The Birth Story of Our Baby Boy
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There’s a much longer, more detailed birth story below, but because I know I’m long winded and you may not read all the way through I wanted to put the most important part in the beginning.
Easton’s birth was the most blessed God-filled moment. I have never felt closer to God than when Easton James was born. The moments were intense but beautiful. There were so many tears, so many words of encouragement, and the moment in time is forever etched into my memory. I wrote in a previous blog post about how God told me He was going to give me a baby and that was what I needed to hear to be patient in my waiting season. When Easton James was born, the song playing on my birth playlist was Jireh. Jehovah Jireh means that God will provide. He told me he was going to give me a baby and He did. Jireh. I felt God’s presence with me in that birthing room. The absolute most amazing moment of my life. I can never thank God enough for the gift of Easton James and his beautiful arrival into this world.
I pray any future births are also filled with God’s presence so strongly, and I hope every woman can experience that kind of feeling during birth.
Labor and Delivery: Long but Beautiful
Around 5:30am Wednesday, October 26th I had my first contraction. I was 39 weeks 3 days.
I assume other first time moms have the same worry I did about not really knowing if it’s real- like how will I know it’s the real deal!! I knew if I said that to any other mamas they would say ‘trust me you will know’ and now I would say that too. I knew it was a contraction and somehow I felt very calm and clear.
For the next few hours the contractions continued happening at very sporadic intervals. I was keeping track of every single contraction’s duration and time between using the Contraction Timer app. I had no idea this was a thing until my sister told me to have one downloaded ahead of time and I’m so glad I did.
And then after a few hours of contractions every 6-15 minutes I went 45 minutes with absolutely nothing. I was so confused! But I knew I wanted to labor at home as long as possible, so I just focused on staying relaxed and keeping everything low key.
I spent the day watching my all-time favorite tv show Gilmore Girls to relax and bring me comfort as my thoughts were whirling and my body was contracting. I also read through my birth affirmations like a million times. It was such a relaxing day that allowed me to really feel like I could run through my lists again of my hospital bag and make sure things were as I wanted them for my birth plan (more on this in my previous blog post Third Trimester: The Homestretch) and just talk to God about everything I was feeling. His peace washed over me that day. The time I had wanted my whole life and waited these 9 months for was finally almost here!
So a relaxing day was great, but I will say looking back- I wish I had focused a little more on movement and bouncing on my ball and doing more than what I did. Luckily though, Wyatt was able to take full advantage of the day by cleaning our house top to bottom and making sure it was in great shape for go time, and wrapping up a lot of things with work so he could begin paternity leave.
Contractions continued all day long at varying intervals which just led us to think what the heck is going on, but for some reason I just knew this was it even though it had been a slow process thus far.
I enjoyed that relaxing day so much but we decided to switch gears and try something different! We decided to go walk around the local outlet mall and just see if the movement helped things along. We walked around our local outlet mall a lot the last few months to stay active!
This night was so funny though! Once we got to the mall my contractions had gotten much stronger. We were in Old Navy and I literally was holding onto a rack leaned over having a contraction hoping no one saw me!LOL We left the mall after that big one, grabbed dinner on the way home- Taco Bell, my labor feast of choice- and from that contraction on the intervals were consistently 7-8 minutes apart, lasting longer and getting stronger. That was at about 6:00pm and when I consider my actual labor to have started.
We got home and after I finished dinner I focused on bouncing on my ball, breathing, and then getting the final few things packed into my bag and getting ready to go! Contractions were now to the point where I couldn’t really walk or talk through them and would stop me suddenly.
Men and women are so different under pressure and I feel like this was literally the only time I felt frustration towards Wyatt my entire pregnancy. That night when we were getting ready to leave for the hospital we were just both processing everything so differently. He was asking me like a million questions because of his nerves and I just needed him to figure it out on his own because of my nerves!LOL And it was simple little things like ‘where is this at’ and ‘what should I do with this’ kind of thing and now I love to think back on that and just laugh because he was irritating me and had no idea!
