I spent the early part of Easter morning wondering if we would be holding a sweet little Easter baby within a few hours. "Real" contractions (anyone who has ever been in labor knows the difference between the common Braxton-Hicks contractions and real contractions) had started around six in the morning and came every 10-12 minutes for about an hour. I was so excited, but spent the hour thinking about all the plans that had been made for the day having to be un-made. Then, just as quickly as they had come, they disappeared. I was a little disappointed at the time, but looking back I am so very thankful to have been able to enjoy what would turn out to be a perfect day full of worshiping together at church, delicious celebratory lunch with family, a very special egg hunt with some very special kids, snuggling in for a two hour nap with my favorite four year old and a family walk around the lake at Paris Mountain. We all returned home that evening tired and happy. We tucked the kids into bed and they all asked when the baby would come....
At 10:30, as Jimmy and I were climbing into bed, I was more than ready for a good night of sleep. And that's when I felt that same feeling I'd felt earlier in the day. More real contractions. As excited as I was to meet this new little babe, I really wanted sleep, that last blessed night of full sleep. I thought they might fizzle out if I just ignored them and drifted off, but after a little over an hour of consistency and with them getting closer I decided to just get up. Once I had given up the dream of sleep I was excited about what the next few hours would bring. I was also glad that baby would come during the night. All but one of our babies have been born in the darkness of night, just the way I like it.
After being up for about 10 minutes I quickly realized that the contractions were much closer together than I had realized while lying down and I was ready to have some company. I woke Jimmy, who immediately began timing them (his favorite part now that he doesn't get to make the crazy drive to the hospital anymore) to get a feel for where we were in the process. Two minutes apart. He suggested that it was time to call Lisa, our midwife, but I thought it was too early - it had been little more than an hour since they started! Thankfully, Jimmy keeps his wits about him during labor because any wits that I might have were gone at this point. So Lisa got the call around midnight and knows from past experience that it probably won't be long. Jimmy also called our friend and neighbor Sarah and my sister-in-law Jenny-Lynn to let them know it was time. They were here for moral support, to run kid-interference should that be necessary and for documenting the occasion. Sarah brought her iPad and Jenny-Lynn brought coffee - Jimmy got to spend about 90 seconds sipping coffee and looking up baby names before it would become apparent that this was not going to be a leisurely affair.
Lisa arrived just before 12:30 and began to get her supplies set up. I had been enjoying the aid of a warm bath but was starting to get that "MUST. GET. OUT. NOW." feeling that I'd had just minutes before Jack's birth two years before. As soon as Jimmy had helped me out of the tub I realized that things were moving fast but it was all just so intense that I didn't seem to have the thought that maybe I should tell someone. Remember those wits that I lose during labor? Yeah. Those were officially gone. With contractions coming now one right on top of the other, it made the 10-foot walk from our bathroom to our bed seem like a mile and it took almost as long to get there! Once we made it, I leaned over the bed for the next contraction and my water broke. Loudly. I think I might have screamed. Just two minutes later, at 12:43am and on Jack's second birthday, our sweet little Six made his way into the world with both fists up by his face, just like his biggest brother! With Lisa's help, Jimmy and I scooped him up, confirmed that he was, in fact, a "he", and climbed into bed to snuggle him, where he promptly peed on me. Those first moments of sheer relief and joy and awe are among the best moments in my life. He was completely perfect and we were so very thankful.
After a little while Lisa took him to clean him up, check him out and get him weighed. He seemed like a little peanut and the estimations were coming in around the 6lb mark. He reminded me so much of Travis right from the start that I guessed he would be around 6lbs, 12oz. He surprised us all by coming in at 7lbs, 12oz, our second biggest baby yet! And at 21 1/2 inches he was our longest by almost 2 inches! Once his perfection was confirmed by Lisa, she got him all dressed and cozy in the hat that Caroline had just finished knitting for him two days before. Adorable barely even begins to describe him, especially in that hat. The three of us snuggled up in bed while Jimmy resumed his name searching, Lisa and her assistant Nicole tidied up and Sarah and Jenny-Lynn admired our new little guy.
