One year ago this very hour, you were still in my belly. Daddy and I enjoyed a nice quiet meal, we watched some Lost on DVD, and I drank a whole glass of milk-strawberry Nesquik (something I rarely do). I had been going to bed early every night for the past week, just in case you decided to come in the middle of the night. Tonight though, I stayed up and watched a movie with daddy. At one point, I put my hands on my belly and said to you "baby, are you going to come out soon? We would like to meet you. But please be nice to momma when you do."
We had spent the last 9 weeks preparing for your arrival by taking a Bradley Natural Childbirth class. Through the classes and other reading, we felt prepared that we could handle any situation and trusted that my body would do exactly what it was supposed to do to bring you safely into the world. I also had been doing my exercises and felt I was ready for the greatest physical feat of my life. I had no idea what to expect, or how I was going to labor, but knew that daddy and I were committed to a natural birth because we knew it was the safest thing for you. No matter how bad the pain was going to be, it would be worth it for you.
Even more than that, I was spiritually prepared. Every day for the past nine months, I had prayed for a safe and healthy birth. I prayed many novenas to St. Gerard and went to Mass almost every single day. I also asked for the intercession of your sister in Heaven. I trusted in God, everything was going to be great.
I wasn't scared, or really even nervous. I was excited. Not just to meet you, but excited to experience the wonderful process of childbirth. I didn't have many expectations, only I had heard that "you labor like your mom." She had long, long labors (31 hours with her first) so I was anticipating that. We planned to labor at home as long as possible so as to spend very little time in the hospital. We planned to pray the rosary at the begining of labor, maybe watch some episodes of The Brak Show, and then go for a nice long walk (or two). We planned to laugh and really enjoy those moments knowing you would soon be here. These were are plans.
We rounded out the night by laying in bed and reading about newborn care. I read about breastfeeding and daddy read about basic care. We were ready. At 11:30 p.m., we turned out the lights and my head hit the pillow fast.
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