Birth Story Part I-Em'ry Dove

As we anxiously await the birth of our second child, I can't help but think back on excitement that brewed as we welcomed our baby girl into the world 3 1/2 years ago. I feel it's only fair to record her story before we embark on the next one.
After having a full house over the Thanksgiving holiday, we said our good-byes and our families headed out. Some back to Booker and others making the long haul back to Houston. Everyone but my mom that is. It was a Saturday afternoon, and I had been contracting quite a bit throughout the morning so I convinced her to stay without filling her in on how I had been feeling. Basically I just begged.
We were living in Edmond at the time and with a few last details to finish the nursery, mom and I set out to find a few more girly accessories. As we got back into the car after leaving The Market, my mom acknowledged that I was not feeling well. So, I filled her in on why I asked her to stay. We ran a few more errands and headed back to the house to relax and watch the OSU/OU Football game. Greg and I were Season Ticket Holders at the time but gave the tickets away since the game fell on Em'ry's due date. We enjoyed the game from the comfort of our couch and I began timing my contractions. As the game finished up, Greg quickly put up our Christmas lights in the dark. It's comical now how determined he was to get them up before we headed to the hospital because he didn't want to miss time with her once she arrived. He is so sweet.
Around 11:30, my contractions had been about 5 minutes apart for about an hour and moved to three minutes apart. We packed our things and headed to Lakeside Women's Hospital. I remember joking in the car that I would probably be one of those women who came in on a false alarm. When we arrived, a nurse took us back to evaluate me and found that although I was having strong contractions every 3 minutes I was only dilated to 2cm. She asked me to walk around the halls of the hospital. After walking for thirty minutes, my contractions continued and I was dilated to 3cm.
Dr. Sears was contacted and I was admitted sometime after midnight. Around 3:30am, I received an epidural and was able to relax. Apparently, the epidural slowed my labor and although I was able to rest, Greg and my mom waited without sleep and worried all night. I do remember being sick on occasion because the nurse repositioned my bed and having back pains. The next morning, Dr. Sears came in and broke my water and then we waited some more. Again, I was sleeping mostly but Greg was exhausted from the long night.
When the nurse checked me around 3pm I was ready to push but unfortunately Dr. Sears had been called to deliver twins so we had to wait. Finally, a little after 4pm, Dr. Sears arrived and I was thrilled since my back was killing me!
At 4:26pm, Sunday, November 30th, 2008, Em'ry Dove made her appearance and made me a mommy!
She is perfect! Em'ry weighed in at 6lbs 4oz and measured 18in long. I am so thankful to Jana who came in sometime during the day and took the amazing first photos of Em'ry. After being weighed, cleaned up a bit, and a short stint on the warming bed with oxygen, she was placed in my arms to nurse and did so without hesitation.
We became a family of three! It felt better than I could have ever imagined. Greg fell in love at the first sight of our baby girl and I'm so thankful for his support through the delivery. We were dying to show her off and the time had come. The hospital was full of people who had come to welcome Em'ry into the world and into the family. Thank you to each person who prayed, visited, sent well wishes, and just loved on us during this precious time.

The Great Road Trip of 2012!

We had the great privilege of sharing the day with Blair and Stephen as they became Mr. and Mrs. Skipper this past weekend. It was a blast and the drive was definitely worthwhile!

My physician was not thrilled with the idea of me traveling 11hrs in the car at 37wks pregnant, but I let her know missing this was NOT an option ;)

Well, we made it! Em'ry was the flower girl and took her job very serious. I felt honored to be able to support Blair as a bridesmaid. She was a beautiful Bride and we enjoyed both the wedding festivities and the weeklong visit to Booker.

It is so sweet to watch Em'ry run and play with all of the kids of the family! Long lost cousins who become quick friends and have a blast together. We have been working really hard to build her social confidence as she tends to be clingy and shy. She played hard and tuckered out early, sleeping in my arms not phased by the music and noise :)

Now we are home finishing up the last minute details before Eli makes his arrival. As we laid in bed last night, the last words out of Em'ry's mouth were, "Praise God! We are back in Richmond!" It's so true. As much fun as it is to travel, its always feels good to come home :)