The first 2 weeks

Best Holiday Ever

I LOVE the 4th of July (along with Easter). Normally we would ride bikes to the beach and parade, but this year we had to do things a little differently for obvious reasons.

With our little newborn, we were still able to make Independence Day a special one. We had hotdogs for lunch; trip to Mile Square Park; nap in the shade; Jeremy and I played football; drove downtown to the pier to see all the excitement, but stayed in the car (that was hard for me!); steak for dinner (thanks MomR); played with sparklers outside our house at night.

 I am so grateful to be an American. We are very fortunate people to be part of such a wealthy country that has a working democracy. Sure, there are a lot of things that could be better with the economy, education and  government. But we have things that most people in the world do not. I have my Founding Fathers  and my Heavenly Father to thank for that. This 4th of July, I have pondered the odds of being born in America. Tanner could have been born anywhere to anyone, but he was sent to us. How grateful we are, and what a task we have to teach him to be grateful for this blessing, too.

Tanner's Birth Story

This was recorded by Taba, our
amazing doula. I removed some gory details in case you just had lunch. ;-)

Wednesday, June 22, 2011 OB appointment. You
(SarahLynn) allowed her to check you. 1 cm, 50% effaced, -3 station.
Friday,
June 24, 2011, 6:45 am. You had some off
and on contractions last night. Jeremy
decided to stay home from work today because it looks like things will be
happening soon!
Friday,
June 24 2011; 11:15 pm You called me
(Taba), contractions were off and on all day, started timing them at 10 pm,
between 4-8 min apart, from 15 seconds to 1 1/2 minutes long. You slept a lot
today and had huge appetite. You ate out with Jeremy at IHOP, Wendy's, and
See's Candies. Going to keep me updated. It's hard to tell when contractions stop... Going to try to sleep.
Saturday, June 25 Contractions off and on
all day, not as intense as Friday. You ate out at Pei Wei. 
Sunday, June 26 You went to church, had
a few contractions. Then stronger irregular contractions came throughout the
rest of the day, but nothing regular enough to time. You and Jeremy were
getting discouraged- when is this baby going to come?? 
Monday, June 27 Early morning phone
call from Jeremy lots of action last night: Every 15 min lasting 1 min, level 3
intensity, only able to sleep for about 2 hours... Poor Jeremy has to go to
work!  
9:10 am Call from you, pain
level 3, You had been sleeping since 5:45 am. Being on hands and knees during
contractions feels better now than it did before. I told you to sleep and rest,
things should be happening soon. 
9:45 PM I arrived at your house
to sleepover so Jeremy could rest... So much for that...you were contracting
nicely, and my plan to give him a break went out the window! Maybe you did go
into labor once your support team was in place. I helped distract you from your
contractions by asking you questions about your courtship and marriage with
Jeremy. Massage helped during contractions. 
11:30 pm You ate a chicken salad sandwich. We timed contractions for 1.5
hours. You didn't fall into a set cycle, but contractions were 3-5 minutes
apart lasting 1 min. 
1:00 am It was your decision to leave for the hospital. If you were at
4 cm or more we will stay at the hospital. If not, we will go home to continue
laboring. 
1:15 am Arrived at the hospital.
Jeremy pulled up to the Childbirth entrance, but a sign said to go to the
emergency entrance. This upset you and you started to cry because you had
"always imagined that you would go through that door" when you came
to the hospital. The security guys said the sign didn't apply to you, so we all
still walked through the Childbirth entrance. You were in a wheel chair.
1:18 am In the room at hospital.
Nurse Jenny wants a 30 minute strip from the monitor to show Pat Evans, midwife
so that we can ask for intermittent monitoring. I gave your gift basket and
card to the nurses. They loved it. (The bribe seemed to work!)
1:32 pm First vaginal exam by
Jenny 4-5 cm/95% effaced/-1 station. Really soft and stretchy 2nd nurse
Barbara came to help with paperwork 
2:10 am First dose antibiotics
because you are GBS+. You used the birth ball on the bed to be in a table-top
