Eggs, A Birthday, Fireman, and an Infection

Any men reading this?  Dad?  (Sometimes he likes to check in to see what we’ve been up to… little did he know when he checks in today he’ll get to hear about my boobs ;)). 

He’s thrilled, I’m sure.

First of all, let me just rant and rave about how lovely General Conference was.  I love the Gospel.  I love my Heavenly Father and am so grateful for all the many blessings he has bestowed upon me.  Conference always lifts my spirits at just the right time.  Love those inspired men!  More about some of those talks later.

And now that I’m extremely behind, let’s talk about Easter.  We celebrated in a much simpler fashion this year.  No new clothes, no fancy toys, just a simple bucket (already have them, we just set them out for the Easter Bunny to fill) with only a few fun items… bubbles, Hot Wheels cars (for the boys), and sunglasses for the girls.  A book and a pair of sandals for each kid.  Somehow, the Easter Bunny got sizes all wrong.  Each girl got a size too small. 

Not a single lick of candy anywhere in the house (except a tiny marshmallow bunny in each basket) because EB knew we’d be heading to my aunt’s house for an Easter Egg hunt.  And trust me, there were plenty of candy filled eggs there!

Anthony’s birthday actually fell on Easter this year, too, so we had to get a family pic… plus another to make sure I was in one. 

These pics of B are just too cute.  My SIL dropped off an adorable little fireman truck that her kids had outgrown.  C really likes it but he looks pretty ridiculous in it.  He’s just too big!  Even B is slightly big but I couldn’t resist taking a couple pics.

Now for the part you’ve all been waiting for… MASTITIS!  Oh the joys of having the chills, a fever, the shakes, the dizziness, the sore breast, the midwives office closing early so you can’t even get prescription called in (What are they thinking?), the whole shebang! 

**Sigh**

Nursing is wonderful!  Nursing is grand!  Nursing is fantastic!  Until this happens… Oh, and the first two weeks.  They stink, too. 

UGH!

{It’s a great way to get out of doing P90X for a day or two… ;)  Totally planned it!}  Have I mentioned how sore my legs are?  Stupid PLYO!

 

Birthday Boys!! 5 & 3

My two oldest boys are lucky enough to share a birthday month with their daddy, whom they absolutely adore!  We thought maybe that’s how boys came for us… have a baby in March and it will be a boy!  Obviously that’s not the case.  Baby B was born in November (see part 1 and part 2)  So that’s not it.  It’s one of a few things.  Either they like sharing a birth month with a parent (I’m in November with Baby B), girls are born in odd years and boys are born in even years, or the fact that all the girls were born in temporary conditions (housing-wise… each in a different apartment) and the boys were all born while we’ve lived in this home.  {Yes, we think too much.}

Or maybe it’s the way Heavenly Father planned it ;)

Whatever the case may be, C and B get to share the month with daddy.  We always celebrate them all together because it’s easier that way, not to mention less expensive.  This year C insisted on having his own Monster Truck party.  He didn’t want to share with B.  Sharing with dad was fine, but not with B. 

In the end, however, we finally talked him into sharing and they agreed on a Dump Truck party.  Why a Dump Truck party?  I have no idea.  Why is the sky blue?

We decided to hit the zoo beforehand.  My sister gave us an annual pass for Christmas and the weather was perfect!  Besides, we hadn’t yet seen the not-so-new exhibit, Rocky Shores.  It was pretty awesome!

We all had a great time.  Everything went perfectly and no one got lost! 

Ok, ok.  It went something like this {I’m such a terrible liar!} … First we hit up the Radio Disney crew.  That was fun.

A couple of birthday boys chose to opt out of the fun and play it cool on the sidelines.

After that we headed over to the Primate Building.  Then on to the elephants.  K was so excited to get over there because she had brought her sketch pad.  She wanted to draw Zuri, the baby elephant, though I suppose you might call her a toddler by now.  She sat and sketched, I sat and nursed on a separate bench across the exhibit, everyone else wandered on a bit further and I followed once the baby was done.  I had supposed everyone, including K, had moved on.  We had quite the crowd with us. 

Soon after the rhinos our large group split into two.  Half of them had stopped for something to eat without the rest of us realizing it so we thought they had moved on.  I had seen my other two girls with my mom so I knew they were fine.  They were with their cousins and having fun, I was sure.  Anthony and I still had all three boys and my sister was with us.  I kept trying to call my mom and my cousins just to be sure but no one was answering. 

