Yesterday morning I woke up at 6 am without even needing an alarm. I had slept off and on all night as I had for weeks. I got up and took a nice long shower. I then woke Cody up so he could also get a good shower in. We ran around the house making sure all our odds and ends were taken care of and that we had everything we thought we'd need. Then we headed to the hospital!!! Upon arrival, Dr. Martin let us know it was a very busy night and morning in Labor/Delivery. She and our amazing nurses got me hooked up to the monitors and got pitocin started. Once I was settled in they checked my cervix. 50% effaced and at 1-2cm. Around 11 I was checked again.. Zero progress! Luckily my husband and best friend had prepared for a long wait and made great company on our already frustrating journey..I got a nap in and was checked again around 1pm. Still nothing. Pitocin was on it's highest dose and I was having massive contractions with no progress. Finally at 4pm I was at 3cm!! BUT my blood work had come back and my hemoglobin was at 7.1 which is seriously low. Dr. Martin and our nurses were obviously concerned. Of course when it rains it pours! My contractions were getting strong and causing our little baby's heart rate to drop from 130s to 100s and sometimes even lower. Around 7pm Dr. Martin came back just in time. Our baby's heart rate had dropped clear to the 80's. Nurses had me up on the bed getting ready to see if they could stimulate the top of his head and get his heart rate up when Dr. Martin walked in! She went ahead and did the honors, and baby boy stabled out! More good news, I was at 4cm and she could FINALLY break my water!! She rutured it at 7:15pm. It was such a relief to have my water break... For all of about 15 minutes lol Then my contractions got INTENSE. Cody was amazing and held my hand through the rough contractions and called the nurse when I decided the pain was too much. She came in at 7:30 and administered fetinol through my IV which did absolutely nothing. A few more contractions and I tell Cody I need the epidural! He lets the nurse know and she checks my cervix again. Still 4cm MAYBE 5cm. About 8pm anaesthesiologist gets in and is explaining how they give the epidural. All the while I'm having AWFUL contractions! All of a sudden I feel like I'm pushing! The anaesthesiologist tries to tell me to sit up so he can administer the epidural, but it was too late. I remember a contraction and then shouting, "I can feel his head!" Nurse runs back over and then calls for the other nurses and Dr. Martin! They are all crowded around me telling me not to push for a bit. Trust me! I didn't want to! I wanted that epidural lol The nxt contraction comes and so did my baby. It was a long slow contraction, thank God, because they made me stop pushing half way through. His cord was around his neck. Thankfully my doctor and nurses are amazing and got it untangled before the contraction was over. They sat him on my chest and the moment I saw him, "My little Des.." Born at 8:20pm. After making sure I was OK they took him to

the warmer. Poor baby had a lot of purple! His little face is a tiny bit bruised due to him being born so quickly but is clearing up fast! 7 lbs, 5.4 oz, 19.5 inches long, and 13.75 inch head! And an expert at latching and feeding already!! He makes lots of piggy noises and loves snuggles! Mommy and daddy are blessed!! I still can't believe how quickly you came (especially after a long day of NO PROGRESS) but I'm so glad you're here and healthy!