The Beadle Family: Jackson Mitchell has arrived!

I am thrilled to announce that our little bundle of joy has made his grand entrance. We were originally scheduled to be induced on Tuesday, August 27th, but when we went in for our last OB appointment on Thursday, August 22nd my doctor decided we should go ahead with the induction. Jackson had previously been breached (head-up) at our last appointment so when my doctor saw that he was no longer breach, she decided it would be best to induce earlier to avoid him flipping over again. We were admitted into the hospital at 10:30 am on August 22nd and we started the induction around noon on that day. Jackson was still very high up in my uterus and I had barely dilated 1 cm, so we got my IV in and started the pitocin drip (the drug used to induced labor). Since we were starting from what they call "scratch", it was going to be a very long labor. I was still positive and hopeful that we would have him before midnight...yeah, not so much. The contractions didn't really start to get strong until after my water was broken at around 6 pm. Within an hour or so I received my epidural and settled in for a LONG night. After a very long labor (17-18 hours to be precise) we were finally ready to have the baby. At 5:10 am or so the labor and delivery nurse came in to check my progress and we were at 10 cm. She had me begin to push and sure enough it was time. She called the other nurses and my doctor and it was go time. I was mentally and physically exhausted after such a long labor, but also extremely excited to meet my new little boy. After about 6 or 7 pushes and less than 10 minutes Jackson made his debut. Jackson was born at 5:23 am on August 23rd, weighing in at 6 lbs. 12 oz. and measuring 18.5 inches long. I anxiously waited to hear him cry and when I did it was music to my ears. He was beyond perfect and I was overjoyed that I was able to experience the "Golden Hour" with him. That is the first hour after birth that mama and baby get to spend together before they take him to the nursery to check him out and clean him up. I was unable to experience that with James because he had come out with the cord around his neck and he wasn't breathing, so he had been whisked away to the NICU immediately. It was such a wonderful bonding time and I am absolutely in love all over again. Here are some of Jackson's first pictures as he came into the world:

My first time holding my little guy

My precious baby boy

After our "golden hour" Jackson was taken away to the nursery to be cleaned up and checked out. We got some rest and waited to be taken to our postpartum room. Once in our new room we anxiously awaited for Jackson to be brought to our room. That was when we found out he was placed in the transitional nursery, which is where they are taken before they are admitted to the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). His oxygen levels were a little lower than they liked so they wanted to keep an eye on him. I was devastated and beyond scared for my little boy. It was like when we had James all over again. We went to visit him in the transitional nursery and they said he was looking better but they wanted to keep him there for a few hours to make sure everything was good. We were thrilled when he was brought in to our room a few hours later. The next couple days were nothing but a whirlwind. Since it has been nearly 5 years since we had a newborn, it was as if it was our first time with a newborn baby. We are so overjoyed with the new addition to our family and although it has definitely been a difficult transition, it is most definitely worth all of the short tempers and sleepless nights. I can't wait to watch him grow into a little boy and enhance our wonderful family that much more.