Renn’s Angel

When they said Renn’s debut would be December 25, 2023, we began to make plans. Tarrah & RJ live about eight hours north of us and we didn’t want them to be alone for the birth. As it would turn out, and to continue until this day, Renn had a different plan.

Tarrah began having contractions on December 13 at about 5 am. They continued to increase until she was admitted to Providence Saint Joseph Hospital in Eureka, California at 9:30 am. Little did she know that her contractions would last for a whopping 36 hours.

The delivery became complicated because of the length of time and because both Tarrah’s and Renn’s heart rates were intermittently decelerating. The medical team experimented with placing Tarrah in various positions to elevate the discomfort both were having. They tried placing Tarrah on her left side, then on her back, then on her right side and even on her hands and knees. They thought perhaps the gravity for Renn would offset the pressure on both.

There were doctors coming in and out of the room. The ultrasound found that Renn’s arms were up in a boxing position. By now, the epidural had worn off. Simply put, Renn was stuck in the birth canal and Tarrah was exhausted, fading in and out of consciousness.

As the situation became dire, more and more medical staff filed into the room. Towards the end, there were about 12–15 staff, with about…