Calvin Vernon Coombs

Tuesday after work Caleb came home we started working on house projects to get ready for his graduation party on Friday night. I was taking it pretty easy and just watching Shelby while Caleb hung curtains and towel racks. I kept telling Caleb that I was having contractions and he said that I needed to stop. He told me that his schedule was really busy and I wasn't allowed to have any contractions until Saturday at the earliest. While he finished working on projects I laid in bed and tried not to move. I tried drinking as much water as I could. Still....more contractions. Caleb continued to tell me about his school schedule this week, his graduation on Friday, and that this was just simply not going to work with him. I decided to get into our new fabulous huge tub and see if I could soak it off and Caleb went to bed.

I wanted to have Caleb put air in our yoga ball, so he went and found the pump that had broke. It barely pushed out any air and got steaming hot from him trying to use it. He was being so dramatic that I was laughing until I was crying. That just sped up the labor, which was also making him worry more.

I called my sister and told her I was pretty sure that I was in labor, but I wasn't sure it was real. My contractions were about 5 minutes apart but they were really short in duration. With Shelby, my contractions were very long and she took 22 hours to be born. I thought I had all the time in the world and was actually thinking of all the things I needed to get done at work. 

During the phone call with my sister she asked me very silly questions: 

Are you registered at the hospital? No.

Do you have the infant carseat in the car? No.

Do you have a hospital bag packed? No.

Do you have the bassinet set up? No.

Do you have anybody to watch Shelby tonight? No.

Do you want me to come over and help you? YES!!!

Rhoda came over and by then it was pretty obvious that I was in labor and she went right to work packing my bags. She also woke up my darling husband and convinced him that it really was going to happen, even though he continued to protest the timing.

I called my sister-in-law Alise and asked her to come sleep over at my house with my kids so we could leave. I also swore her to secrecy because I did not want to get a bunch of texts or calls about how labor was going.

We got to the Salem Hospital around 3 am. I had to go into the ER to register because the birth center reception was closed. Then I had to ride in a wheelchair across the entire hospital to get to the birth center on the opposite side. I HATE being on my back or in the sitting position when I have a contraction. It makes all the pain go straight to my back. But the hospital would not allow me to walk, so I sat and struggled through it.

We got to triage where the nurse could not get the stupid monitors in the right spot. Every contraction I had to lean forward, which made the monitor come off. She was very upset that I couldn't lay on my back during contractions and I was just mad that I had to keep sitting there. She decided to check me and I was at a 5 or 6. She decided I was going to be admitted but needed continued monitoring due to the way I move around. So here I am, having a drug free birth, and I can't get into the tub, use the fun bouncy ball to help with the pain, and they want me to lay on my back. I was not a happy camper. Dr Lewis came in, and he was the doctor I just saw on Monday and told him all about my birth plan. He talked them into putting tape around the monitors and guess what- the baby had a normal heart beat after they figured out that the monitor was moving. Dr Lewis also checked me again and by now I was an 8 and he cleared me to get into the tub!

I got into the tub and stayed there for about two hours. The tub was tiny and stupid and not at all what I had experienced in Portland. Salem was very disappointing up until now and I was just not having a good time. Rhoda and Caleb crammed into the tiny bathroom and started telling me funny jokes. I was laughing again, until I was crying, and we were having a great time. They would stop during contractions, and then keep the jokes coming the rest of the time. Stories about my dad and his loud radios on road trips and all sorts of stuff that had me cracking up!

The contractions continued to get worse, but it was still pretty easy compared to what I experienced with Shelby. I felt like my labor just wasn't progressing in the tub and maybe it slowed things down. The contractions all felt the same and I was ready to get the show on the road. So I got out of the tub and they made me do more monitoring. Guess what- they wouldn't hold still again and the nurse tried to convince me the baby was in distress. So Dr. Lewis came in again and told me that I had to do something and the monitor was showing the baby was not tolerating labor. They made me get an IV, and get on oxygen and keep laying back, which made everything hurt. Also, I was still only only an 8 or 9 and hadn't progressed at all in the last two hours. He told me that I could let him break my water and then do an internal fetal heart rate monitor. I don't really like those because they actually screw into the head of the baby, poor kid. But it was better than a c-section so I agreed.