We finally managed to finish getting everything ready which felt SO difficult because I had to keep stopping what I was doing for contractions. But before we left I wanted to snap some pictures- a final bump pic, a final pic of just Wyatt and I, and a final pic of us with Rory. I’m so glad I took the minute to do that!
We left for the hospital at 9:00pm when contractions were strong and 4-5 minutes apart. I had made a playlist for the car ride there which was perfect to distract me. By the time we got there my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart and had me in tears and felt SO intense. But that was definitely my old pain scale that changed drastically as the night went on!
We got to the hospital and because it was after hours we had to go in through the ER and of course got lost on our way up to the mother/baby area. We finally made it there and things felt so strong I swore they were going to be like ‘okay it’s go time’.
We got there and I was checked and still had a long way to go so they hooked me up to some monitors and said I could walk and move as much as I wanted for the next hour and they would check me again. So Wyatt and I just walked slow laps with lots of pauses for contractions. When I think back to that time now, I’m so grateful for those walks we took together and that time we had together knowing we were about to become parents! So special.
In the meantime our crew of 5 we had asked to be there for us arrived because we thought things would be moving along much quicker than what they actually did- which I still feel bad about- but knowing our people were right there made me feel so much better when things got tough.
On our walks we stopped and saw them and chatted for a few but a couple contractions came while we were chatting and for my Dad and Wyatt’s Dad to see me in pain like that- they were struggling a bit! And my Mom, Wyatt’s Mom and my sister all knew exactly what I was feeling. I’m still just so grateful for our hospital crew!
Things were getting too intense to where walks were too much so we went to our room and I bounced on a ball as best as I could while holding Wyatt’s hands and just powering through. That was probably around midnight.
After that everything was a blur until 6am.
My goal all along was to labor naturally but I was open to the option of an epidural if need be. I knew going into it I wanted to have the experience of feeling everything the natural way before I made any decision for help. After all, I had never experienced these feelings before and I wanted to really experience it!
So all of that to say, the nurses knew my goal and they did everything they could to help me achieve that. We had the absolute BEST care.
So from midnight to 6am life was a blur of painful contractions escalating and frequency increasing, my water breaking almost all of the way and the doctor helping it break the rest of the way, full body shakes, eyes completely shut, back rubs and pressure from Wyatt, worship music playing, and encouraging words from the nurse and Wyatt.
Contractions would come and completely take my breath away so I would breathe through them and then for about the 30 seconds in between contractions, my entire body was shaking. I had no idea that was a thing that could happen! It was so wild! But I think the craziest part about all of it was that I could be experiencing all of that pain and discomfort, and Easton was just so content and calm in there. Only God!!!
We tried different positions to make things more comfortable, but I could barely move without the pain increasing. For hours I had been seated on the edge of the bed with my arms up holding on to the squat bar. Which meant Wyatt was standing by my side all that time. And goodness, now I can look back and think about what a trooper he was, because he was standing in the same spot for hours constantly rubbing my back and applying pressure, and if he would stop for even a second I absolutely let him know!!LOL that was the only thing giving me any relief.
By 7am it was time for a shift change and I cried so hard that my nurse was leaving me. She was my angel all night long and I wanted her to stay with us and help deliver Easton but he and I just weren’t ready yet. So she introduced our new nurse to us that would be taking over and she was going to go do some paperwork and then would come back and see me before she left.
In the meantime I was in immense pain so I was not vibing with the new nurse because I didn’t want to. And I can get along with pretty much anyone so that’s how you know emotions were high here!
So basically my contractions were incredibly intense, my water had broken, and I had been dilated to a 9-9.5 for hours, but my body was having trouble getting to a 10. That’s the scenario we were in and it just felt like we were getting nowhere. And of course my biggest concern in all of this was making sure Easton was still doing good, and thankfully he was.
When my night nurse came back in to say bye to me, she said she knew it wasn’t my original plan but it wasn’t too late to get an epidural and help my body relax enough to get where it needed to. I told her I thought we were way too far along to get an epidural at this point since I was at a 9.5 and she said that had nothing to do with getting an epidural, but that I could get one at any point as long as I could sit completely still for the anesthesiologist. I said okay let me think about it as my entire body was shaking!
