My First Time...MilkSharing

I always thought I wouldn't mind sharing my breastmilk with a friend if her baby needed it. I would even breastfeed the baby if the momma wanted me to. But give my milk to someone I don't know? I don't even know if I would give my baby a strangers milk.

A few weeks ago I came across a page on Facebook: Human Milk for Human Babies. The one I found was for Oregon (The Move) so I joined the page and began reading about moms who needed milk and moms who had milk to share. I still didn't think I would ever do it.

Lily just hours old.

But if my milk is good enough for my babies why not another hungry baby?

I sought out the FB HM4HB for Texas. I checked it ever so often for new updates. Then there she was: a momma in need right in my area. I contacted her and started pumping that day. A few days later she pick up the milk. It wasn't much because as soon as I started pumping Lily decided she wanted to start nursing more! But it was enough to help another momma and baby out.

I fell good about it and hope I can help another momma and baby one day. I'm pretty sure Miss Lily will not be weaning any time soon so I will have plenty of milk to share!

Birth Without Fear
Eats on Feet
World Milk Sharing Week

Would you consider milksharing or wet nursing?

Ethan around 3 months old.

Lillian Dawn's Birth Story

I am very blessed to say I had an easy, normal pregnancy. It went by so quickly! I participated in my Birthing Center’s Centering program, went to prenatal yoga class at least once a week and read up on all the birthing topics I could find. I attempted to write a Birth Plan but never really felt like I would need it so I just made some notes on specific things that might come up in an emergency and how I would like them handled.

18 Weeks

 My biggest concern towards the end was what to do with Ethan (2) when we had to go to the Birthing Center.  I planned to labor at home until the midwife on call told me it was time to come in so we would just need someone to look after him until my parents could get here from Oklahoma (a 6 hour drive for them). My labor with Ethan was pretty quick (11 hours total) so I thought this one would be even quicker. We have no family that lives in town and all our friends were going out of town for Christmas. I had one friend who was getting back into town on the first of January and she was happy to help out with Ethan. We never had to call on her because my Mother drove down from Oklahoma on the 8^th and took Ethan home with her. I was then able to relax and focus on the upcoming labor and birth.

The night my Mom came to pick up Ethan (Friday the 7^th)  I woke with non-timeable, low pain cramps that lasted through the night.  I sent Mom and Ethan back to OK because I knew that the cramps could stop any time or go on for days. I had them off and on Saturday and by that evening they were gone.

Saturday morning I went to a prenatal yoga class. This class was with a different teacher then I normally went to so I went in with the frame of mind to relax and open myself up to the challenge ahead (labor and birth). Some prenatal yoga classes will teach you a meditation/pain coping technique. In this class she taught us “distracted focus”, a meditation I had never practiced before. “Distracted Focus” is when you focus on all the noises that are going on around you instead of focusing on just one. I came home and told Eli about it but never thought I would use it during labor because with Ethan’s birth I was focused internally and didn’t hear any noise around me.

On Monday I had an appointment with my Midwife. We discussed the issue of my Perinatologist wanting to see me if I hadn’t gone into labor by 40 weeks. I didn’t want to go back to him because of an earlier comment he had made about not “letting” me go over 40 weeks. I really didn’t want any interventions when baby and I were both healthy. She gave me some advice on how to get my body ready for labor- drink 3 cups of Red Raspberry Leaf Tea a day, walk 30 minutes a day, take Evening Primrose Oil caplets- 2 by mouth, 2 vaginally, per day, and have sex at least once a day (Ha! Like my pregnant self could handle more than that!)  She also told me that in her experience the second baby would come a few days before the first baby. Ethan was born at 40 weeks, 5 days and I was at 39 weeks 4 days so I expected a few days to prepare. I declined a cervical check because I don’t feel there is any need for one before labor starts. I went to a natural food store and bought everything that I needed, walked around Joann’s, then went home, started drinking RRLT and took an EPO . (I had been drinking one to two cups a day for the last few weeks.) Eli and I DTD that night ;) and I went to bed early as normal.

Around 2:30am I woke with some cramping. I got up, went to the bathroom, drank some water and tried to go back sleep. If this was labor I wanted to get as much rest as possible in the beginning.  I was never able to get back to sleep so I got up to eat some cereal and watch Star Trek.  I started timing the cramps and they were 3-5 minutes apart lasting 45 seconds. I timed for about a half an hour and then tried to rest.  I made sure to drink water in between each to keep myself hydrated. With Ethan’s birth, I was extreamly dehydrated and didn’t want to repeat that.

