Birth Story...Sorry it's forever long

Hi everyone! It's been awhile since I blogged...thank you dear sweet husband for taking over for me. I figured it was time to say a few words and record what happened during labor and delivery. Before I get to that though, I want to document the differences in pregnancy because there were MANY.

Carson:
Severe nausea and lots of vomiting
Bad swelling
Linea Negra or whatever the line is called that runs down your belly
Easy 3rd Trimester
A little bit of spotting
Heartburn
Baby was a lot more active
Couldn't sleep
Water broke and went into labor 36.5 weeks
Group B strep positive
6 hour labor

Drake:
Nausea, but I only threw up once
Swelling that would come and go (I could walk it off, and drink it off with enough water)
No dark line
Incredibly difficult third trimester; I was SOOOO uncomfortable
Full on bleeding; thought I was miscarrying
Really bad heartburn
More mellow in the womb
Slept better
Labor began with contractions at 39.0 weeks
Group B strep negative...hooray
10 hour labor

Both:
Broke out
No stretch marks
Incontinence :)
Carried quite deep

Here goes the story:
Sunday the 30th of August I went on a little walk to try and pump some of the swelling out of my legs. I was more uncomfortable on that walk than normal. I was having painful "braxton hicks" that were slowing my walking pace more than usual. I decided to head home to tell Dave that if I kept walking I felt like I could put myself into labor, or, we could take it easy, stave labor off, get a good nights sleep and see what happens the next day.
Dave was really excited and thought I should keep walking, but I opted for rest. We packed our bags and went to bed. Sure enough; at 6:00 am I awoke with contractions. They were fairly mild and were about 3 minutes apart. I decided to go on a little walk to see what would happen. They got worse. I headed home, took a shower, ate breakfast and Dave and I left for the hospital.
We checked into the hospital at 9:20 where I was monitored for an hour. At the time of check in I was dilated to a 4 and 80% effaced. Contractions still weren't that bad. We walked around the halls for a bit but I decided that I would rather labor in the tub to see what that was like. Let me tell you... I like it A LOT. Over the next 4 hours I was in and out of the tub so they could continue to monitor the baby every now and again. All the progressing I did was in the tub. Labor was a lot slower than I was hoping for at that point so I had Dave give me a blessing and we decided that if I wasn't at a 6 by 1:00 that the doctor could break my water to get things moving. Sure enough, at 12:45 I was at a 6 so we decided to keep my bag of water intact. I got back into the tub and was QUICKLY at an 8 were I got stuck for TWO HOURS. They had me get out of the tub when I was at an 8 because they thought the baby was coming fast and wanted to be ready. Lying on the bed got me nowhere and I decided at that point I wanted an epidural.
They finally let me get back into the tub since I wasn't progressing, and I rapidly got to a 9. At that point, the doctor finally showed up, and we decided to break my water. This was also the point where I really wanted that epidural and didn't care how little time I had left. Well, after my water was broken, it took a single contraction to get me to a 10 and I was ready to push. From the doctor breaking my water until Drake arrived was a whopping 15 minutes so there was no time for that epidural I thought I really wanted. I have to back up a little though. When the doctor broke my water he said, "woah, there is a lot of meconium. We need to have a NICU team in here right away". Apparantly, Drake had had a couple bowel movements in the womb. He then told us that when I pushed the head out they didn't want the baby to breathe until all his airways had been cleared.
Pushing was a lot easier this time around. I knew I could get the baby out quickly however, the doctor wouldn't let me. The doctor had Drake at "crowning position" for a few contractions to try and stretch me out a little bit so I wouldn't tear as bad a last time. This was agonizing; all I wanted to do was push. Finally he said I could and I DID. Drake's head popped out along with quite a bit of meconium/amniotic fluid. I managed to spray all the nurses, the doctor, and even the ceiling. (I apologize if that is too graphic for you)
Drake's head was out for another contraction or two while they made sure his airways were clear. Fortunately, he had not aspirated any meconium. I was then able to complete the birthing process. This was the point that Dave got a little woozy; with Carson I pushed him out all at once and it was fast and there was no time to sit at notice all the gross things that can happen during labor. Drake gave Dave a little more opportunity to notice just how gooey, and purpleish/white, and bloody he was.
Drake Alvin Crockett made his grand entrance at 3:57 pm.
Despite the difficult labor (delivery wasn't that bad), everything was wonderful and we were both quite healthy. Drake weighed in at 8.15 but the doctor said he was 9 pounds before all the pooping.
Dave was a fabulous coach during all of this. The doctor and nurse even told him when it was done that he was the best coach they had seen in a while. He didn't hyperventilate this time and I didn't gouge him with my fingernails (he brought some clippers and cut my nails in between contractions). He kept me motivated and true to my goals for labor. Dave was perfect.
I only earned myself a 1st degree tear this time. It's been all the same if you ask me, I can't tell the difference between a 1st and 3rd degree. My recovery has been wonderful and almost easy. The pooch didn't go away quite as fast as the first time, but it is pretty much gone now. I feel great and Drake is a wonderful baby. He sleeps much better than Carson did so we are getting a little bit of sleep around here. He is still a newborn though :). He eats like a champ; just like Carson. In fact, Drake didn't lose any weight in the hospital if that tells you what a pig he is. He was a little jaundice but that went away without having to do billirubin lights. Other than that he has been nice and healthy. You can tell from the pictures he has a full head of dark hair just like Carson. He has finer features; his nails were super long, and he coloring is much darker. We are all healthy and happy and excited to see what the future holds for us.

p.s. I learned that I have an unusually and very deep uterus hence, the small baby belly (I will put a few pictures up) and horrible back labor.

p.p.s. I had the BEST nurse for labor. Her name was Tia and she deserves a gold star. She was helping me go natural and made me feel strong. I felt like she wanted for me to achieve what I wanted to, and not what was best for her schedule or most convenient. She even sent me a card in the mail a few days later to tell me good job. In Provo, I felt criticized for wanting to go sans epidural and like I was a number instead of a person. I hope that next time I can have a nurse just like Tia.