My New Hero

I told T I was going to write this blog after witnessing what she went through during the labor process. I was very busy with school after Camo was born so I never had the time. Now that I'm out of school for two weeks I'd like to relate to you what I experienced during the labor.

I'm not sure how many of you have ever witnessed a natural birth before. Natural meaning, no drugs...period! Not ever Advil or Tylenol. I'd never seen a live delivery before let alone a natural one.

I was in for a treat!

When T and I got married she would often talk about her fear of labor and delivery. She would tell me that she couldn't handle pain very well and would describe how pain she had felt in the past would make her almost pass out. I believed her and was surprised when she told me she wanted to do a natural birth. I was all for doing whatever she wanted and if that was the course she was going to take and was going to encourage her to keep that goal even during the worst of labor pain. I also prepared myself for a long day of having my hand squeezed off and my head chewed off during the labor. If there was no drugs for T, I was sure I would need some for myself.

Then labor hit.

T was having a rough night trying to sleep and I had an exam the next day so I told her I was going to go sleep on the couch to make sure I got enough sleep before my exam. In the morning when my alarm went off at 6 AM I opened my eyes and saw her standing right in front of me. "I think I'm in labor." she said calmly and relaxed. My response, "No you're not." (stupid, I know) She went on to explain that she was up all night with her mom on the phone and had been timing her contractions. As she continued to explain the situation I began to realize that this was it, we were most likely going to have a baby by the end of the day. But then my own anxiety had snuck up on me knowing what we were about to face...without any drugs.

By the time we had arrived at the hospital the contractions were coming on harder and faster. When T got hooked up to all the monitors there was no doubt that she was in labor. I thought to myself, "I better saddle up because it was about to to get bad."

And it did, but not nearly as bad as I thought. T was a champion, you could tell each contraction was painful but with each approaching one T took it on and breathed through it. It was remarkable to watch her in action. I have never seen as much strength, as much determination, or as much perseverance in my entire life. And from the person who in our entire marriage told me she was not good at dealing with pain. If that was the case, then T became a different women then she was previous to the labor; she had become someone able to cope. She had become inspired and in the process inspired everyone else in the room.

After it was all over I promised her I was going to treat her like the inspiring women she had become. As you can probably guess I have already fallen short...many time over. It's funny how quickly your mind can forget the things that take your breath away. Maybe that is why I have not been able to write this blog until now. It has given me the desperate reminder I needed. Though sometimes my actions don't always show it, I will never forget what I saw and felt during the labor and delivery of our son. T is the most incredible women I know and my respect for all women has increased. I hope she never forgets how much I love her and what she means to this family. Without her, Camo and I wouldn't be the men we are.

Camo's Blessing

On Sunday, March 14 we gave Camo a name and a blessing at church. For any of those blog readers of ours who don't now what that is, it's a simple prayer given in our church for all new babies. In the Bible, the first chapter of Luke tells about how John the Baptist and Jesus Christ received their names. And in Mark Chapter 10 one can read about the blessing of children by Jesus Christ. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we have followed these teachings from the Bible and find naming and blessing little children important in the Church. We are grateful for Camo and his sweet spirit he has brought to our family and home. What an awesome opportunity it is to pray and ask for a special blessing of physical and spiritual strength to be upon our adorable little boy as he grows up.

Being a Mommy

I thought I would post some more adorable pictures of Camo. Being a mommy has definitely been an adjustment. I love it more and more each day. Camo is the best baby in the whole world. All he needs is sleep, food, diaper changes, kisses and snuggles. He is 6 1/2 weeks now and weighs 10 1/2 pounds. The picture of Camo in the Team Player outfit is an outfit my sister in law gave him. I went to put it on him today and J said there is no way that outfit is going to fit him. I put it on him anyway and sure enough it fits! J and I can't believe how big he is getting. I think sometimes we think he is still a small baby. We also blessed Camo today. Stay tuned for the update on that.

My Introduction

Howdy Y'all (my mommy taught that 'cause she's from TX),

I think it's about time I introduce myself. My parents have posted some cute pictures of me but it's about time you get to know me. My daddy wanted to write this post but I insisted I do it to show him and mommy I'm a big boy.

Due to the fact that our family wants to keep some privacy on our blog I wont tell you my real name here. But my nickname that you can all refer to when you leave me comments is Camo. I have a blue camouflage blanket that I love so I wanted to be called Camo. My mommy also likes to call me Camaroo which I guess it cute too.

I was born on January 29, 2010 at about 8:00pm. I was 6 lbs. 15 oz. and 20 and 1/2 inches long. That was only 5 weeks ago and I am already growing out of some of my clothes (that makes mommy and daddy sad because they want me to stay small). I'm probably about 9 lbs. now.

