I don't remember the date, but I know we were at a girls night out in Tacoma, Washington I was a 2nd Lieutenants wife sitting at a table full of military spouses wives with many years of experience before me in life, motherhood and marriage. The subject of babies came up, because the subject is bound to come up with that many women around and someone may have even been pregnant (which is usually what brings these sort of stories up). Each woman who had given birth began to discuss their birth experience with details of time, liquids, rips and tears. I remember one lady VIVIDLY holding her hand against her head sticking her elbow out creating a triangle shape and said "this is how my second came out". I about SCREAMED! I'm sorry, but the whole birthing experiences grosses me out in and of itself, I don't need my baby coming out with his arm STICKING out.
I don't know if it was because of that experience or because since that moment Brian and I began talking more and more about having babies, that I started hearing these stories everywhere I went and when I got pregnant they got WORSE! It was almost as if once you're pregnant you're in their club and now everyone can tell you the absolute worse thing that ever happened to them during their experience. Babies coming our sideways, with ten teeth and being paralyzed from epidurals multiple times... If you're pregnant, I'm sorry its not that scary, they are the exception NOT the rule.
The only picture we have from FOUR days of induction
All that to say, although my pregnancy was not ideal and I didn't have a 30 minute labor ending with an all natural delivery. The result was the same as the women in the room next to me who did... I have a happy healthy baby. And as we both left with our babies I didn't see her carrying a trophy saying she did all that... so mommas, take a breath and slow down, motherhood is hard enough why make everything such a competition and why put such high expectations on you so early (you'll have plenty of time for all that when your baby isn't the first to walk or eat solids, I promise). I had to learn this early in my pregnancy, at 8 weeks pregnant when I was hit with the realization that EVERYONE has different experiences, this is just mine, not good or bad.
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| Our First Family Picture |
Henry was born April 6 at 2 something in the morning. The reason I don't know the "something" was because he was born on Monday morning and I was induced on Friday morning, so at the point I just wanted to hold my baby. He measured at 7 pounds 11 ounces and the only reason I know that much is for obvious reasons. The process of giving birth to Henry was not what I expected, but I got to meet a lot of the hospital staff and if you're ever at Madigan Army Medical Center and you hear bad things, tell people to put a sock in it. If I had been anywhere else I'm certain that I would have been forced into a c-section, but instead Doctors,nursing staff and intern after intern worked so hard to allow me to have the birth I wanted.
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| Henry Day 1I refuse to tell my story unless specifically asked, its a hard one, its a long one and to be honest I've forgotten when things happened and in what order.. for that I am thankful. I do however, that I pray the next deliver doesn't take 4 days. |
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