In fact, the build up to the great day started one day earlier when Jen started having contractions at around noon while munching on salad and breadsticks at the Olive Garden with Dana. She left work at around 2pm and started timing the contractions. She called me and said that I may want to think about wrapping things up at work, but no need to hurry too much. She then called about 30 minutes later saying I should probably leave work and come home...
We timed the contractions the remainer of the day until they were consistently between 3 and 5 minutes apart for around 3 hours. Then around 10:30pm it was time to go to the hospital!
Jen called her parents and sister in Houston and they started their drive to Austin fearing they would not make it in time for the birth. Little did we all know that there was no need to hurry since she would be in labor all night long and most of the next day. A little after 4pm on Thursday, August 18, it was finally time to start pushing, and at 4:55pm little Luke made his grand entrance into the world!
Luke Allen Svoboda
Weight 7 lbs 10 oz
Length 20 1/4 inches
His birth was even more exciting for me because I got to deliver him! I had discussed this with the doctor a few times during the pregnancy and the doctor said that if everything was progressing ok that she would let me participate, maybe by placing my hands over hers as the baby was coming out. But when the time arrived and the head was crowning she said, "Alright Louis, come on down here. The baby should be born on the next push. Go ahead!" So all by myself I put my hands on his head and as his shoulders came out I put my fingers under his little armpits and pulled him out and placed him on Jen's chest. I then took a peek and announced "It's a boy!!!" We had not found out the baby's sex ahead of time so this moment was extra exciting. Then, almost anticlimactically, I got to cut the cord. Who needed a doctor?! It was such an amazing experience.
Examining the goods
Cute!