38 Weeks 5 Days

At 4am I was up bouncing on my birth ball and watching the news. I tried to time the contractions but couldn’t concentrate enough to do so. I did get out my Netbook and looked up ContractionMaster.com but the site was down. By 4:30 I didn’t want to be alone any more. I woke Eli up and told him we were having a baby that day! I told him to make coffee and get in the shower because labor was moving fast and it might be his only chance.

My Mother and I had talked the day before about when to call after I started labor. We said if I went into labor at night I would wait and call at 5am when my Dad usually wakes. So at 5am I called and told them I was in labor and they needed to start their drive here.

The labor pains were getting pretty hard that I couldn’t talk through them anymore. I really wanted to lie down and have Eli rub my back because I was having some back pain. I got nice and comfy in bed and in between contractions we discussed calling the midwife. I called around 6am and talked to Roswitha (The same midwife who caught Ethan!) She asked me questions and listened to me through several contractions. She thought it was time for me to get to the birthing center. I really didn’t want to get there too early so I told her I was real comfortable where I was and wanted to stay home for awhile longer. She told me again that because it was my second baby I may go faster than the first so she really thought I should come in so I didn’t have the baby at home. (I’m sure Eli would have loved that! Maybe we will have our next one at home :) Eli wanted me to stay in bed while he packed the car but I am too much of a control freak to leave packing to someone else. I think I told him to not forget the orange bag 10 times before he finally put it in the car! That was our food/drink bag and I did not want to forget it. I only had 2 bags this time and used most everything we took. I learned last time what we really needed and what to leave at home.

On the drive there Eli asked me if there was anything I wanted to tell him before I went into my “zone”. The only thing I wanted to tell him was “I love you.” During Ethan’s birth I was pretty much out of it, focusing inward and he thought I would do the same during this one. (I never did!) We arrived at the birthing center at 7am. After one contraction in the parking lot we got in the building and into our room. Roswitha checked all my vitals and I was only 3cm dilated. That was a bit disappointing to me because I wanted to stay at home longer this time around. The midwives had a shift change at 8am so Roswitha told me she was going to call in the next midwife Charlotte.  She said if I had been further along she would stay. I understood. I had met Charlotte several times and was happy to have her at our birth.

By this time I had thrown up and really didn’t want to eat anything. Eli kept me drinking water in between each contraction that kept coming harder and faster. I tried to get back in to my comfy position on the bed but that relaxing time was over. I labored on the birthing ball and relaxed with my head propped up on pillows on the bed. During contractions, Eli would apply pressure to my lower back while I would vocalize with a very low moan. As I labored and tried to relax my body I remembered back to my last yoga class. I started to focus on all the sounds around me instead of the pain. I heard the train going by, the clock on the wall ticking and even the sounds of people arriving to work in the offices overhead. I used “distracted focus” the whole time I was on the ball (around 2 hours). I even wished for another train to come by just so I could listen to the sound!

Around 9am I was ready to get in the water. Charlotte wanted to check me and do vitals. I was 7-8cm so I had dilated 5cm in 2 hours. I’m glad I didn’t stay home longer! As I was getting on the bed the pain was so intense I started to lose it.  Charlotte said one word to me and it ended up being my focus: “Control”. I wasn’t able to use “distracted focus” after I got in the water because the pain was so bad but I had my focus word to repeat to myself and remind myself that I was a strong birthing woman. Thanks Charlotte!

In the tub I was on my knees and holding on to the side. In between contractions Eli continued to give me water and wipe my face with a cool, wet wash cloth. I asked Charlotte if it was too late for an epidural. She said by the time we got to the hospital it would be too late. So I asked for a shot of Demerol, she said no, so I asked for vodka. She said yes, if we had some I could have it. Too bad we didn’t bring any with us!

After I had a few contractions on my knees I needed to stretch out my legs behind me when suddenly, during the middle of a contraction, my water broke! The pain doubled as soon as it happened and I yelled out “My water just broke and there is poop in it!” There was Meconium in the fluid but it did not cause any complications. I had been feeling very “pushy” for awhile and when the membranes broke the need to push increased by about 100! Charlotte jumped into action because she knew things were about to start happening. She ran and pressed a buzzer to call for the assistant. (The birthing assistant was called in but did not make it in time for the birth because things moved so fast! Thankfully the office was open and the wonderful Viola came in to assist.)  She had me turn around and float on my back so she could help stretch me out to prevent tears. She told me I still had a bit of cervix and she could push it out of the way while I was pushing. That did not feel good! But she only had to do it a few times before I felt the “ring of fire”.  I pushed a few times more and could feel the baby’s head move down and out! With Ethan I felt a lot of pressure. This time around was so much more. I could feel every part of her face- her nose, ears and chin- as it left my body. My moans started to get higher pitched so I focused on keeping them low to help with pushing out the baby.

