Our little boy, Boston Cooper, is here!! We are so in love and so exhausted, but are enjoying every minute as a family of four! He is the sweetest addition to the family and Bryn is obsessed with her little bro! In this post I’ll answer some questions and tell y’all about how our sweet Boston came into this world on a super crazy day!
FINDING OUT WE’RE PREGNANT:
Many of you know that it took us nearly three years to get pregnant with Brynleigh, so we didn’t really know what to expect this time around. We decided to make some lifestyle changes, try to get pregnant and see what happens. Well seven months of trying and no luck. We were both pretty discouraged and worried that it would be another two-three years before we welcomed another little baby into our family.
Fast forward a month, we’re about to go to Orlando for a family vacation to Universal Studios…and I’m late. One thing I had learned from my struggle with infertility was to never get my hopes up. I know it sounds dark and pessimistic, but it’s been my way of protecting my heart through all of this. So I waited a few more days, just to make sure and then I took a test. It had two faint pink lines. I was in complete shock.
I have a history of not believing the first (or second or third) pregnancy test I take so of course I grabbed Bryn and ran to the store to get a test that would leave no room for doubt. I grabbed a clear blue test that would literally say “yes” or “no”. I didn’t want to have to interrupt if the pink lines were faint, actually there or anything like that. So I bought the test and ran home to take it asap! I honestly don’t know if I was expecting the test to confirm the early test or not. But it did…I was finally pregnant with baby number two!
PREGNANCY COMPLICATIONS:
Fast forward again to my 36 week OB appointment. Up to this point, the pregnancy had gone pretty well. At this appointment my OB told me that baby boy was in the breech position. I knew that wasn’t ideal, but I wasn’t exactly sure what my options were at that point. My doctor told me that I basically had two options:
- If baby boy was still breech at my next appointment (37 weeks), she could do a external cephalic version (ECV) to manually try flipping him then hope he stays put.
- Or she could schedule an ECV for 39 weeks and if it works induce me right then. If the ECV didn’t work at that point, I would need to have a c-section.
I knew that I wanted to do everything in my power to not have a c-section, so I began researching ways to naturally turn a breech baby. The two main sources I ended up utilizing were “Spinning Babies” and the “Webster Technique”. “Spinning Babies” is a program that uses stretches and movement to improve fetal positioning. The “Webster Technique” is a specific chiropractic sacral analysis and diversified adjustment to reduce the effects of sacral subluxation and SI joint dysfunction. It felt good to be doing these things and I was hoping I made progress, but I honestly couldn’t tell if my efforts were in vain.
I’ve had a lot of people ask me if I felt him flip into the breech position…like if I knew the moment when it happened. The answer is yes. Very much so. I was standing in the kitchen making dinner and I had a prolonged sharp pain hit me so hard. It stopped me in my tracks. I had been having Braxton Hicks since about 34 weeks so I kind of just thought it was a big one of those. Hind sight tells me that that was definitely when he flipped though.
So I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into my 37 week appointment. It was very much a mind game for me at that point. I was like, I feel like maybe he did flip. Then I’d be like no nothing feels different so he probably didn’t flip. Needless to say, I was beyond relieved when the ultrasound showed that baby boy flipped back into the correct position!!
I really wanted to be happy in that moment…and I was to a certain extent, but in the back of my mind I was super worried because there was still a chance he could flip breech again. So, moving forward that meant that I would get weekly ultrasounds to ensure that he didn’t flip back again. I definitely felt a bit anxious going into each appointment, completely unsure of what to expect.
At my 38 week appointment, my doctor confirmed that baby boy had stayed in the correct position. Hallelujah!! I think I felt that the longer he stayed in the correct position, the less likely it was that he’d flip to breech again.
So at this point, the plan was to continue on with an induction at 39 weeks if he hadn’t come on his one by then. I didn’t really want to be induced, but I was so done being pregnant and didn’t want him to flip breech again.
GOING INTO LABOR:
Well, apparently baby boy had his own timeline for everything because I went into labor on my own at 38 weeks and 6 days. And boy oh boy did he pick a heck of a day to come into this world!
I woke up around 3:00am on Tuesday, December 13th with what I thought were just Braxton Hicks since I’d been having them for several weeks. I decided to try and sleep through them and see if it was labor or not. Well, I wasn’t able to go back to sleep and was pretty sure by about 5:00am that I was in labor. My contractions were about 6-8 minutes apart still and I didn’t want to wake Shawn up until they were closer. So at about 6:00am I woke him up because my contractions were consistently about 6 minutes apart. He showered and got Bryn ready to go while I showered and got myself ready. Thankfully we had our hospital bags and everything ready to go a couple weeks before this so we just hopped in the car and headed to the hospital.
