And then 3 became 4

The story of Brantley's birth is far less eventful then Kaiden's. Still beautiful and wonderful, just less dramatic.

You see, after the terrifying ordeal of giving birth to a 9 lb baby with out an epidural, being induced, and having an episotomy, I decided that this time I was absolutely having an epidural. I was not feeling an ounce of pain besides getting an IV and having the epidural placed in my back.
We opted to have me induced again. Jake was working full time and we couldn't afford for him to miss more than one day of work, so we decided to have me induced on a Thursday (my doctor didn't do inductions on Fridays) so Jake could work only the next day and then have the weekend to spend with the new baby before returning to work on Monday.

This also made it easier because our friend base in Utah was limited and our closest family is California, so having an exact plan for a babysitter for Kaiden was much more settling.

So the morning of June 10th my friend came over to stay the day with Kaiden and Jake and I headed to the hospital. We were taken to our suite which was just as nice as the one I delivered Kaiden in. We lived in Provo, but I chose to deliver in Orem for that reason. It was a small, adorable women's center connected to the quaint little Orem Community Hospital

I was given my IV in my forearm, started on low petocin, and told I was third in line for the anesthesiologist to come give me my epidural. They then said they were going to go ahead and break my water because if they didn't do it now, they would have to wait until the afternoon when my doctor could be there again.

I panicked. Last time breaking my water meant  my contractions got intense, and fast. I asked the nurse if there was ANY way we could wait to break my water until after the anesthesiologist could give me the epidural. I gave a quick recap of my first birthing experience and told her I did not want to ever feel another contraction EVER again. I probably stressed that fact 10 different ways, trying to get the point across that this pregnant chick did not want to feel herself give birth to this baby. She sweetly offered to turn down my petocin until the anesthesiologist could come in. I'm pretty embarrassed at how I reacted, I must have sounded like a spoiled princess.

No, NO pain for her royal highness despite the fact she is pushing a human life from her body through a cavity logic dictates it should not fit through! This matterth not, bringeth forth my drugs peasants!!

So the doctor came and broke my water and miraculously as he was finishing up, the anesthesiologist showed up. I swear the needle was as big as my pinky finger. My stomach churned as a momentarily rethought my decision. Then I remembered the pain of labor and pushed aside my fear of needles, squeezed my eyes shut, held onto Jake and the nurse, and braced myself.
I would find out later that the needle I saw was only the needle to administer the local anesthesia and that the actual needle that went into my spine was MUCH bigger. I probably would have passed out if I had seen it before hand.

It was the strangest feeling not being able to feel my legs. I could move them, I just couldn't feel them. Then they got itchy...oh did they itch!! And my scratching did nothing, because I couldn't feel it. The nurse assured me it was just a rare side effect of the epidural, but told me that there was unfortunately nothing she could do.But I didn't let it bother me. If itching was the trade I had to make to not feel any contractions then so be it.

I also was surprised because I started to feel drugged, just a little. If I'm ever given meds I start to ramble. It's ridiculous. I'm there, in my head thinking "No don't say that! Stop! Just stop talking now...seriously? WHY am I still talking? OMG shut up..." buuuut my mouth doesn't seem to get that message and so I say simple things in the weirdest, longest ways possible. When the nurse picked up on this, she sat me up and told me that I needed to stay up so that the medicine from the epidural stayed down beneath where the line was in my back. Apparently it had been going up as well, instead of just down. She left and I looked at Jake and said "Please tell me to shut up next time!" He just smiled like the smart man that he is and saved himself from saying anything which, as we all know ladies, would have been the wrong thing no matter what he said. So the drugged feeling left and I was back to no excuse for the ridiculous things that come out of my mouth.

So then it was a waiting game. And before I knew it the nurse came in to check how dilated I was and said his head was actually right there, and that his shoulders just needed to come past my pelvis. It was time to push! All I could think was "Already?? That was so easy!"

So in came the doctor, up went my legs, and I began to push. Not even ten minutes of pushing brought our sweet little Brantley into the world at 2:22 pm weighing 8lbs 2 oz and 20 inches long.

He had brown hair! I was thrilled because Kaiden is a carbon copy of my husband. Brown hair meant this child had at least one physical attribute that came from me.

They cleaned him up a bit and put him into Jake's arms. I instantly got very jealous. I wanted to hold the baby I had just carried for 9 months. So I said so. And Jake said no! But before you gasp in surprise and disdain, hear out his argument. He was going to have to go home to be with Kaiden that night and then go to work the next day, all the while I would have Brantley to myself. So, he got to keep holding Brantley for a little while longer.

He did eventually share, and I got to meet my beautiful little son. And it was just as amazing as meeting Kaiden. This was our child. We created this precious little life..

Jake came and sat next to me while I held Brantley. I looked up at him and felt more in love with him then I had ever felt up until that moment. The song "Then" by Brad Paisley came to mind. (If you don't know it, you should. And if you don't like country, well...then what kind of an American are you??). This wonderful man had my heart, and in my arms was this beautiful little life we had created together. I was filled with an immeasurable joy. 

The next day we brought Kaiden to meet Brantley before Jake had to go to work.

Kaiden wanted nothing to do with him.

It was a little saddening to not get the adorable picture of your whole family next to you in the hospital bed, but we knew that if Kaiden needed time we should give it to him. He was losing his spot as the baby, and I suppose for some children that's a harder pill to swallow than it is for others. So Jake took Kaiden home and I did get that time with just me and my new baby boy.

And that is the story of when our little family of three became a family of four.