Welcome sweet Rocco!

Our sweet baby boy has been with us for about 6 weeks now and I feel like I am finally getting the hang of caring for two babies. It's not easy, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Rocco was due February 21, but my doctor wanted to induce him right around his due date because there was a slight risk of my placenta detaching due to my chronic hypertension. So on Tuesday, February 19, Jesse and I dropped Emi off at my parents' house and headed to the hospital at 6:00am.

I got checked in, hooked up, and was given my first round of pitocin right away. Then we waited.  It seemed like a really slow process because he was sitting fairly high for a long time. I went into this labor hoping to use only Nubane for the pain because the epidural is what caused me to retain fluid and return to the hospital a week after Emi was born. I was reasonably comfortable for a long time, until Rocco dropped enough that Dr. Huang could break my water.

When I really started to feel the pain I asked for the narcotic and sent Jesse and my mom to go get some lunch, while Connie (Jesse's mom) stayed with me.  I felt relaxed for about 5 minutes, but the pain started to become unbearable again.  When Jesse and my mom came back I asked them to get the nurse to order the epidural for me.  Previous to getting an epidural, you have to be given a bag of fluid which takes half an hour- one of the longest half hours of my life. All pride went out the window and I was screaming, asking to die, banging the side of the bed...I was pretty embarrassed after the fact, but it hurt! FINALLY the anesthesiologist was able to do his thing.  He gave me a shot of something directly into my back because I was in so much pain before hooking up the epidural which helped for about two contractions, and then I was screaming again. He told the nurse I must be transitioning because I wasn't experiencing relief, so she checked me and said, "No, she still has a little bit to go." Right.  About two seconds after that I said I needed to push and she was still doubting me but told me to bare down, which I did, and there was Rocco's head ready to come out.

Then it seemed like chaos ensued.  Nurses came flooding in, the anesthesiologist was still there trying to get the epidural going (I heard something about dead batteries, so I'm not sure I actually got it) someone was trying to get a hold of Dr. Huang or any doctor - I heard them go out into the hallway asking if a doctor from another practice was around. Jesse was asking one of the nurses to get our moms who were in the waiting room while I got the epidural. Meanwhile, I kept yelling that I had to get him out even though the nurse told me to try not to push.  Despite the chaos I just went about my business and pushed him out.  I'm pretty sure Jesse was next to me, but there was no holding of my legs, no being told to breathe and when to push, they didn't even get the end of the bed off and the birthing lights on. I bore down about three times and Rocco was here after maybe 5 minutes. The nurse had to catch him, and poor Dr. Huang got there a few minutes later having run from her office, 5 months pregnant herself! She said this was the first time in her career missed a birth. My Rocco is already a high achiever.

Rocco DeLynn Stamm
7lbs 14oz, 21 inches

He is a sweet little guy, not too fussy (yet at least) and we love him so much.  Emi snuggles and kisses him a lot, and tries to give him his pacifier when he is crying. I think they are going to be great friends. It's amazing how much our family has changed in such a short amount of time, we are so blessed.

Look at those baby browns!