Welcome Baby Grant!

At two weeks over due, our baby finally decided to make his entrance into this world. And he decided to do it with a bang.

Monday, May 3rd, I woke up from a nap at 1:40 in the afternoon with a very intense contraction. More contractions followed fast and furious. I called Seth in, who was luckily working from home that day, to time the contractions. They were lasting more than a minute and were less than two minutes apart. After timing a few contractions I realized I was having the urge to push. With difficulty we got into the car. I rode in the back seat on hands an knees as it was the only position I could tolerate. As we were driving it became clear to me that I would not be able to get out of the car once we got to the birth center. We pulled in to the parking lot and Seth ran inside to get help. In moments I was surrounded by about five midwives and a few minutes later, at 2:50 pm, delivered our 9 lb 11 oz baby boy in the back seat of our Subaru Outback. Labor took only one hour and ten minutes.

Baby Grant didn't breathe on his own for quite a while so he was transferred to the NICU. The doctor said that the trauma of the fast labor basically put him into shock. He had to have a breathing tube, an IV and about three monitors on him. The first concerns were the oxygen levels in his blood. When he fussed and cried, his blood oxygen levels would go down, which the doctor said were signs of trauma. There was also concern about how much oxygen he was getting when he was initially being resuscitated immediately after birth. Grant had an MRI. As we waited for the results, he had a very comforting Priesthood blessing. We were very relieved when the MRI results showed a healthy, normal brain. At about 48 hours, his blood oxygen levels were stable and he was able to have his breathing tubes removed.

The final concerns Grant had to overcome had to do with eating. When babies are eating enough it helps them avoid jaundice and other blood related issues. Grant had a disadvantage in that he was fed only by IV for the first day to make sure that blood was not pulled away from his vital organs to his stomach. As he was able to take more fluids by mouth they would turn down the amount of fluids he got through his IV. It was an exciting day when they were able to take the IV out altogether.

One of the more difficult things was having to be away from Kayla. We were blessed to be in a hospital that is very accommodating to families. Seth and I were able to stay in the hospital with Grant the whole time and Kayla was able to visit. We were also very blessed to have Grandma in town, staying at home with Kayla. Everyday she would bring Kayla to the hospital for lunch and dinner and it was comforting to have that time as a family. We were also very blessed that Grandma would bring us healthy good food everyday so that we didn't have to eat hospital cafeteria food.

On May 9, Mother's Day, our doctor came to give us our discharge papers. We were able to take our little boy home. We spent a total of 6 days in the NICU.

We want to say thank you to family and friends for your prayers. Through this experience we saw so many little miracles and felt God's comforting touch. I know our Father in Heaven was watching over us and that He cares about our family and our little boy. I have a strong testimony of the healing power of Priesthood blessings. I know God hears and answers prayers. The week we spent in the NICU was one of the more difficult weeks of my life, but I am thankful for the experience because we were able to see God's hand in so many ways. I am so thankful to my Father in Heaven for everything He did to take care of our family.

41 weeks pregnantIn the NICU
Grant with all his monitors
First Family Photo

Daddy holding Grant, attached to several wires

Grant with Grandma

Kayla holding "Baby Brudder"

the nurses made this for our doorGetting oxygen tubes removed

Less wires, out of the incubator, a step closer to going home

First Bath

In the car seat to go home

home at last