So, long story short, we finally met up at the new exhibit and realized that we had assumed K was with the other group and they had assumed she was with us.  It had been at least 45 minutes since we had seen the elephants. 

Anthony, my dad, and my sister all went to look for her and there she was… still at the elephants… and extremely frustrated.  Not scared, just frustrated.  And rightfully so!  But by golly!!  She did exactly what we’ve always told her to do, STAY IN ONE PLACE! 

And for what it’s worth, she did get to see the trainers feed the elephants and make them do tricks. 

MOM OF THE YEAR AWARD GOES TO…… um, let’s talk about that later.

First let’s look at a few pictures.

NOW we can talk about that award.  No points for me at the zoo but let’s look at the party itself.

The girls and I are taking cake decorating lessons from a fabulous lady in our ward so we took it upon ourselves to make the boys some perfectly boyish, dump truckish dirt cups!

Uum, Brooke, what in the world does that have to do with cake decorating lessons? 

Absolutely nothing except that I was so sick of eating cake at that point that I had to do something different!  And yes, we put candles in the dirt cups.  They totally went with the dump truck!!

Can I have that award yet?  Am I disqualified for not having actual cake? 

The boys were sooo excited when they were finally able to take their new dump truck outside to play in the dirt hill after the party.  (More about why we have a dirt hill soon.)

Some fun things about C:

• Almost always tells me when he needs to go potty, even if he has to go out of his way to find me.  (Just GO, for crying out loud.)
• Says “Yes, sir” or “Yes, ma’am” if you ask him to do something… except he says, “Yes, Man!” for ma’am. 
• Has a very specific routine for just about everything.
• Tells people he loves, “I like you” and has more recently been saying, “I like you and I love you, too.”
• Laughs hysterically at potty humor (must be a boy thing).
• Really likes the Ripley’s Believe It or Not book that we have.  “It has a disgusting lady, huh mom.”  (A lady with piercings all over her face)
• Adores his baby brother and protects him from the tyrant that is B. 
• Loves when K will play with him.
• Loves to help in the kitchen when I let him.
• My favorite recent quote:  Don’t worry (to Baby B), I’m gonna be a daddy soon and you will be a C.
• Another favorite quote:  I’m gonna go live with Grandma and Grandpa (my parents) because they didn’t get a kid yet.  They need a kid.

Some fun things about B:

• Still drops the F-bomb when trying to say ‘Look’.
• Thinks he’s hilarious (sometimes he really is) and will run away laughing hysterically when he’s done something he knows is naughty.
• Bites the corners of pillows and blankets.  It’s his trademark. 
• Loves to play pretend and be different people.  His favorite people to be are Dad, Papu (pah-poo… my dad), and Pops (Anthony’s dad). 
• When pretending to be Papu he is always carrying a ‘Pepsi’ (usually water).  (Seriously, my dad ALWAYS has a Pepsi!)
• Favorite recent quote:  Mom, what time is it?  (As if the time really means anything to a 3-year old)

According to Instagram

Last summer I discovered a little thing called Instagram.  You’ve probably heard of it.  If not, you most likely live under a rock.  My user name is none other than babblinbrooke22.  What else, right?  ;)

Here’s a little glimpse into what life has been like… according to Instagram. 

Merry Christmas! {Oh, and Happy New Year}

**Most of the pics in this post are unedited due to… well, I have a baby.  I think that about sums it up ;)  Oh, and don’t judge the pics too harshly.  I used flash in many of them (big no no, I am well aware) but the lighting in my house SUCKS (excuse the French) and I knew Christmas Eve and Christmas would be filled with excitement and lots of movement which would result in blurry pics without Auto Mode.  Thank goodness for Auto Mode!

Some blogger I am, eh?  Sheesh!!  It’s been on my mind for weeks now but I just couldn’t seem to pull it together enough to get it done. 

So, here I am… weeks later.  2013 is my year!  I feel it!! 

Christmas around these here parts was wonderful.  I hope you had a great one, too.  It’s probably too late to blogging Christmas but I figure I’ve only missed ‘the window’ by a couple of days.  Let’s just pretend I got an extension. 

Our December didn’t quite turn out the way had planned.  There was talk of going downtown to see the lights at Temple Square, seeing the candy window displays at Macy’s (which I was quite excited about), building gingerbread houses (or graham cracker houses, same diff), driving around to see fancy lit houses and oh so much more.  None of it happened.