I never really thought that I’d be one of those women like in the movies that yells at her husband and goes cray cray on the way to the hospital…especially since I had already done this before. But we hit traffic and my contractions were about 3 minutes apart at this point…so some choice words may have come out between screams into my sweatshirt haha.
MADE IT TO THE HOSPITAL:
After what felt like an eternity, we finally made it to the hospital and I made a beeline for a wheelchair as soon as I waddled into the lobby. My contractions were coming fast and hard at this point so the check in process seemed to take forever, but we got up to a room in Labor & Delivery and got settled.
Doctors came by to check my vitals and hook baby boy up to the monitors. When they strapped the heart rate monitor across my belly, Shawn and I noticed that baby boy’s heart rate was really low (in the 70s). We asked the nurse if everything was ok. She adjusted the monitor and gave it a minute then said he was fine. She said they’d monitor him closely and make sure his heart rate stayed up. After that she checked me to see how dilated I was and I was at about a 4. So I was officially admitted and we were gonna have a baby!
LABOR & DELIVERY:
Around 8:00am, my sister came and picked up Bryn. Baby boy was having a hard time keeping his heart rate up. The nurses would get it up, but it would keep dropping repeatedly and they didn’t seem to know why. My contractions were about 1-2 minutes apart and peaking fairly high. At this point, the weather started getting crazy. Apparently we were under a tornado watch and there was a nasty storm brewing outside.
Amidst all the tornado sirens going off, the anesthesiologist came in around 9:00am to give me the epidural and literally less than five minutes after she administered it, the power went out. Ya can’t make this stuff up! Thankfully the generators kicked on, but the power kept going on and off which meant that all the monitors kept resetting. This made monitoring baby boy’s heart rate challenging.
In the meantime, everyone was moved to internal rooms and they started preparing to lock down the hospital for safety protocols. This meant that my OB (whose practice was attached to the hospital, could not get to my room because she would have to walk through areas of all glass windows which wasn’t safe. So my fantastic nurses kept monitoring me and baby boy until the sirens stopped and the tornados passed. Well the sirens finally stopped, the power stayed on and my doctor was able to make it up to my room.
My water hadn’t broken yet, so she manually broke it and as soon as I saw her face I knew something wasn’t right. Her and my nurse both looked concerned and as though they were trying to assess things. Shawn and I looked at each other, a little panicked if I’m being honest. After what felt like forever, my doctor finally filled us in on what had happened.
Baby boy had had a bowel movement (known as meconium) in my uterus and when my doc broke my water, it came out extremely brown. This may be TMI, but she had to assess how much meconium there was and the thickness of it. Basically, they rate the severity on a scale of thin, medium or thick. Unfortunately, baby boy’s was very thick which led to a greater risk of him inhaling some when he exits the birth canal. Because of the thickness, my doctor decided to do an amnioinfusion. An amnioinfusion would dilute the meconium in the amniotic fluid in hopes of reducing the risk of aspiration at birth.
Once the amnioinfusion was placed, my doctor began discussing what would happen next. Although the amnioinfusion was working, she wanted to get baby boy out of that environment as soon as possible. I was dilated to a 10 and 100% effaced, but baby boy hadn’t dropped yet. Normally, she would have given me Pitocin to make my labor progress faster, but baby’s heart rate was unstable so that wasn’t an option.
My doctor decided to do three test pushes to see if baby boy was ready to come out. He decided he was comfy in there and didn’t want to budge. So my doctor, the nurses and I all agreed that it would be best for me to labor down and hope that he’d drop down into the birth canal.
I had no idea what laboring down meant, but my nurse explained it to me as she put what’s called a “peanut ball” between my legs and turned me onto my side. She told me that this position would open up my pelvis and encourage baby boy to drop in preparation for delivery.
Sure enough, after laboring down for about an hour, baby boy dropped and I was ready to begin pushing! I don’t know if any of you have ever elected to watch your babies being born, but I decided to this time and it was amazing! I thought it would gross or freak me out, but it was so empowering and incredible. I knew my body was doing amazing things, but to witness it was next level!
So because we knew that baby boy had had a bowel movement inside, my doctor took extra precautions during the pushing phase. As soon as his head appeared, she wiped things away with a towel as to keep everything off of him and ensure that he didn’t inhale any meconium as he came out. After three quick rounds of pushing, he was here! NICU nurses were standing by in the room to examine him as soon as he was out, but because my doctor was very proactive with the situation, baby boy did not inhale any meconium and NICU gave him the all clear! Hallelujah!
