Birth Stories...

So one of the biggest parts of parenthood, is of course, the actual birth of your child, which you will want to share with absolutely every person you talk to, and will share with some people multiple times because it's just one of those huge events that changes your life and you want to share it with the world.

Just yesterday my brother welcomed baby #3 into his family. Theirs is one of those unusual birth stories that I wouldn't wish to experience personally. Delivery in the car. Gives me shivers. My amazingly brave sis in law delivered their baby in the car, while speeding down the street. She even had to unwrap the cord that went around the sweet baby's neck twice and around each arm. Sounds horribly frightening, right? As I tried to imagine myself in that situation, I figured that you have so much adrenaline and hormones pumping through you that the mommy-bear complex would be pretty huge right now, and of course protecting the just barely born baby would not be a problem. Thankfully, cords were unwrapped and the baby was fine. They made it to the birthing center and all was well. They even went home that night (like 4 hours later) to be with their other 2 kids.

So far I haven't had nearly anything that dramatic happen to me, but my stories are unique and very different. Moose was an emergency c-section. Monkey was our wonderful VBAC. (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean) Like I said, the actual birth of a child is so life changing, so miraculous, it's so hard to not want to share it with the world. I'm super happy for my bro and his new addition. So glad such a dramatic situation worked out so well.

My sweet friend is coming close to the birth of her own little bundle and the other day I was thinking about her, feeling nervous for her. I don't think there's any way to prepare for what labor and delivery are like. One reason is because everyone feels it so differently. People feel contractions differently, our bodies respond differently, we all have different pain tolerances, we respond to medicine differently, and in the end, there is just NO way to prepare yourself for what it feels like. (Unless you have to pass gall stones, I've heard. But even still, not the same.) But ultimately, it's all so wonderful and so worth it, you'll share your story multiple times daily with whoever will listen. It's just so great to share!