Introducing . . .

Here are some photos of the newest addition to our family, Avan Jonathan! On Saturday evening, a week from today, my water broke around 11:30 pm. I was reading my scriptures in bed and heard a loud 'pop.' I was a little surprised by the unexpected sound but when nothing more happened I kept reading my scriptures. A few minutes later I had a severe cramp and thought I'd better get up and call Pastor. I stood up and the next thing I knew my legs were all wet! I called Pastor and he hurried home after calling my mom to come and get Duane from the hospital. We woke Duane and packed everything into the van then headed to the hospital. The ride there was excruciating, but I had to keep reminding Pastor not to drive like a mad man while the roads were icy. I think out of the two of us he was more nervous.

Once at the hospital, Pastor took me to the 4th floor then was told he couldn't be up there with Duane due to the H1N1. They didn't allow any visitors under the age of 14, which was really sad for me. I filled out the paperwork while fighting the waves of pain. A nurse took me to a delivery room and Pastor came up a few minutes later.

After my experience when I had Duane, I was bound and determined not to have the epidural. By the time the nurses and doctors believe that I'm in labor, it's too late for any pain medicine and they numb in enough time for me not to feel to push. By the time the nurse got me in a gown and in a bed, it was pushing 3 in the morning. The anaesthesiologist came in a little while later, by this time I was sobbing from the pain. He said if I wanted the epidural, I would have to have it right then. I wavered in my determination and said okay. He moved quickly and I was numb a few minutes after.

A little later, I felt like I needed to push. I still hadn't seen any doctor even after asking multiple times for one. My regular doctor was on vacation so they were going to call the on-call doctor. I told the nurse I felt like I needed to push. She said I wasn't dilated enough to call the doctor and that I would have to wait. All the while I was nauseated and throwing up from the meds. My sister was there and had to hold the bucket for me because even my arms were numb by then.

While I was throwing up, I felt Avan starting to come. I tried to tell my sister to get help, but couldn't say anything from the waves of vomiting. I think she saw how scared I was because she was really trying to understand what I was trying to say. The next thing we knew, we heard Avan crying. My sister ran into the hall and called for help. The nurses and doctor came and scooped Avan up off the bed. It was 4:50 am.

I, of course, was near hysterical by then. They told me that Avan weighed 7 lbs and 1 ounce and that he was 19 inches long. Pastor stayed with Avan when they took him to the nursery and my sister remained with me. I was so numb that I couldn't move my arms or legs. I couldn't even hold Avan, but I was glad that he was alright.

We stayed in the hospital until Monday afternoon. I was so relieved to leave and be home. Being a mommy of two hasn't been as scary as people have led me to believe. I thought it would be like trying to subdue a tornado, but for the most part it's been very peaceful. Everything seems to be right and that makes me feel at peace.

Avan sleeps 4-6 hours at a time and is a really good baby. When he wakes up, he needs to be fed RIGHT away or he'll let me know just what he thinks about it by screaming, but I think that's to be expected.

I'm really happy and grateful for my little family, I have been blessed far more than I deserve.