A few things I like:

• Eating--never can get enough milk these days
• Sleeping--though I don't like going to sleep, I love sleeping for long hours
• Riding in the car--that's because it usually leads to sleep
• Taking walks with mommy in the neighborhood while daddy is at school
• Being held--I don't like when mommy and daddy try to set me down in the bouncer so they can have a break from me. I get fussy real quick and beg them to pick me up
• Farting--It puts a big old smile on my face
• Bath time--That warm water reminds me of the good old days in the womb
  
• Mommy and Daddy--they take good care of me and even when they get annoyed with me they still are nice to me

A few things I don't like:

• Hiccups--they hurt and they last forever. Daddy always tells me he hates having the hiccups too
• My binky--I usually take it because mommy and daddy are shoving it in my face but then I spit it out a few minutes later and remind them that I'd rather be held then sit alone with a stupid binky
• Taking my vitamins--who invented vitamins anyway; curse them
• Sitting alone--It boring and usually when I sit alone I can see mommy and daddy doing fun stuff
• Having my diaper changed or changing my clothes--what can I say I'm a modest boy. Mommy and daddy hope that lasts a long time

I hope I can find time to write every once in a while to update you all on the things I'm doing. Feel free to leave me comments so I can get to know all of you.

Camo

First Family Photo and More Pictures

Labor Story

Warning: Long Post and if you are about to have a baby don't let this scare you. It was all worth it in the end.

On Friday morning at around 1:00 a.m., I woke up with menstrual like cramps. I tossed back and forth for a couple hours. J was a little annoyed because he had school the next day and needed some sleep. He moved out to the living room to sleep on the couch. The cramps continued and then I noticed they were turning into contractions. They weren't very painful but they were coming about every ten minutes and lasting about 15-20 seconds. I was still having them consistently until 4:00 a.m. I then decided to call my mom. I told her on the phone I think I am in labor but I am not sure. She kept timing them for me and they slowly started getting closer together but they still only lasted 15-20 seconds. I got in the bath while I was still talking to my mom and the contractions still did not go away. I also got up and walked around. Finally around 6:00 a.m. my mom told me you better go tell J, I think you are in labor and going to have this baby by tonight. Of course my mom was right. Anyway I woke J up and he seemed a little confused and was kind of questioning whether I was really in labor or wondering if it was false labor. I called the hospital and told them my contractions were only lasting like 20 seconds and they said they would really like them to be 45 seconds. J then started timing them and they got up to about 45 seconds. We then called the hospital about an hour later and they said to come in. I have to add this in. J said that one of his library books was due by 10:00 a.m. that morning and he didn't want to get charged a fine so we had to make a quick pit stop there first. Luckily my contractions weren't too bad. Little did I know they were nothing to what was about to come. We got to the hospital and got into the room and I was 3 centimeters dilated. They then moved me into the labor room. They put and IV in right away which I wasn't too thrilled about. In the mean time my mom was trying to catch a flight to get to Oregon by 9:30 p.m. I really hoped she wasn't gonig to make it to the birth because that would mean I was in labor for a long time. I labored for about four more hours and the nursed asked me if I was interested in the epidural. I asked her if she could check me to see how dilated I was. I was a six and a half to seven. I then thought ok I can do this I only have three more centimeters to go. Little did I know I would be laboring for another 7 hours before I got to a ten. The anesthesiologist came in around 5:00 p.m. to tell me a little bit about the epidural and how they would go about it and some of the side effects. When he was talking about the side effects that is when I got this burst of energy and said no thank you. As soon as he left the room I got up and off the bed and started laboring on my feet. Thank you anesthesiologist for persuading me not to get the epidural. The nurse then checked me again and I was still about a 7. I was so disappointed because I had been laboring for a long time since the last time they checked me. I thought to myself there is no way these contractions could get worse, they were so painful. I didn't know what I was in for. Around six I was dilated to about an 8 1/2 and the contractions were getting really hard. I started to feel an urge to push but not too bad yet. At around seven I was feeling like I needed to push and I was dilated to about a 9 1/2. I didn't think it was ever going to end. I was definitely a screamer and I never thought I would be. My sister-in-law told me while I was in my painful contractions two nurses walked in and asked if everything was ok. The pain was indescribable. I was on the toilet trying to go to the bathroom while the midwifes were trying to help me through the contractions. Then I heard the midwife saying ok he is coming let's just deliver him on the toilet. That was not my idea of a delivery nor was it any of the nurse's idea so I said I would rather go to the bed to push. I only had to push through three more contractions and he came out. I was so relieved and exhausted that I had absolutely no emotion. J was uncontrollably crying. He was six pounds fifteen ounces and 20 1/2 inches long. Just because I didn't cray after he was born doesn't mean I didn't cry later. I did my fair share on the drive home from the hospital. I just couldn't believe I did it. I was so proud of this baby I brought into this world.

I am so happy to be a mom. He is such a great baby and I feel blessed for that. He only wakes up once in the night to eat and he is starting to sleep longer and longer in the night. I also love how much attention J gives him. There is no doubt that he absolutely loves our baby boy. It is so cute watching him with the baby. We took him on his first outing this last Saturday to to beach. He did such a good job while we walked through the Tillamook Cheese Factory and then we walked around Seaside and looked at the shops. I will say it does make it hard when he has to feed every three hours. It seems like you just get started doing something and he has to eat again. It has definitely been an adjustment, but a good one!!
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HE'S ARRIVED!!!