Aaron James Thomas

Alright so here is the story of how Aaron James Thomas came into the world. I figured I could write the long version on the blog and if you want the short version give Kris a call. So here we go....
On June 18, 2010 around 9:00am I decided to call the doctor because the baby wasn't as active as he usually was at night and I didn't want to worry about it over the weekend. The doctor suggested I come in for a non-stress test just to check everything out.
@ 10:00am I arrived at the doctors office to get hooked up to the monitors while Kris stayed home with Ian and Cole. The boys were home from daycare since I was done with school and it worked out that Kris was not working that day too. As I was hooked up to the monitor I was watching the contractions come and go about every 5-minutes but I wasn't feeling them. The doctor came in and said the baby looked great so nothing to worry about there and then she checked to see if I had dilated more since Monday when I was 3cm. Sure enough, I was now a solid 4cm. If you go by the baby books this means I was in labor! She said since I was feeling good and not having pain with contractions that I should go home and then come back around 3pm for another check.
@11:00am I started on my way home but stopped at the store for a few things just in case I did go into labor. I wanted to make sure Ian and Cole had milk, snacks, and I wanted cheesecake. So I stopped at Safeway and then a few garage sales on my way home since I knew if I went home right away I would go crazy sitting around.
@Noon I arrived back home to find the boys having a great time with Kris outside so I headed in to fix lunch. We all sat down to eat lunch together and talked about the possibility that little brother might be arriving sometime soon. Ian and Cole were super excited about the idea of going to hang out with cousin Tyler and Griffin that I think they forgot that I was going in to maybe have the baby later. After playing and walking around outside for a while it was finally time to drop off the boys and head to the doctors again.
@2:30pm Kris and I took the boys to Ryan and Ashley's house, but only Ashley was there so she was a mommy to 4 children for a while until Ryan got home. I OWE HER big time. It was a nice day so they were outside in the pool and bounce house the entire time so that was relief.
@3:15pm I was hooked up to the monitors again and this time Kris was with me, but he was bored of course. After 20-minutes the doctor came in to discuss what she was seeing. My contractions had stopped but I was definitely progressing with labor because I was now 5cm so there was a change since the morning. The doctor asked if we were packed and ready to go, which of course we had been for weeks. She checked us into the "Providence Hotel" as Kris calls it at the birth center room 260.
@4:30pm Kris and I brought our stuff into the room and were given "free" rein of what to do next with a suggestion that we walk A LOT. We walked the hallways, walked around the hospital outside, then we walked into the cafeteria so Kris could get some dinner. We brought his dinner up to the birth center and I got hooked up to the monitor. We made phone calls at this point to tell mom and dad to get on the road, check on the boys, and arrange for the boys to be taken care of through the night.
@6:30-9:00pm it was a lot of waiting and walking, waiting and walking.....
@9:15pm the doctor arrived to see how I was progressing and I was nervous because I had not felt anything strong as far as contractions. However, something was happening because I was now 6cm! I am loving labor this time around....then without wasting time she broke my water and there was no turning back at this point.
@9:30pm the nurse came in and finished check me in then it was time to get the IV in position just in case I needed fluids later. Usually there is no problems getting an IV started but for some reason my veins were not cooperating. It took about an hour, 10 sticks, and 3 different nurses to finally get one started but believe it or not I was kind of glad because it kept me distracted from the contractions.
@10:30pm contractions started to pick-up intensity and I was feeling them....finally :-) So I decided to take a shower to try and relax. It did help but the contractions were really starting to become strong and close together.
@11:00pm checked to see how I was progressing and I was at 8cm, which was a surprise to everyone because it had been an intense hour. At this point I started to talk about pain management and since I had never had an epidural with the first two boys I didn't know how long the process really takes. When the nurse said from the time they page the epidural it takes about 45-minutes, so I said okay lets get the process started. Well that thought didn't last too long....
@11:15 I was feeling the strong urge to push even when told not too...do they really think that a woman in labor wants to stop pushing? Anyways, I was moved from my left side to my back and gave about 5-7 good pushes and we welcomes Aaron James Thomas into the world at 11:30 pm.