Baby Boy Marshall

The child has come. I am making a guest appearance to give a quick run-down of how the boy came into the world earlier today. I'm sure Lorel will have some commentary later.

Friday, March 26 at 11:10 pm, Lorel had gone to bed while I stayed up to study. Suddenly Lorel shouted for me to come into the bedroom, as her water had broken. I quickly confirmed this fact by stepping in a puddle next to the bed while attempting to inspect the sheets themselves. We got some things things ready, dropped Ella off at the home of kindly neighbors, and got to the hospital (Martha Jefferson) around midnight.

Before I move on, I'd like to remind everyone that although Lorel and I are not first-time parents, this was our first time with Lorel going into labor, etc., as Lorel had a C-section last time around. So we had no idea what to expect in any of this, as Lorel was going for a "VBAC."

Here's Lorel pre-gaming it, while she could still manage a smile.

Lorel will undoubtedly give the definitive account of what happened between midnight and having the boy Saturday the 27th at 4:06 pm. But here's my brief summary:

When Lorel was asked how much her contraction pains hurt on a scale of 1-10 when we first arrived, she said 7. Two hours later, we had to readjust the scale - "If what you are feeling now is a 10, what was the contraction you said was a 7 earlier?" "A zero."

Eventually Lorel got an epidural (about 6am), which seemed to be her #1 priority about 30 minutes into labor. However, the epidural only worked on half of her body, so this was re-done a few hours later.

Lorel began pushing around 2pm, and after about an hour the epidural wore off again and Lorel started saying that it hurt so bad that she just wanted a C-section, etc. Plus the baby wasn't progressing. But after some pain killing reinforcements and an hour's rest, Lorel went for it again (apologizing repeatedly to the doctor and nurse for what she considered to be outbursts earlier).

With about an hour more of work, and a little help from a vacuum, the deed was done.

Love at first sight.

7 lbs., 7 oz. I wouldn't say he was photogenic yet at this point, but he was getting there.

As for a physical description, his thick dark hair stands out. His head is misshapen on the top back from the pushing and sucking, but that will go away. He has full lips. It seems funny, but he already looks different from when he was right out. Reports say that he looks like me, but I don't see that sort of stuff in babies.

Father and son.

Ella "holding" her little brother for the first time.

Ella, my parents, and Lorel's parents were all able to come in about 45 minutes after the birth. Ella was very excited and kept saying "baby brother."

My dad and his new grandson.

This is grandchild number 11 for my parents and 10 for the Rainocks.

First new family picture.

Beauty queen and child.

Affectionate big sister.

We feel very blessed to have a healthy boy and that everything went so well. Lorel's endurance was a real inspiration and I'm super proud of her. Ella is also doing great.

The greatest frustration in all of this is that we keep on referring to the child as "the boy," "baby boy," and the like. We're still working on a name and aim to have one tomorrow at the latest. Now that we have seen him we have some more to think about.

Thanks all for your support; more pictures and updates are to come in the next few days.