The Birth of Beau: Part One

September 22, 2011 our lives changed forever. We were blessed with the most precious, perfect little bundle we ever could have imagined. Chris and I felt complete awe as we stared into the face of the little baby we had prayer for and prayed over as he spent almost eight months growing inside of me.

The day started as my fourth day in the hospital as the doctors monitored my contractions and amniotic fluid. For the previous three days, I had laid in the hospital bed with Chris beside me, praying Beau would wait just a little while more to come out.

Our doctor came in early that morning around seven. I had previously had a night interrupted with nurses coming in and out and still had the effects of a sleeping pill in my system. But despite the drowsiness of the morning I remember telling the doc that nothing had really changed overnight, and I was holding steady. We discussed plans for if I made it through to the next week, and my doctor seemed fairly confidant that we could hold on a little longer.

Not more than an hour had passed that I noticed my amniotic fluid was leaking considerably more than normal…in fact it was a steady pour. I went back in forth to the bathroom trying to stay somewhat clean and finally begged the nurses for a shower, which they kindly indulged. All the while, I noticed that I seemed to have more pressure in my lower abdomen when I would have a contraction (my mom will laugh when she reads this because I have a problem of always describing my pain to a doctor or nurse as “pressure”. The whole time I was in the hospital she kept telling me I had to be more specific about what kind of pain I was having rather than use “pressure” all the time. I guess it is time to brush up on my vocabulary).

No sooner had I gotten out of the shower that I decided that yes indeed, I was having some pain associated with contractions. I called in my nurse and she strapped me up to measure contractions. I wish I could give a time frame, but from that moment on the contractions continued to get worse and I knew that this sweet baby was not going to wait.

Chris quickly called my mom, in San Antonio, and told her to get on the road immediately. She hopped in the car and sped over to Houston as fast as her little tires would take her. In the meantime, I was transferred to labor and delivery and prepared to meet our little one. To be continued...