On a crazy, hectic, whirlwind of a day…Boston Cooper Jones was born on Tuesday December 13, 2022 at 1:12pm and weighed 7lbs 12 oz. His birth story was so memorable and will be one for the books! We sure love this little squish!
QUESTION & ANSWER:
I thought it’d be fun to include a little Q&A session about our birth experience and answer some of y’alls questions!
Q: How far along were you when baby boy flipped breech?
A: 36 weeks
Q: Did you know/feel when baby boy flipped breech?
A: Short answer, not really. I was standing in the kitchen cooking dinner shortly before we found out he was breech and I had a super distinct, painful (what I thought at the time was) a Braxton Hick. Looking back, that was definitely when he flipped. I knew something very different had just happened, but didn’t pay too much attention to it at the time. Hind sight, it totally makes sense now.
Q: What options were you given by your doctor when you found out baby boy was breech?
A: We were pretty much given two options:
- If baby boy was still breech at my next appointment (37 weeks), she could do a external cephalic version (ECV) to manually try flipping him then hope he stays put.
- Or she could schedule an ECV for 39 weeks and if it works induce me right then. If the ECV didn’t work at that point, I would need to have a c-section.
Q: Were you induced or did you go into labor on your own?
A: I was scheduled to be induced one week early on Friday December 16th, but I ended up going into labor on my own and having Boston on Tuesday December 13th at 38 weeks and 6 days. Given the crazy circumstances of my pregnancy and him being breech, I’m so glad I ended up going into labor on my own (early!) and didn’t have to have pitocin or wait any longer!
Q: Did you labor at home?
A: Yes, I did! Like with my first, I knew from the beginning of this pregnancy that I wanted to labor at home as long as possible when the time came. This time around I had Braxton Hicks and so I wasn’t quite sure I was in labor until the contractions became consistent and more intense. We headed to the hospital when they were about 5 minutes apart and lasting almost one minute.
Q: Did you have to get tested for COVID before going to labor & delivery like you did with Brynleigh?
A: Nope!!
Q: Did you have to wear a mask again during labor and delivery?
A: Thankfully, no! I had to wear one when I was having Brynleigh and let me just say…wearing a mask in general is terrible, but during labor and delivery it’s even worse! So I’m super grateful that is all behind us and that I didn’t have to wear a mask this time around.
Q: Could you have visitors?
A: Yes!! I was so glad that Brynleigh could visit us and meet her little bro at the hospital. It was such a special moment for us!
Q: Did your water break or did it have to be broken?
A: I was actually super surprised that my water didn’t break on its own. I had even more amniotic fluid this time than with Bryn and my doctor thought I’d definitely have it break…and know when it did. So kind of crazy that it didn’t break. Maybe it’s because I went into labor a little over a week early??
Q: Did you have a birth plan?
A: Not really. I wanted to just experience it as it came this time. There were certain key aspects that I knew I wanted, but no set plan. I knew I was open to an epidural if it felt right and my body wasn’t progressing. I also knew I wanted to wait awhile to cut the umbilical cord, but thankfully my doctor already did that for all her patients. Other than that, Shawn and I were just making the decisions together as they came up based on the circumstances of my labor.
Q: What was in your hospital bag?
A: I shared it here!
Q: What did you wear during labor & delivery?
A: So I bought a cute gown to wear, but obviously had pregnancy brain and didn’t think through things very well. Although the gown had snaps for front access and skin-to-skin access, it did not have snaps up the back. Since I was open to having an epidural, I probably should have found a gown that had back snaps. Oops! I ended up just wearing the hospital gown with this super comfy nursing bra underneath.
Q: Could you eat during labor & delivery?
A: Since I labored for a long time at home, I could have eaten in the beginning. But honestly, this time I didn’t have too much of an appetite during labor. Once I got to the hospital I could have popsicles, ice chips and water. I love sucking on popsicles and chewing ice chips during labor so I don’t really think much about food until after the baby is here…then I’m super hungry!
Q: Were you planning on having an epidural or going natural?
A: Knowing how comfortable an epidural had made me last time, I was very open to one this time. However, my plan was to see how my body progressed naturally first. I had experience enough of natural didn’t feel like I had anything to prove and if my circumstances required it, I would be open to an epidural.
Q: Did you get an epidural?
A: Yes. Like it did with Bryn, my body couldn’t relax enough to contract and progress in its natural state. After watching Boston’s heart rate rise and fall and have a hard time regulating, I knew I needed to get an epidural so my body would relax and get him out safely. And honestly, it’s a much more enjoyable experience with an epidural in my opinion. I could mentally be present and actually enjoy the birth of my son. But I also totally support and respect women who give birth naturally!!
Q: What was it like getting an epidural?
