So our sweet little man is already a month old!! My last blog entry was while we were trying to patiently wait on his arrival! Finally on October 8th at 2:14 am, Shane and i were able to hold our sweet squishy baby boy!! He was here. Everything went as perfectly as it possibly could have. After a full Saurday in Ann Arbor, we finally got home around 9 at night and I soon realized it was time, and we needed to head back to the hospital! We made a game plan to see who could come stay with the kids, Posey was already asleep so we had asked our sweet friend Bria to come stay at our house with the kids :) She took such sweet care of them, letting them have an entire can of Vernors!! 😜 Saying bye to them was hard, even though a small part of me though “maybe this isn’t the real thing, I wouldn’t be surprised!” Saying bye to Owen was actually the hardest. He so badly wanted to go with us, to see the birth and experience it all. He asked shane to take videos and he cut me up some cucumbers because he was worried they wouldn’t feed me. Writing it all out now makes me all tearey eyed. He really is the sweetest kid. Henry and Ellanore were excited he was finally gonna be here, but they were winding down ready to rest and watch the movie they picked out(Harry Potter) 😋
Out drive to the hospital was much better then our late morning drive into Ann Arbor. It was the UofM vs STATE game and thankfully they had a night game , so traffic was not back to crazy like earlier! However it was storming and raining and we stopped for food which took about 30 mins of our previous time! With my contraction counter telling me “it’s time to go to the hospital!!” I knew Shane wouldn’t be eating for a while so we needed to fuel up.
Arriving to the hospital, all was calm and quiet, parking was a breeze(unlike all the other times before) and we easily walked up to the floor we needed and got settled.
I wasn’t in full blown labor like I had been with Posey and Ellanore.... we were calm and all was peaceful:) so much so I was nervous we had HOURS of labor ahead still. The midwives were all amazing and basically said, whatever you want to do, we will do! And “do you want a tub room to birth in” came out of their mouths and I quickly exclaimed yes, and we headed up to our delivevery room. Even when they had to break the news that my second group b test came back positive, and I started to cry, they completely let the choice be ours and there was no pressure at all.
We were blessed with an amazing nurse and a slew of wonderful midvies(even though I was only in labor about....3 hours?)
Things were progressing but I still was smiling and calm, talking and laughing, so there was still a doubt in my mind that this wasn’t really happening! I mean, I was almost 3 weeks past my due date... seemed like little Edison didn’t really want to come out ;) anyways , around 1am I was finally convinced that this was happening and possibly almost over. Still wasn’t miserable but I mean, those contractions were real!!! Shane took videos and pictures and was calm and collected the entire time , reassuring me I could do, I was doing it and the end was near! Around 1:55, at 7cm I got in the tub and at 2:14 he was born, in the tub!!! Which was a dream!! I always wanted a water birth and finally got one!! I feel like we did it all on our own, start to finish. And yes I say we because I honestly couldn’t labor and give birth to these babies without Shane there by my side! Despite all the extra waiting we had to go through before Edison arrived, I wouldn’t change anything. It was such a sweet ending to my birthing journey. My body kept him inside longer, providing a safe perfect place for him, close to my heart, and then when it was time, my body did it all on its own. No membranes swept, castle oil, or any other intervention medical or natural was needed. I doubted a little that my body could do it, but it reminded me again how it knows what to do:) Edison was gently, peacefully and joyfully brought into this world. I guided him out and picked him up out of the water , onto my chest and just felt this amazing sense of accomplishment. It was astonishing.
This 1st month with him have been filled with emotions, so so many. Joy, excitement, exhaustion, nervous, love, overwhelm, sadness and thankfulness: I am sure I could keep going. I even felt a since of grief. Like I was going through a grieving process of an empty womb, never to carry life again inside it. It was a huge deal that first week. It was as beautiful though and I think necessary.
The kids are amazing and just were overjoyed to bring Edison home :) Getting home too way way too long. I think we were in the hospital until Tuesday night!! Usually we bust out right at 24hours!! So the extra time there for sure put a kink in our plans, but overall, probably was a good thing:) extra time with just him and rest. It was hard though, not going to lie, being inside when it was beautiful outside and not being with our other kiddos, it was not easy.
The first night home Henry asked if this was Edison’s first time at home and even though it was,’it didn’t feel like it, it felt like he had been here always! It all just felt right and normal right from the start.
The month was filled with a few thousand pictures and mini videos , unlimited snuggles, endless diaper changes, smiles, laughs, tears and struggles :) it’s been so very good. The kids ask to hold him about every five minutes 😜😍 and sometimes it’s a fight to see who goes first. They all love him so so much. They themselves are overwhelmed with his “cute tiny finger and toes” his coos and yawns, how soft he is and how squishy he is. I want to remember how it feelsto hold him. How is body just melts into my arms, rests on my chest and our breathing syncs. How he can be squished into a little ball fetal position like he as in the womb, and he just loves it. How he can be crying and as soon as he hears my voice or feels my has picking him up, he calms and there are no more tears. I want to remember how soft his skin is, how smooth his hair is and the send of his newborn ness, yes it’s a thing , newborns have a smell:) I want to remember it all.
He smiles, I promise you he does. I think at the end of week 1, we had genuine smiles!! And when he is awake, he is so so awake! He is so alert and bright eyes, soaking everything up and his eyes are joyful!! His overall mood is content and joyful!! He even coos and laughs!! I swear he laughs already.... and tries to talk to us:) Owen thinks it too. He just makes so many sweet sweet sounds, he is telling us he loves us 😍😍
A month in and this new life as a family of 7 just seems right. Crazy and hard and full of challenges, but it all seems right. Shane and I have some to the realization that our house may never be all the way clean again, that everything we need to get done, may not get done, and the days of staying in pjs may outnumber the days we get dressed 😬 it is all worth it though. Everything. It’s worth it.
This new season of motherhood (parenthood) is truely refining. Not that motherhood wasn’t before, but it’s even more so now. Life goes so fast. They say the days are long and the years are short, but right now, the days are short and so are the weeks, months and years!!! Its going so so fast.
My hope is that I blog more, in this beyond busy season. Makes sense right?? 😝 the reason why is that I want to remember it all. The struggles , triumphs and the mundane moments of it all. I want to document it more than ever now.
So hears to month 1 with Edison here :) we love him and are enjoying his newness so so much ☺️☺️