Once her head was out I leaned back to relax and wait for the next contraction so we could meet our baby. I started to think the next one would never come but I never had that “Oh, no, She’s stuck!” feeling. It was very weird to have her head hanging out of me like that but because we were in the water I wasn’t worried. As soon as I felt the next contraction I told everyone it was starting and my body pushed our baby into the world! At 9:46am Lillian Dawn was born in the water at Austin Area Birthing Center in the same room her big brother Ethan was born just 2 short years earlier. Charlotte set her on my stomach because her cord was a too short to reach my chest and started wiping her off. She gave a couple of soft cries which worried me because Ethan had come out screaming. Right then the birth assistant came in shocked that the baby was here! We cut the cord and handed the baby off to her so I could get out of the tub and onto the bed.

The placenta came out with very little bleeding unlike with my first birth. With the help of a Latch Assist Lily began to nurse quickly and stayed on for about an hour. She has since proved herself to be a great nurser! From start to finish my labor was a little over 7 hours with only 27 minutes of pushing! We were all doing so great we were able to go home a short 6 hours after her birth.

Lily’s birth was much different then Ethan’s but the experience was just as amazing. The labor was harder, faster and I was much more aware of it all. We are so happy she joined our little family and can’t imagine life without her.

*Ethan's Birth Story

World Breastfeeding Week 2010

World Breastfeeding Week 2010 takes place from August 1 to August 7. In celebration of this event, lets do our part to promote breastfeeding anytime, anywhere! Join the Virtual Celebration on Facebook and

change your profile pic to a breastfeeding photo or breastfeeding artwork.

Also check out Historic Prints and Photos of Breastfeeding on Facebook.

Even if you don't/didn't breastfeed, support a Breastfeeding Mama today!!!

Breastfeeding: One Mamma's Effort to Not Give Up!

Holly (my IRL friend!) at Growing Family Wilson has shared her experience with breastfeeding her daughter. I think it is so important to understand that breastfeeding can be difficult at times and not everyone gets that great start they were hoping for. But it can be overcome by informing yourself both before and after your birth and supporting each other!

Thank you, Holly for sharing your story and encouraging others to seek help when needed.

Breastfeeding Success with the help of LLL and a Lactation Consultant

When Ethan was born he came out really fast. I think I pushed for maybe 30 mins before he came flying out! I think because of that, I had a lot of bleeding and clotting. I was also really dehydrated and ended up having 2 bags of IV fluid before I could go home (he was born in a birthing center). By the time it was all over I had 2 shots of something ? to get the bleeding to stop. The Midwife later told my mother she was really close to transferring me to the hospital because of the bleeding.




My Midwife wanted me nursing as soon as possible to help my uterus contract and stop the bleeding. We tried several times to get Ethan to latch but he was so small that his mouth didn't open real wide and my nipples would go flat every time we would get started. My Midwife pretty much insisted we us the nipple shield. She showed me how to put it on and Ethan was nursing happily soon after. Looking back on it now, I'm glad she got us nursing because the bleeding did stop soon after. If it wasn't for the bleeding, I'm sure we would have taken our time and learned how to nurse without the shield.



For those of you who do not know what a nipple shield is: It is a piece of plastic that is elongated nipple. It sort of suctions to your real nipple and allows the baby to nurse easier. In short, it's like turning your nipple into a bottle. It is helpful for the baby to latch on and also to help with nipple pain and soreness. It is clear and hard to find in the middle of the night. It will make you worry your baby is going to suffocate on it if you fall asleep. I was also very bad at putting it on. For the first 2 weeks Eli had to do it. Then he went back to work and I had to do it my self. I told my midwife later that it should be made in bright colors or glow in the dark so you can find it easier!



Over the next 3 days we tried to get Ethan to nurse without the shield. There was a lot of crying from all 3 of us! On our 3 day appointment I told the midwife my worries of using the shield and she told me not to worry, that she had never seen any baby use a shield for more than 1 month. So I didn't worry and we continued to use it. I think it was for the best because there were so many things to worry about I didn't have the energy to put into that.



