Wednesday, August 22, 2012….
Oh the wonderful anticipation! I was 4 cm dilated and having mild contractions. Hubby, Doctor and I all decided that tomorrow would be the day to have this baby! I couldn’t wait to meet my little guy. I was more connected to this baby throughout the pregnancy than I was my other two. Maybe because I knew he would be my last, or maybe because the 3 year break between my second born and Bennet had given me perspective on how fast it all goes. All I knew is that I wanted to cherish every. last. second.
We dropped the kids off at my parents house and told them we would see them tomorrow. They were SO excited to meet Bennet for the first time. I was a little bit nervous. Nervous about the next few months with wakeful nights and 3 children. Nervous about what kind of baby he would be. Nervous about what a family of 5 would look like. It seems so silly now that I was nervous about those things. I would give anything to have only those things on my mind, but I am getting ahead of myself…..
7 am Thursday, August 22, 2012….
I arrived at the hospital all ready to go. I made sure I felt pretty because I knew I would appreciate the pictures later. I had all of you on my mind and what kind of blog posts I would be doing about my hospital stay once I got home. I made sure my hubby took this picture for you all:
I always have a little anxiety about my choices to be induced and have an epidural. I knew people would judge me or think I was less than a mom for not having him completely naturally. Its not that I second guess myself, but you see, I am very much a “people pleaser” and I loath to have people think less of me……it all seems so silly now. Everything went exactly as planned. We got settled in our room and the nurse got the ball rolling. It was about 10am when labor really started and I knew I would go fast once I got started, so I got the epidural right away. Hubby and I were calm, relaxed and super excited.
At 1:15 pm after one push, my sweet, amazing and brave Bennet was born. 8lbs 3 oz and absolutely beautiful. He was my first baby to be born with blond hair and blue eyes. He stole my heart immediately.
He was perfect, healthy, normal. Passed all his tests, scored 8/9 apgar and breastfed perfectly. Once we were back in the recovery room my parents brought our kids see him. Everything was right with the world. My family was complete. I had so many plans for the holiday season and for the following summer… for the rest of our lives. I knew it would be hard to have 3 kids under the age of 5. I knew we would have challenges with money, time, discipline, contentment and a multitude of other things. I was nervous about being a good mom. You may have noticed, I like to have a plan. I like to be prepared for the good and the bad.
And for on beautiful day, all was right with the world……
If you want to connect with me and follow what’s going on in our lives you can find me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook! XOXO-Christie
@christiejean17
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I’m so excited to hear from you! I’ve been praying for you all & baby Bennet
Looking forward to part 2…..Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so so much. The prayers of people rallying around us has are what got us through
You look so wonderful, before and after! Congratulations. I am so very happy for you and your new little one; however, I know there is more to this story and it’s not all good. So, prayers for you, for your little one, and your story, because God makes all things beautiful in His time.
~FringeGirl
Indeed He does
Thank you so much!
Such a sweet angel Christie! Im tearing up thinking of the rest of the story. I cant wait to read the rest though. I hope yall are doing well!
You and me both! God is so good, but it is difficult to look back without crying. Thanks for the welcome back Kelly, you are just the sweetest
You look amazing {esp in the copy cat e-mail}. I can’t imagine with the little that i know and I am glad things are getting back to “normal” or maybe you are just finding a new normal but either way, glad your back
Can’t wait to read more about Bennett and God’s amazing grace!
“New Normal” is the title of the 3rd installment of this series
You nailed it! and thank you.
What a beautiful family, Christine!!
Has part 2 been posted?
Jourdan
No not yet
It will be up next week. Its going to be a hard one to write!
It’s so good to hear from you Christie! I’ve missed you and I continue to pray for you. xo
He’s gorgeous. I know a lot of the story but to hear it in your words is almost too much…heartbreaking really. Thank you for sharing it with us!!
Congratulations on your beautiful little boy!
Our HLHS daughter Seren was born on the 5th of November 2012 so at 10 days old we’re very early in the journey (please god). She’ll be a week post Norwood tomorrow and we’re just taking it each day at a time…. as only HLHS kiddies can…..
Looking forward to reading part 2 and hearing how Bennet is doing! I hope and pray he’s doing well so far xoxox
Oh Caroline I have been following Seren’s story from the beginning! We are in this together! You live in the UK right? Or do I have that wrong? My mother and father inlaw live in Oxford.
Thanks for replying Christie – I’m in Ireland, so you’re geographically close enough with the UK guess!
Another ‘quiet’ night for Seren last night so we’re having a ‘calm’ couple of days thank god.
Love love this Christie. It’s so good to hear all this from your experience. Looking forward to the rest of the story. I know it’s been hard, and you have all been in my prayers. I’m really excited though to see the amazing things God is going to do through this and in you personally as He takes you on this journey of faith and trust. Love you friend.
Thank you Rachel. Love you too
Christie, God has done an amazing work in the lives of Bennet and your family. I pray that He continues to strengthen his little heart and that you and your family always feel His security and presence around you. Love you guys! <3
Oh Christie, I’m glad you’re back first of all! Reading this was so crazy to know that for a moment everything seemed “perfect”, then everything changed. Our experience with my reesey was similar in that she was with us and fine for the first day then everything changed. I pray that you are taking one day at a time (which is super hard for us “planner” gals) and finding extra measures of strength from The Lord.
I’m so glad you got to have that first day to be blissfully happy. Though it kills me to think that women may feel pressured to not have the birth plan they really want. If an epidural is right for you, go for it and don’t feel any shame!
Oh Christie, I am so happy to see you back here! I’ve been praying for you guys and for baby Bennet!!!
You look great!! I too had planned inductions with an epidural (except for one baby) and really they worked so well for me… but I’m a people pleaser too and depending on who I was talking too sometimes felt bad! I’ve been praying for your little one… looking forward to reading more of your story.