Sage’s Birth Story
Welcome to the world Sage Parker! On Monday afternoon we welcomed our daughter, Sage Parker, to our family of now four.
As much as I was excited to meet our second child, I was so anxious and nervous leading up to her birth. And even more – I didn’t know it was a “her” going into it. I was 99% certain we were going to have another boy!
A recap of my first birth story and expectations
I had our first born, Lex, at 39 weeks. My water broke spontaneously overnight at 38 weeks + 5 days. I had eaten extra hot pepper on my pizza the night before and walked around the city a ton… and then BAM… it was baby time. I was SO nervous for labor the first time because I really had NO idea what to expect. Sometimes ignorance is bliss (but more on that later).
After a 24 hour labor (in the hospital), followed by pushing for 3 ½ hours, Lexington Chase was born. I was instantly in love and my heart expanded infinitely over the past 2.5 years, but postpartum recovery was tough, our breastfeeding journey wasn’t as straightforward as I thought it would be, and there was a steep learning curve.
And then I got pregnant with baby #2…
Sage Parker’s Birth Story
At 12:30am on Monday morning I got up to use the bathroom. It was a standard almost 40 weeks pregnant occurrence in the middle of the night… but this time something was different. Before I started peeing (sorry to be graphic, but that’s what you’re here for, right?) I felt a trickle. I looked in the toilet and I knew my water broke!
As much as I knew it was coming (I was 39 weeks and 6 days pregnant – this little girl is punctual!) I was still surprised.
After being quite disappointed that I had no baby in my arms at 39 weeks (the time when Lex was born), I started doing everything “they” tell you to do to go into labor… you know, drinking raspberry tea, eating dates, walking more, exercising, eating spicy foods, etc. Someone on Instagram recommended following this Miles Labor Circuit YouTube video and I even did this everyday for 3 days before. But on Sunday I also walked a ton to get things moving even more.
So after doing my business I immediately woke my husband, called my doctor and got in touch with my parents to come over to stay with Lex (the logistics the second time around are much more hectic!). We were instructed to come to the hospital, but there was no rush since my contractions were mild and still 10-15 minutes apart. I took the time to shower, dry my hair, and pack some last minute things, so we left about 2 hours later.
We arrived at the hospital around 2:45am and were taken into the triage area. A resident OB examined me and was unsure if my water actually broke. I knew in my bones that it did and was really upset that they were even considering sending me home because my contractions weren’t that strong. But after a couple of tests, we confirmed my water did in fact break, so I was admitted to Labor and Delivery.
By 5am my contractions weren’t coming any sooner than 10 minutes apart, so we decided to start Pitocin. By 7am, my contractions were STRONG and close together so I was definitely getting uncomfortable and ready to get my epidural. Unfortunately, the epidural didn’t quite work on the right side, so I was still feeling some pretty strong contractions for another couple of hours. The anesthesiologist adjusted my epidural, I moved to one side, and started to feel much more comfortable. Luckily, labor also started progressing quickly.
By 12pm I was 6cm dilated (I started at 1cm – you have to get to 10), and within 30 minutes I escalated to 9.5cm. The doctor came in to say it was almost go time and I just started hysterically crying. I think I had some PTSD from Lex’s birth coupled with all the hormonal changes going on and I just lost it. I’m pretty sure the doctors thought I was crazy, but it is what it is!
Just 20 minutes later (after getting my epidural topped off because I was seriously uncomfortable again), I was pushing. And just 7 minutes later Sage Parker was born! Yes, you read that right… 7 minutes (!!) compared to 3.5 hours the first time! They weren’t joking when every doctor and nurse said your second labor is much quicker. They immediately placed Sage my arms (we delayed cord clamping) and I was instantly in love.
Surprise... it’s a GIRL!
Like out first pregnancy, we did not find out the baby’s sex before birth. Like last time, I truly thought we were having a boy. For someone who practices nutrition from a 100% science-based perspective, I used ZERO science to jump to this conclusion. But, I carried similarly to my first and during our 3D ultrasound the baby looked sooo much like Lex, so I assumed I’d be a boy mom for life. However… I was wrong!
I honestly don’t remember if anyone said “It’s a girl!” or not when she came out, but I distinctly remember someone passing the baby to me for the first time, seeing a vagina and no joke thinking “wait, that’s not a penis!” I was in complete SHOCK!
After Birth…
After delivering Sage and the placenta, and getting a couple of “cosmetic” stitches we were moved to the recovery area. And that’s when the post-birth contractions started. OOPH! I did NOT have those with Lex and they lasted for a few terrible days – I was in tears!
Due to c*vid we only staying in the hospital for 24 hours post-birth, and luckily Sage and I were healthy enough to go home.
One week post-birth baby girl Sage regained and surpassed her birth weight is completely healthy (as is mama). Big brother Lex is totally in love (for now) and we’re adjusting to life with a newborn again. I can’t get enough snuggles… even if they’re at 3am!
XO