During the next 2 months we would go through times when I would try to nurse him without the shield. He would get upset and cry and I would give in and put the shield back on. Every now and then he would latch on and nurse! So I knew he could do it. After his 2 month appointment I thought "kid, it's time you learned to nurse right!" I couldn't use the excuse that his mouth was "too small" anymore; He was 10lbs 6oz, bigger then most babies when they are born. Plus, I was tired of carrying around the shield everywhere we went. So every single feeding I would start by offering the breast first. I would open my mouth really wide and wait until he would open his and then push his face into my breast. After awhile he caught on and we had success! No more shield!!! It was so much nicer at night to just roll over and nurse instead of having to fined the shield, wash the shield put it on several times before we got the right suction. And try not to fall asleep because who knew where the shield would end up.. I found it stuck in Ethan's neck rolls one morning!!!



The first week I was off the shield (that sounds like I was addicted to some sort of drug!) the pain got bad. Really bad. The only way I could nurse Ethan was laying down in bed. I remember Eli coming in the room to see if I needed anything (isn't he sweet?) and I would yell at him even if he just wanted to kiss me. I couldn't be touched while nursing the pain was so intense. I began to dread every nursing session and tried to prolong the time in between. I first thought it was just because we had to "start over" because we had been using the shield for so long.



Eli talked to his Mother (a former La Leche League leader) at my request and she suggested I go to a meeting. I found a meeting and showed up early so I could talk to the leader. She took one look at my nipples and told me I had thrush-prolonged or sudden onset of sore nipples during or after the newborn period (the nipples may be pink, flaky, crusty, and itchy, or red and burning). Sounds fun, doesn't it? She said she could help me with my latch but my nipples were so sore I couldn't stand to nurse sitting up or in public without crying. She told me to go to my midwife as soon as I could to get some medicine.



The Birthing Center got me in as the last patient of the day. The midwife gave me a prescription for a cream, told me to start using the nipple shield again and make an appointment to see the Lactation Consultant. Oh, I was so sad! We had just gotten off of it and I had to go back on it. I must admit, it was quite a relief of the pain and once I got my cream I was in heaven. I called the LC and she suggested I wait a day until my nipples could heal a little. When I went to see her we spent around an hour latching Ethan and moving him in different positions. She showed me how to correctly hold him and position his face for the proper latch. After my appointment she called every other day to make sure things were going well. Several times she called I had a few questions for her and she was able to answer them an guide me in the right direction. After seeing the LC we have never had to go back to the nipple shield.



As a first time Mother I wish I would have done things a bit different. I would have gone to LLL meeting while pregnant. While attending my monthly meetings now, I see pregnant women at them all the time. They will not know what a blessing that support and knowledge is until after they have their baby. I would have contacted the LC soon after Ethan's birth. One reason why I didn't was because of the money. A good LC does not come cheap but they are so worth it! (And formula is even more expensive then that hour session!) I ended up spending the money and going anyway and could have saved my self (and my husband and baby) so many crying and stressful nights.
I never once thought about giving up breastfeeding. This was all I ever wanted to do and there was no other option. When I had thrush I knew that there was something wrong and I needed help. The help is there if you look for it.


Ethan is now 12 months old and we have never had to supplement with formula. When I was tired or sore, I would pump and Eli would feed him from a bottle. After the first few months, that only happened a few times. I wish the birthing center would have encouraged me more to see the LC sooner but I can not blame anyone but myself.

Ethan at 2 months

As women we are in charge of our own bodies and if we really want to breastfeed our children then we will find the strength and support that is needed to do so. Unfortunately we can't count on the medical professionals to support us as needed. Best for Babies, a non-profit is trying to give Breastfeeding a makeover and to revealing and removing the “booby traps”- the barriers to breastfeeding that keep tripping women up! Take a look at this post on Lactation Professionals and tell them about your success or challenges with your LC experience.

Petting Zoo- Snake Farm

As promised, here are pics of the petting zoo inside the Snake Farm. You can't really tell but Ethan LOVED all the animals. He just laughed and laughed. He would reach out his hand and tried to touch all the animals. He was successful for the most part. We did keep his hand out of the mouth and behind areas!These Birds weren't in the petting zoo but I did not include them with the last post and I thought they were pretty.Same with this lama (I think?). She had the prettiest eyes and long eyelashes!
What???? I think this is a ROUS.

