My Stories

It's a well known fact that women like to share their birthing experiences. I have been in many a room where there is a lot of head nodding, interjecting, ohh's and ahhh's, and "been there's" when speaking of child birth. It's not only something that people can share, but I have begun to realize that beyond that it's something that we as women NEED to talk about- perhaps due to the trauma involved, perhaps to feel a real part of the "mommy club", but for whatever it may be- here goes my two so they are documented and my stories are out there.





John Adam 6/27/06 8 lbs 4 oz 21 inches

For Adam:

I was due June 19th, which I spent at Carrabba's with my sisters... no baby in sight. I was one of those pregnant people that really, truly enjoyed it and I did not get too fat anywhere but my belly, all that stuff that makes people roll their eyes. But, anyway, I enjoyed carrying him and really the whole experience. Well, I went over by a week and they sent me in for induction. There was no action whatsoever on my own, so in I went. Actually, this story is pretty drama free... I got induced with a gel to help move things along. We hung out all day and nothing happened, so we ate Panera, watched TV, and seriously wondered if I would ever have the baby. Well, the nurses offered me a "little something" to help me sleep. I said sure, why not.. the bed stinks and I could use the rest. I took the little pill and was out like a light. Anyway, come 1 am I got up to pee, and lo and behold I peed followed by a burst of fluid. I have not mentioned that I had high levels of amniotic fluid during my pregnancy. This proved to be a sure fact after my water broke. It broke and did not stop for hours, all over the bed, the floor, the nurses shoes... then all over again. So, things progressed and the contractions began, as did my confusion and anxiety. The sleeping pill was quite strong and I was not coping well with the labor and the grogginess. So, the anesthesiologist arrived at 7 am and I opted for the epidural. He came in, grumpy and very pompous, to administer the good drugs. He began the procedure and allowed my hubby to stay in the room, which I understand is unusual but we did not know. Well, in process to get this done, he kept missing the proper place in the spine and followed it at each miss with a drawn out exasperated sigh, like I was the one who was doing something wrong. The kicker, though, was looking at Paul... first of all the man has a love for all things medical... no weak stomach, nothing too gross or too gory for him. Well, he was white as a ghost and had his head in his hands. After about 7 attempts the numbness set in and the epidural took. But, within about 10 seconds it was like my head was smushed between two metal plates, searing pain, a headache like no other I have EVER had... a spinal headache. So, I had to lay flat until birth, whenever that was. So, flat I laid as I SLOWLY dilated. So, come noon it was time to start pushing. So, I pushed and pushed and pushed. I did not know that most women push an hour or so, and that was probably a good thing. John Adam Vinkle (meaning God is Gracious/ Man of Earth) arrived at 3:10 p.m. that Tuesday afternoon- after 3 solid hours of pushing!! He was alert, beautiful, and substantial at 8lbs 4 oz and 21 inches!! And there is story # 1.

Zachary Richard 3/22/08 7 lbs 14 oz. 20.5 inches

For baby # 2 I think I was probably equally gleeful as a pregnant lady, gaining little weight and walking proud with my big belly. I was surely more tired having a toddler and also less ignorant as to what to expect with a baby... but I do love being pregnant.

So, here comes Zachary! At the time I went into labor he was most likely Jacob, and Zachary was somewhere in the back of our minds. The name meaning of Jacob- "supplanter, or held by the heel" was not the best, but I did love the name...

Anyway, the due date of March 19th came and went which was no surprise to me at all. Apparently I conceive children that must be due on the 19th of the month.. I am 2 for 2. Anyway, on Friday March 21st I went to Carrabba's again with my sisters (it's now a tradition), feeling that there was no baby in sight and that on March 26th I would be induced much like I was with Adam. So, on the way home at like 11 pm my sister Eileen and I decided to stop at Wegman's and I would get all my Easter stuff so I would not have to fight the crowd the next day in my hugeness. So, off to pee at Wegman's, and the weirdest thing... I stood up and kept peeing... you guessed it. my water broke. Now, I had enjoyed some practical joking around this pregnancy and labor, like telling people I was in labor when I was not... so I was surprisingly calm as I exited the bathroom and told Eileen that we needed to go. She said "why", and I pointed to my pants who answered the question loud and clear. She busted out of there so fast, and my calmness remained, somehow. As she called people, she got the standard response of "shut up", or "whatever".

So, we got home... I had nothing packed and so I thew some stuff together, kissed my sleeping baby whose life was about to change, and for the last time left home as a mom of one. I was having no contractions as Paul unnecessarily sped to the hospital. I again had the high amniotic fluid with Zachary, so I was using Pampers Size 5's to help with the water on the way... I called the OB who lectured me about being out shopping that late... blah blah blah...

We got there, got checked in, and got to our room. The labor was progressing quite nicely on its own, despite the flood I was producing every 5 minutes... by now it was 1 am and the nurses encouraged me to sleep. By 3:30 or so the contractions were more frequent and getting painful. The nurse encouraged me to forgo the epidural and go with the Nubain only. I said I wanted the epidural so they called someone in. This time, it was smooth sailing, one try, no headache. So, the pain relief was great but the labor stopped. I mean completely. I even went from 7 cm BACK to 5. No more contractions. Baby "floating" as they say, not moving down at all.

So, time passed. I was sick, shaking, getting anxious, and super exhausted as 24 hours of no sleep approached. All of my dignity was gone pretty much at this point with all the people in and out of the room, etc.. ( Oh, and did I mention that Paul had the flu- the bad kind... in fact, at one point he made a comment I will never forget... he said " I think I am more worried about me than you right now"... lol, as bad as the flu can be it will never hold a candle to pushing out an 8 pound human being.)

So, the doctor was in, checking me out, monitoring the heart, and bringing in an ultrasound machine. It turned out that my bladder was so full it was impacting the labor, and things were really not going well at this point. They decided to watch but nothing happened. I knew they were thinking c-section. The contractions that were happening were not productive. THEN, all the sudden there was a literal flurry of activity. I heard "CODE PINK, MATERNITY" over the hospital intercom. People were running all over, coming at me with a mask and not telling me what was going on. I was a mess, crying, shaking, throwing up... not good. So, as all this activity was going on, it suddenly stopped. But, the decision had been made. I was going in for a section, now. They wheeled me in, prepped me, I was again emotional and confused, not really knowing why this was happening. But, the surgery itself was a piece of cake- they had him out before I even knew they had begun... at 9:30 am on MArch 22nd - the day before EAster and my mom's birthday- our unnamed baby boy was born at 7 lbs 14 oz and 20.5 inches.

Later, the doctor told us that the baby's heart rate had dropped as low 20 (babies hearts go about 140 or more usually)... prompting the Code Pink. We decided then to call him Zachary Richard (for my dad)- meaning Remembered by God and strong leader. We believe he was remembered and certainly is strong.

So, there you have it. Some of you may have scrolled down to the end and scanned this lightly,or just been bored all together which is fine... and some of you may just be "ohhh-ing" and "ahh-ing" and be dying to jump in with your stories... I'd love to hear them!!!