But let’s not dwell on the things that might have been.  We did have a pretty great holiday season even if we couldn’t jam everything into our busy schedule. 

To start us off, our ward held the annual Christmas party early in the month in hopes to get more people to attend.  I think it worked!  And wouldn’t you know it, Santa was there!  It probably wasn’t the best move on the part of the planning committee to have a couple from the ward play Santa and the Mrs. but I have to admit they made a pretty cute Claus couple.

 

On the lists:  K wanted a Digital Light Designer and an American Girl Doll (Caroline)

A wanted an American Girl Doll (McKenna) and a horse for her dolls

H wanted a kitchen set, a cabbage patch kid, and a snow globe

B wanted Toy Story Toys

Baby – he didn’t really have a list.  He’s got the largest wardrobe in the family and doesn’t really need anything other than diapers at this point.

Anthony wanted a Nike Sportswatch and heart rate monitor

Brooke (that’s me!) wanted a Kindle Fire and new lens for my camera (don’t laugh, I know I’m not a great photographer but I can dream ;))

And now for C’s list.  I saved it for last because it truly is the best!  He wanted a bike, a ‘cut toy’ (toy chainsaw) and… are you ready for it?… a port-a-potty!!!  That’s right, my friends, he wanted an OUTHOUSE! 

Driving home one day from K’s dance class we stopped at a red light next to a truck carrying 4 outhouses.  C excitedly tells me that truck “has lots of bathrooms on it.”  Then he says, “Maybe we can ask Santa Claus for one!”  I told him that I would rather not, to which he replied, “I do.  I will ask him for one!”  And he did!

In case you’re wondering, no he didn’t get one.  It just wouldn’t fit in Santa’s sleigh.  But he hasn’t complained so I think we’re good. ;)

We celebrated A’s birthday with a Birthday Breakfast for family and friends.  Never done a breakfast before for a birthday but it was pretty darn fun.  It might become a tradition.  Having a birthday in December with all the Christmas hoopla isn’t easy.  I’ve tried to convince A to celebrate in early November but she always objects… something about it “not feeling like [my] birthday”. 

Ok, that makes sense, I guess.  No pics to post right now.  Just know that it was a good time!

We also had a couple of family Christmas parties.  Lots of fun, food, and white elaphanting…. it’s a word, as of now!

Little C may have been disappointed with the squirrel feeder he got but lucky him, my uncle stole it from him (to be nice) and C ended up with a fairy coloring book.  Also a huge disappointment because “it’s for girls!”  Well, thank his lucky stars, there were lots of little girl cousins there and one of them stole the coloring book from him.  Finally, he ended up with a pocketknife. 

Good heavens!!  C and a pocketknife, what a combo.

He couldn’t have been more delighted!  In fact, he hugged it.  Then and there my uncle declared that if anyone hugs their gift it can not be stolen. 

Thanks Mark!  Thanks… a lot.  **Sigh**

So now, C is the proud new owner of a pocketknife that lives on the top of the bookshelf, unopened… for now, at least.  But fear not, C checks on it every day to make sure it’s still there and to ensure that we all know that it is HIS pocketknife. 

We know, little man, we know.

Moving on, K had a dance recital for clogging.  It was fun to watch her dance.  I haven’t been able to watch her at all other than practicing at home so it was fun to see how good she actually is.  And she even performed her routine for the talent show at Anthony’s family party. 

A was asked to do a small part in the Christmas program for Sacrament Meeting at church.  Just a short little poem.  There were lots of singing parts in the program and I, admittedly, wish that they would have asked her to sing something.  She really does have quite a beautiful voice. 

Then there was of course the traditional opening of PJ’s on Christmas Eve along with new ornaments for the kids from Grandma and Grandpa.  This year it was decorations bigger than the baby.  The kids all LOVE their new nutcrackers!!

 

Christmas morning came WAY too early for Anthony and me.  “Santa” didn’t get to bed until almost 4:30 in the morning!!  What a crazy guy.  Just when you think you’re almost done you realize that you have way more than thought.  And I’ll be darned if I could get the Toy Story gang to shut up!!  I thought for sure we were gonna be found out.  Little did I know that they react to movement… and each other! … so as I was trying to unpackage them so they would be ready for immediate play (because what kid wants to wait for you to cut and remove every stinkin’ twist tie, screw, and plastic packaging Christmas morning) they just wouldn’t be quiet!  And they are LOUD!