After many months of searching for the perfect first name to go with Augustine (the name of Jimmy's favorite theologian and philosopher), the middle name that he has been longing for since we named Travis 10 years ago, he found Elias (a name that I'd mentioned several weeks earlier that I adored but it didn't seem to have the same effect on Jimmy at that point). It means "the Lord is my God" and we both loved it immediately. With a name finally chosen, we called our parents to introduce them to their newest grandchild. None of them minded being awakened in the middle of the night for such wonderful news!
With the excitement wearing down and morning only getting closer, the party broke up and we were left to snuggle in with our sweet Elias and get some sleep. He had nursed well and was headed into his long newborn nap and we were more than happy to take advantage of that! I'll confess, it's pretty darn wonderful to cozy up in your own bed just hours after birth with your husband and new baby. I'll also confess that even after 5 other newborns and knowing that it's fully normal and expected that they will sleep for a long stretch shortly after birth, I couldn't help but worry that he should be eating or making sure he was still breathing or just staring at his sweetness. I never actually fell asleep.
At 5am we heard a little knock on our door. Jimmy opened it to find our sweet Caroline coming to ask me a question. She came over to the bed and began to talk quietly when she noticed the bundle of sweetness tucked into my arm. The look on her face is one that I will treasure forever. It still bring tears to my eyes anytime I think of it. Joy at it's purest. She completely lit up and whispered, "A baby! Our baby is here!" She was so surprised and filled with complete awe. Jimmy took him from me and carried him over to a chair where she got to be properly introduced and be the first to hold him and kiss him. I was so thankful that she got to have this special time with him all by herself in the quiet of the early morning.
In contrast and just like a boy, Sam's discovery two hours later was a bit more.... rowdy. Upon trying to climb in next to me for an early morning snuggle, he found my arm full of baby and started shouting, "A baby! The baby!", and he took off running down the hall - loudly - to wake the rest of the kids. It was like Christmas morning as they all ran in to meet their newest brother. It was a very special birth-day indeed and, thanks to Sarah, Jack and Eli even got to share their first birthday cake (complete with "2" and "0" candles!).
We are so blessed and grateful to welcome sweet Elias into our family.
(click on the link above to view a slideshow of Eli's birth and the weeks following)
At 10:30, as Jimmy and I were climbing into bed, I was more than ready for a good night of sleep. And that's when I felt that same feeling I'd felt earlier in the day. More real contractions. As excited as I was to meet this new little babe, I really wanted sleep, that last blessed night of full sleep. I thought they might fizzle out if I just ignored them and drifted off, but after a little over an hour of consistency and with them getting closer I decided to just get up. Once I had given up the dream of sleep I was excited about what the next few hours would bring. I was also glad that baby would come during the night. All but one of our babies have been born in the darkness of night, just the way I like it.
After being up for about 10 minutes I quickly realized that the contractions were much closer together than I had realized while lying down and I was ready to have some company. I woke Jimmy, who immediately began timing them (his favorite part now that he doesn't get to make the crazy drive to the hospital anymore) to get a feel for where we were in the process. Two minutes apart. He suggested that it was time to call Lisa, our midwife, but I thought it was too early - it had been little more than an hour since they started! Thankfully, Jimmy keeps his wits about him during labor because any wits that I might have were gone at this point. So Lisa got the call around midnight and knows from past experience that it probably won't be long. Jimmy also called our friend and neighbor Sarah and my sister-in-law Jenny-Lynn to let them know it was time. They were here for moral support, to run kid-interference should that be necessary and for documenting the occasion. Sarah brought her iPad and Jenny-Lynn brought coffee - Jimmy got to spend about 90 seconds sipping coffee and looking up baby names before it would become apparent that this was not going to be a leisurely affair.
