MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Our little family is feeling so incredibly blessed this Christmas! Daughter #3, Evelyn Jane, was born yesterday morning and I will never, ever forget the experience. Here’s the play-by-play, for those of you who are interested (and not squeamish about terms like “dilation” and “afterbirth”):
{Keep in mind that, as of Christmas Eve, I was a whole week overdue and extremely frustrated with my OB doctors. I had been in and out of early labor contraction patterns for almost two weeks and was dilated to a 3.5 as of Sunday the 20th. I was so DONE with being pregnant and I was feeling guilty about my mom, dad, and sister, who had come to Delaware to meet the baby a week earlier. We all wanted this baby to come out!!}
7:15 a.m. – I wake up. My husband, Michael, is getting dressed for work. We had been up talking and praying (and me crying) until the wee hours of the morning. He looks at me, surprised, when I whisper that I think today’s going to be the day.
7:20 a.m. – Still laying in bed, I have my first contraction, but I’ve grown skeptical over the past two weeks. I have a doctor’s appointment at 8:30 and I’m worried they’ll make me wait longer if I’m not yet in active labor. The hospital does not schedule inductions on holidays or weekends, and my family was leaving on Sunday. I’m feeling anxious, but decide to get up and get ready for my appointment, hoping that I have another good contraction soon.
7:27 a.m. – The second contraction comes seven minutes after the first. My hopes for real labor without an induction are increasing.
7:50 a.m. – I get out of the shower and the contractions are coming pretty strong. They are increasingly painful but I figure that I’ve got some time because my water hasn’t broken yet. (This was my first experience with back labor – not fun.) Michael and I decide that this is the real deal and we should probably just go straight to the hospital. He calls my doctor to advise them that I won’t be making my appointment. The plan is to get ready for the day, drop off some stuff at Michael’s work, and head down to the hospital.
8:00 a.m. – I put on some make up and start to blow dry my hair, chatting with my family in between contractions. My mom wants my 20 year-old sister to see my labor pains and we all joke about how this is the ultimate birth control! Everyone gets excited that the baby is finally coming! We all hope together that she will arrive sometime before that evening so that I have a chance of spending at least some of Christmas Day with my other girls at home.
8:15 a.m. – Contractions are really starting to hurt and they are coming faster. It takes all my focus to manage the pain. I try as hard as I can to relax and breathe low. There is less chatting and joking with my family – it was game time. New plan: Michael calls a co-worker and asks him to swing by our house to pick up some paperwork because we need to head to the hospital right away. I’m still convinced there is time though because my water had not yet broken. I brush my teeth and pack my toiletries bag for the hospital.
8:35 a.m. – It feels like there is no break between my contractions. They come one after another. Somehow, using all my willpower, and with Michael and my dad on each arm, we make it down the stairs and out the front door. My water breaks during a particularly hard contraction on the front porch and all I can manage to yell is “Water!!” Michael runs inside to grab my water bottle and suddenly realizes that I am talking about a different water.
8:36 a.m. – I’m absolutely frozen in pain on the porch. Even though our hospital is about two blocks away, it felt like it might as well have been in another state. My legs start to shake and give and I blurt out “I need to push – NOW!” My dad (a family doctor in Arizona who also does OB) says, “Looks like we’re having this baby right here.” Thank goodness he was with us!
8:40 a.m. – We get back in the house and head for the living room. Michael and my dad lay me down on my ottoman (you remember my ottoman…). The baby is crowning. I start pushing, with my sister holding my back up and Michael and my mom holding my legs.
8:54 a.m. – Baby Evie is born in my living room, two feet from our Christmas tree. There is not a dry eye in the place. We tie the cord with dental floss (no clean shoelaces available) and Michael cuts it with my trusty pair of sewing scissors (sanitized with Purell, of course). All of the clean towels have been used already, so we wrap her in a beach towel. Evelyn is absolute perfection and I am so in love.
8:56 a.m. – The doorbell rings! Its Michael’s co-worker, coming to pick up the paperwork. My mom and sister quickly hold up a sheet to block the view before the front door is opened. The conversation is very brief and sort of awkward, I’m sure, for Michael’s co-worker. He becomes the first person to find out the baby has just been born.
8:58 a.m. – A rustle at the top of the stairs. Thankfully, both of my girls had stayed up late the night before and had slept through all the commotion of the morning. Claire (my two-year old) is awake now and shouts from the landing “Hey guys! What’s goin’ on?!” We direct Claire’s attention to the baby as she rounds the corner, so that she doesn’t notice the afterbirth just then being caught in my (formerly) favorite casserole dish. Grace (my four-year old) comes downstairs shortly thereafter. The girls begin presenting Evie with pacifiers, blankets, toys, and presents from under the tree. We decide that we should probably still go to hospital to have everyone checked out.
