Our Story

We've waited a little bit to do this:

David's Story so far
We found out He was coming in Dec, right before Christmas.
Ultrasound said he was a healthy little boy in April, we named him David Alban.
David was both of our dad's name and both have passed away.
Alban is a family name on my side. My Great-grandfather was Alban Flower,
Grandfather Robert Alban
Uncle William Alban
Me-Geoffrey Alban
David Alban

Alban was the first Christian martyr of England c. 206AD, think Albany N.Y. St. ALban's church, etc.

Fast forward to August 18, his due date...nothing. By this time Lorie's body wasn't changing much to have this boy. Monday the 22nd, we had an ultrasound done to check on him and Lorie. The blood flow to the uterus was starting to fail and the fluid was low. The doc sent her home on bed rest and we were to come back on Wednesday for a followup and top see if David would come on his own. Wednesday morning we both had the idea that the Dr. would send us top the hospital. The ultrasound said things weren't any better. The first words out of her mouth when she walked into the exam room: "We're gonna have a baby today!" The doctor wanted to make sure that David wasn't in any danger because the placenta was starting to fail.

Lorie was wheeled across the street while I got the car moved. I found her in the delivery room. She had a birth plan, labor without drugs until she's halfway dilated then epidural and deliver vaginally. She was in the hospital bed at 11am. David passed the non-stress test with flying colors so we could proceed with an induced labor. She was given a pill to relax her cervix at noon, and by 12:30 she was starting contractions. Problem was that it was a very slow go. She was given the drug twice, 4 hours apart. By 11pm she had only progressed 2 cm, normal progression is 1 cm per hour. The contractions were coming fast all day, 1:30-3:30 minutes apart and getting more intense. We decided to get the epidural so she could sleep and get ready for the pushing. It took 4 sticks, 3 in one spot that wouldn't cooperate and finally the last in another area that was perfect. She could still move and control her legs, but the waist was numb. She got to sleep a bit for the rest of the night. Some time after that her water broke, but we didn't notice it. Around 2 am the nurse was in the room getting ready to hang the Pitocin and get the labor really moving. Lorie shifted positions and David's heart rate took a nosedive! That got everyone into high gear, except me. I was out getting a snack and didn't have a clue until after the fact. The crash OB C-section team was called. They have a doctor at the hospital ready to pull the baby from the womb if necessary. They can have him out in 90 seconds! Fortunately the nurse was able to push David around the womb until he came back. When that happens, it's usually because he rolled over onto his cord and pinched it. Later whe'd find out that the cord was wrapped loose around his neck!

We proceed to labor through the night. After hearing about the scare, I can't keep my eyes off the monitor, thinking I'm willing the baby to be OK the rest of the night. Everyone slept but me. Come sunrise she's only 4 cm dilated and tiring out. We start to notice that her temperature is going up. At 9am the Doc says she'll give us another hour to dilate. Lorie and I had already discussed that a C-section was OK after all this labor. At 10am Lorie's temp was over 100 and it was time to stop. It really felt like a relief, to know the long night was over.

The epidural was pumped up, the belly was prepped and the doc was expected at 11:15am, she showed at 10:30 and said "Let's roll"! I got the whole smurfy outfit, beard cover and all. I joined Lorie in the operating room and at 11:05am August 25, 2005 David came out screaming! His feet hadn't cleared the womb when he wailed and peed on the doctor! His poor head had been stuck in the canal for hours and was swollen, but otherwise he was the most beautiful slimy thing I'd ever seen. The Dr. showed him to Lorie over the curtain, then handed him to the nurse to clean up and check out. All was well, 10 long finger and 2 big feet with Monkey Toes! I went back to Lorie's side, kissed her and saw what the doctor was doing, checking her out on the inside. Everyone was worried about daddy fainting but I was fascinated! The Dr. said Lorie's insides were beautiful and healthy. I saw her uterus, the opening and the placenta. I was fine, just glad that my wife and baby were going to be OK. I was the kind of kid that walked around the classroom on frog dissection day holding the lungs for all the squeamish to admire. I hate to see people in pain, I don't care about blood. (I was a butcher's assistant at Kroger's a long time ago)

I walked my son to the nursery, saw him weighed 7lbs, 14.5 oz, and measured at 21in long. A fine boy by all accounts. I took pictures and trusted the nurses to take care of him. I needed to check on my wife.