The Shopoff Showoff

So after waiting and waiting and...more waiting, Baby Shop finally arrived on July 30th(with a little jump-start by my midwives). I have sat down many times over the past two months to write this post and it has just never gotten finished. I want to share the story of our sweet baby's birth so here it is...

Before I start though, this is your warning that if you do not want to hear details and see pictures about birth, you may not want to read this. No really, go away if you don't want to read it.

Okay, you are still reading, so here goes. The story begins on Tuesday, July 27th, when I woke early in the morning with contractions. I was 40 weeks and 4 days and was sure hoping this was finally it. I started to realize that the contractions were 10 minutes apart and pretty regular. I continued to doze off and on for a few hours until I finally got up to watch a little tv. After a while, I went back to bed for an hour or so until Patrick woke up. My contractions had not gotten any closer together or stronger, so I sent Patrick off to work. I spent much of the morning doing a few things around the house and relaxing before I decided to go walk at the mall. When walking at the mall, I had many contractions but they were not regular and not getting any stronger. After more than an hour of walking, I came back home to find that my contractions had stopped altogether...this wasn't it. At first I was bummed but then I just reminded myself that at most I would be pregnant for another week or so. After 40 weeks, one week seems like nothing.

I woke up Wednesday, July 28th, with no contractions whatsoever and spent the day with very few irregular contractions. I knew that my appointment with the midwives at the Birth and Women's Center was on the following day so I made sure I did everything I could to start labor naturally. I did lots and lots and lots of walking, ate spicy foods, took my evening primrose oil(as I had for several weeks), and even went to the chiropractor for a third session of acupressure massage and acupuncture...nothing.

On Thursday, July 29th, I had an appointment at the Birth and Women's Center in downtown Dallas. I had zero contractions going on so I decided to send Patrick on to work and had my friend, Erica, take me to my appointment. Upon arriving they started discussing induction with me and I realized Patrick would need to be there, so I called and he left work. After much deliberation and a lot of denial on my part, we decided that I needed to try and get labor started with induction. I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions for several weeks and had been 50% effaced for 4 weeks, but it had not resulted in any dilation. We knew that if we continued to wait, it might mean a pitocin induction at the hospital which I wanted to avoid. On top of that, I had dropped a few pounds, which could mean that I was beginning to lose amniotic fluid. After calling my childbirth instructor and my mother-in-law(a doula) to discuss the pros and cons, Patrick and I decided that we would induce with cytotec, a drug used to soften the cervix and promote dilation. Around 12:30, the midwives placed the cytotec on my cervix and inserted a foley catheter which is basically a balloon filled with water that helps place pressure on the cervix. After monitoring me for an hour and checking Baby Shop's response to the contractions, they sent me home to labor and rest. They told me that if nothing had happened by 9:00 the next morning, they would want me to come back.

Once home around 3:00 or so, I found that I was beginning to experience a great deal of pain. The midwives had explained that cytotec basically irritates the uterus and causes it to cramp and contract. I felt like I was constantly cramping and therefore it was hard to really time the true contractions. I spent the next few hours distracting myself with the tv, resting on the couch with hot rice socks, sitting on the birthing ball, and walking around to manage the pain. It was at this time that I realized how thankful I was that Patrick and I had completed the Bradley Childbirth Class with Linda Worzer of Natural Beginnings. Patrick was a fantastic coach throughout the entire process.

Around 7:00 or so(once I got into "Labor Land", I really lost track of time), I decided I needed something more to help me manage the pain and I got into a warm bath to relax. Wow...what a difference the warm water made! I found that I was much more comfortable and I finally relaxed. An hour or so later, my foley catheter came out on its own. I called the midwife, Carol, and asked her what this meant. She said that I was probably at around 3 or 4 centimeters dilated...I was thrilled! This was finally it! There was progress! Because we were still waiting for my contractions to reach 5-1-1(5 minutes apart, 1 minute in duration, for 1 hour), Carol asked me to keep timing the contractions and keep her updated. The next few hours are a blur...I got in the water for a while longer, rested on the bed, and eventually ended up lying on the floor trying to find a comfortable position. It was around 10:30 or so that I told Patrick to call his mom and ask her what we should do...I was beginning to feel a great deal of pain and I wasn't sure if we should call Carol to head down to the birth center. My contractions seemed to be less than 3 minutes apart, but they were still only 30-45 seconds long so we weren't sure what to do. My mother-in-law always told me that you could just listen to a woman in labor and know when it was getting close because the sounds they make change very distinctly(just the fact that I could no longer talk on the phone was a sign that this was for real and we were getting close). While Patrick was on the phone with his mom and she was telling him we might better call Carol, my water broke. I was elated...it was just the sign I needed to know that we could head down to the birth center and welcome Baby Shop into the world. We called Carol, our parents, and our photographer, Ashley Langford(super awesome wedding photographer, also...check him out) and we headed down to the birth center in downtown Dallas.

