I have been meaning to sit down and write out the story of Dex’s birth for awhile, but I have been so busy starting a new at-home job and having a precious infant! But, here goes…
July 20- We pack the car to the brim and leave to head to Florida. Dex’s due date was July 21. We made it to our destination and settled in the hotel. We waited for word from our caseworker that our boy was on his way. That call didn’t come….
July 21- We hadn’t gotten a call by noon, so we decided to head into Orlando for a bit. We went to the Millennium mall and then decided to go to Downtown Disney- this momma knew that mouse ears would get our boy to come on out J On our way home from Orlando, our caseworker called. Our birthmom’s blood pressure was high so they were going to admit her and induce that night. Our caseworker also said that she wanted to meet us that night…And then came the butterflies and million questions- what if she didn’t like us, what if she changed her mind after she met us, etc. But we went to the hotel, freshened up and headed to the hospital. We were greeted by our caseworker and birthfather. I immediately felt at ease. He had kind eyes and greeted us with a hug. As we rode the elevator up to the 2nd floor, all I kept thinking is that I was so close to my sweet boy. I was overwhelmed and tried not to cry as we walked into the room and I saw our birthmom and her big belly that had been my son’s home for 9 months. We visited for a bit and went back to the hotel after calling our families to tell them we would have a son tomorrow…or so we thought.
July 22- We woke up early, showered, ate and were at the hospital by 8 AM. When we got there we learned that labor was not progressing very quickly. We settled in to hang out and get to know our birthparents until Dex made his appearance. Bryan describes it bet when he says it was like we were in an episode of Seinfeld…We talked about “nothing” all day! They were a hoot to be around! By noon, she had still not progressed more than 1 cm. They started another drug to see if that would help. We talked and laughed more together. It was a sweet and strange time all at the same time. 2 more drugs later, we were still waiting. We went down to the closed cafeteria for dinner- we enjoyed the delicacies of pizza rolls, chips, reese’s and a sprite. I don’t think Bryan or I will ever forget that dinner. J When we got back it was time for the epidural! Finally! We were close! (this was 9 PM) Our birthmom went to sleep after the epidural, so we chatted quietly with our birthfather.
July 23- About 3:30 AM they came in and said- TIME TO PUSH!!!! At that moment I felt like I was going to faint, throw up and my heart was going to jump out of my chest! I was about to meet my boy! Our birthmom decided that she wanted both Bryan and I in the room when he was born. (Bryan stayed behind the closed curtain and gave a thumbs up every now and thenJ) I was right next to the birthmom, holding her hand- til it felt like it was breaking, and I began to feel faint. (I do not have a strong stomach) I moved behind the curtain to talk to Bryan for a second , and the nurse grabs my arm and said “look, he’s crowning, there is your baby!” I am not going to lie, I almost fainted. I was overjoyed to see my boys head, but not really ready for the “labor” I saw. Right at that moment they told her to stop pushing. I was not sure why, since he was already partially out. We had to waiting on a surgeon to come in…(more on that later) 2 more pushes and there was a little person wrapped in a towel being taken next store and we were following behind him…
We got to the other room, and I panicked immediately. My baby boy was blue and they were giving him oxygen- they said not to worry that he would be fine, but the cord had been wrapped around his neck twice. This is why they had to call in the surgeon. I am so thankful that he was ok! I know that could have been very serious! I watched them suction his nose and mouth and a little cry come out of him. I was standing there with my husband looking at our perfect, (and bruised) little boy. The wonderful nurses had cut the cord extra long, so that Bryan could cut the cord when we got into the other room. What a cool experience! We watched them do his Apgar test and check for the signs of Down’s Syndrome (I’ll get to that story later) The nurse handed me my son wrapped in a blanket, and I have never felt such joy and peace. I have never felt that way before. I was holding Declan Janek Noel. He was precious! Bryan held him next. I carried him down to the nursery where we said goodnight. I DID NOT LIKE LEAVING HIM! He had just met me. I wanted to spend every moment with him!! We called our families and went back to sleep for about an hour.
July 23 (later)- We were back at the hospital by 7 AM. We got there just in time for his feeding- which he did awesome at. (He is still a pro-eater) The hospital was so wonderful and gave us our own room so we could bond with him and take care of him. It was so surreal. We took a million pictures and prettymuch stared at him all day! We also went back and hung out with our birthparents a little more. They will always hold a special place in our hearts and we know that we would not have our precious boy without them!
That is the story of our little man’s birth! We were so blessed with amazing caseworkers, birthparents, hospital staff and doctors….
Oh yeah- the doctors! Let me back up to the first week of July- we received a call that our baby was measuring small and they believed he had Down’s Syndrome. Our birthmom decided to have an amnio 3 weeks from her due date to find out. Our agency told us to think about it and let them know what we decided- well, it really wasn’t an decision for us. We knew that this little man was our son no matter what. An old friend reminded me that God was not surprised and he gave us the special gift. We called the agency back and told them he was ours and we loved him. We never once were upset or sad. We see our son as perfect gift from God! He was ours before he was even conceived. But back to the doctors- when it was confirmed that he did have Down’s Syndrome- the pediatrician immediately did heart tests and other necessary tests. When we got to Jacksonville, we visited another pediatrician who specialized in DS. She had more tests run- and sent us to the best pediatric cardiologist and ophthalmologist in Florida. And let me tell you- my boy is perfectly healthy!!!!!!! I have never felt so at peace and joyful- knowing that although my boy could have many health problems, the Lord allowed him to be perfectly healthy. I have not let one day go by that I don’t thank the Lord often for our son and his health. I am also thankful for the people he has placed in my life with knowledge and understanding for my many questions J
So that is our story….now, I will update this blog more to keep up with my boy!
