My Baby Jonas!

Jonas is almost 3 months old now.
As a new mommy, I've learned MANY things.

One of these I learned when pregnant: THINGS WILL NOT ALWAYS GO YOUR WAY.

I thought I'd never get heartburn, I did.
Oh, and it felt so bad. I didn't like it... and I also stopped drinking orange juice thinking this may have been the cause.

I thought I would never get stretch marks since I put on lotion religiously and my skin is dark, and my mom never got any... but I did.
And I cried. And cried. One day on my last month I wake up and see some marks on my belly. OMG!!! STRETCH MARKS! I thought my life was ruined. I would never have a smooth belly ever again. DH assured me everything was okay, that he loves me and thinks I'm beautiful with them, that they represented Jonas--so it's all good.
I LOVE JONAS and I wouldn't EVER trade anything for him (of course), so if my stretch marks were one of the costs of having Jonas in my life... so be it.
But I still do miss my smooth, flat belly... Life.

I thought I would deliver my baby without an epidural... I used the epidural.
I was the first to think "I will never use the epidural". I condemned it as an unnatural way to give birth. God didn't make the epidural, I'd think.
WELL... Here's my labor story :) I do believe (now) the epidural is God inspired...

The labor was LONG. My water broke at 5:38am... I was waiting for my 'labor pains' to be 4 min. apart before going into the hospital. I called my 'clinic' just to let them know. My contractions began to be constant - every 4 min. at 3:30 pm. I waited 1hour to make sure they were constant before going into the hospital (they wanted me to call when my contractions were consistent). I got to the hospital by 5:30pm.

My doc (at the clinic) had checked my cervix to see how much I was dilated at 2pm... she couldn't see because of the fluid or something.
So I couldn't be checked again because there's risk of infection.
So we were waiting until I was in REALLY bad pain before checking.

The contractions began getting closer and closer together...
And stronger and stronger...
By the time they were every 2 min. apart and I was not able to walk anymore and I was crying like a baby... it was 11:30 pm... 8hrs in labor!!!

So the doc checked me to see how far I was...

I was 4 CENTIMETERS dilated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I WAS SO MAD!!!!!!!!!!! I was like: "WHAT??!!" I'm taking all this pain thinking I'm 'moving along'... in case you didn't know-- 4 cent. is the beginning of labor pains. I needed to get to 10 centimeters and the pain is supposed to get even worst.
I was SO UPSET; I didn't want to use the epidural... but it would take 1hour for each centimeter. So basically we had 6 hours to go.
YEAH RIGHT!!!! Epidural time!

The epidural was a right decision for me. My mom and husband were able to sleep. I wasn't in unbearable pain for 6 more hours. And the contractions were going along very well... the baby was also doing well. So everything was going fine... as it should... just I didn't have to suffer more :).

At 5 am I was 10 cent dilated. The midwife got the nurse... they began helping me 'push' at 5:15am (I couldn't feel half of my body... so I 'made believe' I was pushing, but I couldn't feel it :))
The docs told me it would take around 2 hours for baby to come out because of the epidural and me not feeling the 'push' etc.

BABY CAME OUT IN 20 MINUTES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
At 5:34 am he was born!!!

The docs were impressed I pushed so well. I thank God now that He helped this go quick because I was so tired.

I didn't get cut (episiotomy). I healed down there very quickly... I think. But everything went great.

Baby was so alert when he came out.

Lesson Learned-- never judge someone else... or walk in someone else's shoes before making the judgment :)