So I really can’t stress how nervous I was thinking about giving birth to my first child! The funny thing though, is that when I was about 2/3 days from birthing her, a natural calmness came over me and I was SO Ready to have my daughter enter into the world! It’s like the instinctive mommy switch came on and put me in delivery mode 👍🏽

My due date was April 28th. On Easter the 21st, my husband and I spent time with family, both my mom and sister asked how I was feeling and told me I looked like I had “dropped lower” then when they saw me at the baby shower (April 7th)

I was having what I now know were contractions, and I told them I was cramping pretty good but only every hour or so. It was uncomfortable, but felt about the same as period cramps. We ate and joked that she might be an Easter baby and that she might be born that night.

Well, she was actually born the next day! 👶🏼🎀

After leaving my sister’s for Easter dinner and getting comfortable at home, cramps intensified. That night I got NO SLEEP, waking up every other hour with gut wrenching cramps. It’s definitely like a wave of pain that I describe as a really bad Charlie horse in your lower abdomen, then holds on like a serious Kung fu grip for 30 seconds to a min.... It releases, but no matter how hard you try to prepare for the next contraction, the pain is still very intense and impossible to get used to.

7:40 am rolls around, I’ve been keeping track All Night with my contraction calculator... hubby is getting ready for work and I’m telling him how much pain I’m in. He lets me know if we’re going to the hospital, he’s ready, just give him the go. (Thank God I finished packing my bag only 3 days prior)...

Contractions get closer together, about every 20/30 min, then around 9:30/10 am I loose my mucus plug. It looks just like it sounds, also called a bloody show, its just like snot and has a very jelly consistency. Also kinda brownish red in color. Shouted the status to my husband through the bathroom door while drawing a hot bath.

Took my bath, had hubby call Labor & Delivery, at this point still using my contraction calculator, both calculator and L&D said it’s time to head to hospital.

Husband and I pull up to Emergency room, Thank the LORD it’s quiet, empty and no line! Three ladies at desk help check us in, hubby got the wheelchair, and I was send up in about 3 mins. Put right into a room and told by the nurse that once she checked my cervix, I was at 6cm! She told me she couldn’t believe how well I was doing with the pain for it to be my 1st child!

Told her thanks, but I’ll be needing that epidural right about now lol. Waited about 35/40 mins for anesthesiologist to come, in the meantime my husband fed me ice chips and called my mom and sister. I went to 8 cm right before getting epidural...

Epidural was administered, and in about 20 mins my waist down to my knees were not completely numb, but much more relaxed. My contractions could be felt but went from a 10 to a 2. It DID NOT HURT TO GET EPIDURAL. As a first time mom I was nervous about that and it is just a pinch that lasts half a second. Not comparable to the awful contractions I was having 🤷🏽‍♀️

My family made it to hospital and within a hour I was at 10 cm ready to push!

My mom and husband held my legs back while my sis took photos and video.

Once my doctor walked in, I pushed about 10 mins and our little blessing was born!

💕👶🏻🎀

Here she is, our Beautiful Victoria Lynn 🌸