Benson's Birth Story (Part 1)

So, I realize that a lot of people would love to hear the story of Benson's birth and it is so very important to have written down for him and for our family history.  The problem is, that takes time and time is something I do not have right now.  I know newborns sleep most of the time and Benson is no exception to that rule, but somehow the days and nights are flying by and I feel like I am getting nothing done.  But I continue to remind myself that spending time with him and taking care of myself are more important than making sure I update my blog regularly or clean up his nursery.  I do apologize for the delay in blogging though.  I have written down about his birth and placement in an actual journal, so at least it is written somewhere.  I am planning to tell the story in parts, because people.....it is long!



Part 1

When Benson hadn't made his arrival by December 27th (due date was December 30th) we made the decision we would make our way down to Las Vegas for Sierras (the birth mom) "final" doctors appointment and just stay in Vegas until the baby was born.  It was the holidays so Ben was out of school and I had a few days off of work and it seemed to be a good plan.  We had the chance to spend the holidays with all of our family and spend time with those that were visiting out of town before leaving, so it really was great timing.  We packed up the car with two weeks worth of stuff for ourselves as well as a newborn.  Let me tell you, trying to prepare for a baby when you have never had one is hard enough, but trying to know what you will need for the first two weeks of a babies life and pack that is nearly impossible.  We pretty much packed the car with anything we thought we might possibly need.  We also had to bring the breast milk that a very thoughtful friend had been freezing for us, so getting that ready and taken care of was an additional task.  We were finally ready and on our way first thing in the morning on December 29th.  We went straight o Kim and Byron's (probably the BIGGEST blessing in the baby being born in Vegas is that my very best friend lives there and we had a great place to stay for free.  HUGE), dropped off all of our stuff and drove right to the doctors appointment.  Everyone was excited and Sierra was looking like she was pretty ready.  Well, the doctor had a different idea.  Sierra wasn't at all dilated and the doctor just said to keep doing what she had been doing and come back the following Tuesday if the baby hadn't arrived yet. We did get to hear his heartbeat again and the doctor confirmed he looked big and healthy, so that was a relief.  We were anxious for him to get here, but doing our best to be patient.  We spent the next couple of days hanging out with Kimmie and Byron as well as spending more time with Sierra.  On Friday, Sierra's due date, we went to lunch with just her and the case worker.  It was a lot of fun to just spend more time with her, chatting and getting to know her better.  She truly is an amazing girl, wise beyond her years!  We also got to go to Chuck E Cheese for the 2nd time that following Monday with she and her family, so that was a lot of fun.  We got to spend a fun New Years Eve with Kim and Byron as well as Matt and Krissy (Kimmie's brother and soon to be sister in law).  We definitely didn't hurt for fun while we were waiting.

Kimmie and I on New Years Eve.  She is such a good hostess!

We went back for Sierra's doctors appointment on Tuesday, SO anxious to have the doctor say she would induce her.  It was already 4 days after the due date:).  I think I have a hard time being patient....well, Ben was SO impatient.  He had the hardest time waiting and just having no idea when it was going to happen.  I am sure all first time parents feel some of that, but it's a completely different experience when you are not the one that is pregnant or feeling any of the pains or the signs that come with pregnancy.  It is also really hard when you aren't the one who can ask the doctor to induce.  I understand why induction isn't the best idea,but it is also hard when someone else is carrying your baby and their mom is saying that no matter how late she is they won't be inducing.  That is a crazy feeling because there is nothing you can say or do.  That is true about most of the adoption process.  We are SO blessed to be in the adoption world and to have this beautiful baby boy, but it is such a hard thing to experience the feeling of being completely out of control in something that is SO important and life-changing for us.  Anyway, moving on.  The doctor weighed Sierra and checked the baby.  Sierra had gained 6 lbs in the previous 4 days.  She was also dilated to a 1 (lol, I know that's nothing, but we were SO excited that something was happening.  Ben was starting to make jokes about how the baby was just going to stay in there forever).  The doctor did say that because of the weight gain and the size of the baby she would like to schedule an induction for the following Day, Wednesday January 4th.  We were ecstatic!  We went back to the house, cleaned, took a long nap......and then got a text from the caseworker that there were no beds available and therefore the induction had been moved to FRIDAY.  Ugh, 3 more days of waiting.

(I will stop there for now but if you need a Benson fix in the meantime, check out the pictures on facebook here or here