Harlow Carol Woodmansee

There she is! The love of our loves, my little baby girl! Harlow Carol Woodmansee was born on Tuesday, March 13th at 5:34 AM. She weighed in at 8 lbs 5 oz and was 21.5 inches long. She is perfectly beautiful. For now, I'll briefly share with you how this angel made her wonderfully smooth entrance into the world. Turns out good things come to those who wait.
I was supposed to be induced on Tuesday morning. So, they wanted me to be admitted on Monday night so that I could receive a pill that would soften my cervix. Piece of cake, right? So, at about 7 PM I went on in with my mom and my husband on hand to keep me company. We played cards and joked and I had a good time. I was having some mild pains. The nurse hooked me up to the moniter and says "You're having contractions". Looks like the little miss knew already it was time to come out. But, they gave me to pill anyway just to see what would happen and speed things along.
After that, things SURE did speed along. Around 11:00 PM the contractions got down to business. Those things are TORTURE. I was in the bad place until about 2:40 when I asked for my epidural. I was 3 cm and 90% effaced. Ahhh pure bliss. Epidural, I do love you. Then, the nurse came to check me at about 3:15 AM. "Whoa, your membranes ruptured and you're a 5, this is awesome!" What happy words to hear from my WONDERFUL nurse. She they decided that I would not need to pitocin and that this baby was coming on her own.

About an hour later, at 4:00 AM, I was feeling really uncomfortable. Nauseous, back aches, sweaty, I knew something was up. So, we called the nurse. "Oh my gosh, you're at a 10, you're complete, the other nurses are not going to believe this. Call your mom, I'm calling the doctor and we're going to push". OHHHH my gosh! I was so excited/soooo nervous about pushing.

Mom and the doctor showed up very quickly. I pushed for 40 minutes and then heard my favorite sound. Harlow's voice. I'm crying now just typing about it. It was truly a beautiful experience. Michael was a giddy little boy with excitement. It was SO cute. And it was so special to have Grandma with us to see her grand baby enter the world. I will always look back on that moment with so much joy.

There's my team (with mom behind the camera). Dr. Broberg was FABULOUS and made me feel so important and so strong. But Alicia, my nurse, was just wonderful. She took such good care of us and I totally feel like we're BFFs. I'm so thankful to her. Michael was the best support a person could ever ask for in that kind of an overwhelming situation. And my mom kept me sane with all of her encouraging words and I just knew that I could do it. Here are some pictures, in random order, of our whole hospital experience.

I am healing up wonderfully, have had very minimal pain, and feel very, very blessed to have enjoyed this whole experience. There are not words for how much I love and adore Harlow. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Thank you all so very much for your kind words, love, and support. Now, let the fun begin!