position- Arms and chest on ball, knees on bed.
3:20 Jeremy held you up before you went into the bathroom. You could
feel baby’s head moving around very low, you got scared it would get stuck in
your pelvis, but that’s where we want it!! 
3:33 am You wanted a vag exam. Nurse did vag exam, same: 4-5cm
While
dealing with contractions, you called out many times to Jeremy and me, “You
guys! You guys! It hurts. Real bad.” You liked me rubbing and massaging your
lower back with a rolling pin while you were on all fours or on your sides.
4:04 am While turning over so
Barbara could get you back on the monitor, your water broke! You held
Jeremy’s hand with excitement. "My water broke!"
5:00 am Contractions getting
more intense. You asked "Why is my face numb?" Barbara said you are
hyperventilating. 
5:10 am You asked Jeremy to give you a priesthood blessing to help you
calm down. He blessed you while you laid on the bed.
5:14 am You were getting very
tired and contractions are at a pain level 6 according to your “Pregnancy
Rictor Scale”. You decided to get a shot of Nubain to help take off the edge,
and nurse started your IV because you were getting dehydrated breathing so
hard. 
You asked us are we proud of
you? Yes, you have worked so hard, contractions under 7 minutes since 11 pm...
Contracting enough to lose sleep since Thursday! 
5:45 am You felt like the
Nubain was starting to wear off. I told you it might just be that the
contractions overall are getting more intense. You told me you could tell you
were pushing without meaning to do it. 
5:52 am Barbara vaginal exam 7
cm, head is really low, that's the pressure you feel. Don't push because you
have a swollen bit of cervix in the front, so lie on your sides 
6:00 am You admitted you
realized you were pushing a bit, so I called Barbra to tell her you were
involuntary pushing 
6:07 am "I do not like
cats, I just want you to know. I don't want them around me!" The narcotic
made you say funny things! 
6:19 am You still feel pushy, Barbara
does another exam. 8 cm/0 station, still have a swollen bit in front, very thin
in back. You said pain was really intense, you wanted more Nubain, but nurses
can’t give you until after 2 hours from the first dose. You asked about getting
an epidural. We said “if that’s what you want.” You said, “But then I have to
have that needle in my spine!” and Jeremy reminded you about the catheter and immobility.
I reminded you about baby’s alertness at birth being affected.
6:30 am You said you wanted an epidural. I encouraged you to try
getting in the shower first. You were afraid of getting cold, but Jeremy
assured you we would keep you warm. You got in the shower with Jeremy
supporting you, where you totally relaxed. Nurses made me promise I wouldn’t
let you deliver in the shower. 
6:45 am Still in the shower. You were able to get through most
contractions without moaning or hyperventilating. You banged on the wall a few
times, trying not to push during contractions.
7:12 am Out of shower (40 minutes total). You asked for a second dose of Nubain. New nurse Stephanie checked
you on hands and knees 9 cm/90%/+1. You were too progressed to get the Nubain.  
7:23 am Flipped you over to your back, had you try to push, you did
great. During a contraction, nurse moved your cervix out of the way to put you
at 10 cm. Nurse said you can keep pushing! 
7:30 am You turned
onto hands and knees. Midwife Dee Anne Gray came to ask if she can deliver your
baby. Later, we found out she was being proctored by Annette Mcconaughy. Gray
was returning to midwifery after some time in the ministry.
7:46 am "Am I even talking to you guys?" we all enjoyed that
question! You begin pushing. First couple of pushes, you didn’t realize that
you were breathing out through the push. We told you to hold your breath. You
did great!
7:50 am You said it feels good to push and doesn't hurt as much when you can push. Pep talk from midwife about pushing “We don't need to coach you
to push, I'm hands off, and will let you do your thing. Go with what your body
is telling you to do.” You asked, "Can you see it yet?" “No, but we
see you bulging!” 
7:58 am You continue to push during each
contraction (on your back), and then zoning out and sleeping in between contractions. You ask
Jeremy to keep stroking your hair. He also helps hold up your left leg during contractions.
