She did not mutter words of discouragement other than being tired. She found her own instinctual ritual and rhythm and dug deep to find her inner strength to get her through her contractions. Jacob was a huge support to Kjera in a calm, humorous, and loving way. Together they worked well as a team to bring their little boy, Augustus Strom Henrie, into the world.
Monday, February 7, 2011
And then there were three
Jacob and Kjera have relocated. We can now be found in Augustus-landia! We are slowing down and experiencing the world based on his needs. Unfortunately, this past week, that has involved eating, pooping and some sleeping, and not a lot of blog-writing. Fear not. We will (grudgingly) reenter the world soon, with brand new perspectives on life and love. Thank you for all the love and support (and meals!) that we have been spoiled with! Until then, check out our Shutterfly site for some photos of our lovely boy: Augustus Strom Henrie.
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