The big pic of B below is by far my favorite from Christmas this year.  You can’t tell me it’s not fabulous!  I laugh every time I see it.

In the end it was a fabulous Christmas and everyone got at least something that they really wanted.  I have to show off my husband’s (Uh, I mean the elves…) mad skills.  He (They) was able to turn this old desk that had sat in the girls’ room forever…

 … into this darling little kitchen for H. It cost so much less doing it himself than it would have to buy even a cheapie one from the store. And it is so much better! Plus, it doesn’t hit her at the knees like most of them. Didn’t he do a marvelous job? I couldn’t have asked for it to be any more perfect!

This was the first Christmas in YEARS that Anthony and I were able to get something for each other.  It felt so good and it was so much fun trying to sneak around and make sure he didn’t know what he was getting.  We were both pleasantly surprised.

For breakfast, my family has a tradition that I just couldn’t live without.  I can go without presents and I can go without snow (though I’d much rather have a fresh blanket of white) but it just isn’t Christmas without our traditional waffles with ice cream and strawberries with my entire extended family.  THAT is Christmas to me!  Has been as long as I can remember.

 

I hope your Christmas was just as perfect as ours turned out to be.   

 

He’s Here!! (Part 2)

…My SIL texted back saying she was so excited.

I woke Anthony up for good around 5:30 to let him know he would need to find a replacement to speak for him in the other ward.   

At 6:22 am I texted my SIL again letting her know that the contractions were getting much closer together and that I hoped she had left already.  After all, my labors are pretty quick. 

PSH!!  That’s what I thought anyway. 

She wrote back saying that she would be getting her son and hubby up and going right away. 

I hadn’t slept all night despite trying.  I was able to lay down for about an hour and a half but the contractions wouldn’t allow for sleep.

The girls had all been invited to join us in the delivery room if they chose.  They’ve known for weeks now.  K was a definite YES, A was a maybe and H was a definite NO!!  When I woke them up to let them know I was in labor and heading to the the hospital soon (6:30-ish) they were all super excited.  A decided though that she would stay home.  K was up and at ‘em right away.  She couldn’t wait! 

My mom, dad, sister and brother headed over around 6:45-ish.  The surges were definitely getting harder and I was having to breathe through them.  Since I was planning on doing this whole thing without the relief of an epidural it made great practice.  I had read the Hypnobirthing book and thought it made a lot of sense. 

By the time my dad got back from buying donuts for breakfast (that’s the kind of breakfast you get when Grandpa’s in charge ;)) I was ready to head to the hospital.  Surely I was dilated to a 5 or 6.  This was exactly how it felt when I was in labor with B and I was a 5 1/2 when I got to the hospital. 

Anthony phoned his sister who had just left and I was just hoping she would make it.  It was just after 7:00.  She had been invited to be in the delivery room as well. 

Then we left, the boys still sleeping and the two younger girls ‘trying’ to sleep.  Grandpa and Uncle Parker were in charge. 

Upon arrival, I was obviously introduced to the classic hospital gown.  I would be allowed to labor in my own clothes once my cervix was checked (I never did change out of the gown).  At this point I had no idea which midwife was on call for the day.  I asked the nurse as she walked us to our room if she knew.  Of course it was one of the three midwives I had never met, there are nine total.  It’s one of the things I had worried about. 

Lucky for me, she was AMAZING!!  Had I met her before in the office I think I would have hoped for her anyway.  We really ended up liking her a lot! 

She came in, introduced herself, and then checked me…

Three…

WHAT!?  Three?  That’s it?  UGH!

However, I was completely effaced except for a paper thin layer.  Hooray!!

So, my options…….. I would not be allowed to stay if I hadn’t made any progress in the next little while.  I could either go home and then have to come back when things started rockin’ and rollin’ or I could have my water broken or get pitocin.  I chose to walk the halls in hopes of getting things rollin’.  After monitoring the baby for a while, I went and walked for about half an hour.  At that point, they wanted to have me checked again.

THREE!!  Again!

Are you kidding me??

My options had slimmed at that point.  Either have my water broken, pitocin, or go home.  Walking the halls was no longer an option. 

I didn’t like any of those options but I chose to have my water broken… oh how I hate the feeling of peeing the bed over, and over….. and over!  But I suppose it was going to happen at some point.  During surges I would have Anthony push with the heel of his hands underneath my knee caps and push my legs up.  It worked to help alleviate the contractions a bit.

