Anthon Rom Shumway

Born on June 13, 2013

6 lbs 3 oz, 18 in long

Anthon is such a wonderful and peaceful baby boy. We can't even express in words how happy we are that he is here with us and that he is healthy. He is such a handsome baby. What a blessing Anthon is to our family. I love all three of my children so much and feel so blessed that Heavenly Father entrusted all of them to me.

I really want to record Anthon's birth story, because it has been very different for me than it was when I was pregnant with and birthed the girls. Both of the girls were born at home and with both of them I had pretty normal and healthy pregnancies. With Anthon, in the first trimester, I was a lot more nauseous than I was when I was pregnant with the girls. I think I only threw up twice, but I just felt so unsettled in my tummy for a long time. I was also extremely tired. A big part of that was my own fault for not taking more naps during the day, which is hard to do with two other children under five to care for, and for getting to bed very late at night. Other than continuing to be very tired in the second trimester, I was feeling really great.

Anthon in the hospital shortly after he was born.

In the beginning of the third trimester I got a urinary tract infection. First one I've ever had in my life. It was awful! I was in a lot of pain. I tried some pretty aggressive home remedies to try to get rid of it, but it was just getting worse and worse. I was experiencing terrible chills and would then get drenched in sweat. I also had round ligament pain in my right side that was unbearable. My bladder was burning and I was just miserable. At that point it was time to go to the doctor. I was given antibiotics. Two shots in my behind. The nurse said as she was holding the needle, "This is going to hurt pretty bad and it will be sore for days." Nice! I was also given a prescription of antibiotics to take orally for ten days. It took a few days for the infection to clear and for me to start feeling better. Luckily, through all of it, Anthon was perfectly fine and doing well inside Mama's belly. I don't think I had ever been that sick in my entire life. It was the first time I had to take antibiotics in my entire life, as far as I can remember at least. But, I got over it and was feeling really great in no time.

Fanny holding Anthon in the hospital. Couldn't get Nora to sit still with him long enough to get a picture. We actually didn't take very many pictures at the hospital at all and most of the pictures that have been taken of Anthon have been on cell phones. So, sorry for the poor quality of some of these.

Daddy holding his sweet baby boy. We were all so tired!

So, I was feeling great and all was well. So well, that I think I overdid it a tad. I was mowing our lawn on the weekends, doing group preschool for Fanny, going on "field trips" with the girls, etc. Then there was a very late night grocery shopping trip that I decided to take that put me over the limit.  Just FYI, if you are in your third trimester of pregnancy and feeling really good, be careful not to overdo it!!! Especially right after you have been extremely sick. It was after that late night Wal-Mart trip that urinary tract infection number two hit! My body was just weak and very susceptible, not to mention trying to sustain a growing baby boy in my belly. I didn't know that what I had was a urinary tract infection, I just got super sick again and the pain in my side, the round ligament, was excruciating. Back to the hospital I went and I was put back on antibiotics. My wonderful Mother-in-law decided to come and get the girls and I and take us up to Wyoming so that I could rest and recover while she watched and took care of the girls. It was such a blessing.     