While I always knew that the birth center was a long drive from Frisco(I mean, we practically live closer to Oklahoma than we do to downtown Dallas...haha), I could not have prepared myself for how long the trip felt that night. It was thankfully 11:00 p.m. and the tollway was completely empty. I know Patrick was trying not to speed(especially as he passed a cop) but he was anxious to get me there since he could tell I was in a great deal of pain. I was breathing through my contractions and focusing on what I knew would be the outcome of the pain...our sweet Baby Shop would arrive! This helped me to manage, but I knew for sure that I was in the last stage of labor, transition. My contractions were essentially on top of each other and I felt like there was little rest. I remember when we got close to the birth center, Patrick stopped at a red light and I almost came unglued, "Just go!!!" haha I think it was the only time I really yelled at him through the entire process so I consider this a huge success. We arrived at the birth center at midnight and were met by our families and photographer.



Carol, our midwife, was there and she checked my progress and told me that I was 5-6 centimeters dilated. This was the only moment in the whole thing where I thought, "What am I thinking trying to do this without drugs?" I was SURE that I was in transition which is usually 8-10 centimeters. I started to doubt my ability to handle transition if I was already in so much pain at 5-6 centimeters. I decided the only solution was to get in the warm bath. I spent the next 30-45 minutes relaxing in the bath while my contractions continued one on top of the other. Ashley, our photographer, was in there to capture a few shots. At around 1:00 a.m., I suddenly felt my body begin to push and I told Patrick that I needed Carol right away. When Carol returned, I told her that I felt like pushing and she told me to get out of the bath while she got things ready. The birth assistant, Beverly, had not yet arrived and I know Carol was rushing about trying to get everything together as it seemed that Baby Shop was coming quickly after waiting for almost 41 weeks to arrive.



I spent the next half hour pushing, part of the time while squatting and part of the time reclining on the bed. After all of the contractions, pushing was actually a relief and I had time to rest in between.

At 1:36 a.m., Hudson Thomas Shopoff arrived safely into the arms of his daddy who got to catch him, announce "It's a boy", and hand him to me. We spent the next hour or so staring at our baby and snuggling before Hudson decided he was hungry and started to nurse.



The midwife then weighed and measured him with Patrick's help. Hudson was born at 6 lbs. 14 oz. and 21.5 inches long...a long, skinny guy(shocker, right?)





We were thrilled at Hudson's arrival and we celebrated with a toast of sparkling cider. His grandparents were all glad to be present to enjoy the special event.





At this point, I was very weak and tired after losing a good amount of blood during delivery. The midwives had stitched me up, but they knew I needed to eat, so they sent my parents out to an all-night diner to grab food for Patrick and I. I ate my omelette and began to feel a lot better, but was still exhausted. While I rested, Patrick got to give Hudson his first bath. I remember hearing everybody talking about how much Hudson was enjoying the bath, but I could hardly keep my eyes open long enough to see. Thankfully, it was captured on video so I was able to watch it later when I was more awake. After a little rest, I got up to shower. I was very light-headed so it took me a little while and I was fully exhausted by the time it was over, but it felt wonderful to get clean.

After bathtime for Hudson and a shower for me, Hudson was dressed and swaddled up and our family of three settled in for a nap. We rested for several hours before Hudson and I were given a clean bill of health and we packed up to go home. Driving home with our baby boy was incredibly surreal....although I was absolutely exhausted, I couldn't have been any happier.



At around 9 a.m. on Friday, July 30th, one week after my due date, less than 24 hours after my induction, and 9 short hours after our arrival at the birth center, I was resting happily at home with our precious 8-hour-old son, Hudson. Hudson's arrival was everything I hoped it would be, and I felt a certain sense of strength as a woman for bringing him into this world in the way I did. Mommyhood is definitely one of God's greatest gifts and no doubt one of life's greatest challenges.

A special thanks to:

Carol Bunker- our awesome midwife who delivered our adorable baby boy, Hudson

Beverly Hook - the super sweet birth assistant who helped after Hudson's arrival

Ashley Langford - our fantastic photographer who drove all the way down to downtown in the middle of the night

Linda Worzer - the best childbirth educator ever