52 weeks

One year ago today at this very time (14:01) 

I was in a labor and delivery room at the University of Utah Hospital.

It all had started on Wednesday March 10th.

 I wasn't due until the 22 but I knew I needed to get the ball rolling. 

The Little Man inside of me wanted it out, and to be quite honest I was ready for him to be out too.

I went to the local rec center and was determined to walk until my water broke.

After 10 miles I gave up.

Friday March 12th after hearing that pineapple is a natural inducer of labor I drove to SLC

and made Matt go to Tucanos for dinner. I ate some meat but I devoured the pineapple.

Still nothing.

Saturday March 13th my good friend Josh got married & we attended his reception along with my dad.

As we sat there eating desserts something didn't feel right.

I was getting sick.

(or so I thought)

When we went home and into the basement to our room I got an overwhelming feeling of nausea.

I told Matt I was going to go upstairs to take a bath. This meant he had to come with me, as I was now too big to get out of the tub safely all by my pregnant self.

As I got up stairs and started filling the tub the nausea got worse. I told Matt to go to the main floor and grab an empty ice cream gallon in case I had to throw up while bathing.

He hadn't even reached the landing as that nights dinner and dessert was entering the toilet bowl.

I got in the tub and felt myself relax. 

When I went to bed I was cramping. . . I thought "maybe. . . just maybe this is it."

but they weren't even strong enough to keep me awake and I fell asleep.

Sunday March 14th. Daylight savings.

Matt woke up late for his leadership meeting at church. He joked with the men there that he could be taking me to the hospital any minute now. By the time he got home around 8:30 my contractions were 30-45 seconds long 3-5 minutes apart. This could actually be it!

I wanted to go to church first. 

I wanted the sacrament to help me through what I was about to experience.

We sat in the foyer so we could leave as soon as needed.

People casually asked when that baby would come out. I joked that it would most likely be another week, all the while knowing he could be here in just hours.

We partook of the Sacrament and headed home. 

I made Matt help me change the sheets on my bed. 

I hadn't nested the whole pregnancy but now that I was in labor, I wanted to clean the whole basement!

As we were putting the sheets on, my water broke and I started leaking. (GROSS)

As soon as the bed was made we loaded our hospital bags into the car.

We started up the street and then stopped at the church to inform my parents I was in labor.

When we checked into the hospital I had to pee in a cup.

Love hospital protocol.

They checked me and I was 30% effaced dilated to a 1 maybe a 2 and was indeed in labor.

Hour after hour went by.

Both sets of grandparents came to visit.

My 3 sisters came to visit.

I kept effacing but never got past a 3.

Little Man's heart kept reacting weird.

Finally around midnight they gave me a shot to stop my contractions and told me to get some sleep.

30 minutes later they came back in to say my dr. wanted to do a c-section.

I remember being so scared for the surgery.

Matt gave me a blessing and that seemed to calm me down.

We called both sets of Grandparents and they all decided to come to the hospital.

My sisters Addie and Quinci came as well.

As they wheeled me into surgery my placenta tore and I gushed blood.

The surgery happened far too quickly and isn't something I like to relive.

I didn't even get to see my baby as they took him off to NICU with a low 3 APGAR score.

Addie comforted me and explained what I was going through.

(She'd had 2 previous c-sections)

It was really nice to have her there.

Matt went with the Little Man and saw him washed and weighed.

He was kind enough to make sure I was the first person, other than medical staff, to hold our son.

My Little Man has changed my life.

There is more love, more joy, more laughter all because of him.

He makes me better every single day.

He is the greatest blessing in my life.

And tomorrow he will be 1. 

Time flies far too quickly.

First Family Portrait

Kissing my Little Man

The first shot of him.

Us, the other day eating PB & J