Will Sterling Haws

Sterling is watching the Super Bowl, they just took my baby to do vitals, and I'm waiting for my dinner to come, so I'll post some pictures for everyone's enjoyment!

Will was born on Saturday, February 2nd at 10:58am. I'd had contractions for the past several nights that slowly went away, but on Friday night they got closer and more painful, until about 2:30am when I told Sterling we probably should go to the hospital (he had gone to bed at 1:30am due to homework, so he really got no sleep the entire night). We got ready, dropped Ruth off at my sister Andrea's at about 3:30am (thanks for letting us wake you up!) and got checked into the hospital at close to 4am. My contractions were about 3 minutes apart, but as soon as I was sitting and monitored, they started to go away. Oh great, I thought. I was dilated to a 3 and fully effaced, but that hadn't changed for two weeks. So at 6am they told me I could walk around until 6:45 and if I still wasn't doing anything, I'd have to go home. I felt pretty sheepish, but they had been really painful at 2:30am!!!!! So, we started walking. Sterling was sleep-walking, so I sent him back to the room and he slept on the couch for a 20 min cat-nap. Dr. H was there doing rounds so he checked me and I was at a 5! So they didn't send me home! The dr. broke my water to keep my contractions going. The nurses were super nice and chill, especially since I was the only delivery that morning-they let me start on a lower-than-normal level of pitocin and never put it up without asking, and even turned it back down once they realized I was going so quickly on my own :). I had asked Sterling a couple of times during the pregnancy if he'd support me if I wanted to go natural, and every time he said "Yes, until you want the epidural, then I'll support that." So I was really surprised when he was really supportive of me through the entire labor. I wasn't set on a natural labor, I really just wanted to see if I could do it and if it was an easier recovery-basically I wanted to compare. I was dilated to a six and debating getting an epidural, but he talked me through every contraction, and said he knew I could do it. It definitely made me feel like I could...and then suddenly I was at a 9 (about twenty minutes later) and there was no turning back. But I definitely wanted to! The nurses told me not to push because Dr. H wasn't there yet (he'd gone home, thinking I'd take much longer) but that was impossible, and so they got ready for a delivery without the doc. Luckily, he walked into the room about two pushes before the baby came (it was quite a few minutes though, plenty of time to mock me for calling my sister in and then not getting an epidural. He said I was making a beggar out of her and her poor kids wouldn't be able to have any new clothes because their momma wasn't getting paid, it was funny.) They went to lay the bed back when the dr. got there, but that hurt like crazy, so he let me sit up, and my sister Megan came in for the delivery and she held one leg, and Sterling held the other---it was very reassuring to have them both so close to me. Dr. H told me it would take two more pushes, but it took three, and that was probably the most disappointing moment of my life. He said something to the effect of me not being like my sister because I wasn't screaming as loud as when she delivered natural, but then the head crowned, and I definitely screamed, and he took back that thought in a hurry!

When Sterling walked the halls in the morning with me, before I sent him back to sleep on the couch, I had asked him if he was still ok with Russell. He said yeah, but not very enthusiastically, so I told him I really did want him to like the name (even if I wouldn't let him have a junior) but he said he liked Russell.  Later, about an hour before I delivered, he randomly asked what I thought of the name Will. I said I liked it. A lot. He said thats what he wanted, so...we did! We chatted a little bit about the middle name, but it wasn't that big of a debate. Will Sterling Haws it was.

Will was beautiful from the first moment. Just a tiny 6 pounds and 19 inches. Sterling cut the cord, he's skilled at it now!, and everything was really un-rushed because we were the only ones there! We chilled in our room with Will for a long time, and just enjoyed the moments. After a few hours, we asked to take him for his bath, and Sterling went with. They left Will under the heat lamp for almost an hour because his temperature was low when he got there. They moved us into the VIP recovery room (I love that my sister Megan is so loved by everyone she works with!) and I felt great. No stitches, no dead legs, no problems. Later that night, mom and dad picked Ruth up from Andrea and brought her in to visit a bit. It was like a toddler whirlwind! She was huge, and had SO MUCH energy! She LOVED the baby, for about 5 seconds at a time, before crawling up and onto something else that was more exciting. Haahaa. They worried a little about Will because he hadn't gone to the bathroom yet (it has to happen in the first 24 hours or they will put on a catheter) but Sterling said he had seen him go immediately after being delivered, so they were a little less anxious. But then in our room we noticed he had a messy diaper, and upon trying to change it, he decided to go everywhere! Definitely a boy, and definitely a good relief for his mama. We had a great night, and today has been nice and relaxing.

Imagine a loud squeal of BABY!!!!

Daddy of Two

His little chin quivers when he cries. For some reason I LOVE it.