Abraham's Birth

It's been 11 days and I have finally made my way to the computer to write the story of our third son's birth. Abraham James Finlay was born March 14, 2009 at 12:38pm. He came out crying and weighed 8 pounds 10.5 ounces and 22 inches long. What a big boy! He beat his brothers by over a pound and an inch! He is doing great and growing fast. He was back up to birth weight by last Wednesday, 4 days after birth, and 1 week after his birth he weighed 9 pounds 1 ounce already! He is eating well and sleeping well overall. I am so thankful and feel so blessed.

We had been planning a VBAC, (a natural birth instead of a repeat c-section), and things had been going well in favor of that. We found a hospital that was supportive of that decision and we were just waiting for labor to start. On March 10th I began having a lot of prelabor contractions. They went steadily for 2 days straight and then stopped completely. The contractions picked up again Thursday night, but subsided enough where I could sleep. Friday morning, the 13th, I though my water had leaked. We called my midwife who was going to be my doula during labor, and she came over. Contractions were still going but they weren't strong and nothing else was happening. Finally after a test and check from my midwife she concluded that it wasn't my water and that this was all just pre labor stuff and that it could still be a day or two to a week until something for real happened. So we were disappointed but decided to just enjoy the rest of our day together. We went out to dinner with Ryan's family and walked the mall that night. Well, the next morning the exact same thing happened. I leaked again. Well, we were just perplexed, was this my water or not? We called my midwife again and she just wasn't quite sure and since I was a VBAC she thought it best that I go get checked out at the hospital. Well, we decided that would be the best thing to do and went in that morning. We were just praying that God would make it clear what was going on and what we should do. Well, the midwife on call at the hosptial was so kind and caring, it was a blessing to have her there that day. She did 3 different test to determine if I was leaking and in the end all 3 showed that I was not. They gave us the okay to go home and resume life and continue to wait. Again Ryan and I were perplexed about what to do. We both thought that we would feel relief and be glad to be sent home knowing my water wasn't broke yet. However, we both could not say that we felt comfortable going home. It was so strange and hard for me to admit this because for the past 9 months I had been praying, reading, and researching about VBACs, and I had felt so confidant that God was going to give me a natural birth. But when the time had come when we were faced with the decision again, and we asked ourselves, "is this really what we should be doing?" I lacked peace. It was such an emotional time for me. How could I lack peace about our natural birth that I prayed so long and hard about and really thought was going to happen? No, God never told me that we would have a natural birth, I just wanted it so badly and because we found a supportive hospital, I just thought that it would happen. But in those moments when it was just Ryan and I at the hospital sitting in the room talking and praying for the Lord's peace about going home or choosing a c-section, it was clear to us that God was saying that we ought to have another c-section. I was not goinn to fight against it though it was so hard face this. You see, when you've walked with the Lord and you know his peace when he gives it, you can't turn your back and do what you want to do because you want to feel his peace and blessing. So, we made the decision together. Ryan and I both felt that we should do a repeat c-section. And as soon as we made the decision there was the Lord's peace resting on us. I felt it and knew that was what we should do, but oh I can't tell you and you can't know unless you've been there how hard it was to surrender that over to the Lord. I mourn that loss of delivering my baby naturally, and I don't know why God chose that way for us. The Lord is all powerful, he can do anything. It would be nothing for him to have given us a natural birth, but it was a walk of faith for us, and I don't know if we'll ever know why, but we just needed to trust him and believe that his sovereign will is best. The thought that keeps coming to my mind is that perhaps an elective c-section was his mercy for us. I don't even want to imagine what it would have been like had something gone wrong during labor, had we chosen to do that....anyways, so that is the story behind why we had another c-section.

Now praises to the Lord for his goodness to us! We were blessed with two Christian God-loving nurses. The first was the nurse to put in my IV. She was having difficulty getting it in and it was quite painful. I just laid there praying that she would get it in and finally she did. I breathed aloud,"thank you Lord," and one nurse looked at me and said,"ah, you were praying," and the other nurse looked at me and said,"God answered your prayer." Well, by the end of our time together the IV nurse looked at Ryan and I and said with a confidence that only God could give her,"you are making the right decision."

I don't remember much else of what she said, but I felt in that moment God speaking through her and confirming our decision to have a c-section. She then prayed with me before she left the room. Then the baby's nurse found out we were believers simply when she heard what the names of our boys were! She came over to us right before the surgery began and said, "you guys are Christians, right? Let me pray for you." And she prayed with us right there while I was on the OR table! What a blessing it was to have God place those saints there and lift us up in prayer. The surgery began and it wasn't long before Abrham was born and he came out crying! The anesthesiologist made sure that I could see our baby while they were cleaning him up, and then Ryan was able to hold him right by my head during the rest of the procedure. It went quick and was all over in just over a half hour. As soon as I was ready to go back to our room they took his blanket off and placed him on my chest. He was with me the rest of the day! Such a difference from our past experiences where I was placed in a recovery room alone and not able to see my baby for 2 hours! It was so wonderful.
God has been so gracious to us all in bringing us through this experience healthy and well. I am recovering well! God has taken most of my pain away. I have only needed Ibuprofen, even though I've had major abdominal surgery! It's a blessing to not be drugged up on pain killers that make me groggy and incoherent. The way I feel now at 11 days is how I felt 2-3 weeks after my other surgeries. I am ever so thankful to be feeling so well so soon after. I am still resting lots and doing my best to no over do it.

Thank you to all who have been praying and are praying for us! The Lord is good and faithful. Though we don't always understand his ways nor can we know why he leads us the way he does at times, we rejoice that he is our king! He loves us and knows what is best for us. In him we find our rest.