My beautiful son did not come into this world the way I thought he would,

but exactly as he was supposed to.

Having had what could only be described as a "dream pregnancy," I automatically assumed his delivery would go smoothly.

After all, I had done all I could to ensure he was healthy. In fact, I am in better shape now than I was pre-pregnancy! Upon finding out that we had conceived, I immediately started eating healthier going to prenatal yoga twice a week a mile and a half everyday. I continued these habits throughout my pregnancy and never had any sickness or complications. I felt confident that I could have a natural, drug-free labor and delivery. But, Luca Elijah had a different plan. My due date was 9/12.

My water began to leak at 1am on 9/07

"It's baby time!" I excitedly exclaimed to my fiancé. I was so nervous and exceed that I was going through drawers as if I was packing, even though the hospital bag stood ready to go at the doorway. We threw everything in the car and we got to the hospital (which was 30 mins away) by 2am. My contractions began in the car, but we jammed out to Pink Floyd and Guns N Roses to distract me. I labored naturally for 8 hours without dilating past 1 cm. My breathing, meditation and "mind over matter" mentality broke when the Dr gave me the news that I wasn't progressing in the slightest. He explained they had to give me pitocin to move things along and I tried to work with the pain, but it was too much. I got the epidural. I didn't feel defeated. My three best friends & all of Luca's grandparents were there. My fiancé was doing an amzong job keeping the atmosphere light and celebratory, fespite the change in plans. Things started going hot and heavy with the Pitocin and by 2pm I was dilated at 7cm. My best friends, Luca's "Aunties", brought a bottle of Don Perignon and everyone began to sign it with silver sharpies. There was laughter and anticipation, bets were being placed on when he arrived. The Dr came back at 4pm to check my progress. I was still a 7cm. The Dr explained that there was a possibility of having to do a cesarean if things didn't pick back up, we didn't want baby exposed that long, and I was GBS+. The mood immediately changed and I was terrified. Dr gave me into 6:30pm to make progress. We all prayed so hard. My fiancé got out his guitar and we sang together. We did everything to stay positive. At 6:30pm, Dr checked again. I was still at 7 and my cervix was actually thickening back up.

I felt as though I had fallen through the ice and was drowning and freezing at the same time, I was so scared. I had prepared myself for this possibility. The Drs began to prep for surgery and I shook like I was having tremors. The anesthesiologist came and increased my epidural. My family and friends went to the waiting room and they gave my fiancé scrubs to change into and they wheeled me into the OR. I had to close my eyes at that point. Being awake, numbed and on a table, staring up at the OR lights was too much. I told the Drs I was going to be sick and they placed a bowl by my head. I had to turn my face and vomit. It was all too much and the medication made me queasy to begin with. Then, my fiancé was there. While they poked and prodded, making sure the medicine worked, he held my hand. They put up the curtain and he smiled at me behind his surgical mask. I was still trembling, but he began to ask me questions, to get my mind off what was happening. He made me recall certain details of trips we had taken, adventures we had, people we met. He had me talking about our music and future. The only thing I remember hearing the Drs say was "Oh, no wonder, he's also crooked in here!" Other than that, I could completely block them out. I don't know how he knew to do what he did, but before I realized it, the Drs asked "do you want to see your little boy?" "Yes! Yes!" We shouted. My fiancé was already in tears. They then lifted, above the curtain, the most beautiful human we had ever seen. His eyes and hands were wide open and he looked around the room, taking it all in. At that moment, nothing at all mattered and it was all worth it. He was here. He was healthy and perfect. I would do it a million times again the same exact way. Luca Elijah Avant made his grand entrance into this world weighing 7lbs 14oz and measuring 20.5 inches. My beautiful son did not come into this world the way I thought he would, but exactly as he was supposed to.