A: I didn’t dread it as much this time as I did last time. I think I got in my head a little bit about the tiniest possibility of paralysis and other side effects. But honestly, it was a breeze and the anesthesiologist was great! I felt like it was just the right amount to take away the pain of the contractions and still let me feel when to push and what not. Don’t be scared or intimidated by epidurals…seriously the best thing ever!
Q: Did you know that the baby had a bowel movement in your uterus?
A: I had no clue! So when my doctor broke my water and had a somewhat concerned look on her face, I knew something was not right.
Q: What are the risks with delivery and meconium for the baby?
A: There is a chance that as the baby comes through the birth canal and takes their first breath that they can inhale some of the meconium that was in the placenta. If this happens, the baby can experience respiratory damage.
Q: How severe was the meconium/bowel movement situation?
A: Doctors rate the severity of an internal baby bowel movement on a scale of thin, medium and thick. Boston’s meconium was extremely thick and therefore I needed an amnioinfusion to help filter and thin out the meconium before he made his way through the birth canal. You can read more about amnioinfusions here.
Q: What is laboring down?
A: Laboring down is the process of not actively pushing once the second stage of labor and intense contractions begin, allowing the baby to naturally move down the birth canal. You won’t push, even when you are completely dilated until your baby is very low in your pelvis. I used a peanut ball between my legs to help open my pelvis. This can help lower the cesarean rate and also save you from maternal exhaustion. Your body does the work and you can help at the end.
Q: How long did you push for?
A: Only about 15 minutes! Because I labored down, my body was fully prepared and baby boy was very low in my pelvis..so when it came time to push my body knew what to do and was super efficient. For reference, with Bryn I did not labor down and pushed for almost two hours because my body was not completely ready and she had not dropped down until part way through pushing. Definitely recommend laboring down if it feels right for you and your baby!
Q: Did you watch your baby come out?
A: I did this time! I’m so glad I did. Not nearly as gruesome or traumatic as I originally thought it would be. It was cool to have done it without looking (just feeling) with Bryn and then to look this time with Boston.
Q: Did you do core blood banking?
A: No, we didn’t. I believe it’s pretty expensive to store and we didn’t really see the need.
Q: Did you do immediate skin-to-skin contact once she was born?
A: I couldn’t do immediate contact with Boston because NICU nurses had to inspect him first since he had a bowel movement inside. Once he was given the all clear, I did skin-to-skin. It’s the best!
Q: How big was your baby?
A: He weighed 7lbs 12oz and was 19″ long.
Q: Did you send your baby to the nursery at all?
A: Absolutely! I feel like mamas can recover so much better when they’re able to sleep and get good rest. Don’t be afraid to take advantage of the sweet nursery nurses while you can! They’re so great!
Q: How was your recovery?
A: I feel like my recovery over all went really well. I was up and walking around about 30-45 minutes after I had Boston. Since I labored down and didn’t have to push as long or as hard, I didn’t tear as bad as last time. My recovery at home has been slower going. Honestly, having a new baby when you’ve got a toddler to chase too is exhausting! And not to mention that Shawn bought a dental practice three weeks after Boston was born. So I was definitely in survival mode over here for the first two months postpartum. I finally feel like I’m getting my feet under me, we’re getting in a routine and I can actually start focusing on my recovery/health again!
Q: How long were you at the hospital before going home?
A: We were there for about 40 hours. We actually checked out early because we were ready to go, but we could have stayed longer if we wanted to.
Q: What was the most painful part of your birth experience?
A: My contractions on the way to the hospital for sure! They picked up in frequency and intensity on the way and I honestly didn’t think we were going to make it to the hospital in time!
Q: What surprised you the most about your birth experience?
A: I think what surprised me the most was baby boy’s sporadic heart rate and also his internal bowel movement. I wasn’t expecting or really prepared for either of those things to happen. Thankfully I had an amazing medical team and the most supporting partner!
Q: How did you choose your baby’s name?
A: Shawn and I have loved the name Boston for a long time! We have some friends who named one of their sons Boston and once we heard it and mutually loved it, we knew it was a keeper! Then when Shawn got into dental school in Boston and it all just seemed to fit perfectly.
We also agreed that our kids’ middle names would be family names. So Brynleigh’s middle name (Jeanne) is Shawn’s grandma that passed away when he was young. We hadn’t always planned on using Jeanne, but it sounded so cute with Brynleigh and she was such a special woman that we knew it was right. We also didn’t plan for this, but we had decided awhile ago that Cooper sounded really good with Boston and Shawn absolutely adores his Grandpa Cooper. So both of our kiddos ended up being named after Shawn’s paternal grandma and grandpa. I love how it worked out and how special the meaning of their names are!