And I really think this is a cross between a rabbit and a Jack Russell Terrier! Or maybe a Rat Terrier? Yes, I think he put his hand in his mouth after touching the animals.

We did not touch this! (Is he doing what I think he's doing?...you say to yourself. I'll answer you: Yes. And I took a picture of it.)

This goat loved Ethan! And Ethan laughed at it every time it came around.

Here Eli is trying to show Ethan the pigs in the mud but the goat really wanted their attention.


Okay Goat, I'll pet you!

Here was my favorite part: All the mamma's to be and......

The mamma's with their new little ones:


How cute are they???? Oh, I wanted to have a new baby right there in the barn!

These piglets were so little and newborn they didn't even have their eyes open! So sweet. And the best thing: They are breastfed!!!

I didn't get a pic of the Huge Sheep that tore my bag of food open as soon as we walked into the fence! Oh, well. Again, we had a great time and will most likely go back every year.

Breastfeeding

Ethan's First Yoga Class

As most of you know, I did yoga throughout my pregnancy and love it. Today was our first Postnatal class! It was also the first time Ethan has been around other babies. He was asleep when we first got there but woke up quickly when he heard another baby crying! He did cry at first so I nursed him for the first 10 mins. After that he started to enjoy himself while I was able to do the yoga. Most every baby there cried at least once and many were nursed to quite them down. I was able to talk to other Mom's, some I knew from prenatal, some new. I did meet one lady who had used the breast shields but only breastfeed for 6 weeks. It made me feel good that I held out this long! We are looking forward to going back each week.

We then went to the mall to visit and have lunch with one of my former co workers. Ethan slept the whole time! I guess he was worn out from all that yoga!

I think he looks just like his Daddy in the pic on the bottom! He was in a very grumpy mood when we came home from our day out.

Breastfeeding Success!!!!!!

Ethan and I are successfully nursing without the nipple guard! It is defiantly harder then with the guard but I know in the end we will both be happier. And I won't have to worry he is going to suffocate in the night because he falls asleep on it! We now have the challenge of learning how to latch on correctly therefor we have lots of pain involved. It's like starting all over! I sometimes wish we had never started using the guard in the first place but all we can do is go from here.

Wish us Luck!

Ethan's Birth Story

On Christmas Eve -aka 1 day over due, my contractions (what I would later discover were "false labor" nothing close to the real thing!) started and were 1 hour apart. This lasted pretty much through Christmas day and tapered off that night. My family, Mom, Scotty, April, AJ, Sadie and Hooch all left for Oklahoma the day after Christmas in order to give me and Eli some relaxing alone time.

On Friday Eli and I went to the movies and I got nachos and a hot dog and added a crazy amount of jalapenos trying to get the labor started. In fact, we did pretty much Everything we knew or had been told to do to get the labor started! Friday night -aka 3 days over the cramping came back about like before. I woke up around 7am on Saturday-aka 4 days over, went to the kitchen to get some water and felt a little dripping down my leg. I got a little excited and a little nervous.

I called the midwife and she said to come in to check if my water had really broken. Because I had a positive strep B test, I had to have antibiotics when my water broke to protect the baby from infection. The news was rather disappointing. No, my water had not broken. I was still only 1 cm dilated and around 70% effaced. And even though I thought I was having contractions the midwife gave me that "poor first time mom" look! It was still not true labor. But my cervix was soft and that's very good.

After we left the birthing center, Eli and I went book shopping and got chili cheese french fries from Sonic- another thing I was told started labor! We spent the rest of the day resting. I slept through the night, waking up every few hours to go to the bathroom. I had dreams of going into labor and how it would feel. To my surprise, when I woke up around 7 Sunday morning-aka 5 days over, I was in labor! I defiantly knew the difference this time! I woke Eli up to time them and they were coming every 6-9 mins.

I knew they had been coming all night so around 9am I called the midwife to give her a heads up. After I made that call I decided to take a bath while Eli called the family. As I was "relaxing" in the warm water the contractions started getting closer and closer together. As soon as Eli got off the phone I had him help me out of the tub. Before I could even get dressed, I was on hands and knees during the contractions! Eli timed them from 1-3 mins apart!

I knew this was going to happen but I was not ready for it to happen so soon! We didn't even have the car seat in the car. Eli started moving things to the car but of course he didn't know what all needed to go. I had all the bags ready in a pile in the baby's room. I was on the floor of our bedroom and Eli is running back and forth asking me "Does this go?" I kept yelling "Yes! Everything in the pile goes!". I guess he didn't realize it takes at least 4 bags full of stuff to have a baby!!!! ***Just in case you are wondering: We didn't use half the stuff that I packed! But if it was on the list I was going to have it!