9:45 a.m. – We arrive at the hospital and there are no wheelchairs so we walk up to the labor and delivery wing and announce, “I just had a baby. Where should I go?”
10:00 a.m – We are checked out by the doctors and nurses and the results all come back great. Evie weighed in at a whopping 9 lbs even!! We recount our story about 20 times. A guy comes in and takes my picture with Evie in a giant Christmas stocking ((awesome)) for the Dover newspaper. After a few short hours at the hospital, we are cleared to head back home happily to spend Christmas as a family. Hooray!
The rest of Christmas Eve is full of BBC chick flicks, my mom’s famous Swedish meatballs and collective head-shaking. I am SO not a home birth kind of gal, but the experience was nothing short of life-changing and completely spiritual for me and my family.
The birth of any baby is amazing and miraculous, but we’re all feeling a special connection to sweet Evelyn Jane, our little Christmas Evie.
Thank you for all your love and support. I have the best readers and I truly appreciate each and every one of you!!
Lots of love and Merry Christmas,
jenny
Oh my goodness–what an amazing story. Congratulations–she's perfect. I love her name, so sweet and fitting! I'll be telling your famous story, seriously unreal! Wishing you the best!!
your story made me cry. congratulations! it's so special to have a newborn around during this special season.
What an amazing story! Congrats to all of your family!
Jenny! Congratulations! She is perfect! I couldn't even comment right away as my eyes were filled with tears. I'm just so happy for you and your family. What a miracle! I'm Anna, the girl who emailed you a few days ago on the 21st and told you "I'll be thinking of you and hoping she arrives soon…maybe she just wants to give you a christmas present on christmas day!" And boy did she ever give you a wonderful Christmas present, miracle and memory…I don't think your casserole dish will ever be the same though! :) Again, congratulations!
Hi
Wow! I stumbled upon your blog not too long ago and have been checking each day to see if you had your baby… OMG! What an amazing story! Congratulations to you and your family!!!
I hope you and your family are doing well. Thanks for inviting us into your world.
Oh my goodness!!! What an incredible {and tear jerking} story! I cannot believe how many things perfectly fell into to place…it's right out of a book. And was a blessing each step of the way. Sending hugs and warm wishes to your family!
You're going to love having three little ones. I now have four. :-)
Wonderful! Congratulations! You look amazing as well…
Congratulations!
Thanks for sharing this miracle with us. An amazing Christmas tale!The baby is so beautiful and you two together are the image of hapiness.
Sofia
Amazing, awesome, spectacular Jenny. You are a rockstar girl and a continued inspiration. Congrats and she is just perfect!
Congratulations – what a wonderful way for such a beautiful little girl to enter the world – surrounded by love, family, and Christmas presents!
Wow, what an amazing story!! I gave birth to Stella Josephine on Nov 23rd, and your story makes me want to do it again!!
Congratulations!!! What a wonderful Christmas present!! :)
I ve been checking each day. What a fantastic entrance!A wonderful present under the tree ! Hope your ottoman survived the experience.
Congratlations
ZoeB
that is beyond awesome and now i am crying. how amazing. and how lucky you are.
congrats.
she is beautiful.
She (and the mother) are glowing!
what a special Christmas Evie!
I just barely started reading. It was the Rhode Island bedroom. Because I am "here" (RI!), and I WANT ONE! But that is another story for another day. Welcome beautiful baby. What a GREAT story. I've been checking in all week. I would have just been relieved for you for her to be here. UNDER THE TREE on Christmas Eve! Fabulous!
OH MY GOD. What a beautiful story! Congratulations!! What a job well done by you and your entire family! WOW.
Oh wow!! What a Merry Christmas!! Congratulations!!! She's beautiful and so is her name. Happy New Year and blessings to you and your new addition!
Oh my, what a story and what a precious little Christmas present! Welcome Baby Evelyn!
Jenny!! Oh my goodness…I absolutely cannot believe it! What a miracle sweet Evie is indeed! I am rejoicing with you and your sweet family this Christmas! So proud you and glad you were able to have such an AWESOME birth experience, especially after all that waiting and disappointment. The Lord truly heard your prayers!!! What Christmas miracle she is!!! Congrats to you and the whole family!!
UNBELIEVABLE!!!! BEST STORY I'VE HEARD/READ IN A LONG TIME! Many congrats and lots of love to you!!!!
