Baby Bryson

Pictures first, for those of you that only care about that.  Labor story at the end.

First bath

Measurements

Caleb and Carter meeting Bryson for the first time when Bryson is 4 hours old.  They did so well and were so gentle!  Carter kept saying, "This is my baby."

 First snuggle with Daddy

Meeting Grandma and Grandpa for the first time

Meeting some cousins

 Snuggles with Mommy

2 days old

Friday morning I started feeling a few contractions, but they weren't very hard or long, and I wasn’t sure if it would amount to anything or not.  I went to help sort vegetables for a veggie co-op I participate in, and felt a few contractions while sorting and on the drive home.  I decided to start timing them and as of 10:30 am, I noticed the contractions were coming about 10 minutes apart, but none of them lasted longer than 30 seconds.  I decided to call Matt home from work, and he arrived home around 10 minutes past noon.  He gave me a priesthood blessing to calm my nerves, and my mom arrived around 12:20 to watch Carter.  We got to the hospital around 12:45; we were put in a triage room for me to change while the nurse did some paperwork.  She came back and checked me, and I was dilated to 6 cm.  (Phew!  It's always scary that you won't have progressed as much as you've hoped for!)  I was able to work through the contractions by myself up until this point.  Once I was changed, I laid down into the position I find most comfortable where Matt could massage my back during contractions.  They were coming 4 to 5 minutes apart at this point.

A new nurse came in to move me to the labor/delivery room.  Between contractions, the nurse was asking all kinds of health-related questions and having me sign and initial.  This happened last time as well, and it doesn’t allow me to fully concentrate on relaxing as I would like!  Matt did a lot better at coaching this time around.  His praise and relaxation reminders made a huge difference.  My contractions started coming a minute apart, and the second my water broke, I felt the need to start pushing.  I announced such and asked them to get my doctor in right away!  

Matt says when the doctor walked into the room, the baby’s head was already partially out.  He had enough time to put on some gloves and “catch” the baby.  (My doctor had been upstairs in the hospital while I was laboring--I'm not sure why!!)

I was so relieved when it was over, and of course my first concern was for the baby.  I heard a nurse say the cord was wrapped around his neck, so that made me nervous!  Bryson was healthy and born at 1:59pm.  He weighed 8 pounds even and was 21 inches in length.

While natural labor is difficult, I think it is worth it for the after-effects.  I love being able to get up right away, and I just feel like the recovery is so much faster.  I need to add that my favorite part about the delivery was the fact that I didn’t have to have an IV in my hand!  There wasn't time to get it set up; the IV is such a nuisance while laboring!  I'm not sure if there is any proven research, but I will continue to swear up and down by my running throughout pregnancy which I think makes labor/delivery/recovery so much easier!

It was so fun to see Caleb and Carter meet Bryson for the first time.  We were so excited to call and tell Caleb the good news after he got home from the bus stop.  My mom and dad brought them later around 6pm to meet Bryson. Carter said over and over, "This is my baby." Caleb talked about how he knew to be gentle with Bryson, and they both enjoyed holding him.  They are going to be such great big brothers!

We are so grateful to have Bryson in our family!  The newborn stage is so precious and with each baby I am amazed at God's trust in Matt and me as parents to raise these special spirits.  I learn so much about what matters most in life through motherhood and appreciate the perspective it gives me.

We're grateful for all the well-wishes and for family and my good friend, Kim, for stopping by to visit Bryson and me in the hospital.  We're glad to be home and learning to adjust to being a family of 5!

*At Bryson's doctor's appointment yesterday, he weighed 8 lbs. 3 oz.  By day 3, he'd already gained back his birth weight plus some!  (And this was after a major diaper explosion in the waiting room at the doctor's office!)  Like both my other boys were, he's a champ at eating.