The day was February 27, 2021. We decided to go to the beach one last time before my due date (March 5th) since we didn’t know when we’d feel up to venturing out to the beach again after the baby came.
On the way to the beach we stopped in Petaluma for cheese from the creamery and to get sandwiches from Ray’s Delicatessen to take to the beach.
Once to the coast we settled on going to one of our favorite places Duncan’s Cove/Landing. It’s one of the spots on the Sonoma Coast that the beach is a short hike from the parking lot down a cliffside. We had our lunch, the boys played.
Several hours in, I needed a restroom but there wasn’t one at that spot. Tracy suggested I just take the car, go find one and come back but I didn’t really feel like hiking up and down the cliffside twice so I made everyone pack up and go. The hike back to the car was way harder than the hike down to the beach. I had to stop and rest a couple of times.
After my restroom stop, we headed towards home around 3:30pm. About 30ish minutes in I felt cramping but thought it might just be from the short hike. Still paid attention to it incase it was more. Tracy started talking about making a stop on the way home so I told him I didn’t think that was such a good idea since I might be in labor.
At this point we’re still about and 1 and half from home and another 20 minutes to the hospital in Sacramento I was registered at to give birth.
About an hour in so 4:30 I knew it wasn’t false labor and we needed to get home as soon as possible. I also started taking note of all the nearest Kaiser hospitals on route just in case. At 5:00 we’re still on the road home I called our friend who was going to be watching the boys to have her meet us at our house so we can send them with her and we could head on our way. She was out with her family, ironically in the town we just past. If only I had called her sooner... She said she’d head over right away.
5:30ish Tracy gets the boys in our apartment and ready to go once our friend arrives. He grabs my stuff and comes back to the car. While he was inside I phoned the hospital to let them know I’m in labor (contractions are now 3 minutes apart) and on my way.
The drive to the hospital went as smoothly as possible though I was a wreck. It was hard leaving the boys alone even though our friend would be there in less than 15 minutes.
At the hospital (6:00ish) I get checked in, hooked up and everyone is rushing to get things ready for baby. I’m in active labor and in immense pain. I don’t handle labor pain well at all. The idea of having another natural birth was terrifying. The nurses put in a call for an epidural. However, Sierra wasn’t handling the contractions well and they wanted to break my water to put in a internal heartbeat monitor. There was a possibility that once my water was broken, she’d be ready to come right then or her cord would lapse and we’d need immediate delivery or I’d progress past the point of an epidural being effective.
With the anesthesiologist on their way, it was decided I’d receive a shot of a medication (can’t remember the name) that would slow my labor so I could hopefully get an epidural and to relieve stress Sierra was under. My water was broken and the internal monitor placed. Thankfully Sierra wasn’t ready to come just yet but she still wasn’t handling the labor well because I wasn’t handling it well. It was all too much and adding in wearing my mask made it feel like it was suffocating me. It wasn’t but it felt like it was. My nurse suggested I switch to one of their surgical ones and it was much better than the one I was wearing.
Anesthesiologist arrived (7:30ish). By then my body was shaking uncontrollably, a fun reaction to the medication they gave me to slow my labor a bit. It was challenge holding still for the epidural but it was in and I was 100% better off with it. Sierra too but only if I laid in certain positions and sometimes I had to change to make her happy again. Still a possibility of C-section if she got worse.
With a couple of hours of rest and trying to keep Sierra’s heart rate stable it was time for her to come. The doctor arrived. She immediately was cracking jokes about how she better get fully covered because she senses I’m a gusher. She had me laughing a bit. I also apologized for leaving sand in the bed and she thought it was great that we came right from the beach.
One of the nurses who had been with me for the whole time had just went on break, her replacement was there. I mentioned how Beverly just left and was going to miss this and I was kind of bummed. I guess someone went and got her so she could be present. <3
Well, pushing commenced and the Dr still got me laughing so I basically push laughed Sierra out in just two contractions. After she was born the doctor said, “Sonia’s a great name.” You know her name. Lol. She had asked before what name we had chosen and we hadn’t decided on a name yet so naturally suggested her own. FYI: The doctor left as clean as she arrived. ;)
So at 9:41pm 12/27/2021 Baby Girl Thomson was born weighing 6lbs 12oz and 19” long. We finally settled on a name sometime the following day and named her Sierra Jovie. Sierra meaning mountain (strength and groundedness), Jovie meaning joyful (being a bright spot in our life right now and after all I did laugh her out).
