He's here!

My apologies for taking forever to get this blog posted, but when you hear the story of little Quincy's arrival, I am sure you will understand.

As I mentioned before, I was set to receive "gels" on Tuesday, December 9, which were designed to get me to start dialating. We went in at 9:30am for the first round, which didn't do much, then we went back in at 4pm for the second round. I immediately started contracting, but because Quincy hadn't "dropped" yet, his spine was back to back with my spine which was causing MAJOR back labor. If you have ever pinched a nerve in your lower back, it's like that, except 10 times as bad. Needless to say, I couldn't sleep, and was contracting all night. Solon and I got ready to head to the hospital at 4:30am on Wednesday morning to start the induction.

When we got situated in the birthing suite, the resident doctor came in and checked me to see what progress the gels had made. I was thinking after all the pain I felt, that I had to be dialated at least a couple centimeters. No such luck. I was barely dialated 1cm. So I was told that instead of starting Pitocin right away (which is designed to intensify contractions and speed up labor), I had to have Cervadil injected to slowly build up the dialation. The doctor instructed me that I would have to have it in for 12 hours before we could start the Pitocin. I was so frustrated, but what could I do?

Around 11am, after 4 hours of Cervadil, and serious back labor pains, my doctor, Dr. Staci Mayer, came in to check on me. When I saw her, I immediately started crying because of the pain, frustrations, and yes, hormones. She asked if I was willing to do whatever it took to deliver this baby the "natural" way. I said yes, and she removed the Cervadil, and started a series of what the doctors call "magic tricks" to get the ball rolling. We started Pitocin, she stripped my membranes, I got an epidural (God's gift to women), and then a few hours later, she broke my bag of waters (technical term). After all of this, when they came to check me at 5pm, I still had only dialated 1cm. Something wasn't right. My body was not responding to all the tricks the way it was supposed to. I should have been AT LEAST 6cm or more by the end of all that, but I wasn't. It was then that we made the decision to deliver the baby via Cesarean section. I didn't want to be in labor anymore, I couldn't go home with my water broken, and I was having a hard time thinking of what I was doing to that little boy inside me, with all the failed attempts at getting him out.

After being pushed back behind an emergency C-section, I finally was admitted into the OR at 10pm. After about 15 minutes, I was prepped for surgery by the most fantastic medical team, and then they brought Solon into the room. At 10:42pm, I heard the most amazing sound - my baby's first cry - and although I was pretty much numb everywhere, I cried instant tears of relief and joy that he was finally here. And then, they held him over the curtain so I could see the little miracle that had been inside me for 41 weeks. When I saw him, the only thing I could say was, "Oh my God, he is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." And he really is. Then the doctors said, "Hey Solon, say something to your son." And when Solon said, "Hey Quincy, it's your Dad," Quincy looked right in his direction recognizing his Dad's voice, now outside the womb. He was so big, there was no way he would have fit through my birth canal, and he was as long as my uterus, so for 32 hours, he was being pressed down against my cervix and he had no room to go anywhere - which explains why he never dropped. Knowing that, I am so relieved we made the decision to have the C-section. The whole event was truly remarkable, and I am so grateful for all the people involved. Each person I encountered throughout the whole process treated me exceptionally, and I feel blessed to have received that care that I did while at Banner Good Sam.

I recovered so quickly from surgery that we were able to bring Quincy home on Friday night. He met his big brother Forrest right away, and was greeted with a big kiss (lick) on the cheek. We have been having a blast ever since we returned, although we are completely sleep-deprived, but it doesn't matter. Solon and I have completely fallen in love with this little person and every day is wonderful.

We have had many visitors, both in the hospital and at home, and we are overwhelmed with all the love and support we have received. It feels wonderful to know that there are so many people out there, family and friends, who love us, and want to be a part of this little boy's life.

I will be posting pictures of all the excitement over the course of the next few days, but here are some to get you started. (If you want to see a pic of him getting pulled out of my belly, email me and I will send it to you. I wasn't sure if it was appropriate to post that pic for everyone, but it's cool nonetheless.)

Introducing...
Quincy Drake Bell
Born 12.10.08 @ 10:42pm
9 lbs. 10.8 oz. - 19.75 inches long
Born at Banner Good Samaritan Hospital - Phoenix, AZ











Isn't he BEAUTIFUL!?!?!