Wyatt and I asked for the room for a minute to talk and decide what we wanted to do. I couldn’t process, I couldn’t think, I couldn’t even open my eyes- but thankfully I had my teammate right there next to me to rationalize and help us come to a decision. He helped me realize that I had fought hard for 14 hours contracting and laboring naturally and my body was completely exhausted, that even if I got to a 10 the slim likelihood I would even have the energy left to push, and that if I could just let my body relax a little we might be able to meet our sweet Easton that much sooner. This is what makes us a great team, and I am still so grateful that he could help me to see what we needed to do.
So I got to experience natural labor, but it was time for the epidural. There were a few other random things here and there that happened in the hour prior to this and in the hour waiting for the anesthesiologist, but I know I’m rambling enough!
It was time for the epidural and because I hadn’t planned to get one, I hadn’t done much research. I had heard things here and there about how awful it can be or what the needle looks like but because that all seemed negative and bad and all along I hadn’t wanted it, I just shut it out. And honestly I’m so glad that I did. Because it wasn’t that bad at all.
The worst part for me was the nerves that I wouldn’t be able to remain completely still, knowing the importance of that. I was a nervous wreck because up until that point my full body was constantly shaking and contracting and had been for hours. I just prayed and prayed and prayed that I could be still.
I was leaned over Wyatt- who like I already mentioned had been on his feet all night long being the best support system- and his body was tired too and he shifted his feet to be more comfortable…which then moved me…which then the anesthesiologist had to remind me sternly to be still. I got in trouble for Wy’s moving!! I still haven’t let that go with him!!LOL
About 30 minutes after the epidural the pain subsided enough for me to open my eyes and breathe a little. And then I slowly just felt my body relax after the battle it felt like it had been through all night long. To be honest, it felt like a nice little buzz after a drink or two!
And I was a different person from the one crying and in pain all night. I had a chance to breathe and while it wasn’t my original plan, I’m glad Wyatt and I made the decision to go ahead and get the epidural.
Hearing Easton’s heartbeat on the monitor was the sound that kept me going. When Wyatt and I would start talking and I wouldn’t be able to hear it for a minute I would panic and would listen intently to hear it again. I actually ended up asking the nurses to turn it up and they were so kind and did so I could hear him better! That was so calming for me.
My body got to relax for a bit after the epidural and we were so hopeful that we would get to meet our sweet boy soon. Unfortunately after a couple hours of letting my body be at ease, there was no change. I know there is medical jargon for the rest of my experience up until it was time to push, but I don’t know the technical terms so I’ll just explain it as best I can.
Because I wasn’t progressing from 9.5 to 10 and Easton wasn’t moving down and transitioning they went in to track my contractions internally and what they found was that my contractions weren’t as strong as they needed to be. At this point of laboring so long I did want to speed things up for Easton’s sake, so I agreed to pitocin. Had they tried to do that earlier in the process I may have declined and waited it out longer to give him the time that he needed and my body too. But I was worried the longer things went on.
So, in order to help my body I was given pitocin and not long after I was fully dilated. But baby boy was still not dropped into position where he needed to be in order to push. I had been sipping water the entire time so my bladder was full and in the way, so they emptied that- like I said earlier I didn’t do much research on the epidural because I wasn’t planning to get one. So when they said your bladder is very full and could be preventing him from dropping down, I was like okay I’ll just go to the bathroom then, and they just looked at me like uhhhh yeah your legs aren’t going to work LOL.
One story from the delivery room that still gives me chills when I think about it is something the doctor said to me. If you’re familiar with the Bible then you may know the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego who were sentenced to death in the fiery cell. The king who ordered their deaths was watching from afar but instead of the three men he saw four- there was another in the fire with them. It was Jesus. He was with them in their pain and suffering. At one point during labor when the doctor came in to check me, I was visibly in pain and just ready to meet my baby boy. The doctor said “there’s another in the fire with you Kylie, you can do this” and that was what I needed. A reminder that God was with me in my pain and would carry me through.
