To Do: Have a Baby (No Biggie)

So, what did you do after Christmas?  I had a baby!  

"Mateo" has arrived...and it's such a relief to be able to call him by his real name, Parker.  

Ok, so it took me 34 years to be convinced that I could do this.  And the fear never really went away.  I just knew I had to deal with it.  I've told you before, but my pregnancy was so good all 9 months.  I thought for sure that meant I was doomed and would definitely be telling you my labor horror story. (What?  People tell pregnant women those? )  But...I'm not going to be one of those moms.  Nope, because my labor was good too.  Well, thanks to my epidural.  Ah, that stuff is just amazing!!  

I have to say, I was a little giddy that my water broke on it's own.  I'm now one of those 10%.  While I was 2 days past my due date, I still was a little shocked when it happened just 45 minutes after I went to bed.  It's just a funny feeling to feel like you are peeing yourself at this age!  And I had to laugh, because before I could even make it to the bathroom to change from my pjs, Matt had flown out of bed, grabbed my bags and had them in the car!  And really, I felt better than I had all day.  Maybe that was adrenalin!

I'll spare you all the details of delivery, but I still can't believe how fast it went.  Thanks to pain meds and the epidural, I actually was able to get some sleep.  We got to the hospital around 10:30pm on Wednesday.  The nurse came to check on me at 7am when they changed shifts.  She couldn't believe I hadn't got my epidural yet.  But right about then, I started getting some pain so I told her to go ahead and put in the request.  I think it was less than 5 minutes before Mark, my super hero med man, appeared.  I literally had only 3 painful contractions.  And then the best thing ever invented kicked in.  I went back to sleep for a few hours and it wasn't until 1pm that I got a funny feeling in my butt.  (Yeah, the books don't tell you that!)  Little did I know that I was ready to push.  After a brief panic attack (because I noticed my epidural bag looked empty), there was no turning back.  2 hours later, the little (ok, not so little) guy was in my arms!  

My doctor had been telling me for weeks that he was going to be a little guy.  I think she was just as shocked as I was when he arrived.  She kept saying "oh, I was so wrong" and as she handed him over, she guessed that he was over 8 lbs.  She kept telling me "I don't know where he was hiding."  I can just say, I knew that his kicks and moves that last month were painful for a reason.  I just thought for sure he would have a long, skinnier face...I just couldn't get over his round head!  And I can't help but wonder if my addiction to sweet tea led to those chubby cheeks that I can't kiss enough!

In a way, I wish I could replay those first few moments when we first met.  It's all such a blur.  I think I was just in shock that I had really delivered. (and so grateful I didn't have a c-section!).  Everyone tells you that you will feel instant love, but hearing that and feeling that are so different.  I had just waited so long to see that face, and I couldn't take it all in fast enough!

Matt did good too.  He enjoyed watching the contractions on the monitor and telling me when it was time to push.  He was so supportive and a good cheerleader.  I can tell you that the experience would not have been the same without my amazing labor nurses!  

Jill (the one on the left) was with me nearly non-stop.  She was so comforting and encouraging.  Dorothy just came in to get something, but ended up staying to join the festivities.  I never would have imagined that I would be making up songs, telling stories, and laughing so much during labor!  I'm so grateful to have a photo of them, because I adore them so much and they were such an important part of Parker's birth story.

Now I want my family to know that despite my great labor experience, it's still  a good possibility that Parker will be our One Hit Wonder!  So don't be getting your hopes up that Parker will get siblings.  And I just want to say "Ha!  And you thought I wouldn't make it through labor!"

Welcome to the family Parker!  We've waited a long time for you and now we can't imagine life without ya!