*LONG POST AHEAD WITH TMI PICS*

I was set to be induced July 19th at 39 weeks because my husband was in his brothers wedding the weekend after. (July 27th) and our due date was July 26th. 🙄 my OB gave me the option if I wanted to be induced or not, and I said why not! I was induced with my first baby at 40 weeks due to family members being there that lived out of state, and my induction went smoothly! So at my 36 week appt we scheduled my induction! She checked me and I was 2cm and 20% effaced. I also asked my OB if I was allowed to start trying things to get me into labor and she gave me the green light. I had also asked about the midwives brew, and if I was allowed to try that since it had 2tbsp of castor oil in it. She said yes, it was safe to do since there was just a small amount of castor oil in the recipe. So that Saturday at 37 weeks and 1 day I took the midwives brew in the afternoon and my contractions picked up after about an hour. They were 2-4 mins apart but I read that they could also fizzle out. I took a bath and drank some water and they eventually went away. I wasn’t too upset because I was only 37 weeks and I was already scheduled to be induced so it was fine. That next week I was getting tons of pre labor and prodromal labor and I was so miserable 😣 July 10th my OB checked me again and I was 2.5 cm and 50% effaced. She said she didn’t think I’d make it to my induction date. I thought to myself “yeah whatever” but I tried to stay positive, because who knows what could happen. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Friday July 12th I was 38 weeks and so ready to have a baby in my arms!! That weekend I just felt super off. Sunday the 14th I woke up at 5am and was wide awake the rest of the day. The night before I had a terrible migraine and I threw up, so I thought it was just left over symptoms. I was getting irregular contractions all day and felt sick. That night my husband and I had sex and I was contracting a good portion of the night and didn’t get very good sleep. The next morning, July 15th I woke up super early again and just felt “off” I decided that I wanted to try the midwives brew one more time, and if it didn’t work, oh well! I was due to have my baby that week anyways. So 9:30 am I drank the drink again, lounged around with my hubby and my 13 month old, and then around 11am I took a shower and got ready for the day. Around 1 I was getting hungry so i asked if we could grab some lunch while we were out running errands. (I was craving Red Robin’s crispy chicken salad 😂) at that point I started to get some contractions and I started feeling nauseous. I brushed it off thinking it was because I was hungry and I didn’t have a big breakfast since I drank the brew. We get to Red Robin around 1:30 and order our food. It’s about 2pm and my contractions start to become more regular, and painful. I was so nauseous I couldn’t even finish my salad so I got it to go. It’s about 2:30 now and we had to stop by one more store before heading home to put our 13 Mo old down for his nap. We were walking out of Red Robin and I was about 10-15 feet from my husband because I couldn’t walk through my contractions and it was hurting to walk as it was. I finally get into the car, and I couldn’t reach down to grab my phone, so I used my husbands to time my contractions. It takes about 10-15 mins to get from Red Robin to Wilco, and in that time I was getting contractions every 4 mins and then every minute to 2 mins lasting around 45 second to 1 minute. I was trying not to get excited since I knew that they could fizzle out at some point. We get to Wilco and I head to the bathroom to go pee. Once I get to the bathroom I have a horrible contraction that stopped me in my tracks and I had to breathe through. I continued to get those during our entire visit until we got home. We get home around 3:45 and I call my OB’s office and let them know what’s going on. My contractions had been lasting for an hour or more and were very close together. The nurse advised us to come into triage and be evaluated. I text my mother in law and ask her if she can watch our son while we head there. I grab our hospital bags just in case, but I was feeling discouraged because I didn’t want to be sent home. We get to triage and she’s checking me in and getting my vitals. She asked me what I was at when I went in for my last appointment and I told her 2.5 cm. She goes to check me and asks me to put my fists under my butt. As soon as she tells me that I knew I wouldn’t be more dilated and I would be sent home yet again. As she finishes checking me she just says casually, “so you’re at 5cm, let’s get you admitted!” My husband and I look at each other and I just start laughing! I couldn’t believe it. So we make the calls to our families and get all settled into our birthing suite. I ask for a yoga ball so that I can continue to bounce and rotate my hips. I’m asked my pain level and it was only at a 2, which was crazy to me, because I’m already 5cm dilated! It’s about 4:30-5pm at this point and I meet the OB on call, and we go over my birth plan (which I never had one because anything can happen so I try to keep an open mind!) my contractions were very irregular at this point so I ask if she would consider breaking my water. She agreed, and at 7:30 my water was broken. I was 6cm and 80% effaced when she broke my water. I then did some laps around the birthing center with my husband and was starting to get some regular contractions again. It was about 9 or 10 and my contractions leveled out and they weren’t getting closer together. My nurse checked me and I was 7cm and 80% effaced. Since my contractions stalled they started pitocin. I was only on the first dose and my contractions picked up and got stronger. They were 2-4 mins apart again but after awhile they weren’t getting stronger so she turned it up to a 3. That’s when shit started getting real! My nurse advised me that the anesthesiologist would possibly have to go into a c section soon and she didn’t want me to miss my window of opportunity to get my epidural. By this time it’s 11pm and my contractions are on top of each other. I ask for the epidural and he comes in and administers it at 11:15. I’m checked again and I’m at an 8. My nurse tells me to call her if I start feeling the urge to push or have lots of pressure in my butt. 11:45 rolls around and my nurse comes back in to check on me and let’s me know that she had a feeling I was ready to go soon. 12:06am I am fully dilated and effaced and ready to start pushing. The doc was in another room delivering a baby and then she was going to come to my room next. My nurse has me do one practice push, but then has me stop because it was time for the doctor to come in. My nurse tells me some lady came into triage at 8 cm so the doctor went to her room first. I continued to labor down and let the contractions push him deeper down the canal. At this point I still can’t believe I’m about to deliver another baby so I’m just chatting away with my husband, aunt, best friend, and the nurse. Finally around 12:30 the doc comes in and tells me that i should push with my next contraction. I start feeling the pressure in my butt to push so I start pushing. One push later, and boom. 12:36am on July 16th Easton Kent Freeborn was born at 38 weeks and 3 days weighing 7 pounds 7 oz and 20 1/4 in long. I got to feel his head when he was coming out and it was the coolest experience ever!!