After emptying my bladder they had me sitting on the edge of the bed in hopes that gravity would help him get into position, but ultimately practicing pushing and playing tug-of-war with my nurse is what finally got us there. In hindsight, I know this definitely affected Easton because he was just cozy hanging out in there, but I was getting scared the longer time went on that something would change quickly, so I’m glad we did what we did.
Shortly before this I stopped pressing the button on my epidural because I wanted to feel the urge to push when the time came. I also clarified that right after he was born I could hit the button again that way I wouldn’t feel much after the fact!
It was finally time to push and the ‘ring of fire’ was incredibly real and couldn’t be described any better. When your baby’s head is right there it quite literally feels like a major burn, but knowing that you’re so close is what will keep you going.
Once it was time to push, the doctor came in. With him, my two angel nurses, and my incredible hubby I felt so ready!!!
I had created a hospital playlist over the entirety of my pregnancy and one song really carried me through the last month and so I knew when it was time to push that’s the song I wanted to hear and then the playlist could just shuffle from there so that’s exactly what happened. Wyatt knew and started my song, everyone got into place and with each contraction I pushed.
About 15 minutes later, the greatest joy I’ve ever felt, the most overwhelming presence of God, and the most perfect little boy came into this world in the most beautiful way. As Jireh played in the background, Wyatt was cheering me on with his voice cracking and tears in his eyes- and our son, Easton James, was born.
The best moment ever. 5:02pm on October 27, 2022.
I remember it all so vividly, the feeling of pushing and knowing he was here, opening my eyes and seeing the doctor bring him up and place him on my chest, Wyatt and I talking to him and falling completely in love, and I remember knowing there was a lot happening in the room around us, but all that mattered was just the three of us right there. Thank You Jesus.
Hospital Stay Post-Delivery
When I say our nurses were angels, I truly, truly mean that. They were amazing and I was so sad to leave them. And scared too. They were so loving, kind, and helpful. And to two new parents who had no idea what they were doing- leaving the hospital was scary. But I’m getting ahead of myself- I want to share a little more about our time at the hospital.
Easton was born at 5:02pm and we had about 1-2 hours of just us as a little family of three which is exactly how we wanted it, and then we were beyond ready for our crew of 5 to come back and meet our boy! Knowing they were all there waiting was such a beautiful feeling. I know what everyone needs in the time of labor and delivery is different, but I knew I would need my people there in the waiting!
I feel like I can still see everyone’s faces of pure joy as they walked in the room and saw Easton for the first time and fell completely in love. It was so special!
Speaking of his name, we decided to keep that one just between us until he was born. We’ve had his name chosen for years if we ever were blessed with a boy and it was so fun to tell everyone once he was born. Announcing his name after he was here to our hospital crew of 5 was so special! Wyatt only almost slipped a couple times saying it when we weren’t alone just us two, and the one time his dad heard it as Ethan so he thought he knew it but he didn’t!
This time was so very special, but we were completely exhausted. I didn’t want everyone to leave, but I also did need to try to get some rest and try to get the hang of nursing. So everyone left and my night nurse helped me with all the initial postpartum things.
I think this is something that isn’t talked about enough so I want to share. The amount of vulnerability you have in those hours and days after you deliver is huge. The nurse explained to me all the things I needed to do after I went to the bathroom and I ended up asking her to come in with me. I was scared, I was hurting, this whole process was so new to me and different, and I also just didn’t want to be alone. I had to be vulnerable and again the care we had from all our nurses was amazing. I never once felt uncomfortable or not completely cared for in that moment or during any of the other checks of my stitches or other things to check down there or with my belly.
Also vulnerability while working with the lactation consultant. Who just like the nurses was a pure Godsend. I loved her and I even went back and saw her a couple times in the first few months of Easton’s life, but I’m getting ahead of myself. You have to be so vulnerable physically and open to everyone seeing you and helping you and it can be uncomfortable, but also that’s why what these nurses and lactation consultants do is so important. They made me feel so loved and cared for that I could be vulnerable with them and I trusted them to take care of me.
