Just getting started

Kaitlin Cherry Coppedge was born on Saturday, July 14th at 11:40AM.

Shanna woke me up at 4:15AM to the news that her water had broken. We decided to stay put at the house and try to get some rest for what was sure to be a long day. We were both so excited that sleep was out of the question. Shanna started cramping but didn't think it was true labor. The contractions were hard to measure but everything was pretty intense. We decided to wait until 7:00AM to call the midwife. She sounded pretty tired on the phone (I'm pretty sure I woke her up), and told us to go to the hospital at 10:00AM.

We started packing the last few things we needed. I tried to get Shanna to eat something, but she couldn't. She was on hands and knees on the floor moaning through each "cramp"/contraction. By 8:00AM everything was really starting to accelerate and get very intense. I was running in circles trying to cancel a business trip I had scheduled for Sunday evening, comfort Shanna, and get our stuff ready. By 9:00AM we were ready to go to the hospital. I thought we might not be able to make the trip and have the baby at home. We waited until we had a break between contractions and made our dash to the car.

By the time we got to the hospital, Shanna was fully dialated and the baby was at stage +3 in the birth canal. It's time to push when the baby is at +4! Nurses were swarming around the room, the newborn incubator was warming up. By 10:00AM everything was clicking and I was confident that our baby girl would be born in the next 15 minutes. Instead, all progress stopped. Shanna tried several different positions; on her back, kneeling, squatting but nothing really helped. Around this time, Glenna, made it to the hospital. Shanna and Glenna went to school together in San Angelo and we had asked Glenna to help us with the birth.

After trying all of the different positions without any success, the midwife said that Shanna's full bladder was blocking the birth canal. Shanna tried to go to the bathroom, but there was too much pressure. After she made it back to the bed, the midwife (Lindsey) used a catheter to drain the bladder. Instantly, we we're making progress again. Within two contractions you could see the baby's hair.

It was very exciting and a very intense moment. At this point, Shanna is on her back with her legs up in the air. I was holding one leg and Glenna was holding the other leg. Suddenly the leg that Glenna was holding began to sway. I looked up just in time to see Glenna's eyes roll back as she fell limp. The nurse in the room saw it happening and was able to run around the bed and guide Glenna's head down so she didn't crack it on a bed side table. I pushed the nurse call button and we called for backup. "Birth Coach down!"

I think all of the nurses on the floor came rushing in. They brought smelling salts, juice, and helped Glenna sit up. She later said that she woke up from a really deep sleep and wondered why everyone was staring at her.

Meanwhile, Shanna's still working. The head is starting to crown. I was able to move in and with the help of the midwife, hold the baby's head and gently tug. It was amazing. I'd always imagined that once the baby's head is out it all happens very fast, but we tugged gently and got past the shoulders and then the hips. I put the baby straight to Shanna's chest. We let the umbilical cord continue to pulse for what seemed like 20 minutes before clamping and cutting it. Now the baby could move up a little further and was able to nurse. She was wide awake and latched right on.

After she stopped nursing, the newborn nurse took the baby and got her weight and length. 6 lbs. 10 oz. and 19.5 inches long. I put a diaper on her and back to mom she went.