 

After more monitoring of baby’s heart rate, I was allowed to walk the halls again.  But not before going in to the restroom to do the hula over the toilet.  The midwife suggested it to try and release more of the amniotic fluid.  It would make walking the halls less… messy.  ;)

We made two loops without a single surge and then… they hit!  And they hit hard!!  I was no longer able to just think of something else and stay upright.  Suddenly, I was having to grab Anthony’s arm or the hand rails in the hallway and really concentrate.  Mom, Kortney, and K had gone to get something to eat in the cafeteria.  But returned shortly.

Another check… 4 to 5!!  Yay!  We love progress.

Shortly after being checked, my SIL walked into the room.  And shortly after that my mother-in-law and another SIL walked in.  At that point I was ready to try the tub.  I had heard that the warm water feels really nice.  Little did we know that the tub would take a year and half to fill.  Holy crap!!  I was forced to endure more bed surges.  But once the tub was filled, I was IN IT!! 

It didn’t really feel all that great.  I’m guessing it might have had something to do with the fact that, I had a gargantuan belly that didn’t quite make itself under the water with the rest of me.  I labored there for… not very long.  Just a few surges and I was outta there! 

More monitoring…

I had no idea how long it had been.  I was just concentrating on getting through each surge. 

At some point my MIL had asked Anthony how we would feel if she stayed in the room to watch the baby being born.  I hadn’t invited her.  My mom and my sister had been invited to each one but I’m comfortable with them.  This was the first birth that K would see and my SIL had been invited because she just makes me feel comfortable.  It didn’t feel strange to invite her.  Not that I’m uncomfortable with my MIL.  I love her but having her in the room wasn’t something I felt comfortable with. 

I thought it was a little strange that she was looking at Anthony to ask the question.  After all, it would be MY body being exposed, not his.  I honestly didn’t think they would allow her to stay because I had already invited the ‘max’ that they supposedly allowed.  She ended up staying after the midwife said she didn’t care.  I’m sure if the midwife knew that I was a little uncomfortable with it she would have asked her to leave but what could I say at that point?  I have a hard time saying no. 

And it ended up being alright.  I’m still a little embarrassed when I think about it.  I don’t know why.  Just to think that she saw all my junk ‘downstairs’, ya know?  Just feels a little awkward to me.   

From this point on, I remember it all, but I only remember it from my crazy, surging body’s point of view.  I am sure that everyone else in the room could give more accurate details and paint a more accurate picture.

I remember getting on the exercise ball hoping that would be a little more comfortable.  The nurse, who had given birth naturally… twice (talk about pressure! ;)), told me some things that helped her.  Leaning against the bed and laying my head down on my arms.  Um, yeah, it wasn’t fun.  After only two surges (I think) I was DONE with that.  I remember vocally saying… possibly half yelling, “I think those HypnoBirthing people are full of CRAP!!”  The nurse agreed with me which made me feel better. 

I climbed back into the bed and decided that I was done.  I couldn’t do it anymore!!  I was sure that I was still only a 5 or 6. 

Surprisingly I was at an 8!! 

I asked how long it normally takes from that point.  If I was already an 8 surely I could make it the rest of the way… so long as it wasn’t going to be much longer ;).

The nurse and midwife both said that I should have a baby in my arms within the next 15-20 minutes. 

Ok, I could do it!!  I could stick it out that much longer. 

The midwife wanted me to try hands and knees for a bit.  More like knees with the bed sitting almost straight up and I would hang over the top.

 

That’s when it really hit!!  All of the sudden I was no longer just surging.  I was DYING!!  No longer able to breathe when the surges would hit, I became a frantic mess.  It was all I could do to catch my breath.  There came a point that I felt like I was no longer in my own body.  I was feeling all of the pain but my head just wasn’t right.  The pressure became unbearable and I yelled, “I’m either gonna fart or poop!!”  To which the midwife said was a sign that I was in transition and baby would be here within the next couple contractions. 

Then she wanted to check me… DURING a surge!!  I just have one thing to say… YOWSERS!!  That was the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life!!  Then she had me push hoping that pushing would help get the remaining cervical ‘lip’ to disappear (whatever that is!!!)

I was complete while surging except for that darn ‘lip’. 