I also trusted them to help me take care of Easton. When it came to nursing, bathing, swaddling, all of the things. When it came to what Wyatt needed too. We just had such an incredible experience. I pray everyone’s hospital experience can be so loving and comfortable.
Okay, now back to it. That first night after Easton was born we moved from the delivery room to the recovery room and got all settled. And it’s crazy because you just want to sleep but also you have this new little life to care for! And I didn’t even want to sleep. I just wanted to stare at him in the cart next to me.
He did great nursing throughout the night which was such a blessing, but he did not want to be swaddled, or on his back, or alone. He just wanted to be held and honestly that is still how he is! So we spent a lot of that first night bouncing and snuggling. Wyatt doing most of the bouncing because freshly postpartum that wasn’t the best idea for me. So we made it through the night and the next morning I showered and it was life-giving.That shower felt so amazing!
And then our day began and it was a party and I loved every second of it! Our nurse for that day came in and I told her it was going to be an all day party in this room and she was all about it which made it even more fun. My parents were there first, then my grandma and grandpa, then my grandma and sister and at one point they were all there at the same time, plus me, Wyatt, and Easton and it was just the best feeling to be surrounded by love and excitement and joy. The room was packed and we were all just swooning in love with this little boy. Core Memory.
The day was a blur of so many things. But all good things! Family in and out. We got to help our nurse give him his first bath. Flower deliveries. He had the typical tests done and all went well. We got to eat our celebratory hospital meal together. More family loving on us and our boy in the evening. It was a great day! A beautiful fall day and a great first full day of life for our Easton James.
The next day was similar! More family coming to meet our babe and fall completely in love.
One of my favorite hospital memories was on this day when our two nephews came to meet Easton. They were so precious, gentle, cautious, and quiet. They were so proud taking all the photos of him they could and beyond eager to hold him and love on him. Those boys will never know how much these sweet moments meant to me. Especially if you read Third Trimester: The Homestretch then you know that I was worried about how that attention shift would feel going from aunt to mama. I could visually see them falling in love with him the way I got to see everyone else do so, and that memory is so special to me.
Later that afternoon, Easton and I both got cleared to go home. What a blessing, but also we were scared!! We knew ahead of time we would be kept close to 48 hours after birth since this was my first delivery and I was breastfeeding and I’m so grateful for that policy. But goodness those 48 hours flew by and while we were excited to get home and start this new chapter and adventure in our lives- boy did it seem intimidating! We wanted to take our angel nurses home with us!
Once we finally got all our stuff gathered and packed- which felt like a marathon- we got loaded up for our drive home. I sat in the backseat with him and he slept the whole way home. I don’t think I even took my eyes off of him!
And then we arrived home, safe and sound, and this new chapter in our lives began!
I decided to share key points from Easton’s first year of life in the following blog posts- Months 0-3: Newborn Life, New Normals, and Neverending Love, Months 3-6: Silliness, Sweetness, and Slowly Coming Out of the Blur, Months 6-12: So Much Fun and So Much Growth to serve as support and encouragement for other new mamas out there. The amount of times I asked friends and family- “Did yours do this?” Did yours do that?” “Please tell me I’m not the only one that xyz has happened to.” led me to realize two things. 1- how grateful I am for the support system I do have in my life, but 2- not everyone has that or not everyone feels comfortable on this journey asking these things. So I hope and pray these blog posts serve as a sort of inside look with a mom friend into new motherhood and the blessing but equally hard work that it all can be.
I also hope and pray that in reading any of my blog posts you can see Jesus in this story. He is in your story too. But sometimes in the trenches it can be hard to see.
Thank you for reading the incredibly blessed, God-filled moments of Easton’s entrance into the world!
Lord, I will never be able to thank You enough for the gift of Easton James, but I will still thank You every chance I get. Thank You for the ways You carried me not only through pregnancy, but during labor and delivery as well. Thank You for making Your presence known. Lord, I pray that all new mamas can open their eyes to see Your love and protection surrounding them in this season of life too. And that they realize what an incredible gift these babies are to this world. Amen.
All the love,
