Best laid plans

We had plans. We were going to pack up our house and move into Lubbock before Sawyer came. We were going to be settled in, and I had plans of stocking the freezer with prepared meals so that was one less thing to do after he came.

I definitely should know by now that our plans are meaningless compared to what God has planned, and I'm so thankful that our plans do not get in the way of His. I had an ultrasound on the 29th to check on Sawyer's weight since I have gestational diabetes. Everything checked out great, and they estimated that he weighed 7 lbs 3 oz. I was nervous! Typically, babies gain 1/2 lb every week for the last month, which would put him just short of 9 pounds. I remember texting my sister-in-law and debating with myself whether or not I wanted to attempt to "naturally" induce labor (I decided not to and that he would come when he was ready) and risk not being moved before his birth.

On Wednesday, I was simply exhausted. I resorted to popping Veggie Tales in and Layla was content to watch that while I dozed off. I just remember having absolutely no energy. Around midnight, I *thought* my water broke, but it wasn't a gush, so I was very unsure. I texted my mom, but she never responded (I later found out that she never got my text...), so then I texted my older sister. She was excited. I had just decided that I would call my doctor in the morning. I didn't see the point in going in if I had no contractions. Well, around 2 am what I now know were in fact contractions started. At first I really just thought they were some intense BH contractions, but around 4 they were VERY regular and getting more painful. One of my mom friends suggested I call labor and delivery, so I did. They told me to come in immediately.

Z called his parents, I called mom, Rachael called, I was texting my sisters, and the 45 minutes between 4 am and 4:45 am are a complete blur. I do remember laying on the bed during a contraction with Layla laying next to me while Z was getting her some clothes. She looked very concerned and started to cry. Little did I know how awesome she would do the rest of the day!

It was 4:49 when we finally got in the car to leave. By this time, my contractions were very close together and extremely painful. It usually takes us an hour to get to Lubbock, but my husband, the safe driver that he is, pretty much drove 90 the whole way. While I'm breathing through contractions, I hear our wonderful daughter in the back seat laughing and singing. :-) Once we got to Lorenzo (about 20 miles from home), I seriously considered having him see if there was a hospital there because I did NOT want to give birth in the car. I now know that the reason the contractions were so horrible is because Mr. Sawyer was crowning, and I needed to push. After making a wrong turn and hanging out at a couple red lights (just until I told Z to just run it!), we got to the hospital at 5:12 am. Z ran in to get a wheel chair, but I was impatient. As soon as he got back to the car, I walked into the labor and delivery area. They took me straight back and checked me to see if I was dilated. Regardless of the pain and urge to push, I still half expected the nurse to say, "oh, honey, you're just at a 2. Go home, take a shower, and you should be fine". So I asked her if I was dilated at all. She shockingly replied, "yeah. you're complete." Bam. That was the moment I knew I was getting the exact birth/delivery that I wanted. I did not want pain meds. I did not want to be induced. I just wanted it to be...perfect. And it was.

Being so early, there was nothing going on at the hospital. I was privileged to have 3 doctors and 5 nurses help and take care of me. One doctor sat by Layla's side talking to her and making sure she didn't flip. Layla sat there through the entire thing, and she was just wonderful. After about three pushes, Sawyer Randal was here. 15 minutes after we got to the hospital, before I had an IV, before I had signed any consent forms. It was perfect. I'm still shocked at how crazy and surreal it was.

Sawyer Randal Leonard

5:38 am

7 lbs 3 oz

19.5 inches

Because of him being 4 weeks early, the fact that I had gestational diabetes, and I tested positive for group b strep, Sawyer's breathing was somewhat difficult. They watched him for a little while, but then they decided he should go to NICU. (this is the part that isn't perfect) He was put on oxygen for the breathing and antibiotics for group b. We knew we would have to wait 2 days to get results of the blood culture regarding the group b, but we didn't know exactly how long he would have to be there.

It was hard. It was lonely sitting in our room and not having a sweet little baby next to me reminding me why I was there. It's a lot easier to physical heal, in my opinion, when you're taking care of your baby instead of someone else having to take care of him. We got to attempt to breastfeed before they took him, but he was so tired and so lethargic that it was unsuccessful. He was put on IV nutrients, but as soon as they thought he was ready, they let me nurse him. The NICU staff was wonderful. I couldn't have asked for better nurses/doctors to take care of him when I couldn't. Sawyer was born Thursday morning, he was off oxygen on Saturday, and we went home on Sunday.

Now we are home. He is perfect. Layla absolutely loves him. Instead of her getting jealous that Sawyer gets a lot of my time, she is jealous that I won't let her hold him all the time. She's a great big sister!