But I was done!  I could feel myself slipping further and further away from myself and I HATED that feeling.  It sounds silly but I have no other way to describe it.  I needed relief.  I think I was entering shock.  And that 15-20 minutes they had said it would take had turned into an hour!  And those ‘couple of contractions’ had turned into more than I could count.  And I heard the midwife tell, I assume the nurse, “She can’t go on like this.  She should have had a baby by now.”  Something to that effect, anyway.  Anthony says I had the whole room in tears.

{It wasn’t until shortly before he was born that I started to feel ‘normal’ again.} – side note

The anesthesiologist was called and I had to endure a few more breathless, panic stricken surges.  He found it amusing that I was ‘going natural’ and yet, there he was… wisecracker!! 

After it finally kicked in, the midwife gave me time to rest.  I napped for about 20 minutes. 

Anthony and his sister had just left to head to the cafeteria but were promptly called back in because it was time to push.  They never made it to the cafeteria.

From my past experience I should have had a baby within just a couple of pushes.  Heck, with H I didn’t have to push at all!! 

Not the case this time.  I pushed for almost an hour!  And now we know why…

This kid has got a gigantic head!  It ended up being 38 cm… 97th percentile.  The midwife said that’s the biggest head she’s ever delivered in all her 30 years of midwifery!  And she said that it explained why he wasn’t here within the time frame they had given earlier.  

But he’s here!  4:32 pm.  Almost exactly 24 hours from the very first REAL contraction.  And I can’t get enough of the little… BIG guy!  My biggest baby in all aspects!

The neatest thing was that Anthony actually got to deliver him.  When we asked the midwife about that earlier in the labor process she got excited and started telling Anthony that he could deliver the whole baby (sounds funny, eh?) head and all or wait for the head to be out.  Then she started explaining that there is a whole process to getting the head delivered to reduce or eliminate tearing.  At that point Anthony said that he was ok with waiting for baby’s head to be delivered by the midwife and he would take it from there.  It was pretty neat to have him actually hand the baby up to me and put him on my chest.  Anthony is still talking about how neat it was.

 

One thing that I loved was that the midwife waited for the cord to stop pulsing before clamping it and having Anthony cut it.  Anyone that wanted to was able to feel the cord pulse.  I was too busy gazing at my new love!  However, I did get to see the placenta which I’ve never done before. 

WEIRD!!   

The nurse (or CNA?) that weighed him asked us all for guess on his weight.  We knew he was pretty good sized so we all started yelling out numbers.  8 lb 13 oz, 8 lb 15 oz, 8 lb 10 oz.  Somewhere in that range.  Then she held him up and bounced him a little and said, “I’m guessing nine six.”  (As in 9lb. 6 oz.)

9 lbs. 7 oz!!!  I guess she’s done this a few times ;)  22 inches long.

I tore only a little (not quite a 2nd degree) which is pretty good considering…

LOVE this baby!!  Not quite sure what to call him on the blog because he shares a first initial with B. 

And for the record, I am not in any way disappointed in myself for choosing an epidural in the end.  I endured as long as I possibly could and am so grateful for medical technology.  To be able to get that kind of relief when it’s needed is nothing short of a miracle, in my opinion.  Had it been any of my other babies I am positive I could have done it naturally (in fact I did once, just not on purpose).  This sweet baby and his gargantuan head… 

But I look at him and see a tiny little baby.  I don’t have anything to compare him to.  It’s hard to remember how little the others were.  Anthony slipped into the nursery once during our hospital stay and said that seeing our handsome boy next to the others was quite the shock.  He really IS big!  He kept asking the nursery workers if the others were preemies.  To his surprise most of them were average 7-8 pounders. 

I have to say that I absolutely LOVED having a midwife this time around.  Why didn’t anyone ever tell me how great it was before?  I would highly recommend this experience to anyone.  The midwife was even willing to walk my SIL through every little thing.  My SIL is a nurse in Idaho but has never done labor and delivery.  She was asking all kinds of questions.  She was even able to check my cervix early on.  And she learned all about tears and stitching them back up. 

IF and when (but bigger IF) I ever do it again I will absolutely choose a midwife again.

I was nursing in this picture which is why you don’t see the baby.

  

My mom on the left and Anthony’s mom on the right.

 

My sister and me.  She took most of the pics.  The nurse thought we were twins!  I wish we would have been smart enough to have included Anthony’s sister in this pic. :(

 

More pics to come…