Introducing Ethan Michael Wheeler! (1/6/09)

January 6, 2009 - The day our wishes came true! All the excitement and anticipation lead to one perfect little boy! We are so in love! We are thrilled to introduce our precious son, Ethan Michael Wheeler. Ethan arrived at 11:51am on 1/6/09. He weighed 8lbs, 13oz and was 20 1/2" long.

Ethan's Birth Story
At 4:30pm on Monday, January 5th, Mike and I checked into Saint Josephs Hospital to be induced. I was only 1.5 cm at the time. I was given Pitocin at 6pm and waited 2 hours until my second dose. At 11pm contractions began to get stronger about 4-5 on scale. Still only at 3.5cm dilated. Ethan's heartbeat was strong at 130 average. At midnight my water broke and contractions got progressively stronger until 1:15am. They were about a 7-8 on a pain scale. At this point, I could not longer bare the pain and asked for an epidural. At 2:05am , I got the epidural. Serious blessing because the pain went away within minutes. I got a bladder catheter at 2:30am and the contraction monitor at 2:40am. I was only 4cm dilated at that time. I finally fell asleep with the help of Ambien at 2:45am. The nurse said Ethan was more active and he had dropped into position. I got another dose of Pitocin at 2:50am and slept until 4:40am. The nurse increased my dosage of the epidural at 5:00am because I was started to feel the pain again, a 3-4 on a pain scale. An epidural is a crazy feeling. My legs were totally numb; I could not feel a thing. When I wanted to turn to my side, I couldn't move my legs-Mike moved them. At one point I asked Mike to pick my leg up and move it a bit, I didn't know he already was holding onto my leg. I slept again from 5:05am - 5:40am. Dr Sheen came in to check my status and I was still only at 4cm. From that point until 9:30 was fogging. I don't recall too much. I remember the nurse telling me I was 7cm dilated. About 40 minutes later my pain skyrocketed; I felt like I needed to push. Mike called the nurse in and I was 10cm dilated. The nurse could not believe I dilated so fast. I started to push with Mike, Karen and my Mom at my side. They were such a great support team. They always encouraged me and kept me focused. It was wonderful having them there. After much pushing and little progress the nurse determined that Ethan was stuck on my pelvic bone. Luckily Dr Sheen was able to rotate him. I was in active labor for 2 hours and pushed for 45 minutes. It was so exhausting! And yes, all the exhaustion and pain goes away the second you see your perfect little baby.

Auntie Karen made Ethan his first birthday cake. It was so sweet! The nurses commented that she was the first one they ever saw bring a birthday cake in the delivery room. The cake was delicious and everyone loved it. Thank you again Karen!


Day 2 - Still a little bruised from labor.


Ethan's going home outfit.


Day 2 - In Grandma's arms


Ethan's Proud Family