Team Schuppert Family Blog: Little Lincoln's Grand Entrance

So, our little Lincoln made his debut on January 27, 2015- 16 days early!!! He is absolutely perfect and completes our little family in the best way possible! His birth was absolutely amazing, I could not have asked for a better birth.

It all started around 4 AM on Tuesday the 27th. The morning of the 27th, I had already been up, hacking up phlegm (thanks mold and cedar!) for a little while. I laid back down around 4:30 AM, when I suddenly felt something I had felt 4 1/2 years earlier. There was no question, my water had broken. It was more of a trickle then a gush. I didn't feel any contractions, so I wasn't too worried. I emailed work, wrote a to-do list and tried to relax. Around 7 AM, Matt took Harper to school. She was excited that we would probably be meeting our little guy that same day! I called my OB and doula. Both said to take it easy and come in later in the afternoon, since I was not experiencing any contractions and my water had kind of stopped leaking. That was good because I really wanted to labor at home as much as possible. So Matt and I did what any other people in our situation would do- I went to work, went out to breakfast, and took a nap.

Matt drove me to school so I could send out some emails from my computer and set up some things. We then went to Kerbey Lane for a late breakfast. While at Kerbey Lane, contractions began. They were extremely mild, not too bad. And we even ran into Jamie and Mike Foster! LOL!

After breakfast, we came home and took a nap, relaxed (as much as I could while having mild contractions) and watched The Interview. The movie ended around 4:30, and when I got up from the couch, I felt a gush! There went the rest of my water breaking! I called my doula, Amanda, who happens to be a nurse and works at my OB's office, and we all agreed to meet at the hospital around 8 pm. Matt's parents had picked up Harper from school, so we didn't have to worry about our girl. At that point, the contractions were getting stronger, but manageable. I decided to take a shower and begin to get ready for the hospital.

Matt was beginning to worry. He really wanted us to go to the hospital sooner rather than later. So I texted Amanda and let her know we felt we needed to go to the hospital. It was about 5:30. We gathered all our things and got to the hospital at 6:15. Amanda and our doctor were there and we checked in. At that point, contractions were getting stronger, they would stop me in my tracks.

When we got to our room, the doctor checked me and I was dilated to 4 cm. My contractions were getting stronger and stronger and I began to doubt myself. I really wanted to have a natural childbirth, I just wasn't sure if I was strong enough. Matt followed me to the bathroom, and I broke down. He was amazing and just kept telling me that I could do it and that he believed in me. When we stepped out, the nurse was there to put a saline lock in my wrist. She tried twice and was unable to get it in. It hurt so much, but the contractions hurt more. They were coming on faster and stronger with not much time in between. A different nurse finally was able to put the saline lock on my other wrist, minutes before I gave birth. Matt's family came at that time, and I really wanted to see Harper, but I didn't want to scare her. Contractions were strong, I was making lots of grunty, gutteral noises. And I was rocking and holding onto the bed for dear life as Amanda and Matt were massaging my back and trying to make me as comfortable as possible. So in between contractions, I was able to see Harps for literally 10 seconds give her a kiss and tell her how much I loved her. Matt's parents took her at that point and Brigid, Matt's sister, stayed on to be part of the birth.

The next hour or so was a blur for me. I cried, I screamed, I grunted, I prayed. It HURT! My doctor was not in the room at this point. I asked Amanda if I could get in the shower to relieve some of the pain, she looked at me and said "We don't have time for that". That's when I knew I was further along then I had thought. The nurse then checked me to see how dilated I was (doctor was still not there, she was assisting another mom). I was 9.5 cm dilated!! Nurses rushed to go find the doctor, this baby was coming quickly!! The need to push was there, it was so difficult to wait. The pressure was so intense, like nothing I have ever experienced.

When the doctor made it to the room, it was pretty much time to push. It was 7:57 pm when I began pushing. The noises and screams I made each time I pushed were so loud. I never thought I'd be a screamer, lol! At 8:16, about 2 hours after I arrived at the hospital, Lincoln Cross Schuppert was born. I began crying instantly the second I delivered him. The doctor placed him on my chest and delayed cutting his cord for several minutes. Matt was able to cut the cord. We fell in love the second we saw him. He was perfect- 6 pounds, 15 ounces and 18.5 inches long.

I would not have been able to have this amazing un-medicated birth experience without my doctor, Brigid, Amanda and Matt. They were invaluable and I was so blessed to have them there.