Friday, July 04, 2008

Callen Mark has arrived


Callen Mark came into this world yesterday (July 3) at 8:57 am. He was 8 lbs. 12 oz, and 21 1/2 inches long. And very good looking much like his father.

What happened

Mandy was admitted to the hospital to "jump start" the process. We were one of 9 couples having a baby. It was a very busy night for the nurses. Mandy was given something for her cervix which was 2 cm. dialated. The side effect of this was severe cramps. At 2am the nurse came in the checked. She was already at 7 cm. And she announced Mandy was in active labor. This wasn't obvious because of the cramping.

I got up and thought..."this is it!"
2nd thought: "what do I do...I don't remember what I am supposed to do!"
3rd thought: "don't freak out, don't freak out".

Everything progressed rather rapidly. We had not expected the medication to knock her into labor. The doctor broke the water at 4, and then did another procedure to "finish out the cervix" at 5am. This is when the pushing began. The doctor said "now the work starts".

"What?" (my thoughts again) "work....what are you talking about? This is what we have been doing. You are supposed to be bringing us the baby now."

Mandy did so good! She really pushed long and hard. It was very very exhausting for her. She did this without any meds. We were trying to go as natural as possible. Mandy even at one point in between contractions was able to give me a nice smile. But later, 7ish, she was so tired, she would fall asleep during the 20-30 seconds of rest. At 8am Dr. Beer (see pic) came in and checked.

"If he wasn't coming out, we were going in to get him"
Although Callen had made progress, it appeared he had stopped moving out. Perhaps his size, or the pelvic shape, or something, but we were at a wall. It looked like it would be a much longer time before he would be delivered. Given Mandy's exhaustion after over 3 hours of active pushing, we opted to have a c-section. This went well. I watched the whole procedure. (which is not for the faint!) It took only about 5-10min. for Callen to be removed from Mandy.

I went with our little man to the nursery and realized something....he was bright blue!

"don't freak out, don't freak out"

All is well that ends well
The doctor and nurse took care of the situation and soon he was responding and a more natural color came over his face and chest. I was able to spend some alone time with him. We were not quite sure what the name was yet, so I took the time to try our favorites out on him. I don't think he understood this because he started to cry. But it was a beautiful cry.

So they got Mandy stiched up and in and then out of recovery. We have got him to Mandy for a late night snack and even breakfast and lunch this morning. We have had some visitors. Mandy's folks, my folks, and others.
Thank you to everyone who prayed. Thank you for thinking of us. We will be in the hospital until Sunday so Mandy can heal up some more. We look forward to sharing Callen with you.





p.s. If he had been born the on the fourth I think a patriotic came would have been in order....I think something like.... George Jefferson.

18 comments:

Nicole said...

Oh my gosh he's SOOOO cute! Congratulations! Sounds like Mandy was a trooper...I'll be praying for a good recovery. Blessings to all three of you - such wonderful news of new life today.

Hollie Allen said...

Yippeee! Way to go Mandy! He is soooo handsome!

We will visit when you are home and have had some good rest.

Love,

The Allen Family

thestember5 said...

He's gorgeous! Congratulations! That sounds a lot like what happened w/ Sam at the end there... I totally understand what she went through and am praying for quick recovery!!! Praise God for new life!

Catie said...

He is just soooo handsome! God's amazing creation!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Mandy and Mark! Callen is so handsome! We are keeping ya'll in our prayers.

Love you,
Uncle Pete, Aunt Reba, Cole, and Kelly

Mentanna said...

he's beautiful mandy. i am so happy for you guys!

Jack and Sheryl said...

Adorable! Congratulations! I'm so glad you opted for the c-section after three hours of pushing. I also pushed for three hours with Klaire, and let me encourage you that my labor with Ava was three hours TOTAL! :) He's so cute! Way to go, Mandy! We'll be praying for you.

Deanna said...

Congratulations! He is so cute! Try to rest as much as you can and enjoy your little one. The first few weeks go by so quickly.

Rmomof3 said...

CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU ALL! You have been on my mind ever since Monday! Welcome to sweet Callen Mark! He is adorable! I just knew it was a girl! LOL! I am sorry to say we know NOTHING of boys here at ATH. I was sad to hear she had to have a c-section after trying to go natural - but then we KNOW A LOT about those here too (under much the same scenario you described). One doctor I visited with before H-Bear said "Trying to go natural is almost a sure sign of a c-section!" Get lots of rest while you can Mandy! Congrats again - to your little "firecracker!" I think July 3rd is close enough for that cute nickname - don't you? Sweet blessings to you all! Enjoy your blessing!
Renee, Daniel and The ATH Blessings

Tiffany said...

Wow! What a joy to see this precious little man, and good work Mandy! Treasure every moment. I can't wait to meet him in person one day. Love, Tiffany

Christi said...

I am so happy for both of you! He looks really good - Mandy, you must have been feeding him good, Girl! I know you guys will not be getting much sleep over the next several months but hopefully soon, we can connect. Love you all!

Elaine said...

Congratulations!!! Callen is just gorgeous. I hope that I get to meet him someday!

joel and courtney said...

Cute cute cute! We just love him ... AND you guys! Congrats again!

Anonymous said...

He is so beautiful! I am so happy for you guys. I will be praying for you all. Make sure that Mandy doesn't over do it, even when she starts to feel better.

Love-Micca, Dale, and Kamron

Mandi said...

Mandy - he's amazing!!! Many many congrats, I'm SO proud of you! You worked long and hard for him and he is SO worth it!! Awwww, seriously he is so sweet!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Congrats guys! Yall picked a wonderful name and you have a beautiful son. I'll be praying for you and your new addition. Tara E. Hammett

The Massons said...

yay!!!!! congratulations mandy and thanks for posting to quickly!!!!! he is sooo cute and i'm not just saying that! :)

Kristie Johnson said...

Well the Johnson girls are chomping at the bit to get to Iowa and see Mr. Callen. He is so precious and beautiful. I do have a free SW ticket...let me know if you need any help...wink, wink! Enjoy this time...the next thing you know you'll have a preteen! Please move here and help me with my preteen!