Three pregnancies couldn’t have been more different, but for Lyndsay Hoog, the delivery experience at Ste. Genevieve County Memorial Hospital was the same.

In 2010, Lindsay was 21, very nervous and ready to deliver her first son, Dayton.

“I had the first time jitters for sure, but it was probably the best pregnancy experience you could ever have,” she explained. “I did a water birth and had a short labor. The nurses were awesome and helped me through everything. I had questions out the wazoo and they answered every one of them. It was a great first-time experience.”

In 2018, baby number two, Brenner, was on the way.

“We had some issues getting pregnant, and once I finally got pregnant, it was little on the high risk side, but I wanted to stay with Ste. Gen Hospital,” said Lyndsay. “I knew I would be taken care of here. The labor was a little more intense and I wasn’t able to do the waterbirth, which I really wanted to do. I got a little emotional about that. But the nurses kept telling me ‘Lindsay, you’re a rock star and you can do this. It doesn’t matter how he gets here as long you’re both safe and healthy.’ I needed an epidural and was super nervous, but the CRNA walked me through everything and before I knew it, it was done. I felt comfortable in their hands.”

In April 2019, baby number three, Reegan, was about to come into the world.

“That labor was horrible, I hated every minute of it,” she said. “I thought the third baby would be quick, but I was in labor almost 24 hours. I went through the whole team of nurses. When it came time to deliver, I was starting to get weak and not focusing. There were a few scary moments, but everyone here stayed calm and didn’t add to my stress. They kept talking calmly to me.”

To divert her attention, the nurses asked Lyndsay to do a practice push.

“Stop, stop, stop, they yelled,” Lyndsay recalls. “What do you mean stop? They said they had to get Dr Lam NOW. My relatives heard them calling for Dr. Lam all the way down the hall. He came flying into the room with that great smile of his and it wasn’t seconds after he put his gloves on that he said to push and there he was.”

Now it was time to relax, but baby Reegan had another idea. He needed some attention as well as a little oxygen, enough to raise the caution lights in Lyndsay’s mind.

“I was starting to freak out a little, but the nurses said all was fine, he was ok,” she explained. “I didn’t even question it. I trust them all so much. They really know what they’re doing.”

To put icing on the cake, Reegan’s entrance was the 200th baby born in the hospital’s 2018-2019 fiscal year, a moment that Lyndsay and dad Brent were happy to celebrate along with the hospital.

“The staff made delivering Reegan very comforting and easy to handle,” Lyndsay said. “This last pregnancy, especially, was a little more emotional, but Dr. Lam, who delivered all of my babies, and Kelly Donze, too, were always able to calm me down and talk things out. I never left any doctor visit with unanswered questions. I always felt great when I left.”