I am laying there in the worst pain, on my back, with stupid monitors, and I look over at Caleb who has fallen asleep. My sister saw the look of death that I had and she went over and told Caleb it was time to pay attention. I know he probably was tired, but try telling that to a woman in labor!

As soon as they did the new monitor it showed that Calvin was a rock star and he was doing great. Also, from breaking my water my contractions started making some great progress. The pain went from pretty bad to life altering in no time. Here's the pain I remember and that I had anxiety about. This is the pain that made me think that I should never do this again. The kind of pain when you are pretty sure that angels are coming down to take you from this world. I progressed so quickly and there was almost no break in my contractions. Sure enough I had the last three contractions boom, boom, boom, and I said- I'm going to start pushing now. I couldn't hardly catch my breathe. I got no relief at all.

The doctor wasn't in the room, but I sure didn't care. I had to push and the nurses told me again that I had to lay on my back. I told them no, I couldn't, and I didn't want to. After I fought with them, they were basically grabbing me and making me lay on my back. So it went from unbearable pain to the kind of pain that you think death may be the better option. The good news was that Calvin's head was already coming out before they got me over. The doctor didn't even have his gloves on yet so the nurse caught him. Nurse Kathleen delivered Calvin and the doctor stood there with one glove on and watched.

Calvin was born at 8 am
Wednesday morning June 16th
6 pounds and 15.5 ounces
18" long
He has a bit of dark hair
His eyes are the newborn blueish color
He's just a great sleeper
He nurses like a champ

When Calvin was born I wanted to soak in every minute of this tiny little man. He was so much smaller than I remember any newborn being. He was very quiet and just perfect. Caleb and I just kept touching his perfect little hands and looking at his tiny toes. The moment you meet your child is the most precious moment in the world. You're meeting this tiny little being who needs you to sustain life for them. Birth really is an amazing thing. He melted my heart right from the start.

I was not going to leave his side, no matter what. The doctor did the inspection and I had the same problem I did with Shelby. This time, I did not have the same amount of blood loss, so they didn't have to take me to the OR. They decided to stitch me up right there in the room. The doctor was a big jerk and I think after birth was probably more painful than during birth. He just simply could not get me numb and the only anesthesiologist that was working was in surgery and not available for an hour. We couldn't wait that long or I would've been in big trouble. So basically, the doctor stitched me up for about 45 minutes without any drugs at all. I take that back, I got a Tylenol. Like that helps! I was actually using profanity in front of my newborn son. Not my most proud moment, but I don't think he will remember. The best part of the whole thing was my darling son. Calvin laid on my chest the whole time. He never cried or anything. When I couldn't take the pain I would just watch him and he cheered me up.
 

I am doing well now and very happy that we have a beautiful little boy. I'm going to miss Caleb's graduation on Friday, but I gave him a healthy baby boy instead. I think that's a pretty good gift!

 

Because this is finals week, Caleb cannot stay with me in the hospital. I have had a ton of visitors, which is really nice. Caleb comes home from school, goes and plays with Shelby and then comes to the hospital at night. He puts Shelby to bed so she can have some sort of normal life while we are gone. Then when he gets to the hospital, he holds Calvin and even gets up with him at night. I am so impressed with the man Caleb has turned into with fatherhood. He puts his family first and makes us a priority. We are very blessed.

Shelby Lu was able to come see Calvin and that was a great experience. She basically wanted nothing to do with him. She just wanted me to get up and go home. The hospital was pretty scary for her and she could see that I was not my normal self. So we all agreed that hospital visits needed to be short for her and we would get home as soon as possible.

Yeah for my new family of four. I can't believe my little man Calvin was born early and that we are all together! It's going to be so much fun having a boy and a girl and watching them grow up together!