We called the midwife again and she told us to come in. The trip there went as good as it could have. Eli missed all the major bumps in the road and I stayed in my seat belt even though I wanted to crawl in the back seat. We got to the birthing center around 11:30am and Roswitha ( the midwife on call) checked me and I was 3 to 4 cm dilated. This apparently is the cut off to get to stay at the center. It was a good thing I was to that point because I had already told Eli I was NOT getting back in that car! The room I wanted was still being cleaned after the last birth so we had to wait a few minutes to go in. The way I felt most comfortable was on my hands and knees so there I was, in the waiting room. I then felt the need to throw up and wasn't sure where the closest bathroom was. As I started to vomit I was quickly directed to the nearest one! I know I ate something that morning and at this point I was glad I did.

We were moved from the bathroom where I was on the floor, to the bedroom where they made me get in the bed, the last place I wanted to be. Flat on my back was what I was trying to avoid my whole pregnancy! But I had to have the antibiotics and Rosewita needed to start the IV. I was very dehydrated so the first vain burst but she got it on the second one. After the 15mins it took for the IV, I was able to get up.

I remember very little of the labor. I remember being on the floor of the bathroom for most of the time. Eli will have to fill you in but I don't think anything exciting happened between getting off the bed until I was able to get in the bath tub. I think I got in around 3pm. I do remember having my temp taken and it being a little high. She had me drink some water and wait about 15mins before taking my temp again and giving me the ok to get in.

The water felt great! I was in two different positions off and on: floating on my back and squatting while leaning over the side. At some point Roswitha checked me and I was 9 1/2 cm dilated and I could start pushing!!! I pushed on my back for awhile. Being on my back in the water was much different then on the bed. I was having trouble focusing my pushing to the area it needed to be in so Rosewita suggested I get back in the squatting position. That was not a good idea! As soon as I got in that position my back started to cramp. This wasn't labor. It hurt like the worst cramp in my middle back. She then suggested I get on the birthing chair and I literally jumped at the idea! I got out of the bath with Eli's and who I found out later was the midwife assistant Jess. I didn't even know anyone else was in the room (and didn't care)!

On the birthing chair Eli was able to sit on the bed behind me and hold me up. I think I did 2 really good pushes and he started crowning. Roswitha ask me if I wanted a mirror to see him. My eyes had been closed for about the last hour. I told her "No, I can feel him!" I guess Eli was straining to get a good look so she said "Can I get the mirror because I think Eli really wants to see him!" I think my response was "Whatever!" One more push and we were to that point I was ready for: where the midwife says "Stop Pushing!". I did just what I had been taught. I put my head back and took deep, long breaths and waited for her to tell me to push again. She never did. She did ask me with a smile on her face "How does it feel?" like it was the most exciting thing she had ever seen. I told her it sucked! (My apologies to all the children reading this. Your not allowed to use that word until you have a baby!) So I asked "Can I push?". No one answered. "Can I push?" and before she could get the word "Yes" out I pushed and at 5:40pm he came flying out with a gush of water!

Now here is were Eli loves to tell of his son's first back flip. Apparently as he shot out head first his feet flipped over and Roswitha and Jess barely caught him! He started screaming almost the moment he came out. They placed this screaming yet perfect baby on my chest and all was well in the world. Rosewita gave him a perfect 10 on the apgar test and moved us back on the bed. The cord stopped pulsing and Eli cut it. We then laid there for what seemed like hours just looking at the beautiful new addition to our family.

His skin was a perfect color. His eyes wide open. He was so little yet I had no worries of hurting him. I knew everything and nothing all at once.

Mom and April showed up about 1 hour after he was born. Their story is yet to come in another blog!

We had to stay at the birthing center twice as long as normal because of some bleeding I was having. I had to have 2 bags of fluid before I could go home. If you want to know the gory details ask me the next time I see you but just know all is well! We arrived home the next morning around 7am. The first thing Eli did was cut the cheesecake we had all been waiting so long to eat! It is a tradition in his family. His Dad always made a cheesecake when they would have a baby. I now know why his mom had 9!!!! It is a tradition I will be happy to keep.

I'm sure Eli will want to add in the missing pieces. It was a wonderful experience that I think of longingly now but not so much right after the birth! God willing I will want all my births to go as smoothly. I would not want to do it any different.