While in Wyoming I started feeling VERY itchy! Extremely itchy!! ALL over!!! I thought it was an allergic reaction to the antibiotic I was on. Then, just a day before we left I developed a nasty cough! Just when you think things can't get any worse, huh?! The day we were leaving to go back to Utah was Memorial Day and Fanny's birthday. We had a small party for her with family then packed up to come home. The urinary tract infection was gone, but the cough got worse. So bad that I ended up with bruised ribs. No joke, I was coughing so violently and taking big, deep breaths through my coughing just to get some air it was that awful. My midwife had determined that it was bronchial, but that I should go to the ER to see what they could do for the pain in my ribs and to relive the violent cough. Back to the hospital it was for the third time. They gave me some medicine for the cough and said there was nothing they could do for the bruised ribs. They also didn't put me on antibiotics because I definitely had bronchitis symptoms which meant it was viral and not bacterial, plus my lungs sounded great. They were concerned about the itching, though, and took some blood panels. OK, so this is the crazy part. When my blood work got back, just to top it all off because I wasn't suffering enough already, it turned out that my liver enzymes were out of control high!! This meant that I had a liver condition called Cholestasis. It only affects a small number of pregnant women and actually goes away soon after the baby is born. The problem with having Cholestasis is that the liver can't process bile acids correctly. If the bile acids get into the placenta, it could be harmful, even fatal to the baby. Those who have Cholestasis are put on medication to help relive the itching and are usually induced as soon as possible (usually between 36 to 38 weeks) to protect the baby. For some reason the closer you get to 40 weeks, the more likely the acids are to get to the baby. From the ER they sent me to the Labor and Delivery wing of the hospital to monitor the baby. Anthon was doing great. My blood pressure was perfect, too. They assigned me an OB/GYN, Dr. Lazernick. She was amazing! We were very blessed that she was the doctor who was assigned to me. I couldn't have picked a better OB/GYN myself. She said that it was still possible for me to have a home birth, but they wanted to closely monitor me to make sure. I was given a prescription for the Cholestasis and sent home with a follow up appointment scheduled in a couple days. The next day my bruised ribs were excruciatingly painful. I called Dr. Lazernick and she immediately called in a prescription to help with the pain so that I could get some rest. She also prescribed an antibiotic to make sure there was no bacteria infection associated with the bronchitis. After a few days of taking the antibiotic, there was still no relief from the coughing, so it was definitely all viral. I was just so weak and so tired at this point. It was hard to get rest and every time I coughed the pain in my rib was awful. I can't even tell you how blessed I felt to have people from my church and community help out. I was pretty much on bed rest and couldn't do anything, literally. Friends and church members helped out by watching the girls, bringing us meals, and even doing some housecleaning for us. That was hard for me. It is embarrassing to have someone else have to do things for you. It makes you want so much to do more for others, though. I don't know what I would have done without the help people gave us. What a HUGE blessing!! Joseph was wonderful through all of this, doing so much for our family by taking on both roles of provider and caretaker in the house. I love my husband dearly and am grateful for the man that he is, willing to care for the girls and clean and do whatever was necessary to keep our home and family in good condition.             

Some shots of the girls with Anthon. They ADORE him!! They always want to help our with diaper changes, baths, getting me things while I'm nursing him, etc. They are such good little mommies!

OK, so the story continues. During my follow up appointment with Dr. Lazernick, it was determined that I should be induced soon. Baby was still OK, but she didn't want to take any chances of my bile acid levels getting too high. I met with my AMAZING midwife, Camille, later that day and it was determined that because of where my liver enzyme levels were at, it wasn't even possible to have a home birth anyway. Camille, with her wonderful apprentice, Becky, both said they would be more than happy to be my doulas in the hospital. This was on Monday, June 10th. My induction was scheduled for Monday, June 17th (37 and a 1/2 weeks). The thought of an induction really scared me, but I felt very comforted in the fact that I would be in the hospital. I had a very spiritual experience that greatly comforted me and helped me know that I was meant to have Anthon in the hospital and not at home like I originally wanted. I kind of figured that I would end up with an epidural because I couldn't take any more pain, but a huge part of me still wanted to go natural like I did with the girls. Here comes the miraculous part of the story... On June 12th, the day Joseph's sister, Sarah, arrived to help us out, Anthon decided it was time to come into the world. That afternoon I started experiencing early signs of labor. Around 4:00 p.m. my contractions were pretty regular. It was time to go to the hospital. I didn't have to be induced!! Joseph and I went in, and Sarah stayed with the girls at home. It was such a blessing that she got there that day. Because I went in at night they told me that the doctor on call would be the one to deliver the baby and it wan't Dr. Lazernick. I told the nurse that I REALLY wanted her to be there because she knew me and knew my situation. The nurse said she would call Dr. Lazernick, but typically the doctor on call does it, so not to expect Dr. Lazernick to come in. When the nurse came back she said she talked to Dr. Lazernick and that she would come in to deliver. WOW! Seriously, I love this woman! She was willing to come in when she wasn't even on call because she knew how nervous I was and how hard it had been for me. She also knew about my condition and is also super supportive of natural births. Camille and Becky soon showed up at the hospital and were just amazing! Their support was so much more than I could have ever asked for. There is no way I could have done it without them. If you are reading this, THANK YOU Camille! I love and appreciate you and all your love and support more than I could ever express in words. Camille was there for both of the girls' birthings. She is a wonderful midwife and was a perfect doula for me in the hospital. Becky was wonderful, too. So supportive and caring. What a blessing it was to have them both there.     

