Cy’s Birth Story

Throughout my pregnancy, people asked me if I had a feeling about whether we were having a boy or a girl. I didn’t even have a guess until the night before. We were up late getting things packed for the hospital. Aunt Kate helped me find outfits for the girls and took them over to the hotel to stay with Memaw and Pepaw. We packed a bag with baby girl and boy outfits. I wanted to take alphabet letters to spell out the baby’s name, but we couldn’t find enough i’s for Abigail. I started wondering if this baby was Cy. I read Give Thanks, a picture book I wanted to share with the girls, and started to tear up at the picture of a little boy climbing up next to his grandpa. For the first time, I could really picture us with a boy after three girls!

I woke up very close to 4. Jason and I prayed for a few minutes and then started to get ready. It is always strange to me to have the girls’ door open at night when they aren’t here. I kept thinking we needed to be quiet and then realizing it didn’t matter. As I entered through the hospital emergency entrance around 5 AM, I was reminded of a airport because of the smoke, sliding doors, and early morning hours. We went up to a really nice, large L&D room to get ready for the c-section. Big improvement over the tiny pre-op room I had for Miri’s birth! The nurse had a hard time with the IV, but she had such a great attitude that it didn’t bother me. The baby didn’t like the monitor at all, just like Zuzu. The nurse arranged for me to recover in the same room so it would be possible for Kate and the rest of the family to join me. This was a huge blessing that I didn’t have to use the recovery room in the surgery suite with no visitors!

I went to the OR and scaled the operating table. I misjudged the width and almost fell off backwards. I didn’t even realize that it had happened, but the nurses helping me on the table collectively gasped. That would have added some drama to the morning.

In the OR, the first step is getting the spinal, but there had been so many c-sections the night before they were out of kits. We waited for quite a while with everyone ready. I didn’t mind, but I think the nurses were justifiably put out. Finally, they tracked down what they needed. Dr. Damian was there right in front of me helping me relax while they did the spinal. It was hard to get in and I got to practice my breathing exercises. After they laid me down, I started to feel sick. The anesthesiologist was able to get my nausea under control quickly, so Jason and I were able to wait for the baby without any discomfort.

It was interesting to hear the doctors discuss my previous scars and the layers they were cutting through. After some pushing and shoving by several people other than me, Dr. Damian pulled the baby out and held him up for us to see. Jason did a happy hop and I cried a bit. We were so excited to finally have our Cy! He weighed 8 pounds, 9 ounces, only slightly bigger than Eliza.

Jason went with Cy to the nursery for the newborn procedures. While the doctors stitched me up, I started to feel sick again. It was pretty uncomfortable (and messy), and I had serious qualms about ever going through this again. Dr. Damian made a point of saying everything looked good in case we wanted another baby. I really appreciated that, especially because so many people assume 3 and done with cesareans. I had to keep reminding myself through the pain that it would only last for about 24 hours and would be completely worth it.

I was transferred to a hospital bed with the cool inflatable blanket thing and wheeled to the L&D room. Jason brought Cy in followed by the nursery nurse. Then the girls came in with Kate, Dad and Kay. Jenni took pictures of everyone meeting each other. I love looking through these photographs because it’s so hard to see what is going on from a hospital bed, especially while still dealing with the side effects of medication. Eliza came and said hi to me briefly while the other girls vied for holding Cy.

(Cake by Lisa. Photographs by jmlphotography.)

Then everyone but Jason went out to have cake so I could be checked and moved to postpartum. The disorientation of moving while lying down caused me to throw up again. I was so queasy that when the girls came in to say goodbye, we kept the visit short. This suited Miri just fine as she was standing by the door saying, “Go Memaw’s. Go Pepaw’s. Now.”

And that’s that for the birth story. I’m tempted to summarize, “They cut me open; I threw up. Baby! They sewed me up; I threw up. They moved me; I threw up.” If there’s one thing I’ve processed in the last 7 years it’s that birth is important, but it doesn’t define me. Praise God!

You might have noticed that I didn’t actually get to nurse Cy or really even take a good look at him. As soon as possible, I’ll post about meeting Cy and our breastfeeding story.

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