8:20 am Baby’s heart rate is low, so midwives asked you to take a few
contraction breaks from pushing. You got supplemental oxygen. This was repeated
a few times more. 
8:25 am De Anne rubs her finger inside the birth canal, pushing the
cervix out of the way from the baby’s head. You say “Oh, that feels really
good. Keep doing that!!” De Anne laughed because she’s never heard a response
like that before!
8:37 am Mirror brought for you to see the progress per your request. We
can see head and a curl on baby’s hair. It stayed outside after you pushed this
time! 
8:40 am De Anne asks you to change sides so they can get a better
reading of baby’s heart rate. You take a break between two contractions to let
baby’s heart rate go up. You push while looking in the mirror and seem to get
distracted. De Anne says you push better when you look at the ceiling. 
8:45 am During contractions, you are able to get 3 good pushes. One
time, you only pushed twice, and De Anne asked “Can you do one more?” You
replied “No!” She laughed and said “Okay, you’re in charge.”
8:50 am OB Dr. Lee comes in to watch. She had just delivered a baby by C section. Jeremy thought they
said that you were at risk to go into a C section, but he just misunderstood.
9:05 am Annette takes a look at the history of baby’s heart rate to see
what the baseline is. You ask “What’s wrong?!” She replies, “Nothing is wrong,
we are just trying to find the baby’s baseline. You’re doing great!” Annette
asked if they could do internal monitoring to get better reading on baby’s
heart rate. You strongly said no, not in your birth plan.
9:12 am You continue bulging. You ask how many pushes it will take
before the head is out. De Anne guesses 5 good pushes. 5 pushes later, head is
so close, but still not out. You push through several more contractions. 
9:30 am Baby’s heart rate still low. Both midwives and OB recommend
episiotomy to get baby out. You were disappointed, but agreed for his sake. 
9:41 am BIRTH! 
You screamed extremely loud
when the head came out. The chord was around his neck twice (Nuchal chord times
2!). APGAR Score 8/9. Baby placed on your chest immediately. Chord was allowed
to continue pulsating before being clamped. Jeremy was very sweet and got
emotional. “I can’t stop crying!” he said. You said you were too exhausted to
cry.
9:45 am Placenta delivered. De Anne proceeded to stitch you up. You and
Jeremy talked to the baby, kissed each other and baby over and over. Every few
moments, you were distracted by the stitches “Have you started stitching me
yet?” “Eeek. I can feel that!” “How many stitches have you done so far?” “I can
feel the string tugging on me.”
10:02 am Midwives and nurses leave you to be alone with Little One. You got emotional when thanking all of the midwives, Jeremy and me for our help. De Anne congratulated you and also got emotional. She said, “I was touched very much by this birth." 
We attempted to have baby
latch on to breastfeed, but he seemed more interested in resting. Poor little
guy went through a lot!
At this time, you and Jeremy
sing “I Am a Child of God” to Little One. This was a very special moment for all 3
of you.  After singing, Jeremy held baby skin to skin on the
couch.
10:25 am Baby is weighed and measured. The remaining chord is cut closer
to his belly. He weighed 8 lbs exactly and was 19.5 inches long. Vaccine and
eye goop are administered. Nurses allow you and Jeremy to give Little One his
first bath per your request. Nurses helped you know what to do while bathing
and dressing. Jeremy put on baby’s first diaper and shirt!  
Wednesday, June 29- A full week from when this all began! You gave baby his
official name! Tanner David Zavoral.

Introducing Tanner David Zavoral

Announcing a late entry to the NBA draft!

Born Tues, June 28, 2011 at 9:41 am. Standing at 19.5 inches tall, weighing 8 lbs, with dark brown hair: Tanner David Zavoral!

Tanner is already a proven 'dribbler' and he wowed nurses at the combine by scoring a 9 on the APGAR test after having his cord wrapped twice around the neck.

Little Z and his mom proved they are clutch under pressure after 5 days of irregular contractions, 10 hours of labor, and 2 hours of pushing. SarahLynn did a fantastic job through the entire process, and accomplished her goal to have the baby without an epidural.

Details about birth and baby's first week of life coming soon!