A Special Thanksgiving: Khloe's Birth Story

So I know it's been a while...we've been just a little bit busy adjusting to life as a family of 4 but we're doing great! I've got lots to catch up on so hopefully I can do it in the next few posts. Before I forget anything I wanted to recall Khloe's birthday--this is more for my sake and will probably be long so feel free to just check out the pics!

Wednesday, November 24th:
From the time I woke up I started having contractions. I had been having contractions off and on for a few weeks so I tried not to get my hopes up but I could tell these contractions were a little different; I was cramping more and just not feeling the best. I had my 39 week checkup at 10:30 that morning so I thought if I was in labor then my Dr. would just send me on over to the hospital. Thankfully mom was here so we loaded up Kinsey and headed to Nashville in hopes that baby Khloe was on the way! My Dr.'s appointment was very routine and when Dr. Storck checked me I was 3 cm and said it was a possibility that I was in early labor but I definitely wasn't far enough along for her to keep me : ( By the time we left the Dr.'s office my contractions were between 7-8 minutes apart and were getting a little stronger so we grabbed a bite to eat and debated on whether or not to stay in Nashville for a while to see if anything was going to happen before driving 45 minutes back to the house. After lunch we went to visit my friend Christy and her new baby Bryson in the hospital all the while the contractions kept coming but the weather was nasty and by that point I was ready to be home! So we headed back to Clarksville and when I saw traffic coming into Nashville backed up on the interstate I told mom that Khloe was waiting for later in the afternoon so we'd have to fight rush hour & holiday traffic! Thankfully she waited another 12 hours! We had a singing service that night at church and my contractions were getting strong enough that I had to stop and breathe through them during the songs so by that point I was pretty sure it wouldn't be too long before Khloe made her debut! By the time we got home from church I knew I needed to try to get some rest just in case!

Thursday, November 25th:
Stronger contractions woke me up about 2:30am so I laid in bed timing them and then finally decided to get up and time them because I was getting uncomfortable. They were about 4 minutes apart and lasting about 1 minute long and after about 45 minutes had passed I decided to wake Ryan up so we could start getting our things together. We both took a shower and got our things packed and by this time I was having to stop and really breathe through each contraction. We woke mom up so she could be getting ready and called Ryan's family to let them know what was going on. A little before 5 am Ryan went to get our neighbor to come sit with Kinsey until Callie got to the house to keep her. Right before we left I called the Dr. to let them know I was in labor and on my way to the hospital. Of course it being Thanksgiving Day, my Dr. was out of town so I got the Dr. on call and luckily she was just as wonderful as my own Dr!

We got to the hospital a little before 6am and thankfully the ride wasn't too bad! I was admitted to the triage unit pretty quickly. The nurse got us settled in and monitors hooked up. Khloe's heart beat was good and my contractions were still coming between 4-5 minutes apart. I was already between 4-5 cm's when she checked me so they started getting ready to move me to a Labor and Delivery room. Before too long we were settled in our room and mom was able to come in. I had invited her to be in the delivery room with us and of course she was so excited to be a part of such a special day! After a couple of hours, my nurse checked me and I was not quite 6 cm's so we were making progress slowly but surely and actually my contractions weren't too terrible. I was still having to breathe through them while Ryan encouraged me and rubbed my feet or legs but I was making it! (I had Kinsey naturally and really wanted to try to do the same with Khloe.) I rocked for a while in the rocking chair before the nurse checked me again and I was between 6-7 cm's. My contractions had slowed down a little so I was surprised that I had progressed any at all! The Dr. came by to check on me and offered to break my water since I was so far along but explained that most likely the contractions would get much stronger and closer together than if we waited for it to break on it's own. At that point I wasn't quite sure if I was ready for that so we decided to hold off and see how I progressed. After about another hour later, the Dr. came in again and checked me...I was still at 7 cm which was a little discouraging because by that time I was really having to concentrate and work through each contraction. Before, in between contractions Ryan, mom and I talked and laughed but it had become all business at this point. I was sitting on the edge of the bed and would lean on Ryan while he rubbed my shoulders and mom rubbed my back. I was really hoping that my water would break because I knew once it did it wouldn't be long before I would be pushing. So after about an hour of tough contractions and still being at 7 cm's I was ready for Khloe to be here! I agreed to let Dr. Rossell break my water and she was right...the contractions got much stronger and closer together but there was no doubt we were making progress! I'm not sure how much time had passed (not a lot) but I told mom to go get the nurse so she could check me again in hopes that I was ready to push. I had made it to 9 cm's but wasn't quite there yet! A few contractions later though I started feeling pressure and when the nurse checked me I was finally complete and ready to push! YEA! I don't think I could have been more excited! Everyone was scurrying around trying to get things ready for delivery and thankfully I only pushed for 10-15 minutes before Khloe arrived at 12:07 pm! I had my eyes closed but remember hearing the emotion in Ryan and mom's voices as they watched Khloe enter the world! As soon as she came out they placed her on my chest (something they didn't do with Kinsey) and I got to see her right away! It was such a special moment that I will never forget! Kinsey was 9 lbs 8.5 oz so I kept telling myself that surely Khloe couldn't be bigger that Kinsey...boy was I surprised when they said she was 9 lbs 9.75 oz!! Thank God for BIG, healthy babies! It was absolutely a wonderful birth experience and I wouldn't have changed anything about it! I was pleased that things went so smoothly and I was able to have another natural birth...there's truly nothing like it! Needless to say our Thanksgiving was a little untraditional this year but we are so very thankful for the special gift God gave us!

Rocking through contractions.Meeting Miss Khloe for the 1st time!

Getting all cleaned up!

Sweet baby girl

Proud Daddy!

Welcome Khloe Lyn

Meeting Nana! It was so special for mom to be here for Khloe's birth! I was a little worried that she might get emotional on me during labor and delivery but she did great and I couldn't have done it naturally without her and Ryan by my side the whole time! Thanks mom-I love you!

Khloe and Grandpop

Proud Gram

Kinsey meeting baby sister for the first time! Once she checked Khloe over she raised my shirt up to check out my belly...it was so cute!

Holding her...

Our family of 4!

Aunt Callie with her newest niece!

What a sweet little face! And don't you love all that crazy hair!

Our big girl!

It's hard to believe that tomorrow Khloe will already be 2 weeks old! We're doing great and I'm loving having a newborn in the house again! I could just sit around all day and love on her! Kinsey is doing good too and is really good with her; she loves to hold her and give her kisses! I've got more pics but that will have to be another post because this one has literally taken me all day to complete! Thanks for checking in on us! Hopefully it won't be quite as long before I post again!