Jack Brannon Crane joined our little family, the afternoon of January 12, 2011, at 2:45PM weighing in at 7lbs 7oz and 20 inches long. This is the story of his journey.
Late in the evening Sunday, January 9th, Chattanooga received the most snow it has seen since the 1993 Blizzard. Of course, Dusty and I went into panic mode. Our due date was two weeks out, but I had gone to the doctor the previous Wednesday and was almost 4 cm. We had scheduled an appointment for the following Wednesday at the office, but the doctor told me to pack my bags and bring Dusty because if I was 4.5 - 5cm, she wasn't letting me go home. With all of that said, we felt like we were just a ticking time bomb, waiting for Jack to start his arrival. When he woke up late that night and saw the condition of the roads, Dusty became sick to his stomach, literally, and could not sleep. The next morning, we worked and played and tried to take it easy, in fear of helping Jack along. Our neighborhood roads were impassable for the ol' swagger wagon and CRV. Dusty scouted some neighbors with 4x4s, so that made us feel a bit better.
Needless to say, we made it to Wednesday with no labor drama. The office was delayed in opening 2 hours, which worried us. We were supposed to get in right at 830. Now we weren't sure if our appointment was still scheduled. We kissed our sweet Emma goodbye and made it through the ice up our hill to get out of the neighborhood. Off to the doctors. Both of us just knew that it was going to be the day. If it ended up not to be, we weren't sure what to do! We were as mentally prepared as you can be at that point.
At the doctor's she confirmed that we were 5cm and said we're going to have this baby today, very excitedly. She immediately sent us over to Women's East and ordered everything. This being my 2nd experience with labor, I had already decided epidural was the way to go. What's the point not to, right? We got to the hospital and they immediately got us to our room, got fluids going with me and some pitocin. By 11:45am I had my epidural. I felt bad, the anesthesiologist kept saying, this will make you feel better, but I wasn't feeling a thing!! At 12:30pm my doctor showed up to break my water. I was at 7cm at this point, and still no contractions. This is when I count that labor really started.
She broke my water and it all seems quite quick and blurry from here! I started having contractions, but could not feel them with the epidural. Dusty and I kept watching the screen to see where they peaked, how long they were, and how far apart. They went from inconsistent to really close together in no time flat. Around 1:45pm the nurse said she'd be back around 2:30pm to check me. I laughed and told Dusty I was aiming for 2:51pm jokingly, since that is when Em was born. Around 2:00pm I started feeling some intense pressure and realized it was coming with each contraction. I debated on calling the nurse and finally I had an intense NEED to push and we called her. She checked and immediately called the doctor. Then she looked at me and told me to cross my legs. I chuckled, was she serious? She looked at me and said I'm serious. From 2:25pm to about 2:35pm, with my legs crossed, I fought the urge to push - which was very intense by this point. I think I about pushed apart the bed. Just before my doctor had left at 12:30pm she told me not to make her run across the parking lot because of all the ice...oh well.
So the doctor arrived at 2:35pm and by 2:45pm I was holding our brand new baby boy, Jack. That was a grand total of 2 hours and 15 minutes of labor, with 10 minutes of pushing. I was so thankful for the speediness of labor and delivery. I had worried because my first labor with Emma had not been terribly difficult, so I just knew this one was going to be bad.
Jack is amazing. As a 2nd time mommy, you wonder and worry how you will ever love another individual as much as you love your first born. It's amazing how God gives us the ability to continue our love, just as strong as you had for the first.
God has blessed me with my sweet and precious family and continues to bless us. I am humbled beyond words.