I am freaking out!! I cannot believe that happened. I must hear this story from you AND Michael in person sometime. That would be so awesome. Now I'm all nervous that I'm going to have my little girl at home. I don't have a doctor here at my house, you see? Maybe your Dad could just come stay at my house for a couple of weeks. Hopefully I will have plenty of time to pack up the boys (yes, because I don't have any friends yet…sob) and get to the hospital. Okay, I'm starting to panic. I better go read up on giving birth. Congratulations guys! She's so beautiful and we're so happy for you! And is that a Komenda chut on her? If so, I bet Sis. Komenda is going to be pretty excited.
WOW!! What a story to tell for years and years!!! Truly a Christmas Miracle! Congratulations!!!
I am such a cornball,crying with joy for you & your lovely family to have been so blessed. Beautiful!
Jennica,
What a special miracle. I am so happy for you and your family. I know that that little girl was meant to come right then and there. What a blessing to have your dad! and the rest of your family participate in such an incredible experience. It makes me cry thinking of that sweet, special little Spirit. She is beautiful.
Love,
Anna
Well, of course I'm crying. I just somehow KNEW that you would birth so quickly (although I did not imagine it would be at your own front door!) That pattern of extended early labor couldn't have meant anything else! What an amazing blessing for you and your family!
That is the most amazing birth story I've ever heard. You couldn't make that stuff up! I'm so happy for you and your family and your Christmas miracle!
That is truly the best birth story I have ever heard! Love it & glad you were able to be home on Christmas.
What a great story she will have to tell as she goes through life. How wonderful that she was born on Christmas Eve, at home, in about 2 mins.:) I am glad that everything worked out get.
My husband and I were born on the same day, 11 hrs. apart, in the same hospital. He says that I have been chasing him since the nursery:)
Meryy Christmas.
OH. MY. GOSH!!!! I can't believe your story!!! That is the best one I have ever heard. I'm so glad things worked out well in the end. She is perfection! I can't type with the tears in my eyes! Congratulations. What an amazing experience! And on your ottoman!!?! hilarious! I love the name. Perfect with G and C's. We are so happy for you guys. That is so amazing! Now I have to go back and read this again!
Congratulations! What a wonderful story to be able to tell for years! And I love the name to go with it. What a wonderful Christmas present!
What a wonderful Evie story … and to have your family there surrounding you? ~ what a forever memory. Rich blessings to you this year!
WOW!!! Isn't God Amazing!!! This is so crazy because I had a very very simular experience two weeks ago with the birth our newest son. I'm still working up the courage to share my story… (= Enjoy your sweet little one Blessings to your family, Barbara
Oh congrats! So glad to hear you are both healthy and that you were able to spend Christmas with your family. (And that she came while your family was still in town)
I am crying ,rejoicing and laughing all at the same time!! CONGRATULATIONS! Girl, you are a Soldier!
That is the most amazing story I've heard!!! A Christmas memory you'll never forget – that's for sure!
your comment about the formerly favorite casserole dish made me chuckle in the midst of tearing up! ;)
So excited for you & family… congratulations!!!
Wow! Congratulations on your new sweet baby.
CONGRATULATIONS!
I just read much of this entry out loud to my boyfriend's family. They loved it! Thank you so much for sharing with us. The pictures are lovely!
What an amazing story you will tell your daughter when she grows up! So glad to hear you had a safe and wonderful delivery, congratulations to you and your family.
AMAZING!!!!! So, so happy for you!
Congratulations and MERRY CHRISTMAS! That was quite a dramatic entrance that evelyn made!
Truly. Amazing. Unbelievably-special, Christmas miracle birth story!
Evie is beautiful!!
Many blessings to you and yours!
Way to go, Mommy!!!
congratulations! serious tears here. you & your evie are beautiful! wishing you and your family the best.
By the time you mentioned your ottoman, I was literally screaming! LOL Congratulations! So glad your dad was there to help you. xoxo
Wow! What a beautiful story. I have never commented on your blog, but have been a regular reader, and kept checking in to see if the baby is here yet. Evie sure knows how to make an entrance- at home! Surrounded by wonderful people, and a beautiful place. She is lovely. Congratulations. I can stop being teary now :)
p.s. you are the most 'refreshed-looking' mom I have ever seen!
That is one of the most beautiful stories I've ever read. Congratulations to you & your lovely family. What a Christmas to remember, the true meaning of Christmas, a childs birth.
WOW!! That is the best Christmas/birth story ever. Congratulations and God bless you all!
So Amazing! I had to read it to my husband. She is beautiful and you sound like you have a wonderful family. God is so good. :)
what a great story! Blessings to all of you!
Amazing. Congratulations. Happy Christmas.
Oh my goodness. Good luck topping this Christmas gift next year. What a wonderful story. Enjoy your wonderful time with your family!