Peaceful boy! Several times when I was praying for Anthon while pregnant with him, or while I was thinking about him the word "peaceful" came to my mind. I would also have thoughts that he has an incredible mission here on earth and that he would bring such feeling of peace into our home. It is true! He is such a peaceful baby.

Now for the birthing part of the story. Remember that I was in A LOT of pain from coughing so violently and having bruised ribs, plus feeling extremely itchy all over from the Cholestasis. I think Anthon knew, and my body knew that I couldn't take much, but that natural birth was really important to me. I think this because my contractions were so spread out. They would come anywhere from five to even ten minutes apart and were still early phase contractions. Yet, I was progressing and dilating. This went on for a LONG time, but I had so much time between contractions to recover and rest that it was actually relaxing and comforting for me. It also gave me time when I would cough hard and my ribs would hurt so bad, to regain my strength for the next contraction. Anthon was in perfect position, but he wasn't moving around or reacting when I would have a contraction at first. The nurse wasn't trying to rush anything and offered some juice to see it would get him moving. That didn't work, so we tried an I.V. to get fluids in me. Eventually he started responding and moved with every contraction. At some time, early in the morning of the next day, June 13th (exactly 37 weeks, three weeks early, his due date was on July 4th), I was finally dilated to an eight and Dr. Lazernick came in. Contractions picked up and started to get a bit painful. Everyone was wonderful at this point trying to help ease the pain and Dr. Lazernick was supportive of me being in any position that I felt comfortable in. I was getting to the point where I wanted something to ease the pain, but I was so close to the end they said by the time they got it in me it would be over. Dr. Lazernick suggested breaking my water and Camille, bless her, assured me that I should. It was just what I needed to get closer to Anthon being born. I was in A LOT more pain, but he slid down so much further and before long I was ready to push. The most "comfortable" position for me was standing in a supported squat. I was holding onto a chair and Camille and Joseph were one either side of me. Pushing was super painful and burned so much, but with a few good pushes Anthon was out (this was at 7:51 a.m.)! Dr. Lazernick was right there on the floor ready to catch him. Pretty cool for a doctor to be willing to do that! They brought him right up to me so that I could hold him and I was able to get on the bed and finally relax with my sweet baby boy in my arms.   

Anthon smiles so much in his sleep. He has even given some wide awake smiles already. Only a couple days after he was born I was looking at him with a smile on my face and he was looking at me wide eyed and gave me the biggest, cutest smile ever!

Well, that is most of the story. The rest isn't as climactic, just had to stay in the hospital one more day. Joseph and I were SUPER tired, but it is hard to get rest in the hospital. The bed was so uncomfortable! Plus, I still had and awful cough and bruised ribs. My bronchitis is going away now. I'm still coughing, but not as violently and my ribs don't hurt as much, although they are still pretty sore. I have more energy, but still not 100 percent yet. I'm getting there, though. The Cholestasis is gone! No more itching, yay!! Camille came to check up on us a few days after we were back from the hospital. She said that my birthing story with Anthon was one for the record books. She told me that I was amazing and incredible. She was so impressed with the strength I had and the way I kept going and didn't give up even when it got so hard there at the end. This made me feel so good. I'm so glad she was my midwife/doula! I know people probably think I'm crazy for wanting to go natural and are wondering why I didn't just go for an epidural, but I'm so happy with the way it all turned out. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect birthing experience. I know that my Heavenly Father and Savior were with me and that through them I received the strength I needed. Anthon is perfect and we are so grateful that he is a part of our sweet family. 

 I love this adorable baby boy more than words can express!