Lisa arrived just before 12:30 and began to get her supplies set up. I had been enjoying the aid of a warm bath but was starting to get that "MUST. GET. OUT. NOW." feeling that I'd had just minutes before Jack's birth two years before. As soon as Jimmy had helped me out of the tub I realized that things were moving fast but it was all just so intense that I didn't seem to have the thought that maybe I should tell someone. Remember those wits that I lose during labor? Yeah. Those were officially gone. With contractions coming now one right on top of the other, it made the 10-foot walk from our bathroom to our bed seem like a mile and it took almost as long to get there! Once we made it, I leaned over the bed for the next contraction and my water broke. Loudly. I think I might have screamed. Just two minutes later, at 12:43am and on Jack's second birthday, our sweet little Six made his way into the world with both fists up by his face, just like his biggest brother! With Lisa's help, Jimmy and I scooped him up, confirmed that he was, in fact, a "he", and climbed into bed to snuggle him, where he promptly peed on me. Those first moments of sheer relief and joy and awe are among the best moments in my life. He was completely perfect and we were so very thankful.
After a little while Lisa took him to clean him up, check him out and get him weighed. He seemed like a little peanut and the estimations were coming in around the 6lb mark. He reminded me so much of Travis right from the start that I guessed he would be around 6lbs, 12oz. He surprised us all by coming in at 7lbs, 12oz, our second biggest baby yet! And at 21 1/2 inches he was our longest by almost 2 inches! Once his perfection was confirmed by Lisa, she got him all dressed and cozy in the hat that Caroline had just finished knitting for him two days before. Adorable barely even begins to describe him, especially in that hat. The three of us snuggled up in bed while Jimmy resumed his name searching, Lisa and her assistant Nicole tidied up and Sarah and Jenny-Lynn admired our new little guy.
After many months of searching for the perfect first name to go with Augustine (the name of Jimmy's favorite theologian and philosopher), the middle name that he has been longing for since we named Travis 10 years ago, he found Elias (a name that I'd mentioned several weeks earlier that I adored but it didn't seem to have the same effect on Jimmy at that point). It means "the Lord is my God" and we both loved it immediately. With a name finally chosen, we called our parents to introduce them to their newest grandchild. None of them minded being awakened in the middle of the night for such wonderful news!
With the excitement wearing down and morning only getting closer, the party broke up and we were left to snuggle in with our sweet Elias and get some sleep. He had nursed well and was headed into his long newborn nap and we were more than happy to take advantage of that! I'll confess, it's pretty darn wonderful to cozy up in your own bed just hours after birth with your husband and new baby. I'll also confess that even after 5 other newborns and knowing that it's fully normal and expected that they will sleep for a long stretch shortly after birth, I couldn't help but worry that he should be eating or making sure he was still breathing or just staring at his sweetness. I never actually fell asleep.
At 5am we heard a little knock on our door. Jimmy opened it to find our sweet Caroline coming to ask me a question. She came over to the bed and began to talk quietly when she noticed the bundle of sweetness tucked into my arm. The look on her face is one that I will treasure forever. It still bring tears to my eyes anytime I think of it. Joy at it's purest. She completely lit up and whispered, "A baby! Our baby is here!" She was so surprised and filled with complete awe. Jimmy took him from me and carried him over to a chair where she got to be properly introduced and be the first to hold him and kiss him. I was so thankful that she got to have this special time with him all by herself in the quiet of the early morning.
In contrast and just like a boy, Sam's discovery two hours later was a bit more.... rowdy. Upon trying to climb in next to me for an early morning snuggle, he found my arm full of baby and started shouting, "A baby! The baby!", and he took off running down the hall - loudly - to wake the rest of the kids. It was like Christmas morning as they all ran in to meet their newest brother. It was a very special birth-day indeed and, thanks to Sarah, Jack and Eli even got to share their first birthday cake (complete with "2" and "0" candles!).
We are so blessed and grateful to welcome sweet Elias into our family.
(click on the link above to view a slideshow of Eli's birth and the weeks following)